Chapter 3: Alpha's Rage

Seraphina

The rain drummed against the glass, a constant, heavy rhythm that hadn't let up since I arrived. I stood by the window, watching the blur of the forest. I had told Alexander to leave me alone. His temper was a wild thing, unpredictable and loud.

He was a strange man. He treated me like a prize one second and a problem the next.

I stayed in the room, anchored by my own fear. I hadn't been away from Xandriel for this long in years. It felt weird, but the distance was like a weight lifting off my chest. Xandriel was useless without me. He couldn't cook a meal or keep his own life in order. He used people until they broke.

The click of the door handle made my heart lurch into my throat. I heard my pulse thudding in my ears, a fast, frantic sound. I didn't turn around. I just stood there, waiting for the nightmare to start again.

"Are you hungry?"

Alexander’s voice was lower now, vibrating off the navy walls. I trembled. I wanted to be brave. I wanted to show him that he couldn't break me, but my body wouldn't stop shaking.

"The pack is heading out to the grounds for training. We will be alone for dinner. Come eat with me," he said. He sounded almost hesitant, like he was bracing for me to say no.

"No," I said. I kept my voice firm. I didn't want to leave this room. I didn't know what happened at his dinner table. I didn't know if "dinner" was just a code for something else.

"Please," he said. I heard him huff, a sound of pure frustration. "I am trying to ask nicely, Seraphina. Don't make this harder."

I sensed his impatience. It was a familiar heat, the kind that usually ended in a bruise.

"Just dinner?" I asked.

"Just dinner," he repeated.

"No."

I heard his boots heavy on the carpet, moving fast. I spun around, my back hitting the glass of the French windows. He stopped inches from me. He was a wall of muscle and heat, his face flushed with a dark, angry red.

"I just told you I cleared the house for us!" he yelled. He looked stunned, like he couldn't believe I was still standing my ground. "Join me. Now."

"I said no!" I screamed back. I’d rather starve. I’d rather rot in this room than bow down because he raised his voice. I leaned back against the latches of the window, my mind spinning, looking for a way to hurt him. "I’d rather work for every one of your men than sit at a table with you!"

The lie felt like poison on my tongue, but I wanted him to leave. I wanted him to hate me and go away.

Alexander’s chest puffed out. His eyes went dark, the pupils swallowing the iris. He lunged toward me, a blur of motion. I panicked. I didn't think. I just threw myself sideways to get away from his reach.

The latch gave way. The French windows swung wide into the storm.

I tumbled backward into the cold air. The rain lashed at my face as I felt the floor disappear. Suddenly, iron-hard fingers clamped around my wrists. Alexander jerked me forward, hauling me back into the room with a strength that made my bones ache.

He let go the second my feet hit the rug, remembering my rule about his touch. His face was no longer red. It was pale with terror.

"Are you trying to kill yourself?" he breathed, his voice shaking. "What is wrong with you?"

"That wouldn't have happened if you weren't looming over me!" I snapped. I fought back the tears stinging my eyes. "Close the windows. Stay away from me."

"I am your Alpha," he growled, stepping back into my space. The fear was gone, replaced by that suffocating authority. "Whether you want the bond or not, you will listen to me. There are consequences for this kind of disrespect."

"I can handle it," I said. I looked him right in the eye. "You’re just like him. You’re cruel. You’re a bully. And I am not afraid of you."

"You think I'm cruel? You want to serve my men?" He spat the words, his jaw tight. "Fine. If that's what you want, have at it. You have no choice now."

He turned and slammed the door, the sound like a gunshot. I couldn't breathe. My lungs felt tight. Would he really do it? Would he throw me to the pack? I moved toward the door, my hand trembling as I reached for the handle.

I opened it, and my heart stopped.

He was still there. He was leaning against the wall, his head in his hands. He looked small. He looked broken.

"What do you want from me before you let me go?" I asked. I looked down at my arms. Faint blue bruises were already forming where he had grabbed me to keep me from falling. "Why are you keeping me here?"

"You're my mate, Seraphina," he said, his voice a rough ghost of a sound. "I'll have you one way or another."

He started walking down the hall, a low growl rolling in his throat. I followed him, my legs feeling like jelly. I needed to end this.

"I belong to Xandriel," I said to his back. "I bear his mark."

Alexander stopped dead. I bumped into his back, the heat of him seeping through my clothes. He turned, his eyes searching my neck, his breath shallow.

"I don't see a mark," he said. The relief in his voice was sickening.

"He put it where no one would see."

I reached down and yanked the hem of my shirt up, just above my hip. The jagged, scarred mark sat there, half-hidden by the waistband of my jeans. It was a brand of ownership.

Alexander’s eyes flared. His fists clenched so hard his knuckles turned white.

"We can end this, Alpha," I whispered. "Just reject me. Set us both free."

"Never."

He looked at me with a hunger that made my blood sing. I hated it. I hated how my body reacted to him, how the air between us felt thick and electric.

"Don't you want other women? You're an Alpha. You can have anyone. Just let me go."

The bond was screaming at me to touch him, to close the distance. It was a physical ache in my chest.

"I only want you," he said. He stepped closer, his gaze dropping to the mark on my hip. "He marked you in secret. But when I mark you, it will be for the whole world to see."

My cheeks burned. I felt a pull in my gut so strong I had to grip the wall to stay upright.

"You are destined to be my Luna," he said.

Then he turned and walked down the stairs, leaving me shivering in the hall.