*CHAPTER 3*

*Aiden P.O.V*

“What wrong, Aiden? You've not said a word since you came here and you're spacing out a lot.” Elena complained as she sat on my lap, placing her hand on my forehead. 

How could I not space out? I've found the person I've been waiting for my entire life. My mate. My Luna. But she was already mated to someone else. And my enemy at that.

How is it even possible? I've never heard of something like this in my entire existence. I would have assumed I made a mistake, that it wasn't her. But she felt it too. The terror in her eyes when she looked at me. She recognized me instantly. Her hand was also trembling when she shake hands with me.

“I have to go.” I stood up abruptly, pushing Elena off me.

“What The Hell, Aiden!!” Elena shouted as she landed on the floor. I heard her cussing that I didn't lift her up, but I couldn't bring myself to bother as I rushed out of her home.

Sofia. Yes, that's her name.

Being in there with Elena made me feel like I was cheating on her. Mate or not, I couldn't stop feeling like I was doing something wrong. 

I went back to my Manor.

“Brother,” Abigail, my younger sister, called out to me as I entered the parlor. My close friends, Damien, Kade, and my beta,Tobias were all at my parlor, seated on the sofa. “We were just talking about you.” Abby said, dragging me by my hand to the parlor.

“And what might you all be saying about me?” I asked, taking my seat on the sofa beside Abby.

“Hey, bro” They greeted me. “ Abigail here told us that you've been strangely quiet since you came back from the Grand Moon festival yesterday.” Kade gave me a questioning gaze.

“And she also said you haven't been yourself. Which led us to the question. Did something happen at the grand hall yesterday that we didn't know?” Damien added.

“Is that true? Have I been acting strangely?” I asked Abby, facing her..

“Yes, big bro.” She answered. “At first, I thought you were just tired and that you would be okay today. But this morning, it was still the same. You were quiet. And when I asked you about the festival you said you were in no mood to talk. You didn't eat much either. You left the manor and you're just coming back this evening.” 

I knew I hadn't been myself since yesterday, but I had no idea I made it so obvious that it got my little sister worried.

“So… what happened, Aiden?” Tobias asked. They all wore worried expressions on their faces.

They all have the right to know. I took a deep breath before speaking. “I found her.”

“Found who?” They all asked in unison. Abby stared at me for sometime before her eyes went wide with realization.“You found your mate?” She blurted out. Everyone's eyes went wide at what she said. They all looked at me expectantly.

“Yes.” I breathed out.

“OH MY GOD, Aiden!!!” Damien exclaimed, jumping up. “This is the best news I've heard today.” Kade added. Joy danced across their faces.

“This is big news, Alpha. You should be very happy.” Tobias chipped in.

I was about to drop the bombshell on them. 

“But–”

“But what?” Kade gave me a suspicious look like he had a feeling what I'm about to say won't be good. “ She is a Luna of another Pack.”

“What?” They yelled in shock.

“What are you saying?”

“How is that even possible?”

“Who is she?”

“Luna of which pack?” They all bombarded me with questions.

“Sofia. She is the Luna of the Sunlight pack.” I answered Abby and Damien's question.

“How are you sure it isn't a mistake? Maybe you're mistaken.” Kade muttered slowly.

“I wish I was. But I know what I felt yesterday. And besides, she recognized me too. We both felt the bond. There's no way that was a mistake.”

Everybody went quiet. Nobody knew what to say at the moment. They were all trying to take in what I said.

“I never heard of anything like this in my life.” Damien whispered. “She is already fated to another. To top it all, she is the Luna of another pack.” 

“She's Liam's mate.” Kade spoke in a low tone.

“And I heard he disappeared for the last four years and he isn't back till now.” Tobias murmured.

Where could that bastard have gone for good four years, leaving his mate all alone. I wondered how she managed all this while. 

I shouldn't be thinking about this. About the two of them together. Especially if she were to be my mate.

“What are you going to do now?”Abby asked.

 I sighed. “To be sincere with you guys, I don't know. I don't have the slightest idea of what to do.” 

“We have to think of what to do because this is not a—” Kade was talking when i felt a sharp pain in my chest. 

Something is wrong. 

“Hey, what happened to you? Are you okay?” He stopped talking and rushed to my side.

“She's in danger. I can feel it.” I whispered, squeezing my chest tightly.

“Your mate? Luna?” Tobias asked.

“Yes.” I nodded and stood up immediately. “I have to go find her.” 

“Alright. Be safe.” Kade and Damien said together.

“Let me accompany you?” Tobias stood up to follow me but I stopped him.

“No, I will go myself.” He nodded. I dash out of the manor and shift.

The Sunlight pack was very far from here. It is about three hundred miles away. It would normally take days or even a week to get there. I had to be very fast if I wanted to get there in time. 

The ache in my chest was growing heavier by the minute. I raced through the forest and the mountains at a very light speed.

Please be okay. Please be okay. I chanted in my head as I kept running through the woods. 

By the time I got to the forest of Sunlight pack, it was already the middle of the night. I raced through the woods. According to the feeling of bond, the royal manor shouldn't be far from here. 

