FATED TO ALPHA HUNTER BY VENNEH LISAH

𝐀𝐍𝐈𝐀'𝐒 𝐏𝐎𝐕:

Rina shook her head, trying to fight it off, and I hit the ground beside her. Kelly rolled over the top of me.

My eyes went wide when I saw wolves rushing straight at us, snapping their teeth and snarling. I closed my eyes, waiting for my death, when Rina gripped my fingers. My head rolled to the side, and I found her looking at me.

"More than my life," she whispered, tears filling her eyes and her lips quivering.

"More than my life," I murmured, closing my eyes after seeing her do the same. We waited for death, but then the sound of feral snarls ripped through the air, bouncing off the trees. I heard the wolves' claws digging into the soft ground as they skidded around us.

My eyes flew open to find Desmond stepping over us in his Lycan form. He kicked Kelly in the face as he tried to stand. A growl escaped his throat, more like a roar. The wolves jumped back, and Kelly staggered backward.

"Kill him," I murmured to Desmond, my eyes flickering as I fought to remain conscious.

"I can't. It may kill Rina. She's marked," he growled, and I looked at Rina, tears glistening in her eyes.

"Reject her now!" Desmond commanded Kelly through gritted teeth. However, there was no command behind it. Rolling on my side, I grabbed Desmond's leg, and he reached down, gripping my arm to pull me upright.

"Order him," I choked out, blood filling my mouth from biting my tongue.

"I can't," Desmond ground out, and I looked at him, not understanding.

"You're a vae-wolf," I whispered to him.

"I'm under oath as a royal guard. I can't break a mate bond. It's the law and a pact sworn to be upheld. I am bound by that oath, Ania!" Desmond explained. Kelly laughed, getting to his feet. I glanced at Rina as she sat up.

"Come here, Rina," Kelly ordered. I saw her eyes glaze over, and she obeyed, taking a step toward him. My heart skipped a beat as she dazedly started walking toward her mate. Desmond grabbed her arm, and Kelly clicked his tongue.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you," Kelly said, his pack of wolves circling around us. We were severely outnumbered. Desmond glanced around nervously.

Vae-wolves were lethal, but against 50 plus wolves, I wasn't sure how we would fair when Desmond was the only one that had shifted.

"You are aware of the repercussions, Desmond. Don't be foolish," Kelly snarled. I peered up at Desmond, holding onto Rina's arm, preventing her from going to Kelly, while his other hand held me against him.

I moved behind Desmond and forcefully pulled Rina backward and away from Kelly. I gripped her arms, shaking her, but her fresh mark seemed to have done something to her willpower. I could see she had multiple mate marks on her neck from him.

"Rina, reject him," I murmured, shaking her.

Kelly laughed and stepped forward, causing Desmond to growl menacingly.

"You can't touch me. I'm just collecting my mate. I haven't injured the Queen, only tried to hold her. Although, by law, I could have, considering she tried to take my mate from me by force," Kelly said arrogantly. "If you do anything, I have plenty of witnesses," Kelly added, gesturing to his pack. Desmond positioned himself in front of us, but even I knew that if he attacked Kelly, the rest of those wolves would retaliate against us.

"Rina, reject him," I pleaded.

Kelly laughed even louder and clapped his hands. "She really doesn't know, and she's expected to be our Queen? Pathetic! It's foolish to think that the King would choose a mate more suited to the position and keep his wh*re on the side. She can't run a pack, noble blood or not. She isn't fit for the title," he chuckled.

"Watch your tongue, Mutt. You don't know what you're talking about," Desmond snapped at him.

"No, your oblivious Queen isn't aware of the law. Should I educate her simple mind?" Kelly taunted.

I glanced at him over my shoulder. "For Rina to reject me, I would have to accept it. And I won't. She will leave with me," Kelly spat.

"No, she rejects you. She can come home," I told him. Arman promised she could come home; she just had to ask.

"Wrong. There's a minor flaw in the King's law. Both parties have to accept, and if one doesn't, it is decided by the council. Only then is it forced, but until then, she is mine! And I would like to collect her now!" Kelly declared, moving toward us. I looked at Desmond, whose entire body tensed, and then glanced back at Rina. Anger coursed through me.

"Reject him!" I snapped at her, trying to get her attention.

"Rina, reject him!" I yelled in her face, and she suddenly straightened. She blinked, shaking her head.

"I don't know how. It didn't work," she murmured, coming out of whatever stupor she was in.

"He is an Alpha. You have to reject him as your mate and as your Alpha. State your full name and reject him using his title," Desmond murmured, not taking his eyes off Kelly. "But he is right, Ania. I can't force him to accept it," Desmond whispered.

"Reject him," I told her, shaking her. Kelly laughed. Stepping toward her, he reached out to grab her.

"Come, Rina," Kelly said, clicking his fingers at her. That same glazed look washed over her face at his command. I swallowed, and then anger coursed through me, when she pushed past me. I grabbed both her arms, jerking her back to me. "You are a queen, my queen, by blood and through your mate's bond. Use your Alpha voice to command her," Desmond instructed.

I growled, '"Reject him!'' I said with determination. To my astonishment, she actually did. In that moment, my aura slipped out, and though I didn't understand how, she looked at Kelly and spoke with clarity. "I, Rina McAllen, reject you, Alpha Kelly, as my mate and Alpha," she declared. Kelly growled and clutched his chest, while Rina shook her head and blinked rapidly.

