Bound By The Alpha's Sin

Bloody night

Elara POV.

I still remember the smell of smoke. The strong, unpleasant smell of wood is now mixed with the fishy, sharp smell of blood.

Sometimes, I wonder if that night really happened. Was it just a bad memory made up by my brain? Do I have to deal with this pain every time I close my eyes to sleep or when I'm feeling desperate?

"Run, Elara! Never look back!"

That was my father's voice. The last words I remember clearly were before everything went crazy. After that, the world turned into pieces of sound that were no longer whole.

His voice was muffled, drowned out by the fierce roar of the fire that was consuming our homes, by the desperate cries of my pack members begging for mercy, and by the awful sound of tearing—the sound of flesh and bone being torn apart.

I remember how I ran. My bare feet pounded the cold, muddy forest floor. Branches and thorny bushes scratched my skin. Strangely, at that moment, I felt no pain.

All I could hear was my heart beating loudly in my ears. I wanted to survive. I knew I didn't know what the point of life was anymore. I didn't know how to live without my parents and my pack family.

A loud howl sounded behind me. The sound was scary, like it was full of cold, hungry vibrations. It was as if the night itself was hunting, and the howl confirmed that my name was the only target being pursued.

Then, I saw him. He stood tall at the border between thick smoke and eternal darkness, as if that terrifying place was his throne. His strong body looked very calm, like someone who is used to living with death.

His eyes, a pair of gray gems, reflected the flames that now licked the sky, making everything around him feel too quiet, too deadly.

He was Alpha Kael Draven. The leader of the m******e. A human-shaped monster who had destroyed my entire life as easily as turning his palm in just one night.

Our eyes met, and at that moment, I felt something deep inside me shatter. A sharp, burning pain spread quickly under my ribs, making me feel stuck and unable to move.

I gasped, not because I was scared or tired from running, but because of the strange feeling in my chest. It was like an invisible chain that had just been put on and tied me tightly.

"No," I said quietly. To be more exact, it was a brief gasp, a natural reaction to this unexpected connection.

He looked at me, his eyes showing that he was interested, like someone who had just found something he had been looking for a long time. Slowly, a thin smile—no, more like a smirk—appeared on his lips.

It wasn't a warm smile, but rather a kind look that I couldn't understand at the time.

"Mine."

That one word. It was heavy, cold, and intense. It went straight into the center of my mind. His deep voice made me feel scared.

It hurt more than the scratch from the branch earlier, more than the sparks of fire that had hit me, and even more than the sad cries of my family that I still heard in my ears. That bond felt like a death sentence.

There was a small part of me that felt sad and helpless. It felt like it was betraying all the sorrow and pain that had just been experienced. It was an instinctive reaction, an urge that I could not control.

••

I woke up suddenly, struggling to breathe like someone who had just survived drowning. I was sweating from my head.

I forgot where I was for a moment. My left hand automatically went up to touch my neck and shoulders. I felt like I was expecting to find scratch marks or burn scars that felt real in the dream.

Nothing. I felt my skin was wet, and my heart was beating very fast. I woke up on a thin mattress in a rented room. The room was located directly above a cheap shop in the city of Ashvale.

Two years. Yes, two years had passed, but I still thought about that night a lot, and I couldn't breathe easily every day.

I pulled my knees up to my chest and hugged them tightly. This place smelled like stale alcohol, dust, and damp wood. From downstairs, loud laughter and the clatter of chairs being dragged could be heard. Life continued outside, noisy and indifferent, as if nothing had happened.

I closed my eyes tightly. I'm trying hard to forget the scary images from the night my pack was killed. Then, Kael Draven's gray eyes appeared, and he said a single word that I could never forget.

'Mine.'

My stomach tightened. It wasn't just a dream. I knew exactly how I felt that night. The bond was real. I could act like I didn't remember, or say it wasn't true, but it always found me. It seemed that we were bound by something older than revenge.

We would meet again at some point in the future. The only question was when, and how strongly and deeply it would bind me this time.

I left my home, which had been destroyed two years ago, and never really stopped running. Every city was just a stop on the way to the next one. Ashvale was just another place I had visited.

This city has a strong smell of rusted metal and thick smoke. The people there are indifferent; they don't care who you are, as long as you don't cause trouble. That's why I chose it. Here, being forgotten is the safest form of protection.

My rented room was small, stuffy, and cheap. The floor creaked every time I stepped on it, as if the old wood resented having to support anyone's weight.

I did whatever work I could to survive. I cleaned tables at the shop and sewed the torn clothes of merchants. I never stayed long enough for anyone to remember my name—I did that on purpose.

I never wanted to be safe. I was just trying to survive. Security was just an empty word. It could not withstand reality.

One night, I went downstairs to get water. The shop below was crowded and noisy. I walked with my head down, used to being unnoticed.

Then, I heard something that made me freeze, my heart racing. A name that stood out from the crowd.

"Alpha Kael."

The cup almost slipped from my suddenly numb hands. The loud laughter and conversations in the shop suddenly stopped. I could only hear my heart beating faster than normal.

Two years. I had been hiding very carefully, running as far and as fast as possible. But fate always found a way to whisper its name. I knew I couldn't stay another night. It felt like it was already around, hidden, even when its name was just said.

I went back to my room and quickly packed my things. I had one spare shirt and a few coins. I always kept a small dagger under my pillow. Everything went into my old bag, except for the dagger. The walls of the room felt like they were pressing down on me, as if I knew that he would come soon. It was just like the night of the m******e.

I left without looking back at the cheap inn. My footsteps echoed through the narrow, wet, and dark streets of Ashvale. The cold night air felt like a whip to my skin. In the distance, I could hear faint barking. I held the dagger more tightly under my sleeve.

I thought I was alone. At first, I didn't notice the sharp eyes watching me from the darkness of the narrow alley. It was quiet. Unmoving. It's as if it's just waiting for something.