Bound To The Wrong Alpha
918 Words
Chapter One
The wheels of the carriage groaned as they cut through the thick, twisting forest. The deeper they traveled, the darker the world became. Sunlight faded behind a curtain of gnarled branches and overgrown moss. It felt like the trees had teeth.
Seraphina sat rigid on the cushioned bench, her fingers twisted tightly in the folds of her ceremonial cloak. Her dress was white with silver threading a symbol of purity, a mark of submission. She hated it.
She was the only daughter of Alpha Theron of the Crescent Moon Pack. And like most daughters born into power, she wasn’t being married ,she was being bargained.
An alliance. A trade. A promise to the East in exchange for peace, land, and safety.
“His name is Kael,” her father had said, refusing to meet her eyes. “He needs a strong blooded mate. Someone to bear him heirs. This is your duty, Seraphina.”
Her duty. As if her womb was the only part of her that mattered. Her wolf, Ember, snarled in the back of her mind.
“He never would’ve sent a son.”
Seraphina didn’t reply. She had been silent most of the trip, locked in thought. But Ember was right. If she had been born male, she would still be home training, fighting, choosing. Instead, she was being handed off like cattle to an Alpha she never met, with no idea what awaited her beyond the eastern border.
The forest thickened outside the window. A grey fog curled at the base of the trees, slithering like something alive. Even the usual hum of forest life had gone quiet.
Then the carriage lurched. The horses bucked and snorted nervously.
She shifted in her seat, listening.
“Why are we slowing?” came a voice from outside one of the mounted guards riding ahead.
A second voice answered. “Because we’re too deep. This is unclaimed land.”
The first hissed, “Are you mad? This is where the rogue Alpha hunts.”
Seraphina’s body tensed. She leaned slightly toward the window slit, her heart thudding.
“You want to say that name out loud out here?” another snapped. “Keep your voice down unless you want to meet him.”
There was a long pause.
“Hell Alpha’s just a story,” one guard muttered.
“Tell that to the bones they pulled from the river last winter.”
A low growl sounded from Ember. “There’s something watching.”
Then— A distant howl.
It was nothing like a normal wolf’s call. This was low, guttural, ancient. It didn’t cry to the moon. It warned. It claimed. Her skin prickled. Ember went still.
Seraphina’s breath caught as the driver snapped the reins, and the horses lunged forward, racing faster down the uneven path. She didn’t know what waited at Kael’s pack…
But whatever prowled in the woods behind them felt far worse. They arrived at dusk.
The gates of Kael’s packhouse groaned open, revealing a cold stone courtyard lined with narrow towers and high, brutal walls. The sky above was bleeding orange and red. The air here felt heavier, pressed down by something unseen.
Seraphina stepped down from the carriage with as much grace as she could muster, her cloak trailing behind her. She scanned the area, expecting someone to greet her.
A Beta. A welcome party. A smile. Instead, she was met with silence. Pack members stood at a distance some leaning against stone walls, others watching from balconies. None came forward. None bowed. None smiled.
Their eyes were full of suspicion. Of disinterest. Of quiet judgment. As if she were an intruder. Or worse, unwanted property. Footsteps approached light, fast, practiced. A young maid in a stiff black dress dipped into a shallow bow.
“Alpha Kael is occupied,” she said, voice clipped. “He will see you in the morning.”
Seraphina’s brow arched. “He knew I was arriving tonight.”
The maid didn’t blink. “You’ll be escorted to the eastern wing. Please follow me.”
With a tight jaw, Seraphina obeyed, her heels echoing sharply against the courtyard stone. Ember growled quietly in her head.
“We’re not guests. We’re prisoners.”
“No,” Seraphina replied. “Not yet.”
Her room was large, but cold. Everything inside was hard edges and dull colors. A single bed. A stone basin. No flowers, no candles, no scent of lavender like back home.
When she asked for a bath, the maid brought lukewarm water. When she asked for dinner, she was handed a plate with dry bread and a bruised apple.
Seraphina stared at it for a moment before setting it aside untouched. They wanted to remind her she wasn’t welcome. Let them try.
Night settled quickly.
She stood at the narrow balcony, arms crossed over her chest, the chill biting at her skin. The courtyard was quiet. Too quiet. Even the guards didn’t patrol loudly.
Beyond the walls, the forest loomed black and waiting. The same forest that whispered of monsters and rogues.
Above it, the moon hung low and red. Her breath caught. There between the trees something flickered.
A shape. Red fur. Too large to be a wolf. Too silent to be a man.
Then it was gone.
“Did you see that?” she whispered.
Ember stirred.
Something’s out there.
Seraphina didn’t look away.
“Then let it come,” she said, voice steel. “I’m tired of being prey.”
- Writer
