The Tyrant Alpha's Forbidden Mate

Dominic “Who wants more?” I barked, wiping the sweat from my forehead. Tristan lay flat on his back again. He was my third-in-command, but he still couldn’t keep up. The rest of the guys stood in a circle, looking at each other. They knew they couldn’t beat me, but they kept lining up anyway. Christian, my beta and best friend, stepped forward with a wide grin. “Everyone together! Move in!” he shouted. Twenty wolves rushed me at once. “Easy, easy,” I muttered, pulling a smirk. Tristan lunged too close. I grabbed his collar, lifted him off his feet, and threw him straight into five other guys. They crashed to the ground in a groaning pile. I didn’t even pause. I dropped low, drove my fists into two stomachs, spun around, and punched three more faces in a row. Gavin tried to sneak up behind me. I heard his footsteps, whirled around, and he froze in terror before turning and sprinting away. Two more rushed me. I punched the first one right out of the ring. The second guy took one look, threw his hands up in surrender, and ran after him. I elbowed the next guy in the jaw. Another one went flying back, his shirt catching on a tree branch, leaving him dangling like a sad rag doll. “Uh… someone get me down?” Lucas called out from the tree. Nobody looked at him. I kicked Matteo hard in the gut and turned to the last two standing: Christian and Tristan, who had scrambled back up. “Are you two ready to finish this?” I asked. Tristan charged first. He grabbed my shoulders to strike, but I slammed my forehead hard into his nose. He groaned, folding instantly. I grabbed him by the waist, hoisted him up, and threw him right at Christian. Christian shrieked as Tristan collided with him. “Get off me, you i***t!” I didn’t give them a second to breathe. I sprinted, jumped, and drove my fist into Christian’s jaw midair. He hit the dirt like a sack of rocks. The dust settled. It was over. “When will you guys learn?” I asked, pulling Christian to his feet. “That hurt, Dominic,” Christian grumbled, rubbing his swelling jaw. “Do you hit your brother this hard?” I snorted. “Speaking of Sonder—where is that punk? He skipped practice again. Tell me the second someone sees him.” This session was supposed to be for him. Instead, he was probably hiding out somewhere like a kid. “Dominic, my brother said Sonder ditched all his classes after lunch,” Gavin called out. A loud growl ripped from my chest. A few wolves actually flinched. “I am going to kill him.” I tried to force a mind link to my little brother. Nothing. The brat had blocked me. “Go find him,” I ordered. “And don’t say a word to my parents—” Before anyone could move, Jay’s voice cut through our minds, sharp and tense. ‘Guys, you need to get to the eastern border. Now. We found something.’ ‘Stop wasting my time, Jay,’ I snapped back through the link. ‘What is it?’ ‘A trunk. A really big one.’ ‘Stay there. We’re coming.’ I cut the link, and we sprinted across the territory. My wolf snarled inside my chest the whole way. The eastern border divided us from the Celestial Pack. It always felt tense out there, like old blood dried under the sun. When we broke through the trees, a group of our wolves stood in a circle around a massive wooden trunk. It had a bright ribbon tied around it with a bow, styled like a twisted gift. My stomach dropped. “Did anyone see who dropped this off?” I asked, my voice dangerously low. Christian’s jaw tightened. “Celestial. It has to be.” Everyone went stiff, their muscles bunching, ready to shift into their wolves at any second. The Celestial Pack had been our enemies for generations. Even if things were quiet now, the hatred never really left. Christian handed me a piece of paper. It was cheap white sheet with messy black ink. 'Hope you like our gift.' I crushed the paper in my fist. A deep, wild growl tore out of me, and the guys immediately stepped back to give me space. My wolf slammed against my ribs, desperate to cross the border and tear apart the first Celestial wolf we found. I stepped up to the trunk. Suddenly, a familiar scent hit me so hard my chest squeezed shut. No. No way. My claws slid out. I ripped the ribbon away and yanked the lid open. Sonder. My little brother was curled up inside like trash. His right eye was swollen completely shut and turning a nasty shade of black. Christian cursed. Tristan froze. My breath caught in my throat. “Sonder.” I slapped his cheek lightly. Nothing. I smacked him harder. “Sonder!” His eyes flew open, and he sat up so fast his head almost hit mine. “b***h,” he groaned, rubbing his face. “Ugh. What a total bitch.” He was awake. He was alive. “Are you okay?” I scanned him quickly. He had scratches, bruises, and a furious expression, but he was in one piece. Sonder blinked, looking around the forest. “How the hell did I end up in a box?” “Great question,” I snapped. “You better have a good answer.” He gave me a guilty, boyish grin. “Sonder,” I warned, my