Page 19 of Fated Alpha Protector

It’s the first time I’ve seen the lavish gardens in broad daylight.

The pretty jasmine field behind the house leads up to the pine trees at the ingress of the woods. Sprinkled with sunflowers and daisies all around – it’s a picturesque scene meant for an artist’s canvas.

Beyond the woods, the valley between the mountains opens up a waterfall with an everlasting flow of spring water. Mesmerized, I find myself staring for a long moment before Anastasia distracts me.

“Don’t get too caught up in the view, Mia!” she giggles as she slides a hand through my arm. “You should see this place at night!”

“I’d love to,” I muse with a glance over my shoulder.

Anastasia and I take a walk around town as she shows me to the local library. Once there, I discover that the girl is as much a bookworm as I am, picking up a pile of books she intends to take home.

Once we’re done there, we end up at the market where fresh produce is being sold. I must admit, our day serves as a much-needed distraction from thoughts about Alpha Theo. I only appear to be excited while deep down, I keep wondering what went wrong.

And why he wasn’t there beside me this morning.

“Mia?” Anastasia calls for my attention when we’re in front of a strawberry stand.

I must have drifted off into my thoughts, but I snap my attention back to her. Planting a smile on my face, I pick a basket of strawberries. “Wow!” I chime appreciatively. “These are gorgeous!”

From my periphery, I notice a frown flit across Anastasia’s face. I don’t dwell on it, and soon it passes. It’s not like I can explain her mood changes.

I find something else to distract myself with. The market’s huge variety of the richest and freshest fruit is surprising, considering where I’m from.

It’s not like Blackclaw ever cared to fill the fields with crops to benefit the pack.

“So Overton is self-sufficient?” I wonder out loud as I bite into a juicy strawberry.

“Pretty much,” Anastasia reveals as she grabs a strawberry from the basket. “Why do I get the feeling that all of this is new to you?”

“Because it is,” I scoff. “Where I’m from, the Alpha couldn’t care less about…” I gesture around us, “... All of this.”

It’s true. Cyrus Savage would never care about building filtration systems from the natural springs to distribute water to the houses. Or growing crops to feed the pack members and fill their fridges.

“Woah…” Anastasia’s eyes grow wide. “He sounds great.”

“He is,” I sneer sarcastically. He’s as great as any Alpha who would allow his pack members to bully an Omega for their rank. Or because she’s an orphan.

I’m just glad I’m not there anymore. Even if I’m not sure how long my time will last in the Nightwalker Pack. After falling victim to the Alpha’s charms, it’s probably only a matter of time before he kicks me out.

The steep incline of the path brings us over a hill. At the bottom is a large oval building made of steel frames, missing a canopy.

“What’s that?” I ask Anastasia, hanging on the tip of the hill.

“That’s the training arena,” she informs me. “It’s where we train our wolves. Come on,” she calls me forward with a nod toward the huge white structure.

As we near the training arena, the sound of growls and whimpers becomes evident in the air. Shuffling steps and clinking metal resounds within the metal structure of the arena. My curiosity is piqued by the commotion inside, and a flood of laughter rings out.

I can’t help but smile as we go closer. Even Anastasia throws a smile over her shoulder, beckoning me closer.

“Come closer,” Anastasia waves me over, pointing to a window. Reaching up on my tiptoes, I peep through the parted window when I see the Nightwalker Pack members spread out in the arena.

Those in wolf form are in a fighting ring, while those in human form are either hooked to machines or sparring with swords.

“What are the swords for?” I ask in shock. I’d never seen werewolves fighting with swords before.

“In case we’re fighting vamps,” Anastasia giggles, but there’s something rather serious about her statement. That’s when I remember Theo mentioning something about an alliance with Blackclaw.

Perhaps there’s a war on the horizon…

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