Chapter 3

                                                                            A Mark of Fate

Lora’s POV

As I woke up, the earth seemed confusing; the air was thick and heavy all around me. My thoughts whirled with uncertainty until I realized I was not in the comfortable surroundings of my house. This room felt frigid, antiseptic, way too clean and impersonal. The walls appeared to press in on me as my thoughts ran to find where I was; the little light from the window hardly sliced through the darkness.

My stomach churned in a mix of anxiety and uncertainty as I forced myself up, my body tired and weak. The events of the last several days—no, weeks—Loraipped across my consciousness like a damaged film reel. Jordan is The turn-about. the marking ceremony. eva. Cart. In his eyes, the choking shame. Then... nothing. My eyesight hazily darkened everything.

But just now I was here. anywhere here.

The door groaned softly, and I stiffened—every muscle in my body on alert. Tall and imposing, a guy arrived to occupy the room like a storm on approach.

The air changed about him, a faint draw at my senses that I could not ignore. The room smelled like him, and it struck like a tidal wave. It seemed  familiar, warm, and earthy. My breath seized in my throat, my heart skipped before I could stop it.

He entered the light and unveiled Alpha Revan, the guy I knew just by reputation.

He was all I had dreamed of: wide, strong, and arresting. His stormy green eyes watched me with a calm intensity that unsettled me, while his black hair Loraowed haphazardly over his forehead. His jaw was square, his lips set in a straight line, yet as he glanced at me, something softer caught his eye and caused my heart to speed even with the inner struggle.

The response escaped my control. He attracted me even if I didn't want to feel it.

"You're awake," he whispered in a low, silky, deep tone that seemed to reverberate in my chest. "good."

Trying to keep some control, I battled to sit up straight. "Where am I?" My voice wavered, a mirror of the turmoil within.

His gaze softened just a little, but when he responded his words had a steely edge. "You belong in my domain. Safe: for now.

Just for now. The words were forbes, and I shivered down my spine. I attempted to organize my ideas, but they were disjointed and I  made sense of all that had transpired.

"I don't understand," I said, staring down my hands then back at him. "Why am I in this place? From me, what are your expectations?

He moved in front of me, his eyes never straying. "I am looking for you." With their unstated meaning, the words hung in the air. You are my intended partner.

I stopped, heart thumping agonizingly in my chest. "What??" I murmured, incredulity tinging my voice.

"I know it's hard to accept," he said, his voice cool but his eyes' focus never wavered. "I had been looking for you. Though I felt the draw for years and saw you from a distance, I never realized it was you. I have searched so patiently for you.

I swallowed, dry in my throat, my ideas jumbled. Prospective mate? There is no way this could be happening. Too much to grasp at once. Though my body deceived me with every breath I took, every peek I stole at him, my heart implored me to refuse.

He went on, his voice quieter now, somewhat pleading. "I understand you wanted something else. I wanted you not to be forced into this life; you did not choose it. Still, fate is what drives everything. Our destinations are not something we can decide upon.

When I opened my lips to talk, nothing came out. Rather, my chest constricted with the pain I  explained. How then could this be happening? How could he be so definite? I knew neither him nor anything. Not least of all his, I did not want to be anyone's destined anything.

My voice a little above a whisper, I said, "I'm not ready." "I hardly know you at all."

Revan inhaled deeply, a little strain in his shoulders as if he were keeping back something hazardous. "I don't want to rush you," he added, softening his eyes. But we have to do some things. One has to finish the bond known as the marking ceremony. Only this allows us to be really united. But we have to check on your condition before that occurs.

As he approached, his gaze darkened, his fingers lightly and deliberately brushed my cheek. And there's something else, he said, his lips slightly frowning. "You are pregnant."

At the word, I stopped and my heart skipped a beat. Still to be pregnant? My hand went to my stomach naturally, and I felt a terrible wave of nausea sweep over me.

"How come you know that?" Just barely able to form the words, I asked.

He did not respond right away. Rather, he looked aside, his face mask of stress. "I had a test done," he murmured softly, his voice grim now, fury boiling under the surface. "I suspected something was odd, and the data validated it.”

I could scarcely breathe as the room felt suddenly too cramped and too stiFfening. This was too much.

Like a kick to the belly, the awareness came to me. Jordan had deceived me; now, Revan—this Alpha I hardly knew—was claiming me as his intended mate. Plus on top of that I was pregnant with Jordan's child. What type of muck now permeated my life?

"You've been misled," Revan said, his voice steely now, his previous softness replaced by rage. Domic, your pack, concealed this from me. Still, he let you be removed from me knowing you carried my child. I refuse to be a liar.

He was clearly enraged, and for a split second I worried about what he may do. His resentment had changed to be keen and lethal, and it made me appreciate his strength.

"You're going to start a war," I replied, almost incredulously. " Over this?"

He stared at me, his eyes ablaze. "You would not?" You believe I won't claim what is rightfully mine? Their migration is now under progress. It's now my time.

One of me wanted to stop him—to ask him not to act carelessly. But I knew it wasn't my decision to make when the words stopped in my throat. Forces beyond my control had already set in motion my life, my future.

Revan moved closer once again, his eyes gentler, yet the fury boiled under the surface. "I will see to it they regret this. I will struggle for your sake. For us only.

His resolute and aspirational comments caused my chest to contract. Unquestionably, there was a pull between us, but the tempest inside me—confusion, fear—made it difficult for me to know what was true.

Whispering a faint, doubtful voice, "I'm not sure if I can go through with this."

Revan's gaze softened, his palm slightly cupped my face. "You don't have to make decisions immediately on everything. But you should realize that you are not alone these days.

His comments ought to have calmed me down, but instead they felt like a weighty chain around my chest.

When the marking ceremony finished, I had no idea what would happen or what decisions I would have left to make. But the storm was only getting started and I was starting to see that I was ensnared in something far bigger than myself.

The door suddenly swung open, casting a shadow over the passageway. Heart pounding, I turned to find a man with a scar running down his cheek staring angrily out from the darkness.

He snarled, "Revan." "The time for conversation is almost done."

And at that one second I realized—nothing would ever be the same.