Page 59 of Fated to the Alpha Warrior (The Wolf’s Forbidden Mate #1)
Aurora
Every instinct in my newly awakened wolf screams at me to intervene as I watch Kieran face down his father.
The bond pulses between us, carrying his turmoil and determination in equal measure.
But I hold myself back, my white fur bristling with tension.
This is his battle to fight—his moment to finally break free from the toxic legacy that has shaped him for so long, to stand up to the father who blames him for his mother’s death, the man who scarred his face in anger.
The Great Hall falls silent as father and son face each other, Kieran’s massive bronze wolf form pinning Cade to the ground.
The ritual circle’s corrupt magic still sizzles in the air, making my teeth ache with its wrongness.
Behind me, Dana and our allies watch with bated breath, while Lord Hule nurses his venom-blackened arm, his beautiful face twisted with pain and rage.
Kieran shifts back to his human form, staring down at his father with love and anger, fury and determination. My heart swells at the thought of what he must be feeling right now.
“Submit,” Kieran growls, the word carrying all the weight of his future alpha status. Through our bond, I feel how much it costs him to threaten his own father, the man who raised him—however badly. “Submit, or I’ll be forced to end this permanently.”
Cade’s eyes are fever-bright as he stares up at his son, the madness taking hold of him, even with the fae magic breaking all around us. “You would choose them over your own blood? Over your mother’s memory?”
“Mom is gone.” Kieran’s voice breaks on the words, but his grip remains firm. “And she would hate what you’ve become. What you’ve done to our pack.”
“I did it for her!” Spittle flies from Cade’s mouth as he thrashes beneath Kieran’s paws. “Everything I’ve ever done was for her! Including making you strong enough to lead!”
“No.” Kieran’s voice is quiet but firm. “You did it for yourself. Because you couldn’t face your grief. Couldn’t admit that sometimes terrible things just happen, and there’s nothing we can do about it.”
The truth of his words seems to hit Cade like a physical blow. He goes limp beneath Kieran’s weight, the fight draining out of him. Around us, I feel the pack bonds shift and realign as the balance of power changes.
“Kill me then,” Cade whispers. “Prove how strong you are now. End my life just like you ended your mother’s life.”
But Kieran surprises us all by stepping back, getting to his feet in one fluid motion. “No. Killing you won’t prove anything. And it won’t bring Mom back.”
Pride fills me as I watch him stand tall and naked before his father, no trace of shame or uncertainty in his bearing.
This is the man I always knew he could be—strong enough to show mercy, brave enough to be vulnerable.
This is the boy I loved so much growing up, the one who did his best to protect me and watch over me, who protected those who couldn’t protect themselves.
“The pack is mine now,” he continues, his voice carrying to every corner of the hall. “You’re stripped of your alpha status and exiled from these lands. Take whatever belongings you can carry with you and go, never to return again.”
“You can’t—” Lord Hule starts to protest, but cuts off with a yelp as I snap my teeth in his direction. The scent of his fear is satisfying after everything he’s done.
“You too,” I say after shifting back to human form, accepting the clothes Dana tosses me. “You and all your kind. Pack Jade is no longer open to fae bargains.”
Cade struggles to his feet, his movements stiff and pained. “You’re making a mistake,” he tells Kieran. “You’re not ready. You’re too weak, too soft?—”
“No.” I step up beside my mate, taking his hand in mine. “He’s exactly what this pack needs. What you never were, never could be.”
Kieran squeezes my fingers, drawing strength from our connection.
Around us, pack members begin filtering into the hall, drawn by the shift in power.
I see faces I recognize from my childhood—people who once looked down on me, who celebrated when Kieran rejected me.
But their expressions are different now as they take in our united front, full of curiosity and wonder, sometimes even hope.
It’s hard not to feel bitter about everything the pack has done to me, but I remind myself that I need to be a leader to them too, even when it’s the last thing that comes easy.
“The pack has witnessed our strength,” Kieran addresses them all. “Not just in battle, but in mercy. In unity. In knowing when to stand firm and when to show compassion.”
I pick up where he leaves off, knowing that the pack needs to see us both as leaders. “The old ways of fear and control are over. We won’t cast out the weak and leave them unprotected anymore. No more fear and paranoia, no more revenge, and especially no more fae.”
The pack members exchange glances, then one by one, they begin to kneel. Not in fear or submission, but in recognition of something new—something better than what came before us. Through the pack bonds, I feel their relief, their hope for a future free from Cade’s toxic influence.
