The Alpha’s Fury
1384 Words
Chapter 7 – The Alpha’s Fury
Point of View: Alpha Richard
The scent of blood had never haunted Richard like this before.
It clung to his skin, soaked into the fibers of his clothes, and lingered in his lungs. Not just any blood—Anna’s blood. His mate. His Luna. The fragile girl with strength hidden behind her wary eyes, now lying unconscious in the healer’s ward because someone had dared touch her.
He clenched his fists as he paced the hallway outside the healing chamber. Every second felt like a blade carving into his skin. Every breath was an effort not to rip the packhouse apart in fury.
The door finally creaked open.
Healer Mirelle stepped out, her face pale, her apron stained.
“She’s stable,” she said softly. “The cuts were deep but not life-threatening. She lost blood, but her wolf has started the healing. It’s the emotional trauma I’m more worried about.”
Richard pushed past her before she finished. He needed to see her.
Anna lay on the small bed, her dark lashes fanned over bruised cheeks, her hands limp at her sides. A bandage wrapped around her midsection, faint traces of blood peeking through the gauze. She looked too small, too breakable, nothing like the woman who had challenged him with fire in her voice just days ago.
He sat beside her, brushing her knuckles with his thumb.
“I should’ve protected you,” he whispered.
The rage inside him simmered to a boil. Who had dared to touch his mate?
But it wasn’t just the attack.
It was what she had whispered before losing consciousness: “He… knew my name… Princess…”
Richard had dismissed the rumors of the missing royal family years ago. The Crescent Moon Kingdom had fallen when he was still a young warrior. The Alpha King, Queen, and their daughter—presumed dead when the capital was burned to the ground by rogue factions.
But what if the child survived?
What if she had been hidden… disguised… left to grow in obscurity?
What if Anna was the missing princess?
He looked down at her again, watching her chest rise and fall. His mate, the girl the moon had chosen for him… was a lost royal. And someone knew it.
A knock sounded at the door.
“Come,” he growled.
Beta Calen entered, eyes sharp and posture tense. “We caught one of them. He was injured in the escape—couldn’t keep up with the others.”
“Where is he?”
“Dungeon. Wants to talk. Says he has a message… for the princess.”
Richard’s body went rigid. His claws extended without command. “Bring him to the interrogation chamber. Now.”
The rogue looked like a man already dead.
Bloodied, bruised, and shackled to the iron chair, he gave Richard a grin with broken teeth. One eye swollen shut. His scent was sour with fear, but there was madness in his smile.
“So the little princess finally bleeds,” the rogue hissed.
Richard slammed his fist into the man’s face. Bone cracked.
“Choose your next words carefully,” he snarled.
“You think you’re her protector? Her fated mate?” the rogue spat blood. “You have no idea what she is. What she carries. There are many who’d see her dead before she reclaims the throne.”
“You’re going to tell me everything.”
“Oh, I’ll tell you what I can… Alpha.” The rogue coughed, smiling with satisfaction. “She was hidden among the omegas to protect her. A spell cloaked her scent, her aura, her power. But when she turned eighteen… it broke.”
Richard’s heart pounded.
“Her blood sings,” the rogue murmured. “Every rogue, every bounty hunter, every exiled alpha with a grudge against the royals… they heard it.”
Richard grabbed the man’s throat, lifting him from the chair.
“If you or anyone else touches her again—”
“You’re already too late,” the rogue choked. “She’s marked. They’ll come for her… again and again. She’s not safe. And neither are you.”
Richard tightened his grip, then let go. The rogue slumped, coughing violently.
“Throw him in the darkest cell we have,” Richard told the guards. “No food. No water.”
As they dragged the man away, his last words echoed in the Alpha’s mind.
She’s marked.
--Richard returned to Anna’s room as dawn crept across the sky. Her skin had regained some color, and her breathing was steady. But she hadn’t woken.
He sat by her side again, brushing a stray hair from her forehead. “Anna…” he whispered. “Who are you, really?”
Her eyelids fluttered.
He leaned forward.
“Anna?”
She blinked slowly. Her lips parted. “Richard…”
“I’m here.” Relief surged through him. “You’re safe.”
Her brows pinched. “They… they knew me.”
“I know.” He gently took her hand. “One of them is in custody. He told me… you’re not just anyone.”
Her breath hitched.
“Anna,” he said softly, “you’re the princess of the Crescent Moon Kingdom, aren’t you?”
Tears welled in her eyes. She turned away, ashamed. “I didn’t know until recently. My adoptive mother told me the day before my birthday. She said the spell would break. That I’d be in danger.”
“Why didn’t you tell me?”
“Because I didn’t want to be hunted. I didn’t want to be… different. I just wanted to be loved.”
Richard stood, cupping her face in both hands. “You are loved. You’re my mate. You’re mine, Anna. No matter who you were… or are.”
A tear slid down her cheek. “You don’t understand. I don’t know how to be a princess. I don’t want a throne. I just want to belong.”
“You belong with me.”
She let out a broken sob, and he pulled her into his arms carefully, mindful of her wounds. “I’ll protect you,” he vowed into her hair. “From everything. From everyone.”
“But they’ll keep coming,” she whispered.
“Then let them,” he growled. “I’ll tear the world apart to keep you safe.”
Later that night, Richard summoned the council.
They met in the war room, a circular chamber beneath the packhouse, lined with maps and ancient wolf crests.
Elders, Betas, warriors. All waited in tense silence as Richard entered.
“Rogues attacked the Luna last night,” he began, voice hard. “She was targeted. This was no random act.”
Murmurs broke out.
“She’s the lost princess of the Crescent Moon Kingdom,” he continued, ignoring their shock. “She is my mate. And she is our Luna. Anyone who questions that will answer to me.”
Elder Marik, the oldest in the room, stood. “Alpha… if this is true, then she is more than a Luna. She has claim to a kingdom long destroyed.”
“I don’t care about the politics,” Richard snapped. “I care that someone wants her dead.”
“The moment the word spreads,” Beta Calen added grimly, “you’ll have allies… and enemies… coming out of the shadows.”
“I’m aware.”
"What will you do?” Marik asked.
“I’ll strengthen our borders. Triple patrols. And I’ll marry her.”
Silence fell.
“You’ll what?” Calen whispered.
“She needs full protection,” Richard said firmly. “Not just as my mate. But as my Luna and my wife. The bond will strengthen. So will the pack’s unity.”
“And what does Anna say about this?” Elder Mira asked carefully.
Richard paused. “I haven’t asked her yet. But I will.”
He returned to her room as the moon rose again. She was awake, propped up against the pillows, gazing out the window.
“Hey,” he said gently.
She turned, a smile breaking over her tired face. “Hey.”
“I need to ask you something.”
She raised a brow. “Sounds serious.”
“It is.” He sat beside her
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