The Teacher's Beta

Chapter 36

Calli

Hearing Layla scream flipped a switch inside me and I take off in a sprint towards the cabin. My heart is beating hard out of exertion and fear, my breathing coming in quick pants causing my lungs to burn from the frigid air. I stop in front of the porch to catch my breath, gripping the gun tightly.

I take one last, deep breath and creep onto the porch, trying to look in the windows but they are all covered. I decide this is it, might as well go all in. I push open the front door, lift the gun and look around the interior.

I feel as though I'm pulled back into my own memories. The small space is the same. Couch, table, fireplace and the bed.

Oh God the bed.

It's the exact same. Same frame, same sheets. The only difference is that it's now Layla tied to it with ropes.

The ropes.

They can't possibly be the same ropes can they? What sick monster would keep something like that?

"Hey, Dewdrop. I'm surprised you're here."

The sickening voice pulled me out of my memories straight into my current nightmare.

"I gave you enough of that drug you should still be passed out cold. I told you I'd come back for you." Paul says with a sneer. I narrow my eyes and square my shoulders, gripping the gun so tight my knuckles whiten.

"Figured I'd save you the trouble. I'm a fucking Beta now. Apparently you didn't take that into account when you were measuring out my dosage." Paul scoffs and I look over at Layla, who is naked, eyes wide in terror and tear tracks down her face.

"How convenient. I should be thanking you. Now I don't have to drink anymore of that disgusting potion to mask my scent or sneak onto that obnoxious pack of yours again." He huffs as he takes a step towards me, eyeing the gun cautiously.

"Is that how you did it? A potion?" I ask and he nods.

"Witches are bat shit crazy, but they have some tricks that are actually useful." He says as he shifts to the side, slowly reaching his hand out towards the gun, but I back up refusing to let him close.

"It was you, wasn't it? That feeling of being watched that I've had the last few weeks?" A sinister smile splashes across his face and he chuckles.

"It was. You're quite observant for a human. Lucky for me your mate ignored your concerns. If he had really tried to find me he probably could have." The thought makes my anger at Finn flare, but I decide to push it down. I need to have my wits about me.

"Just let Layla go. No one needs to get hurt."

Paul puts his hand to his chin as if in thought before glaring at me.

"No. In fact I think I'll keep you both. I think you'll like it here Dewdrop. Does being here bring back memories?" He asks sadistically before trailing his hand up the inside of Layla's bare thigh. She whimpers and thrashes at the contact and I do my best not to vomit.

"Stop it!" I yell repositioning the gun in my grasp. "Stop touching her or I will shoot you!"

Paul scoffs and climbs off of Layla before stalking towards me.

"You can't shoot me. You're too sweet. Too kind and gentle. You would never be able to deal with taking a life. We both know that."

"I don't have to take your life." I seethe as I aim and pull the trigger.

A loud boom reverberates off the cabin walls and I'm momentarily stunned by the sound. I opened my eyes slowly and hear Layla scream.

Oh God did I hit her?

"You fucking bitch!" Paul calls out. I look and find him on his knees, hands cradling his crotch as red blood flows between his fingers.

"Did you shoot him in the dick?!" Layla yells incredulously and I nod, unable to speak. I take a few deep breaths and look at her.

"I was aiming for his stomach." I explain and she let's out a humorless laugh.

I pull the dagger from my bag and cross the room to her. I climb over her to release her from her bonds, avoiding looking at her body trying to maintain some shred of her modesty.

"Let's get you the fuck out of here." I murmur to her and she nods.

"I'm so happy to see you Calli. But where's Ian?" She asks, looking behind me as if expecting him to come barreling into the cabin at any moment. The thought almost makes me laugh. Ian would look like a giant in this tiny place.

"Looking for you in the wrong spot." I explain somberly and give her a look that expresses my sorrow at the fact.

"So he's not coming?" She asks as tears brim her eyes and I shake my head.

"No, but I'll get you back to him. You're gonna be fine." She begins to sob as I cut the last rope, freeing her ankle. The marks on her wrists and ankles wrench me into a memory where I had similar marks. I rubbed them constantly, aching for them to disappear, hoping the memories would go with them.

"Silver bullets. At least you're not a completely idiotic human." I hear quietly from the other side of the room.

Paul's pained moans from the corner bring me back to reality as I search the cabin for Layla's clothes. I hand them to her and wait for her to dress as I keep the gun trained on Paul. It looks like the blood flow has stopped, a small puddle of the congealed substance has collected between his outstretched knees but is no longer dripping from between his fingers.

"You might as well kill me, Dewdrop. Because once I heal I will hunt you like a dog and make you fucking suffer before I kill you with my bare hands so I can watch the life fade from your eyes. I can promise you that." He spits at me, bits of saliva flinging off of his lips as tears of pain run down his face. He looks much paler than before, his eyes darker and more animalistic than I had ever seen them.

"You were right, Paul. I don't want to kill you. But I will. Don't doubt that for one second and if it isn't me who takes your life it will be one of our mates. Or maybe both actually, I'm sure they wouldn't mind taking turns torturing you. So I suggest you leave. Actually, don't just leave. Run. As fast and as far as you can and never look back."

Paul smirks at me as I help Layla stand from the bed. She is still so weak and needs to put a majority of her weight on me. Paul summons what appears to be all of his strength and rises from the floor, barreling towards us. He grabs Layla's bicep and flips her back onto the bed. She screams from fear and curls into a ball.

Paul rounds on me and takes a few unsteady steps towards me, his outstretched hands still glistening with his own blood. His face is a mask of pure hatred and I nearly fall over from the intensity of it. I push myself off of the wall moments before he can ensnare me in his grasp. I reach for the gun and go to aim, but he grips it and tries to wrangle it from my grasp.

We struggle for a what can only be a few seconds, but feels more like an eternity. I'm only grateful that he's injured because surely I wouldn't be able to put up such a fight if he were at full strength. I look to Layla for help, but despite her repeated attempts her legs are too weak to hold her own weight, let alone help me overpower this male.

The sticky, wet blood on his hands causes Paul's grip on the gun to falter. I think for a moment that I've got it, that I've bested him, but he reaches for it again. It all happens too quickly. My feet scramble and become twisted with his, causing me to stumble while Paul's hands tighten around the gun again and turn it in the opposite direction, causing the wrist of the hand that still has a firm grip on the piece of metal to ache from the awkward angle. I begin to fall backwards, Paul tumbling with me before I hear the one sound that could make my heart stop beating at this moment.

The defeaning boom of the gun going off.