Stolen Luna By The Rival Alpha

Seraphina

The iron bit into my wrists. Every step I took sent a jolt of pain up my arms as the heavy chains dragged through the dirt, pulling my shoulders out of their sockets. Around me, the world was screaming. My pack was falling apart, but I didn't close my eyes. I didn't cry. I watched the shadows of men being cut down and heard the pleas of women in the dark.

I'm Seraphina Grace. To the rest of the pack, I was the Alpha's favorite girl. To Xandriel, I was a warm body and a set of hands to do the work his non-existent Luna should have been doing.

I wasn't a Luna. I was a slave in a pretty dress.

If this bloodbath was the price for my freedom from him, I'd pay it. Xandriel was a monster. He was cruel, beastly, and treated women like property. He had built a throne out of enemies, and today, those enemies finally came to collect.

The chains jangled, a cold and rhythmic reminder of my debt. I planted my feet, trying to keep my dignity even as the smell of smoke and copper filled my lungs.

"Xandriel is gone. But we have his Luna."

The voice was deep, unfamiliar. A rough hand grabbed the center of my chains and jerked me forward. I stumbled, my knees hitting the jagged rocks with a sickening thud.

"The coward ran," I thought. A bitter taste coated my tongue.

The man holding my leash stepped in front of me, forcing my head up. He looked young, but his eyes were hard and scarred by war. A Beta.

"He'll come back for her," the Beta said, looking over his shoulder at the man behind me. "He won't let his prize stay in our hands. That's going to make our Alpha very happy."

I looked him dead in the eye. My heart was thundering against my ribs, but I let my voice stay steady. "He isn't coming back."

The Beta narrowed his eyes. Most women in this world knew better than to speak without permission, but Xandriel had already broken everything in me that could feel fear.

"I'm not a Luna," I spat. "I'm not his mate. You think a woman can make a man like Xandriel soft? He doesn't care if I live or die. He's already halfway to the border."

The Beta shifted, his confidence wavering for a split second. "That changes things, doesn't it, Hayes?"

Hayes, the man standing behind me, didn't hesitate. He reached down and fisted his hand in my hair, yanking my head back until I was looking at the dark canopy of trees.

"She's lying," Hayes growled, his breath hot against my ear. "Every scout said the same thing. She's the only thing that bastard values. She's the key."

He didn't wait for a reply. He hauled me up by my hair and shoved me forward. I tripped over the hem of my torn dress, my bare feet slipping in the cold mud. I looked at the wreckage of my home as we walked. It was a ruin. Xandriel had weakened us with his greed, and now the innocent were paying for it.

The metal cuffs were so tight they stopped my circulation. My palms burned like they were on fire. My legs felt like lead, shaking with every step through the thick brush. These men were fast, forgetting I was a girl of flesh and bone, not a wolf like them.

As we reached the edge of their camp, I realized I knew these woods better than they did. I memorized every turn, every dip in the land. If I could just get these chains off, I'd disappear into the trees and never look back.

Hayes pushed me toward a large, heavy tent. It smelled of pine, expensive leather, and something else. Something dark and electric.

"Get down," Hayes hissed.

He kicked the back of my knees. I hit the rug-covered floor hard. I kept my head low, my neck exposed. It was a move of pure survival. In the world of Alphas, showing your throat was the only way to stay alive long enough to find a way out.

"Alpha," Hayes announced, his voice dropping an octave in respect. "We have the Luna."

The silence in the tent was heavy. It pressed down on me more than the chains ever could. I stared at the floor, watching my own blood drip from my wrists onto the fabric of the rug. I was a mess. Covered in dirt, bruised, and bleeding. I figured this Alpha would probably just kill me to save himself the trouble of a hostage.

The silence stretched. It felt like minutes.

Suddenly, the tension on the chains vanished. Hayes had let go. The metal hit the floor with a dull thud, sending a small puff of dust into the air.

I held my breath. Why wasn't he speaking? Why wasn't he gloating or asking where Xandriel went?

I didn't dare look up, but I could see his shadow. It stretched across the floor, massive and imposing. He was still. Perfectly still. Watching me.

"Leave us, Hayes."

