Chapter 5

The bell above the door rang sharply as I burst out of the bookstore. Cool night air sliced into my lungs, but I didn't slow down. My heart pounded, my wolf urging me to move, to put distance between myself and the pain I'd buried for six months.

I didn't make it far when something happened.

The alley beside the store was dark, streetlamps flickering weakly overhead. That's when the scent hit me. It smelled of rot, blood, and feral hunger.

My wolf snarled, rising instinctively, but fear followed close behind as I slower down.

A shape jumped on me from the shadows.

I screamed as rough hands grabbed me, slamming my back against the brick wall. Pain exploded through my shoulder as claws tore at my skin.

"Easy now," a voice growled, its breath hot against my face. "You'll fetch a good price. Pregnant omega? That's rare."

Terror seized my chest. "No...please..."

A sharp blow knocked the air from my lungs. I crumpled, curling instinctively around my stomach as I hit the ground.

The baby. Protect the baby.

The rogue stood over me, claws raised, then a roar split the night.

It didn't sound human at all.

I watched as the Alpha hit them so much force I heard bone crack and blood sprayed across brick. The alley was filled with snarls and screams as he tore through the rogues. One tried to run and he caught it by the throat and threw them into the wall so hard I swore I heard it's spine shatter.

It was over in seconds as bodies fled or lay broken. I barely registered it before strong arms lifted me off the ground.

"Don't touch me," I rasped, struggling weakly.

"Enough." His voice was sharp, strained. "You're hurt."

He carried me out of the alley, his grip firm but careful, his body radiating fury and relief in equal measure. When he set me down under a streetlight, I shoved against his chest.

"I told you I don't want you. I don't want Ashborne."

His jaw clenched. "That stopped being an option the moment I scented the pup."

Fuck. "You have no right."

"I have every right." His voice dropped dangerously low. "You're my mate, and that child is mine."

"I survived without you," I said, tears burning my eyes. "After you rejected me, I learned how."

He wiped my tear away. "I was wrong."

"That doesn't erase it." My voice broke. "That doesn't erase what you did to me."

I heard his heavy breathing as none of us said anything.

"You're coming back to the pack," he said finally. "Tonight."

"No." The word came out desperate. "I won't be caged again."

His eyes darkened, Alpha dominance rolling off him in waves. "Whether you like it or not, Amaris, you're coming with me."

I shook my head, backing away. "I'd rather die than be dragged back there."

He stepped closer, lowering his voice. "You almost did you know. Just now, imagine if I wasn't here to save you?"

My wolf whimpered despite myself.

"I will protect you," he touched my face. "I will protect the baby even if you hate me for it."

"I don't need you," I whispered.

"You do." He reached out, fingers grazing my cheek. "And so does our child."

I jerked away from his touch. "Our child? You rejected me. You don't get to claim..."

"I was a fool." His voice cracked. "I let pride and politics cloud my judgment. I pushed away my mate because I was afraid of looking weak and you suffered for it."

Tears slipped down my cheeks. "You think saying that makes it better?"

"No." He stepped closer, and I saw something in his eyes I'd never seen before. Vulnerability. "But I'm asking for a chance to make it right."

"I don't trust you."

"I know." His hand hovered near mine, not quite touching. "But trust or not, those rogues found you. They knew what you were. Word is spreading, Amaris. A rejected omega carrying an Alpha's child? You're a target now."

My chest tightened. "I can protect myself."

"Can you?" He gestured to my torn sleeve, the blood seeping through. "Because from where I'm standing, you're barely surviving."

"That's still my choice to make."

"And what about the baby's choice?" His voice turned fierce. "What happens when they come back with more numbers? When they sell you to the highest bidder? What happens to our child then?"

I pressed a hand to my stomach, feeling the flutter of life beneath my palm.

"I won't force you," he said quietly. "I won't drag you back against your will but I'm asking you, no, begging you to come home. Let me protect you both. Let me prove I'm not the bastard who rejected you six months ago."

"You are that bastard," I said. "That doesn't just go away."

"I know but I'm trying to be better. For you and our pup."

I wanted to say no. Wanted to run again, and disappear into the night like I had before but he was right.

I was barely surviving and it was only a matter of time before luck ran out.

"If I come back," I said slowly, "I'm not doing it for you. I'm doing it for my baby."

"Our baby," he corrected gently.

"My baby," I snapped. "You don't get to claim them until you've earned it."

He nodded "Then I'll earn it, no matter how long it takes."

I looked at him and thought I saw the truth there and he meant it. Boy was I wrong because I was walking into a trap and I didn't know it yet.