Page 20 of A Female Alpha for the Lycan Prince

I stare at her. What am I supposed to say to her? I don’t even know her; I only saw her for a minute during Annie’s and Liam’s inauguration ceremony. I have no words I can say to her. I just shrug.

She frowns. “You don’t know?”

“I just don’t want a mate,” I say evenly. “I will never accept a fated mate.”

“Then reject me,” she says simply. Is it so easy for her? Her tone gives nothing away.

“Why don’t you reject me?” I ask in return. Something about her riles me up.

She shoots me a look I don’t quite understand. She’s about to say something when the door opens again, and Harmony peeks outside. “Celine, dinner is ready,” she says with a smile. Then she looks at me, her eyes surprised. “Marius, you’re here too?” She pauses, and for a split second, there is something in her eyes, but I can’t quite put my finger on it. It disappears fast though. “Come inside you two.”

I don’t know where our talk would have led us had we not been interrupted. Celine follows Harmony back inside without sparing me another glance. When she’d moved past me, she was so close I was tempted to grab her and pull her into my arms. Maybe she could mend what’s broken inside me.

Maybe she could heal me.

No, she can’t. No one can heal me. There is a tear in my soul, and it can’t be mended.

Conflicts II

*MARIUS*

“Awitch,areyousure?” Annie asks in surprise when we gather for an emergency meeting at Red Claw, and Liam fills the others in on what he discovered at Celine’s pack yesterday.

Liam nods, slipping an arm around her waist to pull her closer to him. She sits down on the chair next to him, her hand resting on his knee. Liam never makes Annie sit on his lap or anything in a meeting. He finds it disrespectful toward her, and despite my strained relationship with him, that’s something I really admire about him. Liam is straightforward and dominant, but has a strong moral compass.

It’s the reason he can never know about Celine and me.

“I’m positive it’s a witch,” Liam explains. “She covered almost all of their tracks and scents. I assume there are wolves involved, but Fenris was definitely able to pick up the scent of a witch.”

“Witches don’t normally get involved with wolves,” I point out, rubbing my temples. The headache’s back in full force. It’s been gradually building since Liam first mentioned the witch at dinner last night. I don’t think Moon Blood has had to deal with witches before, unlike Liam and me.

Lycans are far more interwoven with other creatures than werewolves.

“That’s what’s unsettling,” Liam points out. “Witches normally keep to themselves and stay in their covens. They mingle with humans more than they do with wolves.”

“But what might they want from Moon Blood?” Ella asks.

Annie turns to look at Liam. “Were there traces around other pack borders too?”

That’s a good question. Liam, however, shakes his head. “I called Jace and our other allies and no one found anything similar.”

“Does this mean it’s against Moon Blood, specifically?” Annie asks in worry.

My stomach churns slightly. Is Celine in danger? “They didn’t attack though,” I point out.

“Not yet,” Aryanna comments. “But they had enough camps around the borders to have spied on them for months.”

“Ari,” Liam looks at her intently. “Do you still have your contacts among the witches?”

“There is a coven with a few girls I’m friends with,” Aryanna says. Of course, there is. I’ve never met anyone with as many friends as Aryanna. My parents and Liam may have friends in high places, but Ari knows the… shadier ones.

“Talk to them. See If you can gather some information.”

She nods.

“Moon Blood is an ally, we’ll obviously help them,” Liam points out. “However, even if they weren’t, it’s very concerning that witches are working with a group of wolves to spy on a whole pack. I’ll talk to Dad about it and see if he can gather more intel.”

“Don’t forget, your family is arriving in a few days,” Annie points out.