THE ROGUE ALPHA’S FORSAKEN MATE

Chapter 5

Kael did not sleep.

He had left before sunrise, putting as much distance between himself and the woman in the forest as he could, but distance had done nothing to quiet his restless mind. Every time he closed his eyes, he saw her. Not the woman he had found crying among the trees, but the woman who had looked at him differently after he had helped her. She had been afraid of him at first, yet somehow, little by little, that fear had faded. He still couldn't understand why she had trusted him when he had given her no reason to.

He pressed a hand against his chest, feeling the unfamiliar ache that had taken root there. Three years of keeping everyone at a distance had taught him one thing above all else. Attachment was dangerous.

He had learned that lesson the night Thornwood fell. Before then, Kael had believed power was enough to protect the people he loved. He had been wrong. The attack had destroyed everything. His father's body had been found among the ruins, and his pack had scattered. Some had been killed, others had fled to territories that would never accept them. He had spent months searching for survivors, and when he finally found them, they had nothing. No home, no land, no Alpha. They had looked at him anyway, expecting him to lead them. So he had. He found unclaimed land deep beyond the main territories and built something there. It wasn't Thornwood, but it gave the survivors somewhere to sleep and something worth protecting. He had given them everything he had left, everything except himself.

Until last night.

His wolf had accepted her. That alone should have terrified him. Instead, what frightened him most was how badly he wanted to go back. He turned toward the direction of her pack, torn between the pull of the bond and the weight of everything he carried. Then he forced himself to turn away. She had a life, a family, a pack. She had been betrayed by someone she loved, and he had given her one night where she didn't have to think about any of it. That was all it should have been. He knew better than to make promises he couldn't keep. He had already failed one pack, and he wouldn't destroy another woman's life by dragging her into his broken world.

He continued walking until the trees opened into a clearing where several small houses stood among the woodland. Smoke rose from a chimney, and the sounds of people starting their morning drifted toward him. This was what remained of Thornwood. Just a few hundred survivors who had chosen to follow him.

One of the older wolves noticed him approaching and greeted him with a respectful nod. Kael returned the gesture.

"Anything unusual?" Kael asked.

"Three wolves were seen near the eastern border," the man said.

"Whose?"

"Voss."

Kael's expression hardened. Garrett Voss. He hadn't heard that name in years, but he remembered him clearly. Garrett had always been ambitious, watching the stronger territories carefully and waiting for opportunities. Kael had never trusted him. Now his wolves were near the border. It could have been coincidence, but Kael didn't believe in coincidences.

"Keep them away from our people," Kael said. "If they cross, I want to know immediately."

The man nodded and moved away.

Kael continued on without another word. Something about the previous night had made him feel that danger was moving closer again.

He entered the small house that served as his home and shut the door behind him. The room was modest, nothing luxurious about it. On one wall hung the only thing he had brought from Thornwood, a small silver pendant that had belonged to his mother. She had always told him that an Alpha's greatest weakness was not his strength, but what he was willing to lose to protect the people he loved. He had never understood her words until it was too late. Now, every time he allowed himself to care about someone, he remembered the night he lost his family. That was why he had stayed alone. That was why he had left the woman in the forest.

Yet the bond between them remained, and somewhere inside him, his wolf had already decided something he wasn't ready to accept. She was his. He hated how natural the thought felt.

He sat down heavily on the edge of the bed and pressed his palms against his eyes. He could still feel her through the bond, faint but unmistakable. She was awake now, and she was confused. He could sense her frustration, her determination, her desperate need to understand what had happened to her. She was looking for him. He knew that with a certainty that made his chest ache.

He lowered his hands and stared at the wall. He should go to her. He should tell her the truth. But every time he thought about standing in front of her, the words died in his throat. She deserved better than him. She deserved someone whole, someone who could give her a future without the weight of his past dragging them both down.

He rose from the bed and walked to the window, looking out at the small settlement that had become his home. His people were out there, unaware of the danger that might be approaching. Garrett Voss was a threat, one he had hoped to avoid for as long as possible. But now that threat was at his border, and he had no choice but to prepare for whatever came next. And yet, even as he thought about the danger, his mind kept drifting back to her. The woman who had trusted him without knowing anything about him. The woman who carried his mark and had no idea what that truly meant.

He had spent three years running from his past. But the bond with Nova had changed everything. He couldn't keep running forever. Eventually, he would have to face her, and when he did, he would have to be ready to give her the truth. But not today. Today, he would focus on the threat at his border. He would protect his people and make sure Garrett Voss stayed far away.

He opened his eyes and turned away from the window. There was work to be done. But even as he moved toward the door, the bond pulsed warmly in his chest, a constant reminder that she was out there, waiting for him to make a choice he wasn't ready to make.