Chapter 5: Intimate With Him
Rebecca
[Here goes nothing,] I said to Raven before shifting.
I felt the familiar thrill of the shift. The world around me disappeared into darkness as Raven took over our vision—or lack thereof. Panic fluttered in my chest, but I pushed it down.
[I’ve got this,] Raven assured me. [Trust me.]
I could smell Dominic’s wolf circling us. His scent was sharp.
[I can feel him coming from the left,] Raven whispered. [Jump right… now!]
I leaped to the right just as Dominic’s wolf lunged. I felt the air disturbed by his massive body as he sailed past where I had been standing.
A collective gasp rose from the audience.
The crowd’s silence was heavy with shock. No one had expected me to dodge Dominic’s attack. Even I was surprised at how fluid the movement had been.
[He’s circling again,] Raven alerted me. [He’s angry now. I can smell it.]
The scent of Dominic’s frustration flooded my senses again. His paws made almost no sounds against the ground, but Raven caught every movement. The air shifted as he breathed, heavy and rhythmic.
[Wait for it…] Raven instructed. [He’s going to lunge again, but this time from behind. Three…two…one…NOW!]
I pivoted sharply, my body twisting in the darkness. As Dominic’s massive form sailed toward me, I ducked low and snapped upward, my teeth catching the underside of his foreleg. The taste of blood filled my mouth as my fangs sank into his flesh.
Dominic’s wolf howled in pain and surprise. I released quickly and darted away, using the momentum to put distance between us.
“She bit him!” someone exclaimed from the crowd.
“How did she even know where he was?” another voice whispered.
I could feel Alpha Xander’s attention intensify, his scent changing subtly. Was that… interest?
[Don’t get distracted,] Raven warned. [He’s coming again, and he’s furious.]
Dominic’s growl reverberated through the clearing. The sound of it was deep and threatening. His paws pounded against the earth as he circled faster.
[Left flank, quick!] Raven urged.
I darted left, my teeth bared, aiming for his exposed side. My jaws clamped down on what felt like his shoulder, and I tasted blood again. Dominic yelped, more in surprise than pain this time.
For a brief, glorious moment, I felt invincible. Raven’s senses were working perfectly, guiding me through the darkness with precision I never thought possible.
[We’re doing it!] I exclaimed internally. [We’re actually winning!]
The crowd had gone from shocked whispers to excited murmurs. I could hear Clara’s voice, tight with disbelief and anger.
“This is impossible. She must be cheating somehow.”
But I wasn’t cheating. This was Raven and we were fighting together as one.
Then, everything changed.
Dominic stopped moving altogether. The sudden stillness confused Raven’s senses. Without movement, without sound, we had nothing to track.
[I can’t sense him,] Raven said, panic edging into her voice.
I froze, my black fur standing on end as I desperately tried to pick up any trace of Dominic’s presence.
[Behind us!] Raven screamed, but it was too late.
A massive weight crashed into my back, sending me sprawling face-first into the dirt. Dominic’s jaws clamped around the scruff of my neck, not hard enough to break skin but with enough force to assert dominance. I yelped, the sound high and pathetic in the silent clearing.
[Get up! Fight back!] Raven urged desperately.
I tried to twist away, to find my footing, but Dominic was too heavy. His paws pressed into my shoulders, pinning me to the ground. I could feel his hot breath on my neck, smell his victory.
[Roll left!] Raven commanded.
I summoned all my strength and tried to roll, but Dominic anticipated the move. He shifted his weight, throwing me off balance again. My legs scrambled uselessly against the dirt, finding no purchase.
[What’s the matter, blind wolf?] Dominic’s wolf mocked me. [Can’t see your way out of this one?]
I felt shame burn through me like wildfire.
[Alpha is watching,] Raven whispered, her voice small now. [Our mate is watching us fail.]
That thought hurt me more than Dominic’s attack. I renewed my struggles, desperate to prove my worth, but each attempt grew weaker than the last. My limbs trembled with exhaustion and humiliation.
