Dominic's POV

I never knew I would be this desperate to find a girl that I don't even want. I had waited to turn around and leave so Dwayne would search for her, but something in me just wouldn't let me leave. I want to find her and make sure she's okay.

What the hell is wrong with me?

Why can't I leave?

I had my men combing through the woods, searching every house, every corner, searching for her. I did not stay back as I had earlier intended; I went along with some guys, searching for her.

With the way I'm searching for her, you would think I have other motives for searching this hard; you'd never know that I want to put an end to her miserable life, send her to the afterlife.

That's why I'm searching for her, right?

I don't even know anymore. This whole thing is messing with my head. I need to get rid of her so I can get my head back in the game. Something big is coming, there is a war coming, and I need to be ready for it. The lycan would forever subdue our entire population. I don't need any distraction right now, and that is exactly what a mate will be to me, a distraction.

I'm sure she is somewhere in this lack, and I'm going to find her. As I went around the pack, searching every house, I realised that the people were not being honest with me; they were not cooperating with my warriors and me, so I resorted to threats and torture, just to get them talking. It's obvious that they know exactly where she is, or at least, they have an idea of where she could be, but they are hiding her location from me because of their loyalty to their Alpha, a misplaced loyalty, if you ask me. I'm going to be the Alpha king, so they should have more respect for me because their loyalty and allegiance belong to me, only me.

I had stood aside and watched while Dwayne supervised the warriors as they rounded up the Alpha warriors and questioned them. When one of them finally agreed to talk, I focused my attention on him, and that was when he said the words that got me so pissed that I kicked at everything in my path, using my boot to scatter everything in my way. The truth is, I don't even know why I am this pissed, but I just am, and here's the funny part: I can't stop this anger within me; it's so upsetting that I can't control it.

The stupid Alpha just got on my last nerves!!!

The warrior just told us that Alpha Rowley had betrothed his daughter, my mate, to a mutt named Carl. They have been for a while now, and they planned to get married a few months from today. Can you believe that?

He gave my mate to another guy, a lowlife, and I know certainly that she is still with him right now. She must have gone to spend the night in his house, for all I know, he could be with her this minute. That damn weasel, I'm going to kill him. I could feel my anger rising as I pictured that angel, that beautiful damsel I had just seen in her picture. I pictured her in his arms, and it was so infuriating.

The snitch pointed at Carl's door, and I smiled in appreciation for his help. Then I walked up to him and took away all his weapons and the crest that identified him as a warrior. "What is your name?" I asked him fiercely, staring deep into his eyes as he shivered in fear at my presence.

"My name is Blake Williams, my Lord." He stammered out shakily, with fear radiating off him in waves.

"Do not call me 'Lord', never in your life. As of today, I rid you of every privilege of a warrior; neither you nor anyone from your lineage would be allowed to serve a warrior because no snitch is fit to be a warrior under my service." I spat out fiercely, watching as his face drained of all colour.

I lunged forward and kicked Carl's measly door so hard it flew off its hinges with little effort. As we entered Carl's house, I saw a man by the door. It looks like he was coming from his bedroom, and I lost all rational thought as I lunged forward and punched him hard on the face, sending him flying in the other direction. He hit the wall on the other end of the room, and I followed him right there, toppling on top of him as I dealt him several blows to his face, punching him so hard as I kept yelling at him in both anger and frustration,

"Where the fu*k is she right now? I'll kill her, and I'll kill you too. Where is she?" I yelled continuously, punching him as I screamed like a lunatic. The fact that he is so handsome is even more infuriating, and it made me punch him even harder as I imagined my mate admiring his stupid face.

The worst part of it all is that I don't even know why I am this furious, I mean, I don't even care about her and I don't want her by my side. I don't want a mate, ever. I should be letting him have her because I never want to be shackled by the mate bond, but the mere thought of her being with another guy is driving me crazy. I can't even bear to imagine it, I can't stand it.

"You are Carl? Where is the Alpha's daughter?" I asked him once more, sounding so stern and fierce.

"Alpha's daughter? Oh, you mean Bethany?" he asked back. It could be his injuries, or maybe I am too furious and not thinking straight, but I think I can detect sarcasm in his tone, or maybe I'm just hearing things.

Bethany... I love her name. It sounds beautiful. Beautiful, gorgeous, stunning Bethany. No.. No.. No.. No.. I can't be having these nice thoughts about her. I can't let the mate bond control me. She is not beautiful, and I hate her name. I don't even want to hear that name; I want nothing to do with her or her stupid name.

"Now you listen to me, you dumb head, I don't care what her name is, I don't care about her. Tell me where she is, or I swear I'm gonna rip out your heart from your chest." I threatened angrily. I don't even know why I was telling him I didn't care about her; I guess I was trying to convince myself I really didn't.

"Jeez, stop screaming so loudly. We met briefly in the woods before all this started. I asked her to hide in the woods until I come to get her. I'm pretty sure that she is still hiding in the woods." Carl responded smugly, but I wasn't paying attention to his expressions, so I just pulled him up from the floor and pushed him towards the door.

