An Alpha's Claim

History

She watched him through glittering gold eyes as he faced away from her, fists clenched by his side. His shoulders rose and fell with every jagged breath he drew in. He could sense her eyes on him, she knew by the tenseness in his shoulders that he was fully aware of the openly wanting stare she watched him with.

Yet he didn't turn, didn't acknowledge what J's wolf knew. He was her moon mate.

J's stomach rolled and nausea washed over her, a voice in the back of her head reminded her that it wasn't possible. That she'd already had that gift and she'd watched it burn. Her wolf though, was convinced. Convinced that the man before her was hers.

J settled her wolf, blinking until her wolf let go and her eyes returned to normal. She looked away, releasing the hulking predator from her gaze. He let out a small breath and turned a fraction towards her, one of his eyes visible, but not looking at her. Through gritted teeth he spoke, "you should stay away from me."

She scoffed, rolling her eyes as she busied herself with unzipping her bag and hunting through it for the one thing she never travelled without, needing the comfort it provided.

"Bullsh*t." She taunted, earning her a growl.

"My wolf's dangerous. He-He's sick. He-"

"You're the one that sought me out, the one that followed me for weeks. I'm not exactly prime material."

His head jerked as though he fought to look at her.

"I was wrong. I'm too dangerous, I can't be...trusted around you. He can't be." He spat, as though disgusted at his wolf.

She watched him and was glad he couldn't see her pity, she had a feeling he wouldn't appreciate it.

*

Her eyes. They were insistent, persuasive, dangerous. His entire body was tense, his wolf humming beneath his skin. He wanted to claim what was his. He wanted his mate.

His wolf was getting harder to control. He never should have got that close to her, the second he did his wolf seized control and was ready to attach her to him forever - whether she wanted it or not.

His wolf growled, annoyed by the idea that his mate might not want him. His wolf was too sick to realise that it would not be that easy.

He wasn't sure when the sickness had started, or even really what triggered it, but he knew what would happen next. Just as had happened to his father and his grandfather before that.

He knew the first step would be that he would become more violent; he wanted to laugh at the idea that it was possible and would have done so had he not seen how dark his father had become. Slowly he would peel apart the very things that made him human until there was nothing left.

Logan was relieved that his mum hadn't lived to see his father begin to lose his grip. He was grateful that she hadn't been alive to see Logan begin to show the signs either.

He'd developed it sooner than the others, the sickness that would see him destroy all that he ever had.

The moment he'd woken up the first night in the middle of another pack's territory, he knew it was coming. So he ran. He left his pack and put distance between them.

He'd settled on his own, hating the solitude but  knowing it was for the good of his pack.

One night he'd woken up in Jake's territory. The alpha had been kind, generous considering the circumstances. For the first time in a long time, Logan could talk to another wolf, feel a little bit of kinship. It didn't last, Logan's wolf too angry to remain in one place, but they'd remained friendly enough to get an invite to his mating ceremony.

It was strange to think that his sickness had, in a round about way, enabled him to meet his mate.

There was a dull ache in his chest, the mate he wasn't able to claim, not without killing her.

The mate who was the only one strong enough to grant his final wish.

He'd seen the sickness ravage his family, seen the pain and destruction they caused before finally, the humans had killed them, mistaking them for rabid wolves.

Logan wouldn't get that far, couldn't. He would not destroy his pack, his surroundings, he would not risk anyone else. So instead, he had hunted for the one thing that could solve his eternal problem.

A wolf strong enough to kill him.

And in a cruel twist of fate, she just so happened to be his moon mate.

She cleared her throat and, unable to look away from her any longer, he slowly turned to face her, "my wolf is untamed, he's deadly. I did follow you. I shouldn't have, but-" Her eyes watched him intently, her wolf watching from within. He was about to break her heart.

"But I needed a favour."

She was surprised, but tried not to show it. "A favour?" She asked casually as she gripped a small locket in her palm. An odd scent catching on the wind.

He nodded, his eyes not leaving her. "Yes. One that asks too much of you and if I was a better man I wouldn't be putting you in this situation, but it's for the best. For the both of us."