Chapter Two: The Rival Alpha
1750 Words
Elowen couldn't move.
The stranger stood several feet away, partially hidden beneath the trees.
Soren Valcrest.
The name alone was enough to make her stomach tighten.
Everyone in Blackthorn knew that name.
He was the Alpha of the Valcrest Pack, the largest rival territory in the North. His pack had been in conflict with Blackthorn for decades, long before Elowen was born.
Children were warned not to wander near their borders.
Young wolves were taught never to trust a Valcrest.
And now their Alpha was standing directly in front of her.
At midnight.
In the middle of the forest.
After she had just been rejected by her own mate.
Elowen instinctively stepped backward.
Soren noticed.
He stopped.
"Relax."
"Easy for you to say."
His lips curved slightly.
"You're right."
His voice was calm.
Too calm.
Elowen studied him carefully.
She had seen paintings of Soren before, but none of them had prepared her for the man himself.
He was tall, perhaps even taller than Aurek. His dark hair fell loosely over his forehead, and his eyes were a strange shade of gray that almost looked silver beneath the moonlight.
There was something unsettling about him.
Not because he looked threatening.
Because he didn't need to.
His presence alone was enough.
The elder beside Elowen suddenly lowered her head.
"Alpha Soren."
Soren glanced at her.
"Maeve."
Elowen's eyes widened.
They knew each other.
"You knew he was coming?" she asked.
The elder hesitated.
Soren answered for her.
"She knew."
Elowen's heart began beating faster.
"So this was planned?"
"No."
"Then why are you here?"
Soren's gaze moved toward her.
"I came for you."
Elowen's stomach dropped.
She took another step backward.
"You came for me?"
"Yes."
"Why?"
"Because I knew Aurek would reject you tonight."
Silence.
Elowen stared at him.
"You knew?"
Soren nodded.
"How?"
"Because I know why he did it."
Her anger returned instantly.
She stepped toward him.
"Then tell me."
Soren didn't answer.
"Tell me!"
Her voice echoed through the forest.
She didn't care anymore.
She had spent the last hour being treated like a problem everyone else understood except her.
Aurek knew.
The elders knew.
Apparently, Soren knew.
Everyone knew something about her life except her.
"I'm done being lied to."
Soren's expression changed.
The amusement disappeared from his eyes.
"Good."
Elowen frowned.
"Good?"
"Anger suits you better than tears."
She glared at him.
"You don't know me."
"No."
Soren took a slow step closer.
"But I intend to."
Elowen's heart skipped.
She immediately hated herself for it.
"Don't."
"Don't what?"
"Talk to me like that."
"Like what?"
"Like you already know me."
Soren's eyes remained on hers.
"I know enough."
"What does that mean?"
He looked toward her chest.
"The bond."
Elowen instinctively covered the place where the rejection pain still burned.
"What about it?"
"How does it feel?"
"None of your business."
"Fair."
He didn't push.
That surprised her.
Most people would have asked more questions.
Instead, Soren simply waited.
The elder finally stepped between them.
"You need to leave, Elowen."
Elowen looked at her.
"Why?"
"Because Aurek will come looking for you."
The words sent a strange chill through her.
"He told me not to come back."
"He said that because he had no choice."
Elowen laughed bitterly.
"Everyone keeps saying that."
She looked at Soren.
"If he had no choice, then who forced him?"
Soren's jaw tightened.
"The council."
Elowen froze.
"The Alpha Council?"
"Not exactly."
Soren glanced at Maeve.
"Some members of it."
Elowen shook her head.
"Why would they care who Aurek chooses as his mate?"
Soren's eyes darkened.
"They weren't afraid of you becoming his mate."
"Then what were they afraid of?"
He stepped closer.
"They were afraid of what would happen if you became his Luna."
Elowen's confusion deepened.
"I'm not special."
Soren stared at her.
"You really believe that?"
"I don't know what I'm supposed to believe anymore."
Her voice cracked.
For the first time, Soren's expression softened.
"You should believe that you were never the problem."
Elowen looked away.
Those words shouldn't have mattered.
But they did.
She had spent years wondering why Aurek avoided her.
Why her own pack sometimes treated her differently.
Why her mother had always refused to answer questions about their family.
She had assumed there was something wrong with her.
Something she couldn't see.
Now Soren was telling her that she wasn't the problem.
It was almost comforting.
Almost.
Then a howl sounded from behind them.
The elder stiffened.
"Blackthorn wolves."
Elowen turned toward the sound.
Soren's expression immediately became cold.
"How many?"
"At least ten."
"Then we're leaving."
Elowen looked at him.
"Where?"
"Valcrest territory."
She shook her head.
"Absolutely not."
Soren raised an eyebrow.
"You'd rather stay here?"
"I don't trust you."
"Smart."
He turned around.
Elowen blinked.
"That's it?"
Soren looked over his shoulder.
"What?"
"You're not going to convince me?"
"No."
"Why?"
"Because if you don't trust me, nothing I say will change that."
He started walking.
Elowen remained where she was.
Soren stopped after several steps.
"You have thirty seconds."
"For what?"
"To decide whether you'd rather be found by ten Blackthorn wolves or walk with me."
Elowen's eyes widened.
"You kidn*pped people?"
"No."
"Have you killed people?"
Soren glanced at her.
"Yes."
She stared at him.
He continued walking.
At least he was honest.
The howls grew louder.
Elowen looked at Maeve.
