MATED TO THE SECRET ALPHA
Chapter 174: Who Are You?

Chapter 174: Who Are You?

’Mate.’

Reana stiffened and her head snapped to the side, but nothing was there. No one. She spun around, searching for the source, heart thundering in her chest.

The scent drifted over from everywhere and curled around her.

’Go! Our second-chance mate is waiting in the southern wing!’

Her wolf’s voice echoed again with excitement. It was more insistent this time, clawing at her mind with primal need. Her feet moved before she could think, dragging her back down the hallway, past her chambers, and into the southern wing.

This used to be where her family lived. This southern wing held the pack’s temple, archive, and everything ancient. No one came here, unless she gave the order.

The scent grew stronger here. Musky, wild, with a faint undertone of something strange. Something wicked.

Her wolf whimpered in anticipation. "Go, Reana!" the wolf was pacing in her mind, as if it wanted to charge forward without hesitation.

Reana’s breath caught, her instincts clawing at her to run, to find him, to claim him. But there was a voice, a quiet whisper in the back of her mind, urging her to be cautious.

She wasn’t sure why it unsettled her so much. She should have been elated. Her mate, the one thing every wolf craved, the one thing she had been taught to cherish and seek out. But this... this felt different.

The ancient stone walls of the southern wing seemed to close in around her as she moved deeper, her steps quickening despite her attempts to stay calm.

’Not yet, Reana,’ her wolf insisted, its voice a low growl now. ’Not until we find him. Not until we see him for ourselves.’

And yet, the scent... it was unmistakable. Like fire and earth, sharp and intoxicating, a rich, primal aroma that drew her in, made her chest ache. Something in her felt as if it had been waiting for this moment all her life.

Reana once had a destined mate, Hale, but she didn’t feel this high level of excitement.

She stopped abruptly at the entrance to the temple. A massive wooden door stood before her, its carvings dark and intricate, depicting wolves and ancient rituals. The scent was overwhelming now, coming from behind the doors. It curled around her throat and flooded her senses. Her hands shook as she reached for the door, her wolf urging her forward.

But the voice... the voice inside her head was now tinged with hesitation. This wasn’t right.

Before she could act on her uncertainty, a shadow flashed before her, his hand circled her wrist, yanking her into his embrace.

A gasp tore from Reana’s lips as her back collided with a firm chest, heat radiating through his cloak, seeping through her fur like wildfire. Her breath hitched. Every instinct screamed at her to fight, to flee, to shift, but she couldn’t. The moment his skin touched hers, her wolf purred.

Her knees buckled slightly, a soft whimper escaping as her senses drowned in him. His grip was possessive but not cruel, strong but not painful.

"My mate," a deep voice rasped against the shell of her ear, sending a violent shiver down her spine.

It wasn’t familiar.

And yet... it was.

Her wolf howled in recognition, in rapture. Mate. Ours. Finally, ours.

But Reana’s heart pounded with more than desire. It pounded with dread.

She twisted in his grip to face him...and froze.

He wasn’t like overbearing Ryder, or soft Hale.

He had no peaceful aura, no warm affection. No, this man... this creature had dark blue eyes, like Ryder’s. They were rimmed with red. Feral. Ancient. Dangerous.

His scent... it was intoxicating, yes, but laced with something dark. Something wrong. The black mask covering his face, under his dark hoodie only made Reana shiver with dread.

She stepped back from him, her eyes cold and daeadly. "Who are you? Why are you here?"

He tilted his head, studying her like she was prey. "But you called me. Or was it your wolf who begged the loudest?"

Reana swallowed hard. Her wolf was silent now, wide-eyed within her, equally stunned. Or enthralled.

"You’re not part of this pack," she said, voice steadier this time, trying to draw on the authority she carried as Luna.

"No," he agreed. "But I belong to you." His eyes flared, and Reana’s chest tightened as a searing heat bloomed where their skin touched. The mate bond was alive now. It was hungry for his touch.

But just as he stepped forward, hand outstretched, Reana jumped away from him. "Don’t come near me."

The stranger didn’t flinch at her warning. He simply stared.

Behind the mask, his eyes burned but not like Ryder’s. These held something older. Hungrier. Reana could feel it in her bones, in the way her breath shortened, her limbs prickled with anticipation, like prey moments before the strike.

Just as he was about to take a step forward, an animalistic growl tore through Reana’s throat. "I said don’t come near me!"

He didn’t listen. He wasn’t frightened by her. He could see her hands trembling by her side. His eyes flashed as he stepped forward anyway.

Reana took another step back and froze as her spine hit the ancient stone wall of the temple. The coldness seeped into her, and for a second, she was glad for it. It dulled the heat crawling through her veins.

He stopped just short of touching her. Close enough that the wildness of his scent drowned her again. It was tantalizingly dangerous.

"Your voice says no," he murmured, tilting his head, "but your soul... your wolf... she screamed yes."

"My wolf doesn’t speak for me." Reana narrowed her eyes.

His fingers twitched at his sides. "Are you sure, Luna Reana?"

Her breath caught in her throat. He knew her!

"Who are you?"

He leaned in, not touching, but she could feel him. The air between them crackled like it was alive, charged with something neither magic nor mortal. His voice was low now, almost reverent.

"I’ve walked this earth longer than your bloodline. I’ve waited, buried in the dirt of forgotten wars and sacred ground. Do you know what it means when a mate bond snaps back into place after death?"