Claimed by the Alpha

Life, death, and other.

The song in this chapter is Pretender by Sarah Jaffe. Enjoy!

My name is Thea. Yes, I am a werewolf. No, I am not the daughter of an alpha or even the most hated, invisible member of a pack. In fact, I don't belong to a pack at all. For as long as I can remember I have roamed the woods, staying mostly in my wolf form. I don't know where I came from or who my family was, but it doesn't matter anymore. I have been alone for so long that I prefer my own company to that of others. Occasionally I have come across other rogues in the woods, but they are usually the same way as me, and we go our separate ways.

I absently flick the charms hanging from my bracelet, the one that has Thea inscribed into the back, the only peice of my old life that I carry. I know the charms by heart now. Wolf, moon, sun, and heart. I know that somehow they must connect to my family, and I've spent hours wondering at their meanings. I mean the wolf and moon are obvious, I'm a werewolf, but the other two are mysteries.

Raja paces beside me, his ears pricked forward and his nose to the ground. Raja is a wolf pup, not a werewolf but an actual wolf. I found him about two moon cycles ago, whining from his hiding spot under a fallen log. He was so small and fluffy, I mean who could resist? I had tried to track his mother, but she was long gone. He is still small, and still has most of his baby fur, peeking out in white tufts through his gray coat. He prefers when I am in my wolf form so that he can be rougher in play, and hes kind of a handful. When I am a human, his playful nips draw blood and curses.

Suddenly he stops, his form going rigid and the hair on his back sticking straight up. I was so busy being stuck in my own head that I hadn't noticed our new companions. I could smell them now, and hear their boots crunching across the forest floor. Anyone who approaches a shifted wolf in human form is an idiot, so why would they be so dumb? I glance at Raja, who has crawled under me, his lips pulled back and teeth bared, and realize something. They must not know that I am a were. They saw Raja and think that he is my pup. This could either be really good or really bad for us. I stand my ground, my teeth bared while Raja still hides beneath me. An ear piercing snarl rips from low in my belly as the three men step out from behind the trees. They are huge, each well above 6 feet and covered in muscle. I can tell by the smell of their blood that they are werewolves, and even worse, unmated males. If they find out that i am infact a werewolf, they will surely kill Raja and do who knows what to me. To keep it short, it won't be good.

The middle man steps forward, and I can tell from his posture that he is in charge. His arms flex as he takes another step towards me. He has blonde hair to his shoulders and tattoos cover his massive arms. I refuse to step back. There would be no point in running, Raja wouldn't be fast enough and neither would I if I had to carry him in my mouth. Our only chance is if I stand and fight. Against one of them, I know I can hold my own. Not to be cocky or anything, but Im not exactly a weak female wolf. I've taken care of myself all these years in the woods, and I've learned a few things.

Something flickers in blondie's eyes, and I realize that by not running I have sold myself out. Any normal wolf would have taken her pup and run.

"Well would you look at that boys," he says, a grin lighting up his face, "we've got ourselves a werewolf." I snarl again, letting them know what will happen if they attack, but blondie just laughs. "I love when they're feisty." The other two men stay back, apparently giving their leader all of the satisfaction of his catch. Yes! (cue mental fist pump) all alone I will ruin you. Suddenly he charges at me, shifting in mid air into a huge brown wolf. I push Raja out of the way with my body and he runs into the forest, just as Blondie's jaws clamp onto the scruff of my neck. His teeth are longer than i expected, meaning he is atleast a Beta or warrior of a pack, and my heart sinks. This may not be as easy as I thought. I twist out of his painful grip, and lunge for his jugular, but he is faster than me. He rears up on his hind legs and crashes down ontop of me, grabbing my scruff again and pushing me into the ground. I yelp as my leg gets pinned at a weird angle under my body and a sickening crack is heard. Blondie climbs ontop of me and growls menacingly. Oh hell no, this shit is not happening! I try to turn over but he shoves me down again. Oh shit, oh shit oh shit. I might actually die. Blondie yelps, startling me from my haze, and his weight is lifted off of me. I turn quickly, wincing at my definitely broken front leg, and panic. Raja has a hold of Blondie's back leg and dances out of the way as jaws snap in his face, never once letting go. Stupid dog, crazy stupid dog! Raja most definitely saved my life, for now. I run at Blondie and jump on his back, sinking my fangs into his neck.

Yah, how does that feel bitch?

Now I know that we will win, Blondie is bleeding fast from his neck wound and Raja still has his back leg, digging into the bone. All of the sudden, a human hand snakes out and grabs me by the neck, hauling me off of my kill. What the hell? Strong arms force me into a headlock, and all I can see is red as Blondie shifts into his human form and grabs Raja, slamming him into the ground while he yelps. I can't take them hurting him, all he did was try and help! My inner wolf roars to the surface as my eyes turn black. Once she is out, there is almost no turning back, but I have to protect Raja. With newfound strength, I twist out of my captors arms, ripping at his bicep, and lunge at Blondie. He didn't expect me to get loose and I catch him by the throat and pin him onto the ground. He is dead before he even has the chance to look surprised. My wolf hovers over her fresh kill, teeth bared and a feral snarl ripping from her throat. I can see red as we turn, looking into the faces of our attackers. Five men stand around us, and more lurk behind in the woods. The man who grabbed me is signaling the others to stay back, his head turned away from me.

"Stay back, shes lost control. Darren, Sam, help me grab her. Leave the pup, he's as good as dead."

"Yes, Alpha."

Arms come at me from all around and I try to fight them off, but all that I can think as my vision starts to darken is that I can't leave Raja, injured and defenseless he has no chance. Its too late, they have chains secured around my body and a muzzle around my snapping jaws. We look over to Raja, laying unmoving in the dirt and my wolf whimpers. Our pup. He is the last thing we see before blackness surrounds us.