Chapter 2

~ Alpha Kael's POV ~

The moment I stepped into my chamber, fury tore through me.

I kicked the heavy oak table with savage force, sending it crashing across the stone floor. The sound echoed, but it did nothing to quiet the storm raging inside my chest.

The daughter of a rogue… is my mate?

What twisted game was the Moon Goddess playing?

Was this her punishment? Her cruel attempt at retribution for the blood on my hands? For the lives I had taken in battle? Those fools deserved death. Every single one of them. If they hadn’t dared to defy me, they would still be breathing.

Ten good years.

For the last ten years, I have been patiently waiting for the Moon Goddess to grant me my mate and the Luna of the Timberwolf Pack.

I was only twenty when my father died an untimely death and the weight of the Timberwolf Pack was forced upon my shoulders. I had stepped into his place without hesitation, ruling with iron discipline and unyielding strength.

After I took over as the Alpha, the pack patiently waited for me to present the future Luna of our pack to them. While everyone below my age and above my age got their mates, the Moon Goddess never granted me any.

I had believed she was saving the best for me.

A princess of another powerful pack.

An Alpha’s daughter.

A woman worthy of standing at my side.

Instead, she gave me her... a rogue’s daughter.

Weak. Pathetic. Insignificant.

How dare the Moon Goddess bind me to a wolf so fragile? How could someone like that ever wear the title of Luna beside me?

Never.

I would never accept her.

There's no way I'd accept that weak wolf as my Luna.

She's Thereon’s blood... his princess. The same man I despised with every fiber of my being, that's why I didn't hesitate to send my warriors over to that forest to paint it red with blood.

Who would've thought they'd spare his daughter?

They should have killed her alongside her parents. If they hadn't presented her to me, there's no way I'd have known she was my mate.

Who cares if I never get a mate?

I would rather die alone than share a bond with a weak wolf born of filth and treachery.

But why did I spare her life?

I should've rejected her right at that very spot and asked my warriors to behead her and throw her body for the vultures to eat.

That was what I was good at... killing my enemies without blinking an eye.

I kicked the table again, hating myself so much for ordering her to be locked up.

She looked just like her father.

Those eyes... I've seen them before. Ten years ago when I had banished her family from the pack.

Those eyes of hers had stared at me like I was the scariest thing in the world.

She was little then... probably ten, but now she had grown into a woman.

No.

I clenched my fists.

I refused to see her as one.

I hate her and her whole family combined. They deserve death over and over for what they did to me.

And as tricky as the Moon Goddess can be, out of every female wolf in the Eastern and Northern regions, she had to be my mate.

I was sure she hates me for giving the order to wipe out her family and the rogues she grew up with.

The feelings were mutual.

I hated her three times too.

From her autumn-colored hair to her innocent hazel eyes, to her freckles, her delicate nose, her soft, tiny lips... I hated everything about her.

"Alpha Kael." Thorian snapped me out of my thoughts.

When my gaze shifted to him, he immediately bowed. He is my Beta... my right hand, second only to me in the Timberwolf Pack.

I turned away, facing the tall window as my cloak dragged across the stone floor.

"Speak," I said, my voice deep and baritone.

"The rogue's daughter has been locked up just like you've ordered," he replied.

"Is she being locked in the coldest part of the dungeon?" I asked, my expression devoid of pity.

"No... she's being locked in the heated dungeon..." Before he could finish, I turned sharply, my icy blue eyes slicing into him.

"Did I ask you to lock her up in such a place?" I growled.

"You only asked us to lock her up. You didn't mention the particular dungeon. Besides, the weather is harsh. She might freeze to death if we..."

My eyes darkened in more anger.

"Are you pitying her?" I snarled. "Are you showing mercy to a rogue’s daughter?!"

Thorian immediately fell to his knees, pressing his forehead to the stone floor. "I dare not take pity on her, Alpha Kael," he said.

I exhaled slowly, forcing my rage into check. If it had been someone else, I'd have ordered him to be flogged until he passed out... but Thorian was different.

Aside from being my right-hand man, we grew up together before I became the Alpha. But he knew how to keep his boundaries. I could be more wicked than the devil when I am angry.

"Raise," I ordered.

Thorian rose to his feet, his head still bowed to the stone floor.

"Here's my order..." I began. "Lock her up in the coldest dungeon. I don't care if she freezes to death. Anyone who dares to give her the tiniest bit of water will answer to me. Am I understood?"

"Yes, Alpha Kael. I'll carry out your orders immediately." And with that, Thorian exited.

A cruel smirk tugged at my lips as I stared at the crescent moon.

The Moon Goddess thinks she can punish me by binding me to the daughter of my enemy?

A bitter laugh burned in my throat.

Very well.

If she wanted to play games, then she had chosen the wrong Alpha.

I won't reject her, rather, I’d make her suffer for daring to be my mate.

I would break her spirit piece by piece until she has no choice but to fall to her knees, begging the Moon Goddess day and night to free her from me.

A soft knock interrupted my thoughts.

I turned sharply toward the door.

Moments later, Ysoria entered my chamber, her steps light, her lips curved into a practiced, flirtatious smile.

She is the daughter of a Beta... unmated and obedient. I had chosen her as my royal bedmate, a role created solely to serve my needs whenever my wolf demanded release.

I could have as many women as I wanted from the pack. Despite how ruthless I was, every female wolf in the pack would do anything just to be one of my bedmates.

But I wasn't an Alpha who sleeps around. I hate sharing my bed with too many women, especially weak werewolves like Elara.

Even her name disgusted me.

Ysoria approached me, her fingers gliding over my chest as though she owned the right.

"I heard you spared that rogue's daughter. Why, if I may ask? It's not your thing to spare an enemy. The elders are murmuring about why you spared her life."

I shoved her hand away. "I'm going to handle them," I replied. Over my dead body will I tell anyone I was mated to that weak thing.

She placed her hands on my shoulders again, her crimson-painted lips lifting into a smile.

"Whatever you do... I know it's always the right choice," she smiled, trying to kiss me, but I grabbed her by the neck.

"How many times will I have to tell you never to make an attempt to kiss me?!" I barked.

"I'm sorry... Alpha Kael," she struggled out, her fingers clawing at my wrist.

I have never kissed a woman... not even one. I hated having my lips on theirs. It irked and irritated me.

Ysoria had warmed my bed for years, yet never had there been a moment where I desired more than the release she provided.

It had always been a quick encounter to satisfy my body and my horny wolf.

"Have mercy on me, Alpha Kael. It's never going to happen again," she said, still struggling.

I'd have snapped her neck right here and now, but I had to save myself the stress of finding another bedmate.

Moreover, Ysoria was good at what she did. She knew how to satisfy me and take my manhood.

I am a sex addict, and finding a replacement for Ysoria wouldn't be that easy... that's the only thing keeping her alive.

I released my grip from her neck. She collapsed to the floor, coughing violently, her neck flushed red beneath my fingers’ imprint.

But who cares?

"Go to the bed and spread your legs wide open," I ordered.

She didn't hesitate. She stripped off her kirtle and walked over to the bed, spreading her legs wide just like I had ordered.

I stripped away my garments, then without wasting time, I began thrusting into her roughly and aggressively.

The more the face of that rogue's daughter appeared in my mind, the more I thrusted Ysoria.

I took out all my anger by thrusting into her without any bit of mercy.

Ysoria was nothing more than an outlet, a body I used to bleed my rage dry.