Heartless Angels

Chapter 1 – Oakley

Chapter 1 – Oakley

No. Not him. Anyone but him. Goddess why would you fate me to someone as cruel as he is?

But it’s true. There’s no one else that the intoxicating scent of cedar and moss calling out to me and my wolf could be coming from. Levi Silver. The reason that everyone is gathering here at the pack house of the Silver Moon pack. In two days’ time, he will take the mantle of Alpha from his father. All wolves of the pack were required to travel here to witness his Inauguration and swear fealty to him.

And he is my mate.

F uck! What am I gonna do? I can’t reject him. My wolf isn’t strong enough. She wouldn’t survive. But he’s not going to accept me. I already know that. For one, a luna has to be strong, able to fight by her alpha’s side in order to protect the pack. And like I’ve said, my wolf isn’t strong enough. I mean, I’ve only been able to shift once since my wolf manifested when I turned

16

Werewolves gain their wolf and their ability to shift when they turn 16. But the strength of their wolf, the inherent power.

that they have inside of them is what determines their ability to freely shift. Most wolves are able to at least shift on the night of

the full moon. Those of higher rank, like beta, delta, ga mma, or alpha are able to shift at will as many times as they want, as are

pack warriors.

And then there are wolves like me. We are seen as lesser than in the pack, barely better than humans. We don’t shift often.

maybe a handful of times in our lifetime. There is no rhyme or reason to our shifting. It may happen in times of high emotion or

just out of the blue. And then we are trapped in that form until our bodies randomly shift again. We are more liabilities to the pack than help because we can’t go around humans. We never know when our bodies will just change without our permission.

The second reason that Levi will automatically reject me is that he has already told the pack that he will not mate his fated mate unless she is of alpha or beta blood. if he ever does find his mate and she does not meet that one criteria, he will reject

her and marry for political gain

Levi is a stuck-up, power hungry, narcissistic as s hole and I don’t even like him as just a regular wolf, let alone as my mate. He is a strong fighter, a good negotiator, and a fierce leader, making him a good alpha, but his personality needs some work.

I’m lucky that he’s been away at alpha training for the past several months since my 18th birthday, which is when we werewolves first have the ability to find our mate. That and the fact that my wolf is so weak, my scent isn’t that strong. He hasn’t scented me yet. But can I keep it that way for the next two days?

Seems like I won’t be able to, as I see my twin brothers, James and Jack walk up and greet the alpha-to-be with high-fives and bro hugs. S hit, I had forgotten that they were friends in high school. He’s going to smell me all over them. We rode in the car for four hours together today from the outskirts of the territory where we live.

Father is a warrior wolf, one of the generals in charge of the security of a portion of the pack. We live with him, my brothers in training to become warriors now. They will soon take the warrior test to become guards of the territory. Both hope to work up the ranks to become generals like our father. All three of their wolves are strong, dominant, and present even in their human forms. The fact that my wolf is so weak that she can barely be scented at all with them in the room with me is a great embarrassment to them. Though I know that my family loves me and are proud of my accomplishments in school, they tend to

distance themselves from me in public.

It’s a wolf’s instinct to gravitate toward power and to shun the weak. I try not to take it personally, but it hurts just the same.

2/5

Chapter 1 – Oakley

As I see my brothers greet the alpha-to-be, I try to slink further back in the crowd at the picnic behind the pack house. Maybe I can get to our accommodations in one of the guest cabins. I’ll tell my brother’s that I don’t feel well. They’ll believe it. A weak wolf means a more human-like immune system, so I’m subject to common colds, headaches, and stomachaches that typical wolves don’t have to deal with. My stamina isn’t as good as theirs is, either, so I can also claim just to be tired from the journey.

begin to think that I’m home free, when I see Levi pull Jack closer to him, smelling his shirt. S hit! Jack had been carrying my bags, so he definitely smells more like me than James does. Now Levi has smelled me. With my scent in his nose, he’ll be able to track me, no matter how faint my smell is. Maybe if I get to the river I saw by the cabins, I can get him off my trail. At least long enough for me to think of a plan. It’s not a long term solution, but it’ll have to do until I can figure out something better.

I turn and begin to run through the picnic area and down the wooded path towards the cabins and the river. Luckily, I didn’t know anyone that had been around me at the time and hadn’t spoken to anyone, so when Levi howled and called out mate, likely looking in the direction I was running, no one saw or tried to stop me.

I’m running as hard and as fast as I can, which I know isn’t going to help my scent. The more adrenaline and sweat that comes out of my pores, the stronger my scent will be. I’ve got to make it to the river, swim as far away as I can so that he doesn’t know who I am. He’ll likely interrogate James and Jack, but I can’t worry about that right now. I’ve got to get away

I hear the thunder of paws on the ground, knowing that he’s starting to catch up. I try to put on an even bigger burst of speed, but it’s no use. I just glimpse the river shining in the waning summer sunlight when I’m tackled to the ground, a large black wolf landing on my back and pushing me face down into the earth.

I guess I should have known better than to think that Levi Silver would soften the blow for me just because I’m his mate. I manage to get my hands under me before I hit the ground and they and my knees take the brunt of the fall, leaving them scraped and bleeding. I know that Пll also be left with bruises on my back as souvenirs from my first encounter with my mate.

Still on my back, Levi’s wolf leans down and growls in my ear, the sound menacing. I feel the shiver of fear that runs through my b*dy, though I try to stifle it. Not just because the fear will thrill him, but also because I can’t stand to let him know how scared I am. I might have a weak wolf, but that doesn’t mean that I’m a doormat that any alpha-hole can just walk all over

While I’m trying to calm my fear, covering it with the anger that this male would treat his mate this way, I hear the cracking of bones and feel the distribution of weight on my back change. I know that he’s shifted back to his human form, which fills me with envy that he can do it so easily and anxiety because now he’s laying on top of me n*ked.

