The Stranger in the Dark

“I’d rather die than follow you anywhere,” I hissed right into Sabrina’s face. She flinched, looking genuinely shocked that I would say such a thing.

There was no way I was going anywhere with her. For all I knew, this was a trap. A setup to quietly finish me off so I wouldn't be a stain on their perfect day. The gears in my head were already turning, piecing together a desperate plan. Tonight, under the cover of darkness, I would pack whatever little I had and run. I’d disappear into the wild, start a new life, and stay as far away from this treacherous pack as possible.

“Alpha,” Sabrina gasped. She scrambled to her feet, dropping her gaze to the floor and bowing her head submissively.

I spun around, a vicious snarl on my lips, ready to tear into Torin. But the imposing figure standing in the doorway wasn't my mate. It was his father. The Alpha of our pack.

My anger fractured instantly. Pack law and sheer instinct took over, forcing me to bow my head. Torin’s father had always been the closest thing to a parent I had left. He used to look at me with such warmth, treating me like the daughter he and the Luna never had. He was the one who made me feel like I belonged.

“Alpha,” I greeted, my voice trembling.

“You caused a scene today.” His voice cracked through the room like a whip. “You know how important today is for Torin!”

I flinched, physically stumbling back. The harshness in his tone felt like a blow. He had never spoken to me like this. Never looked at me with such cold, calculated disgust.

“But he is my mate,” I whispered. I pleaded with my eyes, begging him to understand. He was the Alpha, the enforcer of pack law and sacred bonds. He, of all people, should understand the sheer agony of a rejected mate bond. I needed him to talk some sense into his son.

“No.” The Alpha stepped closer, his shadow falling over my trembling form. “Your bond with him was nothing but a mistake. A flaw by the Moon Goddess, one which we must correct immediately. You simply cannot be mated to Torin.”

I stared at him in pure shock. This was the same man who taught me how to ride a bike. The man who sat by my bedside when I came home with bruised ribs as a pup, wiping away my tears and promising I was safe. Now, he looked at me like I was dirt on his boot. I swallowed the thick, painful lump forming in my throat.

“And why?” I forced my chin up, desperate to show that his cruel words didn't affect me. “Why are you against him mating with me?”

A brutal wave of pain hit my spine at that exact moment. My knees buckled beneath me, and I crashed onto the wooden floorboards, gasping for air.

“Do you see that?” The Alpha pointed down at my writhing body, his expression twisting into a sneer. “That right there is the reason why. A leader is meant to be strong. His partner is meant to be someone who makes him stronger.” He crouched down, bringing his face level with mine. His eyes were devoid of affection. “You, on the other hand, are weak. You are just an orphan. You have no power. You have no wolf. You are an unimportant member of this pack.”

His words were a jagged knife twisting deep in my gut.

Was this how he had truly felt about me all these years? My mind flashed back to the day Torin and I nervously told him we were dating. He had smiled so brightly. The Luna had cheered.

Was every smile a lie? Every kind word a calculated manipulation? Did he always despise me?

He stood back up, dusting off his pants. “Take her to the infirmary,” he ordered Sabrina. “And make sure this nonsense she is spewing out of her mouth doesn’t reach anyone else. Keep her quiet.”

“Yes, Alpha,” Sabrina chimed in, sounding exactly like a pathetic lap dog.

My vision blurred at the edges. The pain was multiplying, spreading from my spine into my chest, crushing my lungs. I couldn't sit up straight anymore. I heard the murmur of voices in the hallway, and then Silas stepped through my doorway. He bent down and scooped me into his arms, carrying me like I weighed nothing.

I tried to fight him. I pushed against his chest, trying to shove him away, but my muscles felt like dead weight. My body was numb to my commands. My protests came out in a pathetic, broken mumble.

The clinic was a chaotic blur of bright lights and sharp smells. Silas dropped me onto a firm bed. Instantly, unfamiliar hands were all over me, prodding my skin, holding me down against the mattress.

“Stop,” I groaned, thrashing my head from side to side. “Don’t touch me. Just leave me alone. I want to die.”

No one listened. The chaos around my bed only grew louder.

“Her wolf is going into forceful heat!” the pack doctor shouted.

Forceful heat. I barely registered the words. I didn't care what she meant by that. The pain was consuming my mind. I just wanted the agony to end.

“What does that mean?” Sabrina’s voice cut through the noise. She sounded terrified, ready to bawl her eyes out.

“It means her body is tearing itself apart,” the doctor snapped. “Whoever her mate is, if they don’t get here soon, she will go on a rampage, or her internal organs will shut down. She will end up dying.”

Panic flooded Sabrina’s scent. She spun around, rushing for the door to call Torin.

I forced my eyes open and grabbed her wrist with whatever weak strength I had left.

“Don't go,” I rasped.

It was humiliating enough that I had thrown a tantrum out there, only to walk out a discarded fool. Having Torin see me in this state—broken, dying—was not a risk I was willing to take.

“You can’t be serious!” Sabrina cried, the tears spilling down her cheeks. “Look, I know you’re mad at me, but your life is at stake. I know he isn't heartless. He would answer if he knew it was this important.”

“He doesn’t even have to mark her,” the doctor added, hovering over my shaking frame. “He just needs to scent her. If he rubs his scent on her, it will calm her wolf enough for us to find a permanent solution.”

Reluctantly, I let go of her wrist. She darted out of the room, leaving me at the mercy of the burning fever.

The wait was sheer torture.

Seconds.

Minutes.

Hours.

I stared at the small window across the room, watching the bright sun slowly dip below the horizon, painting the sky black.

No Torin.

Soon after the room descended into shadows, Sabrina walked in. The defeated look on her face told me everything I needed to know.

“I’m sorry,” she whispered, falling onto her knees beside my bed.

I just looked at her. I didn't have the energy to scream or curse. At this point, forming words was too much work.

I let my head fall back onto the pillow.

This was it. This was really it.

This was how I was going to die.

I had half-expected him to at least care that I was dying. Had he even phased when she told him? Did he even care that I was bleeding out from the inside?

These relentless questions kept running through my mind as I lay on the bed, waiting for the end.

Sometime deep into the night, the agonizing burning in my veins stopped.

The sharp ache in my bones dullened. My head stopped spinning.

I twitched my fingers. They moved. I wasn't numb anymore. A strange heat pressed against my skin.

I sat up, moving way too fast.

He came. He really came.

“Easy,” a voice rumbled in the dark.

I froze. My blood ran cold.

That deep, gravelly voice did not sound like Torin at all.

Strong hands gripped my shoulders, steadying me. A heavy scent washed over me. He leaned in close, pressing his face into the crook of my neck. He was scent-marking me. His jaw dragged along my sensitive skin, leaving a heavy trail of his pheromones to coat my dying wolf.

Relief exploded through my system, swift and sudden, leaving me feeling exposed and intensely vulnerable. The lethal forceful heat receded, quelled by the power of the scent wrapping around me.

The room was shrouded in pitch black, the shadows hiding his face. I strained my eyes, trying to make out his features. Broad shoulders. A towering frame. But nothing else.

I knew one thing for absolute certainty: the man standing in front of me, saving my life by scenting me, was not my mate.

Before I could even form a word to identify who he really was, he pulled away. He melted back into the shadows and vanished out the door.

The mysterious scent lingered on my skin. I immediately felt exhausted, closing my eyes and welcoming the heavy pull of sleep.