3. The Enemy

Christian's POV

"Ahhh!" I screamed, turning my whole room upside down. The rage within me burned with such intensity that I had no clue what I was doing. Finally, the last piece of bedroom that was still intact was soon broken into two. My favorite couch. Everything on my dresser was smashed and broken on the ground after I had swept it off, clean from it. My recliner was upside down, maybe there were even two or three holes in the wall. Why?

The answer was my mate, who was currently passed out and caged in the rogue dungeons. My heart was beating at an unexplainable rhythm that I knew was ready to break free from the restraints of my ribcage.

This was not how I imagined my first time meeting my mate. Although the experience was nothing less than magical—her beauty, her fiery hair, her aura, her skills! Everything was beyond expectations. She was perfect. Just pure perfection. The only thing I got unlucky with was that she was our enemy. She is the daughter of Alpha Dominic's and our pack's biggest rival. Dominic found that after doing some research and mind-linking, we were going to go for some interrogation in a while. And I knew what that meant. And I can tell it wasn't anything good.

Her being my mate wasn't the thing I hated. In fact, my wolf, my heart, and I had already taken a little more than liking to her. But what killed me was that I wasn't with her. I wasn't there to protect her when an outsider took her out with the dart. The outsider, who aimed at her, was another discussion to be held with the Alpha.

Worst of all, I'm not sure she could feel what I felt because she wasn't a werewolf. And she was not a witch. If she had been, then there was no need for her to be geared with all the weapons and fight physically with the opponents. Although I did feel the certain nervousness that radiated from her during our interaction and the goosebumps that rose on her skin whenever she got close to attacking me. She hadn't taken after her father's genes. Maybe her mother was human? I'm not sure. This whole situation was making me want to bang my head.

I was helpless. I was helpless trying to figure out how to get her to escape any punishment, given the number of people in our pack who were killed today. We had retreated once she had passed out in my hands, seeing the number of our wolves dying on the spot after some weird potion was fired in the air. She was instantly taken away to be locked in the cells at Alpha's orders, and nobody could go against it. I could do nothing but stare because I was so overwhelmed with everything that happened within minutes that I couldn't come clean to Alpha about her being my mate. Moreover, I was scared.

For the first time, I was actually scared of how Dominic would react. Sure, he was my best friend, but he was also the Alpha King of the Royal Red Moon Pack. He couldn't ignore the trouble and chaos those people have been creating for us, the people to whom she belongs.

Fuck. How was I going to control myself around her? Her arousing scent, her doe eyes—everything about her was pulling me into a trance. The reason I had instantly changed back to my human form was so my wolf did not jump her bones and mess up the situation. This was a grave situation and had to be dealt with carefully. Goddess, please help me. I don't want to lose her. I have waited an eternity; I can't let her go. Let her be mine, please. Don't let anything happen to her.

"Fuck," I smashed the wall once again before ruffling my hair and releasing a desperate sigh. What did my fate hold? I can't let the guards or Alpha put a scratch on her. I'm afraid my wolf would tear off my own people if that happened. The bond was getting out of my control. Something had to be done quickly.

We are leaving now. I heard Dominic's voice through our mind link. I sighed, anticipating what was coming next. After giving a final kick to the broken wood table near my feet, I decided to leave. Here goes nothing.

Her scent grew stronger and started driving me crazy as we neared the cell, and I had to restrain myself by clenching my fist, making my veins pop. I'm pretty sure Dominic felt my discomfort, which made him turn to me. We were also accompanied by Gamma Arnold and a few guards.

Calm down, Christian; nothing has happened yet. I chanted to myself.

"Everything alright? You look out of your stance today," he said, raising a brow.

"Fine." My tone was clipped.

Upon reaching the cell, her scent finally swept me off my feet, and we were met with her red hair cascading down her back. They were tied up on the battlefield.

She finally decided to grace us with her face, and once again, the air was kicked out of my lungs. My eyes eventually fell on the chains that her wrists were wrapped around as a constraint. They were so tight, I spotted the reddish-purple bruises that had started to form now. My worry heightened knowing that it would be aching, and an unease blossomed in my chest. My eyes went up to see hers, only to find them already on me. Our gazes locked, and I knew in that instant that she did feel something. The pull between us. The bond. Sure, she couldn't understand anything that was happening, but the soft emotion that flicked in her eyes broke her strong stance in front of me. Even if it was just for a second, I had spotted it.

The grill door was unlocked. Dominic and I entered, followed by Gamma Arnold and two female warriors.

