Aiden returned to the pack around four in the morning—exhausted, angry, and heavy-hearted. He walked in human form, hoodie damp with dew and moonlight still clinging to his skin. As he entered the outer edge of the territory, the wolves stirred.
They caught his scent.
A few turned to look. One beta male curled his lip in disdain, stepping forward with a growl."You've been with your little human toy again?"
Aiden didn't answer. His eyes narrowed, jaw clenched as he kept walking toward the pack house.
Toy.
Was that how they saw her now?
The thought stabbed at his chest, leaving bitterness in its wake.
He was almost at the door when the beta called after him again, louder this time."You haven't mated with her, right? You know the law—no mating outside the bond. It's forbidden."
Aiden froze.
Red flooded his vision.
The next second, he spun on his heel, body already half-shifting. His bones cracked and stretched, eyes glowing, canines bared, and claws out. He lunged.
The beta barely had time to react before they crashed to the ground with a violent thud.Aiden's black wolf ears lay flat against his head, tail bristled and stiff. He snarled, fur flaring as rage poured from every inch of him. The beta shifted too, grey and black fur bursting across his skin, and the fight became feral.
Growls echoed through the clearing, claws raking, teeth snapping. Dust clouded the early morning air, yelps and snarls mingling into a wild symphony of dominance and fury.It took two other wolves to separate them, each dragging one of the combatants away.
Aiden was bleeding—deep claw marks on his shoulder and a torn ear dripping with blood.
A bruise had already begun to blossom along his cheek and arm.
The beta didn't fare much better. Crimson streaked across his chest, elbow, and face, with a swollen eye starting to shut from a deepening bruise.Aiden didn't speak.
He stood panting, bare-chested, blood running down his skin and pain simmering beneath the surface—but it was nothing compared to the ache inside.
He didn't care about the wound. He cared that the pack still called Evelyn a toy.
Aiden stood panting, chest heaving, blood trickling down his side. His eyes were still glowing faintly, canines visible as he half-shifted back, bones cracking into human form. His skin was streaked with dirt, fur, and crimson, his expression wild and hollow.
No one moved to help him.
The pack stared in silence, and though no words were spoken, the judgment was clear in their eyes. Not about the fight. Not about the blood. But because he'd fought for her.
"She's not your mate," the Beta spat, wiping blood from his lip.
"I know," Aiden hissed, turning away again, stumbling toward the pack-house. "She's gone. Happy now?"
He didn't wait for a reply. The pain in his chest wasn't just from the fight—it was from Evelyn's laugh when she'd rejected him. From the way the bond tugged at him, pulled him toward someone else.
And from the slow, gnawing fear that maybe he wasn't enough for either of them.
Inside the pack-house, everything felt smaller than he remembered. The walls were too tight. The air, too cold.
He headed to the farthest corner room and slammed the door behind him.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Later That Day
When he woke again, the wounds had started to scab over, but his body ached. Someone had left food outside his door, untouched and cold now. Aiden sat on the floor beside the window, knees drawn up, shirt discarded, eyes empty.
He felt it before he heard it. A shift in the air. A presence that didn't quite belong.
Theron.
Aiden didn't look up as the door opened.
"You're bleeding again," came the quiet voice.
Aiden laughed once—dry and humorless. "Didn't realize the moon sends healers."
Theron stepped inside, not answering the jab. He carried a cloth and a small tin of ointment. "Let me help.""I didn't ask you to come.""You didn't have to."
Theron knelt in front of him, dipping the cloth and dabbing gently at the wound on Aiden's ear. Aiden flinched, but didn't stop him.
"Why are you really here?" he asked, voice low. Theron hesitated. "Because this pack may be your home, but it doesn't feel like it anymore."
Aiden said nothing. Theron continued, voice softer. "You need somewhere you can breathe."Aiden finally looked up at him, blue eyes tired. "And where's that supposed to be?"Theron met his gaze, unwavering. "With me."
There was a pause. Aiden's breath caught in his throat, unsure if he'd heard right.Then Theron spoke again, voice calm but final: "I'm coming to tell you—from today on, you move in with me. In the Alpha King's den."
Silence crashed between them.
Aiden blinked, then frowned. "What?"
"You need protection," Theron said simply, as if that explained everything. "And space to heal. They'll keep coming after you. I can't allow that."
Aiden pushed himself to his feet, wincing at the sting of his wounds. "I don't need your pity.""This isn't pity." Theron's tone hardened. "It's responsibility."
"I'm not your responsibility," Aiden snapped, stepping back. "You think because of some bond—"
"You are," Theron interrupted, stepping closer. "You are mine. Not like an object. Not like property. But because you were chosen. And whether you accept it or not, that makes you mine to protect."
Aiden's fists clenched. "Don't talk to me like I'm fragile."
"You're not," Theron said. His voice softened, low and firm. "You're hurting."The words sank deep, further than they should have. Aiden looked away, jaw tight."I don't want to live with you," he muttered, but even to his own ears it sounded weak.
"You don't have to want it," Theron said, "You just have to let me try." Aiden let out a shaky breath, the fight draining from him. He sank back onto the floor, eyes tired.
"Fine," he whispered. "One night." Theron nodded. "We'll leave tonight."
The journey was mostly silent. Aiden walked beside Theron through the still forest, his wounds sore, his heart heavier. The stars above were fading, the night slowly giving way to dawn's blue hush.
He expected a cold stone fortress, something towering and formal like the Alpha King title suggested.
Instead, the den was carved into the side of an ancient hill, half hidden by vines and moss. It blended into nature, but the moment they stepped through the entrance, Aiden felt it—power.
The air was warm and still inside. The walls were smooth stone with patterns carved deep—moons, wolves, and celestial symbols that tugged at something primal in his chest. It smelled like herbs, cedarwood, and a hint of wild snow.
Theron led him down a sloping passageway until it opened into a large, open room. A fire crackled quietly in the center, surrounded by soft furs and cushions. On one wall was a large bed, simple but clearly handcrafted. Books lined the opposite wall—some ancient-looking, others modern.
"Is this... yours?" Aiden asked, almost in disbelief. Theron nodded. "Mine. And now, yours too."Aiden didn't move. "Why is it so... peaceful?"
Theron glanced at him. "Because the Alpha King should have peace in his home. Power without gentleness is just fear."
Aiden didn't reply. His eyes fell on a carved figure sitting on the mantle. A wolf curled around a moon. The bond mark on his shoulder ached.
Theron noticed. "Your room's through there," he said, motioning toward a smaller tunnel. "You can rest. I won't bother you."
Aiden opened his mouth, ready to throw a biting comment, but stopped. Instead, he nodded once and stepped through the tunnel.
The room was smaller but warm. A window carved from the rock let in slivers of the morning light. Aiden sat on the bed, finally exhaling.
He was exhausted. The wounds, the fight, Evelyn, the bond, Theron... everything. He curled on the edge of the bed, wrapping a fur blanket around his shoulders.Just one night, he told himself.
But something in the way Theron had said "mine to protect" echoed in his chest longer than it should have.