Chapter 8
Alpha Matthew
I was told that the Rebels were monsters, but honestly, they aren’t. They’re incredibly kind werewolves. After I decided to trust them, Sloane excused me from her tent. Since then, I’ve spent the night eating with the Rebels and hearing their stories, particularly why they ended up joining the rebellion. Some of them were betrayed, or felt betrayed. Others have nowhere else to go and consider the Rebels their family. But mostly, there’s a genuine disdain for the King.
I ate so well. The stew was amazing, and I was given a tent to sleep in peacefully. At first, I was nervous, but having my own sleeping space was a massive relief.
As soon as the sun began to rise, I had to get up and head toward the main tent. Sloane and Joshua were waiting for me, along with a few warriors.
Sloane gave me a small smile as we were about to walk toward one of their cars. “We cannot have you tell the pack where we are. The Scholars have a close relationship with the King.”
I just stared at her, confused. “So, what am I supposed to do?”
Part of me still believes this is too good to be true. They’re letting me go. They’re not trying to hold me hostage or kill me for what I know. In Sparta, we would have killed the rebels immediately, without hesitation. Maybe the Rebels aren’t as ruthless as people make them
out to be.
Sloane pulled out a small pill and handed it to me as we got into the car. She gave me an intense stare as we began to drive out of the woods. “This will erase your memories of the last
18 hours.”
I stared at her blankly. “Are you insane?”
“Don’t worry. It just puts a mind block. Once you take the pill, it will knock you out. The last
thing you see will be the one thing that will release the mind block.”
“What are you going to do then?” I asked her, somewhat afraid. “Where will you leave me?”
“Just outside the Scholars‘ territory.” She placed the pill in my hand, handing me a water
bottle. “Seeing as you’re about to forget this entire ordeal, I’ll let you know that we have a
mission to run in the mountains anyway. Not near the Scholars, but close enough that you can
walk there.”
“How am I supposed to explain my memory loss?”
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“Doesn’t matter what I tell you,” Sloane shrugged. “You’re going to forget it anyway.”
Joshua, who was sitting in the passenger seat, smirked. “Good luck with their Alpha. I hear he’s quite the misanthrope. But with werewolves, of course.”
Sloane began unraveling a string of leather she had tied in her ponytail. She quickly wrapped it
around my wrist with a kind smile.
“If you feel like you don’t belong and you branch away from pack life, you will find us in the
most unlikely of places.”
She pushed the water bottle further toward me. Before I could ask what she meant, I took the
pill as quickly as possible, chugging down the water with all my might.
I could die right now. I could have trusted these random people, and this could lead to my
death. But who cares? My mate certainly doesn’t care. What’s the point of living when my
soulmate doesn’t even want me? Here I go, taking a gamble, because why not? Why bother
caring?
I began to feel drowsy, unsure where my head was at. My eyes turned to Sloane, whose mouth
was moving, but I couldn’t hear a word she was saying. I kept my eyes planted on her–what
was it she said? The last thing I look at will be the one thing to bring my memories back. I
wouldn’t mind meeting Sloane again. I wouldn’t mind running into her. My gaze got blurrier,
and her face started to dissolve into black.
I have no idea how I got here. I must have been running so much that my mind shut off,
because the memory of reaching the bottom of the mountain seems gone. Even though my body doesn’t feel as sore as it should, and I’m not starving the way I thought I’d be.
Regardless, I realize that I’m only a few hours away from my
I start to climb up the side of the mountain.
destination.
There’s a valley here where I know one of the packs lives. We call them the Scholars because
they also have one of the few werewolf universities in the world. It’s like a college town run by
their Alpha, Matthew. There are stories about Alpha Matthew–a recluse of an Alpha to the
outside world, but particularly kind to his pack. I keep praying to the Moon Goddess that he
will be kind to me as soon as he learns of my circumstances.
As I get closer, I become more nervous. I have no idea what’s going to happen to me as soon
as I step foot on their territory. I have a small plan of what I want to do, but I doubt it’ll go the
way I’ve imagined it.
My wolf starts running around in my head.
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I can tell she’s nervous the closer we get to the pack’s territory. Just as I round the top of the mountain, I manage to look down at the valley. The town looks absolutely beautiful. Small pockets of buildings and houses line the lakes. In the forest to the right of the lake, I see the university alongside the tree line.
It doesn’t look at all like Sparta. It’s much more beautiful. Even my wolf is blown away by the beauty of this pack. I start climbing down toward the valley. The closer I get, the more I feel nervous as the pack’s energy bounces off. It’s like a warning sign for me to turn away.
You can do this, I think to myself. My wolf huffs in agreement.
You’ve been rejected, I tell myself as I get closer. Nothing can ever be as painful as that rejection.
Taking a deep breath, I step onto the territory.
The small hairs on my neck instantly stand up. I decide not to move. I know that wolves have been alerted to my presence. I take my backpack off, setting it on the ground so as not to pose a threat.
Within seconds, three patrol wolves appear.
They growl and extend their claws to threaten me. I can’t mind–link with them, but I know they’re talking to someone about me being here. I hold my hands up in the air.
“Please,” I say.smoothly. “I just want to speak with your Alpha.”
One of the wolves snaps at me, making me stumble back. I don’t want to lose control, but I feel my canines start to itch, and my wolf becomes defensive. She wants to come out and defend me. She wants to attack and act on all the training we received in Sparta.
A different wolf circles behind me, and I realize how quickly they’ve trapped me.
They’re waiting eagerly to launch themselves in the right order. I start to realize I’ve probably made a huge mistake. Maybe it wasn’t the smartest thing to just show up here and invade their territory. I might actually die.
I hear a loud growl in the distance that makes me want to sink down to my knees. It’s not
overly powerful, but I can feel the energy push my wolf down to the ground. I watch as a
female marches her way toward us, her eyes narrowed and fists clenched at her sides. Her
hair is cut to shoulder length, with one side buzzed off. I can see a wolf tattoo etched onto the
side of her skull. If everyone looks like her in these lands, then I’m not quite sure why it’s
called Scholars and not Bikers. My God.
“What makes you think you can just cross into our land, Rogue?” She snarls once she’s closer.
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Her voice is laced with venom that makes my wolf nearly sink down in submission. It’s not an Alpha voice, but I recognize it clearly as Beta, especially after the wolf guards all nodded at her respectfully.
A female Beta? I quickly think to myself. Sparta would never.
“I come in peace,” I tell her honestly and as gently as I can. “I wish to speak with your Alpha.” She c***s her head to the side, eyebrows furrowing. “You are not worthy of his time; do you not realize that?”
I figured this would happen. What is one rogue to an Alpha? If anything, I’m just a typical intrusion. I’m sure this happens more times than not, so why would he ever want to see me?
