Rejecting the Alpha
Chapter 42

Kylie

I was perfectly motionless as I watched while the strong alpha wolf shuddered as his body tried and failed to draw in breath through his ruined throat. His golden eyes met mine, but I felt nothing except the slightest hint of regret—regret that this had become necessary.

Then came the sweet relief, once his body's trembling stopped and everything went still.

It was over.

"Are you okay?" Vander asked as he slid up towards me, his warm solid body brushing up against mine. His grey mottled fur was half red from his and the alpha's blood.

"I am. He was my mate, but more than that, he was my nightmare." I leaned into him, absorbing the comfort of his warmth.

"We need to leave. We don't know what the pack will do if they replace us here. Likely they won’t view it as self-defence.”

I nodded, and the two of us ran off through the forest, slowed by our injuries and pushed forward by our desperation. We shifted and jumped into the waiting SUV, wasting no time even dressing before Vander threw the vehicle into gear and we sped away.

I dug through the bag and put on some clothing, and then Vander struggled into his own while driving as I steadied the wheel. Neither of us wanted to stop before we got as far away as we could.

We drove in silence for long moments, both of us reeling with the ramifications of what we had done. We had killed an alpha, and even if he had deserved it, there could be ripple effects in the future.

But whatever might come, he couldn't hurt me or anyone I loved anymore.

I burst into tears.

"Kylie, what's wrong?" Vander asked, sounding desperately worried. He glanced quickly between the road and me, before reaching over and grabbing my hand.

Stronger tingles, like the first contact of a mate bond, rushed across my skin. What was this? Was this what it felt like without my first mate obstructing the connection between us?

I forced a smile through my tears. "I'm just...glad he can't hurt us anymore," I said with a sniffle. "I'm sorry, I'm doing it again, crying now that I'm safe. It's like it builds up when I'm in danger, and then afterwards…"

Vander squeezed my hand more firmly. "Nothing to be sorry for."

"I feel free, for the first time since he came into my life. It was like the mate bond was a chain holding me down and it's been removed. And you feel that? Our bond is stronger, it's what it always should have been." It was like my sensitivity to his touch had doubled.

"I do feel it. Although my wolf always knew you were meant to be mine, even if our connection was being interfered with." He paused, and his expression grew grimmer. "Are you badly injured, Kylie? I can smell the blood.”

I held my arm out, the bites still not even close to healed. "You can see the marks. I'll heal, it's no big deal. And what about your wound? He ripped into your stomach."

"It wasn't very deep. It's already healing," he said dismissively. "But you were with him longer than our escape. Did he hurt you…in other ways?"

"No. He tried, a couple of times, but it never got that far. Did you feel any pain?"

"No."

"I'm glad. I don't wish that on anyone."

“I don’t care about my pain, I’m just glad he didn’t hurt you more. And now he’ll never hurt you again."

"I know." And that relief felt good.

We re-entered our pack territory as quietly as we had left, but our return was not unremarked. A group gathered around us as we got out of the vehicle. The beta clapped Vander on the back and they stood with Alpha Timothy, clearly communicating through their mind link.

I spoke with a couple of pack members who expressed their relief that I was safely back. Vander rejoined me just as Lys came running up, her face beaming.

"You saved her!" Lys shrieked as she threw her arms around both me and Vander.

"She saved me, too," he said with a chuckle.

"That's so romantic. Ugh, I'm so jealous of you two. Where's my mate?"

I just smiled at her. She didn't want to go through what I had gone through, but at least I had found Vander at the end of everything. He kissed my cheek and I leaned towards him, savouring his heat.

"Thanks for all the enthusiasm, but I should get Kylie home now," he said, and I wholeheartedly agreed. I was exhausted, and as much as I appreciated all the people who had come to care for me, I just wanted to be alone with Vander. I wanted to rest, and the largest part of me wanted to explore the growing mate bond that was zipping between us. For the first time, he was mine and I was only his, and there was no one standing between us.

We got home quickly, and it was almost as if I had never left, except that Vander punched some numbers into a new keypad on the front door. I raised an eyebrow at him and he looked at me innocently. "What? I don't plan for you to ever be silently stolen from our home again."

"I'll also rest easier knowing no one can steal you in the night," I agreed.

Vander laughed. "Yes, that too. It's definitely likely."

"It's not likely at all for either of us, now."

He shrugged. "It didn't take more than a phone call to have this installed. There's one up at the pack house, too, now, because no one wants to risk the luna's safety. Remind me to give you your codes."

"You know, you males aren't invulnerable, either. You could have died."

"Yep, but I didn't."

"But you could have."

"But I didn't. I had everything well in hand."

I rolled my eyes at him. "Okay, tough guy."

"I'm more worried about you. He tried to maul you."

I held out my arm, unmarked except for the slightest traces of wounds, and even they would fade in time. "Mine were a lot less serious than yours, you stubborn man."

His grin showed how completely not sorry he was about his personal recklessness. “Come on, we need to clean up," he said as he drew me towards the shower in our room. I didn't argue. We had done what we could in a river along the way, but I longed for a proper shower. I threw the clothing I had been wearing in the garbage, since I didn't want anything that could remind me of Stonemason, and they were too stained with blood to donate them.

I turned around to replace Vander stripping off his clothing, but looking at me while he did it. "I was terrified when I discovered you missing, Kylie." He pulled me closer to him, skin against skin, and I sunk into the feeling of the mate bond and the joy of my wolf and my own love for him pulling us together. I felt like I was home.