"Take me to her, right now!" I ordered sternly, standing back as I watched my guys push him forward, taking him deeper into the woods. Carl smirked as he kept leading us into the woods.

Wait a minute,

Why is he smirking?

That snitch had told us that they both loved each other so much, he wouldn't be this happy to sell her out, would he?

We were deep in the woods now, but I wasn't feeling okay. Something doesn't add up. I felt her presence while we were in his house, but as we moved farther away, I felt the warmth slowly fading; it was as if my heart were melting into lava, and I felt torn from my mate. I could feel her presence in these woods, and I could tell she frequents them, but her scent is faded here; it was stronger in his house. I stopped in my tracks and studied the footprints around us. With my heightened eyesight, I saw our footprints clearly, but we were smearing any others as we kept stomping forward.

"Stop!!!"

I yelled at the top of my voice, causing everyone to stop in their tracks. I move forward, with Dwayne following closely behind me. We moved a few feet away from the crowd, then I saw their footprints, a male and female footprint, and they were heading back the way we came. To be sure I wasn't mistaken, I asked Carl to step forward, and when he did, I confirmed that his footprints matched the ones I'd seen just now, which meant the lady's footprint belonged to my mate, Bethany.

She had followed him back; she had been in his house all along.

Carl must have known I had caught on to his lie, and he tried to back away, but it was too late. I grabbed him and punched him so hard in the face, sending him flying the other way as he hit his back against a tree. I was standing in front of him within seconds, and I held him by the neck and lifted him off his feet, staring deep into his eyes,

"Where is MY MATE?" I asked him fiercely.

Dominic's POV

"Where is MY MATE?" I asked him fiercely, looking deep into his eyes as I stared him down. I could see the fear in his eyes as I called her my mate. My warriors were also looking at me with surprise; they had no idea that she was my mate.

With every minute I stand out here, I am losing my connection to my mate. I know we haven't connected yet, but I felt a calming peace when I caught her amazing scent. It had pulled me to her, and I loved the feeling of having her close by.

But I don't feel it anymore; it's as if the distance between us is widening by the minute. It felt as if all the warmth I'd felt earlier had been only my imagination, as if she'd never even existed. It's making me go crazy. I want to feel that warmth again, that peace that her presence brings me; it's so amazing. Even if I don't want her again, I still want to keep her close by.

Carl's eyes are pinned on me, and he isn't even trying to hide his hatred and disgust as he stares at me with a Smirk. I could tell he found it funny that I called her my mate. He is silently gazing at me, stalling. The silence is sickening, and he knows I'm already riled up, but he keeps pushing me toward the edge, testing my patience. The tension becomes thicker as my warriors whisper among themselves, wondering why I am being patient and lenient with him.

I don't know why I couldn't just kill him. It's hard to bear this atmosphere, I grinned evilly and threw him a few feet away from where I stood, using more force than necessary. He landed with a loud thud a few feet away, groaning in pain when his body hit the floor. I smiled in satisfaction as I watched him struggle to stand back up.

"When you say, MATE..." he looked unfazed as he looked up at me in anger, "Do you mean given by the moon goddess or chosen by your proud, disgusting self?" he asked in disgust, looking around for the first time since we took him from his house. I think he is weighing his chances of escape. He knows he cannot escape me, so he wants to make a run for it. My wolf growled at him, making him look up at me with that same stupid smirk.

His eyes kept diverting to different corners, and I knew that he had a plan. It seems like he is planning to escape, and now that I think about it, I think that has been his plan all along. He must have hidden her somewhere safe, and now he wants to run off to meet her so they can both escape.

I guess it's time to show him why I am the most feared Alpha. I mind-linked my men, telling them not to interfere in our battle.

I narrowed my eyes at Carl, mentally calculating every possible way he might attack me and every best way I could attack him. I want him to believe he has the upper hand in the fight, that he has a chance of escape, and that he will take it. He will win and escape; then I'll follow him subtly and find out where he is going.

I crouched defensively, preparing to attack him. It seems that he is waiting for me to initiate the attack, so I would gladly grant him that. I hope he realises that finding Bethany is the only way he will stay alive.

She is the only reason he is alive right now. Her calm soul is all that is keeping me calm right now.

Carl, the weak wolf, thinks he can run away with my mate. A sick smile crept across his face, and he rolled his shoulder back and put both fists in front of him. Judging from his stance, I could tell he was a good fighter, but he could never beat me in a fair fight. When I fight, I fight dirty, and I aim to win.

I curled my palm and gestured for him to come at me, then clenched my fists painfully tight, watching his every move.

When he made no move, I launched myself at him, Scott my wolf urging me on as he howled in joy, wishing nothing more than to tear Carl apart. I feigned a punch to his face, and he fell for the bait just as I'd expected. He moved sideways to avoid my punch, raising his hands to block it if he wasn't fast enough. I saw an opening, and I jabbed at his ribs, causing him to yell in pain as the force of my punch sent him reeling backwards.

