The Gathering of Alphas
….
The silence after he left was deafening.
Elena stayed frozen where he'd stood moments ago, her back pressed to the wall, her fingers trembling. She could still feel the echo of his presence heavy, suffocating, electric. The air hadn't yet cleared of his scent something like cedar, smoke, and something wild , something that made her heart twist painfully against her ribs.
"Fear will keep you alive," he'd said.
The words wouldn't stop replaying in her head. Not the threat in them , but the way his voice had softened for just a heartbeat, like he didn't want her afraid at all.
She'd watched him walk away covered in blood, a man who turned into a monster and yet somehow made her feel… safe.
And that terrified her more than the beast she'd seen rip through rogues hours ago.
By dawn, the packhouse was awake again ,whispers of the battle, of Lorenzo's victory, of the strange creature that wasn't wolf or man. But it wasn't the gossip that made her heart race. It was the quiet footsteps outside her door, the low, commanding voices that carried his name through the halls.
He was preparing for something.
By midmorning, the packhouse looked different , servants rushing with trays, the air filled with tension thick enough to choke on. From her window, Elena saw black cars pulling into the courtyard, men stepping out with the kind of confidence that only power could breed.
She'd heard the word whispered once by the maids " Alphas"
...
She shouldn't have gone downstairs.
She told herself that a hundred times as she stood at the top of the staircase, clutching the rail like it could anchor her. But curiosity — that same dangerous curiosity that had made her peek through her window last night pulled her toward the noise, the light, the danger.
The grand hall was alive with movement and noise. Wolves in human form moved with the precision of soldiers. The scent of strength and dominance thickened the air. The chandelier's golden light shimmered against the polished floor, reflecting the tension that thrummed through every heartbeat.
And then she saw him.
Lorenzo.Alpha Lorenzo.
Gone was the blood and wildness from the night before. He stood tall at the head of a long wooden table, dressed in black, his hair slicked back, his jaw sharp enough to cut through silence. There was something so painfully composed about him now, so untouchably Alpha, that it made her throat ache.
He didn't look like the man who had almost touched her cheek last night.
He looked like a king.
Elena lingered in the shadows, half-hidden behind a marble column, her pulse drumming in her ears.
The other Alphas were nothing like the wolves she'd seen before. They carried arrogance like perfume , heavy and suffocating, meant to remind the world who they were. Some smirked when they spoke; others sneered. The tension at the table was sharp, political, deadly.
And still, Lorenzo never faltered.
"Your borders are exposed," one of them ,a scarred man called Kael said with a careless drawl. "If rogues can cross so easily, maybe your pack isn't as strong as the rumors say."
Low chuckles rippled through the others.
Elena's stomach turned. She didn't know why the words stung her they weren't directed at her but something inside her bristled at the disrespect in their tone.
Lorenzo lifted his gaze slowly, deliberately, the gold in his eyes catching the light.
"And yet," he said softly, his voice cutting through the laughter like a blade, "you sit under my roof. You drink my wine. You test my patience. Tell me, Kael do you mock every Alpha you fear… or only the ones you know could crush you?"
The silence that followed was deafening.
The other Alphas went still. Kael's smirk faltered.
And Elena forgot to breathe.
He hadn't shouted. He didn't need to. Power poured off him like smoke, cold and heavy and impossible to ignore. It wasn't the beast she'd seen last night that frightened her , it was the man who stood there now, calm and deadly.
She didn't realize how long she'd been staring until his head turned.
Their eyes met.
The world fell away.
Every thought, every sound, every fear — gone.
It was the same as last night that pull she couldn't explain, couldn't fight. His gaze was steady, unreadable, but it reached through her like fire through dry wood. She felt seen in a way she never wanted to be.
And then he let them see her too.
Kael followed his gaze, eyebrows arching. "Who's that?" he asked, his voice dripping with amusement. "A guest?"
Dozens of heads turned.
Elena's heart dropped to her stomach. She froze, her fingers gripping the railing so tight her knuckles went white. Every Alpha in the room was looking at her now ,assessing, judging, like predators scenting weakness.
Lorenzo didn't look away.
"Who is she?" Kael pressed.
A pause.
Then, calmly, firmly "Mine."
The word hit her like lightning.
Her knees went weak. Heat flooded her cheeks, racing down her neck, her chest. The air felt too thin, her breath coming too fast.
The room rippled with low laughter and murmured questions. Someone said something about humans and Alphas. Someone else chuckled under their breath.
But Elena barely heard any of it.
All she could hear was that single word ,mine echoing through her chest like a drum.
Not a claim. Not a threat.
A promise.
And it terrified her , not because she didn't want it, but because part of her already believed it.
When she finally tore her gaze away and slipped back into the hallway, her pulse still hadn't slowed. Her back pressed to the wall, her hand clutched over her heart as if she could steady it.
Mine.
The sound of his voice replayed over and over, quieter each time, until it was almost tender.
And even as she whispered to herself that she wanted no part of his world no part of the danger, the dominance, the darkness that came with him , her body betrayed her.
Because deep down, beneath the fear and confusion, something in her had already whispered back.
Yours.