Page 20 of Cursed (Blood Moon Pack #1)
R yland is annoyed and tired of trying to get the prisoner to tell him anything useful about where the Rogues are coming from. Beating answers out of him was fun for a while; now he’s just irritated.
The skunk scent did not help at all. The beast shrank down into the corner and shrieked from the smell.
It’s difficult to understand Rogues. Their throats cannot properly form sounds. Their words are raspy and guttural. They’ve figured out that he was ordered to attack, but they can’t decipher much else. Zayne is in the cell now, trying to get more information out of him .
He’s pissed about missing lunch with Nori, but at least he sent Adele to keep her company.
It’s getting late. He is seriously considering killing the thing to have a chance at making it back in time for dinner.
As he moves toward the cell, heavy footsteps thud down the stairs, approaching quickly.
Ryland sees a Guard making a beeline for him, holding a note in his hand.
“Prince Drakemoor,” the Guard says, “I have a note for you from another Pack, marked urgent.”
Thinking it might be a request for help against Rogue attacks, Ryland opens the note immediately.
To His Royal Highness Prince Ryland Drakemoor, Alpha of the Blood Moon Pack,
It has come to my attention that you are sheltering a she-wolf who is not from your Pack. Her name is Norina Valcrest of the Starfall Pack. She has committed several crimes, including murdering her parents, the former Alpha and Luna of Starfall, and abandoning her Mate.
She must be held accountable for her crimes. I insist that you return my Mate to me as soon as possible.
Thank you in advance for your cooperation,
Malrik Blackstone, Beta of the Starfall Pack
Ryland’s chest constricts, leaving him breathless. He reads the note again, but all he sees are the words “my Mate.” She has a Mate. She has a Mate, and it’s not him .
He slumps against the wall as his whole world shatters around him. Instantly, a torrent of emotions surges through him, engulfing him—shock, devastation, betrayal, and finally, unrelenting fury. The soul-crushing note falls to the floor as Ryland’s eyes change from chocolate brown to blood red.
He barely hears Bade through the rage boiling inside him. “ No, Ryland! She is our Mate, not his! ”
Ryland, no longer rational, yells at his wolf, “ Bullshit! I told you! This has all been a ruse, and I fell for it so completely! She was never our Mate. She is a spy for that piece of shit, Draven, and this Mate Bond is some kind of trick, orchestrated by a witch, no doubt. ”
Zayne picks up the note and draws in a harsh breath. “Son of a bitch!”
Garek rips it out of Zayne’s hands. Shaking his head, he says, “I knew there was something wrong with her! No way does she survive weeks in the woods by herself, hunted by Rogues.”
Ryland’s roar is deafening, causing Garek and Zayne to cover their ears and cower. “SHE IS A LIAR! She’s lied the entire time; I am going to kill her, and after that, I’m going to kill that fucking Alpha. He should have died long ago when he started the war that killed our mother!”
Consumed by the rage, he is no longer Ryland the Prince. He has become Ryland the Destroyer .
Bade frantically pleads with him to calm down and go talk to Nori. “ Just talk to her, please, Ryland! ”
Ryland brings down a wall in his mind, completely blocking out his wolf.
Startled by Ryland’s violent reactions, Zayne shouts, “No, Ryland! You can’t kill her; it will rebound on you. You have to get her to sever the Mate Bond.”
Ryland snarls at his brother. “This Mate Bond is not real! She already has a Mate, or can’t you read?” The power flowing out of Ryland knocks Zayne back several steps.
Raking his hands through his hair, Ryland can’t believe he fell for her act.
Everything she’s told him is a lie; she’s manipulated him into feeling sorry for her, all to gather information for that fucking Alpha.
Gods, she is good. He totally bought her story about the coffee pot. That was probably a lie, too.
He’s not sure exactly how she engineered the Mate Bond, but it doesn’t matter because she’s already Mated! He knew she was going to reject him, but to be able to deceive him so thoroughly, she must be well-trained. Ryland turns and stalks out of the dungeon, determined to end her.
Garek and Zayne look at each other with worry.
Zayne takes off, running after his brother, and yells, “Ryland, wait! You can’t kill her. Please!”
Garek follows Zayne, shouting after his Alpha. “Ryland, you have to stop! ”
Trying to reason with him, begging him to calm down, both men chase after Ryland through castle and up the stairs to the North Tower. Pack members in the vicinity turn and run the other way from the waves of rage coming off the Prince.
Running up the stairs to Ryland’s rooms, Zayne asks Garek, “Is it even possible to fake a Mate Bond?”
“No. There’s no way to fake a Bond,” Garek replies. “Shit! He’s going to kill her!”
Ryland explodes through the doors to his rooms, knocking them off their hinges. When his eyes land on Nori, he freezes in place, panting and growling at the she-wolf who is Mated to another.
Nori grabs a knife and springs from her seat at the table, instantly in panic mode. She knows he has somehow figured out that she’s from Starfall.
Adele yelps in surprise. “What the hell, Ryland? What is going on?” Her head whips around to Garek and Zayne, running in after him. Both men are pleading with him to calm down.