I was on him before he could recover, and I punched and jabbed him severely in his midsection, kicking him hard on the face with my kickboxing skills. "How could she have fallen in love with a weakling like you! You disgust me, Carl. You would never be able to satisfy my mate; you are nothing but a weak moron. When I find her, I'll make you watch as I screw her over and over again, making her scream my name as she reaches her peak," I taunted him, and it had the desired effect.

"Nooooo..." he screamed furiously as he lunged at me, throwing all his weight at me as he toppled me to the ground. I could have easily evaded his attack if I wanted to. I mean, he has the skills, but he is still an amateur, and he could never stand up to my attack, even if he had ten hands and legs.

He threw several punches at me, hitting me as hard as he could, and I kept faking the pain as I took all his punches. The truth is, this dude never stood a chance against me. He hits like a girl, and I really want to pull him by the ear and drag him to the gym, teach him how to fight like a man, how to be a great warrior. I hate being around men who can't defend themselves, let alone defend their families. Men like Carl can never be leaders; they are the very reason the Lycans think they can Lord it over all werewolves, but all that is going to change when I become king.

I watched Carl with hooded eyes as he smirked in victory. I groaned at his stupidity, but I didn't let myself get too carried away because I hadn't gotten what I wanted yet; he still needed to lead me to her, so I lay there pretending to be weak and hurt as he smirked triumphantly.

"How the mighty have fallen, Alpha Dominic. I knew you were nothing without your warriors; I knew I could defeat you." He taunted me, laughing hysterically like a fucking idiot. This guy is so dumb. He stands above me, his legs spread. I could kick hard on his legs, and he would come down immediately. But I had to play it cool, so I crawled away from him, making it look like I was trying to run the other way. He kicked me severely in my stomach, stopping me in my tracks.

"Dwayne... guards..." I called out weakly, pretending to seek help, and he laughed so loudly, acting as if he'd just won a trophy.

"I could kill you right now and end your pathetic life. I'm sure everyone would thank me for it. Too bad I have no time to waste on a villain like you. You make me feel sick, your love is dirty, you don't deserve her at all. You'll never find her; she would never be your mate," he yelled at my face, threatening me as fiercely as he could, then he got up and kicked me one more time before taking to his heels and running back the way we had come, heading back to his house.

I should have known that she was still in that house; her scent was stronger there. How could I have missed that?

"He is headed your way, don't lose him, and don't let him catch you. I'll join you guys pretty soon." I told Dwayne through our mind link as I stood up and dusted myself. I can't believe he actually threatened me to keep me away from my mate. Who knew he had it in him?

"Sorry, Scott, I had to let him win." I apologized to my wolf as he healed my pains and injuries. I ran as fast as I could, kicking my feet beneath me. Dwayne had gone in with him, but the others stayed back. I'm sure it was Dwayne who ordered them to stay back; he knew Carl would hear the footsteps following him. One of my warriors briefed me on what was happening. He said Carl had picked up a backpack, then run into his basement, where he went through a secret passage.

I got a map from one of my men and looked over the landscape of this territory. If there is a road in his basement, it would lead to the woods outside their boundary. And there is a path there that leads to the train station.

Bethany has escaped from right under my nose. How could I have let this happen?" I thought within me as I threw the map to the floor and I ran after them, following the path in the basement. I could smell her in this basement, and her scent is driving me crazy.

When I resurfaced at the end of the tunnel, I followed the path to the train station, letting her scent lead me. Her scent grew stronger as I neared the counter. I got to the train station, and her scent enveloped me, just as I saw the last train honking and speeding away.

My heart tells me she is on that train, and I feel her warmth fading around me as the distance between us grows. I can feel my heart breaking, and Scott is howling in pain and anger.

"She is gone!" I muttered softly as I watched the train speed away. I guess she lingered a little to wait for him; she must have left with the last train, because she couldn't wait any longer. She had risked her life to wait for this smut. How could she love him? Why didn't she wait for me to find her?

"We'll find her Alpha, even if we have to search every city; we'll certainly find her," Dwayne promised, making me scoff at his petty thoughts. He must think I am so desperate to find her that I cannot do without her, but I'll prove him wrong. I'll prove to them that the moon goddess was wrong when she said every Alpha needs a Luna. I don't need her. I can rule perfectly without a mate.

"I don't need her, Dwayne. She is a distraction. A war is coming, and we need to be ready." I told him sternly, removing every emotion from my face. My heart was hurting, but I had to hide it and suffer in silence.

We were so distracted that we didn't notice when Carl opened his backpack and took out a burner phone. He smashed it on the floor and stamped on it furiously. Dwayne ran up and tackled him to the ground, holding him in place as he glared at me. I gestured for him to lift him from the floor, and I looked at him intently, smiling evilly as I stared him down.

"You should have killed me when you had the chance, Carl." his eyes widened in fear as I lunged forward and landed a deadly blow on him, making him go unconscious immediately.