CHAPTER 2: The Alpha King
970 Words
The world tilted as rough hands pushed Seraphina forward, forcing her down the narrow ladder from her attic room. She stumbled into the hallway below, choking on smoke and the scent of wolves. Shadows flickered in the dim light—men with glowing eyes, their expressions wild and predatory. Wolves dressed in human skin.
Her dagger was gone. Breath came in short, ragged bursts as she took in everything at once: the overturned furniture, the shattered door hanging from its hinges, blood smeared across the floorboards. She had known fear before, but this was something entirely different.
A predator’s world.
And she was prey.
“On your knees.”
The voice was familiar from upstairs—deep and commanding, one that didn’t need to be raised to demand obedience. A shiver ran down her spine. She didn’t move quickly enough. One of the wolves grabbed her by the hair, dragging her down until she knelt on the splintered floor.
Pain shot through her scalp. She clenched her teeth, fighting back a cry. Showing fear would only feed them.
“Enough.”
The single word sliced through the tension like a knife. Instantly, the wolf released his grip.
Boots clicked softly against the floorboards—slow and deliberate—and then he was there.
The Alpha King.
Kael Draven.
He moved with a dangerous grace that came only from being at the top of the food chain. Power radiated off him like a second skin, coiling around his tall, muscular frame. His silver eyes glinted in the flickering firelight as he crouched before her, close enough for her to catch a faint whiff of pine and steel.
He tilted his head slightly, studying her. She felt like a rabbit under a wolf's gaze; her heartbeat pounded loudly enough to betray her fear.
“You’re not screaming,” he murmured, almost curiously. His voice was deep and smooth yet laced with danger. “Most humans scream when they see us.”
Seraphina swallowed hard and forced herself to hold his gaze. “Would it make a difference?”
A slow smile curved his lips—not warm or kind, but predatory. “No.”
The wolves behind him chuckled lowly and mockingly, but Kael’s focus remained unwaveringly on her.
He reached out with his fingers brushing against her jaw. She flinched at his touch but didn’t pull away. His hand was surprisingly gentle; yet there was something more unsettling in his calmness than in their snarls. He didn’t see her as a threat or even as anything significant.
Except…his gaze lingered just a bit too long.
She felt it again—a pull—a strange invisible tether wrapping around her ribs that tightened with each breath she took. She couldn’t understand it; then Kael’s nostrils flared slightly and for an instant, surprise flickered across his face before it vanished.
“You smell like magic,” he said softly, narrowing his silver eyes further.
Seraphina’s blood ran cold.
One of the wolves snarled beside them. “She’s witch-blood, Alpha. That explains—”
Kael’s hand shot up instantly silencing him; an uneasy quiet fell over the room.
“Magic.” He spoke the word like it had flavor—a dangerous allure to it.
Seraphina forced herself to respond even though her throat felt dry and raw. “You’re wasting your time; I don’t know what you want.”
Kael's smile returned—sharp and humorless. “Liar.”
Her stomach twisted painfully at his accusation.
“Do you know how I found you?” he asked quietly as if drawing closer into darkness surrounding them both. “I smelled your fear long before I saw the smoke in your village—humans run and hide; they scatter like leaves in a storm—but you…” He leaned even closer so that she could feel his breath tickling her ear, “…you were glowing.”
She blinked at him in confusion. “Glowing?”
“You reek of power,” he murmured in an unreadable tone; “like prey pretending to be a predator.”
Her pulse hammered so loudly she could hardly hear anything else; she had no idea if he intended to kill her or…something else entirely.
Kael straightened up abruptly—towering above her now—before commanding sharply: “Bind her.”
One of the wolves stepped forward with rope in hand. Seraphina instinctively jerked back but froze when Kael let out a low growl that echoed throughout the room.
Raising her chin defiantly despite feeling vulnerable under their watchful gazes she blurted out without thinking: “You kill witches on sight! Why am I still breathing?”
Kael's silver eyes locked onto hers piercingly—the silence stretched uncomfortably for what felt like an eternity before he replied:
“Because you’re mine.”
Those words sent shockwaves through Seraphina's chest—sharp and disorienting—as if spoken by some higher power—the weight behind them heavier than thunder itself.
“What—”
“Take her,” Kael commanded abruptly interrupting whatever protest might have followed next after hearing those unsettling words escape from his lips . "She comes with us."
Two wolves hauled Seraphina roughly up onto their feet binding wrists tight behind back making escape impossible . She struggled against them fruitlessly , their strength seemed beyond human while any attempts earned only mocking laughter . Kael observed calmly , intensity etched across face sending chills racing through body .
As they dragged toward door , Seraphina cast one final glance at Alpha King . His expression unreadable still , but those silver eyes…
No longer viewing as mere prey .
Instead regarding as if trying solve complex puzzle instead .
And that realization terrified more than anything else ever could .
- Writer
