Shadow of The Wolf Ch. 02

I'd like to thank Lunarosa for all of her help in story and editing. Your help is invaluable.

-BD

CHAPTER TWO

Rance was silently fuming as he slowly descended the main stairs leading directly to the vast entrance below. He'd been sequestered with the Council for the last hour, trying to reason his way out of their stubborn need to find his mate for him, but to no avail. He knew very well that some of them were pursuing this agenda because they were hoping that one of their female relatives would be chosen. As loathe as they might be to admit it, they were also ensuring there'd be no cause to question Rance's rights to reign as Alpha-Rex. Since the goddess had shown her favor for all monarchs from the very beginning of known Were history by gifting them their mate on the anniversary month of their two hundredth year, the Council in turn wanted to ensure it by making all the single bitches accessible to him. They expected to succeed and have his reign officially stamped by the Goddess by the divine recognition of his Alpha-Regina.

The party had been underway for a couple of hours now and his guests would be expecting him. He was not looking forward to it, but his duty demanded that he made an appearance to help further strengthen the tenuous alliance with the other shifter breeds.

He mentally braced himself for an interminable evening of walking through a quagmire of diplomacy and politics. The Werepeople had come a long way, considering that not even thirty years prior they were busy waging wars and killing each other in an instinctive need to dominate weaker breeds. It was only after they have decimated their number, they were in danger of eradicating some of the weaker breeds, that the different Councils and Alphas came together to work out a truce.

They still had their differences, and no one could totally suppress their beasts from showing their fangs and propensity for marking their territory, some skirmishes still happened, rarely, but still do, but so far they'd co-existed well after the truce and worked together for the advancement of the collective Weres. In actual fact, he even liked some of the alphas he had met, and called a couple of them friends.

As usual Damian, his Prime Beta, and the twins Luc and Troy Beauvais, two of his most trusted betas accompanied him. It was not, of course, that he really needed their protection. He wouldn't be Alpha if he couldn't take care of any threat to him and his. His betas were just overly cautious since there had been a spate of violent attacks on pack lands for the past several months that seemed to be escalating.

The party would be a prime target since different Were species and Alphas were in attendance. What was mystifying was that all of the attacks were committed under the cloak of night, with no witnesses, no telltale scent signature and no specific victim in mind.

As far as they could tell, the victims were randomly chosen. Human or Were, they were kidnapped from their beds, then their mutilated bodies were dumped on Pack lands. All were mauled and disemboweled, parts of the bodies were missing and some of the limbs were obviously gnawed on. All of the victims' necks were deeply slashed, almost decapitating them. None had any defensive wounds, and no foreign DNA was able to be scraped from their nails. The Weres kept the crimes from human authorities since they was obviously perpetrated by a Were. They would police their own.

What troubled Rance the most was that they just found out that Alphas of both the Panthers and Bears were having the same problem. So far, they'd found ten victims altogether: five on his territory, two on the Bears', and three on the Panthers'.

Rance amended his previous thinking and thought to himself, Maybe this party is fortuitous. Most of the Alphas are in attendance and they can deliberate on a plan of action to this problem that is plaguing them. Better to let them all comprehend the gravity of the situation if they don't take any aggressive action to apprehend and punish the Weres involved. Waiting for the perpetrators to kill again is tantamount to allowing them to spit on their faces. It's time to go hunting and make the villains pay for their crimes.

****

The tinkling of laughter, subdued conversation and light music reached his sensitive ears as he reached the bottom of the stairs. He had turned towards the main ballroom where most of the guest congregated, when he was arrested by the sweet smell of aroused female and sweet jasmine, with a dash of vanilla.

Rance stopped in his tracks as the most delicious of aromas wafted over him. The scent instantly sent him into a state of raging lust, as his body hardened and his cock elongated and thickened in his pants. His wolf growled to be let out as it clawed at him to claim the source of the enticing smell, threatening to send him to his knees.

