Bound to the Cursed Alpha

Chapter 5

Aria’s POV

The wind whipped through the forest, cold and sharp, tearing at my hair and clothes. My lungs burned as I ran, bare feet crunching over leaves and roots. Behind me, I could hear Lucien, his powerful strides keeping pace, his low growls warning any predator to keep their distance.

I didn’t know what I had done to deserve this. One moment, I was a human slave, unnoticed, invisible. The next, I was running for my life, chased through the forest by hunters and the wrath of the Elders. And yet, I couldn’t deny the thrill. Not the fear. The bond. The pulse in my chest that screamed at me with his every heartbeat.

“Aria!” Lucien’s voice cut through the night, calm but sharp. “Stay close!”

I stumbled over a root, nearly falling. His hand caught my elbow, steadying me. The warmth of his grip seared through me, a shock I hadn’t anticipated. My body reacted before my mind could process it. My pulse doubled, my breath shallow, and the bond thrummed like wildfire between us.

“You’re trembling,” he said quietly, almost a growl. “Do you want to survive or freeze to death?”

“I… I’m trying,” I panted, struggling to keep up.

He glanced at me, eyes stormy, intense. For a heartbeat, I thought he would pull me into his arms, tell me to stop running, to give in to the bond, to trust him completely. But instead, he pushed me forward with firm insistence, his hand lingering just long enough for me to feel the heat of his skin, the power of his wolf, without allowing comfort to weaken me.

Ahead, the forest opened slightly. Moonlight spilled across a small clearing, illuminating the mist. I froze. Something stirred inside me. An itch, a fire, a hum beneath my skin. My hands shook. My body felt… different. I couldn’t explain it, but I knew something was awakening.

Lucien’s eyes softened just slightly. “Do you feel it?” he asked, low and commanding.

I swallowed hard, heart racing. “I… I think so,” I whispered.

The bond pulsed, stronger now, almost physical. A surge of energy shot through me. My fingers tingled, my vision sharpened, and I could feel the wind on my skin like it had a pulse of its own. My breathing steadied, my muscles hummed with hidden strength.

Then it happened.

A flash of silver light erupted from my chest, running down my arms, trailing across my skin. My heart skipped. My hands glowed faintly, and fur began to ripple beneath my human skin. Panic surged. I wasn’t supposed to do this. I wasn’t supposed to be more than human.

Lucien stepped forward, placing a hand on my shoulder. The warmth of him grounded me. “Focus on me,” he said firmly. “Control it. Feel it. Don’t let it control you.”

I forced myself to take a deep breath, to listen to his voice, to the steady rhythm of his heartbeat through the bond. The pulsing energy calmed slightly, but it didn’t stop. My silver-gray eyes, hidden for so long beneath human guise, flared in the moonlight. I gasped.

“You’re… beautiful,” he murmured, voice rough, almost breaking as he said it. “Stronger than anyone imagined.”

I looked away, embarrassed, heat crawling up my neck. I didn’t feel beautiful. I felt like a monster, half-human, half-something else entirely. But I could feel the bond tightening, pulling me toward him, binding me in ways I couldn’t name. My body reacted to him, every instinct awake. My heartbeat synchronized with his, every breath a shared rhythm.

Suddenly, a howl echoed through the trees. More hunters. They were circling, cutting off escape. I froze. Fear surged, sharp and icy.

Lucien’s eyes darkened. “Move,” he said, voice low and lethal. His hand grabbed mine, guiding me through the clearing. “Now.”

We ran. Together. The bond flared stronger, my senses sharpening. I could hear footsteps before they arrived, smell movement before it was visible. My body responded to the wolf within me. This power, this gift I never knew existed. It terrified me and thrilled me in equal measure.

“You’re… changing,” Lucien said, his hand brushing mine. The touch sent shivers down my spine, warmth clashing with the cold fear around us. “Do not be afraid. Trust it. Trust me.”

“I… I don’t know if I can control it,” I admitted, voice trembling.

“You will,” he growled. “Or they will take you. And I will not forgive that.” His words weren’t just a threat, they were a promise. Possession. Protection. Desire.

I could feel him behind me, his strength enveloping me even without touching. The bond pulsed with raw energy, tying our fates together. My first moments of transformation had revealed something ancient within me, something powerful, something dangerous. Something that belonged to him.

The hunters appeared again, emerging from the shadows, weapons gleaming faintly. I froze for a fraction, panic clawing at me. Lucien growled, and the bond flared, a silver light erupting between us.

“Move,” he barked, pulling me into a sprint. My legs carried me faster than I ever thought possible. I could feel the wolf inside me responding to the danger, strengthening me. My senses sharpened. I could anticipate their moves, evade their strikes.

One of them lunged. My hands glowed. Fur erupted from my skin in a shimmer of silver and brown. I struck with precision, surprising myself with my own strength. The hunter flew back, defeated. The others froze. Lucien’s hand grasped mine again, and the bond pulsed, warning me, guiding me.

“Together,” he growled. “Always together.”

I looked up at him, our eyes locking through the chaos. Something deeper passed between us. Not just survival. Not just desire. But recognition. A connection that had existed before words, before touch, before the Rite itself.

A hunter rose again, but I felt Lucien’s presence, his protective energy surrounding us like armor. The bond flared, silver threads weaving between our bodies, sealing our fates.

I gasped, trembling, and he whispered, low and urgent, “You’re mine, Aria. Do you understand?”

“Yes,” I whispered, almost too breathless to speak. But it was true. Every instinct, every pulse, every fear and desire screamed it. I belonged to him. And he to me.

The hunters froze, retreating as if the forest itself protected us. And in that moment, I realized that I was no longer a helpless human. I was something more. A hybrid. A wolf-human. And my power, awakened, was tied to him, bound to him.

The forest fell silent. Our breaths mingled. The moonlight cast silver across our trembling forms. And then, in the stillness, I knew that this was only the beginning.

A distant howl echoed once more, but this time it carried a strange resonance. An ancient power awakening. I shivered, looking at Lucien. “Something else is coming,” I whispered. And I felt the bond tighten, pulling me toward a danger I could not yet comprehend.