CHAPTER 10 — THE ALPHA’S HOUSE
1080 Words
Warmth enveloped Amara the moment Kael carried her across the threshold of the pack house. The shift from freezing night to crackling fire felt like stepping through a portal—one world falling away, another wrapping itself around her.
The entrance hall was vast, built of polished dark wood and stone. Lanterns hung from beams overhead, casting golden light that danced against the walls. A massive fireplace burned on the far side, the flames painting the room with flickering amber hues.
But even the warmth couldn’t steady the tremor in her hands.
Kael noticed.
He lowered her gently onto her feet, his large hands lingering at her waist for a moment, making sure she was steady.
“You’re safe,” he murmured.
She nodded, though her heartbeat hadn’t slowed. “They were staring at me.”
“They’ve never seen a Moonbearer,” Kael said. “Most believed the bloodline died out centuries ago.”
“Lucky me,” she muttered, hugging herself.
Kael’s lips twitched, though the concern never fully left his gaze. “Come. There’s someone you should meet.”
Before she could ask who, stronger footsteps approached.
A man emerged from a hallway to the right—broad-shouldered, dark-haired, his expression sharp. He looked older than Kael by a few years, with streaks of silver at his temples and eyes that seemed to analyze everything in a single glance.
Amara instinctively stepped closer to Kael.
“Marcus,” Kael said, acknowledging the man with a nod. “Beta.”
Marcus bowed his head in respect. “Alpha.”
Then his gaze shifted to Amara.
“So it’s true,” he murmured. “The mark awakened.”
Amara flushed, tugging her sleeve down to hide her hand. “It just… happened. I didn’t choose it.”
“No one chooses fate,” Marcus said simply. “But the Moon doesn’t make mistakes.”
She wasn’t sure she agreed.
Kael stepped between them slightly, a protective instinct he didn’t even bother to hide. “We need the healer. Now.”
Marcus nodded once and turned sharply on his heel.
Kael motioned for Amara to follow. “You’re not hurt,” he said, “but the healer will make sure your power didn’t overload your body. It’s the first time it’s awakened. That can be dangerous.”
“Dangerous how?” Amara asked, quickening her steps.
He hesitated. “Moonbearer power burns the body from the inside if it’s unleashed too suddenly. You’re lucky it was only a single rogue.”
“Only?” she breathed.
Kael didn’t answer.
They reached a smaller room filled with herbs, warm light, and shelves of organized jars. A woman with long gray hair tied in a braid looked up from a table covered in scrolls.
“Alpha,” she greeted before her eyes widened. “Is this…?”
“Yes,” Kael said. “Liora, this is Amara.”
The healer stepped forward slowly, reverently. Her fingers hovered just inches from Amara’s hand.
“May I?” the woman asked.
Amara nodded nervously.
Liora held her wrist gently and turned it to the light. Though fainter now, the mark still glowed like molten silver beneath the skin.
“Oh, child…” Liora whispered.
“What?” Amara asked anxiously. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing wrong,” Liora said softly. “Just rare. Powerful. Beautiful.” She looked up. “You are the first Moonbearer to awaken in over two hundred years.”
Amara’s breath hitched. “I didn’t ask for this.”
“Most chosen never do,” the healer said with a small smile. “But fate doesn’t need your permission.”
Kael stepped closer. “Check her. Make sure she isn’t burned.”
Liora nodded and placed her palms on either side of Amara’s head.
The warmth that surged through her was immediate—soft, humming, like stepping into sunlight.
Amara gasped. “What are you—”
“Just sensing,” Liora murmured.
After a moment, she stepped back. “Her body is fine. Tired, yes, but no internal burns. Her magic reserves are stable.”
“Magic?” Amara echoed.
Kael exhaled, relieved. “Good.”
But Liora wasn’t finished. She turned to Kael, her expression darkening.
“Alpha… there’s more.”
Kael tensed. “Say it.”
“The awakening has already rippled through the packs,” she said. “Wolves beyond our borders will feel it.”
Amara frowned. “Feel… what exactly?”
“The return of Moonfire,” Liora said.
That word again.
Kael clenched his jaw. “How long until they know who carries it?”
Liora gave Amara a sympathetic look. “Soon. Very soon.”
Kael’s entire posture shifted—tense, wolf-alert, calculating.
He turned to Amara. “You’ll stay here. With me. No leaving the territory. No being alone.”
Amara bristled. “I don’t need a babysitter.”
Kael stepped closer, towering over her, his voice low and unyielding.
“I’m not offering protection,” he said. “I’m ensuring survival. There is a difference.”
Amara opened her mouth to argue—but the intensity in his eyes stole the words right from her.
He wasn’t exaggerating.
He was terrified.
“Someone sent that rogue after you,” Kael continued, softer now. “They will not stop. Not until they have your blood… or your corpse.”
Her breath caught.
The room suddenly felt colder.
“Why?” she whispered.
Kael looked down, voice rumbling with quiet fury.
“Because Moonbearers don’t just hold power.”
He met her eyes, and she felt the truth like a blade sliding beneath the skin.
“They hold the power to control alphas.”
The world seemed to tilt again.
Amara stumbled back, but Kael steadied her with a hand on her arm.
Liora whispered a prayer under her breath.
Marcus appeared at the doorway, his expression grim.
“Alpha,” he said, “you need to see this.”
Kael’s eyes narrowed. “What is it?”
Marcus held out a torn scrap of cloth—a symbol burned into it.
A symbol Kael recognized instantly.
His face darkened. “Silvercrest.”
Liora gasped. “The rival pack?”
Amara’s heart hammered. “What does that mean?”
Kael turned to her slowly, his voice dropping to a deadly whisper.
“It means the pack responsible for slaughtering my father…
and destroying your bloodline…
has returned for you.”
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- Writer
