Page 34 of The Alpha's Forced Rejected Mate
Something was different.
The burning sensation that usually accompanied the magical suppression cuffs in her short time wearing them was notably absent now. Instead of the searing pain she’d experienced when Dominic first captured her, there was only a dull pressure.
The ritual changed a lot.
Closing her eyes, Luna focused on the warm current of magic flowing through her. Her power seemed to pulse steadily, not dampened by the cuffs at all.
She watched as tiny sparks of golden light danced between her fingers when she concentrated.
I could leave right now.
The thought was tempting. She could unlock the cuffs, walk out the door, and disappear into the night. She’d become quite good at vanishing without a trace.
She had the experience.
But escape now would be shortsighted.
If she ran, what would happen to the next witch they captured? And the one after that?
It was not her business, but she couldn’t help herself. She chuckled, remembering that it was not minding her business that got her in this situation in the first place.
The memory of Xavier’s true form sent a shiver down her spine. Demons had infiltrated the Hunter Organization at the highest level.
Luna glanced around the spartan cabin. Dominic’s living quarters were militaristic in their simplicity—a bed with plain gray bedding, a small desk with a chair, a wooden chest at the foot of the bed, the kitchenette on the other side and a narrow door that led to what she assumed was a bathroom.
Was he always this cold, or was it the demonic influence?
She remembered the boy she’d known—serious, yes, but with a warmth in his gray eyes that had made her heart flutter whenever he looked her way. That warmth had vanished the night he rejected her, replaced by a cruel indifference that had haunted her for years.
She couldn’t afford to feel sorry for him. Not now.
With a deep breath, Luna closed her eyes again, concentrating on the cuffs. She whispered a simple unlocking spell, one of the first she’d mastered after discovering her powers. The metal warmed slightly beneath her touch, then clicked open with a soft snick.
Luna rubbed her wrist, eyeing the door warily. If Dominic returned and found her free, she’d have explaining to do. But she couldn’t sit idle, not when answers might be within reach.
It was his fault for leaving her for so long.
Sliding off the bed, she padded silently across the wooden floor in her bare feet and moved to the desk, carefully shifting through the papers scattered across its surface. She couldn’t find anything that would help her understand the depth of the demonic presence.
The wooden chest at the foot of the bed called to her next. Inside, she found neatly folded clothing—dark tactical gear similar to what Dominic had been wearing, a few plain T-shirts, and several pairs of sturdy pants.
As she closed it, she saw a crack under the floorboards. She used her unlocking spell again with a new variation, and it opened the floor; beneath it lay a small leather-bound book.
Luna’s heart quickened as she lifted it out. The journal was well-worn, its pages yellowed with age. When she opened it, she was surprised to find it wasn’t Dominic’s.
The name “Jonathan Xerxes” was inscribed on the first page, dated nearly twenty years earlier.
She flipped through carefully, scanning entries that detailed hunts and missions similar to those Dominic must undertake now. But as the journal progressed, the writing changed—became more erratic, the handwriting darker, pressed harder into the page.
“Something is changing within me,” one entry read. “My wolf grows more distant each day. The hunger for the hunt consumes my thoughts. Is this what it means to be a true hunter, or is something else at work?”
Luna’s fingers trembled slightly as she continued reading. The entries grew darker, more disturbing as they went on.
“The Council has ordered another binding ceremony. This will be my third witch. I no longer question why we never see them afterward. The less I know, the better I sleep.
“My wolf tried to rise against me today during training. I suppressed it, as Xavier taught me. The beast must be controlled if I am to serve effectively.”
The final entry chilled her to the bone: “I can feel something inside me now, something separate from my wolf. It whispers when I’m alone. It promises power beyond imagining if I continue to serve faithfully. Xavier says this is normal—the evolution of a hunter into something greater. But when I look in the mirror, sometimes I swear my eyes flash red instead of gold.”
