Chapter 3 Caught In The Alpha's Grasp

The forest exploded into movement.

Kael's body hit hers like a wall of muscle and heat. Aria slashed with her knife, but he caught her wrist mid-swing, twisting her around with brutal precision. The blade clattered to the dirt, and her back slammed into a tree, pinned by the full weight of the Northern Alpha.

She struggled, breath heaving, lips curled in defiance. Her body burned from the inside-damn heat, damn bond-and the closer he was, the more the ache built between her legs. Her wolf whimpered inside her, scenting safety and dominance. But Aria shoved that part of herself down hard.

She wasn't some trembling little Omega.

She wasn't his.

"Let me go," she spat, thrashing.

Kael's hand was at her throat-not choking, but firm, his thumb stroking her pulse. "I gave you a chance to run, little wolf."

"I didn't ask for you."

"But you called for me."

His voice was low and lethal. Her scent was wrapping around him, curling like smoke, sweet and maddening. Her body was betraying her with every breath-her skin hot, her thighs trembling.

"Get off me," she growled, trying to knee him.

Kael's eyes flashed gold.

"You're in heat. You shouldn't be able to move, let alone fight."

"Shows how much you know."

"You dosed yourself." He leaned in, sniffing her throat, his lips brushing skin. "Suppression tonic. Homemade. Dangerous. Smart."

Aria went still.

He knew.

Kael's mouth lowered to the hollow of her neck. His breath scorched her.

"Do you know what it does to me, smelling this?" he whispered. "Your body begging to be claimed while your mouth spits fire."

She bit her lip, resisting the tremble in her spine.

"You don't want me," she hissed. "You want the bond. The heat. You don't know me."

Kael drew back slightly, enough to meet her eyes.

And what she saw there wasn't lust.

It was something worse.

Possession.

"I know enough," he said. "I know your body wants mine. I know your scent is driving me to madness. And I know no other Alpha will ever touch you now."

Aria slapped him.

Hard.

The sound cracked through the trees like a whip.

Kael didn't flinch.

Instead, he leaned in again, eyes blazing. "That's the last time I let you hit me. Omega or not, I bite back."

"I'd rather die," she said.

His grip on her throat tightened-still not choking, but enough to make her pulse jump.

"You say that," he murmured. "But when I put my mark on your neck... your body will tell a different story."

She gasped as he pressed in closer, heat rolling off him in waves. The air crackled between them-wolf to wolf, fire to fire.

Then-

He stopped.

Kael's eyes snapped upward. His body went rigid.

"Your village," he muttered.

Smoke.

Faint on the wind.

No.

Aria's heart dropped. "Leo."

Kael released her instantly.

Aria bolted.

But he was already ahead of her, running faster than any human could. She raced behind him through the trees, pain shooting through her knees, panic roaring in her chest.

When the trees thinned and Hollow's End came into view, her world stopped.

The village was in flames.

Aria's feet pounded the earth as she broke through the treeline.

The village she had called home-quiet, forgotten, and hidden-was now a war zone. Orange flames danced from rooftops. Smoke twisted into the sky like ghostly fingers. Screams echoed through the air, sharp and panicked. The scent of blood was thick, mingling with ash and something more distinct-

Southern Claw warriors.

She'd recognize their markings anywhere. The black pawprint tattoos. The sleek, uniform armor. These weren't Kael's men.

This was a raid.

And her brother was somewhere inside.

"Leo!" she cried, sprinting across the clearing.

A burning plank collapsed beside her, nearly catching the hem of her cloak. Her lungs choked on smoke. She pushed through it, ignoring the sting in her eyes, the shaking in her legs.

"LEO!"

Nothing. No answer. Just more screaming, more chaos. She ducked into her cottage-half collapsed, the roof caving in. Furniture smoldered. Her bed had been ripped apart. The back door had been kicked open.

And the blanket on Leo's bed was gone.

Someone had taken him.

---

Kael

Kael moved like death.

The moment he saw the claw-marked armor of the Southern Claw invaders, his beast surged forward.

He didn't wait for his warriors to catch up. He ripped the first man's throat out with his claws. Another went down under his boot, spine snapping. A third tried to flee-Kael dragged him back by the hair and slammed his head into a stone wall, splattering blood across the firelight.

He didn't speak. Didn't roar.

He executed.

And the others ran.

Cowards.

They hadn't expected the Northern Alpha here. Hadn't expected the monster that came with the golden eyes and blood-stained teeth.

Kael stood amid the bodies, breath heaving.

He turned as Aria stumbled out of the house, her face streaked with ash and tears.

"They took him," she said, voice broken. "My brother. He's-he's gone."

Kael's blood froze.

Brother.

He crossed to her in two long strides, gripping her shoulders.

"Where would they take him?"

"I-I don't know," she whispered. "Maybe back across the ridge. Maybe to the mines. There's a slave camp in-"

Her knees buckled, and Kael caught her before she hit the ground.

"Enough," he said gently, surprising even himself. "You're burning up."

She tried to push him away. "I have to find him. I have to-"

"You're going into full heat. You can't even stand." His arms tightened. "And they won't hurt a child. They'll use him. Trade him. He'll be alive."

"Kael-"

His name on her tongue sounded like a plea.

He gritted his teeth.

Every instinct screamed at him to drag her away. To throw her over his shoulder and take her far from the smoke, from the danger. To claim her. But she wasn't ready-not physically, not emotionally. And something else burned behind her eyes.

Secrets.

"Tell me the truth," he said suddenly. "You're not just an Omega. You knew this would happen."

Her breath hitched. The fire reflected in her gaze, wild and defiant.

"My name is Aria Velryn."

Kael's expression darkened.

He knew that name.

Velryn. The bloodline of the former ruling pack of the South. The one his father had slaughtered during the border war. The name he thought was extinct.

"You're supposed to be dead," he growled.

Aria stared up at him, trembling.

"So are you."