A Wolf Scorned by Taylor Spratt

Amira

The pungency of Riley’s scent grew the faster I ran through the trees. The vegetation thickened as I descended the mountain, batting tree branches from my path.

I halted, sniffing at the air once more to make sure I was on the right track. She seemed to be moving so I hooked right, barreling through a field of daisies that littered the forest floor.

My legs trembled as I caught sight of a figure up ahead. The first thing I saw was her beautiful black hair. I knew every strand of it like the back of my hand.

Tears pricked at my eyes as I approached her and I cried out her name.

“Riley!”

She spun on her heels. Her eyes were wet with tears but for some reason she didn’t look as happy to see me as I expected she’d be.

“Amira, don’t come any closer. Run away!” She threw her arm out aggressively, trying to fan me away.

I was in utter confusion until the scent of a man hit my sensitive nose.

Alpha Logan stepped out from a nearby tree, his arms covered in mud. He was deliberately hiding his scent the entire time.

“Hello, Mate. Long time no see.” Alpha Logan stepped in close to Riley and grabbed her arm, holding it his steely grip. A fiendish grin flashed on his face and his eyes twinkled with joy as he gazed upon me.

“Take your hands off her, you brute!” I said while baring my teeth at him in challenge.

Though my outward appearance was fierce, what happened inside my body told a different story. My heart raced from the sight of Alpha Logan. Wolfy went wild, scratching at me on the inside, begging me to go to him, go to our mate.

Fate was a real bitch. This fucker rejected me in front of the entire pack and tried to use me as a sex toy and my every instinct was to be with him regardless.

“Brute? Since when do you talk to me like that?" The smile drained from his face only to return seconds later. “I suppose those Blood moon wolves have been rubbing off on you so I will forgive you. Besides, I’ve really missed you Amira. That’s why I’ve been searching for you all this time.’

“Oh really? And how’s Nelenia doing?” I folded my arms and he released Riley and walked over to me.

Every stride he took toward me made him look more handsome, more powerful and dominant. I hated this bond I felt to him, wished I could just burn the red string that attached me to his man.

“Nelenia and I are over,” he said.

“Really, and I’m supposed to be believe that? I thought she was your one true love?” My words were as pointed as they were sarcastic.

“She is not my mate. You are.” He slipped his arm around my waist and my flesh tingled from his touch.

“That didn’t seem to matter to you when you rejected me. Remember that?” I flung his arm off and with lightning speed he snatched my waist as if he owned it.

“Look, I fucked up. I know that now.” He combed his free hand through his inky black hair, pushing it back. “Come on, I know you must feel it too. It’s not the same with a person you're not mated to."

He slid his finger under the rim of my top and pressed a kiss to the mate mark on my neck, running his tongue over it. My legs felt like jelly and I quivered from the sinful sensations.

“Come back to the hole with me. Be my alpha female.” His voice was like a hypnotic whisper, his every word pulling me deeper into a trance. Matehood was supposed to be a blessing, but with him it would only be a prison.

I yanked myself away from him at last.

“I’m not going back to that hell hole with you. Not now, not ever. You just want me back there so you can control me. That’s why you used poor Riley as bait.”

He looked at me as if my words had slapped him in the face.

“That’s not true,” he argued. “You wouldn't be going back as some lowly half-breed. You would be a queen. We could take trips together to the surface world. Plus you’d have your best friend with you. Isn't that what you want?”

He cast his hand in Riley’s direction. His jaw slackened, as he grew more desperate.

Something told me he expected this conversation to go a lot differently for him.

I glanced at Riley. Her lovely face was covered in bruises and I didn't even have to ask who’d done it. Only Logan could do such a thing.

“Freedom to choose my own path. That’s what I want.”

“But I need you.” His jaw clenched and his fists tightened. “I won’t let you get away, Amira. Never again.”

He reached for my arm and before he could touch me, Miles stormed out of the trees and shoved Logan in the chest so hard, he slapped into a tree trunk.

“I knew I smelled vermin!” Callum jumped to Miles's side, glaring at Logan as if he wanted him disemboweled for coming here.

“I know you. You’re the Alpha from the hole. How dare you trespass on Blood moon territory,” Syrus growled out as he ran up to join Miles and Syrus.

“Your're one to talk!” Logan peeled himself off the tree to stare down the guys. “You invaded my home and stole my mate. You’re the bad guys. I’m just here to take back what's mine.”

He reached for my hand. I pulled it away. He scowled.

“She is not yours,” Callum, Miles, and Syrus said in unison.

“Oh really? So what then? You think she belongs to you three? Goddess Selene will have you burn for all eternity for trying to take another man’s mate.” Logan bore down on the men and Syrus stepped forward to bump chests with him.

“I welcome the burn. We were born of the red flame. You don’t scare us.” Syrus shoved Logan in the chest and Logan shoved him back.

Syrus fell back and Miles caught him. “I should rip you to shreds for coming here,” Syrus threatened and Logan merely laughed in reply.

“You’ve got to be kidding, Amira. These are the men you want to stay with? You know they're just using you to break some curse right? They don’t care about you. Can’t you see that? They will never care about you!”

“You're the one to talk. You’ve never shown her an ounce of interest until you found out she was your mate. And even then you rejected her.” Syrus's fangs grew monstrous as his wolf came charging to the surface.

The four men bickered and barked at each other for several moments until frustrated, Logan grabbed Riley by the back of her neck and yanked her about like a doll.

“Take your hands off her,” I jumped at the scoundrel. Riley choked and I had no choice but to halt my attack.

“I’ve had enough of this.” Logan’s gaze met mine and what I saw was the most dangerous type of he-wolf in the world, one with his back against the wall. “You’re coming back with me to the hole or that’s it for Riley. Her dad’ll be pissed but he can always make more pups. I can never have another mate.”

This dirty, dirty son of a bitch. Riley gasped for air as Logan choked her. I couldn’t just leave her like this. I could never forgive myself if I let Riley die just so that I could be free.

I took a step toward Logan and Callum, Syrus, and Miles begged me to stop and not go any closer. They couldn’t possibly understand how I felt. They didn’t know Riley, didn’t know all we’d been through.

I never would have survived long enough in the hole to escape in the first place if it wasn’t for her friendship.

“That's my girl,” he waved his hand inwardly. I went to him, dreading every step. Just when I was almost in reach of him, a strong arm took hold of me, plucking me away.

I’d thought it was one of the guys and when I turned to scold them, my eyes met on a pair of bulky arms covered in tattoos and a pair of blue eyes so icy it made my soul shiver.

Ragnaron.

“Thanks for helping me find her, old pal,” Ragnaron saluted Logan. Stunned speechless, Logan looked like a deer in headlights. Coming to his senses, he released Riley and made a beeline for me and Ragnaron.

“Why you dirty cheat!” Logan took off like a bird, flying for Ragnaron.

The ground moved beneath me, spinning like a merry-go-round from hell. It all happened to0 fast, it was a blur. A chorus of panicked yells charged the air, slamming into my eardrums like a car crash. It came from Miles, Syrus, Callum, Logan - and even Riley.

Ragnaron and I were sucked into a cold and dark void. It was like another universe, or a gateway from one to the next. The guys were gone, Riley was gone. All that remained was me and Ragnaron who held me tightly to him, as we drifted through infinite space.

I sucked in a breath but there was no air. My lungs burned and the fight left my weary muscles. Only one option remained, but I was too terrified to take it. Surrender to the darkness and allow it to take me whole.