Tyler’s Pov
I laid on my Alaskan king bed finding it really hard to fall asleep. The sound of nature bursting outside my cabin did little in calming my frazzled nerves. I shut my eyes in an attempt to sleep and failed utterly. It was that zesty smell I couldn’t get off my mind. As I tossed to stare at the rustic light fixture hanging in the centre of the ceiling, my wolf became very jittery for some reason relatable to that zesty scent.
Ever since I bumped into Kaya by the lake, her scent lingered in the air, I could almost feel her delicate skin brush mine. Thoughts about Kaya seemed to make my wolf agitated. Was it because of her? Of the fact that she appeared miserable?
My wolf grew more agitated, urging me to go for a run. I groaned, got out of bed, put on suitable clothing and headed towards Lily’s room.
I knocked lightly on her door, waited a little while and opened it slightly. I noticed she was fast asleep but she appeared unsettled. I opened the door and walked in towards her to decipher the reason for her discomfort. As I reached her bedside, I noticed she was not covered properly so I adjusted her quilt to do so. I placed a gentle kiss on her forehead before heading out, shutting the door behind me.
There was definitely something different about the air today, almost eerie making me alert. I made my way down the hill to the gathering hall and spotted Alex approaching me.
"Hey, Tyler," Alex said, wearing a silly grin on his face.
“Cut to the chase, Alex, what information have you gathered " I retorted.
It’s the Outlanders Alpha. We’ve discovered their location. The wolves that attacked were a part of Shadow Moon pack. It’s what we feared alpha" he replied.
"And where is the location?" I probed, ready to invade the place.
"On the other side of the mountain, right before the Deserted lands," he responded
"Great! Alert all combatant wolves to report to the gathering hall immediately!” I stated.
Alex nodded confirming the command and headed towards the group of cabins to assemble them.
I pondered on different strategies that would enable us to attack head-on with minimal damage to my pack. My wolf on the other hand was restless, eager for release so I headed towards the shoreline for a run. I shapeshifted and raced down speedily, my wolf was ardent and I found it calming to run on the shoreline of Meadow Lake.
After running for a mile or two, he seemed cool, I raced back towards my room, grabbed some clothes and headed towards the gathering hall. When I arrived, my warriors were already gathered. They grouped according to their ranks. My clan, Crimson Pack was known to be the strongest and most revered. We were the full package; a Pack mother, Beta wolves, Gamma wolves, a couple of elders, omegas, sentinels, scouts, hunters, guardians as well as salutary wolves.
As I entered the hall, the clutter of noise hushed; they stared at me awaiting an address. I quickly scanned through for a head count and noticed that one of my combatants, Luta was not present.
"The outlanders have been a thorn in our flesh for far too long. Intel gathered reveals that they are members of the shadow moon pack. Our clan has been revered since inception and now is not the time to take a hit. It’s time we attack and hit them when they least expect”
As my voice boomed throughout the room, I could feel how gingered and warmed up they were for a fight.
"Training commences immediately, any questions?”
Some wolves inquired about the combat strategy we plan on using and I explained making sure to leave no table unturned.
As we kept on deliberating about the tactics to be used, I felt a strong pull. I ordered Alex my second in command to stand in for me while I excused myself.
As I stepped out, my wolf took control of me, pushing me downhill, towards the lake. I had no idea why I was heading towards the lake. It all seemed strange. Soon, Meadow Lake came into view. The light from the full moon scattered on the water's surface leaving a long trail of shimmering light. Then it hit me, that intoxicating zesty scent ensnared my senses pulling strongly towards the lake.
My wolf edged towards the pull and then I spotted Kaya and Luta together. Luta’s hands were secured roughly around her throat and this infuriated me. While we planned an attack he was here, harassing a member of my pack. He was breaking not just one but two of my stringent rules.
Something in me snapped more surprisingly not of the fact that he was a no show, but that he laid his hands on her, on Kaya.
“Mine” My wolf growled.
I was stunned, was this weakling, my mate?
I've always pictured my mate to be strong and stunning. But then, finding a mate wasn’t on top of my priority list, I barely desired one because of the responsibilities I currently have.
Albeit, I couldn't even shake how that zesty scent sent thrills down my spine. I came to terms with the fact that my wolf was not agitated because of Luta’s disobedience or the impending battle. It was because Kaya was my mate.
In a blink of an eye, I dived into the lake, grabbed Luta by his neck and snapped him. His body grew limp and descended deep into the water along with Kaya’s.
