Chapter 4: A Strong Pull

Alina’s Point of View

A deep, guttural snarl ripped through the air, and before I could even process what was happening, Alpha Thorne was off me, his massive frame turning toward the intruder. My body sagged in relief for just a moment, my lungs gasping for air that had felt stolen from me. But the relief was short-lived.

I barely had time to register the tension between them before Alpha Thorne moved with the speed of a predator, his fist slamming into the stranger with such force that the man staggered back, hitting the stone wall with a dull thud. The impact sent a sickening jolt through my own body, even though it wasn’t me who had taken the hit.

"Fucking weakling!" Alpha Thorne bellowed, his voice dripping with disgust. His presence was like a storm, suffocating the entire room with his fury.

The stranger wiped at his lip where blood had started to pool, his expression unreadable. He didn’t strike back. He just stood there, silent, his chest rising and falling steadily as if this was something he had long grown used to.

For a moment, the only sound in the room was the ragged breaths tearing from my throat, but then Alpha Thorne turned his attention back to me. His cold, merciless eyes flickered between me and the man he had just struck, and suddenly, a bitter laugh rumbled from his chest.

"This," he spat, gesturing to the stranger with a snarl, "this is the bastard I got for a son! A weak, pathetic excuse of a wolf." His words were venomous, sharp enough to cut through the thick tension in the air. "He is the reason you’re here, girl. To give me a successor worthy of my name. Not this pup!"

My breath hitched at his words. His son?

Before I could react, Alpha Thorne turned and stormed out, the door slamming shut behind him with such force that the walls seemed to shake.

Silence.

For several moments, I remained frozen on the floor, my body still trembling in shock. My breath came in uneven gasps as I tried to make sense of everything, the terror, the pain, the sudden shift in my reality.

The man stood motionless, his hands clenched into fists at his sides. His presence was different from his father’s; where Alpha Thorne’s was overwhelming and cruel, his was calm but intense, like a steady fire burning just beneath the surface.

I forced myself to look at him. His lip was split from the punch, a small trickle of blood staining his chin, but he made no move to wipe it away this time. His eyes, dark and unreadable, met mine.

I should’ve been afraid of him too. He was his father’s son, after all. But something about him… something in the way he had stepped in, unafraid, made my heart stutter in my chest.

"Are you hurt?" His voice was quiet, softer than I expected.

I swallowed the lump in my throat, trying to find my voice, but when I finally spoke, it came out small. "No… not physically."

A flicker of something crossed his face.. pity, maybe? Or guilt? I wasn’t sure, and I wasn’t sure if I even wanted to know.

I sat up slowly, my limbs weak and unsteady. Kael didn’t move to help me, but he didn’t look away either. He just stood there, watching, waiting.

I had so many questions. Why had he stopped his father? Why hadn’t he fought back? Why had he let himself be hit without retaliation?

Instead, the only question that left my lips was: "What is your name?"

The silence stretched between us for a moment, heavy and uncertain. His jaw tightened slightly, as though he was debating whether to answer. But then, finally, he exhaled.

"I’m Kael," he said, his voice low but steady.

Kael.

I turned the name over in my mind, testing it, trying to make sense of the strange pull I felt toward him. There was something about him that unsettled me.. not in the way his father had, but in a way that made my chest feel too tight.

I didn’t know if I should trust him. I didn’t know if I could trust him.

Kael looked at me for a long moment before he turned, his movements smooth but distant. He walked toward the door, his shoulders tense as if carrying a weight he didn’t want to show.

"Get some rest," he said without looking back. His tone wasn’t unkind, but it wasn’t warm either. It was… detached. Controlled. "You’ll need it."

And just like that, he was gone.

I stared at the door long after he had disappeared, my mind still reeling from everything that had happened.

I had been spared.. for now. But how long would this temporary mercy last?

I dragged myself up from the floor, my muscles aching as I moved to the edge of the bed. The room felt too big, too empty, yet suffocating all at once. I wrapped my arms around myself, as if that would somehow keep the fear from creeping back in.

Alpha Thorne wanted a stronger heir. And he thought I was the solution.

A cold shudder ran through me. I had to get out of here. I couldn’t stay in this pack, not with him looming over me like a dark cloud ready to strike at any moment.

But how? How could I escape a pack as powerful as this one?

I had no allies. No one I could turn to.

Except maybe…

Kael.

My fingers curled into the sheets as I thought of him. He had saved me tonight. But why? Was it to defy his father? Was it guilt? Or was there something else, something I wasn’t seeing?

And then there was the other thing… the strange, unexplainable pull I felt toward him. It wasn’t logical. It wasn’t rational. But it was there.

I exhaled shakily and lay back against the cold sheets, staring up at the ceiling.

I didn’t trust Kael.

But for some reason, I wanted to.

And that terrified me more than anything else.