The Alpha's voice wasn't the roar I expected. It was low and smooth, like velvet sliding over stones. It sent a shiver straight down my spine that had nothing to do with the cold. I kept my head down, my heart hammering against my ribs.

"Alpha Xandriel. You were his Luna."

It wasn't a question. He sounded sure, but there was a strange edge to his tone.

"I'm not, sir," I whispered. I tried to wiggle my fingers. They felt like leaden weights, probably swollen and purple by now. I was terrified. If Xandriel was a beast, what was a man who could tear Xandriel's kingdom down in a single night? "I am just a servant. I did the work, but I am nothing to him."

"When you talk to me, Seraphina, look at me."

His voice was quiet, but it carried a command that made my muscles move before my brain could protest. I lifted my chin. My breath hitched.

He was beautiful. It was a cruel, striking kind of beauty that made my knees shake. He didn't look like a butcher. He looked like a king. He stood up from his chair and sank to his knees in front of me, closing the distance until I could smell the forest and rain on his skin.

He reached out. I should have flinched, but when his calloused thumb brushed my cheek, I found myself leaning into his palm. It felt like coming home. A spark of heat ignited where we touched, spreading through my blood like wildfire. Then reality crashed back in. This man was the enemy. He was the one who had just painted my home red.

"My mate," Alexander whispered.

I recoiled as if he'd burned me. Mate? No. I wouldn't be tied to another Alpha. I wouldn't let fate trap me with another man who used his fists to get his way. I scrambled backward, my legs tangling in my dress. I started to fall, my hands still bound and useless to catch me, but he moved like a blur.

His arms wrapped around my waist, pulling me hard against his chest before I hit the dirt.

"I finally found you," he breathed into my hair.

"Are you insane?" I gasped, struggling against his solid grip. "I am not your mate. I belong to Xandriel. He owns me."

I hated the words as they left my mouth. I was desperate. I was lying just to make him stay away. I couldn't do this again. I couldn't be a trophy for another monster.

"You never belonged to that coward," Alexander roared.

The ground seemed to shake. The silkiness was gone, replaced by the predator I had been waiting for. He didn't hit me. Instead, he slammed his fists into the rugs on either side of my hips, pinning me between his massive arms. He let out a low, vibrating growl that rattled my teeth.

"I am Alpha Alexander Gomez. And you are mine. Only mine."

I stared at him, my chest heaving. Alphas were all the same. Possessive. Crazy. He was claiming me like a piece of land he'd just conquered.

"Please," I choked out, looking down at the metal biting into my skin. "The chains. They hurt."

His expression shifted instantly. The rage vanished, replaced by a dark, focused intensity. He pulled a small key from his pocket and worked the locks. The heavy iron fell away, and for the first time in years, my wrists were light.

I didn't thank him. I saw an opening. I tried to scramble up, faking a jab with my left hand while swinging my right fist at his jaw with everything I had.

He didn't even flinch. He caught my fist in his palm like it was nothing. His eyes burned with a sudden, golden fire. Before I could blink, he twisted my arm behind my back and hauled me up, slamming my front against his hard chest.

"If you try that again, you'll be in big trouble, sweety," he murmured. He stayed close, his eyes searching mine.

I looked away, my face flushing with heat and shame. "S-sorry."

"You're afraid of me," he whispered.

I swallowed hard, feeling the pulse in my neck jumping against his skin. "Xandriel can give you whatever you want. Money? Land? I can make it happen if you let me go. He trusts me. You can trust me to deliver the payment."

"You are the only thing I want, Seraphina."

I fought him, trying to squirm out of his hold, but he was like a mountain.

"There's no way you raided a whole camp just for one girl," I snapped.

"But I did," he said. His voice was cold now, sending a different kind of chill through me.

He let me go abruptly. I stumbled back, rubbing my sore wrists and clearing my throat. Alexander didn't move. He just watched me with an ache in his eyes that made my stomach flip. Part of me-the part I hated-wanted to step back into his arms. I wanted to feel that heat again.

'I've been looking for my mate for a long time,' his voice echoed in my head, the mind-link sharp and clear. 'And she was being kept by the cruelest Alpha in the North.'

"And you're not cruel?" I challenged him aloud.

Alexander let out a slow, dark smile. "I can be."