Zayne has never seen his brother this out of control. He whips his head around to find Nori. “You!” He points at her. “You have to try to calm him down.”
Nori is completely petrified. She doesn’t even hear Zayne’s plea. Her eyes are glued on the Prince, waiting for what is surely going to end in her death .
Ryland snarls, glancing down at the knife in her hand. “What are you going to do with that, Norina?” He says her name with all the menace he can muster.
The color drains from her face, her heart pounds loudly in her ears. Nori is too paralyzed to reply . Her eyes move around the room. Everyone is blocking the door. She glances at the windows; she’ll never get them open in time. Nori draws in frantic gulps of air as she realizes she’s trapped.
“Nowhere to run, Norina!”
Nori lets out a small whimper and whispers to Aylin, “ We can’t go back. ”
“ Agreed. ”
Nori says solemnly, “ They’ll have to kill us. ”
“ Agreed. ” Her voice shaking with fear, Aylin cries, “ Fuck, look at him! He’s gone completely feral. His eyes are red, Nori. ”
Ryland’s volume steadily increases as he accuses her. “You were smart, Norina, to secure my promise not to kill you. But none of that matters now that I know—BETA MALRIK IS YOUR REAL MATE! YOU ARE A SPY FOR DRAVEN!”
Nori flinches every time he says her full name, having heard it said that same way for the last twelve years by the Alpha and Beta at Starfall.
Anger pours out of him, washing over her.
There’s no way she can fight him off, even with the knife, so she watches his shoulders closely, preparing for the inevitable slap or punch.
Nori can’t believe it was only a few short hours ago that he was the man who made her feel safe for the first time in years. That man is gone, replaced by something out of her nightmares.
She takes a step back, shaking her head. Her face is full of terror, tears gleaming in her eyes. “NO! You’re wrong. None of that is true! I do not work for Draven, and I am definitely not Mated to that Beta.”
Ryland takes a step forward and bellows, “BULLSHIT! You are a liar and an enemy of the Blood Moon Pack. You have somehow fabricated this Mate Bond with me, hoping to help your Alpha start another war!”
“No! No! No!” Nori shouts. Her tears sliding down her face now. “I never lied! This Mate Bond is real! I had hoped you would help me or take pity on me. Anything but send me back to Starfall.”
“THERE IS NO MATE BOND!” Ryland roars. “Enough is enough! You will gather no more information for your Alpha. You will return to Beta Malrik, your real Mate! Right now!”
Bade exerts all of his power, trying to break through Ryland’s mental wall. “ Wait! Wait! Look at her. She’s not lying! She’s so freaked out that her eyes are changing back and forth between golden and amber. LOOK AT HER! ”
Ryland is too lost in his rage. His wolf’s pleas sound very far away.
“What? No! YOU PROMISED!” Nori shrieks at him. Sucking in quick breaths, she’s on the verge of hysterics. Backing up again, Nori’s face is a mask of pain as she desperately tries to keep from shifting. “You cannot send me back! I will not go back!”
She straightens her shoulders and stands her ground. “You will have to KILL ME!”
Garek, Zayne, and Adele are frozen in shock from how much power Ryland is throwing through the room, afraid to approach him. They look at each other, confused, as Nori says she’d rather die than go back.
Garek pushes Adele forward and tells her to try to reach him.
Adele yells to get his attention away from Nori. “Ryland, please calm down! Listen to her! She’s not a spy. Spies wouldn’t wish death rather than go back to their leaders.”
Wide-eyed and trembling with fear, Nori doesn’t wait for him to respond. She seeks out the only possible refuge in his chambers and takes off toward the bathroom.
She’s incredibly fast, but Ryland’s Alpha Speed is far superior. He wraps his hands around her arms in three strides. She shrieks when he grabs her, dropping the knife.
Ryland roughly turns Nori around to face him, squeezing her upper arms. He yells at her with the full weight of his Alpha Influence. “YOU WILL REJECT THIS FAKE MATE BOND, AND YOU WILL RETURN TO YOUR ALPHA! NOW!”
Nori completely breaks down. Every muscle in her body contracts from the power of the Alpha Order. Her hand flies to her chest as a searing pain rips through her. She screams, “NOOOOOOO!”
In that same moment, Bade howls loud enough to break through Ryland’s mental wall. “ NO! YOU FOOL! YOU’VE KILLED HER! ”
Garek, Zayne, and Adele cry out, “No! Ryland!”
Ryland shakes his head in confusion, trying to clear the rage that was riding him. “What?”
Bade is frantic. “ THE CURSE! YOU CANNOT SWAY THE MATE OR ELSE THE CURSE WILL KILL HER! ” Bade howls mournfully in Ryland’s head.
Ryland is in a daze. “But. No. This Mate Bond is not real! She cannot possibly be meant for me.”
He watches Nori as if in slow motion, clutching her chest with one hand, and her other hand latches onto his arm for support. Her knees buckle as she struggles for air. Lungs seizing, she stammers, “I can’t…I can’t breathe!”
Ryland falls to his knees, catching her as she collapses to the floor.
Nori looks at him with confusion in her eyes, trying to suck in air. “Ryland?”
Her eyes roll back into her head. She stops breathing.