“You’re all weak,” Cade spits, but his words fall flat. Even he must feel how the pack bonds have shifted, how thoroughly his power has been stripped away. “The fae will return. And when they do?—”
“They’ll face the combined strength of Pack Jade,” I interrupt. “Not just my venom or Kieran’s leadership, but all of us together. United and stronger for our differences.”
Lord Hule, cradling his blackened arm, manages a bitter laugh. “You think your little victory here means anything? There are more of us. We’ll find another pack, another way?—”
“You’ll try.” Kieran’s voice is cold. “And you’ll fail. Because we’ll warn the other packs about your true nature. About how you prey on grief and desperation, twisting truth into lies.”
“Your bargains have no power here anymore, and you know it,” I add, letting my wolf rise close to the surface. Hule flinches at the sight of my fangs. “That bite will kill you one way or another. Leave our lands. All of you. While you still can.”
The remaining fae need no further encouragement. They flee through doors and windows, melting into shadows—all except Hule, who lingers just long enough to snarl, “This isn’t over.”
“Yes,” Kieran says simply. “It is.”
He gives a nod to me, and I know exactly what we need: a symbolic death. What I said was right—the venom will kill him one way or another, but better to make it fast. So I draw one of my cold iron daggers and, with a brief flick of my wrist, throw it right at him and bury it in his throat.
His eyes widen—then go blank as the life force leaves his body.
Just like the other fae I’ve killed, he turns to ash, disintegrating in front of us.
The pack members cheer, Dana pumps her fist in the air, and Gran gives me a big grin.
But all I feel is a hollow sort of victory, knowing that as much as I wish otherwise, this isn’t over.
There will be more battles, more fae—but at least, I reflect as Kieran takes my hand, we won’t be alone in facing them.
Two of our strongest warriors step forward to escort Cade from pack lands. He goes quietly at first, shoulders slumped in defeat. But at the door, he turns back one last time.
“Your mother would be ashamed,” he tells Kieran, a final attempt to wound. “She would hate to see what you’ve become, what you’ve done to your own family.”
But Kieran just shakes his head. “No. She would be proud. Proud that I finally learned what real strength looks like and experienced unconditional love and loyalty.” He glances at me, love shining in his ice blue eyes. “That I finally became the man she would have wanted me to be.”
As Cade is led away, his threats of vengeance falling on deaf ears, the pack begins to stir.
Questions and concerns fill the air—about the corruption in our lands, about what comes next, about how we’ll defend against future fae incursions.
Everyone wants answers, and they want them now, with the desperation of those who have been living in fear for far too long.
Kieran steps forward to address them, every inch the alpha he was born to be. But he keeps hold of my hand, making it clear that we face this together.
“The fae’s magic will fade,” he assures them. “Already I can feel our lands healing. But we have work to do—not just in repairing physical damage, but in building something new. Something better than what came before, a new pack.”
“A pack where everyone’s strengths are valued for their uniqueness,” I add. “Where we support each other instead of tearing each other down. Where being different isn’t seen as a weakness.”
One by one, the pack members step forward to pledge their loyalty. Not just to Kieran as their new alpha, but to both of us as their leaders. I feel their acceptance through the pack bonds—real acceptance this time, not mere tolerance.
“We owe you an apology,” Dierdre says, speaking for many. “We were wrong about you. About both of you.”
“No more apologies,” I tell them. “It’s time to move forward. Together.”
The sun is rising by the time everything is settled.
Kieran and I stand on the Great Hall’s steps, watching the corruption fade from our lands as dawn’s light chases away the last traces of fae magic.
The pack bonds hum with renewed strength and purpose, joined now in a unity born in hope instead of hatred or fear.
“Ready for this?” he asks softly, pulling me close. “Being the alpha’s mate won’t be easy.”
I turn in his arms, reaching up to trace the scar on his cheek. “Being your mate has never been easy,” I tease. “But it’s always been worth it.”
His answering smile is bright enough to rival the sun. As he leans down to kiss me, I feel the rightness of it all. This is where we belong—together, leading our pack into a new era.
No more running. No more hiding. No more denying what we are to each other.
Just us, exactly as we were always meant to be.
The future stretches out before us, full of challenges. And for the first time in my life, I’m ready to face it all.
Because I’m no longer the broken shifter who couldn’t shift, or the orphan without a pack, or the rejected mate full of bitterness and longing.
I’m Aurora Blackburn, last of the Onyx wolves, mate to the alpha, killer of fae, leader in my own right.
And I’m finally, completely, home.