As I passed through the woods, I caught a scent which made me stop. It was the same scent from the Grand festival.

She's here. What is she doing out here?

The scent was thick which meant that she was close by. I slowed down and followed the scent till I got to the middle of the woods. 

I saw a black wolf with a red crazy eye hovering on someone. A male rogue. It didn't take me less than a second to know who the person being pinned on the ground was.

Sofia.

Using a very brutal force, I sped up to the rogue and kicked him off her. I tackled him to the ground and bit it on its neck, the same place he wanted to bite Sofia. 

How dare he?

I used my claws to scratched his face. It struggled violently under me. I would have finished it off right now, but I have a greater priority so I let it go. I transformed back and turned around.

She laid on the ground helplessly. Seeing her on the ground injured and tired triggered something ugly in my chest.

She was almost losing consciousness when I picked her up. She snuggled closer to me, sniffing my neck before finally falling unconscious. She fit so perfectly in my arms.

 I couldn't stay here so I raced back to my pack with her on my back. The sun was beginning to rise as I carried her on my back and raced through the forest. It was hard to climb on the mountain with her on my back and my legs were aching badly. I couldn't afford to stop and rest. The more I delayed, the more her health would deteriorate so I kept moving. By the time I got to my pack, the sun had risen.

“Alpha” The guards at the entrance of the royal manor greeted me. They bowed their heads and opened the gate for me while their faces held surprise as they glanced at the woman in my arms.

I rushed her into the manor, passing by everyone still in the parlor. They were all awake.

“Tobias, call the Royal Doctor?” I yelled as I took her to my bedroom. 

I laid her on my bed. Her clothes were torn and she had scratches on her body. I'm guessing it was from the attack. I took her wrist to feel her pulse. It was very weak. She is in a very weak state.

After some minutes, a knock came at the door. “Come in." I commanded. The Royal Doctor came inside.

“What happened to her?” He asked me as he walked close to her. 

“She was attacked by a Rogue.” 

He checked something on her arms before he attended to her wounds.

"She is very weak, Alpha Aiden. Make sure she eats very well because it shows that she hasn't been eating very well lately and it makes her very weak.” he stated when he was done attending to her wounds. “This is the ointment you will apply to her wounds daily, every morning and night till the wounds heal. And this is the one she will use for the pain. The wounds are not deep, so it should heal in a week.” he handed me two small containers.

“Alright. Thanks.” He nodded and bowed his head then turned to leave. “And make sure she gets a lot of rest. If possible, don't let her out of the room or Manor. Just let her eat and rest a lot.” he said when he got to the door before finally opening it to leave.

I walked over to bed and sat down on the armchair beside her.

She looked very pale and fragile, yet she looked so beautiful. Her eyelids were long and her black hair sprawled around her making her look so tempting. My hands ached to touch her, but I held myself back. Mate or not, I couldn't do that now. So I turned around and left the room before I lost control.

She is still Liam's mate.

“Is that her?” 

“How is she?”

“What happened to her?”

Everybody asked with curious and worried glances across their faces.

“She was attacked by a rogue. And she was injured.”

“Oh poor girl. How is she now?” Damien asked.

“She is sleeping. Rian said the wounds are not deep, so it should heal in a week or so.”

“Okay. What about you?” Abby asked, her eyes darken with concern.

“Yes. What about you? You travelled that long distance and still came back in a day. That's very crazy. You must be very tired.” Kade voiced out.

“I'm fine.” To be honest, I was really tired but I'm more concerned about the lady in my room.

Abby stood.“Come on, big bro, go take your bath and let us all eat.” 

“I'll eat when she wakes up.” 

“Really, Bro!! You've not marked her yet, but you're already treating her as your Luna.” The corners of Kade's mouth curled into a sly smirk, a playful glint dancing in his eyes.

I rolled my eyes at him, while the other laughed. “You guys didn't sleep?” I was surprised to find them all awake when I came back.

“A little.” Abby replied, pinching her thumb and her index together while she closed one eye.

She's the only one that slept. We didn't.” The boys protested.

I laughed at them. I thought Damien and Kade would have returned to their packs yesterday night. I was grateful they stayed overnight.

“Thank you, guys.” 

“No need to thank us. We are brothers.” Kade waved me off.

“Right. But I don't want your Lunas to come fighting with me, demanding to know who I didn't let their husband return.” I joked.

They all laughed. “My Cassie would aim for your head.” Damien said, demonstrating how she would cut my head off.

“Cassie can dream on because it would never happen.” I laughed as I left to go to my bedroom. and went straight to the bathroom to take my bath.

After I was bathing, I changed my dress and put on a grey tunic and trousers. As I stepped out of the bathroom into the bedroom, I saw a confused Sofia already seated up on the bed. She gazed around trying to make sense of where she was. She hasn't noticed my presence 

“How are you feeling now?” I asked.

She jumped, holding her chest as she sharply turned her eyes to me.

Her beautiful hazel eyes widened in shock.