Chapter 1

Alice

Winter had come mercilessly so I grabbed the only thick coat I had to get out of the aging cabin I lived in. I put on my gloves after layering my fleece hat and went out to face the driving snowfall that was lashing the town of Beltone in the South Pack.

As I did so, my bones immediately felt numb from the cold, so I took a deep breath and concentrated on walking as fast as I could to our Alpha's house to do my day-to-day chores. I did so under the scrutiny of the other members of the pack, who viewed me as if I were an insect to be eliminated.

To the supernatural world, especially the werewolves, I was an abomination.

To me, being a werewolf-human half-breed had turned out to be a curse that I wished would end that very night on my birthday. I had hoped that when I came of age I could become a wolf; it was my only chance for some acceptance, and if that didn't happen, I would flee to a place where the purity of species wasn't as much of an issue. Which turned out to be a kind of utopia because in any corner of the world there were going to be comparisons.

We half-breeds turned out to be a rarity of nature, something that any race didn't assimilate very well because purity was the flag to preserve the species, and that's why I was despised by my pack in any place or moment, like in that instant when my walk seemed to be the perfect occasion to be teased.

"A pure wolf would never feel cold," said an Omega girl walking behind me, "It's a clear example that hybridization is synonymous with defect."

The ones with them burst out laughing, and I ignored them because if I played along, I'd end up with bruises that didn't come off easily. The problem is that they decided to walk just inches from my back for the sole purpose of making me feel bad.

"If it hadn't been for the benevolence of the late Luna, I would have ended up dead in the street like any of her human mother's," another said in disgust, and I held back the rage.

The story of how my mother had become a whore on human territory was well known. What no one expected was that I would be left on the borders of Beltone to be found by the wolves of the Southern Pack and taken to my father. There was only a note of apology in which she begged to be taken care of.

Three days after that, she was found lifeless a few miles from where she left me, and my father was not only questioned for messing with a human but was punished to guard the most dangerous border of the pack. He was then among the first sent to the front lines in the war against the vampires,and hed died on the spot. Both were sensitive subjects that everyone used to pick on me.

"You should shut your mouths and find craft!" shouted the only woman facing them from across the street.

I turned to see Bianca, the Beta's daughter, the Alpha's right-hand woman, and one of the people who truly loved me in town. She crossed the street gracefully, showing off her height and slenderness as she took firm steps that highlighted her strong character. That made the other she-wolves turn away from me, and she approached with a frown on her face.

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah, easy, Bianca, I'm fine," I said with a smile.

"Are you still feeling sick?"

I shook my head so she wouldn't worry about the discomfort that had been plaguing me for days, but the truth was that I was feeling worse every day. It was proving to be very annoying because of how hard I needed to work to save every coin.

"No, better tell me something interesting while we get to the mansion; there's a long way to go."

She nodded, and then her eyes lit up, as if she had the juiciest gossip of all.

"Alpha's son is on his way."

Hearing her say that made me stop on the spot due to shock.

"Is that impossible."

"No, it's not; my brother heard the news along with the night guards; he'll arrive before they hand over the guard," she replied calmly as she arranged her black curls. "He's coming early because the council has called him."

"That means the Alpha has taken a turn for the worse."

She nodded with a serious expression, and I understood that possibly the Alpha was dead, so they needed his heir. The news made my body break down because I didn't know what could happen to me. My place in the pack was given by the Alpha, who could change with his son in power in a second. What little I knew of this boy was not good. He was arrogant, domineering, and followed many of the archaic structures. He had left after a loud argument with his father due to his problematic attitudes, so he took off learning from the most lethal warriors because his goal was to be the strongest.

"You shouldn't be scared; nothing is going to happen to you; the new Alpha is not going to be interested in your position."

Bianca said it in a good way, but the reality was that the purity of the species was always a priority in this pack, and the position of a young half-breed girl mattered. The Alpha accepted me because the Luna had been so benevolent with my situation, but everyone thought it had been a mistake.

With that appalling thought, we arrived at the Alpha's mansion, and as soon as we entered, we realized that the Alpha had died. Men were moving around; we saw Bianca's father and immediately approached him, who frowned as soon as he saw me.

"Our Alpha is gone with the Goddess," the Beta reported with some pain.

I didn't know what to say; I just felt adrift. Then Bianca hugged me and stayed with me for a few minutes in complete silence.

"I think it's best to go to the kitchen," I said with some trepidation. "I have work to do; I'm sure there's some special menu to prepare, so go help your father in whatever way you can."

At that moment, Beta walked to the center of the room and looked around at everyone.

"The son of our late Alpha is coming, so stop what you are doing and sort yourselves into ranks according to your rank and position in the pack. We need to receive him as a united front; we will give him condolences and offer ourselves to his services," the Beta blurted out, and everyone nodded.

I swallowed hard because I knew very well what my position was, so the best I could do was to hide until everyone had been sorted out so that I could put myself last so that I would go unnoticed.

In the midst of the chaos, I watched as a luxury van parked outside the house, out of which stepped tall, stocky men dressed in black jackets with similar haircuts. They all had a wolf claw mark on their necks, which I found curious until I heard one of the Omegas make a comment.

"They are the Elite men who trained with the Lord; they follow him wherever he goes and are possibly the ones who will replace the Alpha's close guard. The tattoos make them brothers; they say it's done under a powerful spell."

That made me look at Beta, who looked completely uncomfortable, so I assumed he was thinking about his destination. When I turned my eyes towards the van, I was completely shaken to see Stefan get out of it, much taller, more mature, and with a serious countenance.

I felt my heart pound for the handsome blond he was.

He looked handsome and, at the same time, terrifying.

No longer a slim-built teenager, he was now full of muscle, and the Omegas immediately sighed. I froze as he walked towards the formation, and the icy breeze carried his scent towards me.

The impact knocked me out in a way I couldn't quite describe.

It was as if each and every one of my senses had been awakened. I felt like I couldn't control my pupils; my mouth salivated, and my heart began to pound like a runaway horse, galloping with a rush that scared me out of my wits. When the smell of man and mint crept into my nostrils, the wolf that slept in the deepest recesses of me awoke from her lethargy.

Mate! Look for it! She screamed in my mind, and I was shocked.

It was the first time my she-wolf had ever communicated with me. My ears were ringing, so I couldn't say anything. I had no voice at all. Only when I saw him walking towards the garden did I react and dare to take a step. 

However, the magic of the gesture was immediately broken when the head of the Omegas working at home approached me. The woman glared at me, Her husband had left her for a human and fled to a distant territory, so she resented me. I always avoided her, but at that moment I couldn't and just bowed my head in respect.

"You have no business here; from now on, you will no longer work on this property," the woman said, and I looked at her with surprise at such an attribution. "We don't want filth in a new era, so scram, your services are not needed."

"But I—"

"Are you deaf?" she asked mockingly. "Because that's what you lack, being so little that you can't even hear a command properly."

"It's just that I... My job—"

"You don't have a job," she said angrily and grabbed me hard by the chin, that made my wolf growl in my mind. "If I see you here again, I'm going to give you a beating you won't forget. Go away."

I looked at the rest of the women, and they all started to surround me. None of the people who noticed stepped in; they were all more interested in the new Alpha, so I looked around for Stefan with my eyes, hoping he would recognize me. I realized he was already far enough away to catch my scent, so I nodded in a sign of peace and walked away from the mansion before they did anything to me.

To me, that wasn't what was important.

The only thing my mind could loop on repeat was that I had found my Mate, and he was none other than the Alpha himself.