Page 6 of Bound By My Alpha Mate

I nodded and followed David down a tunnel, going deeper into the mine. My father had become so unpredictable that any rapid movement he made could be coming from a violent place. My trust in him had withered long ago, but if I wanted to keep living and uphold the Hexen legacy, I had to do as he said. I had to abandon Billie and Aislin. And, for the sake of proving myself strong enough, I would hunt this Kiara girl and deliver her to my father.

The tunnel opened back up into another large room. Before the mine had been converted into a largescale industrial operation, it had been excavated by hand, and this room was the furthest they had gone in search of silver ore. Veins of gleaming white metal still striated through the stone. Illuminated by lanterns were five people, four of whom—including one heavily pregnant, blond woman—were standing and talking quietly among themselves. The fifth person was a silver-haired woman sitting on the rocky ground; around her wrists were handcuffs that were attached to a thick cable, which was fastened to metal hooks driven into the rock.

Muriel raised her eyes, her skin scuffed with dirt and bruises. She looked right at me, like she already knew what had transpired.

David sneered. “Seems you’ll have company soon, unicorn.”

Her gaze shifted to my father. Then, she paled, realizing what he meant. “No…”

Lothair and Sibyelle withdrew from their conversation with the others to join David and me as we approached Muriel.

“Yes,” gloated David. “Your daughter Kiara has arrived in Dalesbloom.”

Chapter 5

Kiara

Despite all my instincts screaming at me not to get into a car with Sebastian Hicks of Mythguard, I did it anyway. He gave me a pair of grey sweatpants and a black sweater to wear, and when I demanded he arm me for my own reassurance, he reluctantly gave me a small knife to hold onto. I wanted a handgun. He refused. That was fine—I knew how to wield a knife well enough.

Sitting in the backseat of the SUV, my muscles were stiff with anticipation of an inevitable betrayal. I expected to be locked inside this vehicle, handcuffed and blindfolded, and taken somewhere far away. Any sudden movement from the humans sitting around me yielded a sharp look from me, my fingers tight around the handle of the knife. We drove through the town of Eastpeak, then hit the perimeter. It took all my strength not to question over and over again where we were going.

My silence rewarded me with the enigmatic demeanor I’d been trying to uphold, keeping the humans at bay since they didn’t know how to read me. Good.

We pulled up to a large home in white stone and sharp angles that was built into the mountainside. A grey car that would have looked expensive were it not riddled with scratches and dents was parked in the driveway. I waited patiently for Sebastian to get out of the SUV and open the door for me, fighting the urge to flee back into the trees once my feet hit the ground. The late afternoon sunlight was soothing on my face. I closed my eyes and breathed in, then looked toward the front door of the house, which had opened to reveal a huge man with dirty blond hair pulled back in a bun. He stared past everyone right at me. I bristled, feeling his threat and knowing immediately what role he played in the wolf packs here. He was an Alpha.

“Come,” Sebastian quietly urged me.

Knife in hand, I approached the front door while the Alpha and a red-haired woman stepped outside to greet us. The female looked at me in wonder, then smiled in a way that showed her teeth, while her Alpha companion looked on in total stoicism. I matched his cold expression, hesitant to accept the warmth of the woman’s gesture.

“Everett,” Sebastian began, “this is Kiara Vale. Apologies for pulling you out of Grandbay for this, but I figured it might be less stressful on everyone to introduce you in a more intimate setting.”

“Welcome to Eastpeak. I’m Everett March, Alpha of the Eastpeak Pack, and this is my mate, Aislin Mundy. I take it your search for your mother, Muriel, has led you here?” said Everett.

I nodded once.

Everett extended his hand. I thought he was going for a handshake, but it was just to usher me through the door. “Come inside. I’m sure you must be tired from your travels.”

He was right, but I wasn’t about to admit it.

I followed Sebastian into the house. The other humans stayed outside, guarding the premises. In the massive living room with bare white walls and a cool grey floor, I was shown to a seat on a grey couch while Aislin flitted off to another room. Sebastian and Everett stood on the other side of the coffee table from me.

“It’s a relief that we found you before the Inkscales,” said Sebastian. “After we detected you close to Dalesbloom territory, we worried that they would capture you in addition to Muriel.”

“They almost caught me,” I replied coolly.

“How and when?” asked Everett.

I looked between the two men. “Last night, I came across them. The dragons chased me for hours. I only escaped by tumbling off a cliff,” I said, feeling their eyes drawn to the healed gash on my temple. “Then I crossed paths with a wolf—a black wolf with blue eyes. He attacked me, too.”

Sebastian and Everett exchanged glances.

“That bastard!” Aislin exclaimed from the far end of the room. She had a glass of water in one hand and a bowl of salad in the other. Visibly angry, she stormed toward me, but I knew her anger wasn’t directed at me when she gently placed the food and drink before me. “That wolf was probably Colt,” she said. “Did he hurt you?”

“No.” I picked up the glass of water and drank. The cold sensation in my throat stirred my stomach into hunger, reminding me that I hadn’t eaten in a while. My attention was drawn to the salad, with its spinach, kale, cherry tomatoes, and cucumbers. Between mouthfuls, I didn’t bother looking up at them, but I kept my knife in one hand. “Tell me how my mother got captured.”

Everett sighed. “She had been under the care of another wolf pack: our neighbors, Grandbay. For about a month, they’d been protecting her from the wolves whose territory you were found near. Dalesbloom. The Alpha there, David Hexen, formed an alliance with the Inkscales, and during that month, he launched increasingly violent attacks against Grandbay and Eastpeak. Many of our wolves have been killed.” The stoic Alpha frowned now, his voice darkening as he spoke of the tragedies he and his companions had endured. “About a week and a half ago, they invaded Aislin’s parents’ home, where your mother was staying. They killed Aislin’s father and stole Muriel.”

I finally raised my eyes at the conclusion of his story. “Between your two wolf packs, you weren’t able to protect her?”

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