Chapter 5 - You want a short-cut to hell?

NALEDI’S POV

I woke up in a moving car. 

My eyes squinted as I took in my posh surroundings, which were marred by the presence of two men in the passenger seat and Caellum, reading a magazine by my side.

We were running through a deserted road with no end. This was the perfect spot for a kill and dump if you asked me. 

There were no cars, civilisation or people for miles. Just where were they taking me? 

“Awake?” Caellum’s eyes didn’t leave the magazine he was holding. 

“Where are we going? Where on earth is this place?” I grumbled, my voice coming out croaky. I was thirsty. 

“Silicy.” He said, shocking me still. 

I didn’t expect to get an answer. It was clear our Alpha was in a good mood. 

“Where are you taking me?” I tried again and was met with silence. 

I wanted to express my discontent when he finally said. “Until the bond is broken, your new home is with me.” 

My nose flared at his words. “That’s not possible,” His jaws tightened. Guess who didn’t like to be talked back to? Good thing I didn’t care. “That would mean I have to spend over a hundred days with you until the full moon decides to show up.” 

I hope my tone betrayed how ridiculous that sounded but it didn’t work. Caellum nodded his head, eyes glued to the paper. My blood boiled and I snatched the darned paper from his hands.

“We are talking.” I gritted out, knowing he was about to blow up at me. “I can’t possibly stay that long with you just so you can send me off afterwards, or worse, kill me.” 

“I didn’t think you cared about your life, Naledi.” 

How could someone be so fine and infuriating at the same time? Was that really all he got from what I said? Christ! 

“The point is,” I struggled to contain my anger. “I can’t be with you. Can’t you understand that this isn’t going to work?” 

“Whoever said you had a choice?”

I opened my mouth but no words came out. I let out a short laugh and my veins bulged on my forehead. 

“You are kidnapping me,” I stated, baffled. “That’s what this is. You are taking me against my will.” 

Caellum corked an eye at me, he looked like he couldn’t understand the rubbish I was spewing. Just when I thought he was going to ignore me, he said,

“Taking what belongs to me is hardly kidnapping, mia cara.” He said with a smirk I wanted to wipe off his face with a punch. “Besides, you’ll love your new home. I have ordered your room to be prepared to a queen’s taste.” 

I didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. Was that supposed to make me feel better? 

“Prison you mean.” I cut him off, bittered. “That’s your fancy way of telling me you have decided to take me hostage as a prisoner?” 

“Whatever floats your boat, sunshine.” He said dismissively, opening a compartment in the car that revealed a gun and a cigar. 

He took out the smoke and my breath seized. Was this another one of his sedative cigars? 

My fears evaporated when he lit it up, thankfully, it was indeed a blunt. 

With one puff of the smoke, I was a choking mess. I didn’t do smoking. I love my lungs, thank you very much. 

“Get...that...thing...out!” I said, choking with watered eyes. 

As though trying to prove a point,  he drew closer to me, so close that our lips were inches apart, and with a smirk, puffed up smoke in my face. 

I closed my eyes, fanning the horrid smell away as I coughed relentlessly. It was clear. This bastard was trying to kill me!

Suddenly, he withdrew from me and ordered. “Stop the car, and leave the doors open.” 

The car slowed to a stop and as he ordered, the two men in front stepped out of the car and left the doors open, including mine and Caellum, who gingerly stepped out to continue roasting his lungs. 

Three minutes passed and they remained outside, each facing their business, while Caellum smoked with a faraway look. For normal people, it was risky to stop in such a place.

But to us, it was a pit stop. We were dangerous to danger - Not just as wolves, but as the most powerful mafia group in the world. 

I soon stopped coughing, ready to go, but Caellum was still very busy killing his lungs. It pained me that he couldn’t die despite having such a suicidal habit because he was a wolf. 

One would think that living among humans would make him a bit conscious of his intake, but no, he was on the second stick. I had a feeling we would be here for a while. 

As we waited for him to do the needful, my eyes flickered to the camisole that held a gun right in front of me. I looked outside, and briefly considered if they would notice it missing. 

I opened it slowly, expecting it to be locked but no, it was opened. With the expertise of a thief, I dug out the gun, and hit it in my thigh, taking a deep breath when I realised I had executed that little assignment undetected. 

Now I just had to wait for the best opportunity to strike before finding my way out of this darned country. It was a plan. 

Soon enough, Caellum returned to the car and our journey resumed. Thankfully, he wasn’t smoking this time and I felt the car speed faster than before. They were trying to make it in time. 

I must have slept off mid-way through the journey because I woke up to the sounds of gates opening. Huge black gates that were just impossible to climb. 

“Welcome to your new home, Naledi,” Caellum said with a smirk. No doubt, noticing my awed expression. 

I snapped my mouth shut, feeling self-conscious as the car slowed, and maidens walked out of a house I could only describe as a palace. Old, but very much in style. Just how many people did it take to clean this place up? 

Caellum stepped out first, and I used that medium to ascertain my gun was still in place. I stepped out after, walking beside him. 

“Don’t think about trying anything stupid, mia cara,” Caellum said in a low tone and I felt it was a warning. “It will only worsen your situation.” 

Did he know I had a gun? I wondered but shook off the thoughts. That was my guilt speaking. 

“Trust me, there’s nothing worse than breathing the same air with you.” I managed to say and smiled when I saw the bulgy veins in his forehead. We were even now. 

Just a few steps away from people I presumed to be his workers. I pulled the stupidest stunt in my entire years of assassination. I pulled Caellum by the neck and placed a gun in his head. 

“I warned you.” He said, still feeling smug. “You have worsened your situation.” 

The anger behind his words was palpable, but I didn’t care. There was no going back. I wasn’t that lady to turn back in the face of opposition. Unfortunately, he wouldn’t live long enough to know that. 

Unless of course, he played by my books. 

The place was surrounded in minutes, thousands of guns pointed at me. I didn’t care that they all wanted to kill me. I just needed to hold the Alpha and they would be my bitches. 

Kill the king and the game is well darned over. 

“Drop your guns or I will kill him,” I said in a loud voice but they didn’t move.  I scoffed and pressed the gun tightly against his head with my hands on the trigger. “Do not underestimate me.” 

I meant every word. Even if I died today, I would make do with my words to kill him if they didn’t obey me. I was an assassin after all. I’ll be exiting Earth with a bang, killing Alpha Caellum. 

“Do not drop your guns.” Alpha Caellum said and I was shocked. Was this man tired of his life? 

“You want a shortcut to hell?” I asked him but he didn’t say a word. 

An infuriating smirk plastered on his lips. I looked around and realised there was no way out. They didn’t care I was holding him captive. This plan was a total failure.

Seeing I was going to die anyway, I figured it’ll be doing the world a favour by taking this douchebag with me. He was my mate after all. It was only fitting.

I pulled the trigger and the worst happened. There were no bullets. I pulled again, and again until Caellum broke free and grabbed me by the arm with a terrifying look on his face. 

“I warned you. Now you will pay the price.” He turned to one of the men and ordered. “Throw her into the prison.”