Aldric sat up on the bed, "A woman? In the woods?"
"Yes, Aldric. She was no ordinary person."
"What do you mean? Who was she and where was she from? Did she say something to you?"
"She's from our pack. I never saw her face because she was well covered as if she was hiding something. She was hastily walking towards the border. She had a very dark energy, Aldric. She is a witch," Reyana explained.
Aldric let out a slight chuckle, "Reya..." he fondled her messy hair, "Have you been having those nightmares again?" he smiled at her.
"What have my nightmares got to do with this, Aldric?" She asked with furrowed brows.
"Remember we found you unconscious in the woods? You must have had one of those nightmares when you were unconscious, making you think all you saw was real..."
"Stop it, Aldric! I know what I saw! How do you think I ended up half-dead in the middle of the woods? She used black magic on me!" She almost yelled out of frustration
"But, Reya, in as much as I'd love to believe you, we have no other witches aside from the Blood Crescent witches among us. You of all people know the measures we take every time to fish out any corrupt members in our packs. A witch can't possibly survive here without being fished out already, Reya." Aldric reminded.
"I know. That's why I am even more confused. This woman knew my name. She called me by my name and told me that I shouldn't have meddled in her business," Reyana carefully looked around, scanning the environment to make sure they were alone.
"She chanted some spell that made me black out. I thought I was going to die. I still don't know what she intended with that spell. But I tried to defend myself with my dagger just before I blacked out."
"Are you certain about this?" He became more interested in the story when he found out she wasn't imagining things.
"Yes, Aldric. We have to be careful. There is an enemy in the pack. The question now is, how do we fish her out?"
"I'll tell Alpha Randall about this. We have to conduct a thorough search. We'll inform the witches about it too. We'll do this the traditional way," He made to leave but Reyana stopped him.
"No, Aldric. However this woman has been escaping these routines for a while now, she will surely escape this one. We have to find another way," She gestured for him to sit.
"You got a better idea?"
"I want us to find that dagger at all costs. If I was able to stab her as I intended before blacking out, we might be lucky to get some answers with the blood on the dagger." She knew it sounded ridiculous, but she hoped he'd see a point in it.
"But you aren't sure if you were able to stab her as intended. And, if you had succeeded in stabbing her, don't you think she'd already be dead?"
"No. She isn't dead. I was too weak for the stab to have made such an impact. But I am certain that somehow, I may have bruised her or something," she was hopeful at this point.
"Okay. Let's hope so. I'll head out with some of the pack warriors. We'll make sure we find..."
"No!" She stopped him mid-sentence, "We can't trust anyone right now until we can tell who this person is, and if she has other accomplices in the pack."
"That makes sense. I'll do it alone. I'll head out tonight," he stared at her lovingly, "I've missed you, Reyana..." His fingertips traced the contours of her cheeks, a gentle caress tinged with longing.
"I know..." Sadness engulfed her once again, casting shadows in her eyes, "what do we do now? What if he keeps me locked up forever?" Her voice quivered with fear, tears threatening to spill over.
"He can't do that. You'll be out of this place in no time, and as soon as that happens, we'll go ahead with our plan, okay?" He whispered to her.
"Aldric... Take me... Mark me and make me yours already," she sounded so naive that it made his heart melt.
"My love... You know it isn't that easy. You are mated to one of the strongest Alphas to ever live. Doing that will only take me to an early grave. You know the rules. We just have to go as far away from here as possible, then we'll find a solution." He took her palms into his, squeezing them softly.
All she could do was wait. She had no choice.
"But, you have to promise me that you'll never let him have you, Reyana. Promise me that," his voice cracked with emotions.
"I promise, Aldric. I'll never let him have me, no matter what." She assured him as a lone tear slid down her cheek.
*
Alpha Randall felt his insides churn at the sight before him. He stood in the dark as he watched how happy they looked.
"I thought she meant nothing to you," Keir, his wolf taunted, his words like a blade twisting in Randall's gut.
Randall gritted his teeth, trying to block out his relentless voice, but it was impossible to ignore.
"How much longer will you keep deceiving yourself? She is our mate, Randall! Ours! But you prefer spending time with your mistress while another man takes your rightful place!" Keir snared, his vexation valid. His words hit too close to home, stirring up a mix of guilt and longing inside Randall.
"Stop it, Keir. This is not the time for this," Randall replied calmly. His voice strained with the effort of keeping his emotions in check.
Keir's resentment towards Visha had always been simmering beneath the surface, but now, after finding out Reyana was their mage, it boiled over into open hostility. His desire to claim Reyana for himself, to take what he saw as rightfully theirs, threatened to tear them apart.
Keir desired to take what was rightfully theirs. He doesn't care about the ugly history Randall had with her. All he needed was to be with his mate.
