Reborn: Caged No More

My Mate, But...

Vlad

I didn't look away from the vehicle our car followed. Although I didn't disclose it to anyone yet, my heart belonged to that pretty lady inside it.

Irene… such a pretty name. My mate… the one meant for me…

I replayed the events in the Moonstone Building in my mind. As soon as I stepped out of the meeting room, I was drawn towards the most heavenly scent I ever smelled. My feet kept rushing towards it. It wasn't until the most beautiful she-wolf ran into me that I stopped. My breathing hitched when I saw her. Although I didn't see her face I knew she was the one. Her scent was driving me crazy. Her aura was undeniable. My wolf kept screaming at the top of his lungs. Mate! I expected her to do the same, when she looked into my face, but she blankly stared as though she didn't recognise me as her destined soulmate.

I was confused and a little heart broken. I wondered if she was deliberately ignoring the bond since she was about to get married. Well that thought sucked, but how could I blame her? She must have gotten sick waiting for me to find her.

A deep sigh escaped my lips. It wasn't that I didn't want to look for my soulmate. I just… couldn't.

Ever since I turned eighteen, I hoped I'd run into my mate, but my luck was bizarre. The sudden death of my father forced me to become the next alpha. I was young and it was too soon for me to take the responsibility, but I had to grow up for my Pack's sake.

The added responsibilities gave me little time to look for the woman meant for me so I gave up. I kept believing that if it was meant to be, it would happen. Who would have thought I'd find her in the most unexpected places? And that too in a wedding gown, ready to get married to someone else?

Imagine the shock I got when I learned her fiancé was my archenemy. Well, he turned out to be an ass and she rejected him at the altar.

Good for me.

However, she didn't recognise me as her mate. My confusion increased when the sparks that would have confirmed our bond didn't exist when I held her hand.

Regardless, my wolf and I were certain of the existence of our bond. We weren't mistaken. The attraction was undeniable. She smelled like vanilla and spices… and I couldn't get that fragrance out of my head.

All I wanted to do was grab her by the waist and bury my head in the crook of her neck. I wanted to bask in her wonderful scent, allowing them to take over my senses. The desire to have a tiny taste of her skin almost took over. To claim my right as her mate in front of everyone was all my body and soul craved for. I barely was able to hold myself back.

But I behaved.

I didn't want to embarrass her. Especially because of the nonexistence of the sparks, I preferred to give it some time. My wolf tried to reach out for her wolf, but his attempts were futile. That was weird and a little concerning. Her aura inferred that she was unmistakably a strong female alpha. But why was her wolf unreachable?

It made me wonder. Was she sick? Or worse… Did Theon do something to her? Why else did she indicate that her life was in danger because of him?

My jaws clenched. I was determined to get to the bottom of it. If Theon had done anything to her wolf, I would become his worst nightmare. Wolf or no wolf, she was my mate and my equal. Perhaps it was because her wolf was unreachable, she wasn't able to recognise me. That was disheartening. Nonetheless, she was the one destined for me. And I would protect her despite how things turned out between us.

“Alpha?” My beta, Thomas interrupted my thoughts.

I looked at him. He was more than just my beta. Thomas was among the only living souls I trusted our pack and my personal experiences with. One would say he and James, my Gamma, were my best friends. I'd say they were my brothers from another mother. The three of us had led our pack to the top. What was left for the three of us was to find our mates.

Well… I guess I found mine.

“Yes?” I said.

“Are you okay? You look tense.”

I raised a brow. I was tense?

Inhaling deeply, I allowed my body to relax. I guess I was a little tense.

“Is everything alright?” He asked me. “We can turn around if you feel this is a bad idea.”

My lips curled into a lopsided smile.

“Nah, we are good. We are never turning away from this pack.”

His forehead creased. My smirk widened. I never offered an alpha my help unless they reached out to me. But here I was, willingly following them into their territory.

“Why? What's so special about them?” he asked.

I looked at the jet black jeep in front of us.

“In that vehicle is my soulmate. Remember the she-wolf we ran into in the Moonstone Building?”

His eyes widened as he gave a slight nod of his head.

“That is your future Luna.”

He seemed to hold back a smile which morphed into a tiny frown.

“But if you are mates, why didn't you say something? She also didn't seem to realise who you were.”

His concern was valid. We never heard of a wolf running into their soulmates and not recognising each other by the first glance.

“I know. I also am confused, but I am sure that's her. Regardless of what happens, I will protect her and the Black Shadows pack. Take note. I don't care what happens. Or who she is. She is the one destined for me and the only rightful Luna of the Black Ravens. You will protect her with your life if you have to.”

