The Beta and Alpha

Chapter 6:Under His Protection

Ezra was still there when Oriana woke. She dressed quickly and opened the door. He was leaning against the wall opposite her room, arms crossed, jaw tight. He looked like he'd been standing there all night.

"Did you sleep?" she asked.

He didn't answer. His gaze stayed fixed on the courtyard.

"Ezra."

"I couldn't sleep."

"Because of last night?"

His hand moved to his sword—a reflex. Like standing guard had become instinct.

She looked past him, toward the forest. Nothing moved between the trees. But that didn't mean nothing was there.

"Do you think they'll come back?"

He looked at her then. Something flickered in his eyes. Concern. Fear. Then it was gone.

"You should get ready," he said. "The Alpha is returning soon."

The village was different now.

People moved faster. They looked over their shoulders. A woman pulled her child inside when she saw Oriana approaching. Fearfully.

They weren't just scared of the border. They were scared for her.

Cyrus rode through the gates an hour later. He looked tired. His clothes were dusty. But when he saw her, his face softened.

"I missed you," he said.

He kissed her forehead. She stiffened. Just slightly.

He noticed. His hand lingered on her shoulder. Then he smiled.

"I missed you too," she said.

She forced the words out. They tasted like a lie.

Cyrus studied her face. "Is everything alright?"

She nodded. "Just tired."

He accepted it. He always did.

She looked past him. Ezra was standing at the edge of the courtyard. Watching. His face was blank.

Her room was exactly as she'd left it.

Except for one thing.

Oriana stopped in the doorway. Nothing was out of place. But on her pillow, something dark stood out against the white fabric.

She crossed the room slowly. The fabric was folded neatly. Almost carefully. Like someone had wanted her to find it.

Her fingers trembled as she picked it up. Rough material. Dark blue. And stitched into the cloth, almost invisible against the dye, was the same waning crescent she'd seen before.

Someone had been in her room. While she slept.

A faint smell lingered. Smoke. Pine. And something else. Something she couldn't name. It made her skin prickle. It felt familiar.

She dropped the fabric and ran.

Ezra was in the courtyard. He turned at the sound of her footsteps.

The moment he saw her face, his posture changed. His hand moved to his sword.

"Oriana?"

She held out the fabric. "It was on my pillow."

His eyes fell to the crescent. He didn't look surprised.

That frightened her more than anything.

He took the fabric. "Show me."

He followed her back inside. He checked the window first, then crouched beside it.

He pointed to the floor. Dust. A footprint.

Her breath caught. Too large for a wolf. Too deep for a human.

Ezra touched it with two fingers. His jaw tightened. He stood.

"You're not staying here tonight."

She stared. "What?"

"I'll find you a room closer to Cyrus."

"Ezra." She stepped toward him. "Who is it?"

He didn't answer.

"You know who it is."

His hand moved to the ring on his finger.

"Ezra."

"Don't." His voice was quiet. Firm. "Whatever you're going to ask—don't."

Her frustration rose. "Someone entered my room while I was sleeping. You found a footprint under my window. And you're telling me not to ask questions?"

He looked down at the fabric. Then he met her eyes.

"The crest belongs to the Shadow Pack."

Her stomach dropped. "That's who's been watching us?"

"Yes."

"Why are they back?"

He looked toward the window. Toward the forest.

"I don't know yet." His voice was flat. "But I will."

She remembered the smell. "There was something else. A scent. Smoke. Pine. And something I couldn't name."

His fingers stopped moving against the ring.

"What did it smell like?"

"I don't know. That's the problem. It felt familiar."

A pause. Then he shook his head. "I don't smell anything."

She stared at him. He hadn't even stepped closer to check. He'd dismissed it immediately.

"You don't?"

"No."

His voice was too steady. His face was too blank.

He turned toward the door. "Pack your things. I'll be outside."

"Ezra—"

"I'll be outside."

The door closed behind him.

Oriana looked down at the fabric on the bed. The waning moon stared back at her.

