Shackled

Chapter Seven

So sorry about the long wait! Life has been crazy, its been so hard to find time to sit down and write, but that being said, enjoy!!!

She heard him before she saw him, but she smelt him long before that.

The tantalizing scent of crisp apples pulled at her, making her knees weak as she fought against the urge to go to it. The alluring scent could only mean one thing. She swayed slightly and before she knew it, Jonathan was by her side, his firm grip around her forearm, supporting her.

She couldn't even find it within herself to be angry at her Beta for crossing the borderline, she knew it was in his instinct to protect her and make sure she was okay. On top of that, it felt like his reassuring grip was one of the only things grounding her. Her wolf was tearing at her insides, and the need to throw up was imminent. She never thought she would be granted a mate, never thought that fate would be so cruel and twisted as to punish someone with herself for eternity.

It made sense though. It was the Northern Alpha who was letting off the scent, it had to be. Though a small part of her hoped it was a friend or adviser traveling with him, her instincts knew that wasn't the case. The scent carried with it an undertone of authority and seeing as he had yet to arrive, that said something about the dominance of his wolf.

Alphas and Alpha blood were almost always mated pairs. It made the most sense in their world; mates needed to be able to stand up to one another, to see each other as equals, and that couldn't happen if one was always submitting to the other. She knew it sometimes happened, sometimes Omegas and Alphas were bonded, but it was rare. With the crazed and feral nature of her wolf, it was no surprise that her mate was an Alpha, there were a select few below Alpha status who could even meet her gaze, and most of those people were back in her pack lands, dead.

Her heart stopped in her chest the moment she laid her eyes on the specimen of a male that was to be her mate. He was tall, no doubt he would tower over her, and his face was made up of sharp angles that gave him a fierce look that surely served him well as a ruler. She hardened her features as she stared up at the man that was to decide the fate of her pack. He may have been her mate, but she knew nothing about the Northerner, and she wouldn't trust him until he earned it.

"Alpha." She inclined her head towards him in a show of respect. However, she made sure not to bare him her neck, she may be respectful, but she would not dare be submissive.

"Mate." He did not nod back, instead, he took a step towards her, his eyes flashing, a sign his wolf was near the surface. She felt her own wolf flash through her eyes and saw the surprise that he so carefully tried to conceal. The molten gold of her eyes was upsetting to some and terrifying to others, it was an undeniable sign of the power and dominance of her wolf.

She was sure the Northern Alpha was as ignorant to her existence as her Beta had been, and the knowledge that he had been unaware of such a powerful wolf so close to his borders would be upsetting to himself and his wolf. As predators they always wanted to know of and be aware of potential threats, she was exactly that – Westminster Pack's best-kept secret.

Only now she was forced out of hiding, had been dragged away from her peaceful den in the attic. Instead, she was made to be front and center, the focus of all the eyes that looked both up at, and down upon her.

The Northern Alpha stopped his approach at the flashing of her eyes. She clenched her fists and closed her eyes, breathing deep to control her beast. By the time she opened them, they were back to their pale blue, her wolf under careful control. She could not risk angering the man.

"Why are you here, Mate?" His voice was liquid smooth, a deep baritone that caressed her ears. She could listen to him talk forever and never get tired of the almost melodic tone. However, the smooth texture of his voice wore off and left her with his question. She could barely remember, why was she here?