Seeking to Belong: Wolftale Series~Book 1

by M. Ekman

  Despite her emotional inexperience, Ruth began to be filled with an intense desire to wrap Tyler in her arms. Following her gut, and despite her fear that Tyler would reject her again, she slid her hands up and around the alpha’s neck. She clung to him until she felt his arms encircle her waist in a crushing grip. Tyler raised Ruth’s feet off the ground so they were at the same height, and once again pressed his nose into the crook of her neck.

  After a few moments of holding each other, Ruth expected Tyler to release her, but, if anything, he clutched her tighter. Waiting a few more seconds to bask in their closeness, Ruth reluctantly braced her hands on his shoulders and pushed backwards to look him in the face. Before she could voice the question she’d been preparing, Tyler gently placed Ruth back on the ground.

  Instead of walking away like she feared he would, Tyler opened the door to her old room and gestured for her to enter first. She stifled the radiant grin that threatened to rise to the surface and grabbed his wrist, guiding him into the chair he’d held her in when they’d first met. Ready for some answers, finally, Ruth plopped on the floor in front of him like a child.

  He chuckled that spine tingling chuckle she loved at her behavior, but didn’t resist. After a beat, Ruth asked, “Tell me. Please?”

  CHAPTER 21

  25 years ago

  “Grandmother!” Suzette ran into her home shouting.

  An elderly woman came out of the kitchen holding a potato in one hand and a peeler in the other. Her white haired grandmother could always be found cooking when she felt strained, and today was the perfect day to be tense. Alpha Stone had arrived in all his warrior glory to officially take over their pack.

  Swallowing thickly, Suzette whispered, “I found my mate.”

  “Oh, Sweetheart.” Grandmother’s sympathy was clear in her voice, as the older woman knew Suzette’s mate couldn’t be anyone in their own pack.

  Suzette began sobbing and crumpled, her knees hitting the floor with a loud thump. She couldn’t even begin to form the words to explain what had happened. Silently, the older woman put down the potato and peeler and stooped down next to Suzette so she could wrap her arms around her weeping grandchild.

  After a few moments, Suzette was able to get ahold of herself enough to croak out, “It’s Alpha Stone.”

  Her grandmother froze for a moment, but quickly shook free. “How did you get away?” she murmured.

  “I was towards the back of the waiting the crowd, and he was surrounded by a thick ring of guards. There’s no way he would have been able to pick me out, but there was a breeze and I caught his scent. I just knew.”

  It was extremely rare for two mates not to sense one another, large crowd or no. The only way it would be possible was if one, or both of them had a disconnect with their inner wolf. If both parts of yourself weren’t in harmony, it would be difficult to feel the wolf’s urging to find their mate.

  Suzette pleaded, “Grandmother, tell me what to do?”

  The older woman cupped Suzette’s tear stained face, “If he finds out you were hiding from him, he could punish you. There is no other option than to go to him and pray he lets you live. Perhaps, if you approach him first, he could just reject you outright, and then you could be free. That’s what we can hope for anyway.”

  Suzette nodded her head reluctantly and rose from her position on the floor, “Yes. I’m sure you’re right.” She brightened after a moment, “If he doesn’t though, perhaps having someone to balance him out will help. Once he makes me the alpha female I will hold sway in his pack, and use that to help the packs he’s taken over, including ours.”

  With this new thought in mind Suzette scurried off to her room to get cleaned up to meet her new alpha and mate. She put on her nicest navy colored dress that brought out the blue flecks in her grey eyes. Then she decorated her deep mahogany hair with several blue ribbons threaded through curls she’d pinned to her scalp.

  Soon there were no other preparations to make, so Suzette began the short trek to the pack house. There were a few of Alpha Stone’s enforcers on guard duty, but as long as she kept her head down and moved quickly, they ignored her. When she entered the pack house, Suzette was immediately overwhelmed by the tantalizingly fruity scent that she knew belonged to Alpha Stone. She followed the aroma until she reached the door to Alpha’s Office.

