Page 23 of The Alpha's Reclaimed Mate

He stepped closer, sniffing at my wounds.“That was incredibly brave of you,”said Luke.“But I suppose I should expect nothing less from the Alpha Female of the Grey Creek Pack.”

I withdrew from him, hesitating to reply. He must not have heard about how terribly my mating ceremony went.

Fortunately, Luke continued to speak before I could.“Thanks for your help. Two wolves, I can handle with ease. But three wolves—fighting as savagely as they were—I don’t know how much longer I could have lasted on my own.”

“Why were they attacking you?”

He twitched an ear.“I don’t know. I was just patrolling, and they came out of nowhere.”

That was troubling. I walked up to the pool of blood one of the wolves left behind, testing the scent, but I couldn’t recognize which pack they had come from. They weren’t from the Grey Creek, Moonstone, Crescent Moon, or Silent Shadow packs. Did that mean we had Rogues crawling through our territory, stealing our food, and causing trouble? I frowned at the thought. Somebody would have to tell Oswald.

I wondered, were these the same rogues that had injured Mara?

My face and ear throbbed, distracting me. Not only did I have pain in my heart, but now I had pain screeching through my entire body. I didn’t want to admit to Luke that I’d never become the Alpha Female, so without looking back at him, I made for the trees.

“Wait,”he called behind me.“You’re bleeding.”

A cold sweat rushed through me.“I know.”

“I don’t want you attracting those Rogues if you go off on your own. Let me accompany you back to your pack,”offered Luke, his pawsteps trailing up behind me.

The thought of spending even more time with him made me bristle. Under no circumstances could I admit to what had happened to me… everything I’d lost… I didn’t want him to judge me the same way everybody else did.“No,”I insisted.“I’ll be fine.”

He shook his head, looking over my wounds.“I can’t in good conscience let you go alone. You know it’s dangerous for a female shifter to travel alone in your condition—especially an Alpha Female. As great of a fighter as you are, even you can’t hold your own against three rogues… Maybe more.”

Did he really think I was a great fighter? I quickly smothered the embers that arose in me.“I’m not going back to the pack,”I mumbled.

“Why not?”

I couldn’t tell him the truth. My tongue and heart both felt heavy.“I’m… hunting. It’s easier if I just stay out here.”

Luke tilted his head, regarding me with skepticism, but I didn’t have the energy to defend myself any longer. I wasn’t even planning on sleeping out here, but I had to commit to the lie, or else Luke would find out that I’d been kicked out of the Lodge. I met his eyes for a split second, then looked away, continuing my trek into the trees.

He didn’t say anything or try to stop me after that. Maybe he sensed that something was wrong. No matter how hard I tried to hide it, the hurt from Oswald and my family’s rejection always seemed to bleed through.

The night seemed darker now after the fight. Clouds had rolled in, blocking the moon and turning the forest pitch black. Pain was ever present, but I was glad the Rogues hadn’t crippled me; my ear and the cut on my muzzle would heal. The further I walked, the more exhausted my pain and hunger made me until finally, I’d found a hole beneath a cluster of tree roots. Being protected by the roots, it was probably the best place I’d be able to find. I crawled into the hole and curled up, hiding my nose under my tail. Hunger gnawed a hole in my stomach, and loneliness clawed at me.

I ached to snuggle up with someone, for just a hint of compassion in the aftermath of the fight, for someone to clean my wounds and hug me and tell me I’d done well. Instead, I was alone. Truly alone, for the first time in my life, spending the night far from the villa in the middle of the wilderness. It struck me more intensely than I expected it to. My throat hurt from the emotional lump. I squeezed my eyes shut, blocking out those thoughts until sleep whisked me away.

A twig snapped.

My eyes flew open, taking in the forest dimly lit in the colours of pre-dawn. As my vision focused, I just barely saw a dark body lumbering between the trees, its back to me as it walked away. I raised my head and squinted.

Seconds later, a warm, coppery smell hit my nose. Nearby was the bloodied carcass of the deer I had been tracking last night.

Alarm bells went off in my head a second time. I fumbled to my feet, crawling out of the hole and toward the freshly killed deer. Luke’s scent was all over it. He must have just killed it an hour ago. I looked back into the forest, where I saw him walking, but by now, he had merged into the shadows, disappearing out of sight. It wasn’t just the deer, but the entire clearing was saturated in his scent.

Had he stayed all night, watching over me?

As much as I wanted to chase him down and tell him to take the deer back to his own pack, my hunger convinced me otherwise. My stomach growled in protest, and I salivated, just looking at the still-warm carcass. Unable to resist, I tore into the deer. My body was rewarded with the satisfaction of a feast. It was the best-tasting deer I’d ever had. Though it would have tasted better if I caught it myself.

I knew then that I’d have to repay Luke, not just for the rabbit he caught for me before or the deer he left me just now, but for the fact that he had stayed and kept guard over me. He didn’t have to, but he made sure I was safe nonetheless. And I appreciated that.

Next time I saw him I’d tell him the truth.

But before that… I had to warn Oswald about the Rogues.

Chapter 10: Aria

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