The Supreme Alpha

Author's note: This is from Seraphina's point of view

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"You want to take my friend with you against her will? On what grounds?", I asked.

"On the grounds that she is a hostile creature. She entered the human realm without authorization and it's on us, creature hunters, to deal with it. Don't try to shield her or you will end up attracting trouble.", Hale said smugly.

Treva's white complexion paled even more. "Serina, I didn't…"

"Shh…", I shushed Treva while gesturing to her to drink tea. "It will warm you up."

I glanced at Clara and Ida who were standing on the side obediently and waiting for my further instructions, and there was an idea brewing in my mind. It was almost ready. Almost. Like a word you want to say and it's on the tip of your tongue, but you can't quite say it.

I turned to Hale. "You said that my friend is a harpy. Do you have any proof?"

His frozen expression answered my question, and I felt my lips lifting into a smile I was unable to suppress.

That just might be the loophole I was looking for and I was ready to poke into it until it's wide enough for Treva to slip through. This will work. It has to.

My mind worked a thousand thoughts a second as I looked at Hale Vonn, the leader among the three hunters who were after Treva. The other two were non-important.

I knew I had something.

Actually, I had two things. First, he didn't have proof that Treva was a harpy. Second, he was talking about harpies and realms casually, like it's common knowledge and that was a big mistake he is yet to discover.

The trick was to dig deep enough so that the river flows in my favor.

"Mr. Vonn, what made you think that my friend is a harpy if you don't have proof? Is it her fair complexion or her white hair? If those are the only things you have, a quick online search can show you thousands of people who match that description, yet the Hunters Association is not trying to detain them."

"Uhm…", he licked his lips nervously. "We know that she appeared in Crete, and she traveled here with an intention to meet with you."

"So, someone spotted my friend in Greece and now she is a harpy? Mr. Vonn, if you don't present some concrete evidence, I will ask you to leave my property."

"That… that", he stuttered. "We can't leave criminals to roam free. What if she harms humans? What if she exposes the existence of harpies?"

Nausea hit me hard at the sound of his fake righteousness. How dares he spout such verbal garbage like I don't know how dirty and vile hunters are?

"So, my friend progressed from a harpy into a criminal? Watch your language, Mr. Vonn or it will get you in trouble. Don't forget that this property belongs to Mezzanottes, and as such it's not under the jurisdiction of the Hunters Association. We are having this conversation because I'm magnanimous, and you are lucky that my father is busy otherwise he would kick you out the moment you labeled my friend as a harpy."

I could see that he was contemplating what to do. His superiors probably told him to snatch Treva at any cost and if he returns empty-handed, he will be in trouble. Well, that's his problem.

Hale's eyes flashed with determination and I knew he thought of something. "I see that you are not aware of the rules, Miss Mezzanotte. I demand to speak with Aldus Mezzanotte."

Did he just pull Aldus's name on me?

"And who are you to demand to speak to my father?", I asked icily. "Know your place, mortal, or no one will be able to find your corpse."

All three of them swallowed so hard that I could hear it.

Maybe I should get rid of them. They will be worth a few bags of blood. I will throw their bodies into the sea, and officially, it will be a fishing accident… fish ate their remains, accidentally.

I reminded myself that just killing them will attract attention.

"Is there anything else, Mr. Vonn? Or should I ask my staff to escort you?"

"I need to check with my superior.", he said after some time.

I waved at him. "Be my guest."

The side-kick hunter named Alistair reached for his suitcase and pulled a laptop, obviously setting up a video call for Hale. Why didn't he use a phone? Maybe they are using some proprietary software that is available for PC only.

I wondered, how far up can he call? Will it be Bolek? Nah… I don't think that these pawns can reach that high.

Besides, Bolek is the head of the Hunter's Association, and he doesn't have time to deal with every creature that escapes its realm.

"What is it, Hale?", a grumpy female voice was heard from the laptop, confirming that it's not Bolek.

"Madam D…", Hale said. "It's like this. We found the harpy, but she refused to come with us."

"Refused? What does she think this is? An open ZOO? Bring her in by any means necessary. She can't be left unattended.", Madam D said irritably.

I frowned at the way she spoke about Treva. Treva is not an animal!

"We have a problem.", Hale said while glancing at me timidly. "The harpy took refuge in the house of Mezzanottes. We said that we need to take her, but Seraphina Mezzanotte rejects cooperation."

Ah, so now it's my fault.

I gestured to Hale to rotate the laptop so that Madam D can see me.

"Madam D…", I said. "I assume you are a tier-one hunter. Or are you from the management?"

"I am from the management.", she responded, and immediately added, "Miss Mezzanotte, you have no right to interfere in the work of the Hunters Association. We have rules to follow. Those same rules are ensuring that every creature has equal chances to survive…"

Blah, blah, blah… This woman was even more obnoxious than Hale Vonn.

Those are people from the management. All talk and a lot of paperwork. If talking nonsense was an Olympic skill, these people would win gold.

Well, it was time to end this.

I gave Treva a reassuring smile before getting my phone.

To be honest, I never thought I will call this number, but here I am.

The woman on the laptop stopped talking and frowned when she saw me making a call.

"Miss Mezzanotte, to what do I owe this pleasure?", Bolek asked with his sleazy politeness.

I was not surprised that he recognized my private number. Considering his network of spies, Bolek probably knows the size of my underwear. I try not to think about it.

"Do you mind if we switch to a video call?", I asked.

There was a moment of silence before he responded in a surprised tone, "Not at all, Miss Mezzanotte. Give me a moment…"

I could hear footsteps as Bolek moved from somewhere I shouldn't see. Well, it didn't matter.

When he showed up on the screen of my phone, a plain white brick wall was behind him.

"How can I help you?", Bolek asked.

"I have several of your members in my living room. My father is currently busy with his matters, and I would hate to interrupt him. That's why I was hoping that you can help me settle this quickly."

Bolek frowned. He is a smart man, and he definitely figured that I wouldn't call him unless his men made an offense. "What's going on?"

I rotated my phone and smirked at the four frozen faces (one from the laptop screen) that stared at Bolek like they were looking at a ghost.

"Mr. Vonn…", I called. "Can you please explain to the head of your organization why you are drinking tea and eating cookies in my home?"

Hale frowned at me like what I said was wrong. Well, they were drinking tea and eating cookies. I didn't lie.

Hale repeated the same thing he said to Madam D, and he actually added more information which told me that Madam D knew about the operation to capture Treva, while Bolek was clueless.

These three creature hunters were following Treva for the last two days, and they lost her in Rome in a throng of tourists when she went sightseeing. However, they knew that Treva exchanged her train ticket for a later one and that her destination was Genoa, so they headed there. However, she didn't come with that train, so they split up and spread the word through Genoa that they are searching for a missing person with Treva's description; they offered a monetary prize for information.

One person contacted them saying how a girl matching Treva's description was seen near one bus station, taking a cab.

Other than the Mezzanotte family, there are several other influential creatures in the area. They decided to locate the cab driver which was not difficult because he was lingering at the same place while waiting for passengers, and that's how they figured what Treva's final destination is.

This confirmed that someone knew about Treva's plans and she was betrayed. Ah, another thing to check, later.

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