Shadows of the Past

Amora watched him for a heartbeat, the reality of his presence finally breaking through her shock. Before her mind could even process how he had found her, her wolf, exhausted and mourning surrendered. She threw her arms around his neck, burying her face in the damp wool of his jacket.

"Oscar," she sobbed.

Oscar froze for a split second, his breath hitching, before his large, steady hands came up to wrap around her, pulling her close. He smelled of rain, cedarwood, and the raw, untamed earth—vastly different from the cold indifference of Duncan .

In Oscar ’s arms, the heavy pressure of Duncan ’s lingering Alpha Command finally began to dissipate.

When she pulled back, wiping her eyes with the back of her hand, she really looked at him. The boy she remembered—the lean, scruffy youth with dusty knees—was gone. In his place stood a man who radiated a quiet, terrifyingly formidable power.

Oscar hadn't just 'done well'. He had built Wayne Industries, a sustainable timber empire, but in the supernatural world, he was something much more: he was a Natural Alpha. He had gathered the displaced, the rogues, and the ‘unwanted’ wolves and turned these thousand acres of mountain forest into a fortress.

If Duncan Alonso was an Alpha of cold steel and glass, Oscar Wayne was an Alpha of deep roots and solid oak.

They were equals in power, but worlds apart in soul.

"You grew up," she managed a shaky smile, noticing the expensive watch peeking from his rugged sleeve. To a human, it was a luxury item; to a wolf, the silver-inlay on the band was a weapon—and a status symbol.

Though he wore it as if it were nothing.

Oscar's gaze was soft but intense. "A lot has changed since you left for the city, Mora. I didn't just stay in the woods. I built a sanctuary here. Something I hoped you’d come back to see."

He reached out, gently tucking a stray lock of hair behind her ear. His touch was warm, humming with a protective energy. "But I didn't expect you to come back like this," he added, his eyes dropping. "Scent-masked and hiding in the dark."

"I don't need the things I left behind, Oscar ," Amora said. "I realized I never wanted them."

Oscar nodded slowly, his nostrils flaring. His protective instincts weren't just flaring; they were roaring. He looked around the dusty, crumbling room, then back at her. "Duncan Alonso is the most powerful Alpha in the tristate area, Amora. I see his name in the financial journals every morning.”

“If he's the reason you're here, you should know… But he doesn't own this mountain. And he sure as hell doesn't own me."

He stepped toward the old thermostat, his presence filling the small room, making it feel less like a ruin and more like a citadel. "I'll get the heat running. Then, I'm taking you to my estate. You're not staying in this dust, not in your condition."

Amora’s heart skipped. "My condition?"

Oscar looked at her—really looked at her—with the primal intuition of a predator.

"You’ve been shielding your scent, Mora. But your wolf is projecting a Protective Aura. And the heartbeat..." He stepped closer, his voice dropping to a low, respectful rumble. "I can hear it. It’s loud. It’s a Alonso heartbeat, isn't it?"

"I am," Amora whispered, her hand moving to her stomach. "Seven weeks. It’s an Alpha pup, Oscar ."

Oscar stilled. His hand, which had been reaching for the heater dial, froze. A True Alpha heir born to a rejected mate was a death sentence in some packs, and a golden ticket in others. "He doesn't know, does he?"

Amora shook her head. "He doesn't need to know. To him, everything is a transaction. I won't let this child become just another asset in the Silver Crescent Pack’s portfolio."

Oscar understood. He knew Duncan Alonso saw the world as a chessboard.

"It's a long story, Oscar," Amora continued. "Too long and too exhausting to tell tonight."

"You don't have to say a word, Amora," Oscar said firmly. "I don't care about the details or the drama. All I care about is that you're safe. And that baby... it's going to have a place to grow up without ever knowing what it's like to be afraid."

"This cottage isn't safe, Amora," Oscar said firmly. "If Duncan sends his Enforcers, they’ll find this place in a day. My estate is silver-lined and warded. No one gets past my gates without an invitation. I’ll protect you both. You have my word as an Alpha."

Amora felt a warm tear finally slip down her cheek. "Thank you, Oscar ."

————————————————————————————-

The Alonso Pack Estate

Duncan sat in a high-backed leather chair in his father’s study, the air thick with the scent of old blood and dominance.

Across from him stood Henry Alonso , the Great Alpha, a man whose shadow was even longer and colder than Duncan ’s. Beside him was Barbara , the Matriarch, her expression a mask of aristocratic disappointment.

"You did what?" Henry ’s voice didn't rise, but it carried the Alpha Growl—a sound that made the very floorboards vibrate. He slammed a heavy glass paperweight onto the desk. "You severed the bond with a fertile female?"

"It was a personal matter, Father," Duncan said, his own wolf bristling at the challenge. "The marriage was a hollow arrangement. She was an Omega’s daughter. She couldn't provide the lineage we needed."

"A hollow arrangement?" Barbara interjected, her eyes glowing a faint amber. "Amora was the perfect Luna. She was quiet, she was compliant, and she kept your feral side balanced. Unlike that Fake, Katherine, who smells like ambition and yet you've been parading around her."

"Katherine is-"

"Katherine is a liability," Henry interrupted, pacing the rug. "But that is secondary.”

"The real issue is the legacy," Henry interrupted, pacing the rug like a caged tiger. "Remus tells me she’s gone. Vanished. And she didn't take the settlement. Duncan , do you realize what that means?"

Duncan ’s jaw tightened. "She’s being difficult."

"No," Henry hissed, leaning over the desk. "If she doesn't want your money, you have no leash. And if she’s pregnant—which her visit to the Shifter Clinic suggests—she is carrying the next Supreme Alpha. If that child is born outside this pack, the Silver Crescent loses its claim to the northern territories."

Barbara gasped, her hand flying to her throat. "My grandchild... born as a rogue?"

"I don't know where she is!" Duncan snapped, his own aura flaring in frustration.

Henry stepped into Duncan ’s space, his power slamming against his son’s. "Then find her. I don't care if you have to call in every favor from the Council, if you have to hire every private investigator from here to the coast.”

“I don't care if you have to hunt her through the mud yourself." He leaned in closer, his voice dropping to a lethal whisper. "If Amora and that heir aren't back under our roof within the month, I will declare you unfit to lead. A man who lets his Luna and his heir vanish is no Alpha at all."

Duncan felt a cold sweat break across his neck. He had spent his whole life proving he was stronger than his father, only to realize he had just handed his father the weapon to destroy him.

As Duncan walked out of the study, the word burned in his mind. Pregnant. He pulled out his phone and messaged Remus .

"I don't care about the laws. Track her childhood records. Find the scent of anyone she ever loved before me. Every name. Every friend.”

“I want her back. Now."