Wolvenmark - The Forbidden Mate

Chapter 1: Alpha Burden

Chapter 1: Alpha Burden

Al's POV

The cold wind whispered through the towering pines as I knelt in front of my father’s grave, the weight of memory pressing down on me like a mountain I could never climb. The night was still, almost reverent, the moonlight spilling silver across the stone marker. His name was carved deep into it—strong, unyielding, and yet it gutted me every time my eyes traced the letters. Years had passed, but the wound hadn’t faded. It hadn’t even scabbed over. It sat raw, a constant ache gnawing at my chest.

I exhaled, watching my breath swirl into the night like a fleeting ghost. I’d done everything I could to strengthen the pack—trained them harder, tightened our borders, pushed myself until I bled. No enemy would ever catch us unprepared again. And yet… no battle, no victory, no dominance could touch the one thing I could never fight.

The burden of legacy.

A crunch of footsteps behind me snapped me back. My ears twitched, but I didn’t need to turn.

“Sir,” came the low, familiar voice.

Shadow. My second-in-command. My best friend. The only one who carried even a fraction of this weight with me. He stepped into the corner of my vision, a tall, broad figure who seemed carved out of the very darkness around us. His expression was unreadable as always, his loyalty steady as the earth beneath our paws.

“Yes?” My voice came out quieter than I meant, frayed around the edges.

“We need to go,” he said simply. His tone carried no judgment, no pity. Just truth.

He shifted in the next breath, bones snapping, limbs breaking and realigning into the shape of his massive wolf. His fur shimmered like ink poured into the moonlight.

I gave the stone marker one last look, letting the silence stretch between us. Then I let go. My own body reshaped, bones cracking and tendons pulling into the familiar burn of transformation. The wolf inside me surged forward, and I surrendered. Paws dug into the earth as I bounded after him, the forest rushing past in a blur of black and silver. The night air bit at my fur, cold and sharp, but running eased the heaviness in my chest. At least for a moment.

The headquarters rose from the trees, all wood and stone, an extension of the forest itself. Its towering structure cast long shadows, and as soon as we arrived, pack members gathered outside. Eyes turned to me, heavy with expectation.

The question came before I even shifted back, as predictable as the phases of the moon.

“When are you getting married, Alpha?”

I growled low under my breath, forcing myself not to roll my eyes as my body cracked back into human form. A warrior hurried forward with clothes, bowing his head. I tugged the shirt on, muscles still taut from the shift, and scanned the crowd.

That’s when I saw him.

Stone. Arms crossed, his presence cutting sharper than the cold wind. My father’s former Beta—now mine. His hair was streaked with gray, his face carved with years of command, but his eyes were the same as they had always been: relentless, piercing, unyielding.

“Where have you been?” he asked, his voice like steel striking flint.

I met his gaze evenly. “Looking for my mate,” I lied. The words slipped out smooth, almost rehearsed.

His lip curled. “Liar. I can smell the grave dirt on you.”

Behind me, Shadow chuckled softly. Of course he found this amusing.

I sighed. “Fine. I was at my father’s grave.”

Stone’s expression didn’t budge. “You should be focusing on finding your mate.”

“I will,” I said, sharper this time.

“You should have done it already.” His words cut, but they weren’t wrong. “You’re twenty-three. Your father found your mother at twenty.”

I dra gged a hand through my hair. “Why is everyone in such a rush?”

“Because you’re the Alpha!” Stone’s voice cracked like a whip. “You need a Luna. The future of this pack depends on it.”

My jaw clenched, anger sparking in my chest. I knew my duty. I carried it every day like a brand on my skin. But hearing it again and again, like a drumbeat I could never escape—it grated on me.

Stone’s gaze flicked to Shadow. “And you! Why haven’t you been pushing him harder?”

Shadow raised his hands, palms out. “I do,” he said with a shrug. “He just hasn’t found the right one yet.”

Stone scoffed, turning back to me. “Plenty of strong females in this pack. What excuse do you have?”

“Because none of them feel right.” The words left my mouth before I could soften them.

Stone’s scowl deepened. “You don’t have the luxury of being picky. Find her before the last full moon of this year.”

The words hit harder than I expected. Four moons. That was all the time I had left.

I forced a muttered, “Fine. I’m going to my room,” and stalked past them, the tension in my shoulders coiled tight. Shadow trailed after me without a word.

Once inside, the weight finally pressed me down. I dropped onto the bed, staring blankly at the ceiling. My chest rose and fell in shallow breaths.

