Rejected by the Alpha: Saved by the King

Chapter Six

Rael ran through the castle, earning a surprised look from several of the wolves who lived there. Yes, word had spread that the cursed king had awoken from his decades long slumber, but so many were tentative to believe it. There was a hope that only preserved because of Rael, so if anything happened to him, that hope was gone. The hope to be able to live how they pleased. The hope to live a life where they could just live without having to conform to the will of an Alpha or a Pack. Where they took care of their families and didn't have to mindlessly obey an Alpha. Rael was the first to ever invite other wolves into his domain but not make them submit to him. He simply let them live. Yes, he was the ruler ultimately, but it was a far cry from the oppressive way most Packs were ran. So, when they saw Rael, a wild look in his eyes, his cloak fluttering behind him, hope swelled, but it also flickered.

What would happen if he died? If he was caught, or jailed by the local Pack leaders? The only reason that the Kingdom was able to survive without him was because of the belief that it had fractured after his curse set in. That those who had been under his rule had scattered, giving into their most feral or base instincts. Now that he was tearing through the castle into the dangerous mountainside, there was no way to keep the fact that the kingdom had existed in the shadows of the treacherous mountain.

Rael was sure that someone had called out for him, but he didn't stop. There were ferals and others out in the mountain? And his mate was out there? No. No he couldn't lose her before he even was able to have her, before he could get to know her. The though to of his curse looping hadn't even crossed his mind. All he could think of was how she had been rejected, that pain she must have endured, and then to die like that? He wouldn't allow it. When he burst out into the courtyard, he sucked in a hard breath, the cold air of the mountain filling his lungs.

"f**k," he whispered, the chill making him stumble.

For the first time since he woke up, he heard his wolf in the back of his mind. 'We are not used to the cold any longer, are we?'

Despite the situation, a smile tugged at his lips. 'I suppose not, but it's not as though we have a choice.'

'No," his wolf mused as Rael began to make his way out of the courtyard, snow crunching under his boots. 'I don't suppose that we do.'

There was silence between them as Rael made his way far from the castle. Rael knew without asking that his wolf was weaker than him from the curse. He didn't even know if he could shift, so he didn't try. Not only did he not want to know, but he didn't want to isolate his wolf and make him feel worse.

***

Celeste stumbled up the mountainside, her wolf whining in the back of her head as she did. While her wolf agreed with her, Hell, it was her wolf's suggestion, now that they were here, going to the dangerous mountain to die, her wolf was nervous. However, neither of them said anything as Celeste trekked up the mountain. Exhaustion was finally starting to set in, all the adrenaline from mouthing off to Lyra gone. She walked in eerie silence. As she walked further, the snow began to fall, and as she went further still, she came to the place where it had already fallen. Her bloody footprints were a stark contrast to the fluffy white snow. She stopped, looking behind her to stare at the bright red prints in the otherwise pristine white landscape. Was this going to be the only thing she left behind?

A lump formed in her throat as she looked forward again, though to what, she didn't know. Should she just lay down? Curl into a ball and wait for death to find her? Or should she keep walking until her legs and lungs give out? Go until she can't anymore? Her mind and body were numb, and she could hardly feel the cold because of it. It was like her mind was apart from her body. That everything her body was going through was happening to someone else, to something else.

A sound behind her made her jump, and when she spun around, eyes meeting the dark eyes of the man behind her, feeling rushed through her body, making her nearly collapse. Her feet burned from the countless cuts. Her limbs ached from exhausted. Her throat felt dry and hot from throat, and her lips were cracked.

Tears filled her eyes as the man approached cautiously, sniffing the air like a rabid animal. He was downwind from her, so while she couldn’t catch his scent, hers was overwhelming him. Was this it? Was she going to die? Her wolf whined in the back of her head, but they both knew that she couldn’t outrun him. Not in her current state. She was too exhausted, her body almost as broken as her mind, but at least she wouldn’t die like a coward. It was one thing to let the mountain, the elements, nature take her, but she wouldn’t die at the hands of a man by just laying down in the snow and letting it happen.

Her eyes darted. Off in the distance, she saw a small patch of trees. She didn’t need to be fast for long to reach them. Maybe if she could just get there, she could lose him. She didn’t even know if she wanted to live, but she knew she didn’t want to die by the hands of a stranger.

Just as she was about to take off running, the winds changed, carrying the man’s, the wolf’s, scent to her. Her eyes snapped back to his, and he nodded slightly at the horror on her face.

“Mate,” Rael whispered.