She's The Alpha

Chapter 5: Enemy or Not…

E M B E R

"I don't think you have a say in it, mate."

His eyes suddenly turn dark red, filled with anger and a hint of…hurt.

My eyes glisten and Rayne purrs in my mind.

Oh, my goodness! Doesn't our mate smell good?

My heart skips a beat. Ugh! The sudden urge to disagree makes me break eye contact only to roll my eyes and scoff noisily, and he frowns. "I don't see it that way, sorry." Not sorry, actually.

His grip on my wrist tightens, and I wince as he grits. "What did you say?"

Enemy or not, our mate is hot.

I shut my connection with Rayne since she is annoying me while swooning over our mate and compose myself as I yank his hand off my wrist, slide out, and snap back, "I understand that a mistake has been made, and I ended up in your territory, but it would be better for the both of us if you let me go." I turn around and click my tongue as I look over at him, "Also, of course, I have a say in my life. Who are you to boss me around?"

"Do you even realize what you are saying and where?" He steps forward, and my heart races when I tilt my head and fake a smile. "I apologize for creating a nuisance, so you cannot stop me —" I pause to look back, and he holds my gaze. My face reddens, and my heart thumps, making me realize who he is, and I force myself to look away. I glance towards the door, knowing I need to leave now. So much to Rayne’s dismay, without giving it another thought, I focus on rushing out of the room and walk faster to get out of his piercing gaze on my back. Yeah, where are you going?

I let my legs pick up a pace and waltz out of the place.

Hey! Our mate is inside and probably confused. We should head back and accept — I block Rayne out of my mind again, only to abruptly stop and take a deep breath of relief when I finally find myself out of the mansion and on the big front lawn. s**t. Doubly s**t. Ugh! Why is he my mate? I grimace and groan. Heck no! It can't happen. The Moon Goddess must have made a mistake. She might be a Goddess, but let's face it, everyone makes mistakes, no exception, right? I groan again before raising my head to look at the sky and sigh. What a fine day it seems, from the sunlight to the birdsong, the kind which is so ambient and easy-going to the eyes and skin. What a pleasant, calm setting. An irony, sure, I scoff, given how vicious this pack is. I try to calm down, gather my thoughts, and steady my heart. I almost smile, but the lack of energy and rest take a toll on my tired body, and the fact that the most notorious and handsome of all men is my mate tires me more that I stumble when someone startles me by holding me gently, and calls out in a sweet voice, "Hey, you okay?"

I gasp and jump on my spot as I turn and see Clayton with a concerned expression. I scoff, "Ha— woah, it's you. You scared me."

"Oh, my apologies." He smiles so amicably that it makes me wonder if I hadn't met my mate, I would have melted at his sight. Wouldn't it have been better if this guy was my mate— ugh! Rayne growls at the belief, and I roll my eyes at her. Anyway, why the heck am I even thinking about having a mate? I don't ever want to have a mate. I have a duty towards my pack and my parents, and having a mate or falling in love is just a waste of time for someone like me. It's a distraction, for sure.

I straighten up and force a smile. "It's okay. I should have been aware." After a few moments of silence between us, Rayne glares at me. It makes me feel like it's wrong to even be here with another guy, but who cares? My wolf growls in annoyance. Seriously, Ember. We already have a mate and should be with him rather than being here and even thinking of running away from him. That's when he brings me back to reality by clicking his tongue and saying, "Ooo, I don't know if you remember me or not, but my name's —" I snap my finger and interrupt him, "Clayton, right? You are the Beta."

Clayton nods and briefly frowns quietly, which makes ask him, "What? Am I wrong?"

He blinks and shakes his head. "Oh, nothing. It's just that you are far too calm right now." What? I raise my eyebrows and snort, "Why? Should I panic?"

Wide-eyed, he stares at me and then coughs up, "Oh, I wouldn't want you to panic." He shrugs. "It's just that our reputation in this world precedes us, and we are known to be ruthless killers, especially when it comes to intruders. Everyone fears us, and they easily freak out when they stumble across us, so it's a little surprising that someone like you, a human, isn't freaking out. I mean, wouldn't it be difficult for you to understand that beings other than yours exist — "

He pauses and locks eyes with me as I blurt out, "What?" and then he calmly sighs. "Well, you do seem different than all the other humans."

My heart skips a beat.

No, not because of his words.

Well, partially because of his words.

Has he figured it out? Does he know who we are?

I don't know. I grit and clench my fists behind my back as I cautiously look up at him. I can't let him, or anyone know for the time being. I blink and cough up, "I guess I have been told that I am different, but I don't understand the mate concept the guy inside brought up—" But my eyes widen, and I gasp at my blunder. I got cheeky. I am not supposed to tell anyone that the Alpha of this pack is my mate.