Ezra knew something. And he was lying about the scent.

That frightened her more than the fabric itself.

She'd promised Mira she would come by. So she would.

Ezra was waiting outside her door. Arms crossed. Eyes moving between the courtyard and the rooftops.

"I need to visit Mira," she said.

"I know."

"How?"

"I heard you tell Helena yesterday."

Of course he had.

She stepped past him. He followed.

Neither spoke as they crossed the village. But Oriana noticed how often his eyes moved toward the trees. His hand never left his sword.

They were almost at Mira's cottage when the door flew open.

Mira came rushing toward them. Her face was wet with tears.

"Oriana—" She stopped, struggling to catch her breath. "Rowan is gone."

Oriana's stomach dropped. "What?"

"I can't find him." Mira pressed a trembling hand against her mouth. "I've been everywhere. The forest, the river—I thought he'd come back, but he hasn't."

"How long?"

"An hour. Maybe more." Her voice broke. "I told him not to go near the trees."

Oriana reached for her hand. "We'll find him."

But Ezra was already moving. He stepped past them, heading toward the trees.

"Oriana," he called without turning. "Stay close."

The moment they entered the forest, Ezra changed.

The careful Beta disappeared. His movements became sharper. Purposeful.

He stopped suddenly. She nearly walked into him.

He crouched. There, pressed into the damp earth, were small footprints.

"Rowan," he said.

Ezra followed the trail without hesitation. When the ground became covered in pine needles, he studied the broken stems instead.

"You've done this before," she said.

He didn't look back. "Many times."

"Finding people?"

"Finding what they're trying not to be found."

They continued deeper. Then the sound of rushing water reached them.

Ezra stopped. "Oriana."

She looked ahead. The river.

A small figure was crouched behind a large rock near the bank.

"Rowan!"

The boy looked up. His face crumpled with relief.

Ezra reached him first. He dropped to one knee.

"Rowan." His voice was calm. Steady. "You're safe."

Rowan stared at him. Then, slowly, he nodded.

Ezra held out his hand. After a moment, Rowan took it. His small fingers wrapped tightly around Ezra's.

"What happened?" Oriana asked gently.

Rowan looked toward the trees. "I saw someone."

Ezra's expression hardened. "Who?"

"A man." Rowan's voice dropped to a whisper. "He had a dark coat."

Oriana's eyes moved toward Ezra.

"There was a moon on it." Rowan swallowed. "It was going down."

The waning crescent.

Oriana felt cold despite the warmth of the afternoon.

"Did he see you?" Ezra asked.

Rowan shook his head quickly. "I hid behind the rock."

Ezra glanced toward it. "Good." His voice remained calm. "What did he do?"

Rowan's fingers tightened around his. "He came out of the trees. He was looking around."

"For what?"

Rowan hesitated. Then he looked at Oriana. "He asked where the Luna was."

Everything inside her seemed to stop.

"Me?" The word barely came out.

Rowan nodded. "He said he'd find her. Soon."

Ezra never once hurried him on the walk back. When Rowan stumbled, Ezra slowed.

As they approached the village, people began to notice them. Heads turned. Whispers followed.

Then Mira saw them.

"Rowan!"

She ran. Dropped to her knees. Grabbed him. Crushed him against her chest.

"Where were you?" Her voice cracked. "Oh, thank God."

Oriana stood back. Watched them.

Mira looked up at her, tears still running down her cheeks. "Thank you. Both of you."

Oriana turned away.

Ezra hadn't moved.

He was staring toward the forest. His face had gone completely still.

She followed his gaze.

Nothing moved between the trees.

But she knew better now.

There was something out there. And it had been looking for her.

They walked back toward the packhouse alone.

Finally, Oriana broke the silence. "The man."

Ezra kept walking.

"He was looking for me."

His hand moved toward his sword. That was answer enough.

She stepped in front of him. Made him stop.

"Ezra. Why is the Shadow Pack looking for me?"

His eyes met hers. "I don't know."

She stared at him. "You know more than you're telling me."