Dominic’s growl rumbled against my neck, a sound of pure dominance. Then, in a final show of power, he picked me up by the scruff and shook me like a rag doll before dropping me unceremoniously to the ground.
I lay there, panting, my black fur coated with dirt and my pride destroyed. I couldn’t bring myself to look toward where I knew Alpha Xander stood watching this pathetic display.
“Submit,” Dominic growled after shifting back to human form, standing over me with arms crossed.
[Don’t!] Raven pleaded. [We can still—]
But we couldn’t. We both knew it. With a whimper that echoed my broken heart, I tilted my head, exposing my throat in the universal wolf gesture of submission.
When we all shifted back, everyone laughed at me. Clara shouted: “Eighteen seconds! I overestimated your abilities, Becca.”
I stood frozen, my body aching from the fight, my heart aching from the humiliation.
The laughter surrounding me seemed to grow louder with each passing second. I wanted to disappear, to sink into the ground beneath my feet and never return.
“That’s enough!” Alpha Xander’s voice cut through the noise like a knife. The laughter died instantly.
I forced myself to look at him. He had his jaw clenched tight.
“Training will continue with the next pairs,” he announced, turning away from me. “Rebecca, go back to your house.”
I nodded weakly, though he wasn’t looking at me anymore.
“Are you okay?” she whispered, helping me brush dirt from my clothes.
[We failed,] Raven whimpered inside me. [Our mate saw us fail.]
[You did better than I expected], I said weakly.
I couldn’t bear to stay here another minute, so I limped away from the training grounds.
I kept walking, head down, tears threatening to spill. I wouldn’t give them the satisfaction of seeing me cry.
[Rebecca, it is going to be okay,] Raven cooed. [We’re still learning, still growing stronger.]
[What’s the point?] I shot back bitterly. [You heard Alpha Xander yesterday. He doesn’t want a mate with a blind wolf. He’s probably going to reject us soon.]
The thought made my chest constrict painfully. Rejection from a mate was rare and dangerous and it could drive a wolf mad with grief. It would be torture living every day knowing your mate didn’t want you, couldn’t love you.
No, I couldn’t just sit around and wait. I need to go talk to him and make him realize that I am a worthy mate.
A few hours later, I walked out of my house and started to walk toward Alpha Xander’s house. The fight was long over, so he had to be alone in his room.
[Are you sure about this?] Raven whispered.
[No, but what choice do we have?] I replied, swallowing the lump in my throat.
The garden path seemed endless, lined with midnight roses. When I finally reached the heavy oak door, my knuckles hovered uncertainly. What would I say to him? How could I convince him that a blind wolf could be worthy of an Alpha’s mate?
After I knocked twice, the door swung open. Gregory, Alpha Xander’s personal servant, stood before me. His weathered face remained impassive, though I detected a flicker of surprise in his eyes.
“Miss Sinclaire,” he said. “This is… unexpected.”
I straightened my spine, summoning whatever dignity I had left after today’s humiliation. “I need to speak with Alpha Xander. It’s important.”
Gregory hesitated, his gaze sweeping over me, taking in my still-disheveled appearance, the faint bruise blooming on my cheekbone. I must look like a crazy person right now.
“The Alpha is… occupied at present,” he said carefully.
“Please,” I whispered, hating the desperation that crept into my voice. “I wouldn’t come if it wasn’t urgent.”
Something in my expression must have moved him, for Gregory’s stern facade softened almost imperceptibly. With a small sigh, he stepped aside.
“He’s in his study,” he said quietly. “Though I cannot promise he’ll welcome the interruption.”
“Thank you,” I breathed, slipping past him into the grand foyer.
[His scent is stronger here,] Raven noted, her voice taking on that dreamy quality it had whenever we were near our mate.
I paused in front of Alpha Xander’s study door. The corridor was silent except for the soft murmur of voices from within.
He wasn’t alone in there.
“You were magnificent today,” Clara’s voice purred seductively. “The way you commanded everyone’s attention… it’s no wonder you’re the strongest Alpha in generations.”
My stomach twisted into knots. What was Clara doing in Xander’s private study? And why did she sound so intimate with him? Is he going to reject me to accept her?