I look back at Clayton, who thankfully looks oblivious for some reason, as I chuckle and wave a hand at him, "Oh, never mind. I don't really understand —" He blinks at me and sighs, "I have known Sebastian my whole life." Hearing our mate's name makes Rayne happy, and my heart skips a beat. I grunt in vexation when he says, "I am used to seeing people chained and tortured in the dungeons, but you seem unafraid and unharmed."

I slowly nod as I try to be a naive, unassuming girl. Thank God, I can still mask my scent. "Dungeons?" I pretend to be in shock, but really, is that fake gasp necessary?

Slightly amused, Clayton nods and scoffs, "Yeah, you came out of the Alpha's office unharmed. That definitely speaks something about you. You —" My heart rate anxiously rises when I blink and cough up, "Oh, don't worry about it. I have always been a fearless child and I can't really stand when someone disrespects me. I am not afraid of anything in this world; not even your cold-blooded leader, meaning your Alpha. Thank God, my qualities stun people, and I save myself from trouble."

I fake a laugh before I compose myself and say, "Anyway," I straighten up and glance around, "I believe it's time for me to go —"

He stutters, "Excuse me? Go where? You are leaving?" Not only does he look surprised, but he also sounds disappointed.

"Yeah, why?" I shrug and mumble as we look up before he sighs. "Well, it's just… It isn't easy for someone to enter our territory and get out like it's child's play."

Oh, I believe you, but, uh, it is child's play.

I force a smile and divert the topic as I scoff, "Midnight Hunters, no offense, but it sounds very childish."

Clayton chuckles and shrugs, "What can I say? Sebastian and I were 18 when we decided on the name." Rayne purrs at our mate's name. "He had an idea of being the most feared person leading the most fearless and ruthless pack in this world."

It looks like he is right up at his goal. I sarcastically grin.

But then, am I not like them? I mean, I did name my pack Crimson Shadow because of the bloody moon that night. Then, Clayton briefs me about werewolves’ hierarchy and the work assigned to them, assuming I am a human and new to their territory. He further says, "Again, I am taken aback by how you are leaving, because letting go of something or someone isn't the kind of thing our Alpha does. That's not the kind of person I know."

I snort, "Maybe your Alpha had a change of heart for once, or I managed to convince him to let me go. It's not like I would come back here." I notice his face fall for a brief moment, but then he shakes his head and scoffs, "It's a little hard to believe since I know Seb, but well, I guess I have to believe you."

We share a look and chuckle together until someone passes by, only to stop arrogantly, interrupting us. "Woah! What are you doing here, Beta?"

Calmly, Clayton turns and says, "Oh, hey, Graham."

Graham steps closer and huffs, "Don't hey me, Clay. What happened to you back then? Shouldn't you abide by the rules of our pack? You always tell me that." He roughly pokes a finger as Clayton smiles through grimacing and subtly glances towards me before he chuckles, "Uh, haha, anyway, what are you doing here? Is your shift over?"

Graham groans and snorts, "I got hungry."

Does he not see me? Well, it's good that he doesn't because he is an annoying fool, but I believe I spoke too soon. Graham growls, "Wait, what the f**k are you doing here?" I look up, and he glares. "What are you staring at, b***h?" He then turns to Clayton. "What is she doing here, unrestrained and not cuffed?" I narrow my eyes, but he continues, "Did she run? Are you taking her here? Would you let me do the honor of letting her throw into the dungeons myself?" He evilly scowls at me. "How dare you run?" He moves closer to me and speaks in a threatening tone. What a kid!

"Have you no fear, b***h? Our Alpha —" Before Clayton can intervene, I step up and smirk. "Ha, I would love to see you try." Graham snarls, "What'd you say?"

Smugly, I taunt him and shrug, "What? Can't you? What a pity."

Graham growls and raises a hand. I don't even flinch, yet Clayton steps between us and grabs his subordinate's hand. "Beta?"

"Grow up, Graham. You don't have to be cocky. Just because the Alpha lets you do whatever you want doesn't mean you get to ill-treat others." Clayton lowers his hand as he reasons with him, but Graham yanks his hand away with a scoff. "Seriously, Clayton, how come you are the Beta when you are this soft in nature?"

Clayton smirks. "I can be cruel when it is required, and right now, this situation isn't it."

Instead, his subordinate steps back but then blurts out aggravatingly, "What's different about this one? She trespassed, and she deserves to be punished."

I roll my eyes and grunt when Clayton unassumingly responds, "Because she is powerless compared to us."