MATED TO THE SECRET ALPHA-Chapter 237: Tamara

A closer look at the dagger in her hand, and you’d realize it was the same one Dark Snow had thrown at them days ago... The same one that withered a tree away.

And Markkus saw it.

His eyes bulged with terror as jumped down from his horse, but halted before he could take a step forward.

Reana was beyond mad. And that vengeful, icy look on her face was what stole Markkus’s confidence in a flash.

Meanwhile, Reana didn’t care who these people were. She didn’t give a fuck that they were Ryder’s people.

Touching her pack was the one line no one crossed. No one.

Not even Ryder, the man she loved and could die for.

Her father and brothers died protecting this pack. And she would kill anyone who threatened the sacrifices her family made.

And now?

Now, Reana was ready to make an example of the brute still trying to drag himself to his feet.

The blow from the horse almost paralyzed him. Reana could see that he was destabilized. And it’d be easy to teach him a butter lesson.

"Hey, go stop her," one of the warriors standing closer to the fidgeting Markkus nudged him with urgent eyes.

"W–why me?" Markkus stammered, stepping back. "Why don’t you stop her?"

He wasn’t Ryder. Not even close... Hell, even Ryder struggled to calm her when she got like this. Let alone Markkus, who was still in her black book.

"If she kills Lennox, there’ll be a huge problem. One none of us can solve!" another warrior whispered harshly. "You’re the closest to the Luna—she might not kill you for stopping her."

Might.

Markkus glared at the person who just spoke and hissed through his teeth. Sadly, he knew the person was right. Letting Reana kill Tamara’s brother with that deadly silver dagger... he swallowed hard. So hard he could hear the gulping sound.

Reluctantly, he stepped forwards cautiously.

He didn’t rush her. That would be suicide.

Instead, he stepped just a little closer, hands out slightly, voice low, meant only for her ears.

"Luna... please. Just... just think for a moment. They didn’t mean—"

"Whose side are you on?"

She didn’t even look at him. Her eyes were locked on the brute, who now looked less like a predator and more like prey.

Markkus froze mid-step.

"Tell me." Her head finally turned. Her glare burned with anger and impatience. "Are you with us, or them?"

The words lodged in his throat.

Us or them.

On one hand was Reana, the woman his Alpha loved so much. The woman who has every reason to gut him right here.

But on the other hand, was his pack members. His family. Brothers. Ryder’s people.

He stood there speechlessly, caught between choosing and staying neutral.

But could he really stay neutral? The power wasn’t the same. His Dark Snow members could squash the whole of Black Moon in less than an hour.

His lips parted. He wanted to speak but no words came out. In fact, he couldn’t even think of the right words to say – words that wouldn’t offend either side.

Reana was done waiting for him to decide. Even though she knew that war with these people was not in their favor, Reana didn’t back down.

This one guy in particular went too far and she would be damned to let him go scot free.

She turned away from Markkus like he didn’t exist, her grip tightening on the dagger that had no business being in her hand.

And Markkus knew, in that terrible moment, he might lose both sides if he allowed Reana do what she intended, so he urgently opened his mindlink, zapping into people’s minds in search of Marian and Kira. Those two were the only ones who could reason with her.

He just hoped that Mirian and Kira were available.

Meanwhile, inside the hall, the high-ranking warriors of the Black Moon Pack were held hostage. Sitting on the Alpha’s throne, on the dais, was a woman.

Not the Luna seat.

Alpha’s seat.

She was tall, wild, and breathtakingly regal. Her long black hair was tangled with silver beads, bone rings, and strips of cloth dyed in the colors of the Dark Snow Pack – black and red. Her amber eyes glinted, fierce and unblinking, as if daring the world to challenge her. Her bold egyptian eyeliner cut across her face like war paint, lending her the air of a queen from an ancient, blood-soaked empire. And perhaps she was.

This was Tamara. Alpha Snow’s daughter in name. Sister to the wounded Lennox. And above all, the one woman whose name made wolves and humans in the Southern Islands piss themselves in silence.

Her posture was lazy, one leg draped over the armrest of the throne like she owned it. Not just the chair, but the wolves watching her from their forced kneeling positions. A goblet of wine dangled from her fingers, blood-red and matching the smear of blood on her knuckles.

"Funny little place," Tamara said, her voice sounding like a songbird soaked in venom. "Smaller than I imagined. And here I thought Black Moon had teeth."

No one answered. Not a soul dared.

But Tamara wasn’t the kind to let silence win.

She leaned forward, resting her elbow on her knee, the goblet now swinging like a pendant. "Where is Reana? Your Luna?"

She’s asked that question more than she could count, yet no one wanted to speak. She would give the pack that. They were loyal. Pup or Elders. They were freaking loyal and it grated on her nerves.

Her voice rose slightly, but never lost its calm. It was the sort of calm that preceded hurricanes.

"You think you can shut up for long?" she asked rhetorically, standing now. The goblet slipped from her hand, shattering on the floor like thunder. "You think Dark Snow came here to play villain?"

She stepped down from the dais slowly, her long black fur coat brushing the steps like smoke.

"You haven’t seen a villain yet."