THE MATE HE NEVER EXPECTED

ALARIC

The night was still, yet heavy with unspoken weight.

At twenty-five, my life had become a cycle of duty and bloodshed, victories that left me emptier with each passing day. Others spoke of fate and bonds, of love that steadied the soul, but mine was a path paved only with responsibility. Power and loyalty I had in abundance, yet there were nights, like this one, when the silence pressed in too tightly, and I wondered if this was all the Moon had left for me.

“She’s out there,” Orion, my wolf, whispered in my mind. His deep, rumbling voice carried conviction I couldn’t share.

“You’ve said that for years,” I muttered, dragging a hand through my dark hair as I stared at the forest stretching beyond the palace walls. “If she were truly out there, I’d have found her by now.”

Orion growled softly, not in anger but in warning. “You’re impatient. The Moon does not rush destiny.”

I scoffed, though part of me wanted desperately to believe him.

Behind me, the heavy wooden doors creaked open. My sister Evelina walked in, her long silvery hair braided loosely down her shoulder and violet eyes, a rare trait from our late mother. At her side, Dorian, her mate and my Beta, kept close, his hand brushing hers as though even the smallest distance between them was unbearable. Dorian followed, his presence quiet but watchful, his hand brushing against hers in that tender, natural way I had grown used to seeing.

“Brother,” Evelina said, her voice light but steady. “Still awake?”

I didn’t turn. “I could ask you the same.”

Her laugh was soft, a sound that always reminded me of our mother. “I was. But unlike you, I have someone who insists I sleep before dawn.” She glanced at Dorian with a small smile, his lips curving in return.

I only grunted in reply.

Evelina’s smile faded slightly as she stepped closer. “You’ve been carrying too much again. I see it on your shoulders. You don’t let yourself rest.”

“That is what’s required of me,” I said simply.

“No, Alaric.” Her voice grew sharper, cutting. “What’s required is that you lead, yes, but not at the expense of your soul. If you keep giving and giving, there will be nothing left of you.”

Her words made something tight twist inside me, though I kept my expression calm. “The world doesn’t pause for me to live, Evelina. I can’t afford the softness you speak of.”

She shook her head, disappointment flickering in her eyes. “It’s not softness. It’s balance. Even stone cracks if too much weight is laid upon it.”

Before I could reply, Orion’s growl rumbled inside me, sharp and urgent. We must go.

I stiffened. “What did the patrol report tonight?”

Dorian stepped forward, his voice measured. “Scouts picked up signs of movement in the eastern woods. Not the usual. Tracks too light, too careful. We thought rogues at first, but…” He hesitated, then added, “It feels different.”

The unease in me sharpened. “Ready the warriors. I’ll lead.”

Evelina caught my arm before I could stride past her. “Promise me something, Alaric,” she said, her eyes searching mine. “Promise me you won’t keep running headfirst into danger simply because it’s easier than standing still. We’ve lost too much already. I can’t lose you, too.”

For a moment, the walls I held so carefully cracked. I rested my hand briefly over hers. “I cannot promise that,” I admitted softly. “But I promise I will always come back to you.”

It wasn’t enough, but it was all I could give.

Moments later, I was in the woods, the patrol moving like shadows at my back. The night air was sharp, damp, charged with something I couldn’t name. My senses stretched out, listening, searching.

And then I caught it.

Blood. But beneath it… something else. Something fragile. Something that struck deep into the core of me.

Orion roared. There. She is there.

Through the trees, by a large tree, I saw her. A girl, broken and pale, her body slumped against the earth. Blood streaked her arm, her clothes torn, dirt staining her skin. She looked far too fragile for the life of a wolf.

I was at her side in an instant, knees hitting the ground, my chest burning. Carefully, I brushed tangled strands of hair from her face. Her skin was cold, her breathing shallow, but she was alive.

Her eyelids fluttered. For the briefest second, her deep brown eyes opened, glazed with exhaustion and pain. They locked with mine, and the world shifted. Something inside me, long silent, ignited. Then her eyes slipped closed again.

“She’s ours,” Orion growled, desperate. “Save her.”

Without a word, I scooped her into my arms. She was weightless, trembling even in unconsciousness. Rage seared me at the thought of what had left her this way.

Dorian appeared through the shadows, his warriors close behind. He froze when he saw me clutching her. “Alaric… who is she?”

I tightened my hold on her, the possessive snarl rising in my throat before I could stop it. “My mate.”

Silence fell, but no one questioned me. They knew better.

“Clear the path,” I ordered, my voice cold, commanding. “She comes with us to Valemont Hall.”

As I carried her through the night, her head resting against my chest, I tightened my hold. I didn’t know her story, her scars, or her name, but I knew one truth:

She had been found, and she was mine to protect.

And the world would bleed before I let her go.