The King's Claim
996 Words
My head pounded with a dull, rhythmic ache.
It wasn't the sharp agony I was used to after Selene's beatings, nor the mind-shattering pain of Kael severing our mate bond. This was different—a heavy soreness buried deep in my bones.
I slowly forced my eyes open.
Warmth surrounded me.
And beneath my aching body was something impossibly soft.
I wasn't lying in the freezing mud of the Dark Woods anymore.
Panic exploded through my hollow chest. I gasped and jolted upright, my hands scrambling across the surface beneath me. My fingers sank into expensive silk sheets.
Where was I?
The Blood Moon Pack dungeons?
No. The dungeons always smelled of mold and stale blood.
This place smelled like him.
Dark vanilla. Ancient cedar. Fresh, untamed power.
His scent filled the room, clinging to the blankets and heavy velvet curtains, mixing with the warmth of the fire crackling in the massive stone fireplace.
I looked around frantically.
I was in a grand bedroom built from dark, polished stone. A crystal chandelier cast a golden glow over luxurious furniture.
Then I looked down.
My soaked, bloodstained servant's uniform was gone.
I was wearing an oversized black T-shirt, incredibly soft against my skin.
Someone had changed my clothes.
I scrambled backward, pulling my knees tightly to my chest.
Had Alpha Marcus found me alive? Had Kael sold me to a rogue pack or some powerful Alpha?
I checked my right shoulder, expecting to see the mangled flesh where the feral rogue had bitten me.
There was nothing.
No wound.
No blood.
Not even a scar.
The old scars from years of abuse were gone too.
I stared at my flawless skin in disbelief.
How was that possible?
Memories flashed through my mind—a blinding white light, cracking bones, a massive white wolf, three rogues, blood, and death.
Had I imagined it?
Before I could think further, the heavy oak door clicked.
To my newly heightened senses, the sound was deafening. I flinched violently, pressing my back against the headboard and dragging the sheets to my chin.
The door opened.
The air instantly became heavy.
A terrifying power filled the room, making it difficult to breathe. His scent intensified.
The stranger from the forest stepped inside.
He was enormous, easily over six and a half feet tall, with broad shoulders and a powerful, muscular frame. He wore a simple black button-down shirt with the sleeves rolled up, revealing thick forearms marked by faded battle scars.
His face stole my breath.
Rugged. Devastatingly handsome.
And his eyes...
They glowed silver.
The moment they met mine, my wolf stirred.
The majestic white beast I'd thought was nothing more than a hallucination lifted her head inside my mind.
She didn't cower.
She submitted.
Mate, she purred.
No.
Kael rejected me.
The bond was broken.
I was broken.
"You are awake."
His deep, gravelly voice vibrated through my chest.
I pressed myself harder against the headboard.
He noticed my fear immediately. His silver eyes softened, and the crushing pressure of his aura receded. Slowly, he raised his hands, showing me his empty palms.
"I am not going to hurt you, little one."
"W-Who are you?" My voice was barely a whisper. "Where am I? Did Kael sell me to you?"
His jaw clenched.
A low rumble vibrated through his chest, but he forced it down.
"You are in the Northern Fortress," he said calmly. "You are safe here. No one bought you."
The Northern Fortress.
My stomach dropped.
Ancient Lycan territory—the home of the most brutal predators in the world.
"And who..." I swallowed. "Who are you?"
He took one slow step forward, firelight catching a heavy silver ring on his finger.
"My name is Orion."
His voice carried an authority that made the room feel smaller.
"And you, Elara, are my mate."
The word hung in the air.
Mate.
King Orion of the Lycans.
The most lethal predator in the known world.
"No," I whispered, shaking my head. "That's impossible. I already had a mate. Kael. He rejected me because I'm a wolf-less Omega."
"My wolf does not make mistakes, Elara."
Orion stood perfectly still.
"Neither does my scent."
"I am nobody's!"
The words burst from me.
Immediately, I shrank back, bracing for the blow that always followed defiance.
But it never came.
Instead, Orion's expression darkened with lethal rage.
He slowly sat on the edge of the mattress.
"Who taught you to flinch like that?"
His voice was quiet, but murderous fury lay beneath it.
"It doesn't matter."
"It matters to me."
I looked away.
"A wolf only gets one fated mate."
"You are not a wolf-less Omega, Elara."
His voice softened.
"When I found you, my borders were scorched with ancient energy. I saw the bodies of three massive rogues scattered across the snow. One had its spine shattered by a single blow."
My breath caught.
Orion extended one large, scarred hand and placed it palm-up on the mattress.
"Your bloodline is ancient, little one."
His silver eyes held mine.
"You are a Royal White Wolf."
My heart stopped.
"Your wolf was never absent. She was simply too powerful to awaken."
He paused.
"She was waiting for me."
I stared at his hand.
Every instinct screamed at me to run.
Yet my wolf begged me to touch him.
Slowly, trembling, I reached out and pressed my fingertips against his rough palm.
The reaction was instantaneous.
Electricity exploded up my arm.
I gasped as a roaring warmth spread through my body. Every lingering ache vanished. The emptiness left by Kael's rejection began to close, as though the broken pieces of my soul were finally finding their place.
I tried to pull away.
Orion gently closed his fingers around mine.
His silver eyes darkened with something raw and possessive.
"You see?"
His voice dropped to a rough whisper.
"You were never broken, Elara."
His thumb brushed lightly over my trembling hand.
"You were just waiting for a King."
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