Chapter Three

My hands trembled as I curled my long silver hair into cascading waves over my shoulders. Alpha Wyatt had sent a blue fitted minidress to my room for me to wear that night which was so tight I couldn’t even wear a bra underneath it. It was a joke at my expense, of course; he had chosen it in the same shade of royal blue that my lingerie the previous day had been.

Fucking asshole.

If he had hoped to get enjoyment from the figure-hugging garment he would be sorely disappointed. My thick waist length hair flowed down in generous waves, covering my breasts so poorly contained by the fabric you could see the outline of my nipples. I applied dark eye make-up like I was heading into battle with thick liner and black eyeshadow on the top lid and a brushing of liner underneath, forming a point at the side of each eye where they met. I didn’t want to encourage any attention to areas that could be useful to him, thus I decided to forgo lipstick and worse seamless black panties that were unnoticeable through the thin stretchy fabric of the dress. I stepped into my nude heels and turned in the mirror. I had to admit, I looked great. My slim size 6 frame filled the dress well due to my rounded breasts, slim waist and muscular rear. My strong, wiry arms and legs looked delicate and my hair swished attractively at every turn. The feminine dress and long waves were practically ethereal together, which when contrasted against my blackened eye make-up gave the illusion of a war goddess.

Good. I need all the help I can get.

Tonight was going to be the night. I couldn’t suffer that conceited motherfucker a second longer, much less be his Luna. The gathering was being held in the centre of our man-made ‘town’ with tables and stalls set up by the fountain. The current plan was for Wyatt and myself to sit centre stage while we made a tribute to the fallen and pledged to move forward into a new era with pack Carthage and pack Meridian united as one. Then he would declare that he was taking me as his Luna-but I would be long gone by then.

I planned to sneak away at the first sign of a distraction. I would run as far and as long as I could until I reached pack Jackson and pleaded my case to them. They were the only pack with the size and strength to rival Alpha Wyatt, and perhaps I could offer myself to their Alpha Cole Davidson as an incentive for them to charge into war. Satisfaction warmed my cold desolate heart at the thought of me leading the charge into pack Meridian with Alpha Cole at my side, cutting down Wyatt and all his men. Watch that smug expression be replaced by fear. I would make him submit to me.

Someone bashed loudly on the door.

“Alpha Wyatt orders you to come to him. It is time to go” Beta Carter shouted curtly, fumbling with his keys to get the door open.

I took a deep breath and stood up to take charge of the night that could be my last in this living hell.

Alpha Wyatt was more than pleased with my appearance and greedily took me in with his eyes. He pushed my hair behind my shoulders with a “that’s much better”, and I fumed inwardly at his blatant perversion. I tried to stay calm and reminded myself tonight was the night I would finally be free from him.

It was a shame he was such a vindictive prick, really. He would have made for good mating material otherwise. Tonight he had a formal white shirt on with sleeves rolled up to the elbows and a few buttons undone at the neck, tucked into black trousers perfectly tailored to his muscled thighs and backside. It was his way of being smart/casual while letting his conceited ego shine through. Part of the ritual for the night was us greeting the injured warriors and thanking them for their part in the unification of the packs. Wyatt would lead the conversations and I would assist as a good prospective Luna. My plan depended on there being some kind of ruckus from a discontented soul, of which there would be many when my wolves saw him dress me up to parade me around in my shame.

We wandered through the crowds for almost two hours him and I, listening intently to the stories of battle and enquiring on the healing of wounds. I tried to be as sociable as possible to keep up pretences, though he looked down at me frequently with an unreadable expression. It was hard not to be intimidated by his sheer mass. Even in heels he towered over me and tonight the top of my head still only just reached his shoulder. He was broad yet lean, so chiselled that his pectorals were hard and clearly visible through his shirt. I weighed up my chances of fighting him off if he caught me and didn’t like my chances. I could only hope that my rage would overpower his strength if push came to shove.

My opportunity arrived in the form of an older warrior, Stephen Johnson, from my pack. He had lost a hand during the battle and was still heavily dosed on a cocktail of medications. We approached him and gave our polite greeting, enquiring on his health.

“We-eell, would’a been better if I hadn’t lost a hand but ‘part from that I’m alright” he slurred.

Alpha Wyatt’s eyes blazed instantly and his face tensed.

“And what do you mean by that, wolf?” he said, voice deadly.

“Only mean t’say that we was just fine here, didn’t need y’all bustin’ in and takin’ over. And look at our Luna! Y’ok, sweetheart?” he drawled.

I gave a small smile that I hoped was encouraging, my eyes trying to communicate everything. Don’t do it friend, I am getting help. However, he was too far gone to pick up such nuances.

“We won’t have you disrespectin’ our Luna this way! She’s been the only thing keepin’ this pack together all these years, and I’ll be damned if I see her by the side of a vulture like you!”.

The gruff old wolf swung a right hook at Wyatt which he easily dodged and landed flat on the ground. Several of Wyatt’s men rushed forward to drag him off but a crowd had already begun to gather and murmur. The atmosphere had turned sour and dissent filled the air.

Wyatt turned to me and hissed, “say something to your pack Nova or I will be forced to give the word to lock them down in their homes”.

