Chapter 3: The Alpha King’s Ultimatum
1006 Words
Ruby
I didn’t sleep that night.
How could I?
Manson Lee had just declared to my entire pack that I was leaving with him by dawn. He hadn’t asked. He hadn’t given me a choice. He had simply decided as if my life were his to control.
I paced my small room, my thoughts spiraling. My hands trembled as I ran them through my hair. I had fought so hard to build a life here, to prove that I didn’t need a mate. And now, in the span of one night, the Alpha King had come and ripped that away.
I should have been angry. Furious.
But beneath the frustration, beneath the defiance, there was something even more terrifying.
Hope.
I clenched my jaw and shoved the thought away. No. I would not give in to the mate bond. I would not let myself believe that just because he was powerful, he would somehow be different from all the others who had betrayed me.
A knock on my door startled me. I turned, my pulse spiking.
“Ruby?”
Leah.
I exhaled shakily and opened the door. She slipped inside, shutting it behind her, her eyes filled with worry.
“Tell me you’re not going with him,” she whispered.
I swallowed hard. “I don’t want to.”
Her shoulders sagged with relief. “Good. Because if you leave with him, you won’t have a choice anymore. You know what Alphas are like, and he’s the Alpha King. He’ll claim you the moment you’re out of this pack.”
I flinched. “I won’t let him.”
She gave me a look. “You won’t have a choice.”
I knew she was right. If I left with Manson, there would be no running. No escaping. He would never let me go.
Leah grabbed my hands. “Listen. There’s still time before dawn. You can run. Go rogue before he forces you to leave with him.”
The thought sent a shiver down my spine. Going rogue meant abandoning everything I had built here. It meant running into the unknown, with no pack, no protection, and no allies.
But staying meant being his.
I pulled away from Leah and rubbed my arms. “If I run, he’ll track me.”
Her lips pressed into a thin line. “Then you need to leave before he realizes you’re gone.”
I hesitated.
Running had never been my plan. But what other choice did I have?
Before I could answer, another knock sounded at the door this one much louder.
Leah and I froze.
A deep, commanding voice cut through the silence.
“Open the door, Ruby.”
My breath caught.
Manson.
Leah’s eyes widened with panic. She squeezed my hand once before darting toward the closet, hiding just as I opened the door.
Manson stood in the doorway, his golden eyes dark and unreadable. He was dressed in a fitted black shirt and dark pants, his powerful frame blocking the entire entrance.
Even in the dim light, he looked like a king.
A predator.
And I was his prey.
I swallowed hard. “What do you want?”
His gaze flickered over me as if assessing something. Then he leaned casually against the doorframe. “Are you ready?”
A lump formed in my throat. “I already told you I’m not going with you.”
His expression didn’t change. “And I already told you that’s not your decision to make.”
Anger flared in my chest. “I don’t belong to you.”
His golden eyes flashed. “You do.”
I let out a bitter laugh. “You don’t even know me.”
He exhaled slowly, pushing off the doorframe and stepping into the room. I instinctively took a step back. He closed the door behind him, his presence filling the space.
“I know enough,” he murmured.
I shook my head. “You think just because you’re the Alpha King, you can take whatever you want?”
Manson’s gaze darkened. “No,” he said, his voice softer now. “I take what’s mine.”
His words sent a shiver through me.
I hated how my body reacted to him. How my wolf longed for his presence, even as I fought against it.
I forced myself to meet his gaze. “I’m not going anywhere with you.”
His jaw ticked. “You’re making this harder than it needs to be.”
I let out a humorless laugh. “Good.”
For a moment, we just stared at each other, locked in a silent battle of wills.
Then, unexpectedly, his expression softened.
“I know you’re scared.” His voice was quiet, but there was no mockery in it. Just something dangerously close to understanding.
I stiffened. “I’m not scared of you.”
He tilted his head slightly. “Aren’t you?”
I swallowed hard, refusing to answer.
He exhaled and took another step closer. “I don’t expect you to trust me yet, Ruby. But I won’t let you stay in a pack that doesn’t deserve you.”
My breath caught.
He knew.
He knew how Alpha Graham treated me. How the pack looked down on me.
I clenched my fists. “That’s not your problem.”
Manson’s eyes darkened. “It is now.”
The weight of his words settled between us.
I opened my mouth to argue, but before I could, his hand reached up slowly, liberated, and brushed a stray strand of hair from my face.
The touch was light. Barely there.
But it sent fire through my veins.
His golden eyes searched mine, unreadable.
Then, softly, he said, “I don’t walk away from what’s mine.”
Something in my chest tightened.
Because I knew, in that moment, that no matter how hard I fought…
Manson Lee wasn’t going to let me go.
And worse?
A small, broken part of me didn’t want him to.
- Writer