I looked at the floor, my mind racing. I had to protect what was left of my people.

"I'll go with you," I said, my voice trembling. "I'll go, as long as you don't hurt my people. Let them be free. Don't take a single slave from the survivors. And..." I hesitated, looking at his large, scarred hands. "Please don't touch me again. Ever."

Alexander flinched. The hurt flashed across his face for a split second before he masked it with a stony glare. He didn't want me to see that I'd wounded him.

"Don't leave this tent," he growled, turning his back on me. "If you try to run, I'll find you. And I'll make sure you regret it."

He vanished into the night, leaving me alone in the silence of the tent.

Seraphina

I followed him through the brush, my bare feet sinking into the cold, thick mud. The forest was a wall of black, tangled branches that seemed to reach out for me. Xandriel never let me past the perimeter of the camp. I was a bird in a cage, and the cage was small. Now, the world felt too big, too dark, and far too quiet.

A black Audi waited on the shoulder of the highway. It looked like a predator crouching in the shadows, all dark glass and gleaming chrome. Hayes opened the back door, and I slid in, keeping my back pressed against the cold leather of the far side.

Alexander climbed in after me. He didn't try to close the gap. He sat on the other side of the bench, but his presence filled the entire car. He was beautiful in a way that hurt to look at. His jaw was sharp, his hair cut tight, and gold rings glinted in his ears. Tattoos spiraled down his thick arms, intricate patterns that disappeared under his sleeves.

He growled low in his throat, a vibration I felt in my own chest, but he stayed in his corner.

"Why are you so tense?" he asked. He was staring out the window at the passing trees.

I expected to feel more anger toward him for the raid, but mostly, I just felt numb. Xandriel had no soul. He was a hollowed-out beast who broke things for fun. Alexander had destroyed Xandriel's world, and part of me wanted to thank him for it.

"I am not tense," I said. My voice was flat. I wasn't screaming. I wasn't crying. That was as calm as I got.

I rolled my eyes and looked away. He was bossy, just like every other Alpha. I knew how this went. We would get to his house, and the list of rules would start. Stay here. Do this. Don't speak.

"You are. I can hear your heart thudding against your ribs from here." Alexander reached out, his large hand hovering near mine. I pulled away instantly, tucking my fingers into my lap. He retreated, his eyes snapping to mine. "Don't roll your eyes at me, Seraphina. There is no need to be rude."

I didn't flinch. Men like him wanted a reaction. They wanted fear or fire. I gave him nothing. I watched the rain start to smear across the glass, my breath fogging the window until the world outside was just a gray blur.

"You won't even give me a chance," he said, his voice dropping to a soft, pained whisper. "I want to treat you the way you deserve. What did that monster do to make you like this?"

"Do you really want me to answer that?"

He wouldn't be able to stomach it. I had no filter left. The car slowed, turning into a long, gated driveway. When the tires crunched to a halt, I reached for the door handle, but the lock clicked. Alexander's arm was suddenly draped across the back of my seat, his body blocking my exit.

"Yes," he said firmly. "I want the truth. I am not letting you out of this car until you tell me what is happening in that head of yours."

"Fine!" I snapped. The dam broke. "It started with the housework. Then it was a quick rape whenever he felt like it. Then it was long nights where I had to guess if I'd fed him right or if I was touching him the way he liked so he wouldn't hit me." I leaned closer, my eyes burning. "I have scars you will never see, Alexander. So just let me go. There are a thousand women in this world. Pick one that isn't broken."

Alexander's face went pale. His knuckles turned white where he gripped the door handle.

"I will kill him," he rasped. "My pack will hunt him until his lungs burst. He is a dead man."

He unlocked the door and tried to reach for my arm to help me out, but I shoved his hand away and stepped out into the rain.

"You never have to see him again, Seraphina. I promise you."

I ignored him. I didn't want promises. I wanted a bed.

The house was massive, a stone and glass mansion that screamed wealth. In Xandriel's camp, rich men had slaves. They had pretty girls who existed to be used. I waited for the shove, for the hand on my neck to force me through the service entrance.

It never came. I walked through the front door side-by-side with the Alpha.

