Chapter 3

~ Aria~

I didn’t know how long I was running before I smelled it , a strange scent that told me I was no longer in familiar territory. My wolf froze inside me, but my legs didn’t stop.

Then they came.

Wolves emerged from the trees, sleek and silent, their eyes gleaming in the moonlight. One. Two. Five. Seven. They circled me, cutting off every escape. My pulse thundered in my ears.

A tall man stepped forward from the shadows. Dark hair, broad shoulders, and a presence that made my wolf lower her head. I didn’t know who he was , but I could feel the authority in him before he even spoke.

“State your mission,” he said. His voice wasn’t cruel, but it wasn’t kind either it was the voice of someone used to getting answers.

“I… I didn’t mean any harm,” I stammered, my eyes darting between the wolves. “I was just passing through.”

He stepped closer, sniffing the air around me. His brows drew together, confusion flashing in his eyes.

“Where are you going?” he asked.

I froze. My throat tightened. I didn’t have an answer not one I could give him. And I wasn’t about to say where I’d come from either. I had just rejected the pack, so I didn’t have where to say. I was basically a lone wolf, but I wasn’t going to tell him that.

His eyes narrowed. “Then we’ll start with who you are.”

The wolves around me growled softly, the sound rumbling through the trees.

I was running from trouble,” I said, forcing the words out before the circle of wolves closed tighter. “I don’t want it to follow me here. I just… needed to keep moving.”

His gaze stayed locked on me. He didn’t blink, didn’t speak, just watched me like he was weighing something I couldn’t see.

“And what trouble would that be?” he asked finally.

My lips pressed together. I couldn’t tell him.

Instead, I murmured, “I’ve already lost everything. I just need a safe place to rest before I move on.”

For a heartbeat, I thought he’d order the wolves to chase me out. But instead, his eyes softened just slightly.

Something in the air shifted. He tilted his head, inhaling slowly, as though he were catching a scent the others couldn’t. There was something unreadable in his face now, a flicker of… respect? No, it was something deeper.

“You’re not like the others,” he muttered under his breath.

The wolves around us growled their protests.

“She could be a spy.”

“She’s trespassing.”

“We should take her straight to the Alpha—”

“Enough,” the big wolf snapped. Since he wasn’t the Alpha, I figured he must be someone with high authority maybe the Beta, who knows.

His voice sliced through the tension like a blade, and the growls died instantly. “I’ll deal with the Alpha later.”

The wolves exchanged uneasy glances but stepped back, obeying.

I swallowed hard, unsure if I’d just been saved or traded into another kind of danger. “Thank you,” I whispered.

“Don’t thank me yet.” His eyes locked on mine, cold and sharp again. “You’re not safe. You’re under my watch until I decide otherwise. I’m not the Alpha , I can’t grant you sanctuary, but until I speak with him, you’re coming with me.”

He turned sharply and started walking. My legs followed before my brain could catch up.

We left the forest behind, the towering trees giving way to a small, well guarded settlement. The wolves on patrol eyed me suspiciously, but no one dared challenge him.

When we reached a modest but sturdy house, he pushed open the door. Warmth and the scent of baked bread greeted me.

“Lena,” he called.

A woman appeared from the kitchen, wiping her hands on a cloth. Her eyes were warm, but they flicked from me to him with quiet curiosity. “Who’s this?”

Someone in need,” he said simply, slipping his hands around her waist and kissing her forgetting I was still there. “Her story is complicated, but for now, she’s staying here.”

I didn’t need a soothsayer to tell me she was his mate. The way his body relaxed in her arms, the subtle shift in his mannerisms made it obvious.

It was something I had always wanted for myself. It was more like the happy ending stories my mother told me about mates, telling me they were the perfect person the moon goodess created for you, but I guess it wasn’t happening anytime soon… not with the whole Darius situation looming over me.

Lena studied me for a long moment, before offering a warm smile and a welcoming nod in my direction. “I’ll get the spare room ready.”

I exhaled for the first time in what felt like hours.

The Beta caught my gaze again, his voice low. “Don’t relax. I’ll be watching you.”

I nodded, but deep inside, my wolf whispered something I couldn’t ignore .