CHAPTER 4

AMELIA

I swallowed hard, my hands trembling at my sides while the MC continued, wrapping up the final details of the auction with enthusiasm.

As was the custom in the district’s auction, everything had to be paid in full immediately. The MC gestured toward a payment terminal on the stage and asked Jason to step forward. Jason pulled out a golden card from his jacket pocket and the entire hall watched in silence as the MC swiped the card with a quick motion. Moments later, the big screen behind the stage lit up with the transaction details, showing the debit amount of eight hundred and ten thousand dollars in bold numbers.

A fresh round of claps and cheers erupted from the guests, some raising their champagne glasses in admiration for the record-breaking sale.

The event slowly came to a close after that. People began standing from their seats, chatting in small groups while waiters cleared the empty glasses and plates. The classical music faded into softer background notes, and the energy in the hall shifted from excitement to casual conversations.

I turned toward the stranger beside me, my heart still pounding from everything that had unfolded. I gathered what little courage I had left and asked again.

“What’s your name? Please… I need to know.”

He looked at me for a long moment, the hood still over his face. Then he finally pulled it back, revealing a devilishly handsome face.

"Kaden Wellington,” he smiled.

I gasped in shock, my hand flying up to cover my mouth as the pieces clicked together in my mind.

Kaden Wellington!

He was one of the sons of Alpha Nolan Wellington, the most respected and feared Alpha in the entire district; the same Alpha Nolan whom Alpha Max had warned me about when he handed me the pass to this event. Alpha Max had specifically asked me to keep an eye on the triplets and make sure they stayed out of trouble, especially with Alpha Nolan’s representative attending.

And here I was, standing next to the very person I had been told to protect the triplets from. My mind went blank, words failing me completely as I assessed the situation.

Before I could find the right words to say, the sound of footsteps approached from behind us.

I spun around to see Jason leading the way, with Kyle and Damian flanking him on either side.

Kaden instinctively stepped in front of me, his body acting as a shield as he realized the boys had come looking for trouble. I peeked around his shoulder, my pulse racing with fear. This was exactly what Alpha Max had begged me to prevent.

Jason stopped a few feet away, his eyes narrowing at Kaden with pure disdain.

"Who the fuck do you think you are?” he barked.

His voice was loud enough to draw attention from the guests and a few heads turned in our direction.

“You think you can scam me out of eight hundred and ten thousand dollars and just walk away?"

His eyes moved to me and he continued.

"As the heir to the throne of the Phoenix pack, I will make your damn life hell on earth for daring to set this up.”

Kaden shrugged casually, a low chuckle escaping his lips as if the threat barely moved him.

"It was a fair auction,” he replied. “No one forced you to keep bidding."

Jason’s face darkened even more, and he took a threatening step closer. I could smell the trouble brewing and instantly, Alpha Max’s words from our late night conversation echoed in my head. I couldn’t let this escalate any further.

“Please, Jason, back off,” I begged, stepping out from behind Kaden even though my legs shook. “This doesn’t have to turn ugly—”

Before I could say any more, Jason shoved me hard. The shove caught me off balance, and I stumbled backward, my arms flailing as I tried to steady myself. My foot caught on the edge of a chair, and I fell to the floor with a loud thud.

Pain shot through my hip and elbow where they hit the hard surface, and a small groan escaped my lips.

That single action seemed to flip a switch in Kaden. His calm aura vanished, and was instantly replaced by a dangerous gaze.

“Back off,” he warned. “I don’t want to make a scene here, but I will if you push me.”

The boys probably thought he was bluffing because Jason laughed while Kyle and Damian moved forward, their fists already clenched at their sides.

Damian threw the first punch and I was surprised at how fast Kaden dodged it. He sidestepped and threw a punch that sent Damian sprawling across the floor.

Jason and Kyle attacked immediately, but it seemed Kaden already knew all their moves before they even tried.

Within moments, all three of them lay on the floor, bruised and bloodied. Blood trickled from Jason’s split lip, Kyle clutched his ribs in agony while Damian could barely stand to his feet.

Seeing how badly battered they were, a wave of dread washed over me. I knew what waited for me back at the pack house. Returning with the Alpha’s sons in this condition would mean punishment worse than anything I had endured in the past two years. They would blame me entirely, and my life would become unbearable, if I even survived the night.

I turned to Kaden and fell on my knees.

“Please… take me back with you. Just for the weekend. I’ll sort myself out and disappear from your life after that. I can’t return to the pack after what just happened here. They’ll kill me for this.”

Kaden extended a hand to help me up from the floor.

“You’re welcome to stay as long as you want,” he said with a smile. “No one will touch you there.”

With his help, I rose up from the floor. Tears of joy had already begun forming around the corner of my eyes. This was it. I was finally free after years of suffering!

We were already halfway across the grand hall when I paused mid-step.

My nose was picking up three very strong and intoxicating scents. It wrapped around me, tugging at something deep inside me.

I heard my wolf purr in my head and it was then that the realization hit me - the scent was coming from my mate!

I froze in complete shock.

"This can’t be possible," I kept whispering over and over again to myself.

I had given up on ever finding my mate a few months after my eighteenth birthday.

I had accepted the fact that the Moon Goddess had overlooked someone as insignificant as me.

Yet here it was — the undeniable pull to someone right there, in that very hall filled with high ranking wolves.

My heart pounded in my chest as I turned around to face Kaden. He was staring at me, obviously confused at the sudden change in my mood.

Surprisingly, I felt a bit disappointed as I realized that it was not him.

I spun around in the grand hall, as my nose began to pick up on the scent. My wolf was growing more restless by the minute and it was becoming increasingly difficult to keep her in check.

"Everything okay?" Kaden asked, his eyes fixed on me.

"My mate!" The words rushed out in a coarse whisper. "He's here, somewhere."

I could feel the scent get stronger from the center of the hall, and after promising Kaden that I would be back in a minute, I sprinted across the hall.

My heart was racing in excitement. My luck couldn't get any better today! First, I had made so much money off my painting's auction and now, I had found my mate.

I stopped in my tracks at the center and I followed the scent right up to the battered triplets - Jason, Kyle and Damian.

I froze in utter shock as I watched them walk up to me me with a grin on their bruised faces. The familiar arrogance had returned again, mixed now with something darker and more primal.

“Mate,” all three of them growled in unison.