Chapter 3

STIX

Growing up, I lived carefree, thinking I would be in charge of my life when I became an adult.

Oh, how wrong I was.

I had everything I ever wanted, needed, or desired. I only realized after I had turned eighteen and was thrust into the world of adulthood how utterly stupid it was of me, to think I could live my life the way I wanted under my father’s protection. Even some things were out of his control.

I wasn’t an idiot; I just chose to be ignorant. Ignorant to the fact that as an Alpha born female, I had no choices. We weren’t free to find a fated, not that that happens very often.

Finding your fated mate that some goddess supposedly made just for you, they were a rare case, if there were any at all in the past century. Nor were we free to fall in love with a chosen, because as soon as that happened, some nasty Alpha would come to lay claim to you and threaten the lives of your pack members if you didn’t bow your head and submit to their demands.

I say females born to Alpha’s, but it was all females, ranked, omega, and human. None of us were safe. We were used as breeding machines, toys, mistresses, you name it, we were it. Sold to be whatever they wanted us to be. To the highest bidder.

Alpha born females were, of course, of great value. Mating with an Alpha female could only strengthen bloodlines. Producing an heir (male born), just meant the stronger their pack would become.

In this day and age, where barely one-third of the population is female, in an already vastly diminished population, you would think they would value women a little more instead of thinking of them as less than a piece of shit.

I scoffed with disgust at my own thought. Hell would surely freeze over before the male hierarchy of society, AKA ranked wolves, would ever change their way of thinking.

Now not all pack Alpha’s thought that way. Take my father for example, hell the idea of me being sold or claimed against my will was enough to give him and his wolf a heart attack!

Yet here we were, in that exact position. Last year when I turned twenty-one, my boyfriend, my chosen mate, asked me to be his forever. And I had said yes.

Alas, enter the big bad Alpha Crane of the Cardinal Moon Pack, twenty-odd years my senior. He has already gone through two Luna’s and when I say gone through, the second Luna was found dead in a river and the first Luna? Well, who knows where she is.

Some say he locked her away for all eternity, others have said he killed her. Then there are the ones that say she met her true mate and ran away to live happily ever after. I wouldn’t doubt if there was a little truth in all three stories.

Personally, I think the bastard killed them both. There was no way, I shook my head not believing it for a second.

 I mean you can’t tell me that two women abandoned their children. Leaving their little girls there in the hands of that animal?

Hence, the reason why, Alpha Crane is looking for a new ‘Chosen Luna’. Neither of his previous Luna’s was able to produce an heir. The first Luna birthed twin girls. The second Luna birthed one girl and had a miscarriage. I‘m pretty sure that is why she ended up in the river.

You can speculate, or you could listen to the rumors, or you could do what I am doing right now.

Hiding in the walls listening to the conversation my father is having with Alpha Crane at this very moment.

“She is a beautiful woman James, and she will produce me an heir. Our packs will be united forever.” I shivered in disgust at the tone of Alpha Crane’s Slimy voice as he talked about me.

Through the peephole, I could see my father tense and his hands ball into fists, I couldn’t see his face, but I could feel the anger rolling off him, and just imagine his blue eyes glaring daggers at the crass old Alpha.

I mean Gods, the man was in his late forties, old enough to be my father, shit he was older than my father by two years, forty-five I believe. Or something like that. I shifted my thoughts and concentrated on listening to the conversation.

“Yes, Charlie, she is very beautiful and as I have told you before, she’s already betrothed and promised to someone.” My father, ever the protector discloses.

He had been fending off Alpha Crane for months now. Whose requests were becoming more and more demanding.

“James, what is it you want for little Hope? Money, land, jewels? Name it.” Alpha Crane offered my father.

I could just see where he was sitting. His posture is calm and confident. Like he knew he would get what he wanted by hook or crook. “Besides, I heard her chosen died a nasty death, so she is free.” A sick smile plays on his face.

The bile rose in my throat. We couldn’t prove it, but we knew Alpha Crane had something to do with Jason’s death. It was too convenient that my chosen mate suddenly died in a car accident and then he came sniffing back around.

See, last year Alpha Crane came to ‘buy me’ from my father and he was told I was already promised. A few weeks later, Jason turned up dead in a car accident and before his body was even cold, that bastard came demanding my purchase.

“She is not for sale Charlie. She is my daughter. Besides, don’t you think she is a little young to be your Luna?” I hear the hope in my father's voice as he tries to dissuade the dirtbag Alpha.

“HA!” Alpha Crane gave a condescending smirk, then pursed his leathery lips together contemplating his next words “I will have Hope as my next Luna, James.” He said in a matter-of-fact tone and quiet calmly. “I will give you two weeks to accept my offer. If you decline my generosity, then… I will be coming for her anyway. He abruptly stood, buttoning up his suit jacket, and then offered a hand to my father, who stood looking at it.

Alpha Crane withdrew his hand, noting my father’s reluctance to take it, running a hand through his now graying, dirty, and greasy blond hair. “You will do well to remember James that your pack is smaller and not as strong as mine.” The Alpha left my father with those words, a subtle warning behind them, and made for the door.

“You can come out now Stixs” my father called to me as soon as the door clicked closed.

I opened the wall panel and stepped into his office. My father slumped down onto his chair and a pained sigh heaved through his lips.

I hung my head in guilt. I was the reason for his stress, all because I couldn’t stomach the thought of becoming his Luna. “I’m sorry father, this is my fault.”

“No! None of this is your fault Stixs. I don’t want you to worry about any of this. I will figure something out. Over my dead body will I let that narcissist prick claim you!” His fist hit the desk with gusto as he tried to assure me. Even his harsh gritted words couldn’t hide the worry I could see in his eyes.

“That’s what I’m afraid of Father; that the cost will be too great. My life is no more important than yours or anyone else’s in this pack. We cannot ask the pack to fight for me, these laws have been in place for too long.”

“They are not laws, Stixs!” My father growled, banging his fist on the desk once more and making me jerk back a little startled. “There is no law that allows him to claim you.”

“No, but there is a law that allows him to go to war to claim a chosen.” I bit back. Alphas like Charles Crane don’t play by the rules. They think they can bully others to their will because they have money.

“Branston will be starting training in twenty minutes, why don’t you go ahead and get down there? I want you to be able to protect yourself if and when the need arises.” He spoke more calmly, yet his words left me no comfort. All they told me was that he too was scared that he couldn’t change the inevitable.

Alpha Crane would start a war between our packs just to get what he wanted and because he could.