Chapter 60: _Feeling Helpless

Chapter 60: _Feeling Helpless I waltzed back into the event hall building, drawing out my phone to make a call. I ignored the curious gazes of the elite wolves in the ballroom, heading upstairs as the number rang. "Hello, dear uncle," I said with sarcasm in my voice when the owner of the number, Gamma Zane, finally picked up. "Do you mind telling me how a masked witch was able to make it past security? What happened to you and all the men that I–" "Everyone, please leave!" A familiar voice boomed around the hall just then, forcing me to pause my ascension up the stairs. I turned my gaze downstairs just in time to spot my uncle strutting into the hall proudly with his chest puffed up, a few pack soldiers following around him. "The situation has been taken under control but for your own safety, you should leave!" The Gamma continued with a loud voice, causing the people to murmur. But soon, with the guidance of the pack soldiers, the people were led out of the building, leaving the place empty within the span of a few minutes. "Alpha King..." Gamma Zane turned his gaze to me just then, stretching his arms aside. "I was going to tell you in the call that–" "What flimsy excuse could you possibly have, Zane?!" I snapped, my voice booming around the hall. My hands were on the railing of the stairs that led to the gallery upstairs and if I gripped any harder, I could break them apart. I watched as my uncle’s facial expression turned sour, but he managed to hide it behind a stoic mask. "The pack soldiers tried their best but the enemy was just way too sneaky, my Lord." He commented, his tone too agitatedly neutral for my liking. My eyes twitched as I parted my lips to say something else when the Delta suddenly walked out of a corner, a solemn expression on his face. "Sir, we noticed that the witch went after your wife." He muttered, tilting his head as his gaze lingered on me for a few seconds before he awkwardly looked away. "Perhaps Odessa is at the center of some sort of internal witch fighting. Or maybe–" "Maybe she’s just as guilty as the bitch who missed the shot to kill her." A female voice suddenly echoed around the hall, causing my jaw to clench. Lo and behold, sitting comfortably down in the ballroom was Celine, who had a comfortable look on her face as she sipped from a glass of wine. She had her gaze on me, causing my irritation to spike. "I thought the Gamma made it clear that all civilians should be out of here?" I queried, arching an eyebrow. Celine scoffed, shaking her head before she dropped her glass of wine. She licked her lips satisfactorily before she fixed her gaze back on me and continued. "Well, I’m not a normal civilian, Alpha King. I’m still the Luna of this pack and Luna Queen of the region." I clicked my tongue, drumming my fingers on the railing of the stairs. Just when I thought the bickering would draw out, an agitated voice boomed from the gallery where the South American Alpha King and Marcellus were receiving medical attention. "Are the wolves of the North American region always this incompetent, or is that exclusive to this pack alone?" It was a male voice, belonging to the spiritual leader of the South American region. He stood there with his right hand wrapped firmly on his wooden staff while he gazed coldly upon all of us. "Look at you, fighting among yourselves." He remarked, shaking his head with disdain. "While our Alpha King lies here, poisoned from wolfsbane under your watch. This was a targeted attack tonight. And it proves one point now more than ever that I wish Alpha King Leonardo had understood before he arrived on this continent..." He paused, his gaze going to me just then. I remained silent, allowing him to berate me as much as he wanted. Low-key, I felt like I deserved it. "... Witches can never be trusted and the only interaction that should be had with them is at the guillotine or the stakes where they can be burned." Something snapped in my head when I heard those words, especially when I remembered that Odessa was up there with the bastard. I glanced back at the ballroom and noticed the mocking smirk on Celine’s face as she slyly picked up her glass of wine and drank from it. The look on her face when she glanced at me read: "Enjoy the consequences of your actions." And maybe she was right. Maybe they all had a point. I proceeded to silently continue walking until I got to the gallery while the Gamma and Delta began to organize investigations downstairs. At the gallery, all of Leonardo’s delegates were gathered as he lay on top of a stretcher. His spiritual leader was busy chanting some prayers to the goddess while revolving his palms around the Alpha King’s unconscious body and administering an elixir of sorts. His wife stood in a corner, a handkerchief in hand. Her eyes were swollen red from all the crying but she made sure to hide it when her gaze met mine briefly. I balled my hands into fists. At this rate, I could as well kiss the idea of an alliance with them goodbye. Just then, I turned my gaze to the ground where I spotted Odessa. She was still kneeling on the ground where I left her, beside Marcellus who was very well conscious. The arrow had been removed from his back but his face twitched momentarily with pain as Layla and a pack doctor attended to the wound made by the magic arrow. "It seems the goddess refuses your death tonight, Marcellus," I muttered, trying to cheer up the mood. But those words did nothing to clear the despair and helplessness surrounding me like a cloud. I’ve failed. Failed as an Alpha King and as a protector. I couldn’t even at least capture the bitch who did this. Just then, Marcellus smiled weakly at me, his eyes barely opening. But when he parted his lips to say something, he suddenly coughed out blood, causing a shiver to run down my spine. "The arrow was tipped with silver, my Lord." The pack doctor beside him turned his gaze to me and reported, only making me feel worse. "I’m trying my best to administer drugs to slow down the corruption but the magic is negating all my efforts." I bit my bottom lips, lost on what to do or say. Argh, I hate feeling so helpless! "I– I think I can help with that." Odessa suddenly blurted, causing all eyes, including the South American Alpha king’s people, to turn their gazes to her. She almost shrunk right back into her shell due to all the attention but she ended up drawing in a deep breath and standing on her feet, dusting her gown before she continued. "I think I can brew a potion to help Marcellus’ wolf fight off the influence of the silver poisoning and the magic corruption." She said, causing my eyes to light up. It seemed there was hope. Unfortunately, that hope almost came crashing down at her next words. "But I think I can only find most of the ingredients outside the pack."