Chapter 3

Mate. The word echoed in my mind, bouncing off the walls of my consciousness and leaving me stunned. My gaze remained locked with the black wolf in front of me, a creature whose mere presence sent chills racing down my spine. As understanding dawned on me, a toothy grin spread across his face, offering little comfort and only escalating my alarm.

I delved deeper into his eyes, witnessing an array of emotions swirling within their depths. Any attempt at deciphering the mixed feelings was cut short by a rustling sound behind him. He didn’t flinch, fully aware of what lurked in the underbrush. Three additional wolves stepped forward, one of them advancing aggressively while emitting a low growl.

The Alpha transformed back into his human form. I made sure to keep my gaze above his waist, consciously ignoring his nudity. A single gesture from him halted the advance of the hostile wolf. "Stop," he commanded, and the beast obediently retreated.

He turned his attention back to me, and my brow furrowed in confusion. There was a spark of recognition; I had seen him somewhere before. Despite racking my brain, I couldn’t pinpoint where. A smug grin spread across his lips as if he had read my mind. "You… you don't know who I am, do you?" he asked, amusement lacing his authoritative tone.

His identity remained elusive, yet there was something about him that demanded respect. His status was clear - he was not an ordinary werewolf. But where had I seen him before? His piercing sapphire-blue eyes, pitch-black hair, and sharply defined features felt too familiar. I studied him again, scanning his cheekbones, his alluring lips, his chiseled jawline that looked sharp enough to cut through glass.

And then, as I scrutinized his image, the puzzle pieces began to fall into place. The vibrant blue eyes, the inky black hair, the striking features… I had seen this man before, in countless photographs and heard about him in whispered conversations. One final look at his eyes confirmed my dreadful realization.

My mate, the black wolf who had saved me, was none other than the most feared Alpha in the entire werewolf world: Alpha Oscar Redmoon.

"I... um, I didn't realize I had crossed into your territory. I was... distracted," I said, attempting to keep my voice steady and confident, but it was hard to ignore the cold, domineering aura that radiated from Oscar.

"Distracted?" he echoed, a hint of skepticism coloring his tone. His eyes bore into me as if he could peer directly into my soul and decipher the truth.

"I was being chased by a rogue," I quickly added, the memories of the night’s horrifying events still fresh in my mind.

"By a rogue," he repeated once again, his gaze shifting momentarily to the lifeless form of the rogue that lay on the ground a few feet away from us.

I was surprised by the patience and restraint he displayed; I had expected an immediate reprimand. But he was quiet, as if contemplating something. The silence seemed to stretch on forever and I felt the tension mounting. Ivy’s voice in my head urged me to speak up again, to tell him about the bond, about our destiny as mates. But the words were stuck in my throat. I could tell he wasn’t going to make this easy for me.

"Yes," I finally whispered, breaking the silence. "And I want to thank you, for saving me."

His gaze softened slightly, and I felt a glimmer of hope. "You're welcome," he said, his voice surprisingly gentle. Then he went quiet again, studying me with an unreadable expression. It was hard to tell what he was thinking, what he was feeling. He was a mystery, one I needed to unravel to understand what our future would hold.

Just as I thought of speaking up, one of his warriors took a step forward. He seemed like the second in command, having a sort of authority in his stance. "Alpha, we should get moving," he suggested. I saw Oscar's gaze flicker to him and then back to me.

"We have a lot to discuss, don’t we?" Oscar finally said, the hint of a challenge in his words. He gave me a final, penetrating look before turning around and heading back into the woods, his warriors following him.

Now the real journey was about to begin. Would he accept me as his mate? Would he defy the age-old customs of our kind? Only time could tell. But as I followed him into the woods, one thing was clear: nothing was going to be easy about being mated to Alpha Oscar Redmoon.

His words, though delivered with a neutral expression, felt like a punch to the gut. A ringing filled my ears, drowning out the sound of the forest around us. Ivy whimpered pitifully in the back of my mind, but I was too numb to react. The one person who was supposed to accept and cherish me, irrespective of anything, had just cast me aside.

A bitter laugh escaped my lips, the sound harsh in the silence. I wrapped my arms around myself, suddenly feeling very small and alone. "You didn't even give me a chance," I murmured, my voice sounding hollow to my own ears.

Oscar merely shrugged, not bothering to hide the satisfaction in his eyes. "I don't owe you a chance, Silvermoon."

His indifference stung. I blinked rapidly, refusing to let him see how much his rejection had affected me. The Alpha Oscar might have rejected me, but I refused to let him break me.

I took a deep breath, trying to muster up the last bits of my dignity. "Alright then," I said, forcing myself to meet his cold gaze. "You've made your choice, Alpha Redmoon. I won't beg for acceptance where there's none."

Turning my back on him, I began to walk away. Each step felt like a thousand, my body heavy with the weight of his rejection. Ivy was silent, the bond between us already starting to recede. It was a painful process, almost like a piece of my soul being torn away, but I gritted my teeth and pushed on.

As I left his territory, I could feel their gazes on my back. The last thing I heard was the low, rumbling growl of Oscar Redmoon. Despite everything, a part of me still yearned for him, longed for the acceptance I'd been denied.

But I knew then that I couldn't rely on others for validation. If I was going to prove him wrong, I would need to learn to control my powers, to become the strong, independent woman I'd always aspired to be.

So, with a last, longing glance towards the territory I'd hoped to call home, I stepped into the darkness, my journey to self-discovery just beginning. His rejection wasn't the end for me - it was merely the beginning. The beginning of a new chapter, one filled with potential and possibility. I would prove Alpha Oscar Redmoon wrong, and in the process, I would find myself.