My Brother’s Forbidden Alpha

5, Ruins of Revelation

Chapter 5: Ruins of Revelation

Dawn painted the sky in bruised purples and golds as I killed the engine of the borrowed SUV on the edge of the old northern ruins.

The pack’s modern territory gave way here to overgrown stone foundations. They were remnants of an ancient settlement now tangled with satellite dishes and hidden security cams that Philip’s team sometimes used for training.

My hands shook on the wheel. Every instinct screamed trap, but the warning in the text looped in my head: “Your Alpha dies protecting a secret that isn’t his to keep.’

The birthmark on my shoulder burned like a brand. The mate bond tugged painfully toward the pack house miles behind me, where Philip was likely still out on patrol. I could not drag him into this. Not yet. Not when Marcus was already watching us like a hawk.

I slipped out, my sneakers silent on the damp grass, and my phone clutched like a lifeline. The air smelled of moss, old magic, and distant rain. Philip’s scent lingered in my memory and made my wolf whine. ‘Come back. Let him handle it.’

It was too late. A figure emerged from behind a crumbled wall. He was tall, cloaked, and his eyes glowed faintly amber in the low light. He was not a rogue. He was something older.

"Jessica Laurence," the stranger rasped. His voice carried the weight of centuries. "Blood of the Lunar Crown. The true heir the packs tried to bury."

I froze, and my heart slammed against my ribs. "Who are you? What do you want?"

He stepped closer and pulled back his hood. He had a weathered face and silver-streaked hair. He looked vaguely familiar, like a ghost from my pack history lessons.

"I am a guardian of the old lines. Your parents did not die in a random rogue attack. They were assassinated to hide your lineage. You are not just any Omega, girl. You carry the royal Alpha blood that can unite or destroy the fractured packs."

The proof hit before I could even doubt him. The birthmark flared hot, and visions slammed into me. I saw flashes of ancient ceremonies, crowned wolves, and a throne of moonlight. Power uncoiled in my veins, sharper and more potent than the mate bond. My wolf stood taller, no longer content to hide.

The stranger’s eyes narrowed. "The Alpha who claims you... Philip. The bond is real, but it is dangerous. The council will never allow it. They are already moving against him for showing favoritism tonight."

A twig snapped behind me. I whirled around.

Philip stepped from the treeline like a wrathful god. He wore black tactical gear that hugged his massive frame, and his eyes were pure wolf black. He must have tracked me through the bond or the SUV’s GPS.

"Get away from her," Philip growled. The sound shook the ruins.

In two strides, he was at my side. His arm banded around my waist and pulled me flush against him. The contact ignited everything, the memory of last night, the unfulfilled ache, and the feral need.

The guardian smiled thinly. "See? The moon’s choice defies your laws. But the rogues serve a rival claimant. They will use your bond against you both."

Tension exploded. Philip’s body vibrated with lethal energy as he shielded me completely. His free hand hovered near the gun at his hip, which was loaded with modern, silver-laced rounds for threats like this. Instinct roared between us, demanding we claim, protect, or run. But the external world pressed in. Distant howls signaled approaching wolves, and it was possible Marcus’s patrol had picked up our trail on the security network.

"You are not her," Philip snarled at the guardian. "And you have no right to speak of her blood."

The guardian gestured to the glowing birthmark on my shoulder, which was now pulsing with a rhythmic, golden light. "I do not need to be her to know that her awakening brings war. If you think your precious pack laws will protect you from what is coming, you are a fool, Alpha."

The guardian vanished into the mist before Philip could even draw his weapon. Philip did not pursue. He stayed pinned to my side, his hand gripping my hip with a force that bordered on painful. He looked down at me, his gaze fierce and terrified.

"What did he mean, Jessica?" he demanded, his voice dropping into a desperate rumble. "What did he show you?"

"He said I am royalty," I whispered, the words feeling heavy on my tongue. "He said my parents were murdered for it."

Philip’s jaw worked. The pack house security sirens wailed in the distance, growing louder. We were out of time.

"We have to move," he said. He did not let go of me. He pulled me into his chest, his scent drowning out the smell of the damp earth. "If they know about your bloodline, you are the most dangerous person in this forest. And I am the only one who can keep you alive."

He kissed the top of my head, a quick, desperate press of his lips. "When we get back, you tell me everything. Every flash, every vision. Do you hear me?"

I nodded against his chest, my pulse hammering. I wanted to tell him, but I also wanted to tell him that he was already in too deep. The bond was already a target on his back.

As we sprinted toward the SUV, the sound of the pack’s approach became a roar of engines and heavy, running feet. We were going to be caught.

"Philip," I called out as we reached the car. "If Marcus sees us together, here, at dawn..."

"Then he sees us," Philip replied, his voice hardening into steel. "I am tired of hiding, Jessica. Let him come."

He shoved me into the passenger seat and climbed in, his eyes fixed on the treeline where the first of the pack’s warriors were breaking through.

The secret was out of the bottle. And as the pack surrounded us, I realized the war for my crown and for my Alpha’s heart had just begun.