He led me to a room on the second floor. I stopped in the doorway, my breath catching. There was a bed. A real bed. It had navy blue walls and charcoal gray sheets that looked like clouds. I'd spent years giving my bed to Xandriel or sleeping on a thin mat on his floor.

"You'll get in trouble if you leave the property without me," Alexander said. I sat on the edge of the mattress, testing the softness. It felt too good. I looked out the window at the woods, thinking of my people back home, probably huddled in the dirt. "Am I making myself clear?"

"I know the deal," I said, not looking at him. "You saved the people I care about. I owe you. I'll follow your rules."

"Is that all this is to you? A debt?" He sounded sad, which made me want to scream.

I closed my eyes. I used to dream of finding a mate. I thought it would be a spark, a rush of love. But with him, all I felt was a dull ache and a flicker of heat that terrified me.

"I don't want to be punished," I said, hearing his boots heavy on the floor as he moved closer. "If you saw what he did to me, you wouldn't want to hurt me either. Just... don't touch me."

"I won't touch you," he promised.

"Without permission," I added, the words catching in my throat. I had to set the boundary now. "When do you want dinner?"

He paused. "What?"

"Dinner. If Xandriel's food wasn't hot the second he sat down, he'd choke me. Do you want it at six? Seven?"

"I don't expect you to cook, Seraphina. I have staff for that."

I turned to face him, my brow furrowed. "Then what? Laundry? Sex? Do you have specific days for that? Or is it just whenever you're in the mood?"

The Alpha's composed face crumbled. He looked like I'd stabbed him.

"You're my mate, not my slave," he said, and the way he said my name made my skin prickle. "One day you'll be Luna. You'll have power. You'll have everything. I just need you to learn how we live here. I am not him."

"Then I'm lost. I don't know how to be that."

"You can do whatever you want. Just stay on the grounds and stay out of my office." He stepped closer, his scent of pine and musk filling my senses. "And stay away from certain men. I get jealous. You won't like me when I'm jealous."

"What do you want from me then?" I asked, my voice rising. I needed to know the price. "You don't share? How many of your men am I supposed to entertain?"

Alexander lunged.

I hit the wall behind the bed, my heart stopping. He didn't touch me, but his fists slammed into the drywall on either side of my head. He was inches away, his eyes glowing a predatory gold, his breath hot on my face.

"What do you mean, share?" he growled.

"I thought we should stop talking," I whispered, my pulse racing so hard I thought I'd faint. "You're angry. I didn't mean to upset you."

"No! Answer me! What do you mean by share?!" He looked like he was going to vibrate out of his skin.

"With the other men," I stammered. "In my old pack, the Alpha's girl was for everyone if he was feeling generous."

"Damn it!" Alexander roared, the sound echoing off the walls. "No! I don't share what is mine! Never!"

He backed away, his chest heaving. He looked at me like he wanted to say a thousand things, but instead, he turned on his heel and stormed out, slamming the door so hard the frames on the walls rattled.

I sat there in the silence, trembling. I'd been here thirty minutes, and I'd already broken the Alpha.

Seraphina

The rain drummed against the glass, a constant, heavy rhythm that hadn't let up since I arrived. I stood by the window, watching the blur of the forest. I had told Alexander to leave me alone. His temper was a wild thing, unpredictable and loud.

He was a strange man. He treated me like a prize one second and a problem the next.

I stayed in the room, anchored by my own fear. I hadn't been away from Xandriel for this long in years. It felt weird, but the distance was like a weight lifting off my chest. Xandriel was useless without me. He couldn't cook a meal or keep his own life in order. He used people until they broke.

The click of the door handle made my heart lurch into my throat. I heard my pulse thudding in my ears, a fast, frantic sound. I didn't turn around. I just stood there, waiting for the nightmare to start again.

"Are you hungry?"

Alexander's voice was lower now, vibrating off the navy walls. I trembled. I wanted to be brave. I wanted to show him that he couldn't break me, but my body wouldn't stop shaking.

"The pack is heading out to the grounds for training. We will be alone for dinner. Come eat with me," he said. He sounded almost hesitant, like he was bracing for me to say no.

"No," I said. I kept my voice firm. I didn't want to leave this room. I didn't know what happened at his dinner table. I didn't know if "dinner" was just a code for something else.

