Chapter Two – The Alphas' Discovery
The scent hit them first—soft but fading. It was wildflowers and rain, pain and desperation. Kaien Thorn came to an abrupt halt, nostrils flaring as his golden eyes scanned the soaked terrain. Kairo, only a step behind, did the same.
They didn't speak. They didn't need to.
Both twins were Alphas, dominant forces whose presence alone could bring lesser wolves to their knees. But now, they stood in stunned silence, caught by something they'd never expected.
The pull.
Kaien's jaw clenched. Kairo's heart stuttered. The bond hadn't just brushed against one of them—it had snapped taut between both of them.
A mate. Their mate.
Their wolves stirred, growling possessively, demanding they move. Without another word, they sprinted through the trees, eyes glowing as thunder rumbled overhead.
And then they saw her.
Collapsed in the mud like a broken doll, her hair plastered to her face, her skin as pale as moonlight. She wasn't moving—barely breathing.
"Fuck," Kaien muttered, dropping to his knees beside her.
Kairo crouched on her other side, his hands hovering, afraid to touch. "She's weak. Too weak. Whoever did this—"
"Will pay," Kaien snarled.
Selene stirred, just barely. Her cracked lips moved but no sound came out.
"Who are you?" Kairo whispered gently, brushing a strand of hair from her face. "What happened to you?"
She flinched at the touch, her body tensing even in unconsciousness.
Kaien's throat tightened. "She's scared. Look at her wrists." Bruises. Faint but unmistakable. Someone had grabbed her—restrained her.
And then they saw it—the mark.
It was faint, nearly faded, burned into her neck in the shape of a once-active bond. Rejection.
She had been rejected.
Kairo's jaw dropped. "She's… she was someone's mate. Recently."
Kaien let out a breath like a growl. "And now she's ours."
Kairo looked at him sharply. "This isn't normal. Mates don't get rebonded—let alone to twins."
Kaien's eyes glowed brighter. "She's not normal either."
There was power humming beneath her skin, even now. Something old. Something the Moon Goddess herself hadn't fully explained.
Kaien slipped his arms under her, lifting her as gently as if she were glass.
"She's coming with us."
---
Inside the Thorn Pack Territory
The Thorn twins ruled the Ironfang Territory, a fortress carved into the mountains—strong, untouchable. No one dared challenge them. But now they carried an unconscious girl into their halls like she was a precious treasure.
Pack members stared, whispering. No one had ever seen the Alphas bring someone in personally, let alone a woman—a mate.
But Kaien ignored them all. He carried Selene straight to the east wing, the private part of the house they never let others enter.
Kairo followed, silent but tense, his thoughts spinning.
Once they reached the room—lavish, warm, protected—Kaien laid her down on the bed. Rainwater dripped from her dress, soaking the sheets.
"She needs warmth. I'll get the healer," Kairo said.
Kaien stared down at her. "No. Not yet."
Kairo hesitated. "What if she doesn't make it?"
"She will," Kaien growled. "She's ours. She has to."
There was something haunting in those words. A rare vulnerability only a brother could understand.
So Kairo nodded, left the room, and returned minutes later with dry clothes and blankets.
As the storm raged outside, the Thorn twins sat in silence, one on either side of the bed, watching over the girl who had shattered every law of nature just by existing.
They didn't know her name.
They didn't know her story.
But they would.
And once she woke, they would never let her go.