Back at the police station, the Sheriff and Kai were also tangled up in a heated dispute, while Glenn and Rome quietly observed from the chairs behind the desk inside the Sheriff's office.
"I've done your requests! Now release me from your alpha authority!" the Sheriff growled viciously.
Months earlier, Kai deceitfully bypassed his father and placed the Sheriff under his alpha authority, forcing him to collect a large number of criminals to feed Saul and Vlad, including Vlad's clan. For the most part, the secret task Kai demanded had been fulfilled, and the Sheriff now wanted to be freed from the torment any non-royal vampire or vampiress faces when they were deprived of having control over their own willpower.
The Sheriff worked under his father's clan. Years back, he was Mr. Collin's advisor until he abdicated to become a sheriff of the law in the eyes of humanity. Unbeknownst to the humans, the Sheriff truly worked for his Coven, but that didn't mean he didn't clean up the streets, as he had developed a soft spot for humans.
"You've brought me half of what I asked for!" Kai hissed, baring his fangs much bigger. "You'll be released from my alpha tone once Vlad returns."
Further behind the Sheriff's desk, Kai stepped to the bookshelf, while Rome and Glenn rose from their chairs.
"You're only doing this to avoid your father's wrath! Everyone knows Headmaster Vlad favors you above his own sons!" the Sheriff angrily retorted, pointing an accusing finger at him.
Furious as ever, Kai whipped back around, darkly glaring at his father's friend with menacing eyes. "That is because Vlad knows I do whatever task he gives me without question. Where his sons failed him, I picked up the pieces and made our Coven victorious! My father and some of my uncles may have been glorious in battles, but let's not forget who led the Coven to victory!" he snapped, growling ferociously.
Finally, Kai had heard enough disputes from the older vampire.
"Forgive me," the Sheriff pleaded, regretting his words.
In submission, the Sheriff bowed his head in respect. He knew the merciless deeds Kai had done for Vlad were some of the reasons why his wife and unborn offspring were targeted by certain Covens currently flooding into Earth. Revenge is what they sought against Kai because he had slaughtered their human mates and disposed of their offspring.
Vlad's sons sometimes carried out these dirty deeds in the wars, but most of the time, they didn't finish the job. Kai, however, wiped out whole generations of young ones along with those who were willing to join him.
Glad to see him submit, Kai pushed the bookshelf aside, revealing the hidden underpass only known to vampires, which the Sheriff kept under his close guard. Any human who mistakenly discovered it was immediately eliminated to ensure the secret was taken to their grave.
With a calm demeanor, Kai strode down the narrow, dark hallway, as Glenn and Rome followed suit from behind. Soon, the passageway opened into a large, dimly lit chamber filled with numerous cells. Whimpers emanated from various cells that locked up the chosen prisoners the Sheriff had been collecting. The human cops believed these kidnapped prisoners had been executed. Little did anyone know, the prisoners were only administered a special serum that temporarily stopped their hearts. Once the humans left the execution room, the vampires transported their live bait here.
Now, stepping near this particular cell, Kai peered inside at a weak figure on the concrete floor. Only clothed in a pair of gray sweatpants, the disfigured vampire practically slumped on all fours, weakly draping over a dead man's body under his grasp.
"Ready to cooperate with me, Saul?" Kai snickered, fixing his eyes on the disfigured vampire who still resembled a corpse, as though a mummy had been brought back to life.
In a raspy chuckle, Saul weakly lifted his head and hovered over the dead man Kai had allowed him to feed on. With demonic red eyes, he stared at Kai before shifting his gaze to Rome and Glenn, who stood back on each side of Kai's shoulders. Leaning slightly to the side, he stumbled off his hand, weakened by his condition.
To Saul's misfortune, Kai killed and nearly drained each man before allowing him to feed on what little blood he left him. This kept Saul under his full control. Saul fed enough to regain some strength, but it wasn't sufficient enough for him to break down the cell door, or mount an attack on Kai and his advisors. Given his full strength as an Alpha, Saul could easily overpower Kai's advisors and guardians with minimal effort. An evil grin twisted on Saul's lips as he maliciously eyed Glenn and Rome, imagining himself snapping their necks.
"You'll never break me," Saul sneered, biding his time to attack.
In silence, Kai signaled with a nod for Glenn to unlock the metal bar cell door. As Saul feebly stood to his bare feet, Kai unhurriedly entered. With a dull bang, the cell door closed, and before Saul knew what hit him, Kai seized Saul's neck into his grasp.
Without wasting another second, Kai sank his sharp fangs into Saul's dried neck, injecting his most potent venom into his bloodstream. Weakness swiftly overcame Saul's body, as Kai hadn't allowed him to regenerate to his fullest strength. Debilitated enough, Kai tossed him against the wall, and Saul bounced off it like a rubber ball before landing flat on his muscular stomach.
With a firm finger pointed at him, Kai snapped, "Be glad I haven't detained you again!"
Despite using his deadliest venom, which typically required vampires to recover through a detained healing sleep, Kai administered only enough to assert his dominance over Saul.
One way or another, Saul needed to be broken. This way, Kai knew his wife or anybody else in his Coven wouldn't be endangered by him. Minion Alphas were always the hardest to break; not many Covens enslaved Alphas because of how notoriously difficult it was to break them.
After collapsing, Saul gnashed his fangs into his dry, flaky lips. He breathed in deeply, as Kai patiently waited for him to collect himself.
"Why... did you bother... to wake me?" Saul inquired, coughing up some blood.
Instead of answering, Kai posed a question for Saul to ponder deeply on. "Did you ever wonder why I chose to detain you by draining you dry of blood instead of using my deadly venom?"
Still on all fours, with his head weakly bobbing aimlessly, Saul fell silent. Initially, Kai grinned, watching Saul contemplate over the question. Long ago, Kai had intentionally detained Saul without using the most lethal venom that vampires carried.
Among their kind, Alphas contained the most deadliest toxins. Therefore, if he had used the deadliest venom, it would have required Saul to undergo a two-week healing process in a detained sleep, and Kai couldn't afford to wait for that. It was bad enough that he was still waiting for Ace, Ivan, and his best guardians to heal in a detained sleep after being defeated in the recent war. Moreover, he was happy that he had wisely made the right decision years back, especially given the unfortunate circumstances now.