CHAPTER TWO:

~ Rae’s POV ~

I swung low, aiming a kick at my opponent’s side, but my balance was off. My foot hit the mat with a weak thud, and the guy I was sparring with barely had to dodge. He didn’t even break a sweat.

“What the hell, Rae”, He exclaimed, his eyes scruntizing me for any injuries.

“Are you hurt somewhere?”, The guy questioned with a creased brow and I nodded negatively.

“Again, you are distracted”, He said, frowning.

I nodded, clenched my fists, and tried to focus. But my body moved slow, disconnected—like my mind was two steps behind everything, I couldn’t focus without my mind drifting off.

My unborn kid.

The plan.

My one night stand with an Alpha.

I was leaving. Soon. I’d already packed what I needed and hidden it under my bunk in the room. Just a few more days. I had to sneak away from the academy. My mind drifted off to when I had the conversations with Lillian.

“Abort it”, Her soft voice floated into my ears and a tear slipped down my eyes, I would never abort my baby even when I knew the father is a werewolf, it just doesn’t feels right to me.

I had decided I would sneak away from the academy, vanish before my parents found out I was pregnant. Find somewhere quiet, somewhere far and raise this baby on my own.

I’d made up my mind. I had no choice. A fist flew toward my face and I barely ducked in time.

“Rae”, My partner snapped, lowering his guard.

“Rae, what the hell is going on with you?” he snapped. I blinked, trying to focus. He stepped closer, still frowning.

“You weren’t even watching. I could’ve knocked you flat and you wouldn’t have seen it coming.” my partner in training scolded, his husky voice echoing down the training hall, all eyes were now at us.

I shook my head with my eyes glued to the floor at the intensity of their stares.

“I’m fine”, I sighed, wiping the sweat on my forehead with my turtleneck sleeves.

“You’re fighting like you’ve never trained a day in your life”, The guy softened his voice, corncerns laced in his voice maybe he had finally realized he shouted on me and scolded me.

I forced a laugh. “Just tired”, I replied and my eyes darted to the door which was bursted open and a ginger-haired lanky girl rushed in catching her breath with wide-eyed.

She pointed at me not being able to utter a word and I looked around, arching a brow as to what had happened that could make her slam the door like that.

“Rae!” She called, her voice cracking.

“They’re looking for you. At the gates”, She relayed, her hands by her side as she casted a side glance at me.

“Who?”, I asked in a brittle voice, arching a brow at her.

“I don’t know… Your parents are there waiting”, She whispered.

Everyone’s eyes fixated at me as I make my way out, my stomach dropped. The entire floor fell silent.

My pulse thundered in my ears. This is it, I thought. My parents found out. Maybe Lillian had told them about my plan of escaping, maybe they’ve found out about my secret.

I swallowed the lumps in my throat. No use panicking now.

With each step I took out of the dome, I could feel the stares digging into my back. Even the instructors were throwing me glances. Trainees whispered. No one ever called students from training unless it was serious—dead serious but now everyone is out.

And the worst part? My hands wouldn’t stop shaking. I was trembling. Hands shaking. I didn’t dare look up. For the first time, I wished the ground would just open and take me with it.

I have never for once disappointed my parents, I was set as an example in the training academy, parents would always wished I am their daughter and my parents always used me to boast among their friends but now I committed an atrocious act. A one-night mistake.

By the time I reached the main hall, anxiety had fully wrapped around my throat. I tried to breathe, but each breath felt too tight.

And then, I stepped outside halting my steps.

A row of black SUVs blocked the academy gate. They weren’t military. They weren’t government. They were sleek, dark, armored and expensive.

“I told you I will explain why I am here if only Rae is present here”, The voice made me froze, every hair on my body stood on end. His husky voice sending shivers down my spine.

And standing beside the car were my parents, my Mom's face was tight, a slight frown on her chubby face. My father's arms were crossed, his jaws clenched hard and a deep etched on his face. My heart hammered against in my chest as I walked over to them.

“What's wrong?”, I mouth-whispered to my parents, trying every best to remain calm.

They weren’t yelling. Not yet.

Which meant whatever this was… they hadn’t been the ones to call it. My Dad casted a long glance at me before announcing my presence.

“This had better be worth the disrespect, Alpha Wolfe.”

The back door of the center SUV opened.

And I spotted him.

What the hell is he doing here?

Damon Wolfe.

Dressed in all-black, tall and commmanding. His presence exuded a majestic aura – intoxicating. His stormy Gray eyes found me instantly, unblinking. I shifted my gaze, my eyes darting to the numerous eyes around us.

Damon tilted his head, his husky voice calm. “I believe it is, Blackthorn”.

I parted my mouth in shock, he called my Dad by his name.

His lips curved slightly, that same teasing smirk I remembered from the party.

“Hello, my love”, He mused moving closer to me and I stepped back. All eyes were now on me.

“What do you want?”, I gritted my teeth, my knuckles clenched by the side as my parents threw me a glance.

“Enough– Alpha Wolfe. What the hell do you want here, this is not your territory for you to joke around”, My Dad half-yelled, his brown eyes blazing with fury. I knew he was on the edge of losing it with Damon.

No Alpha had ever stepped foot inside the bounty hunter academy. It was sacred ground—neutral and respected. The werewolves knew what the academy represented: order, protection, and centuries of fragile peace. They hated it, but they respected the boundaries.

“Easy, Blackthorn”, Damon said, casting a cold glance at my Dad. The kind of look that would make you shit in your pants.

Until now.

Damon looked like he didn’t care.

The tension in the air was thick. I heard murmurs from nearby instructors. Trainees had stopped training completely, watching from windows and walkways.

Then Damon turned to me.

And smiled.

“I came to claim my mate,” he said.

He wasn’t talking about revenge. He wasn’t talking about spilling secrets.

He was calling me his mate.

Gasps erupted around us. My mother’s mouth parted in shock. My father looked like he’d just been slapped.

I didn’t move.

He… he couldn’t be serious.

But Damon was deadly serious.

“I’ve come to ask for Rae’s hand in marriage,” he continued, his voice steady, clear. “To marry her. She is my mate, and I want to make it official.”

My knees nearly gave out.

I wasn’t sure what stunned me more—the fact that he dared step foot in the academy, or that he had the audacity to say this in front of my parents. We weren’t just trained to hunt rogue wolves—we were raised to fear mating bonds. To see werewolf-human pairings as doomed, dangerous, taboo.

“You brought this shame here? What makes you think we’ll agree to this union?” My father’s voice boomed through the yard.

I stood still, my thoughts running wild.

Was it a trick? A trap?

Or… was it a chance?

A chance to run. To marry him, have the baby in peace. Then disappear again. Maybe I could use his name to shield the child’s birth. Maybe this was the only way to protect what I had left.

The fight raged on, but then I heard my father’s voice pierce through.

“Rae. The decision is yours.”

I blinked. What?

“You don’t have to say yes,” Damon added. His voice was softer now, but still firm. “I won’t force you.

They both looked at me, expecting the answer they believed I’d give. The one I’d been raised to give. The one that would spare my family shame.

I felt everyone watching me. The weight of the whole academy pressing down.

And I did the only thing I could.

I took one step away from my parents.

Their faces cracked. Confusion. Shock.

And Damon?

A slow, knowing smile tugged at his lips.