✧ Chapter 2: “Alpha Shadows” ✧
466 Words
Matt smelled her before he ever saw her.
Human. Young. Fresh. The scent curled through the trees, warm and unfamiliar, like the first crack of fire in winter. He stood on the balcony of the pack house, high above the forest floor, eyes locked on the path winding toward the academy.
She was there.
The new teacher.
Matt’s jaw clenched as he watched Antony lead her down the road. She laughed at something, bright and open. Too open.
“She’s pretty,” came a voice behind him.
Matt didn’t look back. “She’s human.”
Mira, the Luna, stood in the doorway with a gentle smile and one of the twins on her hip. “So was your mother.”
He flinched, just slightly.
“You need to stop punishing every woman who walks into this town, Matt. She’s not her.”
“She doesn’t have to be,” he muttered. Humans leave. That’s what they do.
Mira walked over and placed a hand on his arm. “Your mother left you, not the pack. There’s a difference.”
Matt pulled away and returned to look at the path.
His mother had been his father’s true companion. A rare, powerful bond. And still, she’d left. Left him. Left the pack. Left her mate.
No explanation. No goodbye.
Just a new life in another town. Another man. A betrayal that taught Matt everything he needed to know about love— he didn’t trust it. Don’t need it. And never, ever let it choose for you.
“Antony seems taken with her already,” Mira observed.
Matt’s lip curled. “Of course he was. He falls hard and fast.”
“He trusts first. You’d do well to remember how to.”
Matt didn’t reply.
He trusted Antony. That was it. His beta. His brother in all but blood. They shared everything—training, battles, the weight of leadership. And now, it seemed, a curious little human with wide eyes and something he couldn’t quite explain.
“She’ll be staying on the academy grounds?” he asked quietly.
Mira nodded. “Yes. The room near the back hall.”
“Good. Keep her away from the pack house.”
“I think you’re afraid,” she said gently.
Matt turned to her, eyes cold. “No. I’m prepared.”
Mira only sighed and left him alone with his thoughts.
Matt stared down again at the girl. Anne. She had no idea what she’d stepped into. What Riverdale really was.
He closed his eyes and reached for the pack bond.
Keep her out of trouble, he told Antony.
A warm chuckle answered him. She’s not the one I’m worried about.
Matt didn’t respond.
Because he wasn’t sure if this girl would bring trouble—
—or become it.
- Writer
