In the ALPHA'S CLAWS

"Don't trust a wolf".

Samael couldn't help but look around. In fact, with every step they took, he made sure no one was following him. He was even more suspicious than usual, and with good reason, now that he knew the truth about the huntress, he understood how valuable that human was. Or rather, that semi-human who was currently his burden, but had become a much more valuable burden than he had believed. At least now he understood why his instinct had prevented him from hurting her. That certainly made him feel much better.

"Can I ask you a question?" Abby asked from behind him. Samael adjusted his sweater, which bothered him a lot. The garment made him feel hot and itchy, but he couldn't take it off, as it was already strange enough for a human to be dressed so lightly in the middle of winter.

Abby continued looking at him, waiting for his response, and the alpha finally gave in. He couldn't continue ignoring her, as she now believed she had the right to speak to him. It seemed he had been too lenient in the cabin; otherwise, the girl would continue fearing him and would keep silent.

He didn't know whom he disliked more, whether it was that warm and annoying sweater or the unbearable huntress, who despite having a much more complicated past than he thought, remained his enemy. In the present, that kidnapped girl was a killer, just like all the hunters who had taken away his moon.

"Silence is much more comfortable," Samael commented, stopping in his tracks and looking around. They were close to the town. There, they had to find a hotel room and stay for a few days, at least as long as they could hide before someone found them, as he was sure that if the witch was right and that girl was as special as they said, they wouldn't take long to search for her, even under the stones. Of course, perhaps the town would be the first place where the hunters would look, and although he had told the witch that he would wait for his revenge, he wasn't very sure if he could actually fulfill it, as if he had Abby's father in front of him, he wouldn't hesitate to try to kill him.

Abby smiled timidly, which is why the alpha had to turn his back to roll his eyes in annoyance and sigh again. He was trying to be kind to her, as it was all part of his plan, but the girl was making it too complicated for him.

"My name is Abby, I would like you to call me that if you agree," she said, once again breaking the comfortable silence.

"Alright," Samael replied, giving in to the girl's silly requests.

"Thank you," she said, smiling again. She still didn't understand what had changed, but she was sure that from now on, their relationship would be much friendlier, as the werewolf man began to treat her better, or at least not as badly as at the beginning.

"Can I know your name?" she asked, although she already knew it, as the witch had shared it with her. However, she preferred to ask him in that way to know that she would have his permission to use it. She didn't know much about that man, but she knew he was quite grumpy and suspicious, and she didn't want to make a mistake by taking that liberty.

"We're not friends," the man said, returning to his usual tone of voice. Abby quickly regretted asking such a personal question, but she really wanted to be able to communicate with him in some way. She was almost foolishly desperate to hear his voice, and that embarrassed her in a way, but she couldn't help it.

know, it's just that when we enter the town, I need to be able to communicate with you. I mean, if you want, I can call you alpha. I know that's the way your subjects, or the way they communicate with you, and maybe I should call you that too, but if I address you like that in front of others, it might sound strange," she rambled nervously. Samael felt a wave of nostalgia just by remembering those past days when his people called him that, but it had all ended in the worst way, and the memory now only hurt. He wanted to unleash his anger on her, but he didn't want to scare her. It wasn't convenient to do so now that they were close to the town, as the girl could run away and seek refuge there. It would be much easier that way. That's why he controlled his temper and remained silent until his anger subsided.

"The town is just a few meters away. You can call me Samael there. That's my name, but you can only use it when there are other humans around. I don't want to hear you say it if that's not the case. Do you understand?" the alpha confronted her. Abby smiled again and then nodded her head in agreement.

"I understand," she said meekly. Lately, she had set aside her rebelliousness, and the alpha appreciated it, as he couldn't tolerate a human answering him back.

"Answer these questions without lying or rambling," Samael began, while she nodded her head again in affirmation. "How many people in the town know you?" he asked to make sure they didn't encounter any of the girl's relatives there. Although considering the place where they had met, he deduced that the Hamiltons' house was located on the outskirts of the town, much farther from here.

