The Long-Lost Alpha

Chapter 2

The Crescent Pack was one of the smaller packs but held their ground none the less. Alpha Ajax was admired and respected among the pack members. He was fair, and always did what was in the best interest of his pack. Stephen admired him, and at the same time envied him. Alpha Ajax came from a long line of pack leaders, and was mated with a beautiful Luna, Lexi. Stephen’s size and strength had also caught the Alpha’s attention, and he was happy to have a capable opponent during training exercises. Ajax was not threatened by Stephen, but more intrigued by this young wolf that stumbled upon his pack many years ago.

“My mom told me about the party next week,” someone said breathing heavily as if they had been trying to catch up to Stephen as he was heading to training. He already knew who was coming up behind him, and laughed. Cayo was Stephen’s best friend and right-hand man. They had grown up together, and he couldn’t help think that Cayo could have also been partially responsible for some of his mom’s silver hair as well. Cayo was of Beta blood. His father, Titus, was the Beta to Alpha Ajax. Although Cayo was not as large as Stephen, he was strong, and Stephen had no doubt he too would be a Beta someday.

“I’m surprised she didn’t tell you the moment my mom got the go ahead for the party weeks ago,” Stephen said slightly rolling his eyes.

“I knew they were up to something. Last week your mom came over to my house 3 times, and they would sneak away to the office.” Cayo had a humorous smirk on his face as he said it.

Melissa and Katy had been best friends since they were young. They acted more like sisters than friends. It was because of their friendship Cayo and Stephen were able to build their own friendship. Stephen remembered the first time he met Cayo. They were probably 4 years-old and Katy had brought him over to play. Although, Cayo did not have the same plans. As soon as he saw Stephen he sunk into his left arm with his fangs and did not show mercy. For some reason it didn’t hurt as much as it probably should have, but it still caught him by surprise. Any time Cayo didn’t want to go along with one of Stephen’s plans, he would gently remind him of the everlasting scar, flashing the teeth marks that imprinted his skin. Cayo’s guilty conscience would kick in, and Stephen would laugh knowing his friend would have a sudden change of heart.

“Your mom is really going all out. Does she still think you will discover your mate on your birthday?” Cayo teased Stephen.

Stephen rolled his eyes, “I think she believes if she plans hard enough the Moon Goddess will make sure it happens.” Stephen was joking, but part of him wondered if it might be true.

What would his mate be like? He saw the relationship between his mom and dad, and had heard the story many times about when they discovered they were mates. John was already 20 years-old and still had not met his mate. He had decided that since it had taken this long, maybe the Goddess had decided he didn’t deserve a mate. He threw himself in his role of being a guard, taking extra shifts to watch for rogues every chance he got.

One night while on patrol, he was suddenly knocked off his feet by a wave of scents he had never experienced before. He was unable to focus, and frankly was afraid he might have been under attack. But this wasn’t a smell of fear, it was enchanting, irresistible, indescribably intense. That’s when he saw her. The most beautiful creature he had ever laid eyes on. He knew he had to get to her in that moment. His body lost all sense of time and control. He had seen Melissa many times before but had always assumed her future mate would be with an Alpha or Beta. She was on her way home from celebrating her recent birthday with some friends. She stopped dead in her tracks, locked eyes with him and said, “Mate.”

Stephen wondered if he would have to wait as long as his father. His mother would be quite disappointed if so.

Suddenly Stephen’s mind jetted to a dark room. He could hear noises, loud noises. He was in a small bed and looked down to notice how small his hands and feet were in front of him. What was happening? Where was he? He gets out of bed in search of the source of the noise. He travels down long hallways, not quite sure which way to turn at the end of each. What was this place? It was as if he was in a maze with no way out! The noises became louder. Fear swept over him as he realized they were screams. He began to run faster, trying to find the source!

That’s when he suddenly saw a light. Two large doors at the end of the hallway partially opened, with a dim light shining through. He knew he had to get to the door. He knew someone’s life depended on it! He saw a shadow move in front of the doorway. Was that who was screaming? Stephen reached for the handle and looked through the c***k. He peered in the room but was unable to see anything, because the room suddenly went dark. He was about to enter but had a strange feeling come over him. It was the same uneasy feeling he had been experiencing within him for weeks. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. When he opened them he was greeted with someone who had deep red eyes, and was ready to kill.