  There was a single thickly muscled wolf guarding it, who immediately challenged her, “What business do you have with Alpha Stone?”

  “I need to see him about a personal matter,” Suzette said in a small voice with her head bent in an attempt to appear meek and harmless.

  The guard laughed in a deep baritone, “You’re throwing yourself at our alpha for what? Money, freedom, safety?”

  She stilled, had women actually tried to do that? Abruptly, her throat felt dry and she had to swallow several times in order to reply. “No, sir. I have an inquiry...”

  There was a loud bang inside the office and, suddenly, the doorway filled with the furious form of Alpha Stone. He was taller than he’d seemed from afar, towering over her five and a half foot frame.

  His eyes, the color of milk chocolate, were fixed furiously on his guard. “Didn't I tell you that I am not to be disturbed!”

  As Alpha Stone inhaled to continue his tirade his gaze shifted until it locked on Suzette. For a heartbeat, time seemed to still for her.

  Alpha Stone severed the connection as he turned towards his sentinel and barked, “Leave.”

  “But Alpha, I—”

  “You dare to contradict me? I said LEAVE,” Alpha Stone spat the Command through gritted teeth.

  The guard bowed stiffly and quickly disappeared down the hall, leaving the young girl alone with her new alpha. Instead of feeling fear over her predicament, hope filled her heart. Alpha Stone wasn’t demanding to have her dragged to the dungeon, nor did he seem angry, at least not with her.

  “Come with me, please,” Alpha Stone gestured for Suzette to enter his office, and firmly shut the door behind him.

  She nervously stood in the middle of the room, while Alpha Stone stayed where he was by the entrance. In an effort to bridge the silence, Suzette began, “I’m sorry to intrude on you like this. I was drawn to your scent. Alpha Stone, I’m sure you are very busy—“ Suzette’s rambling was cut off as a gentle hand grasped her chin, tilting her face upwards.

  “So, this is where you have been all this time,” Alpha Stone gazed into her eyes with adoration. “Do you have any idea how long I have waited for you?”

  Suzette was at a loss for words, how could this power hungry madman be so earnest with her. It had to be a trick, but she couldn’t detect any deceit in him.

  “I know I am a harsh man by all accounts, but that does not mean that I am any less of a mate. You are incredibly precious to me. A gift that I will never give up,” Alpha Stone paused as his mouth quirked in a crooked grin, “I feel like I have so much to learn about you. Tell me everything.”

  Her mouth fell open, but Suzette couldn’t push past her shock enough to form words. With his smile still in place, Alpha Stone led her to a deep green velvet couch that was pushed to the side of the small office. The comforting warmth of the soft sofa, along with the alluring scent of her mate, helped Suzette to relax; and they begun conversing with relative ease.

  They talked until the wee hours of the morning when Alpha Stone had to leave to “settle a few things”. However, the alpha kept Suzette in the pack house protected by one of his enforcers. By the end of the day he had his men packed up, and began the journey back to the Blood Mountain Pack territory.

  “I talked to your grandmother and she will be bringing your things in a few days. I’m sorry if I’ve seemed overbearing through all of this. I find it difficult to have you away from me and my packs protection.” Alpha Stone said as he loaded her into a large open roofed vehicle.

  Suzette waved his concerned expression away, “I understand. Believe it or not it is difficult for me to be away from my mate a
s well.”

  Alpha Stone’s eyes lit up possessively at the word ‘mate’, and he quickly jumped into the car after her. “I can’t wait to get you home.”

  However, after they made it back to his territory, things didn’t go quite how Suzette had planned. Alpha Stone confessed his love for her and she was over the moon, but whenever she brought up any part of the bonding ceremony he would change the subject. By not completing these rights, Suzette was unable to access the power and authority of an alpha female. Additionally, it made the touch of another continue to be relentlessly painful.

  “Ray, doesn’t it cause you pain to train with the other wolves?” Suzette asked Alpha Stone a week after he’d brought her home.

