The wolf within

Aria.

The door swung open and Alpha Rowan screeched at me. “Aria, are you done cleaning?” He turned to the man in the room, towering over me, he leaned against Alpha Rowan’s desk now. 

“…Alpha Damon,” Rowan whispered. 

He was Alpha Damon but how did he know so much about me?

How was he able to tell me such a thing when it was the first time I was seeing him? 

“Has she bothered you? She was supposed to clean and leave the office.” Rowan scrawled and stretched his hand to hit me. “This stupid girl,”

I closed my eyes, and braced myself, ready to get hit. 

“Don’t touch her.” Alpha Damon’s voice rumbled through the room. His hand has coiled around the wrist of Alpha Rowan, Alpha Rowan was older than him, he was close to his forties, and Alpha Damon was probably in his mid-twenties but he wasn’t showing any respect for Alpha Rowan. 

He was taller than Alpha Rowan and more muscular. “What’s your name?” 

“Aria,” I replied. 

“Aria.” My name rolled off his tongue. “Leave.” He ordered. 

“She should have informed me that you’re here, Alpha Damon.” Alpha Rowan’s gaze hardened. 

“She showed me to your office, and she was about to call you before you came in. She doesn’t deserve to be hit for that.” 

Alpha Damon turned to me. “Leave.” 

I nodded and hurried out of the office. I went to the kitchen, in haste to prepare the tea for them and take it back to the office. 

I re-entered the office, they were both seated, and I could feel Alpha Damon watching my every move even the hairs on the back of my neck stood up, no one had ever watched me this closely. 

I dropped the teacup on the table. 

“Leave, you stink.” Alpha Rowan gritted out. 

I bowed and stepped out of the office even before I left, I felt his eyes on me. 

I finished up my chores and when I was done, I went to my room at the side of the pack house, where some of the workers stayed and my friend Ava, who was a worker in the pack house as well. 

I began to put the pieces together, the meaning of Alpha Damon’s warning. I opened my drawer and took out the small box which I was able to get from my family, it was the only thing I had left from them. 

I was uncovering the fragment of the prophecy linked to my family’s downfall, and if they were the ones that had attacked my family when a knock distracted me. 

I hid the box quickly and went to get the door. 

Kade stood there with a charming smile on his face. 

“Have you eaten breakfast?” He asked and stared at me with concern laced in his eyes. 

“Not yet.” I managed a smile. 

“Perfect, let’s have breakfast together.” He grasped my wrist before I could respond and led me back into the pack house. 

Kade was the passionate and fierce warrior in the pack, the strongest of the warriors in the pack. He was the only warrior that treated me differently, he smelled of sweat, he must’ve been back from training. 

His auburn hair was messy, and his muscles were hefty, his eyes were light hazel. 

He always had the softest gaze when he stared at me. 

Alpha Damon was leaving the pack house with Alpha Rowan several steps ahead of him. He halted when he saw me, and his eyes fell on my hand that was in Kade’s grip. 

His eyes narrowed at me, and the corner of his lips curled. 

“I will see you some other time, Aria.” Without another word, he turned and left. 

“Why was Alpha Damon staring at you?” Kade asked when he set the plate down on the table in the kitchen. He filled the glasses with water and made me sit on the stool. 

I shrugged and started to pick at the meal on my plate. 

“He isn’t just interested in anyone, I know Alpha Damon and he said he was going to see you some other time. What does that mean?” He placed his hands on the table, looking at me. 

“Does that mean he’s interested in me?” I raised a questioning brow at him. Kade’s eyes darkened, and his chest rumbled a growl. 

“I don’t like the way he stared at you.” 

“It’s just a stare.” I protested. 

“It’s not.” He argued. 

“Your food is getting cold.” I pointed it out, and he slumped on his seat and mumbled a few curses. 

“Did you get hit?” He held my face, gently brushed the spot where Rowan hit me earlier, and twitched he twitched my face to the side. “Who was it?” 

I pushed his hand off. “You can’t fight against Rowan.” 

“I would, if you let me.” He frowned. 

“My life is already hard enough, Kade, don’t add to it.” 

I urged him to eat. He sighed and took the sausage into his mouth. 

“It was this morning wasn’t it? It wasn’t there yesterday. That bastard.” 

I had known Kade for years, and he has been protective of me ever since, perhaps he thought I was just a weak omega servant in the pack house. And the last thing I wanted was for him to challenge Rowan, I don’t want him to lose his title as part of the warrior or get demoted. 

I cared that much about him, and when Rowan hit me he mostly made sure it was part of my body that wasn’t visible. 

His hand went to my hair, and he stroked it with his fingers. “I have another meeting in an hour, we are preparing for the annual pack hunt, will you be okay?” 

I  nodded. 

“Smile will you?” He sounded as if he was pleading, and I smiled at him, he returned the smile, and he took his hand off my hair. 

I had to keep my emotions in check despite the struggle, and I hadn’t forgotten Alpha Damon’s words either, it lingers in the back of my head. 

Kade left the kitchen to receive a call, and I picked up the plate to take them to the sink, something surged through within me as if it ran inside my body, I stood for a second, and the plates in my hands broke. 

It splattered on the ground.

I gasped, taking a step back from the plate, the glass on the plate gave me a slight cut but it covered up immediately, the blood dried up. 

“Aria!” Kade called out in a panicked voice and pulled me away from the broken plate. His eyes roamed over my body. “Are you hurt?” He asked, his chest rising and falling, he cupped my cheek and accessed me. 

He heaved a sigh of relief. I couldn’t speak, something had happened and I was the cause of it. 

“Stay here, I will take care of the mess.” He rasped and left my side, he picked up the broom, and a parker and began to take the broken plate off the floor. He walked out of the kitchen through the back door to dump the broken plates and that was when I noticed. 

There was a shadowy figure at the doorway of the kitchen, darted out of sight the moment I saw it. 

Someone was watching me.