"Why do you struggle to keep sane whenever you are around her? Always masking your feelings with angry emotions. Why does her sweet scent intoxicate you so much that it threatens to rob you of your senses? Just the way you feel right now," Keir said without mercy, hitting a nerve.
Keir's words cut deep, exposing the raw truth Randall had been trying so hard to ignore.
"Stop it, Keir..." Randall said with measured control of his emotions, even though Keir was right. But he couldn't bring himself to fall for the woman who caused the death of his first love.
"You can't fight the mate bond, Randall, no matter how strong you think you are. I hope we don't lose our fated mate to another because of your acute adamance!" Keir's anger flared before he retreated to the recesses of Randall's mind.
It had been like this since Reyana came into the picture. They'd always argue about accepting her as his mate, but of course, that isn't a possibility.
Alpha Randall's heart stopped for a moment, his eyes turning red with rage as he saw Aldric lean closer to kiss HIS MATE. A surge of possessive rage coursed through him.
"Aldric!" He thundered, his voice bearing utmost authority that forced Aldric to his knees at once.
Aldric fell to his knees, trembling in terror at the Alpha's wrath, his will crumbling under the force of Randall's command, the glow of power in Randall's eyes casting a deep green aura of dominance over them, making both of them tremble at his presence.
Alpha Randall took long, urgent strides towards the duo with Aldric still kneeling face-down as his strong fist collided with Aldric's face in a hard punch.
Aldric remained in his position, not daring to look the enraged Alpha in his face.
Just then, another heavy punch landed on his face, causing him to stagger a bit, but he maintained his position, taking it all in.
Reyana shivered as she watched the scene before her. Her heart squeezed with pain and hurt for Aldric when she suddenly saw Alpha Randall unsheathing his sword as he lifted it high up, his eyes still glowing a dangerous shade of dark green.
"Randall, No!" She screamed at the top of her voice before she could stop herself. She also wondered how she was able to break through the web of his compelling command, but it seemed she was the only one who had noticed it at that point.
Alpha Randall's hand paused mid-air as he heard her terrified voice call out his name. He felt a quake in his heart as his eyes suddenly went back to being the usual light shade of green they used to be.
"Leave!" He ordered Aldric who wasted no time in leaving the small chamber without casting his gaze on Reyana before leaving.
Alpha Randall glared briefly at her before leaving the room without saying a word to her.
"Oh, Selene... Won't you save me from this monster?" she sobbed bitterly before resting her head on the bed, waiting for her doom to finally come.
***
Kellan paced the corners of his spacious room as he listened to the soft footsteps approaching his door.
He adjusted himself before responding to the soft knock on his door, "Come in."
He felt a strange wave run through him as he set eyes on his fantasy... Ria.
She nervously walked into the spacious room, looking around it briefly before coming to a halt a few feet away from the Gamma.
"Sire?" She bowed as she greeted him, her gaze never meeting his.
"Ria..." He called her, his throaty voice filled with something dark and needy.
"Yes, sire. I am sorry I didn't show up last night... Mistress Azura gave me some extra tasks to do, as punishment for not finishing my tasks the previous day," she explained, still looking away.
Kellan found all her actions beautiful and he admired her even more.
"It's okay. I understand," he said, taking some steps toward her, but she stepped back.
"You said you had something to tell me, sire? Have I done anything to displease you?" She asked when she felt his gaze almost bore a hole in her face. It made her uncomfortable.
"Come have a seat," He gestured toward the bed.
"Uh... Thank you, sire, but I am fine with where I am standing. I'll get punished if I am ever seen sitting on your bed," she added, making her look more adorable to Kellan.
Just then, Kellan's blue eyes were covered in a white fog as he stood still for a moment. It was not new to Ria as she knew he was being mind-linked.
"Sit. I'll be back shortly," he held her by her arm and gently guided her to his bed before she could even protest.
Ria felt nervous at his kind gestures. It made her more worried and she felt the need to be more careful around him. She felt like running out of his room, but she couldn't disobey him.
As seconds turned into minutes, Ria found herself dozing off, but she shook it off, maintaining her composure.
*
Kellan stood by his bedside as he watched Ria sleeping peacefully at the edge of his bed. She was lying down on her side with both hands serving as a headrest for her beautiful head.
The soft fabric of her gown had slipped down her shoulder, revealing a tantalizing glimpse of her chest. Kellan's breath caught in his throat as his gaze lingered on the curve of her exposed cleavage, his eyes darkening with desire.
"Fuck..." he muttered under his breath, his heart pounding in his chest.
Her slight snores made his heart flutter as her round, plump lips were slightly parted, tempting him to lean in and claim a kiss as he felt a twitch in his pants.
"Get it together, Kellan," he snapped at himself.