Chapter Six
1366 Words
Duncan
Present Day: 1784
Her eyes said it all. She recognized me as her mate, and my heart was jumping up and down inside my chest. Nervousness and excitement ran through my veins as I hoped she would turn out to belong to me when we came of age.
My trip to the hunting grounds was a successful one; the pack brought several of our food and the maidens were already preparing, cutting, and putting them away in their storage area.
“Hello, Duncan,” she greeted me as I pulled the flowers from my back, handing them to her as a birthday present.
“Sorry is nothing fancier, but we hadn’t had the time to stop and shop. We came straight home, and on the way, I saw these daisies. I thought you might like them,” I mentioned while I gazed at her taking in the scent of the wildflowers from the woods.
“They’re lovely.” She smiled. “Olivia?”
“Yes, your highness?” Her maiden approached her, bowing to her as she waited for further instructions.
“Why don’t you put these in a vase, put water, and take them to my chambers,” Ella ordered with such kindness, it was hard to dislike her. She was tough and ready to rule the pack, but she also had a soft heart for those who deserved it.
“Of course. Excuse me.” Olivia headed through the ballroom doorway and up the stairs while Ella extended her hand towards me.
“Shall we dance?” she asked, batting her eyes at me, making me chuckle.
“Of course.” I took her hand and kissed her knuckles. “Although, I should have been the one to invite you to the dance floor.”
She rolled her eyes and giggled, leading me towards the middle of the ballroom, my hand quickly on her waist while the other one held hers, her arm made its way to my neck.
As we glided through the door, twirling and laughing, the rest of the guests were watching us with glee, a few men raising their champagne glasses at me, and women swooning over us, fanning themselves with their fancy fans.
“Azandra is purring inside me. Silly one,” she mentioned, her cheeks turning into a light shade of pink, coloring the skin and making her even more beautiful.
“Well, Lyell is doing the same.”
“Lyell? You finally gave him a name?”
I shrugged my shoulders.
“He chose it. According to him, I was taking too long. But he took forever to actually appear.”
“Yes. Just last year, right?” She asked, feeling sympathy.
“But, I have him. So that’s good. Daviana also has hers, and she couldn’t be any happier. She called her Lovetta.” I chuckled and smiled at her, shyly.
For someone as strong and as brave, and the future Beta of this pack, being in front of my mate was suddenly making me self-conscious. How can an Alpha be paired with her Beta, and how would this work, knowing I don’t come with a title?
“Stop thinking too much. There’s a reason why we were paired, and all before the annual mating ceremony. At least we didn’t have to run with other wolves.” She leaned against my ear and whispered. “We can run together, just us, under the moon without anyone interrupting us.”
I chuckled as my eyes met our Alpha’s across the room; his watchful eye was something to consider. Even if we were paired by the Moon Goddess.
“I think we should properly court. Your father wouldn’t like the idea of us just running away without his consent.”
“Duncan. Are you afraid of my father?” she teased, batting her eyes at me.
“No. I respect him, just as I respect you, your highness.”
Ella smirked, turning to face her father who nodded in approval, bringing relief to my heart. “I think that’s our cue.” She smiled, pulling me by the hand and taking me outdoors, where the moon was shining down on us as if leading our path through the trees.
“Ready?” she asked, giddy with excitement.
“If you are,” I replied, heading towards a tree to undress. I didn’t want to show her my nakedness out of respect, even if everyone in the pack had seen her before, especially four years ago when she fought her father to prove herself to him.
As I took my undergarment off, I heard her bones snapping and crushing, hinting that she was already shifting to her powerful black Lycan; my wolf couldn’t compare to her.
‘What are you waiting for?’ Lyell asked. ‘I want to take over.’
“I don’t think that’s a good idea. I’ll dress now.” But Lyell wasn’t having it, and without consent, he started to shift, taking over my body as he made his way towards Azandra.
Both wolves stared at each other, eyes bright and full of excitement. Azandra leaned over, caressed Lyell’s fur, and nuzzled him, letting out a loud, frightening howl to share how happy she was.
Before Lyell could respond, she took off into the trees, the shadow of her silhouette disappearing into the darkness of the woods, the moonlight following her steps, trying to catch up to her.
Lyell followed, growling and howling as he tried to get closer to her. But her speed was a huge disadvantage for him, and before he knew it, he had lost her. Lifting his snout into the air, he tried to scent her, feeling overwhelmed.
Then, the eerie silence, followed by a dark shadow falling over me from the tree. Her big, green eyes glowed as she purred.
‘Gotcha.’ She whispered on our mind link. ‘You lose.’
‘Of course, I lose. You’re three times my size.’ Lyell replied as she pulled back, her paw running across our body as soon as Lyell stood straight, shaking off the leaves and grass from his fur.
‘Your wolf is stunning,’ she expressed, baring her teeth in a soft smile. I felt elated and my heart couldn’t take it anymore. She truly belonged to me, and we were meant to be together.
‘We should go back,’ I mentioned just as we heard rustling, a loud cackle echoed in the darkness, making the hair of my wolf’s back rise in alert.
Without wasting time, we ran back to the packhouse; a shadowy figure swiftly ran from the distance, getting closer to us. We were suddenly out of pack lands, but as soon as we reached the border, the figure stopped, paced back and forth, and let out a shrilling scream.
“She’s back. Again?” I hadn’t noticed Azandra shifted back to her human form, picking up her dress and only covering her front as she rushed into the packhouse. I did as proper and got dressed, staring in the distance where a pair of glowing orbs stared straight at me.
Four years later, the witch was back. How did she escape the dragon king from the mountains?
As I made it inside the pack, Alpha Ezra was already ordering his warriors to stand guard and make rounds in the woods. They didn’t hesitate, and my father was already leading them towards the pack borders.
“Father!” I called, rushing to his side. “You can’t go there.”
“I have to, Son. It’s my duty as the Beta.”
“But you’re about to retire. I can’t risk losing you now. She seems too dangerous, now more than ever. That monster doesn’t seem to give up.”
He set his hand on my shoulders and showed me a reassuring smile.
“I will be fine. Stay here and watch over the packhouse. Your mother and your sister need you, and so does Ella.”
I tried to protest, but he was long gone, the pack warriors following him as the rest of the guests were led to a safe room.
“Be careful, Father.”
- Writer