"What should I do?"
The elder didn't hesitate.
"Go with him."
"You're sure?"
"Yes."
"Why?"
Maeve's expression was heavy.
"Because if Soren wanted you dead, you would already be dead."
Elowen looked toward Soren.
He was waiting beneath the trees.
Not rushing her.
Not forcing her.
Just waiting.
She finally followed.
They walked quickly through the forest.
Soren moved effortlessly, navigating the darkness without hesitation.
Elowen struggled to keep up.
After several minutes, she noticed something strange.
She couldn't hear the Blackthorn wolves anymore.
"Where did they go?"
Soren didn't turn around.
"They stopped following."
"How?"
"They won't cross the boundary."
"What boundary?"
He pointed ahead.
Elowen saw a row of ancient stones covered in moss.
Soren stepped over one.
"Valcrest territory."
She stopped.
A strange pressure passed through her body as she crossed the invisible boundary.
Her wolf stirred.
Not painfully.
Curiously.
She looked at Soren.
"Why does my wolf feel different here?"
His expression became unreadable.
"You'll find out."
"I hate when people say that."
"I noticed."
They continued.
The forest eventually opened into a wide valley.
Elowen stopped.
A massive estate stood beyond the trees.
Black stone walls.
Towering windows.
Silver banners bearing the symbol of a wolf surrounded by a crescent moon.
Valcrest.
She had expected something dark and frightening.
Instead, the territory was beautiful.
Warm lights glowed from the windows.
Wolves moved through the courtyard.
Children ran between houses.
People laughed.
It looked nothing like the dangerous territory she'd been warned about her entire life.
Soren watched her reaction.
"Disappointed?"
"Confused."
"Why?"
"I thought Valcrest was supposed to be terrifying."
"It can be."
He looked at her.
"Depends who you are."
Before Elowen could answer, several wolves approached.
The moment they saw her, they stopped.
One of them looked at Soren.
"Alpha."
Soren nodded.
"Prepare the east wing."
The man's eyes moved toward Elowen.
"Who is she?"
Soren didn't hesitate.
"She's under my protection."
The wolf's eyebrows rose.
Elowen noticed.
Apparently, that statement meant something.
They continued toward the main house.
Elowen whispered, "Why did you say that?"
"Because it's true."
"You don't even know me."
Soren stopped walking.
He turned toward her.
"You're right."
His gaze dropped briefly to the mark on her neck, where the mate bond had begun to fade.
"But I know what happens to people the Blackthorn Council wants gone."
Elowen swallowed.
"And what happens?"
Soren's expression hardened.
"They disappear."
The words sent a chill through her.
Before she could respond, a loud growl came from behind them.
Soren immediately turned.
A large black wolf stood at the edge of the courtyard.
Elowen recognized him instantly.
Aurek.
He had shifted.
His golden eyes were fixed directly on her.
Soren's expression changed.
The entire courtyard fell silent.
Aurek stepped forward.
One step.
Then another.
Elowen's heart began pounding.
She couldn't understand why.
He had rejected her.
He had told her not to return.
Yet now he was standing in rival territory, staring at her as though he'd lost something he couldn't replace.
Soren moved in front of Elowen.
Aurek's wolf growled.
Soren's own eyes flashed silver.
"Leave."
Aurek shifted back into human form.
Within seconds, he stood there, breathing heavily, his dark hair disheveled.
"You took her."
Soren's expression remained calm.
"She came willingly."
Aurek's eyes moved past him.
"Elowen."
She froze.
His voice sounded different.
Not cold.
Not distant.
Desperate.
Elowen's chest tightened.
"What are you doing here?"
Aurek looked at her.
"I came to bring you home."
She almost laughed.
"Home?"
He took a step forward.
"Yes."
Elowen shook her head.
"You told me not to come back."
"I was wrong."
The words stunned her.
Soren looked between them.
Aurek continued.
"Elowen, please."
She had never heard him say that word before.
Please.
To her.
After everything.
Her heart betrayed her again.
But before she could answer, Soren spoke.
"You rejected her."
Aurek's eyes hardened.
"This doesn't concern you."
"It concerns me now."
Aurek's gaze shifted toward him.
"Stay out of this, Valcrest."
Soren smiled.
A dangerous, humorless smile.
"I would."
He stepped beside Elowen.
"But you brought her into my territory."
Aurek's jaw clenched.
"She's my mate."
Soren looked at Elowen.
Then back at Aurek.
"No."
His voice was quiet.
"She was your mate."
Aurek's eyes flashed.
Soren continued.
"And you were stupid enough to reject her."
The tension between the two Alphas became almost unbearable.
Elowen stepped backward.
She suddenly felt the strange pull of something inside her.
Her wolf stirred.
But this time, it wasn't responding to Aurek.
It was responding to Soren.
She looked at him.
Soren's eyes met hers.
For one brief second, everything went silent.
Then Elowen felt it.
A pull.
Different from Aurek's.
Stronger.
Darker.
Impossible to ignore.
Soren's expression changed.
His eyes widened slightly.
He felt it too.
Elowen's heart stopped.
"No..."
Soren whispered something under his breath.
Aurek noticed.
"What?"
Soren didn't answer.
His gaze remained locked on Elowen.
And then his wolf spoke inside his mind.
Mate.
Soren's face went completely still.
Elowen stared at him.
The rival Alpha had just found his mate.
And she was the woman Aurek Draven had rejected.
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