Game of Thrones (Amica and Deckard) novel Chapter 2

2

Deckard Blackthorn.

"The woman who carries the pure Wildthorn blood shall be your fated mate, Alpha Deckard. She alone will bear your seed. Her body will vessel your powerful heirs. None but she can endure your fire, and through her, your lineage will reign unchallenged, continuing the flame of your dynasty."

I was only seventeen when I became Alpha, a young age to take on a burden so heavy, but I carried it without complaint. According to the ways of the moon, my wolf, Canine, was supposed to choose my mate during the first mating season. He didn't. Not a single female in the pack stirred his interest, not even a flicker. Their scents? All useless. Forgettable.

As always, I did not care. Why would I? I am not in a rush. My rule is strong, my dominance unquestioned. I wield fear like a blade; no one can ever challenge that. This pack and every other pack in the city has bowed to me without needing a Luna by my side. Ten years passed, and it was still the same—Canine didn't so much as twitch for a single female. The silence from him was deafening.

The elders became restless and their incessant talks of tradition, of balance, of the need for a Luna began in full force.

But what I do need and cannot deny, are heirs. My pack needed my blood in their veins to survive beyond me. And so, when the elders finally brought the seers before me and relayed the prophecy, I listened. They spoke of a woman born of the Wildthorn lineage, of a mate who could take my fiery seed and bear the pups I needed to continue my legacy. That is all that mattered.

So, I spread the word: “every Wildthorn wolf or offspring of Wildthorns was to be brought before me.” Each one paraded before my eyes, each scent inspected by Canine, but nothing. Not even a spark of recognition. More than a hundred women, and none was the one. None had the power, the essence a Luna of Bloodbane must carry.

Until her.

She is ethereal—that was my first impression. And then, I saw her face, only to falter for breath. A perfect pale oval with brown eyes, an elegant nose, and rosebud mouth. For the first time, the Wildthorn that has been brought before me is a renaissance art in the flesh. In that span of a second, I take note of the black kohl and sheets of ice in her eyes.

She is furious—perhaps sorrowful. It shows. I have never seen hair that flows in this manner of waves, black as raven feathers. Heavens. I am a throne of pride yet; I can vouch that her beauty doesn’t need to speak to command attention. Every inch of her face, every lash, every contour, is a work of art that betrays nothing but the calm before a storm.

My wolf and heart betray me with an unwelcomed thud. She cannot possibly be my mate? Canine is just doing this because he wants some action. I clench my fists at the absurdity of it. I am Alpha. I do not bend for beauty.

Yet, what I first thought was mere beauty reveals itself as something far more dangerous—a woman who dares to raise a blade to me. My gammas? They themselves tremble at the idea of sharing a gym with me during training. But her? There’s a fire in her eyes that I could easily extinguish if I chose to. However, her temperament means little to me. My mate will never be a woman who has been touched by another man. Divorced or not, I refuse to accept what has already belonged to someone else.

My pride would never let me claim a woman who’s been claimed before. But worse, one that cheated on her former bond. The very idea grates against every inch of my being. But the moment I sank my teeth into her neck—everything shifted.

My blood roars, my eyes turn gold, and my heart pounds as if I were ablaze. I don’t know if anyone saw, but my fingers tremble as I release her. Canine rises within me, and he’s the one to speak the word I cannot deny: "Mate."

There is an audible gasp in the room. From the looks of it, the elders cannot believe that today’s submission would prove to be the woman who can vessel my seed. A fiery blush heats her cheeks as she stares at me with a mortified squeak. Her face is blotchy—it is horror and mortification.

“She is the Alpha’s mate!” One elder yells.

“She is the Luna!”

“The future Luna!”

“I b-beg your pardon?” She stammers, clutching her neck.

I take a step away from her to process this nonsense.

Me? The Alpha of the most powerful bloodline is a second chance mate? Is the moon goddess joking somewhere in the head!?

The wolves who brought her, are surprised. I don’t think they understood what they were bringing her into it.

“I—” Alpha Dane looks at me.

“Where are the certificates of your divorce?” I grit in annoyance.

Alpha Dane looks back and forth, looking at the woman he has brought to me.

“I sent my lawyers to the council of bonds to process it. The judge has already decreed it. We just needed to sign and submit.” He answers.

“Get me the certificate of finality tomorrow and all your debts will be cleared—”

“No!” A guttural scream comes from the female wolf who is my supposed mate. “I will play no part in any of this!”

She starts to back away, searching for an exit, but my gammas move in, surrounding her. I lift my hand, signaling them to stand down. One look from me is all it takes. I need her calm, not cornered.

I’ll explain everything. She doesn’t understand yet, but I can give her anything she wants, anything to make her stay. As Alpha of the Bloodbane pack, is there anything I wouldn’t give her? Well, except my heart and love.

I can see her legs trembling. It is due to the tension of my bite, coursing through her, even if it wasn’t meant to harm. It’s still poison to anyone who bears it. She won’t last on her feet much longer, and I know that.

I move closer, watching her carefully, ready to stop her fall.

Her shaking hand goes to her hair to understand what’s happening to her all at once.

A lot of things are happening, but also, the bond forming between our wolves is also taking hold. I can feel it too, the pull—her wolf linking to mine, merging. The connection is searing, inescapable.

"Stay back!" she shouts, but the panic in her voice only makes me move faster, closing in on her.