MATED TO THE BEAST ALPHA BROTHERS
Chapter 35: Vanished and battered.

Chapter 35: Vanished and battered.

"Where is she?"

The moment Archer stormed into the hospital room, he felt it....something was wrong.

His sharp gaze darted around, searching for her.

For Haelyn.

But....

The bed was empty.

The machines were still beeping, their cold mechanical hum filling the silence, but Haelyn was gone.

His blood ran cold.

"Where the hell is she?" he snarled, turning on the nearest nurse.

The young woman froze, fear flashing in her eyes. "S-She was here when we checked a few minutes ago...."

"And now she’s not?" Archer roared, his wolf snapping violently inside him.

"Find her! NOW!"

Seraphis rushed in just as Rowena and Artemis appeared behind Archer.

One look at the empty bed and the color drained from Seraphis’s face.

"No..." she whispered. "No, this isn’t possible...."

Rowena ran to the window, yanking the curtains back.

Nothing.

"How does someone just disappear?" Artemis growled, his hands clenching into fists. "This is a damn hospital!"

Cerius was the last to enter.

He stood in the doorway, his usually stoic face shadowed in something dark.

"They took her."

His voice was calm, but the way his fingers twitched against his side betrayed his fury.

"Who?" Archer demanded, his chest heaving.

Cerius exhaled sharply.

"The ones who wanted her gone the most."

Seraphis staggered back, pressing a trembling hand to her chest.

"This wasn’t supposed to happen," she whispered, her voice breaking.

Rowena gritted her teeth, grabbing her mother’s arm. "You know something, don’t you? Who took her?"

Seraphis didn’t answer.

Her eyes were distant, her body shaking.

Artemis stepped forward, his jaw clenched. "Seraphis. If you know something...."

"She’s going to die," Seraphis interrupted, her voice barely audible.

Silence.

It was the way she said it.

Like it wasn’t a fear.

But a fact.

Archer’s wolf howled inside him.

"I won’t let that happen." His voice was low, dangerous.

Seraphis’s broken gaze met his.

"You may not have a choice."

"I want every guard, every tracker, every wolf searching for her!" Archer barked into his phone.

The pack warriors scrambled, orders being thrown left and right.

"Check every surveillance feed....I don’t care if you have to tear this city apart!"

Ravi appeared at his side, panting. "The hospital cameras....there’s nothing, Archer."

"What?"

"It’s like she just... vanished."

Archer stared at him, disbelieving.

That wasn’t possible.

Unless....

"It’s magic," Seraphis said quietly.

Everyone turned to her.

She looked haunted.

"Whoever took her didn’t just take her physically. They erased her presence."

Rowena gasped. "You mean....?"

"There’s no trail," Seraphis whispered.

"No way to find her."

Archer’s entire body locked up.

His breath came fast.

His wolf snarled inside him, frantic.

"That’s bullshit," he growled, his chest heaving. "There’s always a way to find her!"

But Seraphis didn’t answer.

Because she knew the truth.

And Archer could see it in her eyes.

There was no way to track Haelyn.

She was gone.

Completely.

Without a trace.

Then....

A loud ringing cut through the room.

Archer snatched his phone, answering immediately.

"Did you find her?"

Silence.

Then...

A low, distorted voice.

"Stop looking for her, Alpha."

Archer’s blood turned to ice.

"Who the hell is this?" he snarled.

A cold chuckle.

"If you keep looking, you’ll only make things worse for her."

Artemis stepped closer, his eyes sharp. "Put it on speaker."

Archer did.

The voice continued.

"She’s in a place you’ll never reach."

"If you hurt her, I will rip you apart..."

"She’s already hurting, Archer." The voice was almost mocking. "But you know that, don’t you?"

His breath hitched.

Then...

"Because you felt it."

And Archer did.

The pain.

The pull.

The moment she was taken.

His wolf had felt it.

The bond had screamed in agony.

"Bring her back." His voice was barely controlled, murderous.

"She doesn’t belong to you anymore."

A click.

The call ended.

Silence fell.

Archer stared at his phone, his entire body trembling with rage.

Seraphis closed her eyes.

Rowena’s fingers curled into fists.

And Cerius?

He simply watched the night sky, his expression unreadable.

But his eyes?

They burned.

Because he knew.

This was only the beginning.

"Wake up, you ungrateful little wretch."

The sting of ice-cold water hit Haelyn’s face, shocking her awake.

She gasped, coughing violently, her body jerking against metal restraints.

Her vision was blurry, her head pounding, but the smell of blood and damp stone filled her senses.

Her arms were stretched above her, bound by thick, blackened chains.

Immediately, she tried to shift....tried to call her wolf.

Nothing.

Pain...searing, unbearable pain....shot through her body, burning her skin where the metal touched.

Her wolf howled in agony.

Haelyn bit back a scream.

"Ah, so you can feel it," Arthur sneered, stepping forward.

Her eyes snapped open, locking onto the man who had caused her nothing but suffering.

Arthur stood before her, arms crossed, his expression filled with contempt.

Beside him stood Layla, Tiago, Helen, and Malcolm.

Layla’s arms were folded smugly, her lips curved in a cruel smirk.

"Looks like even your powers are useless now," she mocked.

