SURROGATE FOR THE RUTHLESS ALPHA

So stubborn and defiant

"Why are you out here?" He ignored my desperation to cover myself as he questioned me.

I swallowed hard, clutching the hem of the oversized shirt like it could shield me from his stare. “I needed air and food” I muttered, eyes darting anywhere but him. “You didn’t exactly say I couldn’t leave the house.” I added quickly.

“And you thought running into the woods at night was wise?”

“I wasn’t running.” I hated how defensive my voice sounded. “I just… needed space and food.”

His jaw flexed as soon as I said so. “Space,” he echoed, almost like the word offended him. “From what?”

I met his eyes then, despite the tremor working its way through my chest. “From you.” I blurted out. For a fleeting moment, I thought I saw something flicker behind his expression, something that was probably anger and it didn’t vanish.

“Did you forget your place?,” he said, his tone sharp enough to slice the air between us.

“I remember it all too well,” I shot back, bitterness spilling before I could stop it. “But that’s the problem.”

He moved before I could blink. One second he was a few paces away, the next his hand was around my arm.

“I know you still think that you will successfully run away from my pack?” he murmured, leaning close enough that his breath brushed my cheek.

My heart hammered. “Yes, you won’t keep me here forever.”

"I won’t keep you forever, I'm killing you the moment you done giving birth, don’t forget that", The moment he said so, I wrenched my arm free and turned, bolting toward the trees. The sound of my heartbeat drowned out everything else, his growl, the crunch of leaves, even the part of me that screamed you’re not fast enough.

I didn’t care. I ran.

The forest swallowed me whole. Branches whipped at my arms, the ground uneven beneath my bare feet, but I didn’t slow down. My breath came in sharp bursts, every inhale burning. I didn’t dare look back, I knew if I did, I’d lose whatever courage I had left.

I slowed down when I came across a large fallen tree. It was twice the size of me so I couldn't just simply jump over it.

I rolled up my sleeves and was about to pull myself on top of the tree when I heard a twig snap.

I knew it was him before I even turned in the direction. He was behind me.

"I would think very carefully if I was you," he stated, emerging from the shadows, looking majestic under the moonlight.

The mate bond was so strong and I had to physically pull my eyes away from his body and up to his face.

He was watching me with his dark eyes. His black hair was now messed, strands falling across his face.

"What?" I whispered, my voice unwittingly husky. Good god, how could this man be so gorgeous yet so cold hearted?

"That tree," Alpha Bane gestured with his head, "is on the border of my pack. You cross it and you have officially escaped."

I was confused at his fact-stating voice. Was he telling me to leave?

He continued, "And that means, once you have crossed, I'll give you two seconds before I kill you then also order my men to take your dead ass body to you my new luna. I know she will be the happiest person and will celebrate your death",

Oh I see, he wasn't giving me facts he was just threatening me.

"Oh..." My laugh came out sharper than I meant. "You're bluffing."

His mouth pinched, a line of displeasure cutting across the pale moonlight. "Would you like me to prove it?"

A ridiculous, dangerous part of me wanted him to. To see the twist of satisfaction on his face when I proved him right but then for the sake of my mother’s death , I had to obey him. I wanted to stay alive and avenge the death of my mother.

"Prove what?" I stepped forward despite the logic that screamed at me to back away. "That you're cruel? That you don’t care about other people’s feelings",

He didn't answer. He let me keep talking as if my words were a toy to be studied and then discarded. "Kill me and you'll get nothing. You won’t get the heir for your pack, you also know know the truth that the luna of Redmoon pack can’t give you one",

For a breath he looked…unsettled. The moonlight traced the ridges of his jaw, the slow, slow rhythm of his chest. For a ridiculous second I imagined pity in his eyes. Then the shadow slid back over his face and all that remained was ice.

"You are insolent," he said. "And foolish."

"Maybe," I admitted, lifting my chin. "But I'm not your plaything."

Bane’s gaze hardened. The brief flicker of emotion I thought I saw vanished entirely. His jaw set like stone, and his voice dropped lower.

“I don’t have time for your nonsense, Maeve”

Before I could react, he moved, too fast for my human reflexes to process. His hand shot out, gripping my wrist again, but this time his hold was unrelenting. He yanked me toward him with effortless strength, my body colliding with the solid wall of his chest.

“Let me go!” I struggled, kicking against him, but it was useless. His arm circled my waist, pinning me easily in place as if I weighed nothing at all.

“You’ve wasted enough of my time for one night,” he muttered, his tone flat.

“You should’ve stayed where I left you. And I am going to make sure, your dead ass body is burnt in front of the pack members the moment you done giving birth"

My stomach turned. The cold finality in his tone told me he meant every word even now. He didn’t care about me, not even about my life, only about the heir.

When I tried to wrench free again, he sighed, as if my resistance was some mild inconvenience rather than desperation. Then, with one smooth motion, he bent slightly and lifted me into his arms.

“Put me down!” I shouted, pounding weakly against his chest. “You can’t just—”

He didn’t respond. His face was expressionless, his gaze fixed straight ahead as he carried me back through the trees.

By the time we reached the edge of the clearing near the packhouse, several figures emerged from the shadows, his warriors.

They bowed their heads immediately. “Alpha,” one of them said.

Bane’s voice was calm but cold. “She tried to cross the border.”

“I’m done playing guardian. Take her back to my quarters immediately and lock up the door this time".

I opened my mouth to argue again, but two of his warriors stepped forward and grabbed me by the arms. My stomach dropped as I felt their rough hands grip my skin, their strength making it impossible to resist.

Bane didn’t look back at me. He turned to one of the guards, his tone low and clipped. “Make sure she’s secured. I’ll deal with her after the meeting.”

“Yes, Alpha.”

They began to drag me away, my heels digging into the dirt as I struggled. “Bane, stop! Please ... don’t do this!”

He ignored me.