tone dropping. He clapped his hands over his face dramatically. “Ow! My eye. Dominic, my eye hurts so bad.” I rolled my eyes. “Someone get this kid an ice pack before he starts crying.” “My ears hurt too,” Sonder complained, covering his ears and fake-wincing. “I can’t hear a thing. The punch must have done it.” A few wolves laughed, but I kept my face blank. “Why did you skip training, and why were you on Celestial land?” “I… I went on a date.” I growled. “I’m serious! I went on a date, but… I lost her.” Knowing him, he probably walked away and forgot about her. “And the black eye?” I pushed. His face twitched with guilt. “Where is that ice pack?” I barked toward the guys. Then I looked back at my brother. “Talk.” “There was this girl…” he muttered, staring at his shoes. “A girl? Wait—did her boyfriend hit you?” I asked. “No.” He looked away. “She hit me.” I stared at him, dumbfounded. “A girl from the Celestial Pack punched you?” He nodded slowly, watching me carefully to see if I would explode. “I was just talking to her,” he said softly. “Then she realized I wasn’t from her pack, and—bam. Next thing I know, I’m waking up in a trunk.” My wolf growled so deeply my own bones shook. “What did she look like?” Christian asked, crossing his arms. His scent spiked with irritation. Sonder’s face instantly perked up. “Golden blonde hair. Grey eyes. Maybe eighteen years old. And honestly… she was insanely beautiful.” He caught the lethal look on my face and quickly added, “But still a total b***h!” I raised an eyebrow. “She just walked up and hit you?” He stared at the dirt. “Yes. I was having lunch, and she came out of nowhere.” “Was she alone?” “No. There was a guy with her. I don’t remember his face, though. She knocked me out too fast.” I turned to Christian. “Find this golden-haired she-wolf from the Celestial Pack. Now.” Christian nodded and turned to lead the guys away. “Wait!” Sonder called out. “I remember her name. It’s Anastasia!” I frowned. “How do you know her name?” “The guy with her said, ‘Anastasia, I’ll take care of this,’ right before she punched me into next week.” “Good. That makes this easier.” I looked back at Christian. “Hunt her down. And put cameras along every single inch of our borders. If anyone tries this again, I’ll end them.” This Anastasia girl was going to pay. Nobody touches my brother and mails him back to me like cheap cargo. ... I sprinted back to the pack house and went straight to my bathroom, needing a hot shower to wash off the sweat and anger. Halfway through rinsing my hair, the scent of strong perfume hit the air. Someone had walked into my house. Teeth grinding, I shut off the water, grabbed a pair of dark jeans, and pulled them on. The moment I stepped into my bedroom, she was standing there. Giselle. She was wearing a sheer lace outfit that stuck to her skin. Her eyes dragged slowly down my bare chest, full of hunger. I was absolutely not in the mood for this. “Get out of my room, Giselle,” I said, my voice cutting through the silence. She froze, trying to keep up her confident smirk. She was the beta’s spoiled daughter, and she had been chasing the Luna title for months like she already owned it. “I heard you were stressed,” she said, taking a step toward me. I stayed leaning against the closet, crossing my arms. She reached out, her fingers brushing against my chest. I grabbed her wrist tightly, making her gasp. “You want to calm me down? Leave.” I dropped her hand and grabbed a shirt from the closet. “You wouldn’t throw me out,” she said, flipping her hair. “We belong together, Dominic.” “You’re delusional.” She bit her lip. “You don’t have a mate, and I don’t have a mate. Why don’t we just pair up?” “Because you aren’t mine. And you do have a mate out there somewhere.” “Even if I find him, I’d still choose you,” she said casually. My jaw clenched. “Get out, Giselle.” I let my Alpha tone slip into my words. Her back straightened instantly, fear flickering in her eyes. “You want to be my Luna, but you don’t even care about what’s happening to this pack,” I said. “What is going on?” she asked, sounding bored. “I said leave.” She swallowed hard, her face losing its color. She muttered a curse, turned on her heel, and hurried out of my room. I shook my head, pulled my shirt on, and headed downstairs. ... The next morning, I slammed a thick folder onto my office desk so hard the wood groaned. “Is this a joke?” I snapped at Mike. He was the investigator we hired to dig up information on Anastasia. I had waited all night for this file, and it only made me angrier. Mike swallowed hard, his hands trembling as he pointed to the first page. It was a photo of a young girl. Ten, maybe twelve years old. Blonde hair, blue eyes. She didn’t look anything like the eighteen-year-old Sonder had described. “That is the only picture I could find, Alpha,” Mike whispered. “This is a child,” I said through my teeth. Christian reached over, took the file, and stared