Chapter 3
Chapter 3
Kieran’s POV
“Remind me again why I need to see a rogue?” I asked Caleb, my Beta, my voice sounding tired from being in a meeting all day combined with my Lycan’s restlessness.
“Because you’re the Alpha and we need you to decide what to do with her p>
“What’s there to decide? She’s a rogue. Did she talk?” I asked.
He shook his head. “Not a word. Ryder suggested waiting for you. She was in a bad state when we brought her in p>
I nodded and followed him towards the dungeon. A rogue entering our land wasn’t a new thing. But over the last few years after I became Alpha, their attack became less frequent and I wanted to keep it like that.
As a pack, we took pride in making sure that our members were safe at all times.
“Let’s get this over with.” I thought. Dealing with rogues was definitely my least favorite part of the day.
As I approached the cell, my Lycan grew even more restless. He began to jump and dance around my head in excitement.
“Mate, mate, mate!” he chanted, his voice a low, urgent whisper.
I froze, we didn’t have a mate. “Calm down, King.” I said to my Lycan. “Should I remind you what happened the last time we smelled her p>
I felt him roll his eyes, “it was one time. But this time around, I’m sure she’s the one p>
“What’s going on? Is something wrong?” Caleb asked, noticing the sudden
change in my countenance. I ignored him as I hastened my pace. But he followed closely behind me.
Over the years, I’ve accepted the fact that I didn’t have a mate, having visited several packs to search for her to no avail. It could only mean that the moon goddess was punishing me for something I probably did.
“Mate! Mate needs us.” King said, a sense of urgency in his tone which was rare. We always had things under control.
His tone did nothing to calm me. Instead, I felt a jolt of concern, my mind racing with possibilities. What had happened to our mate? Who had hurt her?
And then, I saw her.
She was sitting in the corner of the cell, her eyes fixed on the floor. She was barely clothed, with only a thin layer of underwear. Her arms wrapped around herself.
King let out a low, rumbling growl, his anger and concern evident. I felt a surge of protectiveness, my instincts screaming at me to defend my mate.
I took a step forward, my eyes locked on hers. She looked up, her gaze meeting mine, and I felt a jolt of recognition.
“Mate.” Her wolf mumbled, sounding weak and my Lycan was ready to snap the neck of whoever put hands on her.
“Where the fuck are her clothes?” I growled, my voice coming out low and menacing. I struggled to keep my Lycan from coming out. The last thing I wanted in this situation was to scare my mate.
“They didn’t know that p>
“Don’t fuck with me, Beta.” King snarled, forcing his way to the surface.
“I’ll have them kept in the dungeon. You take care of her.” He said, showing his neck in submission. If he wasn’t concerned about my mate, we would be addressing how he spoke to us. But he was right, no one but us should be looking at her.
I nodded and he left. I turned to face my mate, who had not moved an inch.
“She’s cold, idiot.” King said, snapping me out of my daze.
Even as tired as she looked, she was stunning. Her curly hair was put in a bun, giving me a clear view of face. She has piercing green eyes that reminds me of the forest…of home.
Taking off my shirt, I draped it around her and I felt her shiver lightly when my hand touched her skin. And fuck if she didn’t look good in them.
She barely weighed anything when I carried her in my arms up the stairs. I had so many questions, but none of them mattered at the moment.
“What’s your name?” I finally asked.
We were in my room, I laid her on the bed while I knelt beside her. I already mind- linked the pack doctor to meet us here and also for the head cook to make something for her.
“Kaia.” She replied, not taking her eyes off me. That pleased, she was my equal and would be treated as one.
“My name is Kieran Blackwell, but you can call me Kieran p>
“What is this? A job interview? You should let me take charge now, you’re embarrassing us.” King mocked.
“Shut up p>
I gave up on ever finding a mate the moment I turned twenty-one and that was a year ago. I focused on my duty as an Alpha and the only people I had to deal with were the elders and other Alphas. And she looks so fragile.
“I’ve asked the pack’s doctor to come take a look at you. Is there anything you need before he gets here?” She shook her head.
Nodding softly, I made my way to my wardrobe to pick a shirt for myself since I gave her mine.
“She is looking at that! Let me out!” King growled, but I blocked him out. Not before a pleased look appeared on my face.
“Did she like what she was seeing p>
It didn’t take long for the doctor to arrive with Caleb and Ryder coming in after him.
The doctor got to work, checking for any sign of external injury and everything else that needed to be checked. She was a little underweight and apart from the visible bruise on her wrist and a few scratches, there was nothing several nights of rest wouldn’t fix.
It was difficult knowing what actually happened because she wouldn’t respond to any question. King was pacing around in my head, desperate to be let out.
She soon fell asleep after taking a few spoons of the food that was prepared for her.
“Did you find out anything about her?” I asked.
“Nothing yet, but we’ll keep digging.” Caleb assured me.
“And we have those men in the dungeon, do you want to see them now?” Ryder asked. My head turned to Kaia, who was sleeping soundly.
“I’ll take care of that later p>
I was still trying to wrap my head around the fact that I had a mate who was sleeping in my bed. They both left with plans to come back later.
Kaia…even her name sounds perfect, slept for more than half of the day only waking up for water. Within that time, king and I came up with multiple scenarios that might have led her to become a rogue.
I blocked out everyone trying to mind-link me…mainly my mom. I was certain my
Gamma, Ryder had spoken to her. But that was an issue for later.
“You’re up. How do you feel?” I asked, when my mate finally woke up.
“I’m okay p>
King was right, I was embarrassing.
“You know who I am right?” I asked again, breaking the silence that filled the room. Her wolf did recognize us but I’ve barely felt her since then.
She looked away.
“I’m your mate.” I told her as softly as I could, with a smile on my face. I wanted to
be sure she had an idea what that meant. But her next sentence confirmed that
she knew exactly what I was talking about.
“Since you’re going to reject me, just do it already p>
This time, I couldn’t stop King from taking over.