Chapter 5: Mate

Rhys’s P.O.V:

I woke up with a start, gasping for air as my lungs burned from deprivation and immediately groaned in pain.

My arms were stretched and aching, silver cuffs made my skin burn with every contact. My face felt horribly raw and my right shoulder hurt like hell, probably from the bullet that village girl shot at me...wait…

My eyes finally adjusted to the dim light of the large room that I was stacked in and it took some time for my eyes to adjust before I was able to see clearly. I was sitting up against a wall in what looked like a dungeon or a jail, my wrists bound together above my head with silver cuffs.

I turned my head towards my shoulder with difficulty to see it poorly bandaged; dried blood stained the once white cloth a dark reddish brown. My face felt like the skin had been peeled off of it, which was probably the case since it hurt like a bitch in heat.

The cell I was in was big, big enough that the only light hanging from the ceiling wasn't enough to illuminate the hallway outside. I tried my voice first, but nothing came out. My throat was too dry to use. So I checked the pack link. Surprisingly, I couldn't contact anyone. The link was dead, meaning that the silver bullet had repressed my wolf for a while. Panic rose in my stomach, but I controlled it. I was Alpha. I did not lose composure.

A cold gust of wind blew from somewhere in the room, making me shiver and notice for the first time that my warm clothing had been removed, leaving me in my black T-shirt and matching dark pants and snow boots. At least the cold helped to relieve the pain a bit, but it also made me shiver. It was a good thing that as werewolves, our temperature was relatively higher than humans or I would’ve frozen to death a long time ago.

Shit!

How long have I been out? What date was it? Was it night or day? If I didn’t get out of here in time, Aiden and Devon are bound to cause trouble. A groan sounded from somewhere beyond the bars right at that instant, diverting my attention. I tried to call again but ended up having a coughing fit. But that did the job.

"Rhys?" Zyane's hoarse voice was as welcome to me as was chilled beer on a hot summer night.

"Z-zya-nn..." my throat was filled with gravel and my voice sounded inaudible even to my ear, but fortunately he was able to hear it.

"Alpha? Are you okay? Why the hell am I tied up with silver and where on God's green Earth are we?" His voice grew stronger with every word, meaning that he was uninjured. The white Alpha seemed to have taken his time torturing me instead.

"N-no, ide-a....village gi-rl....your mate...s-shot m-me," I managed to get out.

"What?" A growl, and then the sound of rattling of chains from the opposite side of the room, beyond the bars.

"Damn! I can't break free. Fucking Silver!" Zyane cursed.

He tried to rattle them some more while I tried to conserve my strength to heal. Escape plans needed energy, and right now I had none. Besides, it was the white wolf that had captured us; he won't kill us without asking questions first...wait...I realized something with a start, something that had been stuck at the back of my mind but I hadn’t been able to pinpoint it just yet…until now.

"Female," I gasped out, my voice stronger than it had been a few seconds ago.

"What?" Zyane stopped rattling the chains, giving up on his vain attempt at breaking free.

"T-the white wolf...its female," I was able to have a look at it before I was shot. And I had no doubt at what I saw.

Slender and toned, size a bit smaller than my wolf, pure white fur with blue, blue eyes the color of the ocean, but definitely female. The white wolf was female. Even with so much distance separating us, I had noticed the power, the aura of an Alpha radiating off of it.

"A Female Alpha?" I whispered to myself.

It was unheard of. Alphas were always male. The females, who were privileged to be the Alpha's mate, were called Luna. Then how come a female became an Alpha?

I was broken out of my train of thought by the sound of a door squeaking open and then the sound of heavy footsteps approaching us.

Soon enough the hallway was filled with light and Zyane's cell came into view. He was tied up the same way as me but other than that he was uninjured. The footsteps drew closer and finally the person came into view. And who could it be other than the village girl a.k.a Zyane's wonderful mate.

"Ah! You're both awake!" She smiled at us while clapping her hands together; like she was talking to a normal house guest and not people she had hanging from dungeon walls.

She had changed out of that skirt and sweater into a pair of military cargo pants and a black sweater. Her hair was down, and even I have to admit, she might be young but the girl was pretty. Of course she was, she was a wolf after all. Should have figured it out with those unusual eyes of hers.

"I know it's highly uncomfortable hanging from silver cuffs like that, but not to worry. The Alpha will be with you shortly...as soon as she's done taking care of those men you brought with you," she muttered the last part to herself but I was still able to catch it with my hearing. She then turned to me, "Sorry about your face. Defrosting would have caused wrinkles, so I just peeled the skin off. It'll grow back anyway.” She said it like she was talking about the day’s menu and not skinning me alive.

"Thanks, you shouldn't have," I answered back sarcastically.

"I like your sense of humor," she smiled that annoying smile, which Zyane seemed to be smitten with.

I was about to snap at my traitor of a beta, when the sound of the door slamming into the wall echoed throughout the room and the most beautiful smell hit my nose.

"Ouch! Poor door," the girl said sarcastically as she leaned against the bars to Zyane's cell, arms crossed across her chest.

But I wasn't paying any attention to her anymore. The smell of roses and berries with the frosty ting of winter filled the entire room. I inhaled deeply, trying to get as much of the scent into my nose as I could. It was a scent that seemed familiar yet not…like I’d been waiting my entire life to get a whiff of this scent.

A figure came from the illuminated hallway and stood beside the village girl. She was taller, much taller than normal females at around 5' 11", perfectly suitable for someone with my height. And when she turned and looked into my eyes, my wolf seemed to jolt awake.

Her blue, blue eyes, the same as the white wolf's, stared at me with an unreadable expression while my wolf howled in pleasure and rolled around in her scent. My wolf was happy, elated. Because the person it had been waiting for, for the past thirty two years was finally here! My wolf had found the one.

My Mate.