Haelyn gritted her teeth, glaring at them despite the pain.

"Cowards," she rasped.

Arthur’s face darkened.

"What did you just say?"

Haelyn spat blood onto the ground.

"You heard me. You had to tie me down like a rabid dog just to face me. That’s what cowards do."

Arthur’s fist collided with her stomach.

A sharp, guttural cry ripped from her throat as she jerked against the chains.

She gasped, trying to breathe, but the pain was unbearable.

"You ungrateful little bastard," Arthur hissed.

"Ungrateful?" Haelyn wheezed, laughing bitterly. "For what? Being beaten? Abused? Sold like property?"

Arthur’s eyes burned with fury.

"I should’ve killed you when I had the chance."

Haelyn felt the words like a dagger, but she refused to let him see her break.

"Then why didn’t you?" she whispered, her voice laced with venom.

Arthur’s jaw clenched.

For the first time, there was something else in his gaze.

Fear.

Haelyn noticed it.

And it made her smile.

"You’re scared of me, aren’t you?"

Arthur snarled, stepping forward, grabbing her by the jaw.

"You think you’re powerful? You think you matter?" he spat. "You’re nothing, Haelyn. Nothing but a failed experiment."

Her chest heaved, the pain radiating through her body.

But she refused to look away.

"Then why go through all this trouble to keep me alive?" she rasped.

Arthur let go of her, his fingers trembling.

"Enough talking," Layla said, rolling her eyes. "She always has something to say, doesn’t she?"

Helen sighed dramatically. "Maybe she’ll talk less when she’s choking on her own blood."

Tiago smirked.

"Let’s find out."

The first kick landed against her ribs.

A sickening crack echoed through the room.

Haelyn screamed, arching against the chains.

The second kick sent her head snapping to the side, blood spraying onto the cold floor.

She struggled, writhing, but the chains burned deeper.

Malcolm grabbed a handful of her hair, yanking her head back.

"Where’s your smart mouth now, sister?" he sneered.

Haelyn’s vision blurred, the room spinning.

Her stomach tightened in pain.

"Stop," she whispered, her voice weak.

No one listened.

Another punch....this time to her side.

She felt it.. something deep inside her twisting.

Her baby.

"Please..." she whimpered, her hands instinctively trying to shield her stomach.

A sharp slap to her face.

"Begging now?" Layla laughed. "Where’s that fire, Haelyn?"

Another blow.

And another.

Blood dripped from her lips.

Her breaths came shallow, shaky.

She was drowning in pain.

Haelyn’s eyes fluttered, barely open.

She wasn’t going to last much longer.

"Please," she whispered, barely able to breathe.

Tears fell down her face.

"Not my baby."

No one stopped.

No one listened.

She felt herself slipping.

Her wolf was silent.

Her body was failing.

Her baby....

Dying.

Her mind spiraled.

Everything blurred into blackness.

And then....

A voice.

Soft. Distant. Familiar.

"Haelyn..."

Her mother’s voice.

"Wake up, child."

Haelyn couldn’t move.

Couldn’t breathe.

Couldn’t fight.

"You have to wake up."

Her vision was dark.

But something warm wrapped around her.

Her mother’s arms.

Her mother’s voice.

"They cannot win. Not like this."

But it was too late.

Her body was too broken.

"I can’t..." she whispered.

"Yes, you can."

Her mother’s voice turned firm.

"Open your eyes, Haelyn."

A spark....

Somewhere deep inside her.

And then....

Nothing.

As Haelyn’s body lay motionless, Arthur and the others stepped back, satisfied with their work.

"She’s finally done for," Layla muttered, flicking blood from her nails.

Helen smirked, wiping her hands. "She wasn’t so tough after all."

Malcolm grunted, rolling his shoulders. "Let’s get out of here."

But then....

The air shifted.

A sudden, unnatural cold seeped into the room.

Arthur’s brows furrowed, and he glanced around.

Something was wrong.

The torches along the stone walls flickered, their flames sputtering violently.

Layla shivered, rubbing her arms. "Did it just get freezing in here?"

A whisper.

Low. Sinister. Right behind them.

"She’s not alone."

Arthur’s entire body locked up.

The voice was inhuman, a distorted blend of tones, male and female at once.

Helen whirled around, her face pale. "Who said that?"

The shadows in the corners of the room shifted.

Something was there.

Watching.

Waiting.

Malcolm stepped back, his heart pounding. "There’s no one else here."

Another whisper.

Closer.

"You hurt her."

Arthur’s hand twitched toward his weapon.

Something moved in the darkness.

A pair of glowing red eyes opened in the farthest corner of the room.

Arthur’s breath hitched.

The shadows stretched, elongating unnaturally.

Helen grabbed Layla’s arm, her nails digging in. "Arthur, what the hell is that?"

A deep, guttural growl rumbled through the room.

And then....

A hand emerged from the shadows.

Long. Clawed. Bone-white.

Arthur yanked out his dagger.

"Who’s there?" he barked.

The thing in the shadows laughed.

Soft. Amused.

Hungry.

"You thought you could take her without consequences?"

The voice slithered through the room, crawling beneath their skin.

Malcolm stepped back, shaking. "This....this isn’t possible."

The shadows lunged.

The lights flickered.

And then....

A scream.