Chapter 2 — Unwelcome Bond

Alternating (Zara/Aiden)

The ropes were too tight. Zara winced as she twisted her wrists for the third time, the coarse fibers biting into her skin. Her movements were deliberate, testing the tension with small, precise motions, gauging how much give she could find without drawing attention. The dull ache was constant, but it wasn’t the pain that truly got to her. It was the confinement. The cabin’s walls seemed to close in around her, the low ceiling pressing down like a weight, suffocating her with its oppressive stillness.

She sat cross-legged on the cot, her back pressed against the rough wooden wall, narrowing her focus on the door. The faint murmur of voices outside drifted through the thin walls—two guards, their conversation peppered with nervous laughter. They were inexperienced, likely chosen for this duty because no one expected her to escape. Escape wasn’t impossible, but it wasn’t going to be easy either. She needed time. Time to watch. Time to plan.

Her thoughts wavered, and despite herself, they edged back to him.

The Alpha. Her mate. The words sat foreign and unwelcome within her mind, like a jagged shard she couldn’t pry loose. She hated the pull she felt toward him, the way her wolf stirred at the memory of his piercing gray eyes and the commanding weight of his presence. It wasn’t right, wasn’t natural. It felt like shackles tightening around her every time her thoughts strayed to him. She clenched her jaw and inhaled slowly, willing her wolf to settle. Yet the bond pulsed faintly in her chest, steady and insistent, a tether she couldn’t sever.

The door creaked open, and Zara tensed instinctively, her muscles coiling like a spring. Aiden stepped inside, his broad frame filling the small cabin. The faint scent of pine and leather clung to him, cutting through the stale air of the room. He moved with controlled precision, calm on the surface but carrying an undercurrent of tension, his storm-gray eyes scanning the space before landing on her.

He dragged a wooden chair from the corner, the sharp scrape of its legs against the floor breaking the silence. He placed it a few feet in front of her and sat, leaning forward with his elbows resting on his knees. For a moment, he simply stared, his gaze steady and unrelenting. She met it head-on, refusing to flinch under the weight of his scrutiny.

“You’re back sooner than I thought,” she said, her voice laced with sarcasm. A smirk tugged at the corner of her lips, sharp and deliberate. “Did you miss me already?”

His jaw tightened, but he didn’t rise to the bait. “Why are you here?” he asked, his tone clipped and deliberate.

“Straight to the point. No pleasantries? No introductions? What a shame.”

“I’m not in the mood for games, rogue,” he said, his voice hardening. “Answer the question.”

Her smirk widened. “Games? I’m great at them, you know.”

This time, his lips pressed into a thin line, irritation flickering in his eyes. “Why were you on pack land?” he repeated, enunciating each word.

Zara tilted her head, feigning indifference, though her mind raced. She could feel the bond humming faintly between them, an invisible thread pulling her toward him even as she resisted with every fiber of her being. “I told you already—I wasn’t here for you.”

“That’s not good enough.” He straightened in his chair, his voice lowering, carrying the weight of authority. “You crossed sacred territory. My responsibility is to my pack. Either you tell me why you’re here, or I’ll assume the worst.”

The words struck something raw inside her. She sat up straighter, her green eyes flashing dangerously. “Your land? Your responsibility?” she echoed, her voice rising. “What gives you the right to claim this forest as yours? You think it belongs to you just because you decided so?”

“This isn’t about rights,” he snapped, his wolf growling low in his chest. “It’s about keeping my people safe. Something you clearly don’t understand.”

Her laugh was sharp, bitter, and edged with pain. “You think I don’t understand? You think you’re the only one who knows what it’s like to protect the people you care about?” For a moment, her voice faltered, the edges softening, but she recovered quickly. “You have no idea what I’ve been through.”

His eyes narrowed, the frustration in his gaze sharpening. “Then explain it to me,” he said, his voice rising with raw intensity. “Tell me why I shouldn’t throw you out of here right now.”

The air between them crackled with tension, the unspoken weight of the bond pressing in from every angle. Zara’s wolf bristled in her chest, mirroring her defiance. She sat motionless for a moment, the silence teetering on the edge of something neither of them dared to name.

“I don’t owe you an explanation,” she said finally, her voice icy and unyielding. “Not to you. Not to your pack. Not to anyone.”

For a moment, neither of them moved. Then Aiden stood, his movements deliberate but edged with fury. “You don’t belong here,” he said, his voice cold and final. “This pack won’t accept you. And neither will I.”

The words hit harder than she expected, a sharp jab that left her breathless for a moment. But Zara held her ground, her expression locked in defiance as the door slammed shut behind him.

---

Aiden leaned against the outer wall of the cabin, his fists clenched at his sides as he stared at the ground. The cool night air wrapped around him, but it did little to calm the storm raging in his chest.

Mate. The word echoed relentlessly in his mind, unrelenting and unwelcome. His wolf churned under his skin, caught between triumph and frustration. This wasn’t how it was supposed to be. His mate was supposed to be someone from his pack. Someone who understood the weight of duty. Someone who wasn’t... her.

Instead, he had Zara. A rogue. A complication.

The bond tugged at him like a chain around his neck, pulling him back to the cabin, to her. He tried to resist, clenching his fists tighter until his knuckles whitened, but his wolf snarled in protest. It wasn’t just instinct—it was need. A need that clashed with everything he believed in.

“Rough night?” Finn’s voice cut through the silence. Aiden glanced up to see his Beta leaning casually against a nearby tree, arms crossed and his hazel eyes glinting with faint amusement.

“What do you want, Finn?” Aiden’s tone was sharp, but Finn didn’t flinch.

“Nothing. Just figured you might need someone to talk to. You know, since you’re pacing like a caged wolf and scaring the guards half to death.”

Aiden exhaled sharply and turned away. “I don’t have time for this.”

“Sure you do.” Finn pushed off the tree and sauntered closer, his tone light but his gaze serious. “Look, I get it. The mate thing? It’s... messy. And her being a rogue? Yeah, that’s about as bad as it gets. But locking her up and pretending it’s not happening? Not exactly a long-term solution.”

Aiden’s eyes narrowed. “What do you want me to do, Finn? Bring her into the pack and pretend this bond doesn’t exist? You know how they’d react.”

“I do. And I know you’re walking a very thin line here,” Finn said, his tone softening. “But ignoring it won’t make it go away. You’re going to have to face it. And if you’re not careful, you’re going to make the wrong choice.”

Aiden didn’t respond, his frustration simmering beneath the surface.

Finn clapped him on the shoulder, a rare flicker of sincerity in his voice. “She might not be what you expected, but that doesn’t mean she’s not exactly what you need.”

The words struck uncomfortably close to home, and Aiden turned away, unwilling to let Finn see the doubt flickering in his eyes.

---

Zara lay on the cot, staring at the dark ceiling above her. The ropes dug into her wrists, but the ache was nothing compared to the turmoil raging in her chest. She shifted slightly, testing the tension again with small, deliberate movements, her fingers brushing the rough fibers. The guards’ muffled conversation outside confirmed their predictability, their rotations sloppy and routine.

Freedom wasn’t just a desire. It was a necessity. But the mate bond pulsed faintly, an unrelenting reminder of the connection she wanted nothing to do with. She hated how it drew her thoughts back to him, how it made her feel vulnerable in ways she hadn’t allowed herself in years.

And yet, even as she planned her escape, the bond’s quiet drumbeat lingered. Steady. Unyielding. And for the first time, it wasn’t the thought of capture that terrified her most.

It was the thought of what she’d leave behind.