Page 61 of Marked By the Alphas

“I think I need to retire for the night. I feel exhausted,” I confessed, and he nodded in understanding, signaling for Pierre who was guarding me.

“Take her home and make sure she’s safe,” he instructed the guard.

Naya offered to follow me back, and I was grateful for the company.

“Thank you, Pierre. Please feel free to return to the ceremony. I wouldn’t want you to miss out on all the food, drinks, and entertainment. I’m sure I’ll be safe here with the guards already in place.” I dismissed Pierre the moment we got to the house,feeling bad that he had to be taken away from the grand ceremony because I had chosen to leave early.

“That was such a powerful ceremony. I couldn’t hold in my tears. Do I have to call you Luna Elara now?” she asked as we moved up the stairs once we got home, and I laughed.

“Don’t be weird, Naya. You don’t have to do that,” I said, but she simply shrugged.

“I’ll do it anyway. It sounds so fun,” she replied, and I laughed again.

Naya helped me undress and take my makeup off the moment I got back into the room, and although the dress was beautiful, I was happy to slip into my pajamas and get under the warm covers.

“Goodnight, Luna. Sweet dreams,” Naya called playfully, and I rolled my eyes at her antics, reaching by the head of the bed to turn the lights off before closing my eyes and letting sleep take over.

I woke up to the sensation of eyes on me. The room was enveloped in darkness, and I blinked, hoping to see better. My eyes slowly began adjusting to the darkness.

A figure emerged from the shadows, its shape indistinct in the dark room, and fear, cold and sharp, clawed its way up my spine when the figure began moving in my direction.

Chapter 31

Rowan

“Why do you look so tense?” Rhys had said to me earlier when we had been organizing the event, and I had shrugged my shoulders because I couldn’t explain it either.

From the moment we had begun organizing, a restless unease had gnawed relentlessly at me. I knew that security was paramount, and I had spent countless hours meticulously planning every detail with my team.

Every guard was handpicked, every precaution meticulously considered. I had gone out of my way to go through the expected members list that were set to attend over and over again, until I was satisfied by those that were supposed to be in attendance. Yet, a nagging sense of impending doom clung to me, and I still couldn’t tell where it was coming from.

The feast was now in full swing and so far, everything had been going really well. The mating ceremony had been more than perfect and the exhilaration that I felt from it was still buzzing in my veins. I felt like the happiest man alive and everything seemed to be going according to plan.

“Congratulations Alpha Rowan, that was such a beautiful ceremony, and this feast is one of the best I’ve attended in a while,” Freya said to me, stopping me as I moved through the crowd in an attempt to interact with the pack members.

“Thank you very much, Freya. I’m glad you’re enjoying yourself,” I said to the smaller woman, offering her a smile before walking away.

“There’s the man I’ve been looking for!” Ekon exclaimed when I walked by him, and I accepted the hug that he engulfed me in.

“Congratulations man, that ceremony was so beautiful,” he complimented me, and I laughed at his excitement.

“Thank you so much. Thank you for also keeping order and making sure the security was tight,” I said to him.

“That’s my job, man. Everything has been going smoothly so far. I think everyone’s a little too happy and full to be causing any trouble anyway, but I’m still on the lookout. The alcohol is running out fast and you know…” he was still talking when I caught a whiff of something familiar.

Honeysuckle and plum.

The scent caused a shiver to run down my spine. Scarlett. How was it possible? She should not have been able to even enter this place.

My heart pounded in my chest as I scanned the crowd, my senses honed in on her unique fragrance. I tried to search desperately, my gaze sweeping across the crowd, but she was gone. Her scent had vanished as quickly as it had appeared, and it made me even question whether or not she had been here.

“Are you okay, man? What are you looking for?” Ekon asked, snapping me back to reality.

“Yeah of course. Just keep an eye out for any unusual activity and make sure that security remains tight,” I told him, patting his shoulder before walking away.

A wave of frustration washed over me at the thought that Scarlett could be roaming within this hall. I wasn’t completely sure of what damage she could cause, but she wasn’t invited and the thought that she was here regardless of that worried me to the very core. Plus, she had brought chaos and destruction to the pack once. Who was to say that she couldn’t do it again?

Regret filled me when I realized that I had let her slip through my fingers once before. I should have just killed her the last time that I encountered her, but I had been so taken aback by the news of Elara being a Siren that I had let her go. I headed back up to the stage, trying to immerse myself in the ongoing festivities, to appear calm and collected, but the presence of Scarlett was a gaping hole in my consciousness. It brought back the unease that I had felt earlier in the day.

---