“Why is everyone in such a rush?” I muttered.

Shadow leaned casually against the couch, arms crossed. “Maybe because you’re taking things really, really slow?”

I turned my head to glare at him. “We’re supposed to take things slow.”

“Yeah,” he said dryly, “but you’re practically standing still. Girls throw themselves at you, and you don’t even blink.”

“They’re not the type I want.”

Shadow arched a brow. “And what is your type, exactly?”

“…I don’t know,” I admitted, the words tasting bitter.

He exhaled, rubbing his temples. “Al, the pack needs an heir. You can’t just sit around waiting for the universe to hand you one.”

I groaned, rolling to my side. “They don’t try either. The second they see I’m not interested, they’re gone.”

“Can you blame them?” Shadow muttered. “You’re impossible.”

Silence stretched between us until I murmured, “And on top of all this, I still have to manage the pack’s business empire.”

“Yeah,” Shadow said with a humorless chuckle. “Running a billion-dollar company and leading a pack? No wonder you’re drowning.”

My throat tightened. “Maybe I’m too young for all this.”

Shadow’s expression softened at last, his voice low. “Think about your father. He didn’t think he was ready either. But he became who the pack needed. And so will you.”

I closed my eyes, exhaustion pressing down on me like a weighted blanket. Muscles sore, mind raw, I barely had time to let another thought form before sleep pulled me under.

The reprieve didn’t last long. A sharp knock jolted me awake, rattling the door in its frame. My heart lurched in my chest as my senses scrambled to catch up. I blinked against the haze of sleep to find Shadow standing over me, arms crossed, his shadowed figure as unyielding as stone.

“Time to go,” he said flatly, no room for debate in his tone.

A groan slipped out as I dragged a hand over my face, rubbing the fog from my eyes. The familiar weight of responsibility settled on me instantly, like a yoke snapping back into place. I sat up, shoulders tight, the reminder of who I was and what I owed pressing down before my feet even touched the floor.

“You have a meeting at the Silver Moon Corporation,” Shadow added, his voice carrying that clipped efficiency he never seemed to lose. “Your father left it in your care, remember?”

“Yeah, I know,” I muttered, stretching my arms until my joints popped. No matter how often I heard those words—your father left it in your care—they never felt lighter. If anything, they grew heavier, a chain I couldn’t break free from.

Minutes later, I was buttoning the jacket of a sharp black suit, the fabric hugging my frame like armor. The mirror reflected a man who looked prepared, but inside, I felt like I was walking into battle. Running the pack was one thing; carrying the empire my father built was something else entirely. Two fronts, two wars, and no chance to falter.

As I stepped out of my room, Shadow was waiting, leaning casually against the wall. A smirk tugged at the corner of his mouth.

“Maybe you’ll find your mate in the city,” he said, his tone almost teasing.

I rolled my eyes, tightening the cuffs on my sleeves. “Not you too.”

He shrugged, his smirk widening. “Hey, just saying. You never know.”

I shook my head and pushed past him, unwilling to give him the satisfaction of a reply.

The air outside was sharp and cool, the faint glow of dawn stretching across the horizon. The world was waking, but for me, it felt like the continuation of yesterday’s burdens. Another day. Another weight to carry. My father’s legacy wouldn’t crumble under my watch—not while I drew breath.

I slid into the driver’s seat, the leather cold against my back. The engine roared to life, and soon the road unfurled ahead of me. The city skyline grew larger with every mile, a forest of steel and glass that seemed to scrape the heavens. To most, it was a symbol of progress, ambition, wealth. To me, it was a reminder: the Silver Moon Corporation was mine to protect, to grow, to wield as both shield and weapon for the pack.

But that reminder came with a price.

The weight of expectation pressed in on me, heavier than any enemy’s claw or tooth. Every decision had to be precise. Every move calculated. I wasn’t just leading wolves in the shadows—I was steering a titan in the daylight.

And somewhere between the pack and the empire, the question gnawed at me: where was there room for me?

I let out slow sigh, leaning back into the seat as the city loomed closer, towering buildings catching the early light like sharpened blades. Another day of endless demands waited on the other side of those glass walls.

Still, a flicker of thought whispered through me—quiet, dangerous, persistent.

Maybe today will be different.

Maybe today, fate would finally intervene. Maybe the mate I had been told to search for, pressured to claim, would appear.

Or maybe… it would just be another day drowning in responsibilities.