9

Despite Kiara’s resistance and her desire to leave the pack as soon as possible, she was grateful for the bath and the comfort of a bed. She had exerted herself by being forceful all day. Her bones begged her for a rest, so she did not hesitate to sink into the bed after the hot bathe she had, and as soon as her head hit the pillow, she drifted off to sleep immediately.

The peaceful rest she hoped to have was however haunted by the images of wolves - an enormous number of wolves- clawing her skin apart and feasting on it. They had started as friends, but just as quickly they turned into foes.

She woke up with a gasp, her once clean body now drenched in sweat.  She looked around the room in a state of panic, thinking she’d find a stranger in there with her but she was all alone.

Her palms cradled her face and she took deep breaths, trying to shake off the horrid feelings left behind by the dreams, but she couldn’t. The feeling that something was amiss and out to get her, ate deep into her mind and she suddenly sprang up from the bed as if she was bit by something.

With the strength she recovered from her sleep, she began pacing around the room - trying to figure out what the dream possibly meant. “Is it the rogues?” She muttered and chewed on a finger nail.

Giving what happened earlier, it was not a brainer that they were the most suspicious.

A knock interrupted her train of thoughts as her heart dropped to her stomach. She looked around the room and grabbed a lamp for defense - she still couldn’t tap into her wolf because of the wolfsbane.  With small steps, which she hoped were silent, she positioned herself behind the door so she can get a clean hit on whoever it was when they force their way in.

The person knocked again. “I am sorry to bother you, ma’am, but the alpha requests your presence”

With a sigh of relief, she dropped her held-up arms and placed the lamp on the ground. She made out a bunch of reasons the liar could be calling for her, but she settled with the possibility that he now wants to let her go after searching and finding out about her.

“Let’s go,” she said when she opened the door and saw the same soldier that brought her to the room.

Devon purposely sent the same soldier to pick her up. He did not want her to be alarmed - especially after what he learnt about her - and given the fact that so many strange faces were waiting here for her, he needed her to be as calm as possible.

His eyes glazed over the faces of the men scattered around in the hall. At a corner, some unmated rogues were bunched together like the prisoners they were and mated soldiers surrounded them - if his guess was right, he needed soldiers who would be unaffected by her to hold them down. At the other part of the room, unmated males of the pack moved about in groups, muttering to each other and wondering the point of the meeting.

The first sign that she was close was the sudden surge in desire Devon felt and he immediately stood from where he sat. The rogues that had been quiet and bunched together at a corner suddenly let out howls in unison and some of them tried to change, but the silver chain wrapped around them kept them bound.

Devon’s eyes swept smoothly towards the unmated males, and apart from the rigidity of their body as they stared at the rogues - ready to take them down if need be - nothing else was different, and he narrowed his eyes.

Kiara finally made it into the hall, expecting to meet just Devon, but her breath hitched at the sight of the crowd and beads of sweat formed on her forehead. “What is the meaning of this?”

Devon didn’t respond and just continued observing the unmated wolves closely, when she walked in, their attention had immediately gone from the rogues to her and in sync, they bowed slightly.

“None of you feel any attraction to her?” His voice boomed on the walls of the hall, and Kiara balled her hands into fists; she wanted to slap him for treating her like she is an invisible commodity, but she was aware that she was overpowered and outnumbered.

“No, Alpha.” They chorused and Devon glanced at her then back at the crowd.

“You are dismissed then, the rogues included.”

Immediately, everyone scampered out of the hall - the rogues had to be dragged out because they kept trying to get close. Once everyone cleared out, Devon turned to Kiara with a bland expression to hide the relief he felt inside.

“After the rogue encounter, I had to make sure you were actually my mate”

Unable to contain her anger, Kiara swung at him, narrowly missing his face - thanks to his quick reflexes - “Do I look like a fucking experiment to you?”

“I had to be sure about the mating bond, Kiara.”

“Do not speak my name, you liar!” She made to hit him again, but this time around, she was the one that toppled to the floor - her strength had failed her- but she refused his help. “Don’t touch me,” a sharp pain pierced her chest, and she winced. “If what you truly wanted to know was the truth, you would have just asked me.”

“Would you have told me the truth? Do you even know what’s going on?”

“I am not a liar like you-ah!” A pain-filled gasp cut her off and when Devon grabbed onto her she had no strength to tell him off.

“You should not be over exerting yourself like this,” he helped her to her feet, “you are still...” the rest of his words trailed off and he stood frozen as he held her.

“Kiara...” he called out in a soft whisper, and her forehead scrunched, “can you still feel your wolf?”

As the question left his lips, the realization hit Kiara like a speeding truck and at the same time, Luka rushed in to inform Devon that there was yet another rogue attack.