Chapter No 10 A crown she refused
1656 Words
I had been living here for two weeks now, and for the first time in a long while, I finally felt well. My wounds had healed completely—my wolf was fast, far faster than I ever imagined.
I stood near the window, arms crossed, my thoughts spiralling.
“Why did you stop me?” I asked quietly.
“What?” Alexa replied, feigning innocence.
“You know exactly what I mean,” I snapped.
“We cannot trust anyone we’re surrounded by right now,” she said firmly. “And you think I’d let you reveal who you are so easily? How can you trust them?”
“But they think I’m a rogue,” I muttered, irritation seeping into my voice.
“So what?” Alexa said calmly. “We are rogues now, darling.”
I scoffed. “You have to be joking. How can you be so relaxed about this? We can’t live like this forever.”
“You need time to recover,” she replied. “And I won’t risk our pup’s safety—not for anything.”
I rolled my eyes, frustration tightening my chest.
“Everything is new to me,” I whispered. “And you know I can’t hide it forever. They’ll find out soon… they’ll know I’m pregnant.”
“Then relax until that day comes,” Alexa said gently.
Before I could respond, someone called my name.
“Ember.”
I turned to see a tall girl with long blonde hair standing a few steps away.
“Yes?”
“Alpha Althea has arrived. She wants to meet you,” she said.
My breath caught. Alpha Althea. Along with Alpha Tyler, she was known across packs—powerful, ruthless when it came to protecting their own.
“Alright,” I said, forcing steadiness into my voice.
“Come with me.”
As we walked, she spoke softly. “My name is Ann. I’m the daughter of the omegas—Lina and Nora.”
I smiled politely, though my heart was pounding. Whatever waited ahead felt… inevitable.
---
The room felt heavy the moment I stepped inside.
“Who is she?” a woman’s voice asked.
“I don’t know, Mum,” Hazel replied.
Hazel. Soft-spoken, kind Hazel. She had been nothing but gentle with me since the day I arrived.
“Helen, how could you be so careless?” Alpha Althea said sharply. “You know we can’t trust outsiders right now. Bringing an unknown girl into the castle instead of keeping her under guard—she could be a threat.”
“Trust me, Mum,” Hazel said calmly. “We took precautions. She was injured… fragile. She reminded me of myself when I first met Kai.”
Althea sighed. “I know we help rogues. But times are dangerous. Gifted wolves are being hunted.”
“I believe she isn’t a threat,” Hazel said quietly.
The door closed behind me.
I lifted my gaze and met Alpha Althea’s eyes—light purple, sharp, unsettling. She looked young for her age, but her presence alone was overwhelming.
“Ember,” Hazel said warmly, “I hope you like it here.”
I nodded.
“Alpha,” I said respectfully, “thank you for everything. I’ll leave soon.”
“There’s no need for that, dear,” Hazel replied instantly.
Alpha Althea continued to stare at me, unreadable.
“Which pack do you belong to?” she asked.
“I—”
“Hazel,” she said, raising her hand. “Let her speak.”
I swallowed. “I’m… a rogue.”
“Lie,” Alpha Althea said calmly.
My heart skipped.
“Look at me,” she ordered.
I did.
Her gaze pierced straight through me.
“You’re an Alpha,” she said simply.
“What?” Hazel gasped.
“I told you,” Althea said with a faint smile. “You still struggle to read wolves.”
Before I could respond, the door opened again.
The door opened again, and the air in the room shifted.
The man who entered carried power so naturally that it didn’t need to be announced. He was tall, broad, and undeniably strong—the kind of strength that had been sharpened over decades. Even in his fifties, he was devastatingly handsome. His black hair, streaked faintly with silver, framed sharp features that spoke of a man who had once been arrogant, untouchable, and feared in his youth.
I could see it easily—this was a man who had ruled before he had learned mercy.
His deep blue eyes swept across the room with authority, not warmth. They were cold, calculating, and piercing—so different from Hazel’s gentle gaze. Yet when he smiled, briefly, I recognised it.
The same smile.
