Mating the Female Alpha
Chapter 83 – Meeting with the vampire lord

Landry's

POV

The last thing Landry wanted to do was ask the vampire lord for a favor. But it was something he needed to do if he wanted to save Bernice's life. This could be the one ticket they needed: the missing puzzle piece.

Bernice looked unsure about the plan; she played with her fingers, avoiding his eyes as she pondered what he was saying.

"It might be the only way," Landry says to her again, keeping his voice soft in case there were lurkers outside the bedroom door. "Bernice, we have to try."

"You weren't there..." she whispered, her voice trembling slightly as the memory of the previous nights surfaced in her mind. He knew she was thinking about the torment she endured. He couldn't even imagine what she went through. "It was terrible, Landry. He..." her voice trailed off.

Landry wrapped his arms around her, holding her close to him.

"I'm sorry that I couldn't find you soon enough...I'm sorry that it took for him to let you go for you to be safe. I'm sorry I let Cora distract me from finding you sooner. I'll never stop being sorry..."

"You don't have to be sorry," she said, peering up at him with tear-filled eyes. "But that just proves that he can't be trusted."

"It also proves how powerful he is. He'd be able to cure you and you'll be able to live to have this baby-"

"I'll live for him to take my baby."

"I would never let that happen. He might think he has one over on us, but he's mistaken. We are smarter than that. We are undefeatable."

Landry had read all about how to summon the vampire lord. It had to be done in the forest; he needed sage and fire. He got the sage from the local witchery shop in town, and he brought a match with him. He left Bernice at the palace as he went to the forest.

This was something he was going to do alone; he didn't want to put Bernice in any more danger.

As he stood in the forest, he took in a steady breath, feeling the wind brushing through his features. He closed his eyes, listening to the chirping of the birds and centering himself before sprinkling the sage in a circle before him.

He threw the lit match at the sage, lighting it on fire. A ring of fire combusts in front of him, making him take a step back. The flames grew high in the sky; sparks flinging all over the place and the heat intensified as he spoke the summoning mantra.

Soon, he was seeing an image within the flames; a face he had never seen before.

"Why have you summoned me?" The face asked, his eyes glowing with embers. "You're Alaric? The Vampire Lord?"

"And you are the Wolf King," Alaric hissed. "I ask again, why have you summoned me?" "Because we both want something, and I need your help to get it."

"Why would I help you?" Alaric asked. "Have I not already given you back your she-wolf?" Landry couldn't tell him that he knows why Alaric had released Bernice; he had to play stupid.

"I am grateful that you released her," Landry said, bowing his head slightly. It pained him to perform an act of honor to this monster. But he would do anything for Bernice, even if it meant taking his knee and losing some dignity. "But I'm afraid she is far from safe..."

Alaric said nothing.

"She's dying," Landry continued. "She's pregnant and she's not going to live long enough to have this baby. Since she was 12, she has taken this medication that turned her into an Alpha... because of that..."

"She's going to die," Alaric finished for him. "I'm familiar with that kind of medicine. It uses dark magic. It weakens the body until there is nothing left. I knew she was weak, but I didn't know she was that weak." He said the words like they were a bad taste on his tongue.

"There has to be something we can do to help her," Landry said, staring up at the face made of flames. "You let her go for a reason, you must want her alive too. At least for now..."

"She's proved valuable to me after all," Alaric said, sounding bored. "It would be a shame if she died before the real fun began. I can help... but on one condition."

"Anything."

"She needs to come here herself and by herself," Alaric said, his tone deepening. Landry's eyes widened and he shook his head.

"No," Landry said in return. "You've put her through enough."

"It's either that or she dies, Wolf King. The choice is up to you. But that is my condition. She comes here herself, alone, and then I'll cure her."

"You would just let her die after releasing her?" Landry asked, narrowing his eyes at the flames. "Just like that?"

"The question isn't whether or not I would let her die. The question is, would you? Your girlfriend means very little to me. Regardless, I will get what I want; it's just a shame I won't be able to have a little fun first. But it matters not to me. You've come to me, so obviously this means a lot to you. You are desperate enough to ask the Vampire Lord for help. So that must mean you are desperate enough to do whatever it takes to get that help. Have the she-wolf come to me and ask me herself for help. She must come alone. Only then will I provide her with an antidote.”

"And if I refuse?"

"Then your girlfriend will die, and you'll wolf will die along with her."

Before Landry could say anything more, the flames vanished, leaving Landry alone with a cloud of smoke.

...

Third Person POV

Alaric laughed as he disconnected the connection with Landry. That was more fun than he thought it would be.

Talia stood nearby, staring at him with wide eyes.

"What if she doesn't come?" Talia asked. "Then what?"

"She will if she wants to live. I'm the only one who can help her, and they know it."

There was nobody stronger than Alaric; there was nobody else who could break the curse on that she-wolf and save her pathetic life. Once they figured that out, Alaric had no doubt in his mind that she would show up. "What's the plan after she shows up? You cure her and send her on her way?" Talia asked.

"I will cure her and send her on her way, yes," Alaric confirmed. "But it won't be back to the Wolf King. If I want to be sure that she's vulnerable and reachable to me, she needs to be away from him. I'm going to tell her that she needs to leave Landry and never return. I'm going to send her somewhere I can keep a close eye on her. Once she has that baby, it will be in my possession, and I will finally get what I want."