Alarmed, I dived toward Kaya, retrieved her body from the bottom of the lake and lay her by the shoreline. Her body was cold, her lips blue. She wasn’t breathing.
My heart skipped, it seemed as if time itself stopped. I trembled from fear of losing her while applying slight pressure to her chest. Nothing I did to revive her seemed to work leaving me devastated.
I ached to see her intense green eyes again and just as I was about to give up, My wolf furiously growled” Mate”.
Kaya’s eyes shut open instantly and stared at me. In that second, I felt everything she did. Her pain, her fury, her burning desire, and I took it all in. Our soul linked that instant and we became one, I knew she was undeniably mine.
As fast as I could, I lifted her limp body up in my arms and made my way to the pack's salutary. I burst into his room frightening him in the process. ” Do everything in your power to make sure she is ok?” I said frantically. The herbal doctor stood there trying to process everything which irked me strongly.
"Do something!" I bellowed using my alpha tone.
He jerked towards her and carried her to the cot.
I growled impatiently as he inspected her to make sure she was ok.
“Say something” I growled
"Alpha, you need to back up a little,” he replied while attempting to place some sensors which were connected to a monitor on her.
I growled inside of me every time he placed his hands on her.
To make it worse, he held her neck up and attempted to remove her wet clothes which caused her to emit a groan.
I couldn’t believe I could be that fast because, in a second, I found myself holding his hand at a very dangerous angle.
“What do think you are doing?” I inquired ready to pounce.
“I am helping, I promise.” the salutary replied hastily to avoid any assault.
“I need to take her wet clothes off to prevent hypothermia, trust me I am helping here”. He stated and I nodded my approval for him to go ahead.
He successfully pulled off her cloth exposing a massive discolouration on her skin and I winched feeling her pain. Her body was laced with huge livid red and purplish bruises and I knew they caused her pain on the inside too.
Anger bobbed inside of me as I was vexed with my ignorance of her situation, of what was going on in my very pack.
“She has been through a lot, Alpha”. The salutary’s wobbly voice echoed my thoughts.
He placed what looked like sensors on her body to get a reading of her overall body functions.
Afterwards, he placed an IV warmer beside her and covered her with a warm blanket.
“That should warm her up.” He added.
Hearing that did little in calming my nerves.
Kaya's Pov"Do something." Tyler’s voice boomed.I felt the salutary inch towards me to examine me. I was too weak to move, my muscled screamed out of fatigue and pain.“Say something” Tyler’s voice grew impatient."Alpha, you need to back up a little,” the salutary talked tenderly, expressing himself shrewdly.I felt the salutary’s hands on my neck causing me to groan in pain.In an instant, Tyler was beside me and his emotions were all over the place. I could sense that he was angry, worried and frightened…?.“What do you think you are doing” Tyler’s voice boomed“I am helping, I promise,” voiced the salutary wobbly.The salutary pulled my cloth off and mentioned something about hypothermia.He checked my pulse and later proceeded to place a soft silicone medical sensor on my body to examine me properly.I could sense the mix of emotions in the air, Tyler’s emotions. It was a mix of impatience laced with anger and at the same time what seemed like concern.“Was he concerned about me
Kaya's PovEvery attempt to make a friend in the pack was futile and I would blame this on the rumour about my birth and what happened on that day. Many believed I was a curse and refused to associate with me or even help me when I was ill-treated. In years, I've never felt safe enough to approach a pack member. Stupidly, I had made a friend a while back, only to discover that it was all a hoax and she was merely acting. Luta, Jeremy and Danni were all successful in making everyone dislike me. As a result, I've never spoken to anyone since then because I feared the situation would repeat itself. Especially now that the Alpa seems to care about me.Can I really rely on him not to harm me the way his pack has?"Get out," his wolf hissed, his eyes riveted on me as he roared at the doctor. Oslo sprinted out of the room as fast as his legs could carry him. I would do the same safe for my current situation. We all knew that an angry alpha is bad news. Was he upset with me? I looked down, u
Kaya’s PovThere is truly no place like home I mumbled heaving a sign of relief as Tyler unlocked my door to let us in. Through the window, I could see the vibrant glow of a full moon. The favourite feature of my room is the window; it was a regular picture window but I had the most spectacular view of Meadow Lake. It gave the room a surreal feel. Every evening when I stare at the moon, I ponder on the existence of the moon goddess, Was she even real or was she a myth? I understand that it's in our werewolf nature to have faith in her, but I couldn't help but wonder if she was aware of me or what I was going through. I've been used to living alone all my life. After leaving foster care when I came of age, I was assigned a room where I’ve lived alone for a pretty long time because no one wanted to be assigned the same room I was in and frankly I enjoyed having my own space where I felt safe after a difficult day. Aside from the locket my mum gifted me; my room was the other thing t
