Chapter 8

Aurora

I was sitting in my room doing nothing. Well, actually I was brewing up a plan to get out of here. I have to gain all of their trust, so it is a little easy for me to escape. Since I had pretty much nothing else to do at the time, I thought why not go and workout for a little.

I headed for the gym. It was pretty nice with all the machinery and, oh! The punching bag. How much I love punching and kicking people's ass. I could definitely use this for the time being.

I pulled my shirt over my head, which only left me in my sports bra and a booty shorts I had been wearing earlier. With a deep breath, I started punching the hell out of the bag, assuming it was the person who killed my mother, along with a few kicks at intervals. I was nowhere done when I felt a presence at a safe distance behind me. I whipped my head to see Alexander standing in the doorway, digging holes in my body with his piercing gaze. I could see he was admiring my body. I mentally smirked. I raised an eyebrow, showing that he was caught checking me out.

"I was just.... I well… I came…. I came here to work out. But I'll come later since you are here at the moment." He stuttered out. Huh! The alpha was stuttering.

"It's alright, you can use the gym. It's yours anyway." I spoke nonchalantly. He made his way to the treadmill while I returned to the punching bag. But all this time I could feel his eyes boring into my back.

"Hey! Do you have any warriors I could practice with?" I asked, as if almost wanting to break the thick silence in the atmosphere. I could see the wheels turning in his head.

"No!" He shouted all of a sudden, a little too aggressively. I looked at him as if he had grown two heads. What's with the sudden change in behavior?

"I mean ...no angel. Actually, the warriors are busy right now. Yeah they are busy." He replied almost instantly, sensing my discomfort. I knew he was lying but acted differently.

"But if you want to practice .. You know I'm up for it. Obviously, if you don't have any problem," he said.

I thought this might be a good moment to win his trust, and maybe I could finally see what it is that scares people so much. After weighing the possible outcomes, I spoke.

"OK," shrugging lightly. He was taken aback by my answer but got over it.

We were circling around each other waiting for the opponent to attack. I finally took a step towards him, knowing that he was not going to make the first move. I attempted to throw a punch at him, which he easily dodged. But I was not done. I launched a kick to his mid-thigh, which he was not expecting, yet he caught it mid-way. I immediately used my other leg and kicked him in the jaw. He stumbled a little when I landed perfectly with a back flip. He aimed a punch at my face after recovering, which I blocked gracefully before aiming another kick at his chest. He dodged it easily. I knew he was holding back, not wanting to hurt me. Heck, we both were. We were both not fighting to our potential.

“Come on Alpha. Is that all you got? Make a move before I start doubting all those oh-so famous stories about you and believe that they were nothing but rumors." I spat, trying to rile him up a little. I lunged at him again but he moved out of my way just in time only to grab my elbow and pull me back to his chest. Now my back was completely pressed against his chest and he had both my arms locked behind me with one of his hands, while his other hand landed just a little above my breast. I felt him breathing deeply while his breath kissed my ear ever so gently. Damn he was affecting me. I was going weak in my knees.

"Never go running to your opponent. They might think that you are into them." He whispered as his lips ghostly touched my right ear. I shivered. I need to get out of his hold before my legs turn jelly. I kicked his knee. Hard! He stumbled and fell but brought me down along with him. I immediately took advantage of this and straddled him while he was still on the ground. Bending down a little, I instantly pinned his arms over his head.

"What does the opponent think now?" I whispered playfully. Before I knew, I was flipped and now he was on top of me. I've got to admit I didn't see that coming. He moved closer and for a moment I thought he was going to kiss me. My eyes widened and I tensed a little only to relax after he moved his lips to my ear.

"He thinks you're beautiful." He replied with an emotion swirling in his eyes. His eyes locked with mine, silence enveloped us. We got so lost in each other’s, I almost didn’t hear anyone cough, breaking us out of our trance. He immediately got off me and I took my time to stand up. I'm sure I was blushing at that point. Heck, what was even happening to me? I was acting like a stupid teenager. I realized it was beta Lucas at the door. Alexander immediately moved to stand directly in front of me before speaking.

"What is it, Lucas?" He gritted out almost painfully.

"Actually, Alpha, there is something we need to take care of and your presence is required." Lucas replied a little uncomfortably.

Their eyes got a little hazy, which confirmed they were now chatting in their mind link. I knew something was wrong so I looked at him in question.

