The Ruthless Alpha’s Mate

Bound by Instinct

Chapter Three

Chapter 3 – Bound by Instinct

POV: Ryan

The bond hit me like a knife to the chest—sharp and final.

Mate.

I didn’t ask for this. I didn’t believe it, but it was impossible to ignore. My lungs felt like they were locked up, and my body went still while my wolves waited for me to take her down. The rogue crouched low, her red fur glimmering faintly under the moonlight, her amber eyes fixed on me like flames.

It couldn’t be her. Not a rogue. Not the kind of wolf that had torn my family apart. The Moon Goddess wouldn’t mock me like this. She wouldn’t bind me to something I swore to eliminate.

But She did.

The pull tore through my chest, dragging me closer. I fought against it, digging my feet into the ground, trying to suppress that instinct, but it just kept bubbling up. My wolf howled inside me, pleading to close the distance, to claim her. Meanwhile, my human side was boiling with anger.

I wanted to spit that word back at the Goddess.

Marcus stepped closer, his voice slicing through the silence, sounding uncertain. “Alpha?” My hesitation had lingered too long, and the others were starting to notice too. Their growls had quieted. Eyes shifted between me and the rogue, questions brewing. I never hesitated. Never.

I clenched my fists, feeling my nails dig into my palms. I needed to act. Kill her. End this bond before it dug in deeper. A single strike and she’d be gone, and I could bury the truth with her.

But my body wouldn’t cooperate. My muscles were locked tight, frozen by a command stronger than my will. The thought of her blood staining the ground twisted my stomach. I felt an urge to protect her that felt like a noose around my throat.

I snarled, furious at myself, furious at fate.

The rogue held my gaze, unyielding. She didn’t cower. She didn’t plead. There was fire in her soul, a kind that didn’t easily extinguish. That should’ve made it easier to end her. But instead, it made it harder.

I barked the order. “Take her alive.”

The clearing buzzed with tension. My wolves looked at me like I’d lost my mind. No one spoke, but doubt hung thick in the air.

Marcus broke the silence. “Alive? She’s a rogue.”

His tone danced on the edge of challenge, but it wasn’t outright rebellion. Not yet. I shot him a look that should’ve silenced him, but I saw the flicker of confusion in his eyes. He didn’t get it. He couldn’t.

“Alive,” I repeated, my tone icy. “Bind her.”

The warriors followed orders, though unease radiated from them. Two shifted into their human forms, grabbing ropes. They circled her. She bared her teeth and let out a low snarl, but the odds were against her—four to one. She lunged, quick and fierce, but they forced her down, pressing her into the dirt.

I should’ve enjoyed the sight. A rogue pinned down, defeated. But something hot burned within me. Anger, sharp and wild—not directed at her, but at them. Every shove, every rope pulled tight around her limbs sent an electric pulse through the bond, as if they were binding me as well. My wolf erupted in protest. I fought to silence him with every ounce of will.

She thrashed, her muscles straining, but they held her down. The ropes dug into her fur, constricting until she finally settled, her chest heaving. She turned her head toward me, her eyes glowing in the dark. No fear. Just pure fury. She hated me as much as I hated her.

Seeing that should’ve steeled my resolve. Instead, it left me feeling hollow.

Marcus moved in close, lowering his voice so others wouldn’t hear. “Why not just kill her? One cut, and it’s done. She doesn’t deserve our mercy.”

His words struck hard, heavy with truth. He was right. She didn’t deserve mercy. She deserved the same fate as those rogues who had ripped my family apart. And still—my chest ached. I couldn’t find the words to order her death.

“She’s mine,” I blurted out before I could think.

Marcus blinked, confusion washing over his face before he masked it. Instantly, I regretted saying it. Too much. Too dangerous. I looked away before he could press me for more.

The pack moved out, dragging her along. She jerked against the ropes but didn’t scream. Just kept her glare fixed on me, even as they pulled her along.

Every step away from her felt like a piece of me was being torn away, the bond yanking like a chain deep in my chest. My wolf was restless, demanding I stay close. I gritted my teeth and forced myself to keep pace with the group. I couldn’t let them see me falter.

Inside, my thoughts were in turmoil. Disgust. Rage. The Goddess had messed up. Or worse—had cursed me. To tie me to a rogue was to mock every vow I’d ever made, every drop of blood I’d spilled to protect my pack. How could I lead with her shadow beside me?

But even as I cursed Her name, the undeniable truth pulsed in my chest. She was mine.

And that realization made me hate myself more than I hated her.

The trees thinned as we approached home, the redwoods towering behind us, hiding the sacred stones once again. I glanced back, just once. She caught the movement, her gaze still fixed on me, unyielding.

The ropes tugged at her body, but her eyes remained fierce and unbroken. A rogue, bound yet unyielding.

With each step I took, the weight of what I’d done felt heavier. I had spared her. I had chosen her. And no matter how much I tried to convince myself otherwise, I knew there was no taking that back.

By the time the packhouse lights blinked in the distance, I wasn’t sure who was truly captured.

Her—or me.