The alpha’s forbidden mate

Episode3

Kaelie’s POV

They sounded like boots.

I pressed my face into the dirt, not moving, my heart beating so hard I thought the wolf could hear it. The heavy footsteps came closer... then they stopped. I heard a low sniff, like a giant dog smelling the air.

Then, the footsteps moved away. They weren't looking for me, they were just patrolling. I waited for a long time until the forest was quiet again. I stood up, shaking the dirt from my coat… I had to be faster.

I kept walking, deeper and deeper into the dark. I looked at the ground near the water. Robert was right, the air here was damp and smelled like wet earth.

Then, I saw it.

“Ohhh…my…” I muttered.

Near a giant, flat stone, a tiny light was shining. It wasn't the white light of a lamp, It was a soft beautiful blue glow.

I ran toward it and knelt down. It was the Moonshade flower. Its petals were as thin as paper, and they shimmered like stars.

"I found it," I whispered. My eyes filled with tears of joy. "Pa, I'm coming back."

I reached out and carefully pulled the flower from the soil. The roots came out easily, and the blue glow stayed bright in my hand. I tucked the flower safely into my leather pouch.

Suddenly, a scream ripped through the air.

It was a man’s voice, full of pain and terror. My blood turned to ice. I scrambled behind the giant stone and peeked around the edge.

A few yards away, the trees opened up into a small clearing. Two wolves were standing guard, their eyes glowing in the dark. In the middle of the clearing stood a man.

He was tall and wore a long black coat. Even from behind, I knew who he was. The power coming off him felt like a heavy weight. It was Alpha Jaxen Vane.

On the ground in front of him, a man was crawling. He was bleeding and begging for mercy.

"Please, Alpha!" the man cried. "I only did it for the money! I didn't mean to tell the North Pack about the sensors!"

Jaxen didn't say a word, he didn't scream, and he didn't even look angry. He just looked... cold. He stepped forward and looked down at the man.

The man reached out to touch Jaxen’s boot, but Jaxen moved too fast for my eyes to follow. He shifted his hand, and long, silver claws slid out from his fingers. With one quick strike, he slashed the man’s throat.

The man fell silent. He didn't move again.

I pulled my head back behind the rock. I was shaking so hard I couldn't breathe. I had to get out of here. I had to go now.

I turned and started to crawl away on my hands and knees. I kept my eyes on the trees, trying to find the path back to the fence.

Snap!

My foot caught on a thick tree root. I tripped and fell forward, my shoulder hitting the ground with a loud thud.

The silence of the forest was gone.

I froze, my face in the moss. Maybe he didn't hear it. Maybe the wind was too loud.

But then, I felt the air change. The temperature seemed to drop twenty degrees.

I slowly turned my head.

Jaxen Vane was standing ten feet away. He had turned toward the sound of my fall. His black coat moved in the wind. But it was his face that terrified me.

His eyes were no longer human, they were glowing with a bright, electric blue light. He looked right at the bush where I was hiding.

"Come out," he said. His voice was low and deep, like the growl of a mountain.

I didn't move… I couldn't. My legs felt like they were made of stone.

"I can smell your fear, little human," he said. He took a step toward me. "And I can smell... rain."

He lunged.

He moved like a blur of black shadow. Before I could even scream, he was standing over me. He reached down and grabbed my coat, yanking me to my feet.

“Please… don't kill me.” I begged.

I looked up at him, my breath coming in short gasps. He was inches away, so I could see the scars on his neck, and the blood on his claws.

But as he looked into my eyes, something strange happened.

The blue light in his eyes flickered, and he stopped snarling. He let out a small, confused sound in the back of his throat.

I was trapped. Jaxen Vane’s hand was still bunched in the fabric of my coat, holding me up as if I weighed nothing at all. I could feel the heat coming off his body, a strange, burning warmth that didn't match the icy look in his eyes. Those blue eyes were boring into mine, searching for something I didn't understand.

The dead man was only a few feet away, the smell of blood thick in the air. I knew I should be screaming. I should be begging for my life, but my throat was dry, and I was staring at him, unable to move.

Jaxen leaned closer. His face was so near that I could feel his breath on my skin. He closed his eyes and took a deep, long breath, sniffing the air near my ear.

"Rain," he muttered again. His voice wasn't a growl anymore. It was low and shaky. "Cold rain and old paper. Why do you smell like the forbidden books?"

"I... I don't know," I whispered. My voice sounded tiny in the vast, dark forest. "Please… let me go, my grandfather is dying. I only came for the flower."

At the mention of the flower, his eyes snapped open. The electric blue glow was brighter now, pulsing like a heartbeat.

He looked down at the leather pouch hanging from my belt. With his free hand… the one with the sharp, silver claws, he reached out intensely. I flinched, closing my eyes and waited for the pain.