Page 45 of The Alpha's Fated Destiny

The headache is getting worse, and I gasp forair.

Stumbling to my feet, my feet, slipping in my own vomit, I look for a way out. The only light in this place is coming through the cracks in the straw roof. The moonlight reveals a bare room with a mat on which I had been lying. Aside from that, there are afew pots and pans placed in a corner.

How did I end up here?

Gripping my head, I try to remember.

The village. The old women.

I was eating that beef stew. I was so tired.

After that, nothing.

Did I pass out? Did Alex bring me here?

But I can’t catch even a whiff of his scent in this place. Why would he leave me here by myself?

Using the mud wall for support, I stagger toward the entrance. But before I can reach it, I hear footsteps and the cloth covering the entrance parts. One of the village women enters and she looks pleasantly surprised. "Oh, you're awake."

"I…"

She doesn't seem alarmed at my being awake. Maybe I really did just pass out. I have been so tired lately.

"Where's Alex?"

"Alex?" She sounds genuinely confused.

"My mate. Where is he? Why was I alone here?"

"Oh, that young man who was with you?" The woman beams. "He went out to hunt for us. Oh dear! Have you been ill?"

She's looking at the vomit on the ground, her eyes sympathetic. "The stew mustn't have agreed with you. Come along. I'll make you some tea. It will soothe your stomach."

Confused, I let her take me out of the hut, her hand around mine.

"What time is it?" My brain is a little foggy. I have a hard time comprehending the situation. "How long have I been out for?"

"A few hours," the woman responds with a soft smile. "You must have been very tired."

"But Alex…why didn't Alex stay with me?"

Her laughter is gentle. "We put your young man to work. We so rarely get able-bodied men around here, and he was more than willing to help."

Her words make sense to me, but my wolf is not satisfied. Alex wouldn't have left me by myself, not with everything going on. I know my mate.

So why did he leave me alone?

I don't know why I'm so hyper-fixated on the fact that I woke up alone in the hut. Was I always this clingy? Is that what's happening?

My wolf seems on edge.

The woman guides me to the same hut where we had our meal. As I enter, I look up.

The moon is high up in the sky. But that is not what I’m focusing on. I’ve spent enough nights under the sky to know how late it is. When we had arrived at this village, the sun had not yet set. It is past midnight. Why would Alex be hunting at this time of night?

The woman helps me sit down on the mat and then begins boiling some water. “I never expected the Silver Wolf to arrive in our village."

I start at her words. “You know what I am?”

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