  He merely ‘harrumphed’ and continued to get ready for bed. Suzette continued undaunted, “I just don’t want you to put yourself through unnecessary pain. Isn’t it difficult not to touch another? Just today I—”

  Alpha Stone whirled around to face her, filled with rage, “Today you what? Did you touch another male?”

  “What? No, of course not. I simply meant—“ but Suzette was interrupted once again as Alpha Stone’s anger seemed to melt away and he fell to his knees.

  “I am not enough for you,” his eyes bore into hers with an expression akin to despair.

  Suzette’s surprise over the abrupt mood swing pushed the words she had planned to say out of her mind, and her wolf clamored to the surface. Unable to help herself, Suzette reached out to him and Alpha Stone wrapped his arms around her waist as he buried his face in her stomach.

  “I’m sorry, my love. I only wish for you to be happy. I am messing everything up.”

  “No, you aren’t.” Suzette murmured, “I love you.”

  Ray’s head snapped upwards, “Say it again.”

  Bursting out in laughter, she shook her head. Every time she declared her feelings for him, Ray asked her to repeat it again and again, mostly between breathless kisses.

  It was too late by the time Suzette realized that Alpha Stone would never make her an alpha female, nor stop in his quest for power. The morning she found out she was pregnant she knew she had to get herself, and her unborn babe, away from this life of death and destruction.

  As luck would have it, Alpha Stone was leaving that same day to fight over yet another territory. Hurriedly, Suzette hatched a plan to get out of the gilded cage he’d placed her in. She sat down heavily on their bed and without preamble burst into body wracking sobs.

  As she predicted, the strong arms of her mate quickly wrapped around her as he soothed, “My love, don’t cry. What is the matter?”

  “It’s just…when you are gone…I am so lonely,” she bawled.

  Alpha Stone began to rock her soothingly, “I would do anything to take away your pain. You know that.”

  “Of course.” Suddenly Suzette’s face lit up through her tears, “do you think it would be possible to visit Grandmother? I still haven’t seen the beautiful cottage you built for her.”

  “Hmm, well perhaps that could be arranged,” He took a moment to think it over. “I will have someone watch the cottage, but you are not permitted to leave while I am gone.”

  She tried not to smile in triumph, “You are the best mate! I’ll pack right away.”

  Alpha Stone nodded and Suzette almost went lightheaded in relief. She never thought she’d see the day where her untested acting skills would be needed, let alone succeed in getting her what she wanted.

  After he dropped her off with a guard close by, Suzette immediately told her grandmother everything. The elder matron agreed that she needed to escape, and immediately sent a letter to the Midnight Wolf Pack to seek asylum. As this was Grandmother’s birth pack they were more than happy to help. Yet, they confessed that they could do nothing while Suzette was inside Alpha Stone’s borders.

  The two women worked tirelessly to find a way around Suzette’s personal guard and the other enforcers the alpha had left behind. One month passed, and then two and so on, and as her belly grew it became imperative to get away before Alpha Stone was informed of her condition.

  All their plans came to a blinding halt when Suzette woke up one morning in mind numbing pain. “Grandmother, something is wrong.”

  Her white haired grandmother came storming into the small bedroom they’d been sharing over the last few months. “Here, Sweetheart. Lie down on the bed and let me have a look. Everything will be all right.”

  Her grandmother’s soothing voice helped Suzette to calm her panic and comply. “Well, somehow this baby has got turned around and stuck feet first in the birth canal.”

  “What!” Suzette bolted up which caused another round of red-hot pain to shoot down her lower abdomen and back.

  “It’s okay. I’ve seen my fair share of births. I know exactly what to do and you will be okay. However, this does mean that the baby will have to be born today,” the older woman softly replied.

  Tears began pouring down Suzette’s face, “This wasn’t supposed to happen like this.”

  “I know,” her grandmother replied, her own unshed tears shimmering in her eyes. “Now is not the time to dwell on what should be, but to focus on what is. This will hurt, but if we don’t do it you could both die. Are you with me?”

