Alpha Zephyr slipped in to his room through the window without being seen, it was not strange since he usually came in through there after his morning run.
The curtain closed room was bathed in the warm glow of a single candelabra and its dim light illuminated the perfectly carved furniture.
Making his way toward the large, four poster bed that was draped in rich fabric and furs, he lay the motionless body on it and got seated on a large chair while his eyes were fixed on the bed.
"What is this?" He said coldly to no one in particular. "Is this a game? Is the goddess playing a trick on me?"
His words were a reflection of what he felt. Confusion, anger and fear.
All these years, he had resigned himself to his fate, to his punishment, a dark and lonely life for someone like him.
A cruel fate for a cruel one.
And now, out of the blue, he is struck by the mate attraction with a strange kind of being. He knew without question that what he felt was the mate attraction, he had never felt it before and as wolves are told, once you feel it, you know it instantly.
But what lay before him was almost lifeless. He was not sure of whatever or who it was. Why was it in the river even?
Was this another punishment from the goddess?
The knock on the door startled Alpha Zephyr and he stood up at once to welcome his Beta Ralph and the healer, Channe who followed closely behind.
Channe, the middle aged river pack healer bowed her head to the Alpha, her blonde curls dropping as she did.
"My Alpha." She greeted.
She didn't wait for his reply as she followed him to the bed, she was used to the Alpha's lack of words.
"I will give you a moment." He said and with that, he walked out of the room while Ralph followed behind.
With the door shut, Zephyr commanded the guards positioned outside the door to leave.
Then, he walked to the window at the end of the hall and stood facing it with his arms crossed in a static position.
"Is everything okay, Zephyr?" Ralph asked unable to hold down his curiosity anymore.
He was one of the few that had the opportunity to relate close enough to the distant Alpha. He was as good as his best friend and brother.
Zephyr knew that if he could trust anyone at all with what was going on, it was Ralph.
"She's my mate." He said simply.
Ralph froze, utterly confounded and unable to comprehend what he had just heard.
Zephyr didn't need to turn around to see his Beta's expression, the shock could be sniffed out.
"I felt it." He said still looking out the window at nothing at all.
"You felt it." Ralph repeated, still bewildered.
"Yes. I felt the Mate Attraction, the Mate Pull. I felt it." Zephyr stated more audibly now.
Ralph glanced around to confirm they were alone and then he moved closer to his Alpha.
"Are you sure?" He asked.
Zephyr turned to Ralph then, his eyes said it all before he turned back to the window.
Ralph did a replay of the Alpha's sudden change of direction while they were running through the woods and the loud unusual sound of his bones cracking as he transformed.
"Bloody Moon!" He cursed to himself as he ran his hands through his short brown hair. He turned to Zephyr with confused eyes. "What was she doing in the river then?"
"How should I know?" Zephyr said in his usual cold tone.
"She doesn't look like a she wolf."
"I know." Zephyr agreed simply.
"She may be a siren, Zephyr." Ralph offered with more thoughts bombarding his head now.
Zephyr turned to Ralph in surprise then.
"A Siren? She's bald." He stated matter of factly and Ralph shrugged.
"A bald siren then! Zeeb seems to think so. I mean with how strange she looks, there's a strong possibility." The Beta offered desperately .
Zephyr stared at Ralph with an unreadable expression in his eyes.
"Why would I be mated to a Bald Siren?" He asked plainly.
"That's the thing. I think I saw…."
The sound of the door opening pulled them both out of the conversation and they turned to see Channe making her way out of the room.
Zephyr strode to the door and went in to the room while Channe went back in and Ralph followed.
"Is that a Siren?" He asked immediately the door was shut behind the three of them.
Channe was confused and she stared at Ralph for clarification but he seemed to be eager to hear her thoughts as well.
"I don't think so, My Alpha." Channe said struggling not to stammer.
"Then what is it?" He asked fiercely.
"A strange she-wolf is my best guess, My Alpha." She managed and seeing the displeasure in his eyes at the word guess, she quickly added. "Her body is very weak and her bones are tired. It seems she has been through some sort of terrible pain and torture. She seems to be fighting for her life but there is no sign of injury on her."
"The baldness?" Alpha Zephyr prodded further.
Channe looked uncomfortable. "Forgive me for saying this My Alpha but I am simply a healer. The body, the bones and sometimes the soul speaks to me. All I know is that she is very weak and her body seems to have gone through a lot. Any normal being would be dead by now." The healer explained.
Zephyr nodded and Channe was relieved.
"I will return at midday to check on her." She said.
"Very well." The Alpha agreed. "Not a word to anyone."
"Of course, My Alpha." With that, she bowed her head.
"I will see her out." Ralph said and as he was about to leave, Zephyr called after him.
"Attend the meeting and assist Zeeb. I won't be able to make it. I'll stay here in case she wakes up." He said.
Ralph looked in to the Alpha's dark eyes and he contemplated using the mind link to talk about the mark on this stranger's hand but he decided not to.
It was a sensitive subject and he needed to be sure to speak on it. The Alpha won't take it lightly if he ended up being wrong, so with a nod and a bow, Ralph left the room.
Now left alone with the bald stranger on his bed, Zephyr walked back to the chair and sat on it, his eyes intensely fixed once more on the motionless body.
"Who are you?" He growled.