All Chapters of Ava: Bound by the Alpha’s Curse: Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

He didn’t ask if I could walk.He didn’t ask if I was hurt.The Alpha seized my waist and ran.The world fractured around us. Trees blurred into black pillars. Wind cut across my face, tangling in my hair, stealing the air from my lungs. His grip was iron—unyielding, controlled, as if my weight meant nothing.He wasn’t just strong.He was built for dominance.Broad shoulders. Thick muscle beneath dark fabric. Power coiled in every movement like a predator barely contained inside human skin.“Put me down!” I demanded.His jaw tightened.A vein pulsed at his temple.He moved faster.The forest seemed to part for him.Then he stopped so abruptly that I nearly collapsed when he released me.We stood in a clearing where the trees arched high above us. The air felt heavier here, older—like this place belonged to him.He stepped away immediately.Distance.Deliberate.Moonlight slid across his face, sharpening the angles. His chest rose and fell slowly, but there was nothing calm about him.

I woke to warmth.Not comfort.Heat.Thick. Close. Wrong.For a moment I didn’t move. My body felt heavy, like I had sunk into something too soft. My mind came back slower than my instincts.The scent hit me first.Woodsmoke.Leather.Iron.And wolf.My eyes snapped open.The ceiling above me was unfamiliar—dark wooden beams, carved with markings I didn’t recognize. The air felt dense, as if it carried more breath than one person should need.I wasn’t in my village.I sat up too quickly.Pain lanced through my ribs.The bond flared faintly in response—duller than before, but there.Alive.I was in a large room built from stone and timber. Firelight flickered along the walls. A heavy cloak had been thrown over me. Not gently. Just efficiently.The Alpha.The memory hit hard.The clearing. His eyes. The heat.Mine.My jaw tightened.“No,” I whispered to myself.I swung my legs off the bed.The floor was cold.Grounding.I forced myself to breathe slowly.Where was he?The silence inside

Cassian didn’t look at her when the door closed behind the Councilman.He was already turning away.“Ava—” Dorian began carefully.“Leave us,” Cassian said.Dorian hesitated.Then obeyed.Silence fell.Cassian moved toward the opposite side of the room.Distance.Again.Ava felt it instantly.The bond tightened.Not violently.But insistently.“Stop doing that,” she snapped.He didn’t turn.“Doing what?”“Walking away like I’m not standing here.”His shoulders stiffened.“I am preventing further instability.”She stared at his back.“Instability?” Her voice rose. “I woke up in a house full of wolves. A man just inspected me like livestock. And you won’t even look at me.”He inhaled slowly.Controlled.“You are safer here than anywhere else.”“I don’t even know what ‘here’ is!”He turned then.Finally.His eyes were colder than before.“This is my territory.”“That doesn’t explain anything.”The bond pulsed.Sharp.He took a step toward the door.Her chest tightened.He made it two ste

The house was too quiet. Not peaceful. Watching. Ava stood at the edge of the hallway, listening. Not for footsteps. For absence. No laughter. No low male voices. No restless pacing of wolves beneath the surface. Cassian was gone. She felt it. The bond wasn’t sharp, but it tugged faintly in a direction—deeper into the territory. Far enough. This was her chance. If she stayed— He could mark her. If he didn’t— The Council would decide. Neither option promised safety. And happiness? That wasn’t even on the table. This wasn’t her world. This wasn’t her fight. And yet she had been dragged into it. She moved quietly down the corridor. The torches had burned low, casting thin, trembling shadows along the stone walls. Weapons lined the space—swords, axes, spears. Not decoration. Preparation. This wasn’t a house. It was a fortress. Each step echoed too loudly against the stone floor. Her pulse matched the rhythm—quick, sharp, determined. She stopped at the end of t

The courtyard filled before the sun fully cleared the horizon.They came in silence.Warriors. Elders. Hunters.The air carried the sharp scent of tension and restrained instinct. Wolves stood too close to the surface—eyes brighter, shoulders tighter, breaths slower.Ava stood beside Cassian at the center of the stone clearing.Not behind him.Not hidden.Beside.That alone sent a ripple through the pack.The Council sat elevated on the stone steps overlooking the courtyard. Three figures, still and watchful.Judges.The eldest spoke first.“Alpha.”Cassian did not bow.“I am present.”“You requested one night.”“I did.”“And now you will decide.”The words rang clearly across the courtyard.Ava felt every gaze shift to her.She did not lower her eyes.The bond pulsed between her and Cassian—no longer frantic, but tight. Expectant.“You felt the destabilization,” the elder continued. “The curse reacted.”Cassian’s voice remained steady.“Yes.”“And you know the consequences of delay.”