ALPHA’S UNWILLING Mate

CHAPTER 5 — THE ALPHA HUNTS HIS MATE

James paced the main hall of the Oakfang pack house like a caged beast, each footfall heavy enough to echo through the grand wooden chambers. The moonlight streaming through the tall windows cast silver streaks across the polished floor, illuminating the dark lines of his face and the tension coiled in his shoulders.

The elders sat in their seats along the walls, their expressions cautious, wary, and silent. None dared speak too loudly. None dared interfere. They had never seen their Alpha like this, restless, restless, desperate. A predator trapped by his own desires and the cruel twist of fate the full moon had forced upon him.

The bond pulsed in his chest like a second heartbeat, wild, insistent, unbearable. Every instinct in him screamed, tugged, clawed for release. Every nerve ending ached with her scent, with the memory of her terror, with the echo of her heartbeat embedded in his soul.

He could not sit still. Could not think straight. Could not breathe properly.

“She is human,” Elder Corvin finally murmured, his voice rough and warning, slicing the tension like a blade.

James’s eyes narrowed, gold flickering dangerously under the dim light. “It doesn’t matter,” he growled, his voice low and dangerous. “She is mine.”

“She cannot be yours,” another elder, Maelis, hissed sharply, her hands clasped tightly. “It matters to the pack, Alpha. Humans cannot be Lunas. You must break the bond. Sever it before it destroys you… and her.”

James stopped pacing for the briefest moment, a shiver of disbelief running through him. Break it? Break the bond that had rooted itself into his bones, that had licked at his mind like fire, that had claimed him even as it bound her? The thought made his wolf inside him roar in agony, thrashing and snarling, desperate and untamed.

He clenched his fists until blood ran down his palms, hot and sticky, and the sight only made the ache in his chest worse. Every pulse, every drop of blood, echoed with her name, with her scent, with the connection he could not ignore.

“I will find her,” James said, teeth gritted, voice shaking but unyielding. “I need to know who she is… I need to know everything about her.”

The elders shifted uncomfortably. None could stop him, and none dared to argue further. The Alpha’s will, once made, was iron.

James rose fully, the fire of his determination blazing through every fiber of him. “Send scouts,” he ordered, voice commanding, resonating with authority. “Every corner of the forest. Find the girl who was marked under the full moon. She is alive, I can feel it. Bring me to her.”

Servants and scouts moved quickly, leaving the hall with quiet obedience. The elders remained behind, murmuring among themselves, their eyes flicking between the Alpha and the shadows beyond the walls.

James could not wait. He could not stand still. Every second without her was a torment, every heartbeat a dagger. He moved to the window and pressed a hand against the cool glass, letting the wind drift across his face. The forest beyond stretched in darkness, the trees swaying in the early dawn breeze, but he could sense her.

Somewhere out there, she was breathing, terrified, unaware of the Alpha who hunted her, unaware that the bond between them pulsed in time with her heartbeat. Somewhere out there, she was alone, and every second away from him was a second too long.

Hours passed like centuries. Scouts returned one by one, shaking their heads, unable to locate her. No sign. No trail. No scent strong enough to follow. The frustration built into a tight knot in James’s chest. His wolf growled low in his throat, ears pinned, claws flexing unconsciously against the polished floor.

“Damn it,” James muttered, gripping the edge of a table. “She’s close. She has to be close. The bond, it’s burning. I can feel her!”

His wolf howled inside him, frustrated, desperate, insisting. Mine. Mine. Mine.

The Alpha’s jaw clenched. He knew he could not control the animal inside forever, not with her out there. And yet… he had tried. Tried to calm it. Tried to push it down. Tried to force logic over instinct. But logic was powerless against the pull of a mate bond.

He staggered, rubbing his face with both hands. The bond was unbearable. Every pulse, every heartbeat, every flicker of her fear, joy, and confusion, he felt it all as if it were his own. And he could not find her. Could not reach her. Could not silence the ache inside him.

In his frustration, he swore, loud enough for the empty hall to echo. “If I cannot have her… if I cannot find her…” His voice trailed, shaking with anger and regret. “I… I’ll… break it.”

The elders stiffened at the words. Even the walls seemed to shiver in anticipation. Breaking the bond was dangerous, forbidden, irreversible. To sever the tie with a mate was to risk losing part of himself, to risk destroying her in the process. And yet… the temptation of reason, of the pack’s expectations, whispered in his ear.

Elder Corvin stepped closer, his tone firm but cautious. “Alpha… consider carefully. To break the bond is to wound her, not just you. And the pack… the pack will suffer if you act without caution.”

James looked up, his eyes blazing gold. His chest heaving. His palms are still bleeding. “I don’t care about the pack,” he growled. “I care about her. She is alive, somewhere, and I can feel every heartbeat, every breath. And if the bond is meant to be—then I cannot break it. But if it isn’t… if she’s… gone…” His hands shook, gripping the window frame until splinters cut into his skin.

The room was silent. Even the elders could sense the tension, the storm brewing inside the Alpha.

But then, a different voice cut through the silence, firm and insistent. It was Kael, James’s right-hand man, the one who had stood by him through decades of battles and power struggles. “James… you need to focus,” he said, eyes sharp. “You cannot let this… this human distract you. The Aldridge daughter, your marriage is arranged. The pack expects you to fulfill your duties. You must honor your word, for the sake of the Oakfang name.”

James’s head snapped toward him, fury and disbelief in his golden eyes. “Do you hear yourself?” he spat, voice low and dangerous. “The bond, do you not feel it? Do you not know? She is mine. She does not belong to anyone else. Not to the pack. Not to humans. Not to a contract. She is mine!”

Kael’s jaw tightened. “And if you lose her? If you risk everything for a girl you barely know? The pack, our people, your mate’s place… all of it, ”

James slammed his fist against the wall, wood cracking under the force. Pain shot up his arm, but he ignored it. “I will find her,” he growled, voice low, menacing. “And when I do… everything else will wait. I don’t care about arrangements. I don’t care about ceremonies. I don’t care about expectations. She is my mate, and I will not cannot, let her slip away.”

Kael stared, silence settling over him like a shadow. Even he could see the truth: the Alpha’s will, the bond, the fire in his chest, could not be denied.

James moved to the center of the hall, taking a deep, shuddering breath. His wolf stirred in his chest, restless and impatient, eager to be unleashed. Every instinct screamed at him: Go. Hunt. Find her. Claim her.

“I’ll send the scouts again,” James said finally, voice tight with determination. “Every corner of the forest. I will not rest. Not until I know she is safe. Not until I see her… until she is mine.”

And with that, he strode to the door, his presence filling the hall like a storm. The elders watched, tense and uneasy, as their Alpha disappeared into the first rays of dawn, every step driven by instinct, regret, and an unyielding need he could no longer deny.

Somewhere, far away, the girl who had been marked under the full moon stirred, her heartbeat echoing the same rhythm as his. And though neither of them knew it yet, the hunt had begun.