Chapter 4

Rowan

I felt someone open a connection to my mind, but I ignored it as I let Blake vent his unrest by running into the woods of the territory. Next to us was Kai, who seemed just as distressed as Blake. Kalen and I weren’t talking, we were trying to understand everything that had happened while, in my mind, there was only the image of her—the mysterious girl with the fiery hair and the emerald eyes that seemed to read our souls.

Is that our mate? 

I wouldn’t have been surprised to have to share my mate with my twin, we had grown up with this possibility, with the possibility that in addition to sharing the place from Alpha, we would share our Mate, we knew. But how was that possible?

That girl didn’t smell anything, not even human, how could our wolves have been drawn to her if she didn’t have a scent at all?

I shook my head mentally and realized that we had arrived at the packhouse where, waiting for us, our Beta, Austin, had two pairs of pants.

Blake gave me back control, and I immediately went back to human form, grabbing the pants Austin was giving me and putting them on. She heard my brother behind me and sighed, looking at Austin.

"What happened?" asked our beta.

Brown hair ruffled on the head and doubtful blue eyes. Austin was not only our beta, he was the closest friend we had. We knew each other since we were children as his parents were the old Beta of ours, we had lived under the same roof and dealt with everything with them.

I turned to my twin brother, Kalen had his eyes turned to the woods, then sighed and shook his head, then walked back into the house, followed by Austin and me.

I saw Chrissy coming out of the salon, eyes running down Kalen’s bare chest as she licked her lips, but he shook his head and raised his hand, silently telling her to stay away as he strides toward our office on a big stride.

He opened the door violently, so his hand almost slammed against the wall. I went in right after, and Austin was with me. Kalen went to the coffee table with the liquor, poured himself some brandy, and then swallowed it all in one sip, proceeding to put more.

Austin closed the door and threw himself on the sofa, carrying his hands behind his head while I sprawled in the armchair and watched my brother fuck more brandy.

"What did you do that you’re in such a bad mood?" Austin sighed.

"I don’t need you, go away," Kalen growled and didn’t look back.

Austin whistled, "What a tempered friend," he commented, then put his blue eyes on me.

I sighed and shook my head, "Our wolves," I said, and I heard my brother’s growling reply, "They had a strange encounter," I added, and Austin raised an eyebrow.

"It was nothing," Kalen commented.

"Nothing?" Austin asked, "Your howl boomed throughout the pack, and everyone was alarmed, it was so sad and longing that we thought we had lost one of our own," Austin commented.

I sighed and put my hands on my face. In so many years, we had never lost one of our own, it had never happened that we quarreled with another pack or that we ended up in a war. The last attack we had had had been seventeen years ago, but Kalen and I and Austin were too young to remember, only on that occasion had we lost one of our own, and some had not yet recovered from that.

"Our wolves felt something and took control. We found a girl at the edge of the woods. They surrounded her," I continued.

"Did they kill her?" Austin asked, frowning, and I sighed.

"They crouched like fucking puppies," Kalen commented.

Austin chuckled and frowned, "Are you telling me you found her?" he said after a moment.

"No," Kalen said, "It wasn’t her."

"Come on, man, don’t be stubborn," Austin said.

"She didn’t smell like us, Austin," I said, "She was in the middle of human territory, but it didn’t smell like a human, much less a wolf. I don’t even know how Kai and Blake got to her if she smelled nothing," I continued.

"A rogue?" Austin asked.

"No, she didn’t smell like that."

"Lone wolf," Austin nodded.

"How is it possible that a lone wolf can attract so two alphas? Without emitting any scent"

"Wait, not even the smell of a mate?"

"I don’t know what kind of smell a mate smells like," Kalen snorted.

"Mom always told me that the Mates have a special smell for each other, something we like," Austin commented, "Did you smell anything that reminded you of anything?"

We both shook our heads, "She hadn’t even reached adulthood," I said.

"Well, do you even know her name?" Austin asked.

I shook my head again, "We didn’t get a chance to talk to her, we followed her to a building fence," I said, "She came back."

"Hmm," only Austin said.

"I need you to find out what that building was and who lives there. We need to know who she is," Kalen finally turned and looked at our beta.

"Didn’t you say you weren’t interested?" Austin asked, mocking him.

"It is, but if that girl managed to lure our wolves, we must find out why. What if it’s some weird creature sent to destroy us?" Kalen said.

"She seemed rather harmless to me, one of a kind but harmless," I commented.

"Someone cares so much," Austin laughed.

Our beta got up and stretched "I’ll do my research," and I said, "What area?" he asked.

"East," Kalen and I both replied at the same time.

Austin nodded his head and then left us alone.

Kalen approached the window and looked out, lost in his thoughts, as I listened to Blake howling in agony inside my head. I put my hand on my temple and sighed.

"I’m more than convinced it was her, our mate," I told my brother.

"Don’t jump to conclusions," Kalen said without turning around.

"What else could she be? You’re the one who wants to wrap your head before your time because you admit it, you don’t want to meet our mate," I said with clenched teeth.

Kalen snorted, "You mean I don’t want to be destined to be with one woman at the age of twenty-two? Yes, I did," he snorted.

"You can do whatever you want, but don’t endanger me. I want to have my mate."

"She’s not our mate," he said, turning to me.

"How can you be so sure?" I snapped at him.

"And how do you know it was her?" he said in return.

"Goddess, you’re impossible," I said, standing up.

"You too!" he said behind me.

I opened the door, and I found myself in front of Chrissy, with her fist raised, ready to knock, I looked down at her, her black hair falling down her shoulder and her eyes dark and wide open for the surprise.

"Go away," I growled at her.

She looked at me scared, turned, ran away, and left the packhouse.

I didn’t need my brother banging the she-wolf on our desk, not with the possibility of having our mate around soon. Kalen was known to sabotage himself, but I would never let him sabotage me, not this time.

I rushed to our floor and walked into my room next to Kyle’s, and then I threw myself in the shower and bathed in a fury.

I didn’t know what the fuck was wrong with my brother, why he was so stupid, all I knew was that in my head, the girl’s angelic face surfaced as she slept against me, with the hair color fire that surrounded her face and my desire to see her increased more and more.