But then, Kelly snarled, "I, Alpha Kelly, reject your rejection." I felt his aura wash over her, and she whimpered. Fury ignited within me, and I turned on him.

"Accept it!" I roared, and it was as if a burst of energy erupted from me. The surrounding wolves yelped and cried out, while a tingling sensation washed over my body and surged outwards, compelling him to obey my command. He tensed involuntarily.

"I, Alpha Kelly, accept your rejection as my Luna and mate," Kelly blurted out, unable to resist the command.

Rina screamed, clutching her chest as she fell to her knees, and Kelly staggered backward, also clutching his chest. Their bond had been shattered.

Rattled by what had transpired, he shook his head and snarled, "You stupid girl," before lunging at me. Desmond, however, was quicker and punched him, sending him flying backward. Suddenly, all the wolves ran towards us.

"Run!" Desmond screamed as he fought them off, keeping them away from us. The sounds of flesh tearing, whimpering, and bones breaking filled the air as he grabbed any wolf that came too close. The savagery of the sounds was overwhelming, and with each wolf he dispatched, another took its place.

My heart pounded painfully in my chest as I grabbed Rina, pulling her to her feet. The strain on my abdomen was excruciating, almost causing me to black out. We sprinted towards the trees, the sounds of Desmond fending off the wolves echoing behind us. The wolves fell like flies as he took them out. We raced up the hill, but one managed to slip past him, pouncing on us and knocking us down.

As soon as we hit the ground, the weight on top of us was abruptly lifted, and a furious growl pierced the air. I looked up to see Arman in his Lycan form, his feet near my face. Gasping, I watched as he held the attacking wolf by its throat, preventing it from reaching us. With a tight grip, he squeezed, and I clenched my teeth as the sickening crunch of the wolf's neck breaking reached my ears. Arman effortlessly flung the lifeless wolf away, as if it weighed nothing at all.

Arman glared down at me, and I dropped my gaze back to the ground, unsettled by the anger on his face. He stepped over us, and Gary quickly followed suit, pulling Rina and me to our feet, whisking us away from the chaotic scene.

"Thank goodness," I heard Gary murmur, holding us tightly in his arms. I glanced down at Desmond, who was still bravely fending off the wolves, while Arman's aura seeped out, his voice echoing through the night.

"Enough! Stop!" he bellowed, and everyone froze in response to his commanding presence. I clung tightly to Gary, fighting against the urge to collapse under Arman's overwhelming aura. Desmond, gasping for breath, knelt down, clutching his knees. Arman stomped past him, shooting him a stern glare, and headed toward Kelly.

Kelly slowly backed away from Arman, his hands raised in surrender. In that moment, Arman truly resembled the vae-wolf King. He towered over everyone, standing tall and exuding an intimidating aura.

Power radiated from him, and his presence was suffocating, rendering the wolves pinned to the ground. "I have done nothing wrong; I was merely retrieving my mate," Kelly choked out before falling backward, as Arman's massive Lycan form growled menacingly, stalking toward him.

"Wrong!" Arman said calmly as I watched him approach Kelly. Kelly shook his head, and the wolves all looked away from him, cowering and whimpering.

"I hereby sentence you to death for treason!" Arman told him, stepping on Kelly's foot and making him fall on his ass.

"Treason? But I didn't commit treason," Kelly stammered, his voice more of a petrified squeak.

"Wrong, you touched my Queen. Your Pack just tried to kill her!" Arman snarled, grabbing the front of his shirt and jerking him forward.

"And for that, I sentence you to death," Arman snapped before punching him. Or so I thought he hit him, until I heard Kelly gasp and the sickening sound of flesh on flesh and a grotesque tearing noise. The wolves near him wailed, writhing on the ground in what looked like pain as their tether to him broke. Arman shoved him backward, letting him go.

His back was tense when he dropped something on the ground, his breathing loud while the muscles of his back flexed. Arman looked around at the wolves as they all ran for the trees.

I felt bile rise in my throat when I realized that what Arman had dropped was Kelly's heart. Arman then turned toward us, and his eyes locked onto Desmond. I struggled in Gary's grip, horrified as I watched Arman stalk toward him like a predator hunting its prey.

Desmond didn't even flinch; he simply accepted the consequences. Vae-wolves burst from the treeline, forming a circle around us, ready to defend their King. Dwight, one of them, and I turned our attention back to Desmond, only to see Arman punch him so hard that he was knocked out cold.

I whimpered, overcome with distress at seeing my friend hurt, and Arman's head snapped in my direction. He snarled, his upper lip pulling back to reveal his razor-sharp teeth. He moved toward me, and I pressed closer to Rina, who was crying hysterically while Gary tried to soothe her.

"Grab him," Arman snapped at Gary as he passed by, heading toward me. His eyes remained fixed on me, and my heart raced faster as he drew closer. Gary rushed to comply with his command and grabbed Desmond, tossing him over his shoulder. Arman nodded to Dwight, as the King approached. His eyes scanned me from head to toe, then he seized me. Despite his fury, his grip was surprisingly gentle, although his next move would not be.

"You disobeyed me!" Arman growled. "And now you're injured!" he snapped.

"But, Rina," I tried to say before he cut me off.

"I don't want to hear it," he growled before his teeth sank into my neck. I gripped his shoulders and choked on a sob as I felt them pierce and slide through my skin, re-marking me.

Tears burned in my eyes before they rolled into my head as I was sucked under. Arman forced me to submit, and I had no strength left to fight him.