"Please," he said. I heard him huff, a sound of pure frustration. "I am trying to ask nicely, Seraphina. Don't make this harder."

I sensed his impatience. It was a familiar heat, the kind that usually ended in a bruise.

"Just dinner?" I asked.

"Just dinner," he repeated.

"No."

I heard his boots heavy on the carpet, moving fast. I spun around, my back hitting the glass of the French windows. He stopped inches from me. He was a wall of muscle and heat, his face flushed with a dark, angry red.

"I just told you I cleared the house for us!" he yelled. He looked stunned, like he couldn't believe I was still standing my ground. "Join me. Now."

"I said no!" I screamed back. I'd rather starve. I'd rather rot in this room than bow down because he raised his voice. I leaned back against the latches of the window, my mind spinning, looking for a way to hurt him. "I'd rather work for every one of your men than sit at a table with you!"

The lie felt like poison on my tongue, but I wanted him to leave. I wanted him to hate me and go away.

Alexander's chest puffed out. His eyes went dark, the pupils swallowing the iris. He lunged toward me, a blur of motion. I panicked. I didn't think. I just threw myself sideways to get away from his reach.

The latch gave way. The French windows swung wide into the storm.

I tumbled backward into the cold air. The rain lashed at my face as I felt the floor disappear. Suddenly, iron-hard fingers clamped around my wrists. Alexander jerked me forward, hauling me back into the room with a strength that made my bones ache.

He let go the second my feet hit the rug, remembering my rule about his touch. His face was no longer red. It was pale with terror.

"Are you trying to kill yourself?" he breathed, his voice shaking. "What is wrong with you?"

"That wouldn't have happened if you weren't looming over me!" I snapped. I fought back the tears stinging my eyes. "Close the windows. Stay away from me."

"I am your Alpha," he growled, stepping back into my space. The fear was gone, replaced by that suffocating authority. "Whether you want the bond or not, you will listen to me. There are consequences for this kind of disrespect."

"I can handle it," I said. I looked him right in the eye. "You're just like him. You're cruel. You're a bully. And I am not afraid of you."

"You think I'm cruel? You want to serve my men?" He spat the words, his jaw tight. "Fine. If that's what you want, have at it. You have no choice now."

He turned and slammed the door, the sound like a gunshot. I couldn't breathe. My lungs felt tight. Would he really do it? Would he throw me to the pack? I moved toward the door, my hand trembling as I reached for the handle.

I opened it, and my heart stopped.

He was still there. He was leaning against the wall, his head in his hands. He looked small. He looked broken.

"What do you want from me before you let me go?" I asked. I looked down at my arms. Faint blue bruises were already forming where he had grabbed me to keep me from falling. "Why are you keeping me here?"

"You're my mate, Seraphina," he said, his voice a rough ghost of a sound. "I'll have you one way or another."

He started walking down the hall, a low growl rolling in his throat. I followed him, my legs feeling like jelly. I needed to end this.

"I belong to Xandriel," I said to his back. "I bear his mark."

Alexander stopped dead. I bumped into his back, the heat of him seeping through my clothes. He turned, his eyes searching my neck, his breath shallow.

"I don't see a mark," he said. The relief in his voice was sickening.

"He put it where no one would see."

I reached down and yanked the hem of my shirt up, just above my hip. The jagged, scarred mark sat there, half-hidden by the waistband of my jeans. It was a brand of ownership.

Alexander's eyes flared. His fists clenched so hard his knuckles turned white.

"We can end this, Alpha," I whispered. "Just reject me. Set us both free."

"Never."

He looked at me with a hunger that made my blood sing. I hated it. I hated how my body reacted to him, how the air between us felt thick and electric.

"Don't you want other women? You're an Alpha. You can have anyone. Just let me go."

The bond was screaming at me to touch him, to close the distance. It was a physical ache in my chest.

"I only want you," he said. He stepped closer, his gaze dropping to the mark on my hip. "He marked you in secret. But when I mark you, it will be for the whole world to see."

My cheeks burned. I felt a pull in my gut so strong I had to grip the wall to stay upright.

"You are destined to be my Luna," he said.

Then he turned and walked down the stairs, leaving me shivering in the hall.