All Chapters of The Alpha and his Cursed Mate: Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

My hands won't stop shaking as I stare at the full moon through my bedroom window. The silver light bathes my cream-colored walls in an ethereal glow, but nothing can calm the fire burning beneath my skin. Tonight's my seventeenth birthday, and my first shift is moments away. I've dreamed of this night since I was little, but now that it's here, something feels... different. Wrong.A wave of heat courses through my body, making my silk nightgown cling uncomfortably to my sweat-slicked skin. Mom said the first shift could be intense, but she never mentioned this burning sensation, this ache deep in my core that makes me want to crawl out of my own skin."It'll be okay, sweetheart," Mom whispers from my doorway. She's wearing her favorite lavender sweater, but something in her expression makes me wonder if she senses what I'm feeling. "Every Mitchell has shifted successfully for generations."I try to respond, but another surge of heat steals my breath. My legs tremble, and I grip the w

Three weeks before my eighteenth birthday, and I can't stop trembling. Not from the heat this time – we've learned to mask that with a complex blend of herbs and meditation – but from the whispered conversation I wasn't meant to overhear.Silver Creek Pack. Alpha Alexander Stone. The Beast of the Northwest.I press my ear harder against my parents' bedroom door, my enhanced hearing catching every terrified whisper."He breaks them, Elena," Dad argues, his voice hoarse. "Every wolf he's ever owned. They say he can smell defiance, that he takes pleasure in crushing it.""Better broken than dead." Mom's voice cracks. "The Seekers are coming, James. You know what they'll do if they find her. A blood wolf in heat—""Don't." Something crashes against a wall. "There has to be another way."I slide down the wall, wrapping my arms around my knees. The thin cotton of my sundress does nothing to stop the shivers wracking my body. They're right – the Seekers are coming. Even now, I can feel them

The tribute caravan stops at Silver Creek's borders just as dawn breaks. I clutch my identification papers in trembling hands, trying to steady my breathing. In a few moments, everything I am – Alora Mitchell – will be reduced to one word: slave."Strip." The command comes from Master Kane, the tribute master. His cold eyes sweep over the six of us lined up outside the inspection tent. "Everything is off. Now."The other girls begin disrobing, shoulders hunched in shame. I force my fingers to move, untying the simple gray shift they gave us for travel. The morning air bites at my exposed skin, but it's nothing compared to the burning inside me. Three days of travel have made controlling my heat symptoms harder, the constant proximity to unmated males testing my limits."Wolfless." Master Kane spits the word as he stops in front of me. "Let's see what the Beast is getting for his charity."I let the shift fall, fighting to keep my eyes downcast, submissive. To suppress the urge to claw

My new quarters in the main house are nothing like I expected. Instead of the cramped slave dormitory I'd prepared for, Sarah leads me to a luxurious suite with four other female slaves. The room screams wealth – plush rugs, silk curtains, and beds that look softer than clouds."Personal slaves sleep close to Alpha Stone," Sarah explains, helping me place my meager belongings in an ornate wardrobe. "He likes to keep us... accessible."The way she says 'accessible' makes my skin prickle. Before I can ask what she means, a scream pierces the evening air. Not of pain – of pure terror."No, no, please!" A male voice begs. "My Alpha, I can explain—"Sarah grabs my arm. "Come on. We're required to watch.""Watch what?" But she's already dragging me toward the balcony overlooking the pack's central courtyard. Other slaves line the railings, faces grim.The sight below steals my breath. Alpha Stone stands in the moonlight, his massive frame somehow larger than I remember from this morning. At

"Eyes down. Back straight. Three steps behind at all times."Master Kane circles me slowly, each word punctuated by the tap of his cane against the marble floor. The training room feels impossibly large, mirrors on every wall reflecting my attempts at proper slave posture."Again," he commands. "Walk to the door."I move forward, trying to remember every instruction. Eyes lowered but not closed. Hands clasped at lower back. Small steps, silent steps. My reflection shows a dozen mistakes I didn't know I was making.The cane cracks against the floor beside me. "Wrong. Your posture suggests defiance. You're a slave, not a soldier. Soften those shoulders."I adjust, fighting my natural instinct to stand tall. The silk of my new robe whispers against my skin as I move, another reminder of my status as Alpha Stone's personal property."Better." Master Kane's voice holds a hint of approval. "Now, serving protocols. Show me how you'd present wine to the Alpha."My hands tremble slightly as I