Chapter 3

Alaric

Her gown was soaked through, and it clung to every curve like it was made for one thing—to make me look. Red waves of wet hair rested over her shoulders, sticking against her bare skin, dripping down between her breasts. The silk clung to her like second skin, the cold water making her nipples stand out through the fabric. There were other omegas in front of me—too many. Most of them naked, trembling, some crying, most looking like they'd lost the will to stand. But the moment my eyes landed on her, something in me shifted.

It wasn't the kind of shift you could ignore. It was the kind that forced its way under your skin and made a home there.

"She's mine," I said flatly, voice calm but sharp, already turning to the woman who’d been inspecting them earlier. My tone didn’t need repeating. The warriors moved immediately, unlocking the chains from around her ankles like their lives depended on it. Which, frankly, they did.

She turned sharply to me the moment the last chain hit the floor. Her back was straight. Her jaw clenched. Her eyes didn't have fear in them—they had fire.

"But there are so many other people, it doesn't have to be me," she said.

Her voice. Defiant. Unapologetic. She spoke to me like she didn’t give a damn that I was Alpha. I stared at her for a beat, letting her words hang in the air.

The others had been shrinking away, trembling, too scared to even breathe loud. When I’d seen her earlier, head bowed, I’d assumed it was the same. But now I knew—it wasn’t fear. She wasn’t afraid. She was trying not to get noticed.

I smirked.

Interesting.

I stepped closer and raised my hand slowly, letting the back of my fingers graze along her cheek. Her skin was warm. Her entire body tensed beneath my touch like she wanted to slap my hand away but was smart enough not to. My hand drifted down her neck, then her shoulder. She shivered. I felt it. Her breath caught. She wasn’t unaffected. Her body gave her away even if her face stayed solid.

"So responsive," I murmured, half to myself. Goddess, I already knew she'd feel so fucking good. My hand dropped back into my pocket. "You make it sound like you have a choice, little fox. If you did, you wouldn’t be standing here now, would you?"

She stared at me like she wanted to bite a chunk off my face.

"And you think capturing weak omegas and lining them up like cattle makes you a noble Alpha? You should be ashamed of yourself."

The slap came before I could blink. One of my warriors—stupid idiot—struck her across the face. The sound echoed across the open field like a whip crack.

I turned slowly to him. My jaw twitched. His eyes widened instantly, like he knew he’d messed up.

"Did I not just say she was mine, and you dare..."

"I'm sorry—Alpha, forgive this stupid servant," he stammered out before I even finished.

I looked away from him. Disgusted. He wasn’t worth the air it would take to curse him out. My eyes landed back on her. Her cheek was red now. Her lips tight. But she hadn’t cried. She hadn’t broken.

That only pissed me off more—in a way that made me want her.

"Well, noble or not, you're in my territory now. And everything on this ground belongs to me." I leaned in close, bent slightly, and whispered right against her ear. "That includes you."

"If you think I’ll let you treat me like some breeding stock for your stupid heir, you’re dreaming," she said. Her brows pulled together. Her voice didn’t tremble. "You better get someone else, because I promise you—it will never be me."

I blinked. Then I chuckled. A full, dry laugh.

I couldn’t remember the last time someone talked to me like that. The pack feared me. The elders obeyed me. The omegas bent at my feet. But she—this wet, stubborn girl with a mouth too big and eyes too sharp—was standing here like she had nothing to lose.

The thing was... I liked it.

Fuck, my body loved it.

I imagined her pinned beneath me, that same fire in her eyes, that mouth spilling curses while I buried my cock inside her.

Stupid heir?

Now I wanted her to be the one to give me that heir.

I wanted to ruin her. Break her. Watch her beg. And then I’d make her beg again.

"I hope you have a retentive memory, honey. Because I love challenges." I turned away from her, my mind already racing ahead.

I waved to one of the guards. "Bring her. And the girl beside her."

Why the other one? I didn’t even know. Maybe curiosity. Maybe punishment. Maybe nothing at all.

I didn’t wait for their response. I walked out of the place, into the cold open air of the hallway, the sound of my boots echoing behind me.

I could’ve taken the vehicle. Let the driver trail me back to the packhouse. But I needed to walk. Needed the air. Needed the space to calm my head.

By the time I reached my study, Cade was already there, leaning against the wall like he knew I’d be back.

"How did it go?" he asked, not even lifting his eyes. "Did you find her?"

I narrowed my eyes. "That’s all you care about now? Not my health? My sanity?"

"You’re the least sane person I know," Cade muttered, following me into the study.

I rounded the desk and dropped into my chair, letting out a low groan. My muscles ached. My mind didn’t.

"Don’t tell me you had them all dragged out again and still didn’t pick one," Cade said. "The elders are getting impatient. They want results, Alpha"

"I picked one."

That shut him up.

I let the silence settle. He stood there, blinking slowly like he didn’t hear me right.

"You… picked one?"

"Yeah."

"Is she what you expected?"

I leaned back, eyes narrowed at the ceiling.

"No," I said. "She’s the opposite."

Cade sat across from me, arms folded. "And you're okay with that?"

I didn’t answer. Because the truth was—I wasn't sure.

But I knew one thing.

She was going to be mine, whether she liked it or not.