Alpha Noah

~Abella

The moment I see him, I know it’s him.

All the memories I lost from the moment I died flooded back to me. Not to mention the other night, where he came into my room and marked me with that demon mark. He is just as frightening, and not because of his impressive stature. The way he looks at me casts a shadow of fear within me, especially knowing he is the one who killed me.

“What are you doing here?” Noah questions, putting himself between Stace and I. Whoever Stace is, immortal or not, doesn’t seem at all bothered by an Alpha’s demand. Instead, he’s focused on my leg, which is outstretched in front of me, blood still pouring out through my jeans.

“Get out of my way,” Stace demands, brushing past Noah with ease. I can see the concern on his face, but no one in this room is about to question Stace.

Neither of us really knows what he is.

He looks… normal, to a degree. His hair appears brown, curled slightly, his eyes darker than pure obsidian. But up his neck, stopping at his jawline, are sworls of strange, foreign tattoos, black from a distance, until he comes closer, and in the light, I see a violet hint. I’m not sure how that’s possible, either his choice, or magic. Either way, I’ve never seen anything like it.

“You need to remove your pants so I can get access to your skin,” he says, kneeling down in front of me. His fingers reach up to the leg of my pants, but he doesn’t touch me. His gloves are a dark velvet, leading up to a black jacket that hides the rest of him away from my view.

I glower at him, despite the pain, despite how confused I am about everything, I can’t help but feel one overwhelming feeling.

Anger.

“You did this to me. You did this to me and you come in here trying to get me to take my pants off. I don’t even know you, or what you want with me,” I growl. I have so much more to say to him, but I can’t get it out. Just saying those words left me breathless, arching my back as pain lances through me. Never have I felt pain this overwhelming.

“I’m trying to help you,” he mutters. He sounds bored, tired even, as if he has better places to be than here, dealing with me. His accent sounds foregin, too, like something I swear I’ve heard before, but in a dream. It’s deep, rough around the edges.

Noah watches, face pale, expression impassive. He isn’t interfering, almost like he is seized with panic, or maybe because he knows something I didn’t.

“I’m not taking my pants off for a stranger,” I snap.

A breath loosens from Stace’s mouth, before he reaches up, grabbing at the fabric of my pants, ripping it away. It exposes nothing but one leg, but I’m mortified, the pain too much for me to move away from him. Pulling off his gloves, he places his bare fingertips just below the wound. I want to scream at him to pull away, to get himself off me, until the pain suddenly starts to ebb away.

I watch a purple glow spread from his fingers, appearing under my skin before it disappears into the wound. I want to gag, to pull away, but the immediate feeling of relief that consumes me has me leaning more into his touch. In less than a few seconds, the wound begins closing up, the blood vanishing, leaving nothing but a thin scar along my skin.

A reminder of what just happened that will never leave me.

Collapsing back onto the bed, I relax all my limbs, feeling the adrenaline pump through me. As it slowly goes a way, I come to terms with what just happened. I’ve lost all energy to curse at him, to even inquire into who he is. I just want to sleep upon these covers.

But then a hand slips through mine, and I’m being pulled up back into sitting position.Nôvel(D)ra/ma.Org exclusive © material.

“You need a hot drink. Alpha, get her a hot drink,”

Stace demands, not even gracing Noah with a glance. Noah doesn’t move, staring at me and where the wound had once been. He’s clearly as dumbfounded as I am, wondering where this magic came from. I’ve already determined Stace is insane, just like Noah told me once. But I’m the one who knows nothing about him, unlike Noah, who apparently has been in contact with him before.

When Noah doesn’t move, Stace turns to look at him over his shoulder. “Go. What am I going to do to your mate alone that I haven’t already?”

There’s a touch of humour in his tone, which has my stomach turning over. I have an idea. Kill me.

Noah gives me one last look before he turns and walks out the door. I want to beg him to stay here, to help me against this crazy, magical man, but I can’t bring myself to do it. So Stace and I sit in this room, him still kneeling in front of me, wondering what his plans are for me next.

“Why? Noah told me I’m some kind of daemon or something, and you’re a King, but none of that makes sense. How have I not heard of that before?” I questions, my voice hoarse from my screams of pain.

“I’m a King from another realm. I use my powers to disguise my territory, where other daemons roam free. I’m the King there, I run everything. And soon you will join me there,” he tells me. Nothing about his tone, about the way he looks at me with that closed off gaze suggests he is lying, or that he is making fun of me. This might be true, I might be what he is telling me I am, and I might have to return with him to where he came from.

No.

I pull my legs up away from him. “No. You’re not going to take me away. I have mates here, I have a life. I’m mortal… or at least I was. I’ve loved such a normal life, why do this to me now?”

“Your true mate will follow you to my territory to live. It’s safe enough for you to now join and live freely from where immortals once killed daemons as they were a threat. Equally, if not more powerful. You’re mated to one of those immortals who participated in one of the worlds most gruesome culling of our people in history. He will do the same to you to ensure we never have enough power to return. You must not tell him a word, and break off the bond,” Stace tells me lowly.

The information strikes me clear in the chest. No, he’s lying. I have no reason to believe this man who killed me, and now claims the colour of my blood determines I’m another creature completely, isn’t lying. Even if Cian’s dramatic response to the idea of me being a daemon makes a lot of sense now.

Because he knows I’ll be killed by other immortals if anyone finds out.

“I need to get out of here. I need to get away. Let me live my life without a mate, without all this drama. I don’t need two mates, I don’t need this,” I say, my voice raising to the point of a strangled yelp. I try to stand, to push Stace away, but the moment I’m on my feet, my legs begin to tremble. Stace reaches out, grabbing my arms to keep me stable.

“Let me explain everything to you. Why you have two mates, what your powers are, why I waited to tell you. But you must sit down and be calm,” Stace says quietly, voice soothing, but not enough to still my nerves. I can’t trust anyone but myself. My life has been turned upside down and I want none of it.

I push past him, stumbling out of the room. Using door frames and the walls, I guide myself down the hallway on my weak legs, desperate to get out of here.

“You can’t run from this. You won’t leave your mates,” Stace says from behind me.

He doesn’t make an effort to chase me though, so I ignore him, begin my walk down the stairs. Noah is coming up, meeting me halfway, cup in hand no doubt filled with the hot liquid Stace demanded from him. He startles at the sight of me walking.

“Abella. You need to rest,” he says softly.

Reaching up, I grasp his face in both my hands, and pull him toward me. We kiss, for what doesn’t feel like the first time, but must be. The sparks are there, undeniably so, and feel better than anything that has touched my skin thus far. It doesn’t feel wrong, or that I’m betraying Cian. It feels good, the heady scent of him, the taste on his lips which are unbelievably soft.

I can feel his surprise, but he doesn’t pull away until I do. Wiping my lips, I give him one last longing look.

“You’re a good man Noah, and a good Alpha. But I can’t do this. I need time to think. I need to go,” I tell him. I don’t stick around to hear his surprise, or to listen to any reason that might convince me of my mistake. Energy has returned, and although my head spins, I’m down the stairs and out the door in a second, before Noah even has a chance to process what I’m telling him.

Once I’m outside, I’m already halfway down the path from his house, when I hear Noah’s shout from behind me.

“If you leave, I’ll find you. You’re not safe on your own and you will realise it. Your mark burning will only return as you run from Stace. He is your King. We will hunt you down until we find you…”

Maybe he says more, but I’m around the corner and out of airshot before he can finish his sentence. Just hearing those words make me ill in my stomach. Him and Stace are working together, which is only another reason for me to flee.

I have to take the chance for freedom. I need time to think. Even if it does cost me my life.