"How are you even his daughter?" Dominic questioned, finding it confusing as well. But she only decided to raise her eyebrows and scoff. Something that an Alpha wolf cannot tolerate is disrespect. Dominic's stance turned rigid.

"You listen to me, woman, and listen well! One thing I do not tolerate is disrespect. You are in my territory and are my captive. So it may benefit you if you stayed in your line because we will not hesitate to give you a piece of your own medicine," my wolf grew agitated at Dominic's words. I knew what he was saying was correct, but the tone he was using with my mate only infuriated me. My wolf did not like it one bit.

"I don't care if you might be the Alpha King, but I'm not bound to respect you. Because the last thing I remember is that you are not my king. You are the enemy. You and your pack are nothing but a burden for the earth to bear. And my father only wishes to change it for the better." My mate spat. "You all made a grave mistake by bringing me here. Now be ready to face the consequences."

"Your father is the problem here!" Arnold bombarded. "He went against the peace treaty, and despite the agreement between the Shadow Weavers and the werewolves, he decided to violate the terms. He kidnapped my daughter, and you have the audacity to say that?" Arnold seethed, not being able to control his anger-filled emotions anymore, and the next thing I knew, he was advancing towards my mate with a raised, clenched fist, ready to collide with her face. As if that could happen in my presence.

*********************

Mia's POV

It all happened so fast, I couldn't even blink. One moment I saw their Gamma advancing towards me, ready to punch, and the next moment it was stopped by the wall that stood before me. More like the hunk I was crushing over. Why did he make me feel so jittery?

The moment these three men had entered the cell, the air had shifted, and royalty was screaming off of them. The aura they spread, the sense of awe in the way they carried themselves, and the authority they brought with them even had me twisting and churning in my place, wanting to submit before them at once. But there was something about this guy, more specifically. Oh my goodness! He was so much different.

From the moment he entered, my nerves had begun to dance, and my stomach churned with a desire that I couldn't explain. Throughout the little catch-up I was having with the Alpha, I felt his gaze on me the entire time. That made my heart leap with another jolt of excitement. I don't know what was wrong with me. I was lusting over the enemy, for heaven's sake! The worst part was that I wasn't even in control of this feeling. I had worked hard on myself to not get involved with or attached to anyone. Yet one glance at this person, and he started making me feel things I wasn't supposed to. What the hell was even happening?

He stood before me, his hand stopping the punch that was meant to hit my face. Why, even on the holy earth, would he do that? Save the enemy? And let's not talk about their werewolf flash speed. All of this literally happened in less than a second. The Gamma and Alpha stood, surprise and shock clear on their faces at the beta's reaction. I was amazed, too, by his behavior. I could see his veins on his arm popping out, thanks to his half-sleeved shirt, which made his biceps bulge, giving them a good, muscular appearance. If not for the situation, I would have literally been drooling at the sight, but his hard-demanding tone snapped me out of my lala land.

"Do not cross boundaries, Gamma Arnold!" I saw his jaw ticking.

"Huh!" Gamma Arnold scoffed, "You are one to talk about boundaries, Beta Christian, when it is the enemy that you are protecting, knowing well that they have my daughter!" He boomed in the hunk's face, who I now call Beta Christian. I decided to remain quiet when there was no need to interfere since I was getting the protection I needed at the moment, thanks to Christian. Although for what reason he was doing this, that was still a mystery.

"I will deal with this one personally. We will get your daughter back." I saw the Alpha King frowning at Christian's remarks. Things were not adding up, even for me. Although I was not complaining, did dad cast some kind of spell on him in the field to make him protect me here? No, I don't think so.

"Enough!" The king seethed, finally tired of the drama. "Out everyone." I saw the look he gave to Christian while saying those words, and he decided to stay back while the Gamma and the female warriors left, not before sharing looks between the Alpha and Christian. Interesting. Very interesting

"She will be given the same punishment that anyone else got for killing our people. Eye for an eye, Christian." I saw Christian immediately tense up, and maybe I even felt his breathing get harder.

"I'm afraid I cannot let that happen, Alpha," he said confidently, meeting the king's eye and standing his ground.

"And who are you to command me? And why do you even think that I would let her go after all the people we just lost thanks to them?" The King was testing Christian and was ready to pounce if Christian did not let the reason out for his sudden protectiveness.

"Because she is mine!" This time, I heard his voice laced with another heavier tone.

Fuck. What had I gotten myself into?