Surrogate For Alpha Dom

Sinclair

I growl down at the man before me, who is younger than I thought he would be, for one with

such power. He has thick black hair and a day’s worth of stubble on his thin cheeks. The man

glares up at me with dark, angry eyes and opens his mouth to speak but before he can, I slap him

– hard with an open palm.

–

The man gasps with surprise and pain, his eyes going wide as he stares down at the floor, and I

smirk. I doubt this man has been slapped anytime recently, if ever. He has the smug look of

someone used to being in charge.

But he’s in my house now.

“You’ll speak when we tell you to speak,” I growl, and then I turn to the head of my

–

reconnaissance team, who is standing against the wall, his hands on his knees, panting a little.

Craig isn’t a small man to see him so undone by the efforts suggests that this diminutive priest

is, indeed, powerful in other ways.

“How did you catch him?” I snap. Craig looks up at me and does his best to straighten up.

“We followed the leads, sir,” he replies, looking me in the eyes, “that we gleaned from the

conversation with the other priest, who wished to remain anonymous. They were…fruitful. We

found this one’s lair, for lack of a better word. It was actually in a sewer -in an abandoned

maintenance room. He was living there doing…” Craig hesitates and then shrugs. “Forgive me, Sir,

for the dramatic language, but ‘arcane magics‘ are the only words coming to my mind now. Lizard

skins…and and snail shells, in jars – he had a cauldron –”

“Thank you,” I say, interrupting and nodding towards the head of my investigative team. “You.

will give your details to Alastair, as soon as you can. For now, though I want everyone here for

the interrogation.” I lean forward towards the priest, who watches me with wary eyes and a

clenched jaw.

continue, lowering my voice and slowing

need be.”

baring his teeth at me in a little snarl. But I just

at him, which makes him faulter. And then I step away, secretly grateful for

ready to rip this man’s head

arms crossed as he looks down at the man strapped to

people want with

too–wide expression that shows all

his voice now. Roger stares at him blandly for a moment

standing behind the priest who whips forward

it swiftly against

making him shriek and twist in pain, but my man, well

quickly. The priest goes a

the chair

want with

the priest looks up at Roger again and just huffs

doesn’t matter,” the priest says, shaking his head and holding his

growing on his

really, truly laugh, as a crash of glass sounds and a scream erupts

upstairs –

heart stops as I recognize

Ella

chair by Rafe’s basinet,

is – shushing him quietly as he falls

–

a little tapping sound at the glass of his window

curiously, expecting a little bird

me when I saw a black–masked face

turning to ice as I froze, as he quietly pointed to the basinet and mouthed

coming for him.” (2)

–

the man pulled back

window –

did it – it should have broken

his body, head–first, into the room through the hole he made

the window cracking and shattering around

–

moment he hit the floor, only half an instant later, my instincts came back to me,

my child’s rolling basinet behind me

shove the rocking chair away and back into the corner now, Rafe in his cradle behind me,

at the foot of the window.

–

–

men behind him, working their way up to

fast

feet now, grinning at me, starting to prowl towards