Chapter 364: He Needs My Help
Draven.
The next morning, the scent of roasted meat and freshly brewed coffee lingered, but it didn’t bring the usual calm.
Since the vampires were already out for blood and revenge, I was expecting that the attack yesterday was just the beginning, still, I couldn’t help wanting to know everything that was happening out there.
So, I instructed one of the servants to turn on the television and tune straight in to the Duskmoor morning news. "Turn on the television."
"Yes, Alpha," she replied and hurried toward the set mounted near the far wall.
By the time the screen flickered to life. Meredith was already pouring herself some tea. Dennis and Jeffery sat opposite her, their plates half-filled.
At the same time, the news anchor’s urgent and heavy voice cut through the silence.
"Breaking news. Reports confirm that between the early hours of one and two a.m. yesterday, the same unidentified creatures from the attack earlier yesterday attacked a private hospital on the west side of Duskmoor. Dozens are confirmed dead, and several others remain missing. The hospital’s east wing was destroyed, along with high-value medical equipment."
The screen shifted to clips showing rubble, smoke, and flashing emergency lights—scenes of human chaos.
"The Mayor’s office and central command have yet to release an official statement," the anchor continued. "Citizens are urged to remain indoors and comply with the ongoing state of emergency until further notice."
The sound of her voice faded under the quiet tension that spread across the table.
Dennis leaned back in his chair, tearing a piece of bread and tossing it into his mouth with a dry chuckle.
"Well," he said, his tone laced with amusement, "it looks like the vampires are on a wild rampage now. Guess they are not stopping till they wipe out the entire human race."
Jeffery gave him a sharp look but didn’t speak. Meredith kept her gaze on the screen, her expression unreadable.
I didn’t respond right away. My eyes lingered on the footage—the broken windows, the blood, the sirens. Then, slowly, I reached for my cup and took a sip of coffee.
Brackham has finally met a situation beyond his control. I bet he has never met or had an altercation with an enemy like the vampires.
I set my cup down, the faint clink echoing through the quiet hall.
"It seems," I said, my gaze still fixed on the images flashing across the screen, "that Brackham underestimated the wrath of the vampires."
No one spoke. Even the servants slowed their movements, sensing the shift in my tone.
I leaned back slightly, folding my hands together.
"And soon," I continued, "he will experience the wrath of the werewolves, too."
Dennis grinned, the kind of grin that didn’t quite reach his eyes.
"Well, speaking of wrath," he said, "Father called last night. He wanted an update about what’s happening here in Duskmoor."
I turned my head toward him. "And what did you tell him?"
"Just that the humans are panicking, the vampires are restless, and everything is... under control," Dennis said, a trace of mischief in his voice. "He didn’t sound convinced, but I gave him nothing else."
I gave a single approving nod. "Good. No important details are to be shared with anyone back home until we locate the secret lab."
Jeffery looked up briefly, brows lifting. "You think he would put more pressure on you?"
"Of course he would," I said, my tone low and steady. "Our father always loves to give out his suggestions and expects them to be carried out immediately. But until we uncover the secret lab and destroy it, no one beyond these walls needs to know anything."
A hush followed. Only the faint sound of the news anchor’s voice filled the background again, talking about curfew hours and tightened patrols.
I picked up my fork and sliced through the meat on my plate.
Even if the humans panicked and the vampires raged, everything was still unfolding according to plan.
---
The moment I stepped into my study after breakfast, the shrill ring of the landline sliced through the silence persistently.
I strode to my desk, picked up the receiver, and brought it to my ear.
"Good morning, Alpha Draven," a familiar woman’s voice came through, polite but strained. "This is Mayor Brackham’s secretary. The Mayor—"
I didn’t let her finish. Instantly, I let the dull click of the receiver meet the cradle, echoing louder than her words.
For a moment, I stood still, my hand resting on the desk. My jaw tightened, and a faint smile tugged at the corner of my mouth.
So, Brackham had finally decided to crawl out of his hole, but not enough to face me directly.
"Coward," Rhovan growled. "If he doesn’t have the spine to call you himself, then he doesn’t deserve our attention."
"And our precious time," I said to him, then turned away from the desk and walked toward the tall window that overlooked the courtyard below.
The morning light spilt in, but my mind was elsewhere, on Brackham’s growing desperation.
He was running out of options, time, and control.
The vampires were tearing through his city. His people were terrified. His government was fractured.
Soon, he would have no choice but to turn to me, not through some messenger or secretary. But as a man stripped of pride and begging the Weres for help.
That was how I wanted him.
He wanted help, he needed it, but he hadn’t yet learned how to ask properly.
I hadn’t killed those vampires in the underground parking lot for sport.
I had done it where the cameras could see, where every desperate eye in his control room could watch what I was capable of.
I wanted that footage to haunt Brackham. To remind him that only I and my people could save his crumbling city.
And when he would come begging for my help, I would make sure he remembered exactly who held the power.
Oh, poor Brackham really has no idea of what’s coming for him and his cohorts.