  Suzette could only nod her head due to the increasing intensity of her pain. Shutting her eyes and laying back she tried to relax and give her grandmother the reins. The pain was excruciating, but Suzette knew she could endure anything for her pup. She would risk everything for the tiny boy that Grandmother finally placed into her exhausted arms.

  “I know you are tired, Sweetheart, but you have to leave now. We don’t know when Alpha will be back.”

  Despite her weakened state, Suzette looked up from her baby with steel in her gaze, “He’s not coming anywhere near Tyler.”

  “Tyler, after your father?”

  “Of course,” she smiled. Her joyful expression was ripped from her as Alpha Stone unexpectedly blew in. With the fury he was radiating, it appeared that someone had ratted Suzette out.

  “What are you doing, mate?” His eyes glowed an eerie blood red, and burned with hate.

  Grandmother screamed at Suzette to run as she threw herself at the deranged alpha, but with a flick of his wrist the old woman was effortlessly tossed into a wall. She collided with a sickening crack and did not move again.

  Suzette stood in front of her new baby, “Please. Ray, this is no life for our son and you know it. Tyler needs to be away from this constant fighting. Let me take him someplace where he will be safe.”

  Heedless of her supplications, Alpha Stone grabbed Suzette by her neck and hoisted her high, “You will see exactly what happens to those who betray me.”

  With a final gasping breath Suzette beseeched the great goddess of the moon above, “Luna, save my son.”

  Alpha Stone dropped his mate’s corpse in a crumpled heap on the floor before turning towards the now screaming infant. Before he could take more than a single step the entire house was filled with a brilliant silver light. Alpha Stone shielded his eyes until it dimmed enough for him to see in its midst, the figure of a woman.

  She was ethereal, with long silver hair that glowed as if it was an extension of the moon itself, and eyes that were like the night sky, dark and limitless. The silken dress she wore was encrusted with moonstones and flowed over her body in a gentle stream.

  “Alpha Ray Stone of the Blood Mountain Pack. Why does the blood of my children cry from the ground?”

  For the first time in his life, Alpha Stone fell to his knees in supplication. He tried to speak but no words escaped his lips.

  In his silence the luminescent deity continued, “What is this that you have done to your mate Alpha Stone? I bestowed Suzette Silverton upon you to help you, to stop your foolish quest for power.”

  Alpha Stone finally found his lips could move and quickly interjected, “Great Luna she was stealing my son. I was—"

  “Enough! Ray Stone, your lies won’t
work on me. I created you. For your crimes, you will be punished and all your bloodline along with you. You will never get a second chance to make the same mistake. I, the Great Luna, curse you to be bondless. You will never again be able to claim a mate.

  As if paralyzed, Ray Stone stayed on his knees as the goddess glided over to him and ran one finger along his back, from right shoulder to right hip. The path that her finger made left behind a raw burning sensation and the smell of singed flesh filled the small cottage. It was a permanent mark of the curse of the Great Luna.

  “I, the Great Luna, curse you to never sire another child. This is your only heir so do not waste his life as you have your mate’s.” She placed her finger on Alpha Stone’s back once again, but this time tracing a line from his left shoulder to left hip.

  As quickly as she’d come, the wolves’ beloved idol vanished, leaving Alpha Stone painfully alone with his squealing son.

  CHAPTER 22

  Present

  “But I don’t understand. Your father was the one who messed up. Why would the Great Luna extend the curse to you” Ruth asked bewildered?

  “From what little I’ve read on the subject; curses, and even blessings, given by the Great Luna have effect every direct descendent. It must be some divine rule she has to abide by, or something like that. Many believe that is part of the reason that she casts them so rarely.”

  There was a pause, during which neither said anything or even looked at each other. Tyler was the first to break the silence with a self-deprecating chuckle. “I suppose, in a way, the curse kept the depths of my father’s maliciousness from progressing on to me. Being cursed from birth to be utterly alone changes one’s perspective on life.”

  Looking tenderly into his eyes Ruth murmured, “Tyler, I am so sorry. I know better than anyone how hard it is to be alone.”