The Alpha's Lost Luna

6

Rowan

The burn of the coffee seeped through the fabric of my pants. Heat bloomed across my lap in a slow, spreading stain, but I didn't feel a damned thing. Not the heat. Not the discomfort. Not even the dozens of eyes locked onto me anticipating my reaction. The only thing I felt was her. I felt the way she froze. The way her entire body locked up like prey that knew the strike was coming but didn't know when. Waiting for it. Expecting it. Bracing for pain that hadn't even been delivered yet.

My gaze lifted from the dark stain soaking into my clothes and landed on Elizabeth. She looked... small. Not physically, no. She had always been slight, but this was different. This was something carved into her bones. Her shoulders curved inward, chin tucked, hands trembling at her sides as if she were trying to make herself disappear entirely. Like if she could just be small enough... invisible enough... maybe it wouldn't hurt so much.

Something ugly twisted in my chest. I dragged my gaze away from her and scanned the rest of the room. Shock. Horror. Anticipation. And then, worse... approval. Some of them looked like they were waiting for it. Waiting for my explosion and for the punishment like it was some sort of entertainment. Others looked irritated. Disgusted, as if this was some unforgivable offense. It was coffee. Just coffee.

I had seen wolves gutted for less. I had watched men bleed out on cold stone floors while others laughed. I had stood in rooms that smelled like iron and death and fear so thick it coated your tongue. And this? This had them on the edge? My wolf stirred beneath my skin. A low and dangerous growl started vibrating through my chest. Pathetic. The word echoed through me, sharp and biting.

The pull toward her intensified the longer I stood there. It wasn't subtle anymore. It wasn't something I could ignore or brush off as curiosity. It was a tether. A tightening thread that wrapped around my ribs and pulled. Elizabeth...

Flour dusted her apron in soft white streaks, clinging to the lavender fabric beneath like snowfall. A smear marked her wrist where she must have wiped her hands in haste. Her braid hung over her shoulder, slightly loosened, strands escaping to frame her face. And her face... Her cheeks flushed a deep crimson. Her lips parted slightly as she struggled to breathe evenly. And her eyes. Those jade green eyes were wide and shimmering. She was terrified.

Her scent hit me then. It wasn't subtle or hidden. It was fear. Raw, unfiltered and suffocating fear. It wrapped around my senses and sank into my lungs, and my wolf surged forward violently in response. Mine. The word wasn't a thought. It was instinct. Possession and a claim.

My mother moved. The shift was subtle — barely a whisper of fabric — but I caught it instantly. Her hands curled into fists, claws beginning to extend. Her posture sharpened with intent. My brows furrowed as I glanced toward my father. He was still seated and unbothered. Watching the scene play out. Beta Richard? The same. No one moved. No one stopped her. Something cold slid down my spine.

By the time she got to her feet fully, claws gleaming under the light, I was already moving. I stood abruptly. My chair scraped against the floor. The sound cut through the room like a blade. She would hurt her. For spilling f*****g coffee. What the hell had this place become?

"It's fine," my voice cut clean through the tension, steady and controlled. Sharp enough to halt all movement. "It's just coffee. I've had worse."

I let out a small laugh, forcing ease into the air, though there was nothing light about the storm building in my chest. And it wasn't a lie. I had seen worse. Done worse. Endured worse. Elizabeth didn't relax. If anything, she got worse the minute she heard my voice. I tilted my head in confusion. Mates were supposed to calm at the sound of their bonded voices.

Her skin drained of color so quickly it was jarring. Her body went ridged like she had just been struck instead of spared. And then... her heartbeat. I tuned into it without thinking. Thump. Pause. Thump. Then suddenly... Thumpthumpthumpthump. It wasn't erratic. Too fast. It was wrong. My entire body tensed. This wasn't fear alone. This was panic. This was overload. And I found myself focusing on it, tracking it. Anchoring myself to the sound like it mattered more than anything else in the room. Which made no sense.

Last night, I had told myself I needed time. Time to observe, time to decide. Accept or reject. Logic and control. Choice. So why... why did her distress feel like it was clawing into my chest? Why did it feel like something was going very, very wrong?

Because she matters. My wolf didn't hesitate to put the thought in my mind. I did. My gaze sharpened on her. There. Beneath the fear. Beneath the submission lay a strength. I had seen it before — in fleeting glimpses. In the way she held herself when she thought no one was watching. In the way she endured. Not broke because she wasn't broken. She endured it all. She took every insult. Every look. Every whispered cruelty and she didn't shatter.

She bent. But she didn't break. There was something in her. Something quiet and something fierce, and I wanted — no. That thought cut off sharply as she lifted her head. Slowly, with a hesitance, I didn't understand. It was like even the act of looking at me was dangerous. And then her eyes met mine.

