THE ALPHA'S BRIDE IS A ROGUE

CHAPTER 2- THE ALPHA'S DECISION

Ravenna refused to move.

The warriors surrounding her kept their hands near their weapons, but none of them looked eager to actually use them. She'd spent six years learning to survive without anyone's help, and she wasn't about to hand her freedom over to some Alpha just because he'd asked nicely.

Ronan looked her over, then turned to Lyra. "She's coming with us."

Ravenna's frown deepened. "Why?"

"Because she crossed my border with you."

"She has nothing to do with this."

"Neither did you," Ronan said, his expression unreadable. The calm in his voice irritated her more than anger would have. Lyra touched her arm.

"Just go," she murmured.

Ravenna looked around. They had her boxed in — there was no direction she could turn that wouldn't end with her right back here. She let out a breath and gave up, following them in.

The packhouse was bigger than anything she'd called home in years. Warm light spilled from the windows, and the murmur of voices grew louder as they stepped inside.

Then everyone stopped talking at once.

Heads turned. Whispers passed between them.

"Is that the rogue?"

"Why did the Alpha bring her here?"

Ravenna kept her eyes forward. She'd learned the hard way that people got louder the moment they thought they'd caught someone doing something wrong.

A woman stepped out from the crowd — tall, put-together, carrying herself like she owned the room. Her gaze moved from Ronan to Ravenna and back.

"Who is she?"

"That's none of your concern, Elena."

"It becomes my concern when you bring an unknown rogue into the packhouse."

"I didn't ask to be here," Ravenna said.

Elena's eyes narrowed. "Then perhaps you should leave."

"I intend to." Ravenna turned toward the door, but Ronan was already there, blocking it.

"No, you don't."

She met his eyes. "You don't get to decide that."

"I do on my territory."

The words sat between them, heavy. Her wolf growled low in response to him, and she hated it — hated the way her pulse spiked whenever his skin brushed hers.

Ronan turned to one of the warriors. "Get her a room."

"I don't need one."

"You'll take one tonight."

"I've slept under trees plenty of times. I can manage."

"Not tonight."

She glared at him. "Why do you even care?"

His gaze dropped to the pendant at her throat. "Where did you get that?"

"My mother."

"What was her name?"

Ravenna hesitated. "Elara."

Something shifted in him — small, almost nothing, but she caught it.

"You know her."

He looked away. "Get some rest."

She stepped closer instead. "You know something about my mother."

"Some things are better left buried."

Her stomach dropped. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"It means you stay inside tonight."

Before she could push further, the packhouse doors slammed open and a warrior stumbled in, breathless.

"Alpha!"

Ronan turned. "What happened?"

"We found three wolves near the eastern boundary."

A murmur ran through the room.

"Whose men?" Ronan asked.

The warrior's eyes flicked toward Ravenna. "The ones who were tracking the rogue."

Her breath caught. "What happened to them?"

"We don't know."

"Explain," Ronan said.

"They weren't killed by any of our wolves."

A chill worked its way down Ravenna's spine.

The warrior dug through a torn pocket and pulled out a small scrap of black fabric. Ronan took it, and something dark crossed his face as he recognized the symbol stitched into it.

Ravenna was the only one who seemed to notice how much that reaction cost him.

Her fingers found the pendant on instinct. "Where did you find that?"

"Near the bodies."

She moved closer, close enough to make out the symbol herself. Something about it tugged at a memory she couldn't quite reach — gone before she could grab hold of it. Whatever it was, something inside her reacted anyway.

Ronan crushed the fabric in his fist. "Everyone out."

The warriors hesitated.

"Alpha—"

"Now."

They cleared the room, leaving only Ravenna, Lyra, and Ronan behind.

"You know what that symbol means," she said.

He said nothing.

"Tell me."

His eyes locked on hers. "I don't know who's listening."

Before she could push harder, a howl cut through the night outside. A second answered it. Then a third.

Ronan's whole posture changed. He turned to the guards still lingering by the door.

"Lock the gates."

They took off running.

Ravenna pressed her hands to the window. "What's happening?"

Ronan didn't answer — he was watching the tree line, every muscle taut.

Something moved out there, between the trunks.

Then a voice drifted through the dark.

"Ravenna."

Her blood went cold.

Lyra's grip tightened on her arm.

The voice came again. "Ravenna Voss."

No one here should know her full name. She hadn't given it to anyone but Ronan.

She looked at him — and for the first time since she'd met him, the Alpha looked afraid.

The voice spoke once more, quieter now. "Your mother was wrong."

Her hand closed around the pendant.

The gates rattled against their hinges.

Ronan stepped in front of her. "Stay back."

She couldn't move even if she wanted to.

The voice came a final time. "Because I know what she left behind."

Ravenna stared into the darkness beyond the gates.

Then something out there whispered her mother's name.