Chapter 4: Eyes Of The Pack
1085 Words
I barely slept.
Every time I closed my eyes, I felt it again—
That pull.
That heat.
That connection I couldn’t explain.
And worse…
I kept seeing his eyes.
Golden.
Watching.
Too intense.
Too close.
By the time morning came, I had already given up on sleep.
---
A knock came at the door.
Soft.
Careful.
“Miss Alina?”
Mira.
“Come in,” I said, sitting up.
She entered quietly, carrying a tray.
But the moment she looked at me, she paused.
“You didn’t sleep,” she said.
It wasn’t a question.
I gave a small, tired smile.
“Is it that obvious?”
“Yes.”
She hesitated.
“Most people don’t sleep well their first night here.”
I almost laughed.
“I don’t think anyone would sleep well after being sold to a king.”
Mira lowered her gaze.
“I’m sorry.”
That surprised me.
“You didn’t do anything.”
“I know… but still.”
For a moment, neither of us spoke.
Then she placed the tray down.
“His Majesty has requested your presence.”
My stomach tightened instantly.
“Now?”
“Yes.”
Her voice dropped slightly.
“The entire pack is gathered.”
My heart skipped.
That didn’t sound good.
---
The walk to the main hall felt longer than before.
Heavier.
Like every step carried weight I didn’t understand yet.
Guards walked ahead and behind me.
Silent.
Watchful.
The castle felt different in the morning.
More alive.
More… dangerous.
When we reached the massive doors, I stopped.
“What happens in there?” I asked quietly.
Mira hesitated.
Then she whispered—
“They decide what you are.”
A chill ran down my spine.
Before I could respond, the doors opened.
---
The moment I stepped inside—
Silence fell.
Heavy.
Immediate.
Every head turned.
Every eye locked onto me.
My breath caught.
The hall was massive.
Filled with Lycans.
Dozens of them.
Men.
Women.
Warriors.
Every single one of them powerful.
Every single one watching me.
Whispers spread instantly.
“That’s her.”
“The human.”
“The one the King brought.”
“Why is she here?”
I swallowed hard.
This wasn’t curiosity.
It was judgment.
And I was standing right in the center of it.
---
Then I saw him.
Kael.
Seated on a dark throne at the far end of the hall.
Relaxed.
Still.
Yet somehow commanding everything around him.
Even without moving—
He owned the room.
His golden eyes lifted the moment I entered.
And just like that—
Everything else disappeared.
The whispers.
The crowd.
The tension.
It was just him…
and me.
Watching.
Measuring.
Understanding something I couldn’t.
---
“Come forward.”
His voice echoed through the hall.
Calm.
But absolute.
I moved.
Step by step.
Every gaze followed me.
Every whisper grew quieter.
Until—
I stood in front of him.
Alone.
Exposed.
Vulnerable.
“Good morning,” he said.
Like this was normal.
Like I wasn’t standing in front of an entire pack of predators.
“Good morning… Your Majesty,” I replied.
His lips curved slightly.
Amused.
Then—
He stood.
And the entire room shifted.
Silence dropped like a blade.
“This,” he said, his voice carrying across the hall as he gestured toward me,
“is Alina.”
Hearing my name echo through the chamber felt strange.
Unreal.
“She will be staying here.”
The reaction was immediate.
Whispers.
Growls.
Disbelief.
“A human?”
“Inside the palace?”
“This is madness—”
One voice cut through the noise.
“Your Majesty.”
A tall Lycan stepped forward.
Broad shoulders.
Sharp features.
Eyes filled with clear disapproval.
“Yes, Marcus?” Kael replied calmly.
Marcus glanced at me like I was something beneath him.
“Why is a human allowed inside our home?”
The tension thickened instantly.
The room waited.
Watching.
Judging.
Kael’s gaze flickered briefly toward me.
Then back to Marcus.
“Because I said so.”
Simple.
Cold.
Final.
Most of the room fell silent.
But Marcus didn’t.
“With respect, Your Majesty—humans are not part of the pack.”
“I’m aware.”
“Then why—”
He didn’t finish.
Because something changed.
---
The air shifted.
Suddenly.
Violently.
A low growl echoed through the hall.
Deep.
Primal.
Dangerous.
It came from Kael.
The sound froze everyone.
Even Marcus stepped back.
Kael’s golden eyes were glowing now.
Brighter.
Wilder.
And they were locked on me.
Not the council.
Not the pack.
Me.
My heart began to race.
“What’s happening…?” I whispered.
No one answered.
No one moved.
Because they all felt it too.
His wolf.
Awakening.
Reacting.
---
Kael stepped down from the throne.
Slow.
Controlled.
But every step carried something heavier now.
Something raw.
Something barely contained.
The closer he got—
the harder it became to breathe.
He stopped right in front of me.
Close enough that I could feel the heat of him.
The power.
The dominance.
His gaze burned into mine.
Possessive.
Confused.
Certain.
Then—
He leaned closer.
And inhaled.
That same slow, deliberate breath.
My body reacted instantly.
Heat surged beneath my skin.
My pulse spiked.
My fingers trembled.
And the entire room felt it.
The connection.
The shift.
The truth.
A deep rumble vibrated through his chest.
And then—
He said it.
“She smells like my mate.”
---
The world exploded.
Gasps.
Shouts.
Chaos.
“That’s impossible!”
“A human?!”
“This cannot be—”
Marcus stared in disbelief.
“This is madness!”
But Kael didn’t look at him.
Didn’t look at anyone.
His gaze remained locked on me.
Unmoving.
Unshaken.
“My wolf does not lie.”
Silence crashed over the room again.
Heavy.
Shocking.
Unavoidable.
I couldn’t move.
Couldn’t think.
Mate?
That wasn’t possible.
Humans didn’t have mates.
Not like this.
Not with them.
And yet—
The way he was looking at me…
It wasn’t doubt.
It wasn’t curiosity anymore.
It was certainty.
Something deep inside him had already decided.
And now—
Everyone else was realizing it too.
---
I had walked into this room as a stranger.
A human.
A trade.
But now?
Every eye looked at me differently.
Not with curiosity.
Not with pity.
But with something far more dangerous.
Fear.
Because in a single moment—
Everything had changed.
And somehow…
I was at the center of it.
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