Chapter 3 An Unexplainable Bond

Alpha Justin’s POV I had exactly made a promise. A promise to Elise. A promise to protect Eliana. For years, I had let the bitterness and hatred grow, blaming her for something that she had never done. But then, that night, when I caught sight of her about to jump off the cliff, something changed within me. The tremor in her body, the way she cried on my chest, broke down the walls I had erected between us. I should have seen it far earlier. Should have realised just how badly I had failed her. I vowed to improve. But I had never thought that improving would make it worse. My new attitude was noted. The pack whispered amongst themselves, giving me sideways glances as I personally oversaw Eliana's training. In years of restraint, here I was, against her, arm on her arm guiding, correcting the way she stood, while closely monitoring her sparring. “With a poise like that I could kick you off your feet before you get the chance to lay a hand on me.” I joked. “In your dreams.” Eliana chuckled. She had power. Power above what I had ever given potential value to. But in really terrifying ways, she was fragile. The smile on her face, so unsure, so not really aware if the warm gestures were perceived as just that, undid something deep within me. The way she looked at me, searching for my approval, gut-punched me in ways that were indescribable. And the way my wolf reacted to her… That was the real problem. “She is ours.“ “She comes under my protection," I backed her off. “Mine," the wolf snarled. No. Impossible. She was Eliana. The girl I had raised. The girl I had sworn to protect. The girl that was supposed to be my daughter. The moment I pulled her back from that cliff’s edge, something shifted within me. My wolf, which had been a mere observer of her all along, roused itself. And every day since then, that rousing has been growing in intensity. Stronger, more insistent, sharply undeniable. And I was not the only one who sensed it. Eliana was different. She kept trying to convince herself she was feeling nothing but simple gratitude around me. I could tell because she hesitated a second too long, her breath hitched up when I touched her shoulder, and she did anything to avoid meeting my eyes if she thought I was not looking. She had probably felt it too. And that was the most dangerous of all. The pack failed to understand. They must have seen how I now looked at her and how I took care of her. By the time I would have been ready to admit the truth to myself, however, rumours had already begun to sprout. “Why is the Alpha suddenly so interested in her?" “He never cared before. Why is there a sense of urgency now?" “You don't think...?" They did not have the courage to speak the words aloud, yet I heard them in their silence. I couldn't risk them being correct. Hungry for insight, I turned to the only beings who could possibly be able to offer it: the elders. I framed a scenario. A theoretical situation. “This is a hypothetical concern. If an Alpha's wolf were to call a girl raised as his daughter... mate-“ I broke off to gauze at them. Silence. The weight of it pressed down on me even as they exchanged nervous looks. “No such thing has ever occurred before," one finally managed. “It's unnatural." “A mistake," another muttered. “Or fate," an elder said, his face an ruinable mask. “The Moon Goddess does not make mistakes." Every day I wanted to believe that. I wanted to believe that some sort of explanation that made sense existed for how I felt about everything. When it came to the bond between mates, logic did not exist. And I was beginning to realise-because I fought it in every possible way, denied it at every opportunity- That I was losing this battle. That night, when it all fell apart, the rogues came unnoticed. Eliana had been training into the long hours of the night, not stopping until her exhaustion had nearly swallowed her. I had been watching her train from edges of the clearing, not ready to intervene but unwilling to leave her undefended. That was when I had begun to smell. Rogues-a dozen of them. Coming in fast. Towards her. So fast I shifted before even thinking. The whole scenario reminded me the night my Elise died. I wouldn’t let that happen again. The first rogue never even got the chance as I was already there by the time he lunched at her. When I hit the rogue first, Eliana gasped and I rolled over, shielding her with my body. My claws ripped through the first attacker's throat. The second barely had time to react before I tore through his chest. They had come for her. They had targeted her. Mine. That thought rushed through me and swallowed me, taking over the moment I slaughtered those who dared to approach. And in mere seconds, it was all over. The smell of blood enveloped the air. They lay dying there around us, rogues. And then I turned towards Eliana. She was on her knees, panting, her eyes locked into mine. Fear. Fear of me. And not the rogues. I took a step towards her, breathless, and my wolf clawing just beneath the surface. “Eliana—" She flinched. Not because she thought I would hurt her. But because she had heard me. For I had growled a single word to shield her from the rogues, to protect her, when I had claimed her so the rogues could not touch her. “My mate. Mine." I swallowed hard. This was wrong. This was forbidden. But standing there, watching her and wavering in her understanding of just what had happened, I knew that there was no way of escaping this. No denying this. Eliana was my mate. And soon, the entire world would know.