He didn't answer.

"You're lying."

Ezra's expression tightened. For several seconds, he just looked at her.

Then his gaze shifted toward the forest. "I don't know why they want you." A pause. "But I know someone who does."

Her heart beat harder. "Who?"

He looked back at her. "The man you saw in the trees."

She frowned. "What about him?"

His voice dropped. "He was at the fire."

Oriana went still. "The night you saw someone watching?"

Ezra nodded. "He was there."

A cold sensation spread through her chest. "You knew?"

"I suspected."

"And he was watching me?"

Ezra's eyes held hers. "Yes."

For the first time, Oriana understood.

The figure in the trees hadn't been watching Midnight Ridge. He hadn't been watching the border.

He had been watching her.

And Ezra had known all along.

She looked at him. He looked exhausted. The shadows beneath his eyes were darker than before. His jaw was tight. He hadn't slept. Maybe not for two nights.

"What aren't you telling me?"

His gaze moved away.

"Ezra."

Nothing.

"I need to know."

For a long moment, he didn't answer. His fingers moved toward the silver ring on his hand.

"I told you about the Shadow Pack." His voice was quiet. "The village."

She nodded.

"I never told you what I saw. What I heard."

She waited.

"I was seven." The words barely carried. "My mother hid me under the floorboards. She told me not to make a sound."

Oriana's breath caught.

"I could hear them walking above me." He swallowed. "I could hear my mother."

He stopped. His jaw clenched. Whatever words had been coming never made it out.

She didn't push him.

"I stayed there until morning. When I finally came out, there was nothing left."

Her chest tightened. "And then?"

"I walked."

"Where?"

"I didn't know." He looked toward the trees. "I just walked."

"For how long?"

"Three days."

She stared at him. A seven-year-old boy, alone in the forest. No family. No home. No one waiting for him.

Her eyes fell to his hand. The silver ring caught the fading light.

"Is that from them? Your family?"

He looked down at it. Nodded.

"My father's." His thumb brushed over the metal. "He gave it to me before." He stopped again.

"It's all I have left."

She reached for his hand before she could think better of it. Her fingers touched the ring. He didn't pull away.

For one quiet moment, neither of them spoke.

Then his hand shifted. He gently pulled it back.

"Cyrus found me near the border. I was half-dead. I didn't have a name. I didn't know if I'd ever had one."

She watched his face.

"He gave me everything. A home. A family. A purpose." His voice was steadier now. "If it weren't for him, I'd be dead."

She understood then. His loyalty wasn't just loyalty. It was gratitude. It was history. It was everything he'd been given after losing everything else.

"That's why you can't leave."

He looked at her.

"That's why I can't lose this pack." His voice softened. "I can't lose him."

She heard the words he didn't say. She wasn't sure whether he realized how much he'd just told her.

"Ezra."

He looked away.

"Ezra. Look at me."

Slowly, he did. His eyes met hers.

She stepped closer. Her hand moved toward his. This time, when her fingers found his, he didn't pull away.

For a moment, the world seemed to quiet around them. The forest. The village. The unanswered questions. Everything faded.

"I'm not going to—"

A howl tore through the night. Close. Far too close.

Ezra's body went rigid. His hand closed around her wrist. "Inside. Now."

She didn't argue. They reached the packhouse. He pulled the door open, guided her through, then slammed it shut.

She stood there, breathing hard.

Ezra looked at her. "Stay here." He turned toward the corridor.

"Ezra?"

"I'll be outside."

He disappeared.

Later, when Oriana reached her new room, she found him standing outside her door again. His eyes were fixed on the darkness beyond the courtyard.

She opened the door. "You're still here."

He didn't turn. "I said I'd protect you."

She studied his back. "The Shadow Pack." His shoulders stiffened. "The man at the fire." A pause. "He saw you?"

Ezra finally turned. "Yes."

Her fingers tightened around the door. "And you think he's coming back?"

Ezra looked toward the dark forest. When he answered, his voice was quiet. Certain.

"I know he is."