Chapter 4 - The Alpha's Shadow
1229 Words
The ride back to Blackwood Manor was unusually quiet.
Rain drummed softly against the windows while the black SUV cut through the winding roads that led into the forest. Allegra sat in the passenger seat with her arms folded, staring out at the trees flashing by.
She couldn't stop replaying what she'd witnessed.
Lucien hadn't been lying.
Werewolves existed.
Not stories.
Not myths.
Real.
Alive.
And somehow... she was tangled in their world.
"You've been staring out that window for twenty minutes," Lucien said, his eyes fixed on the road.
"I'm thinking."
"Dangerous."
She shot him a look.
"You really enjoy annoying people."
"I've been told it's one of my better qualities."
She almost smiled before catching herself.
"I'm still mad at you."
"I expected that."
"You kidn*pped—"
He interrupted calmly.
"I protected you."
"You didn't ask."
"I didn't have time."
Silence settled between them again.
As much as she hated admitting it, one fact refused to leave her mind.
He had saved her life.
Twice.
---
The gates of Blackwood Manor opened automatically.
The wolves stationed outside immediately lowered their heads as Lucien stepped from the vehicle.
One by one, they bowed.
Not dramatically.
Simply out of respect.
Allegra noticed something she hadn't before.
Nobody questioned him.
Nobody challenged him.
Being Alpha wasn't just a title.
It was a responsibility everyone trusted him to carry.
Inside, the atmosphere was different from the previous days.
The servants looked relieved to see Lucien return.
One elderly woman hurried over.
"My Lord, you're bleeding."
"It's nothing."
She frowned.
"You always say that."
Lucien sighed.
"And I'm usually right."
Allegra folded her arms.
"You're both impossible."
The old woman chuckled.
"So he's found someone who argues with him."
Lucien muttered something under his breath that Allegra couldn't quite hear.
She could have sworn it sounded like, "Unfortunately."
---
That evening, Lucien stood on the mansion's training grounds behind the estate.
The clearing was enormous, surrounded by towering pine trees.
Weapons lined one side of the yard.
Wooden practice dummies stood in neat rows.
Allegra looked around in confusion.
"What are we doing here?"
"You wanted to survive."
"I remember."
"Then learn."
He tossed a wooden training knife toward her.
She barely caught it.
"I've never used one."
"I know."
"So why give me one?"
"Because hoping someone rescues you every time isn't a strategy."
His words stung.
Not because they were cruel.
Because they were true.
Lucien picked up another wooden knife.
"Come at me."
She laughed.
"You're joking."
"No."
"You could probably fight a bear."
"I have."
She blinked.
"...Seriously?"
He simply nodded.
"That wasn't the answer I wanted."
Without warning, he lunged.
Allegra yelped, stumbling backward.
His wooden blade stopped an inch from her shoulder.
"You hesitated."
"You attacked without warning!"
"Your enemies won't announce themselves."
She frowned.
"Again."
For the next hour, Lucien corrected everything.
Her stance.
Her balance.
Her grip.
Every time she attacked, he stepped aside effortlessly.
Every time she lost balance, he steadied her before she fell.
"You're overthinking," he said.
"I'm trying not to die."
"A reasonable goal."
"You make it sound easy."
"It isn't."
His expression darkened.
"I simply learned earlier than most."
For a moment, Allegra saw something different in him.
Not the Alpha.
Not the feared leader.
Just a man carrying memories he rarely spoke about.
She lowered the knife.
"What happened to you?"
Lucien looked away.
"When I was thirteen, another Alpha found me."
"The one who bit you?"
He nodded once.
"I lost everything that year."
His voice remained calm.
Too calm.
As though the pain had become something he'd locked away years ago.
"They taught me one lesson."
"What was it?"
"If you're too weak to protect the people you love..."
His jaw tightened.
"...you lose them."
Allegra didn't know what to say.
So she said nothing.
Sometimes silence carried more comfort than words.
---
Later that night, she wandered into the mansion's west corridor, unable to sleep.
The hallway was dimly lit by antique wall lamps.
As she turned a corner, she heard voices.
"...she's changing him."
Another voice answered.
"Our Alpha smiles now."
"That's exactly the problem."
Allegra frowned.
She slowly stepped closer.
The voices belonged to two pack members standing outside an office.
"If his enemies discover she matters to him—"
"They already suspect."
"We should send her away."
"Would he allow it?"
"No."
Allegra accidentally stepped on a loose floorboard.
Creak.
Both men turned instantly.
"There she is."
One of them looked embarrassed.
The other offered a polite smile.
"You weren't meant to hear that."
"I figured."
The taller man sighed.
"Our Alpha has carried this pack alone for years."
"What does that have to do with me?"
"He doesn't let people get close."
"So?"
"So we're trying to understand why he's making an exception."
Before Allegra could answer, Lucien's voice echoed down the hallway.
"Because I told him to stop asking unnecessary questions."
The two men immediately straightened.
"Our apologies, Alpha."
Lucien didn't even look at them.
"Go."
Within seconds, they disappeared.
Allegra folded her arms.
"They're talking about me."
"They gossip."
"They think I matter to you."
He remained silent.
"Do I?"
Lucien looked at her for a long moment.
Finally, he answered.
"You matter because innocent people shouldn't become casualties of my war."
She searched his face.
"You always answer with half the truth."
"And you always notice."
---
The following morning, the mansion's alarm bells rang.
Once.
Twice.
Three times.
Every wolf on the estate froze.
Lucien was already moving.
"What happened?" Allegra asked.
One of the guards sprinted across the courtyard.
"They breached the eastern woods!"
"How many?"
"More than twenty."
Lucien's expression hardened.
"Protect the civilians."
"Yes, Alpha."
The entire estate erupted into motion.
Warriors shifted into wolves.
Servants hurried inside.
The gates slammed shut.
Allegra watched in disbelief.
"This is because of me, isn't it?"
Lucien buckled a leather strap around his wrist.
"No."
"They're here for me."
"They're here because rival Alphas believe attacking the people under my protection will weaken my pack."
"That's not much better."
He stepped closer.
Closer than he usually allowed himself.
"If anything happens..."
His voice was low.
"You stay inside the mansion."
"What about you?"
"I'll end this."
Before she could argue, a deafening howl echoed from beyond the walls.
Not one wolf.
Dozens.
Lucien's eyes briefly flashed blue.
The Alpha had arrived.
He turned toward the gates.
Without another word, he walked into the coming battle.
Allegra stood in the courtyard, her heart pounding.
She had met Lucien Thorne believing he was nothing more than a ruthless killer hiding behind expensive suits and cold smiles.
Now she knew the truth.
He was a leader.
A warrior.
A man willing to stand between his people and death without hesitation.
As the gates opened and the wolves charged into the forest, Allegra whispered a quiet prayer she hadn't spoken in years.
"Please..."
She wasn't sure who she was praying for anymore.
Her father.
Her brother.
Or the Alpha disappearing into the trees.
Far beyond the battlefield, hidden beneath the shadows of ancient pines, another pair of eyes watched the fight with quiet amusement.
Unlike the others, this figure wasn't interested in killing Lucien.
He wanted something far more dangerous.
He wanted the woman standing behind him.
And before the next full moon rose, he intended to take her
- Writer
