Marked Twice by the Alpha King novel Chapter 11

Ava’s POV

Lucas’s lips quirked into that smug little half–smile kids get when they’re about to drop a bomb on you.

“Final test time,” he announced, eyes glinting with mischief. “Let’s see if you really have what Dad calls ‘wolf’s spirit.”

Before I could ask what the hell that meant, he stuck two fingers in his mouth and let out a whistle sharp enough to pierce eardrums.

The growl that answered from the forest edge raised every hair on my body.

A black blur burst from the treeline–all muscle, fur, and teeth. The beast skidded to a halt between Lucas and me, golden eyes fixed on me like I was dinner. This wasn’t just some overgrown puppy–this thing looked ready to tear out my throat if I breathed wrong.

My mark tingled as I sized up the wolf–dog. I didn’t back up. Didn’t flinch. Somehow I knew this test wasn’t about fighting–it was about connection.

I touched my neck where the mark hummed warm against my fingertips, then slowly crouched lower.

Im not a threat. I’m a friend. The words repeated in my head like a mantra.

“Hey there, big guy,” murmured, palm up and fingers relaxed. “Not here to hurt your boy. Promise.”

The wolf–dog’s ears flicked forward, nostrils flaring as he caught my scent. Wilson gasped somewhere behind me as the creature inched closer, his massive head level with my chest.

One wrong move and I’d be sporting a new set of scars–if I was lucky.

The beast sniffed my fingertips, his breath hot against my skin. Then his rough tongue swept across my hand, and just like that, the tension snapped.

“Well, damn,” I whispered as the wolf–dog flopped onto his side, practically begging for belly rubs.

“What the Lucas’s jaw dropped. “Hunter hates strangers! The last instructor needed stitches!”

I scratched behind Hunter’s ears, his leg thumping against the dirt in pure bliss. “Wolves and I just… get each other.”

“For real?” Lucas crept closer, eyes wide.

“Back in Shadow Creek, I used to sneak out to the boundary forests.” I smiled, remembering. “Found a wild pack there. Ran with them some nights when the moon was high.”

“You ran with actual wolves?” Lucas dropped onto his knees beside me, voice hushed with awe. “And they didn’t attack you?”

“Nope. I watched Hunter roll onto his back, exposing his vulnerable belly. “My dad–William–freaked when he found out. But they never hurt me. Guess they knew I wasn’t a threat.”

Something flickered across Lucas’s face–longing, maybe envy. “Could you teach me how?”

‘Sure. Someday.”

Lucas’s small hand stroked Hunter’s massive head. “Dad’s always buried in Alpha stuff,” he muttered, voice suddenly small. Sometimes I don’t see him for days.”

The raw loneliness in those words hit me like a sucker punch. Not a spoiled brat–just a kid starving for attention.

‘My dad was pretty important too, but he always carved out time for me,” I said, throat tightening. “Even on his craziest days, we’d train together for at least an hour.”

Lucas looked up, eyes shimmering with unshed tears. “You really love your father, don’t you?”

I nodded, my throat so tight it hurt to swallow. “Yeah. He taught me everything I know… and now he’s in trouble, and I have to help him.”

“Dad says he’ll teach me when I’m older,” Lucas said, fingers tangling in Hunter’s fur. “But I need to be stronger now.”

R

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Chapter 11

“So, Lucas studied me, suddenly all business again. “You get wolves. You any good with humans?”

“That’s usually for older warriors,” I said, recognizing the Silverpeak training exercise.

“I can handle it,” he insisted, chin jutting out. “Give me ten minutes?”

Looking at this kid trying so hard to be grown, something tugged in my chest. “Fine. But I won’t go easy. Real enemies never do.”