Tyler’s POVA small picture window came into view when I opened my eyes. Memories of yesterday’s event came flooding back in.“Kaya” My wolf voice resonated in my mind jolting me to turn towards her.Her skin was golden from the sunbeams that came in through the window giving her an otherworldly beauty. My fingers traced the outline of her oval-shaped face itching to touch her chapped full lips. We were so close to the point that I could see the freckles underneath her eyelash. I swelled up inside from being this close to see this side of her, a side of her I am sure not may have seen. We fit so perfectly and I craved to know every bit of her; her past, her pain, her source of happiness as well as her future.“Mine” My wolf echoed in my mind.She was indeed alluring.In a moment, her eyes fluttered open revealing the most striking green eyes which adjusted to the light and caught me staring. A glimmer of fear appeared on her face for a few seconds which later settled into shyness. I n
Kaya's povI stared at the ceiling as I pondered on the things going on in my life at the moment. It all seemed to move too fast for me. No doubt I had always wished for a protector, someone I could rely on, someone I could relate with but all these felt too unreal.Just a week ago, I was the Trio’s punching bag, the pack's weirdo but now, I am supposedly the Alpha’s mate. His touch made my skin feel alive, I have never felt this strange but I had to decide not to give in to him. All I know is that he could abandon me any instant, I mean why on earth would an Alpha choose me? I turned to the wall where the countdown to my elopement was marked and took a deep breath. That was it, I had to run away. Away from all of this, from the hassle, I had to be strong for me.A light knock on the door brought me back to reality, it was Tyler. I asked him to come in and adjusted to a sitting position. There was something different about the air around him. It felt bizarre.“Mind if I sit?” He asked
Tyler’s POV “I can’t be your mate, Tyler, I am not perfect for you.” Kaya’s words struck my very core. It was surprising how her words infuriated me and at the same time made me long to protect her. The surge of emotions I felt was frustrating, I needed to be around someone who cared for me to help me think straight so I headed home. As I reached, I walked up the stairs towards Lily's room, knocked lightly on the door to announce my presence and opened it. Lily was by the window, painting a picture of the pack. She turned around and spotted me and furrowed her eyebrows. "Let me guess, another attack by the outlanders" she speculated. " Yes," I replied her making sure to conceal the emotional turmoil I was going through. "What else is bothering you Tyler? she asked seeing through the facade. "I could tell you are brooding," Lily added. "Yeah… the strangest thing happened, I found my mate." Lily stared at my face as I told her that I had found my mate. “Tyler, that’s great news
Kaya’s POVThe tears gushed down my face alongside the water from the shower head. It was soothing to cry in the shower, I felt safe here in my space. As the water streamed down, I gazed at my body. Each of the slight bruises, the huge scars from the injuries I had obtained from the incident with the trio which wasn’t completely healed.Luta always strangled me, no doubt it had left a bruise on my neck this time.It had been five days since I'd last heard from Tyler or seen him. The way he left the room left me aching in my heart. After I told him I wasn’t right for him, he left angrily. I gave him an easy way out of my baggage life but it hurt to see him leave. I, on the other hand, haven’t left my room for any reason. Instead, I’ve been planning my escape from the pack. The possibility of running into Luta’s Mate made me nervous, I realized she would ask me what occurred and why they were in the dungeon and I didn’t want to be put in the position of explaining all that has happened.
Tyler’s POVAll I could think about was what Kaya must have passed through while growing up in the pack and how the werewolves treated her. To cap it all, the fact that she thought she was indeed cursed. Why didn’t she consult Pack mother to explain the prophecy to her?I've never felt so furious in all my years, how is it that someone as innocent and harmless as her could be cursed? What if this was all looked at the wrong way?Kaya was a bit tall but she was really skinny making me considerably more defensive of her now. I just couldn't make sense of how was able to go through all that torment and still be alive. She was not just bullied constantly, she was shunned by most people in the pack. The torture she went through must have been extremely harrowing. My deepest concern was that her wolf was a no-show. At first, my wolf had thought she was simply suppressing her wolf from manifesting because of all the troubles in her life. But then again, there was no reason to suppress her wo