at the photo. His eyebrows pulled together in confusion. “Hey, Dominic. Look at this. You two share a birthday—November twenty-sixth.” He looked up at me, then back down. “But she is two years younger than you, so she should be twenty now. Why is the only picture a decade old?” “It’s all there is,” Mike said, his voice shaking. “I tried to get a recent photo, but following her is impossible. The Celestial guards would have caught me in seconds. And I heard rumors… anyone who asks about Anastasia ends up dead. People say her name means death.” My wolf went completely still inside me. That rarely happened. “Have you actually seen her?” I demanded. “From a distance,” Mike nodded quickly. “Nobody gets close to her. When she is at her home, she has a personal guard. When she goes out, she has four. None of the Celestial wolves will talk about her. Not for money, not for threats. She is untouchable.” I leaned against the edge of the desk, crossing my arms, letting his nervous sweat fill the silence. “Are those orders from their Alpha?” I asked. “Yes,” Mike stammered. “We only got information through humans. Her clients, and a few young pups.” Of course. Pups always talk. Christian frowned. “Clients? For what?” Mike licked his dry lips. “Anastasia owns a place called Dawnfall Arcana. It’s a three-acre farm. They sell vegetables, flowers, herbs, and handle large landscaping contracts…” His voice faded into the background as a single word crashed into my chest like a physical blow. Dawnfall. I stood up straight, my breath catching. Dawnfall was my mother’s old pack. The one that was burned to ashes years ago by my uncle, Sebastian Belmonte. Nothing was supposed to have survived that m******e. Not a single person, and certainly not the name. “Her father died when she was ten, and her mother died when she was fifteen,” Mike continued, flipping through the pages quickly. “Her father was the third-in-command of the old Aegis Pack.” I narrowed my eyes. “So she has a strong bloodline. She isn’t a rogue.” “Right. After her father died, she and her mother moved into the Celestial Pack. They live with Alessia De Luca, the current Luna.” That made sense. The Luna of Celestial was the daughter of Aegis’s old Alpha. “So Anastasia grew up under Celestial protection,” I muttered. “Yes, Alpha. Her full name is Anastasia Vespera Volkov. She is an only child, and she went to Cavallo’s Academy for Elites…” My jaw clenched tightly. Cavallo’s Academy. Wolves from that place always brought trouble. “I asked the school for her records,” Mike swallowed hard, “but they refused. Alpha’s orders.” Valentin Cavallo. That bastard. Why would he block information about a Celestial pack member? Then it hit me. Valentin and Lorenzo De Luca, the Celestial Alpha, had been best friends since childhood. They were protecting her together. “I hacked the system anyway,” Mike whispered. “Her entire electronic file was wiped clean. And the Celestial pack wolves almost tore me apart just for asking around.” I stared down at him until he shrank back in his chair. I opened a mind link to Christian. ‘Where did you find this coward?’ ‘He was fine on the last job,’ Christian replied. ‘This girl just terrifies him.’ I rubbed my jaw, irritated, and linked Sonder. ‘Get to the pack store. Now.’ ... A few minutes later, I stood in the pack’s main showroom. The scent of cedar wood and polish usually calmed me down, but today my nerves were on edge. Two Alphas were guarding this girl like a state secret. Why? The sound of tires squealed outside, and Sonder’s Porsche slid to a halt. He hopped out of the car looking completely fine, as if he hadn’t been bleeding in my driveway the day before. “You called?” Sonder asked, walking in. I thrust the old childhood photo of the blonde girl toward him. “Is this her?” Sonder took the paper. He stared at it for a long moment, his jaw working as he studied the face, trying to match it to his memory. “Yes,” Sonder finally said. My hands curled into tight fists. My wolf’s fangs pressed against my gums, burning with anger. “The face matches perfectly,” Sonder added. “But her eyes weren’t blue yesterday. They were grey.” That was all the proof I needed. “Find her,” I told Christian. “Bring her to me.” Mike’s voice cracked from the corner of the room. “That is not possible, Alpha.” A heavy silence filled the room. I turned around very slowly to face him. “What did you just say to me?” He began to tremble violently. “There is… one more thing in the report.” “Speak,” I growled, my voice dropping into a dangerous whisper. Mike swallowed hard. “I don’t know if it is completely true because her last name is Volkov, but… the Celestial pups said she is Alpha Lorenzo De Luca’s biological sister.” I froze. Lorenzo’s sister. A massive, furious growl shook my entire chest, vibrating through the room. This wasn’t just about getting revenge for my brother anymore. This was war. And I was going to burn their territory to the ground.