The faint smell led directly to the great ballroom where the throng gathered. The French doors leading outside were thrown open to let in the slight breeze from the expansive garden where other guests wandered, and where the buffet spread was being served.

Rance's feral half was prowling agitatedly, as it urged his human half to find the source of the delicious aroma.

"She's ours! She's our mate. We must find and mate her!" the wolf demanded. "We cannot let her get away!"

Rance silently concurred with his wolf. There was no way that he was going to let this woman slip by him. Whether she was his mate was debatable, but the inevitability of her belonging to him for that night was not.

He weaved in and out of the crowd as he stalked the elusive female who had engaged his senses even ignoring guests, Alphas, and Council members who had tried to waylay him. His man may have resisted the qualification, but his wolf led him in a Mate Hunt and nothing would stop him from securing his prey.

His wolf, which was usually dormant, aggressively shoved at his skin, trying to come out to hunt for their mate. As a result, he partially shifted. His senses became sufficiently hyper-sensitive to continue to track the delicate smell of their mate, even in the throng of the crowd that pressed around him.

He tracked her from the ballroom to the gardens. Her scent meandered through the crowd back to the ballroom and into the hallway; it got stronger as he neared the grand entrance. Rance lengthened his strides to catch up to her, and slowed down before he reached her so as not to reveal his presence until he was ready.

"What's going on Rance?" Damian telepathically communicated as he approached his Alpha quietly, "why did you leave the party without even acknowledging the presence of the other Alphas?" Then Damian continued, bemusedly, "I thought you wanted to confer with them about the attacks on our pack and the other prides and clans?"

Rance growled and felt his eyes shift. The wolf in him didn't want anybody near his chosen mate. He clamped hard on his beast as he struggled to tamp down his instinct to defend his claim. He knew it would be dangerous for Damian to be near her right now. His human half knew that his beta was not going to take her away from him, but he also knew his wolf would just lash out on its perceived threat to its right to claim its mate.

The puzzled and alarmed look on Damian's face helped to calm him and bring his focus back.

"My Mate is here. Make sure that nobody gets in my way," Rance responded as he shook himself mentally.

The safety of those around him was of utmost concern, for once he went into mate-rut, he'd tear apart anybody who came near his mate, once he located her, damn it. His beast would not tolerate any challenge to his claim, and would mete out grisly death to any he thought would threaten it.

He caught a glimpse of her gazing at his portrait, and instantly had her imprinted into his mind, heart, and soul. "His Mate. His to take," both the man and the wolf chanted internally. All thoughts that she was only possibly his mate, that he could be satisfied with this night only, fled.

As she continued to look at his likeness, her smell changed and got stronger: more pungent, muskier than before. "She is getting aroused!" he thought incredibly. Most likely her body was getting ready for mating with him. She emanated strong spice and the unmistakable smell of female cream. His cock twitched at the thought of rubbing himself in her soaked slit. Whoever she was, she belonged to him, even if she IS human.

"Not just for tonight, but forever," the wolf growled, and Rance agreed.

Now he needed to steer her to his rooms so he could stake his claim and mark her with his essence. "Oh, and actually meet her," his human half, barely holding onto concepts of civility wryly prompted. He sent a mental probe to see if she was receptive to him and was pleasantly surprised to find that her mind was occupied with thoughts of him.

"Interesting," Rance thought to himself.

As he delved deeper, he sensed sadness and loss. He tried to listen into her thoughts and find out what was making her feel that way. He was startled at what he heard:

"There's no way that such a gorgeous man be interested in me, he's overwhelmingly masculine and handsome and rich to boot. It'll be like a reaching for a star, if I pin my hopes on ever meeting him and him taking an interest in me." There was just something that kept drawing her back to his emerald eyes. The vivid green that stared out of the painting bore such an uncanny resemblance with the wolf she had been dreaming of for the last six months. Could there be a connection between her dream wolf and this man?

