UNTAMED: THE ALPHA

Emily and Ariana stood in front of the door. She could tell that the source of this foul smell was behind it. Whatever thing was behind this door, it must be something rotten, because at this point, Emily felt like she was about to gag.

"Here, chew this." Ariana gave her a candy that looked like marble. "This will help with the smell, but eat it slowly, because we will take around an hour there."

Emily furrowed her brows but took the candy anyway. She popped it into her mouth. It tasted like mint and yes, slowly she realized the smell was not that unbearable anymore, as she could breathe in relief now.

"I just want to warn you, you don't need to be scared." Ariana put her hand on the doorknob.

"You said that and I'm more scared now," Emily complained. She warned her, but it only made her more concerned.

"It's okay, just keep in mind that it will not hurt you."

It will not hurt me, but it doesn't mean it will not scare me. But, Emily couldn't voice those words to Ariana, because she didn't want her to think that she was trying to talk back to her.

She was more afraid now after Ariana's warning, as she clutched onto her dress and prepared herself for the worst thing possible.

She didn't want to back down from this, because this was the only thing that she could do right now and Emily wanted to prove herself that she was useful too, not some useless human girl, who would run and cry to Eros for protection every time she was in trouble.

However, what she saw inside the room made her stomach churn and now she knew the reason for that rotten smell that was so strong, which filled this entire place.

"Ariana…" Emily was not sure whether Ariana heard her voice or not when she called her, but all she knew was, she couldn't take another step and look at what was on the bed. "What is that?" Her question came out as a whisper… "What is that thing?"

Ariana walked across the room, but she didn't force Emily to follow her closely, if that was the closest that she could step, then it was fine. She could take her time.

"This is not a thing, Emily," Ariana said with a hint of laugh in her voice. "This is the previous Alpha, Xerxes, Alpha Liam's father."

"Alpha Liam's father?" Emily's eyes widened when she heard that. "I thought… he is…"

"Dead?" Ariana finished the sentence for her, because Emily was taken aback with this information, but she took two steps closer, it seemed her curiosity got the better of her. "Yes, some people think the previous alpha is dead, but it's not the case actually. He has been living here for more than six years."

Emily took another step closer, to see Xerxes's condition, but she gasped loudly when she saw it. This answered all the questions about the unpleasant smell.

His skin… his skin was rotten…

Emily didn't know how to explain this, but his skin had turned black, like a rotten orange and some parts of his body were festering. He was wearing shabby clothes and a pair of worn out pants. His hair had turned white and some parts of his head had turned bald.

"Once a week, we need to come to this place and you need to help me to clean him up," Ariana spoke, while she was busy preparing all the things that she needed to clean this alpha up.

Meanwhile, Emily could only stand in her place, she was having a hard time digesting what she was seeing right now.

"What happened to him?" That must be a question that Ariana had predicted, because she replied without even stopping what she was doing right now.

"Someone burned him in the past and he is suffering from it since then." This was not wrong, she didn't lie, but it was only half of what had happened at that time.

"Someone burned him? Did alpha Liam manage to catch them?" Emily took another step closer again and the furrow between her brows deepened, when she got a clear look of him. "Is he alive?" she asked in a whispery tone.

"No, he didn't manage to catch her." Actually, Liam was the one who helped her to escape this place. There were a lot of secrets in this place and Ariana and Colton held so much more information than what they let other people know.

This information could be their bargaining chip to survive in this pack, so they became so important to get rid off easily, or it could be their doom, since holding so many secrets was akin to a double edged knife.

"Her? It was a girl?" Emily was surprised to know that a girl could hurt an alpha like this. "Is she a shifter?"

"Yes," Ariana replied. Emily was standing right next to Xerxes's bed now as she looked at the old alpha with concern.

"Why didn't his injuries heal? Was he burned really badly?" Emily had seen Eros accidentally burn his hand, but of course, not to this level, and it healed within a few minutes.

"Yes," Ariana replied, as she started to wipe Xerxes's body and clean him up.

After a few more minutes observing what Ariana was doing, Emily too walked over and then helped her with it. She could bandage his skin that had festered, but there was something bothering her.

"Why don't you apply some ointment?" Emily also watched the injection that Ariana had prepared for him. "What is that?"

"There is no need for ointment," Ariana said, she furrowed her brows, as she injected Xerxes as usual.

"What is that?" Emily asked again, because she recognized the color of it, but there was no way she would use it on him, right? "Is that poison?"

Ariana put down the syringe and then looked at Emily closely. "Yes, it is poison."

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*Read my new book: KISSED BY THE DARK ALPHA*

Alpha Micah Donovan's second chance mate.