Everything stopped. It wasn't gradual. It wasn't subtle. It was instant. The recognition in her eyes. Her pupils dilated, breath catching sharply as the bond snapped into place for her. I felt it, the same as I had that night overlooking the beach from the cliff. A visceral, bone deep click that locked into place. Final. Unavoidable. Mate. It was every bit of confirmation that I had assumed that night.

Elizabeth jerked back like she had been struck. Like the bond itself had burned her. I took a step forward without thinking, and froze. Her lip trembled. Not in confusion or hesitation. In fear of me. In sorrow. The realization hit harder than anything else ever had. She took a step back. And every instinct inside of me roared to life. Chase. Catch. Claim.

My muscles tensed, my body leaned forward just slightly before I forced myself to still. Didn't she know? You don't run from an alpha. You don't run from your mate. Pressure brushed against my mind. Cade... trying to link me. I ignored him.

A memory clawed at the edges of my thoughts. Laughter and teasing. She was younger and smaller. He was at the center of it all. I shoved it away. Not now. Not when the weight of something far more damning settled in my chest. I hadn't stopped it. Any of it. Not then. Not ever. And now? Now I expected her to accept me? To trust me? To want this? The bond didn't erase history. And the moment she turned and ran, I knew exactly how deep that history and pain went.

Every instinct screamed at me to go after her. My wolf slammed against me, furious and relentless. Go. Now. Shes ours. Mate. Mate. Mate... but I didn't move. Because this... this wasn't just instinct. This was politics and power. This was damage already done. Chasing her now wouldn't calm her. It would break her. So I stayed exactly where I was. Even as it felt like it was tearing me apart from the inside out.

My mother scoffed as she sat back down. "I swear, some vermin are better off left in the gutter."

The words hit something volatile inside me. My hands curled slowly into fists. Vermin. My mate. The two didn't exist in the same world. I admit, I had originally thought of her as weak, but my initial observations were clearly wrong even after just a measly twenty-four hours. And yet, that was how my mother saw her. It was how they all did. How had I not seen it this clearly before?

"Everyone, please. Continue eating." My voice was calm again. Controlled. But there was an edge to it now. Something sharper. Something dangerous.

A new servant rushed in, quick and silent, replacing my coffee and food with shaking hands. Apologies spilled from her lips like she expected punishment too. The room shifted back into motion, but it wasn't normal. It was tense and fragile. Like a glass waiting to shatter. I turned slightly toward my mother, lowering my voice.

"That was uncalled for."

"I wont hear of it. She knows her place, and she knows the consequences of breaking the rules," her voice was irritated. She cut into her food with unnecessary force. The scrape of silverware against the porcelain was sharp and grating. "Don't worry about it, dear. I will make sure she's punished for this discretion later."

"No. You wont," I bit out. She froze. Slowly, she turned to look at me. She appraised me with a keen eye. I had never spoken out of turn before. Never raised my voice to her.

"Im serious. It was just a coffee stain. You make it seem like she attempted to murder me — which is completely laughable, by the way. I'm not the same boy you sent away to the academy. And if you want to see the monster you truly turned me into... please do piss me off."

"Why do you care about that i***t servant anyway, baby?" Heather chimed in. Her pet name for me had me growing nauseous. She sat close to my mother, both of them watching me now. They were measuring me.

"Every single pack member has value, Heather. There is not a single member of this pack that is useless or worthless. As an alpha, it is my job to make sure that my pack is taken care of and well provided for. Everyone makes mistakes, and I'm not about to punish someone simply because they knocked over a damned cup. It's not the same as a punishable offense like violence or abuse. Now is —"

"Future alpha," my father cut in. The title wasn't praising. It was a warning. Though I caught the way, some members of the pack watched me with interest and curiosity. Like my words had struck something inside of them that they hadn't heard or felt in a long time. "You may be an alpha, but you are not the alpha. This is my pack. I will run it how I see fit. And I wont hand over my pack to someone who is weak hearted or unready for the position."

The message was clear. Not just to me, but to the entire pack. Be like me, or you'll never take over my place. I gripped my fork tighter, my jaw locking as I bit back everything I wanted to say. He was wrong. Alphas who ruled through fear eventually lost everything. It was only a matter of time. I felt a nudge against my shoulder. Cade. His expression said everything. Explain. Now.

"Later. Meet me by the beach. There are things I need to tell you," I linked him. He nodded once.

The room settled into an uncomfortable and suffocating silence. Silverware clinked and plates shifted. But beneath it all... the tension was heavy and oppressive. And threading through that? The echo of her heartbeat still rang in my mind. The erratic thump. Afraid and running. Pieces of the puzzle were starting to fall into place and so far... I didn't like what I was seeing.