The Alpha's Cursed Mate

CHAPTER FIVE: MORNING AFTER THE KILL

ELARA’S POV

The storm had started to settle down but the rain still fell in steady beats, drumming against the shattered windows and turning the wooden floor into a bloody mess.

My living room, actually, my whole house looked like a war zone. Furniture shredded into unrecognisable pieces, scattered books, broken window glass scattered all over the floor and the human body of the dead rogue wolf still lying limp in the middle of it all. I never thought I’d see my house in this state, not even in my wildest imaginations. But then again with me, crazy things tend to happen.

Ryker stood near the kitchen counter, blood still dripping from his mouth and chest. I had suggested stitching his wounds again but he refused. He just wanted to get far away from me. I wanted to leave too, I just couldn’t understand why I still stayed with him.

“The bond”. His voice brought me out of my thoughts.

“What?” I asked in utter confusion.

“I know you’re confused. Maybe If I explain you’d understand why you need to leave, despite the feeling that’s making you want to stay”.

Could he read minds too? Was that one of his monster werewolf powers?

“I’m the Alpha of the Shadow Pack. One of the strongest werewolf packs in BlackThorne”.

In BlackThorne? What did he mean by that?

“You mean werewolves actually exist and live amongst humans in BlackThorne”

“Not exactly. We exist but we don’t live amongst you humans. We lived here way before this place was even called BlackThorne. But when humans occupied this land we moved to the forest. Some werewolf packs, like the crimson fang, were less peaceful than others. They invaded the town and killed people. So some humans became hunters.”

Hunters?

He could tell by the look on my face that I was both confused and surprised.

“It was a hunter that attacked me the night you found me, it made me revert back to my human form and I ended up on the side of the road. Silver weakens us, it’s the only way hunters fight and kill us”

“I see. So what does this all have to do with me? I’m not a hunter”

He paused and just stared at me then walked towards me, only stopping inches away from me. He reached out to touch my face, his hands gently traced circles around my cheek. My skin burned under his touch. I craved it.

“You’re more extraordinary than a hunter Elara”. As he spoke I felt his hot breath on my skin, it made me tingle a bit.

For a long moment, we just stood there immersed in each other's presence. The tenderness of it all seemed out of place, given the situation we were currently in. His gold eyes softened as he looked at me longingly. Before I knew it I caught myself hugging him again and this time he didn’t pull away. He leaned in and hugged me back, holding me tightly. I had never felt more at peace than I was in his arms at that moment.

“I don’t want to leave you.”. I said softly, my lips lingering near his cheek.

Ryker's jaw tightened as he pulled away from the hug slowly, like he knew it wasn’t meant to be happening but he still wanted to stay.

“The bond I was talking about before. The bond between us, makes it unbearable for us to be apart from each other. But you have to stay away. It’s the only way you’d be safe from them, the shadow pack”

“Why would your pack want to harm me?”

He looked at me and then sighed.

“There are many things about my world that you wouldn’t understand. I don’t want you to get entangled with it. Being near me brings death”

His voice was laced with warnings and guilt. I could see it in his eyes. There was more to what he was letting on, so much more. He was trying to push me away, keep me safe from what probably killed my parents ten years ago. I always knew there was more to their death.

“I have spent ten years living with ghosts and half answers and lies. I’m not running away from this, or you. I’m not afraid of you or what you are-”

“You should!”

“But I’m not! I saw you shift. I saw you fight and snap that wolf's neck in half by just biting it. But I don’t care, I’m not leaving you. And if it really is because of the bond, why fight it?”

For a second I saw a flicker of hope in his eyes but his expression hardened as quickly as it softened. He stepped away from me and ran outside in a panic, looking around frantically.

I ran after him, the rain soaking me almost immediately.

“What’s wrong?”

“You need to get away from here now. Get into your truck and drive as fast as you can!”

“But I-”

“I said go Elara! They’re close. I can…. I can feel them. You still have some time, you need to–”

A low distant growl cut through the rain. It wasn’t close, but it wasn’t far enough either. And from Ryker’s expression I knew exactly what was about to happen.

His head snapped towards the tree line at the edge of my house. I followed his gaze, squinting through the pouring rain.

At first I saw nothing. Just the swaying of the leaves in the rain but when I looked closely I saw two pairs of golden eyes staring at us like predators to their prey. I felt a cold shiver go down my spine.

The shadow pack… they found me.

Ryker’s body tensed, his hands curling into fists as his claws began to grow out of his fingertips, his eyes glowed even brighter than theirs.

“Elara”. He called out to me, his voice tight with urgency. He didn’t take his eyes off the glowing eyes lurking in the trees. “Whatever happens, stay behind me. I’ll protect you”.

The golden eyes in the trees started moving out slowly through the rain and in that moment I realised that this would be far more brutal and bloodier than what had happened the night before.