The Alpha's Frozen Heart

Three

Raven stands in front of his desk, and Liam quickly moves to join him, leaving me at the doorway—traitor. I shut the door behind me, feeling the weight of the conversation that's about to happen.

"When I gave you permission to go near the boundary with your friend, I didn't expect you both to disappear into thin air. I was worried about you, Evelyn," Rav says, using my full name—a sign that he's serious. He usually calls me by my nickname inside the pack house. He continues, "You're my Beta, and when my Beta doesn't return before midnight, I have every reason to worry."

"I know," I manage to reply, feeling the gravity of his concern.

"So, would you tell me what happened?" Rav asks, his tone demanding yet patient, while Liam listens quietly.

"Tim happened," I reply, feeling the tension in the room spike.

"Tim?" Rav repeats, confusion evident in his voice. Liam mirrors the same expression, their brows furrowed as they process the sudden mention of Tim. It's not that they don’t know who Tim is—he’s the rogue who once tried to forcefully mate with Selena. It's just that they’re puzzled about how and why his name has resurfaced so abruptly.

"What do you mean?" Rav presses, his eyes narrowing in concern.

I take a deep breath and begin recounting the events of the night, careful to leave out the part about the Alpha of the moonlight Depths Pack being my mate—for now.

When I finish, Rav's expression hardens. "Evelyn, if you weren't the Beta of this pack, they would have killed you the moment you stepped on their land," he says, his voice heavy with the weight of what could have happened. "They wouldn’t have hesitated to end the life of a non-ranked werewolf."

"I know," I responded quietly, my head lowering in guilt. "But I was just trying to save my friend."

"You could have come to me, and we could have rescued Selena together," Rav argues.

"It would have been too late if I had sought your help," I reply simply.

Rav stays quiet for a moment, then sighs. "You were doing what you thought was right," he says, and I nod slightly. The room falls into a heavy silence.

Finally, Liam, who has been quiet since we entered the study, speaks up. "So, you're saying that Tim was part of the moonlight Depths Pack and their Alpha banished him?"

"Yes," I replied.

"He probably tried to forcefully mate with someone in their pack," Rav speculates. "That might be why he was banished."

"Maybe," I reply with a shrug.

"Tim is clearly not in his right mind. He needs to be sent to a hospital," Liam adds with a serious tone. Rav and I both silently agree.

"Just be more cautious next time, Eve," Rav advises me.

"Come on, Rav. You know I would've taken Tim down if that coward hadn’t ambushed me from behind," I protest, defending myself. I hate being labeled as "careless." It’s a word that some of the men who want my Beta position use to suggest that a she-wolf like me doesn’t deserve the role. They're always eager to challenge my place in the pack.

That's exactly why I didn’t want to talk to Rav near the boundary, where other men were around.

"I know," Rav acknowledges. "It's really late. Let's call it a night."

Right on cue, Liam yawns, adding, "Yeah, I'm ready to crash."

We exchange "good-nights" and head to our rooms. But as I lie in bed and close my eyes, the Alpha's icy blue eyes linger in my mind.

I’m awake before sunrise. I didn’t sleep well. All night, I tossed and turned, unable to stop thinking about the Alpha and those cold, emotionless eyes. How can someone be so detached, especially toward their mate? His indifferent expression last night makes me question whether he’s truly my mate at all. My mind keeps replaying it, doubting if he’s really meant for me—shouldn't he have embraced me or at least shown some sign of affection like trying to kiss me?

He didn't even stop me from returning to my pack! A werewolf who has just discovered his mate would never do such a thing. Typically, a werewolf who finds his mate would do anything to keep her close, never letting her out of his sight!

But that wasn’t my experience. The Alpha—my supposed mate—didn’t even glance my way as I left his territory! I’m certain he’s my mate. When I looked into his eyes last night, I saw his wolf reaching out to mine. I know I didn’t imagine it.

I suddenly sit up in bed, realizing how much I’m obsessing over an Alpha whose name I don’t even know! You might think I’m careless for that, but I’m not. There are so many werewolf packs out there that keeping track of all the Alphas, Betas, and Gammas is no easy task. Besides, our pack, The Night Guardians, has never really socialized with the moonlight Depths Pack. They’re known to be unfriendly—at least, that’s what I’ve heard. Rav only met their Alpha once, and he told me that their Alpha certainly lives up to his formidable reputation.

Shaking my head, I try to push thoughts of the Alpha out of my mind. I force myself to get out of bed despite how exhausted I feel. My bones are sore, and I haven’t even had to fight anyone—maybe the sleepless night is contributing to my fatigue. I head to the bathroom, take a quick shower, and brush my teeth.

Dressed in a simple t-shirt and shorts, my stomach grumbles, adding to my growing irritation. I'm tired, low on energy, and hungry—what could be worse?

Oh yeah. When your mate doesn't even express a tiny fraction of emotion when he sees you.

I have a feeling that I'm going to be grumpy throughout the day. I hope I'm wrong. I head towards the kitchen. There's a marble counter in the center. On the counter, there are apples along with other fruits kept in a basket. I take the stool kept aside and sit on it as I make a grab for the apples.

As I grab an apple from the basket, Liam walks into the kitchen. "Good morning," he says cheerfully, heading straight for the refrigerator.

I take a bite of my apple and grumble, "It wasn't a good morning for me."

Liam closes the refrigerator door, revealing the carton of orange juice he's holding. He’s known for his daily orange juice ritual. He retrieves a glass from the cabinet and pours the juice, all while I continue munching on my apple. He pulls up a stool and sits down next to me.

Noticing the dark circles under my eyes, he asks with concern, "You didn’t sleep well last night?"

"Yeah," I responded, continuing to munch on the apples.

I don’t bother keeping track of how many I’ve eaten; I’m just too hungry to care. As I reach for another apple, I notice Liam watching me with an amused expression. I glance at him and ask, "What’s with the look?"

"I'm just curious how so many apples fit in that small stomach of yours," he says with a smirk.

I shrug and reply, "I'm just really hungry."

"You should see yourself. You’re eating like a pig," he teases, and I shove him lightly.

"I am not!" I retorted.

Just then, Rav walks into the kitchen and greets us, "Good morning!"

Liam chimes in cheerfully with a bright, "Good morning!"

I simply respond with a subdued, "Morning."

Rav's gaze settles on me, and he asks, "Did you not sleep well last night?"

The concern in his eyes makes me self-conscious about the dark circles under mine.

"Something like that," I reply, not willing to delve into the details.

He pulls out a stool and sits across from me, his expression growing serious. "Is it because of everything that happened last night?" he inquired, his tone tinged with concern.

"You can just say that," I answered. He thinks that I didn't sleep because of Tim k********g my friend. What he doesn't know is that my insomnia has got nothing to do with Tim. It's because of that Alpha whose name I don't know.

"Rav," I look at him. "What's the name of the Alpha of the moonlight Depths Pack?"