The Villain Alpha's Cursed Mate

After rounding up everyone in the fortress, Esme stood motionless beside her brown horse outside the fortress’s gate. Her mind was still reeling from the surreal encounter in the building — the haunting memory of his surprisingly cool, soft lips on hers, the feel of his fangs piercing her bottom lip — it sent shivers down her spine. Her heart, already heavy with fear and uncertainty, now felt like a burden she couldn’t shake.

She, the daughter of an Alpha warrior, had been kissed by a demon. The thought of it echoed through her mind like a haunting refrain, leaving her feeling vulnerable and strangely... altered. She couldn’t guess the one that disturbed her most; the fact that he kissed her, or the fact that he didn’t kill her, despite hitting his back with a wooden plank.

"Esmeray," Lennox’s concerned voice pierced through her foggy haze, and she jumped as he gently grasped her shoulder. His eyes scoured her body, searching for any signs of harm, and then he enveloped her in an unanticipated, yet tight embrace.

He exhaled a sigh of pure relief, happy to have found her unharmed. However, Esme’s body tensed in his arms, and when he drew back, he cradled her cheek, his gaze probing her face for answers.

"Are you alright?" he asked, his golden eyes flashing with a hint of remorse. "For a moment I was so blinded by my own rage, so focused on capturing him that I fell right into the ditch. I didn’t think he’d come up with a plan until it was too late. In the end, I’m just glad you’re safe," he breathed out, but Esme was still struggling to recover from her own terrifying ordeal.

"You look pale, you must be stressed–"

"No," Esme shook her head, dispelling his worries with a gentle smile. "I’m... I’m fine, really. Just a bit shaken, but I’m not hurt at all. Unfortunately, he escaped again, didn’t he?" Esme tried to shift his focus from her paranoid state, bringing up a matter she deemed was more important to him, and it worked. When he nodded, his expression was heavy with disappointment, having failed to catch the demon he came all the way to apprehend, and he seethed.

Esme suddenly placed a comforting hand on his stiff shoulder. "You don’t have to be so hard on yourself, Your Majesty. After all, you did the best you could." Her soothing words seemed to ease the tension in his face, and she continued," To be honest, I was taken aback by something entirely different today. I had no idea you were a lycan." she admitted her bewilderment. "Seeing you transform like that, in the presence of everyone, surprised me."

Lennox’s expression turned puzzled. "You didn’t know?" he tilted his head, surprised by her ignorance of his form. "You see, as a member of the royal family, I’m a Lycan. My father was one, and my mother was an omega wolf. After it was prophesied that I would grow up to be the strongest lycan to ever exist in Illyria, my father wanted me to take his place on the throne. He was proud of me — proud to know that I didn’t grow up to have a regular wolf, but then... that happiness I gained from being part of the family was snatched away from me."

A flicker of sadness danced in Lennox’s eyes, but it switched to determination. "I want to catch that monster regardless of what it takes, Esme. I’m also doing this to avenge my father’s death. If I fail to catch that demon, many lives will be at stake. I don’t want to imagine the crisis his sudden awakening might bring." his gaze flicked to Esme, and a hint of protectiveness glinted in their depths. "Stay out of anything that concerns that monster. Let me handle him. Focus on keeping yourself safe first, okay?"

Esme nodded solemnly, making him relax at her understanding, and he walked away. After departing from her side to join his warriors who were waiting on him, Esme’s expression swiftly transformed into one of disgust, and she covered her face with her hands, horror dawning on her as she came to the realization that she had let a demon — one who only brought destruction — to kiss her, only to get away it.

Why didn’t she do anything to stop it? Why did she blindly fall victim to her fears only to let him have his way with her? The fact that it was a demon, a being notorious for evil, and a son to the one her father killed only fueled her growing anger. The more she thought about it, the more indignation she felt towards the demon who dared to manipulate her so effortlessly. As if that wasn’t enough trouble, her mind was busy conjuring images that wanted to make her believe that he was the one who came into her room last night.

’Breathe...Esme’ she consoled herself. She felt she was at the brink of losing her senses completely.

