ALFRED POV

The moment Hanni was led away, I was filled with deep hollow silence. Geo whined as her sweet scent of wild strawberries and rain was swallowed by the night—and it was replaced by Mira’s cloying sugary perfume.

“What do you want, Mira?” I bit out, sharper than intended. Now that I had found my mate, every other she wolf felt like a ghost.

But Mira has been my loyal bedmate for two years now…..I love exploring ….but she can hit good.

So I decided to keep her. Until now.

“Alfred” she purred, using the tips of her fingers to circle me up.

You devil!

I caught her wrist firmly. “It is Alpha to you. That is the last time I will remind you.”

Her confidence faded for a second before she pressed her body against mine. “I missed you.”

This ends now. “We are done, Mira. I have found my mate. Do not approach me like this again.” I released her hand, letting the full weight of my Alpha aura press down on her. She bowed her head with fear and dropped her eyes to the ground.

“Y-yes, Alpha,” she whispered.

I turned my back on her without another word. My mind was already elsewhere.

‘Andre. Where is she?’ I mind-linked.

‘In your chambers, Alpha. Secure.’

Hanni. My mate. She wasn’t the polished, shiny beauty I was used to, but something about her—the wide, bright, fearful eyes, the stubborn set of her jaw—had Geo prowling in my soul with a sense of rightness I had ever known. ‘Ours,’ he rumbled.

I opened my door silently to see her dancing around the room and I couldn’t hold a chuckle which made her turn, and looked at me with surprise on her face, and I was once again struck by the startling blue eyes.

“Get in,” I commanded the serving girls. “Help her get ready. Don’t keep me waiting.” I left before the sight of her in my space will shatter me completely.

I had barely taken two steps when Andre’s voice, tight with tension, echoed in mind. ‘Alpha. Third wing. Now.’

I was at his side in seconds. “Report.”

“Poisoning. South side. We have lost two. Fifteen more are fading fast.”

The word hit me hard like a physical blow. “Poison? How?”

“Unknown. They just started collapsing, clutching their stomachs. No visible marks. It is…efficient.” Andre adjusted his glasses, which was a known sign of his own stress. “Seventeen wolves, Alfred. This is no accident.”

He was right. This was an attack. My first thought was of the spy we had executed in the tournament. Was this a retaliation? My blood ran cold, then hot with a fresh wave of rage. My pack was under attack, and my mate was a vulnerable, unknown person in my chambers.

“Give them everything we have. I want answers by sunrise.” I ordered with a growl. The Alpha in me was at war with the man. My place was here, investigating, but my entire being was screaming to return to her.

“Yes Alpha” he replied “have you seen your mate?”

Shit! Dinner! I had been occupied with the pack’s issue and I forgot about dinner.

Has she eaten? Is she up waiting for me?

“I need to go” I said to my beta and his lips moved but I didn’t hear what he said because I had left there.

I stormed into the dining hall to find the servants clearing the untouched food. “Was my guest here?” I demanded.

“No Alpha, we didn’t see her” The head maid replied with her head bowed.

A fresh different kind of fear spiked through me, then I hurried down the stairs two at a time

I found her asleep on my bed, with a book clutched in her hand. She was wearing that damned black lace I had bought for Mira—the sight that should have been arousing but instead, it sent a protective fury through me. Who gave her that? The delicate straps brought out her fragile form, the pale skin of her breasts rising and falling with each steady breath.

“I dragged a hand over my face to force a calm I didn’t feel. I sat in the shadows, letting the sight of her soothe the raging storm inside me. She was safe. That was what mattered.

I hate to wake her for I know she will be tired, but she needs to eat.

“ You must be so tired.”

**************

“A…Alpha?” She called out softly, her voice laced with sleep.

I sighed, stood up and walked towards her and getting lost in her deep blue eyes.

“I’m sorry, I woke you. I was expecting you down for dinner but as I didn’t see you, I decided to come check up on you only to find you asleep.” I said softly. The lie was easier than explaining the chaos threatening my pack.

“Oh” she said, sitting up “ I didn’t mean to fall asleep, it just happened.”

“It’s fine sweetling” I said smiling, couldn’t get enough of her eyes, “but you must have something to eat, I promised you a hot meal and a warm bed, remember?”

Without waiting for her reply, I gestured to the serving girl standing silently in the shadows by the door to go bring in some food. She bowed and left immediately.

As my eyes trailed down her body, I noticed every feature, every candy her small hands couldn’t hide, for she had used her hands to cover her exposed breasts. My heart filled with longing, decided to work overtime to dissuade my brain and Geo from claiming her this instant….but my crotch was out of control, always behaving solo and having a mind of its own, decided to announce it’s presence.

With all my willpower, I walked to my wardrobe, picked out a shirt for her and took deep breaths to calm the storm raging within me.

The moment our fingers brushed as she took it, a jolt of electricity sealed us in a silent, charged minute. My mate. Here. Real. After years of believing I was cursed to be alone, the reality of her here was almost painful.

She looked so delicate wrapped in my shirt, swimming on my scent. I saw her eyes trace the scars on my chest, and a different kind of heat flared within me—pride. Let her see the marks of my survival. Let her know the strength of the wolf who would now protect her.

“Alpha.”

We were both jolted back to consciousness by the serving girl who had returned with dinner.

“Come in” I ordered and she scurried in with the food, dropped it beside her and left immediately.

I carried the tray and removed the bones and cut the streak into tiny chewable pieces and handed it to her.

I watched her eat with gusto and my heart bled at the sight for it looks like she had been starved and I was filled with a dark animalistic need to protect her. Someone had failed to care for her. I would not.

But first, I need to know who she is and what type of danger I am dealing with here.

Soon, she finished her meal and the servant carried her dishes hurriedly, she then looked at me with eyes that sparked questions and uncertainty, but I decided to go first.

‘Now, sweetling,” I began as the Alpha and the man finally came to agreement. “Tell me who you are, and what….or who….you are running from.”