Chapter 5

With his black wolf taking control of him without transforming, these masked men were no match for him. He evaded all of their attacks. His wolf’s golden eyes were revealed, and his hands had changed into claws. In no time, heads were ripped off, hearts were pulled out, and bones were broken.

He had unmatched skills and abilities, which had earned him a training session with his father’s warriors when he was a child. He had outsmarted and beaten all of his father’s trained warriors, and he was seen as a special child with supernatural abilities. These men were no match for him, and they had stupidly come to attack him without knowing his prowess.

He could feel his anger rising, and his werewolf’s eyes twitched, changing into red ones. It changed back and forth as he was holding himself in as he dealt with his attackers.

Unable to handle the man who had become a killing beast before them, three of the masked men managed to escape, while the rest of them lay dead on the ground.

Alex returned fully to being human, his eyes returning to the warmest green orbs.

***

The next morning, he walked down the stairs and met with Hendrix. “Preparing for the meeting?” He asked.

“It’s by noon, remember?” Alex reminded him.

“Oh, yeah,” Hendrix said with a sudden remembrance.

“I’ll be at the stables,” Alex replied, walking away. He had it in mind to tell Hendrix about his attack, but decided against it. He didn’t want to bother Hendrix with more of his problems.

***

“We’ve heard all that has been said, and we’ve come to a conclusion,” Elder Reuben said, and Alex stared blankly at him. “An arranged marriage between the two packs would offer a solution to this,” he concluded.

Jayden frowned. “An arranged marriage?” He questioned.

“Yes. Between your daughter and Alex,” he replied.

“No,” Alex finally said.

“Impossible,” Jayden disagreed.

“To find a solution to this problem between both packs, you both have to come together through marriage,” Elder James said.

“Why can’t we come together without marriage being involved?” Alex asked.

“It’s beyond your reasoning, Alex. In due time, you’ll understand why we took this decision that has long been made,” he said, and Alex stared at him aloofly.

“If it’s beyond his reasoning because he’s young, explain it to me. I’m much older,” Jayden persisted.

“It cannot be said now, Jayden. But, believe us when we say this will bring a solution to this problem,” Reuben said.

They argued for a while about it, and then, with grudges still burning, they accepted it for the good of both packs.

***

“Father, you sent for me,” Mia said as she walked into the living room and got seated beside her mother, who stroked her hair lovingly.

“Yes, my sunshine,” Jayden replied, as he readjusted himself on the chair. “I have something important to discuss with you,” he added.

She nodded. “Okay, but first, how did the meeting with the council of elders go?” She asked, inquisitively.

“That’s why I called you here,” he replied, and Mia stared at him wide-eyed, waiting for him to continue as she was dying of curiosity. “In the meeting, the council of elders came to the conclusion that in order to get to the bottom of this matter and to find a solution to it…" He paused as he stared at his daughter, who could not wait for him to continue with his words. “That means there has to be a union between both packs,” he announced, and Mia stared at him, stupefied, and Lauren sighed.

“What do you mean, father?” She asked him.

He exhaled. “You and Alpha Alex of the Crystal Moon Pack would have to get married to find a solution to this problem,” he replied.

“What?” Mia was stunned. Different thoughts are running through her mind. How was finding a solution to the predicament of her pack related to getting married to a man she knew nothing about? How was she even going to find a solution? She wondered.

“The Crystal Moon Pack is having the same challenges as us, Mia,” he explained. “The elders have concluded that with the both of you together, the cause of the killings will be found and a stop will be put to it.”

“But, father, I do not know this man of whom you speak,” Mia protested. “Sure, I’ve heard of him, but I do not know him,” she added with a shrug.

“You’ll get there soon enough. The wedding is in three days,” Jayden added, and Mia was stunned as she turned to her mother, who could not contribute to the discussion since Jayden’s mind was already made up and had agreed to the council of elders’ request.

***

Mia paced around her room, her mind curious about the said Alpha she was to marry. She had heard he was a handsome, cold-hearted alpha, but she never believed any of it. To her, people fabricated lies a lot just to suit them. Besides, Mia believed nobody had a cold heart.

A mischievous smile crossed her lips as she stopped pacing. “Why don’t I go pay my soon-to-be husband a visit?” She said to herself as she tapped her index finger on her cheek. “I’m dying to know what he looks like,” she repeated to herself.

Mia decided to sneak out of the pack house to pay Alex a visit—an innocent visit, she thought. It was just to spy on him and see what the man she was going to spend the rest of her life with looked like.

Scaling down her bedroom window, due to the sentinels that patrolled the pack house every night. She landed safely on the soft grass and went over to the other side of the fence to avoid being seen by the sentinels.

There was a ladder resting idly on the wall, and Mia mounted it. She got to the top of the fence and jumped down. Looking left and right, Mia turned on her heels and sprinted into a run, an adventurous look on her face as her hair swayed in the cold air.

Without any fear of what was lurking in the dark or what danger she might face, Mia raced through the trees, her mind conjuring images of what Alex might look like.

He can’t be that handsome, she thought as she kept running with her wolf agility, keeping her legs from getting tired.

In a matter of thirty minutes, she got to the border that separated her pack and the Crystal Moon territory from each other. She was panting heavily and decided to take a short rest before continuing her adventure. She would have taken one of the horses in the pack stables, but that would have drawn attention towards her, gotten the attention of her parents, and also halted her plans of taking a quick look at Alex.

She stopped resting and continued walking, venturing into the territory of the enemy without an iota of fear in her. She kept walking, guiding her way in the dark. She could barely see where she was going, yet she kept moving. Suddenly, she lost her balance, and she screamed as she fell into a warm spring. She had no idea that she was treading above the rocky hill of the warm spring. She gasped as she lifted her head up, trying to catch her breath, but stopped when she saw that she was not the only one in spring. Her heart thundered against her chest. She could barely hear the warm spring waterfall sloshing down behind her as her eyes were glued to the man a few inches away from her.

He had blonde hair and warm green eyes that accentuated the symmetry lines of his face. He was perfection. Perfectly moulded with a chiseled jawline and full, well-carved eyebrows that were drawn down with a frown. He had broad shoulders and a lithe body. He was like one of those Greek gods. Mia swallowed hard, meeting the cold gaze of Alex Heartman.