Giving herself a mental shake, Esme’s gaze noticed Leonardo approaching with his brown horse. A small bandage covered the wound on his forehead, partially hiding in the shadows of his dark hair. She didn’t hesitate to ask as he drew closer, "how’s your head feeling now?"

He hummed in response. "Still painful. He knocked me out without hesitation, but what happened after I lost consciousness? To be honest, I was a bit worried about you back there and although I’m relieved, I find it strange that there are no marks on you." He tilted his head, "Isn’t it unlikely for someone who is wolf-less to step out with no injury, or are demons like Sir Donovan inherently biased towards certain people?"

"I see you can still talk, that means you’re getting better already." Esme turned away from him, mounting her horse as she did so. Leonardo followed suit, casting a lazy glance at the warriors preparing to depart. He couldn’t resist asking, his gaze flicking back to Esme.

"Why did you do that?" his voice was low, tinged with a hint of puzzlement. "I mean back there. I wanted to confront him, that was my choice, but you stepped in. If he had killed me for my own choice, I would have no regrets, but you put yourself in harm’s way. Forgive me, Lady Esme, but your actions were rather reckless to me. You could have been hurt, and I don’t think I’m ready to handle another regret of someone giving up their lives because of me." To Esme’s surprise, his gaze faltered, and she was taken aback by the unexpected display of emotion.

"Someone has died for you?" she blinked in bewilderment, earning her a side glance from him.

"You ignored everything I said but that. Promise me you won’t try something like that again." He looked at her, expecting a positive response, but Esme cleared her throat and avoided his gaze, fixing her attention ahead.

"No," she said flatly. "Just because we’re not close doesn’t mean I’ll fold my hands and watch you die when I know there was something I could have done to stop it. If you don’t want me to step in, then try not to get into trouble. It’s like the king’s words to me were meant for you too." With that, she spurred her horse forward.

Leonardo’s eyes widened in surprise as he watched her go, and his gaze dropped to his hands which held onto the horse’s rein, a mutter escaping his lips.

"I don’t... deserve protection from anyone." And he followed. freewёbn૦νeɭ.com

"Don’t you think it’s odd?" He asked after catching up to Esme, his horse falling into step beside hers. "Some warriors were injured, but none as severe as Alpha Dahmer." He looked ahead. "His attack on Alpha Dahmer seemed personal to me. I heard from the healer that he’s broken a rib. It’ll take at least a month for him to fully be up on his feet—"

"Good." Came Esme’s immediate and vehement response. Leonardo’s silence was a palpable reply, but Esme didn’t care. "If it’s Dahmer, I couldn’t care less about what happens to someone like him. If possible, he should be stuck in bed for good. Then he’ll understand the agony he’s put me through all those times he’s left me helpless. It’s his turn to suffer."

As Esme and Leonardo rode along with the warriors, they approached a dense forest. The tree’s canopy shielded them from the sunlight, and it relieved Esme to know they would be nearing town soon. Suddenly, Esme’s horse stopped abruptly, refusing to move forward with the rest of the group.

"Huh?" Confused, Esme tried to get her horse to move. "What happened, are you tired, boy?" she soothed the horse, hoping it would move after it had calmed down, but to her dismay, none of that happened. Leonardo was the first to notice Esme hanging behind, and he alerted the rest of the warriors to slow their pace.

"Is there a problem?" Leonardo asked, but Esme wasn’t sure how to explain, because she herself was clueless in regards to what was happening.

"I don’t know, he stopped moving." Her gaze dropped to her horse who kept stomping on the earth with its hooves, but it refused to move forward.

Esme glanced around, wondering what was keeping her horse at bay, and her gaze fell on a black raven perched on a nearby branch.

The bird was staring directly at her with such harsh intensity, she shivered from it. All of a sudden, the raven took flight, dropping a single black feather that floated straight into Esme’s open palm. As the feather touched her palm, a chilling wind blew through the forest, so much so that it frightened some horses.

Panic rose, and the sounds of horses neighing echoed through the forest.

"A wind??" The warriors at front were taken aback, and they immediately tried to calm their horses. The wind itself carried an extremely faint whisper only Esme could perceive, and a sudden feeling of dread settled in her heart when the wind finally seized.