He couldn't believe his mate was already giving up. How could she think herself unworthy of him? She was beautiful and voluptuously shaped. A little on the petite side, but that wouldn't count much when he got her horizontal. Besides, it would be fun to fuck her standing up with her shapely legs around his waist and his hands cupping her generous butt, with her glorious breasts jiggling deliciously against his chest. He'd drill deep until they were both sated and too tired to move.

"Now it's time to steer my mate to me."

Alex couldn't help but be impressed with the place. The man who owns this house must be extremely rich, she thought. The place was lavishly decorated and full of antiques and priceless works of art. The doors of the rooms leading from the hall were all wide open, revealing an understated elegance geared more toward comfort than to serve as an ostentatious showplace, as was more common to a mansion this size.

Even the manicured lawns and the ballroom where most of the guests congregated were tastefully styled and designed. There was nothing gaudy or pretentious about the place. It felt warm and welcoming, like a real lived-in home instead of just a place to flaunt one's affluence.

Alex had been wandering the mansion for some time now, hoping for a glimpse of the elusive man in the painting, who seemed so familiar, like something from a dream, after she left Pamela in the midst of her admirers. She traipsed from one room to another, trying to get a feel of the owner's character through his home.

It wasn't a surprise to find herself back in front of the portrait. It seemed to beckon her to come and discover secrets that only it could reveal. The power of those eyes to entrance her and keep her captive was undiminished. It was like a craving was born inside her that could not be eased unless she stood in front of it and allowed it to immerse her in its carnal power to arouse and titillate her senses. She felt bewitched and hesitant to leave.

Once more her sex clamored for attention, and pulsed with unending demand for appeasement. Her pussy wept weeps copious fluid, saturating the flimsy thong Alex was wearing. Her breasts grew heavy and her nipples and clit throbbed in tandem with her heartbeat.

It was a heady experience, but also scary as hell. She'd never felt anything strongly enough to give up her virginity, let alone this barrage on her senses. It was like her body was possessed and there was nothing she could do to take control of it, but had to go along for the ride. The more she stared at those eyes, the more aroused she became.

As she stood staring intently at the portrait, a feeling of being observed overcame her. Suddenly, she felt herself compelled to take a step back, and slowly climb the main staircase just off the side the entrance hall.

She was in a dreamlike state, like someone else was guiding her and in control of her body, yet very much aware that she was under the influence of someone or something not herself. She did not encounter anyone on her trek upstairs. She passed several closed doors and turned into another hallway. Alex was slowly approaching the room with the double doors when the feeling shrouding her dissipated. She knew right away that her next choices were her own.

She heard footsteps rapidly approaching and panicked knowing she was not supposed to be there. There was no place for her to hide except behind those closed doors in front of her. "They'll figure out that I have crashed this party and have no legitimate reason to be upstairs except for some nefarious business," Alex thought to herself in a panic. She grabbed the doorknob and didn't think twice about entering the room.

Rance was so hard and couldn't wait to get to his mate. What he did compelling her to his room, was pretty devious, but was for both their benefit anyway. It was best to conclude the hunt and get to the serious business of mating her and sating both of them.

He had never had a mate before, obviously, as each Were was gifted with only one true mate in his or her long life; but he was still surprised that she was very receptive to his power to control her mind and body. It would be, he thought, very handy especially when he needed his mate safe. He knew that he'd have to own up to what he did later on, for her but also for him, as his Alpha-Regina needed to be a partner and not a puppet to be controlled, but he was not worried it was going to be a big deal since the Goddess had destined them to be mated. "My mate will understand in the long run that I had to do anything and everything to assure our fate," thought Rance.

As he watched she walked and climbed the stairs, he warned his guards to vacate the upper floors and let his mate walk freely through. Once he sensed that she was almost to his bedroom door, he slowly released her from his power. He felt her panicked response to her predicament, and hurried to catch up to her. Just as he turned towards his suite, he saw her enter the door.

He grinned, "Checkmate!"

