Chapter 4

Gunner’s POV

                “She’s eating, Alpha.” Beta Ryker tells me as he enters my office, while I try and deal with the mess that I had made tonight at the auction. Thankfully, I didn’t foresee any of the other packs holding it against me, since I had purchased the she wolf fair and square, and the auctioneer should have known better than to touch what was mine.

                “Good. She is no use to me if she dies. Make sure she continues to eat. I’m entrusting you with her wellbeing.” I inform him, as I continue to look down at the stack of papers on my desk, coming now across the paperwork from the war that happened against Crescent Moon in my absence, wondering who the hell placed an order to take action against them.

                “May I ask a question, Alpha?” Beta Ryker now asks me, as I began to read over the paperwork sent to me from the council about my pack’s actions towards Crescent Moon.

                “What is it Beta?” I asked him, not looking up from the paperwork, as I began to read that I was being summoned to a hearing over this war.

                “Is there a particular reason that you chose Crescent Moon’s Beta’s daughter to be your breeder?” Beta Ryker asks me, and a low growl rumbles in my chest from his choice of words, as my eyes move from the paperwork to look up at him.

                “My choices are none of your damn concerns. Plus, I never want to hear you call her a breeder again. Is that understood?” I asked him through gritted teeth as it was taking every ounce of my restraint not to come over this desk and tear him to pieces, with my nerves already being on the edge with what had transpired tonight.

                My wolf had already forced a shift once on me tonight, and I could feel him clawing at me to be freed once again, as he wasn’t liking my Beta questioning my actions. Beta Ryker’s eyes widened, obviously from the tone I had used with him, and it was clear that he was realizing that he should have kept his questions to himself, as he now says to me, “I am sorry, Alpha.”

                “You’re dismissed.” I said to him, as I removed my eyes from him to look back down at the paperwork in front of me, but I was seeing red at this moment and couldn’t concentrate to continue to read it if I wanted to.

                “As you wish, Alpha.” Beta Ryker says to me, but as he goes to leave, I stop him by asking him, “Did you know about the attack on Crescent Moon?”

                Beta Ryker froze in his steps, as he slowly turns back around to look at me, before he looks me straight in the eyes and says, “I was unaware of the attack just like you.”

Listening to his heart as he speaks to me, I notice no change in its beat, telling me that he had to be telling me the truth, that it wasn’t him behind it. I was foolish thinking that my second in control would go behind my back, but right now, everyone in my pack was a suspect.

                “If you hear anything among the warriors, report back to me immediately. I need to get to the bottom of this.” I say to him, before waving my hand in the air this time, to dismiss him, needing to be left alone to calm my wolf within me.

                Once my door to my office was shut, I pushed my chair back from my desk and moved to my bar, to pour a glass of bourbon for myself. It had been a long past couple of days, and tonight had put the cherry on the top of it all.

                When I had finally decided to go to the auction tonight, against all my better judgement, it didn’t take long for everything to go south, especially when my eyes landed on her standing on the stage, trembling in fear. When the auctioneer placed his hand on her chin raising her head for us all to see her angelic face, I found myself lost in her eyes, as I could tell she was fighting back the tears that pooled in them. Even though she was trembling in fear, I could see that she was a fighter, and she deserved better than a life of slavery, but who was I to interfere.

                My pack had taken everything from her, and I knew she would perceive me as a monster, even if I tried to save her. I remember turning my back to her, not wanting to see who bought her, when I heard the auctioneer now say she was of Beta’s blood and would make for a fine breeder. It was at that moment that I knew I couldn’t allow her to be sold to the highest bidder, knowing the life that she would endure because of my pack.

                As my eyes watched her, I saw what little life she had left in her leave her body, and I knew what little fight she had left was gone too, as she too knew what her future had instore for her as a breeder. “One million.” Slipped from my lips before I could stop it, knowing that I had to save her.

                Growls erupted among the bidders, as they all turned in my direction, upset about losing their chance to bed her. “Sold” Is all I heard from the auctioneer, as my eyes remained on her, but when his hand moved to her arm, and I heard her leave out the littlest of a whimper, my wolf took over me before I could stop him. I honestly don’t even remember shifting and launching to the stage, where I killed him in front of everyone, as all I could see was red. It wasn’t until I shifted back, did I realized what had happened, and it was too late as the damage had been done.

                When I had finally cleaned up and made it to the SUV that she waited for me in, did I realize what exactly I had done. As her scent filled the air in the tight quarters of the vehicle, I tried my best to control my beast within me, as I took deep breaths, while I could feel her eyes upon me.

                Needing to know her name, I asked her, and when she struggled to tell me, I looked at her, wondering what all she had endured since she had been captured. When she finally spoke her name, I could hear the pain in her voice, to even speak, and that’s when I noticed her clothing hanging loosely on her.

As she stared into my eyes, I could see the fear in them towards me, and I couldn’t help but leave out a growl as rage filled me of how she was mistreated. Her head immediately turned away from me, making me even more angry, because I knew she thought that I was the person responsible for killing her family and her pack.

Downing the rest of my bourbon, I poured myself another glass, as my mind was now completely on her, not able to get the look she gave me out of my head. There was no doubt that she thought I was a monster, and there was nothing I would ever be able to do to change her mind.

The only thing I could do now for her was to make sure that she remained safe here under my protection and let her continue to think that I was the monster she thought I was. If that was going to ensure her safety, then so be it.