Chapter 13
922 Words
Kieran~
I watched her walk away.
Head high, shoulders stiff, legs quicker than ever.
Even now after I’d humiliated her in front of everyone, she refused to back down and let it go. What was her obsession with learning to fight? What did she need it for? I’m there. I’ll protect her.
Damn stubborn woman.
The moment she was gone, I felt the air shift. A silence I hadn’t asked for settled around. “Back to training,” I snapped, my voice sharp. All of them had stopped training to watch. “Get to work! No slacking, no laziness. Train like your life depends on it.”
Immediately the sounds of grunts and groans filled the space again. I sighed, feeling an headache coming.
I felt her presence before she even spoke. Lena stopped next to me, arms wrapped against her chest. “That was too much.”
I didn’t glance at her. Just kept my gaze fixed on the field as the warriors resumed their drills.
“She needed to understand,” I said tightly.
“There are better ways to teach someone than tossing them to the ground and making a show of it.” She refuted.
Maybe there were better ways but the way I went about it was the best. At least now she’d drop the talk. I wasn’t going to teach her to fight. And after this spectacle, she’ll know better than to continue to ask.
“She came to the training grounds to prove a point. I let her.” I replied.
Lena looked at me, “You crushed it.”
I finally turned, jaw tight. “You think I enjoyed it?”
Lena held my gaze for a moment, eyes soft but steady. Then she shook her head, disappointment flickering on her face before she walked away.
I shook my head and got back to training.
______
Later, When I finally returned to my office, I dropped into the chair behind my desk and ran a hand over my face.
It’s been two hours since what happened in the training fields and I still haven’t been able to think past that…past the hurt that clouded her features nor the tear that slipped down her cheek.
I felt like a real douchebag which was insane….considering the things I’ve done.
I groaned, running my hands through my hair. I knew I was adamant on not wanting a mate but if the goddess was going to pair me with someone…
Why not some docile weak woman’?
Of all the wolves in all the damn realms, she chose the one with fire in her veins and stubbornness that could rival my own.
I groaned again and tilted my head back against the leather chair.
She wasn’t like the others. She didn’t cower. She didn’t chase. She stood, even when it hurt, even when it humiliated her.
And I— I didn’t know what the hell to do with that.
The door opened without a knock. Tobias strolled in, as smug and casual as ever, holding a thick folder under his arm. He’d been out of the pack on assignment.
“If this is about training schedules, I’m not—”
“It’s not,” he said, flopping into the chair across from mine. “But great job by the way. You’ve officially terrified a girl half your size and now the warriors think you’re a heartless man who bullies fragile women.”
“I am heartless,” I muttered.
Tobias smirked. “Sure, keep telling yourself that.”
I glared at him, but he tossed the folder onto my desk. “That’s what has kept me away from the pack house all day.” He said. “That’s the information you asked me to get.” He said
I sat up straighter, brows raised. “The information?”
“Yes Alpha, in there is everything you need to know about Emma. Who she is, where she’s from, what she’s running from and who she was mated to.”
I paused at the last part, frowning. Mated?”
“Not exactly. He rejected her before the bond could manifest.” He said.
“What?”
Tobias nodded again. “I had the guards look into it. And I’m afraid it’s just like we suspected.” He paused. “She’s from the Blood Moon pack.”
The words hit harder than I expected. My jaw clenched.
Blood Moon. That cesspool of a joke masked in a pack.
“She’s an orphan. Her father is unknown but said to be a rogue or a runt and her mother died the day she was born. She lived in the pack house as a maid for the Alpha and his family. Her life has been filled with numerous troubles that I cannot begin to recount. And…she lived in blood moon up until she was publicly rejected.”
“By who?”
“By the heir apparent. The one who is supposed to be Alpha after his father. Alpha Aiden.”
I cursed under my breath. So not only had she been cast aside by her mate, but she was humiliated by a pack that treated omegas like dirt.
I couldn’t imagine just how horrible it must’ve been for her.
“Alpha…” Tobias began, voice quiet and solemn. His face lacked the usual tease it had.
“What else?” I asked.
Tobias face grew heavy, like whatever this was pained him to say. “There’s rumours that the girl is cursed.”
- Writer