As if guessing my questioning look, he answered, "We have a little problem with the rogues. Not a big deal. I'll be back later." He replied and left, not before kissing my forehead and letting his lips linger there for a moment. It was at that moment I felt my heart stop. Damn I was flustered! Again! But he left my mind pondering over what he said. Rouges.

Is it possible it's them? Have they found me? I'm definitely putting his pack in danger. I have to leave as soon as possible! I can't let these innocent people pay in my place.

Innocent. I thought about how my ideology for this pack changed from barbaric to innocent. I think I can't blame anyone for this but them. I mean from the moment I showed up here, they have showered me with nothing but love and respect. I actually feel really bad when I think about what I was going to do to them. Leave them. Alone. When they need their Luna. I'm sure I don't deserve to even be called one. But I have to do this for their safety.

For Alexander's safety.

Alexander.

My mind immediately wandered over to him, making my wolf stir a little. Why was he being so gentle with me? He was not supposed to... Not supposed to be so nice. He should have shown me the real him, so it would have been easier for me to hate him and leave.

I know he is a monster! But my heart convinces me to say otherwise. Why? I don't even like him. Or do I? Well, whatever it is, I know I'm going to go crazy. I left the room with the final thought of escaping soon.

I was on my way to my room when I spotted a few warriors. They looked a bit tense. They greeted me as soon as they saw me.

"Is everything alright?" I asked them.

"Oh yes, Luna, of course! Everything is under control. There was a small rogue attack but there is nothing to worry about as we caught them and now they are in the dungeon. Alpha is dealing with them currently." One of them replied.

I was sure they had come here after me. I had to do something. That's it. I'm leaving tonight. No exceptions. I made my way to my room only to spot two guards standing outside my door.

"Why are you guys here?" I asked, irritated.

.

"Alpha sent us here to make sure you are alright, Luna. He wants to make sure you are safe till he comes back." Of course he did! Just great!

I was in my room for 3 hours now. It was night already and those stupid guards were still on my gate making sure to protect me. If only they knew what I really was and didn't need protection. I knew what I had to do now. I've got a plan. I stepped out of my room to see the guards immediately running up to me.

"Is everything alright? Do you need anything, Luna?" they asked.

"No, actually, Alexander has called me to the dungeons. So I have to go there." I replied confidently.

"But how did the Alpha send the message?"

"He mind linked me, of course." I hope they didn't notice that he hadn't marked me yet, which meant that he cannot mind link me.

"Alright, Luna, let us mind link and confirm with the Alpha." Oh no you are not going to do that.

"Are you trying to say that I'm lying?"

"Of course n...not Luna. Alpha has told us to not let you out without his permission." He stuttered a little.

"So you are saying that my words are not enough for you? I wonder what Alexander will do to you once he hears about this," I scoffed. I feel bad for lying to them, but what can I do? They looked at each other in horror before moving out of my way. I smirked and started making my way to the main gate of the castle. I just hope this works. I peeped to see the route was clear. I dashed towards the door only to see two more guards standing there. They looked at me in question.

"Where are you going, Luna?"

"I was just heading out for a walk. I feel suffocated and trapped here all day." They nodded before letting me go. Well, that was easy. And with that I ran in the direction of the forest without looking back. My mind wandered back to Alexander. How gentle and caring he had been with me all this time.

I didn't know why I felt something continuously tugging at my heart. It's something that has been bothering me since I left the castle. My wolf was not talking to me as she was obviously sad and angry at my decision.

I'm sure he would have helped you if you told him the truth. He would not have judged you or would have taken advantage of you because he is our mate. He loves us, were her last words before shutting me out completely. But I know I was doing this for their own good.

Then why do I feel so hurt? I tried to ignore the feeling and continued making my way through the forest, when something hard tugged my heart. A feeling I can't describe. It was so strong that it felt as if a big rock was placed over me and was forbidding me to take the next step. It was an emotion. A very strong emotion. Emotion of Fear. I started panting as it was getting really hard for me to breathe with every growing second. My body was tense and every passing second gave me nothing but distress. I knew it wasn't my fear that was stopping me.

It was Alexander. He was scared, fearful, terrified! I have never felt an emotion this strong. It was because of the mate bond. I felt tears pour out my eyes because, for some reason, I didn’t even try to hold them back. Everything was so overwhelming. Alexander was scared. He needed me and was leaving him. The big bad Alpha was sacred and was calling out for me and I being the terrible mate was leaving him. I was leaving the pack I was meant to stay with forever.