His eyes constricted. “Yes, alpha.”

Silence followed until Thomas broke it again.

“I had no questions when you said you'd protect them against Leon, but this sudden alliance makes more sense now.”

I smiled. Of course. Why wouldn't I protect my other half?

We reached the Black Shadows territory within a few hours. Alpha Carlo led my team and I to their meeting room. Irene was nowhere close. The absence of her scent disturbed my soul. Carlo, his mate Ella and high Luna Victoria were the ones attending the meeting.

“Where is Irene?” I couldn't help but ask. I needed to see her. Was it weird for me to ask? “I thought she would also be here for the meeting.”

“She went to get changed out of the wedding gown and get some rest. It has been a hectic day for her,” Carlo said.

I nodded my head. It was supposed to be her wedding day. She must have been knackered.

The meeting was simple and uneventful. Coming into an agreement with Carlo was easy. I offered them protection and a business deal, just so I could often visit their territory. I had to do something so I could pursue my mate.

To celebrate Carlo ordered his omegas to prepare a dinner banquet in our honour and invited us to stay for a couple of days. Carlo wanted to work on a few things with me during my stay. That gave me a few days to check the territory out and to learn more about my mate and her wolf.

Thomas and I stayed at the pack house. Accommodations were arranged for my driver and the few guards who accompanied us.

Whenever I got out of the guest room, her scent clouded my mind. This was her pack and apparently, we were staying in the same building. Withholding my urge to follow the faint trail of her scent was agonising. But I successfully restrained my urges and needs for the next couple of hours.

I saw her again, at the banquet. This time she was dressed in a simple, yet elegant dress that accentuated her perfect body. My mouth kept watering, not because of the delicacies laying on the table… because of her.

I couldn't help it. My mind and my wolf kept playing dirty tricks on me. All I wanted was a quick taste.

I felt like a pervert, prying on a beautiful woman. But she was my mate… my better half, my destined beloved. The problem was, I didn't know how to start the conversation and the mate bond wasn't helping.

Thomas nudged me on the side, gesturing for me to talk to her. Everyone was talking to someone. Carlo was busy discussing something with a group of army generals while I stayed on the side, admiring my mate's beauty from a distance.

“Alpha, you need to talk to her,” Thomas said. “Maybe she also knows you are soulmates.”

My lips drew to a line. If she did, why was she ignoring the undeniable attraction?

Thomas gave a tiny push. “Maybe she hesitates.”

I looked at him and he rolled his eyes.

“How is the big bad alpha so scared to talk to his mate?”

“I'm not scared,” I retorted.

“Yeah. Of course you aren't,” he said, a smirk curling on his lips.

“I don't get it. Isn't it supposed to be easy once you meet the one? What if she doesn't feel the bond?” I whispered into his ear.

His smirk vanished. “Why wouldn't she feel it?”

“There is something wrong. I think her wolf isn't well,” I confessed my suspicions.

His forehead creased. “Well. We won't know if we don't talk to her, will we?”

“So I am supposed to just tell her that we are mates? Isn't that weird?” I asked him, furrowing my eyebrows.

He took a sip of his drink and looked at them. “I don't know. We usually don't have to say it out loud. Maybe you can let your wolf just announce it out loud.”

“And risk him losing control? Nope,” I said, shaking my head.

“You have to do something,” he said.

I pursed my lips. “Talk?”

He nodded. “Yeah. Talk. We don't the whole night, do we?”

I heaved a deep breath and looked at her. With pretty blonde waves cascading down her back and a dashing smile, she was definitely the most beautiful woman I had ever seen. She laughed and waved her hands at the woman she was speaking with and walked away.

My gaze followed her as she weaved her way through the crowd.

I followed her. Away from the garden where the banquet was held and into the pack house. She walked into the kitchen where a few omegas were handling the dishes. I stood by the door as she gave them instructions.

I felt stupid standing there but if I had to talk to her, I had to do it. Thomas was right. It would be only a matter of days and we'd have to leave the territory.

She turned around and froze for a split second. But then the pretty smile that suited her so well curled on her lips.

“Oh, hello Alpha Vlad. Didn't realise you were there,” she said.

I raised a brow. She didn't smell me? That almost confirmed something was wrong with her wolf.

I chose to reserve those questions for later and cleared my throat.

“Yeah, I just wanted to talk.”

I seriously didn't know what else to say.

She nodded her head. “Sure, we should talk. I wasn't able to attend the meeting this evening. Carlo and Ella briefed me about it though.”

I let out an anxious chuckle. Breaking the ice to the female of your dreams was harder than I thought it would be.

Damn it. If only the matebond worked like it should have.