I put my hands up placatingly and smiled. “I just wouldn’t know what to say, Alpha”.

He grabbed me by the shoulders and looked me in the eyes. He was beside himself with rage. That kissable mouth that usually held a smug grin was tensed in a grim line and he looked ready to kill me.

“You will pay for this later, Luna” he warned, before two of my wolves emerged from the escalating chaos to barrel into him.

“Go, Luna! Run! We will hold him, you must run and call on the alliance!” cried Diego, one of our more recent additions with a heart of gold.

I did not hesitate. With a nod of appreciation I kicked of my heels and bolted through it all, dodging flying stall carts and tumbling bodies. Past the fountain, through the houses all the way to the end of the residential area until I reached the edge of the forest. I slipped off my dress and shifted into wolf worm, grabbed the dress in my muzzle and was ready to go. With once last look back towards the raised voices, yips and flying tableware, I decided to run towards my salvation.

I ran until my lungs burned and my paws bled, stopping for water for just seconds at a time before moving on quickly. From the position of the moon I could tell it had been several hours since I slipped into the woods away from Alpha Wyatt and his reign of terror.

The first threads of light began to emerge on the horizon and I felt my body relax. If they hadn’t found me yet, they would be returning to the Alpha Mansion to re-group and expand the search. I slowed my pace and enjoyed the view, breathing the free air deeply. I was at the edge of the forest near the highway, I could hear the morning traffice in the distance. I could hitchhike from here to Jackson and be with Alpha Cole by nightfall. I shifted back to my human form and slipped on the dress for decency's sake. 

This was it. Freedom.

A snapping branch and heavy padded footing in the distance alerted me to danger.

Oh god. My blood ran cold.

He had come for me.

I shrieked and ran as the grey furry mass emerged from behind the trees and shifted into the hulking muscular mass of Alpha Wyatt. I didn’t have time to shift to wolf form it would take up valuable seconds, I had to sprint as fast as my human legs would take me.

The chase lasted about a minute.

Even with my wolf partially surfacing to lend me strength I was no match for Alpha Wyatt’s superior size and speed. He tackled me from behind just as I reached the edge of the forest and we landed on the ground with an almighty thud.

He had me pinned on my stomach and I struggled with all I had, eventually managing to land a headbutt on his nose and he let out a deep “oof!” in pain. I commando crawled away while his grip was loosened, but he grabbed me by the ankle and dragged me back over to him. I growled and reared my head back once more hoping to make contact again. He immediately pulled me onto my back and the fury in his eyes sent waves of dread throughout my body.

His piercing eyes, usually a turquoise blue in the centre with a dark blue around the edge, glowed brighter with his wolf than I had ever seen before. His jaw was clenched with the effort of containing his rage. The blood from his injured nose had smeared into his beard and hair giving him the look of a pillaging viking warrior, come to claim his spoils of war. And from the rock-hard member pressing into my stomach, that was just what he had come to do.

“Thought you could outrun me, little wolf?” he snarled, eyes manic. “I told you what the consequences would be if you ran away from me again”.

“No, no” I pleaded, trying to wriggle out from underneath his muscular frame.

“Yes, Nova. I tried to reason with you, but you have left me no choice.”  

I lifted up a knee to kick him in the crotch which he expertly swept aside, pinning my legs open with his own. I clawed at his face wildly and he grabbed each of my hands, pinning them to the ground with his own. He used his extended canines to tear away at my dress, exposing my pert breasts, nipples hardening in the cold air. He took a moment to gaze at them, muttering “shame, it really was a lovely dress”.

“Get the fuck off of me! I will never be your Luna! I will never forgive you for this, Wyatt!” I screamed.

“But you will, Nova. Once an Alpha has declared for you and taken your body, you become their Luna in body and soul. After you caused all the commotion tonight things calmed down and I was able to declare my as my Luna and the pack agreed. So, all there is to do now is make it official!”.

He tore the remaining fragments of my dress off and tossed them into the bushes, leaving me naked bar my black French underwear. His chiselled frame filled my vision everywhere I looked, those defined pectorals, clear six-pack and huge member standing ready to enter me. The muscles in his shoulders were the largest I’d ever seen, tensed with the effort of holding me down.

I looked up into his cruel, ruggedly handsome face and tried reasoning with him one last time.

“A Luna should be chosen by love or duty, not by force. I do not love you and I never will if you do this” I declared solemnly.

His eyes flicked back to those dreamy pools of tropical water I had melted for back in my bedroom the previous day. He hesitated, just for a moment, before giving me a look of steely determination and tearing off my underwear, ripping away my last line of protection from his massive cock standing at the ready to pummel me into submission.

“Love can come later. Right now, the pack needs unity. And you need to accept me as your Alpha” he said breathlessly, trying to hold me still so he could enter me.

I wanted to rip his throat out so badly. I shifted my hips side to side and used every muscle I had in my body to fight him off, but he kept finding a way to keep me down where he needed me. Despite my better judgement, the passion between us and the heat of his body against mine caused my body to betray me. I felt a warm slick wetness escape my pussy, inviting him in. As if on cue he looped an arm under my head and used the other to hold my hips, and with one final push he reached his target with a satisfied sigh.