Alex hastily entered the room, closed the door and leaned on it, pulse pounding from the near miss. She tried to listen if the person she heard outside has followed her, but her heart still beat so frantically after her flight to get away, that she couldn't hear anything else.

Looking around the room, she realized that she had blundered into someone's bedroom. By the looks of it, the occupant was definitely male. The double doors she entered led to a sitting room boasting a huge fireplace and a cluster of well-appointed and comfortable looking chairs. A chaise sat by the French doors that obviously opened onto the balcony. An open door to her left revealed a spacious bedroom. From what she could see, an enormous mahogany bed dominated the room, with a headboard featuring elaborate carvings of wolves cavorting in the woods. On one side of the bed was a matching armoire, tall dresser and a standing mirror. The wood shone with a rich patina from the subdued lighting from the room's vaulted ceiling. The design and décor are crisp and masculine.

"Wow," she thought, "even the bedrooms here are very impressive."

She couldn't stay there for long though. Turning and putting her ear to the door, she listened for telltale footsteps, but heard nothing. Thinking that it was safe enough to go back to the party, she grabbed the doorknob, but stumbled back as the door was pushed in from the outside. Busted! She closed her eyes and hoped that this was all just a bad dream.

"Well, well, well what have we here?"

"Oh my God! I'm in serious trouble for being in a place off-limits even to guests. I need to come up with a reasonable excuse for being in this room," Alex's inner voice panicked.

Alex slowly blinked her eyes open. She stared, dumbfounded. It couldn't be! Fate was playing a cruel joke on her. The man standing commandingly in front of her was none other than the man in the painting. All the air in her lungs whooshed out and she dragged in a deep breath to compensate for the dark spots that were starting to dot her vision. "I so do not want to faint at his feet. Please, please don't let me faint, God!"

He stepped through the door and closed it behind him. The click of the lock barely penetrated her stupor the minute she saw who was at the door. He turned to her and gave her a scorching look that made her swallow hard.

The minute her eyes connected with his, an intense sexual jolt went through her system that traveled from the top of her head straight to her core. His piercing emerald eyes smoldered, and his nostrils flared as if inhaling something luscious. His delectable lips formed a satisfied smile as he examined her from head to toe. The unmistakable bulge between his thighs seems to get bigger and strained the material of his pants. The minute he zoomed his penetrating eyes back to her gray ones she knew his intentions. There was no mistaking his aggressive stance and lascivious look. This man would fuck her tonight.

Alex tried to step back, but the most delicious smell wrapped around her. A sensual haze enclosed her and embarrassingly, her vaginal walls drenched with copious amount of juice and seized hard, ready to be penetrated by the long hard cock prominently ridging his pants. Confused at the betrayal of her body, all she could do was stand still and clench her thighs to mitigate the sensations consuming her.

"This is getting ridiculous! I've spent my whole adult life not feeling any sexual attraction for anyone I date. And yet here is a stranger in front of me, and my body goes gaga over him. This is so embarrassing! I need to get out of here and save myself from total humiliation."

Finally, Rance's hunt was at an end. She's my mate. Mine to take. Now all he needed to do was mount her and mark her as his. No one would dare dispute his claim on her once he fucked her and planted his seed deep in her womb. He wanted to wallow in her desire and saturate his pores with her essence. He wanted to see her take his cock into her body and be indelibly marked by him. He alone would bring her endless pleasure, and no one else. The primal part of him wanted to pounce and just hammer into her until they were both sated and she grew round with his pups.

Nostrils flaring, he scented her readiness for him. Her lushness and the strong, piquant aroma of lust emanating from her made his cock jump and elongate more. The engorged tip already oozed precum, pushing at the waistband of his pants.

He could smell her innocence underlying the strong perfume of the dripping arousal that coated her pussy. Both man and beast wanted to roar with satisfaction that they would be her first and only lover. He'd fuck her so hard and often, until both of them dropped from exhaustion tonight, but the first time would be tender and special. He'd try to go slow even if it killed him. He wanted her to crave and hunger for his sex alone.