FATED TO DIE BOUND TO LOVE

CHAPTER 5: THE PRICE OF A MATE

Ella's POV

I didn't know where I was. My feet had carried me so far that the city lights had disappeared, leaving only the quiet darkness of the forest around me.

I sat beneath a large oak tree, pulling my knees to my chest.

My hands were still shaking.

No matter how many times I replayed what had happened, it refused to make sense. My lungs burned, and tears blurred my vision.

Werewolves.

The word echoed inside my head like a curse.

Kael. My boss, the man I had fallen for, was a werewolf.

I shook my head, trying to force the images away. The glowing eyes, the impossible strength, the way everyone had looked at him with fear and respect.

It couldn't be real, I had to get away.

The street grew darker as night settled around me. Every rustle of leaves made me jump.

Then I heard it. Footsteps, not one, several, I spin around, but there was nothing.

"Who's there?" I called out, my voice trembling.

I took another step backward. Suddenly, a hand grabbed my arm.

I screamed.

Another hand covered my mouth before I could make another sound.

"Quiet!" a deep voice growled.

Three men surrounded me, all dressed in black.

I struggled with all my strength, kicking and pushing, but they barely moved.

"Let me go!" I cried, one of them laughed."She's feisty." Another stepped forward. "No injuries. The Alpha wants her alive."

My heart stopped. Kael.Had he sent them?

Was he trying to bring me back?

The tallest of the men pulled down the cloth covering his face I knew him.

His face flashed through my memory, the night I had been attacked, the same cold eyes and the same scar across his cheek.

"You…" I whispered a cruel smile spread across his lips. "So you remember."

Fear washed over me.

They dragged me through the forest until we reached a small camp hidden among the trees.

A man stood waiting for us, unlike the others, he wore a long black coat, his eyes studied me carefully.

"So," he said, "you're Ella." I didn't answer.

He sighed. "You have no idea what you've become involved in." "Who are you?" I asked.

"We are the Black Moon Pack" he said but the name meant nothing to me. "What do you want from me?" I asked as he laughed softly.

"The better question is… what does Alpha Kael want from you?" He said. My chest tightened. "What do you mean?" I asked "He told you nothing?" He said raising his brow and I shook my head.

"He wants you because you're his mate." He said

A strange warmth spread through my chest despite my fear. The man noticed his smile disappeared. "Don't look so happy." I frowned. "Alpha Kael carries a curse." I stared at him.

"The curse is killing him." My hands shook.

"No." I mummered "It's true" He replied

I remembered the pain on Kael's face the way he sometimes looked tired, the strange sadness in his eyes, moreover Claire said the same thing.

The man stepped closer. "Only one person can save him."

My voice came out as a whisper. "Who?"

"You" he replied I blinked. "If you accept him as your mate, his curse will be broken."

For a brief moment, relief filled me, Kael could be saved.

Then the man spoke again. "But there's a price."

My heart sank. "What price?"

"When a human mates with a cursed Alpha, she dies." He said with a smirk

The world seemed to stop. I couldn't breathe.

"You… you're lying." I said nervously

He shook his head "One month after the mating bond is completed… you'll die."

"No." I said but this time louder "It's the truth."

"No!" I continued saying, tears filled my eyes."He wouldn't do that."

The man looked at me with pity."Wouldn't he?"

"He cares about me." "Does he? ,"He knows about the curse Ella" the man said

I froze. "He knows what will happen to you."

The words felt like knives cutting through my heart.

"He only needs you to survive." I shook my head over and over. "No… Kael wouldn't…"

One of the warriors stepped forward "Alpha, we should kill her." The leader raised a hand. "No." He said

The warrior frowned, "If she stays alive, Kael could survive." The leader looked at me. "Let fate decide."

He walked closer until he was standing right in front of me.

"If you value your life… stay away from Alpha Kael."

"If you go back to him… you'll die."

A few minutes later, they left me alone at the edge of the forest. I stood there, unable to move, the cold wind blew through the trees.

Kael's face filled my thoughts; his smile, his kindness, the way he looked at me.

Was it all a lie? Did he know?Did he only want me to save himself? I fell to my knees and cried.

Then…I heard a soft voice so gentle and familiar. Go back to him. I looked around but no one was there. He is ours.Fear shot through me. "Who's there?" I whispered. The voice came again “Find your mate. My heart hammered against my chest.

"I'm losing my mind," I whispered.I turned and ran, refusing to look back.