Those feelings are quickly overwhelmed by anger when he begins to speak. “You’re my mate?” he scoffs, his voice full of Indignation and disgust. “You barely have a scent. Have you even been able to shift with how weak you are?” He moves to stand, digging into my shoulder as he uses me for leverage to get up.

I stifle the grunt of pain from bearing his weight on that one small part of my b*dy, not wanting to let him know that he’s hurt me. No, instead I pull my legs under me and quickly jump to my feet, turning to face him and getting into a ready stance in case he comes at me. I might not have the strength of a werewolf, but a good fighter knows that leverage is just as important as strength in a fight. And my father trained me hard to make sure that I know how to defend myself against opportunistic wolves that think they can overpower someone like me. I just never thought I’d have to use these skills against my mate.

Levi sees my reaction and laughs im my face. “At least you’re feisty. That’s points in your favor.”

I keep my eyes on his core. That’s where I’ll notice if he’s making a move towards me. Plus, looking into an alpha’s eyes is a challenge to his authority. And I definitely wasn’t looking down until he got some clothes on.

Yet, even though I’m not looking at his eyes, I still feel them running up and down my b*dy. “Not bad, either. I’d give you a 7

3/5

Chapter 1 Oakley

out of 10. I’ve f ucked worse.”

That statement from my mate feels like a punch right to my gut. Tears spring to my eyes, but I keep my gaze directed at his core, refusing to let my guard down.

He takes a step toward me, raising his hand towards my face. I immediately shuffle back two steps, swiping my arm in front of my face to block his hand. My gaze moves up a bit to his chest, which is where I noticed his first movement last time. Assess, react, assess again. That’s what my dad would always tell me when teaching me how to fight an unknown opponent. Watch how they move, react to the movements appropriately, and observe them again so you know how to react next time.

Levi chuckles again, seeming to find my attempt at self-defense amusing. I won’t hurt you, pup. What’s your name?”

I hadn’t wanted to speak to him. In all honesty, I had been sincerely hoping that I could have sl*pped away unnoticed until! could get some scent neutralizer. Then he would never have known that he was my mate, the bond wouldn’t have formed, and we could have gone on about our merry little lives. Too late for that now. I could already feel his wolf calling to my own. And

even though my wolf can barely respond to me, she gives a feeble call to her mate, letting him know that she’s there. I can already feel the bond forming between us, making me want to move closer to him. It’s why he’d tried to touch me a minute ago.

flot.

But, he’s an alpha. I can’t not answer him. Not unless I want severe punishment. “Oakley Moon.” I reply, my voice stilted and

His b*dy stiffens a bit and I know that he’s startled by what I just said. “Oakley Moon? You mean Jack and James’ little

sister?”

“Yes, Alpha,” I say in the same tone as before.

“Well, sh it. That makes things a bit more complicated” One of his hands comes up and I stiffen, ready to react as needed.

But he doesn’t even notice. He’s lifting his hand to scratch his chin. He turns around and paces a few steps away from me

before turning around and pacing those same steps back. After a few rounds of this, he shrugs his shoulders. “Well, there’s no

help for it. I’m already engaged to the alpha’s daughter from the Red Tree Pack. We’re planning on announcing it at my alpha

ceremony.

A pang

this news.

fills my chest at his words and I have to bite my l*p to stifle the groan of pain that wants to flow out of my mouth at

Again he doesn’t notice, just keeps talking. “I can’t break that engagement. It’s too important to the pack. Plus, she’s a

good lay and hot as hell.”

ing if I’ll react. I try not to, but he must see me bite my

Again the pang in my chest. I can feel his eyes on me this time, seeing l*p and the tears that shine in my eyes, though I refuse to allow them to fall

I can hear the smile in his voice as he says, “Don’t worry, pup. I’ll keep you around. My wolf, the stu pid m ongrel, is already attached to you. He wouldn’t rest unless you were by our side. I’ll continue with the engagement with Brittany and keep you

around for breeding purposes. The strongest pups always come from a true mated pair, no matter how weak one of them is. Who knows? You live through giving me a male pup and a contingency kid and I might just let you go on your merry way.”

And that’s it. That’s the final straw. I’m no longer worried about the pain that his words and attitude towards me provides. No, now anger courses through my veins and makes my vision red. Who the f uck does he think he is? Not anyone I will be tied to, that’s for sure. I don’t care that he is my mate, the Goddess made a mistake. And I refuse to stick around and allow him to

treat me like this for even one more second.

I know that this could kill my wolf, but she isn’t really that present in my life in the first place. I’ve been living as if I were

human all of my life. Now, I’ll truly be one.

4/5

Chapter 1 – Oakley

I straighten to my full 5’4″, putting my hands down and looking him straight in the eyes for the first time. I seem to have caught him by surprise, because he gasps as he meets my gaze.

“No, Alpha. I refuse to live half a life just to give one selfish pr ick what he wants. I, Oakley Cadence Moon, reject you, Levi Silver, as my mate now and forever. I beg the Goddess to break our bond and sever any link between us.”

I fall to my knees, this time not able to catch myself. My wolf howls in pain in my chest and I feel the literal breaking of the short-lived bond that had forged between us. The pain is excruciating and it’s the only reason that I’m unable to react as Levi

comes towards me.

“You stu pid b itch! You reject me?! You think that I’ll just go away because you don’t want to be the breeding stock that is the only thing you’re good for?” As he screams, Levi begins raining down blows on my head and b*dy. “I refuse your rejection!

Do you hear me, cu nt? I will never let you go! You are mine!”

That’s the last thing I hear as one of his wild punches catches me in the temple and the world around me goes black.

5/5