HUNTED

Chapter 177 - The Vampire King: Part Two

Aila stared at him, her eyes were glowing, and she looked wild. Gabriel snapped his head to the side and frowned when he saw Ajax, Finn and .. Chase? Why.. He looked back at Aila and grabbed her by the neck as soon as she leapt towards him, slamming her against the wall. She clawed at his hands and growled, baring her canines to him.

"Gabriel! Stop!" Finn was by his side growling.

"When did she go feral?" He snapped back, not loosening his hold on her.

"What do you mean? You were there!?"

The pair looked at each other confused. But Gabriel looked back at Aila when she relaxed her hands and leaned her head back into the wall, shutting her eyes. "What the fuck, Cass. Why did you tell us to come here?" She growled through clenched teeth and snapped her eyes open. They were back to normal now, but there was a fury behind them.

"What did you just call me?" Gabriel whispered, but his answer came to him instantly after reading her mind and seeing a memory of them talking and him telling her to call him Cassius. He released his hand as though he had been stung, and his mood darkened even more, his temper rising to the point that the room cooled down significantly. Everyone scrambled out of the bar. The remaining vampires left in the lounge were dead except for his right-hand man, who did not fear him.

Aila tilted her head to the side, "Oh, sorry. It slipped my mind. I.." She glanced at the bodies on the ground, "that's not the point. Why are we here? I doubt your friend wants to meet with us now.."

"Come." He turned around, "Let's speak in my office."

The four looked at each other warily. "Why can't we speak here?" Chase asked, causing the vampire to halt and glare at him, silencing any further arguments. He continued and led them through the archway to the loud music mixed with bodies dancing, sweat filling the air and lights flashing to the beat of the music. Aila was quick on the vampire's heel and almost flinched when she felt his hand circle around her wrist so she wouldn't get lost in the crowd.

However, she noticed how people instantly moved out of the way for him. They either looked at him in awe or fear. She knew already who the humans were, which suddenly made her panic about the bar's condition. She whipped her head back and moved it around, looking past and over some of the crowd. She could see through the now small opening of the arch, and blinked in surprise. Everything looked normal; there was no blood or bodies.

But she was pulled forwards and found herself in a snazzy elevator, standing next to Cassius. She glanced at him nervously, and he let go of her hand, looking ahead coldly, waiting for the others to join. Aila didn't look at her friends though as they came to stand in the elevator, she was too busy staring at the vampire. There was something different about him.

She looked him up and down. First of all, he seemed to have changed clothes, wearing all black. His black shirt and tie under a black and gold waistcoat, his cufflinks with the family crest that was on his ring. But it wasn't just the outfit change; his hair was cut short.

Before she could ask him about his sudden change in appearance, he was already opening the golden cage door and leading them into a snazzy lounge area with three floor-to-ceiling length windows showing off the city below. Aila shook her head from marvelling at the room. She needed answers now.

"Stop. Why did you tell us to come here? We were attacked-"

"Luther, make sure no one comes up here." Cassius interrupted her, ignoring her. Aila glanced at the man named Luther and stilled when she realised it was Mr Goldy-locks she kicked into the back of the bar. He disappeared from sight after bowing to Cassius.

"Hmm, I prefer the name Mr Goldy-locks," Malia muttered.

"Same," Aila replied and almost jumped out of her skin when Malia growled at her, "Oh, now you can hear me!?"

"I didn't understand at first why you were here.." Cassius began, interrupting what was sure to be an argument between Aila and her wolf.

She stepped forwards, further into the darkly decorated room, only to stop when the vampire turned on the spot, leaning against the black marble bar at the far end, holding a tumbler of blood in his hand. "But as soon as you called me by that name.. I knew," He continued.

Aila blinked back, trying to understand where he was going with this. Cassius sighed and then looked past her, his face hardened, his gaze burning two holes into someone standing behind them. Aila turned her head, and her face paled.

"Hello, Gabriel. Long-time no see.."

Aila's lips parted, and she stopped breathing. She blinked her eyes and looked back to the vampire at the bar, then back to the vampire standing tall behind her, a smirk crawling up his handsome features. Aila looked at Ajax, Finn and Chase, making sure she hadn't lost her mind and was seeing double, but their shocked features proved to her that this was not a dream, and she was not going mad.

They too could see two Gabriel's/ Cassius'.

"Cassius."

"WHAT THE ACTUAL FUCK!" Finn was the first to break some of the tension brewing between the two vampires.

Aila kept glancing between the two vampires. They were identical except for their clothes and hair. "Cassius?" Aila looked at the vampire with long white hair who was standing nearer to her. He nodded his head, but his eyes were fixed at the vampire at the other end of the room. She turned her head and looked at the vampire with short white hair holding his drink.

"And you're Gabriel?" She whispered.

Gabriel nodded; he, too, didn't look at her but was glaring at Cassius.

"You're-"

"Brothers," Gabriel finished.