"No one," she replied. Samael paid attention to the girl's heartbeat to make sure she wasn't lying, and it remained calm, so maybe she was telling the truth. However, something didn't convince him.

"Don't lie to me, or I'll get angry," he said, getting closer to her until their faces were just inches apart. A sigh escaped the girl's lips and brushed against his, but that wasn't what distracted Samael from the interrogation he had started. It was Abby's heartbeat that caught his attention, as it was so strong and fast that it kept resonating in the werewolf's ears.

"It's the truth," she replied nervously.

"Are you telling me that even though you live near the town, you've never come to visit it?" Samael asked incredulously.

"That's right, I never visited the town. My house is near the entrance of the forest. I wasn't allowed to come; my parents didn't let me go out much," she commented. That overprotectiveness made sense, since Abby was much more valuable to them given the nature of the girl.

"I believe you," Samael replied, causing a smile to appear on the girl's face. That displeased him so much that he had to quickly move away from her so she wouldn't notice his annoyed expression.

The deception had to continue, even though he couldn't truly believe that young Hamilton was as innocent as she seemed to be. After all, she was still a huntress, and something told him that she was only pretending to be in front of him. Anyway, he preferred to continue with this charade, at least while they were in the town or until they found a place to stay. Once they were alone, everything would go back to how it was before, or even worse. That's what Samael repeated to himself to control his temper and continue enduring her.

Abby was excited. She knew they were just a few short meters away from reaching the town, and there she could finally call that man by his name. She was truly surprised that he allowed her to say his name, and the hope that things would improve made her smile.

"We'll go and buy you some clothes, and then we'll ask around for a place where we can stay for the night," he kindly commented. Abby's heart was now beating so hard that she thought it might burst out of her chest. The truth was that young Hamilton knew very little about love or romance, except for what she had read in her romance books. Her life at home was boring and dreadful, with little contact with the outside world apart from creatures. Now, finally being outside, she was experiencing her freedom and, above all, getting to know what it feels like to be attracted to someone else.

Because, if she was honest with herself, she liked that creature not only for his looks (since that man was very handsome), but also for how being with him made her feel. By his side, she felt protected and warm. The warmth of his beast's skin gave her comfort and awakened thousands of sensations in her body, sensations she had never experienced before.

Abby blushed at her thoughts, and the grip of her hand with Samael's brought a smile to her face.

"That sounds good to me," she replied, barely able to speak. Then she gathered her courage and said the word she had been wanting to say for a few hours.

"Samael," she whispered, almost timidly. She thought the man holding her hand hadn't heard her due to the softness of her voice. However, after a few seconds, the alpha turned his gaze toward her.

"What?" he asked simply. Maybe he was annoyed, but when Abby looked at his face, she didn't see any signs of anger. She breathed a sigh of relief and gathered her courage to speak again.

"I need to buy some pants and a blouse," she commented, looking down at the ground.

"That's fine," he responded, turning his gaze back to the people around them. The town wasn't very big, and there weren't usually many people out in winter, at least not outside their houses. But at this time of the morning, there was usually quite a bit of activity, so the werewolf was restless. He had been to the town a few times, and although he was familiar with it, he didn't enjoy being around humans, let alone acting like them. But that's what he had to do right now.

He kept holding onto the young woman for two reasons. The first was that they needed to pretend to be a couple to attract less attention, and the second was to prevent her from getting away or trying to escape. He had previously criticized himself for not being able to harm her, but now he understood that his instincts were right in sparing her life. Not only could he use her to seek revenge on the hunters, but she would also restore his power. The mere idea of being who he once was finally made him smile. In fact, a small smile appeared on his wicked face, and Abby couldn't help but get excited, thinking that Samael was starting to feel the same attraction towards her. However, that man, despite being in human form now, was still a beast. A wicked beast with selfish interests in her, and she would soon find out.