That was when it struck me—Hazel had inherited his looks. The blue eyes, the elegant bone structure, the unmistakable Alpha presence beneath her softness. But her kindness, her calm, her ability to soothe rather than intimidate—that belonged entirely to Alpha Althea.
“Dad!” Hazel exclaimed suddenly, rushing towards him.
My breath caught.
Dad?
Everything clicked at once. This powerful man—this formidable Alpha—was Hazel’s father. Alpha Tyler. The legend I had heard whispers about.
“My daughter,” he said, his voice deep and proud as he embraced her.
I watched closely. His hold was firm, protective, possessive—nothing like Hazel’s gentleness. There was no softness in him by nature. Whatever tenderness he showed had been learned, not inherited.
Alpha Althea snapped at him moments later, and I saw it then—the balance between them. His raw strength. Her wisdom and restraint.
Together, they made sense.
When Tyler’s gaze finally settled on me, I felt it—his wolf recognising mine without effort. His eyes narrowed slightly, not in threat, but in assessment.
“She’s an Alpha,” he said.
My heart stuttered.
There was no kindness in his tone. No cruelty either. Just truth.
And standing there, exposed beneath his gaze, I realised something unsettling—
If this man ever became my enemy, there would be no escaping him.
Yet strangely…
If he chose to protect me, no one in this world could touch me.
“Why did you leave your pack?” Alpha Althea asked, her voice calm but unyielding. “You have to go back. You should go back. You are an Alpha.”
Her words hit me like a blade pressed gently against my chest—sharp, cold, impossible to ignore.
My throat tightened. I shook my head before I even realised I was doing it.
“I can’t go back,” I whispered. “I can’t… I can’t go there.”
The room felt suddenly too small, as if the walls were closing in. My vision blurred, and I hated myself for the tears that burned behind my eyes. I had sworn I wouldn’t cry in front of them. Not in front of Alphas.
Alpha Tyler stepped forward then, his presence heavy, commanding. His voice dropped, no longer sharp, but dangerously quiet.
“Tell me what happened,” he said. “Did your pack come under attack? Was it an enemy Alpha? Tell me who did this. We can sort it.”
For a brief moment, I almost believed him. Almost believed that someone could fix what had been broken inside me.
I swallowed hard.
“My father…” My voice trembled. I forced myself to continue. “He wanted me to marry someone who is not my mate.”
Silence crashed into the room.
Hazel gasped softly, her hand flying to her mouth. Alpha Althea’s eyes widened before hardening with fury.
“How could he?” Althea snapped, her voice sharp with anger.
Alpha Tyler’s jaw clenched. His fists tightened at his sides, the Alpha in him rising like a storm. I could feel it—raw, violent rage held barely in check.
“We should pay him a personal visit,” he said coldly. “No Alpha has the right to destroy the bond the Moon Goddess herself created.”
Hazel nodded quickly. “We banned this long ago,” she said. “Forcing a wolf into a bondless life is cruelty.”
Their anger should have comforted me. Instead, it only made the ache in my chest deepen.
I shook my head, stepping back instinctively.
“No,” I said, my voice breaking. “I don’t want anything to do with my father anymore. I don’t want revenge. I don’t want justice. I just want to be free.”
My hands curled into fists.
“I will leave this pack too,” I continued, tears finally slipping free. “I will live somewhere far away—where no one knows my name, where no one can claim me or control my life again.”
Hazel moved instantly, crossing the space between us. Her hands were warm as they gently held mine, grounding me.
“No, Ember,” she said softly. “You don’t have to leave. You are safe here.”
I looked at her, stunned by the sincerity in her eyes.
“We understand privacy,” she continued. “If you’re not ready to tell us everything, then don’t. You don’t owe us your pain.”
For the first time since I ran from my pack, my chest loosened—just a little.
Alpha Althea opened her mouth, clearly about to object. I could see it—the Alpha in her, the instinct to protect her territory at all costs. But then she looked at Hazel. Really looked at her.
And whatever she saw in her daughter’s eyes made her stop.
The room fell quiet again.
And in that silence, I realised something terrifying and beautiful all at once—
I had crossed into Riverstone as a broken runaway…
But I might not have to leave as one.
- Writer
