Chapter 3 Hunt Down 

Luca POV

A knock on my office door causes me to slam my laptop closed. No matter who is on the other side of the door, I cannot let them know I have been in contact with the North Twilight Pack. They would not understand.

"Come in," I call out as I shuffle the papers around on my desk. Pretending like I am working on something else.

My Beta Zoe peeks her head in the door. I know by the look on her face that this will not be a fun conversation.

Zoe wasn't my first choice for a Beta, but my father had already spent years training her. She was the only suitable choice. But I feel like having a female for a Beta makes our pack look weak. Don't get me wrong. Zoe gets the job done, but what I envisioned for my Beta.

"What?" I growl in frustration.

"I came to talk to you about Ro," Zoe says stiffly.

I cringe at the nickname that has been given to my little sister. I hate it. It isn't dignified. "What about Rowena?" I ask, emphasizing her name.

"I thought your decision to close her off from the Full Moon Square tonight was unfair," Zoe tells me with her head held high.

"It wasn't your decision to make," I growl at her.

"I made it my decision," Zoe tells me. "She was planning on shifting in the middle of the woods like some wild animal. That could have been dangerous for Ro. So, I opened the Square for her."

Getting to my feet, I slam my hands on the desk. "How dare you defy one of my orders?" I scream at her. "Rowena must not be able to shift. She must not be able to find her mate."

Zoe cocks her head in confusion as she looks at me. "Why would you take something like that from her?"

"It is none of your business," I snap at Zoe. "Go close the square and make sure she is back in her bedroom before midnight."

A Cheshire grin spreads across Zoe's lips. "It is too late. It is already after midnight."

"You are such a piece of trash," I growl at Zoe as I push past her.

"Where are you going?" Zoe calls after me.

"To hunt down my sister," I spit at her.

Rowena POV

Freya bolts out of the Full Moon Square, skidding to a stop just outside of the back door. She lifts her nose to the air, trying to determine which direction the scent of our mate is coming from. While I feel excited, I am also nervous that Luca will find me out of my room.

'Freya,' I whine we have to turn back. 'You don't understand what Luca will do if he finds us out of the safety of the pack house.'

'We do not bow to lesser wolves,' Freya scoffs.

She catches the scent of our mate again, lifts her nose to the air, and lets out a very dramatic howl. Before I have a chance to find out what she means by 'lesser wolves,' Freya is back on the hunt, looking for our mate.

She slinks into the shadows of the trees; her white coat doesn't exactly make the tree canopy the perfect place for her to hide. Her white fur shines brightly even in the dark of night. Her eyes pierce through the darkness as she makes her way past the pack house.

Freya weaves in and out of the trees, leaving the pack house in the distance, and I cannot help but be confused.

'Where are we going?' I ask Freya. 'All of the males that are unmated and of age live in the pack house.'

'Not all of them,' Freya responds with a clipped tone.

Suddenly, I find myself peering out of Freya's eyes, looking at the Omega's quarters, and everything clicks into place.

'My mate is an Omega,' I whisper.

Freya stays back in the shadows and whines. The Omega quarters are brightly lit, and she is just as afraid to go into the light as I am. We sit and stare at the Omega quarters, hoping our mate will show himself.

His scent is swarming in the air around us, and it is driving Freya insane. She stops her front paws impatiently while we wait.

'We should get back to our room,' I beg Freya one last time. 'It is only a matter of time before Luca comes looking for us. He will probably send out the guard.'

'Our scent has changed since we shifted,' Freya says matter-of-factly. 'It will take him a while to find us. No one would think to look for us here.'

I know Freya is right. Our scent has definitely changed, and the last place they would think to look for me is at the Omega quarters. So, I keep my mouth shut and continue to wait for our mate to make himself known.

Freya lays down on the soft forest floor and rests her head on her paws. Her eyes are beginning to drift lazily to sleep. When the creaking of a door causes her eyes to fly open, the most beautiful man I have ever seen steps out of the back door of the Omega quarters.

His nose is lifted into the air like he is seeking out a scent. Freya gets to her feet and scurries down the small hill. She is in so much of a hurry that her feet get all jumbled up underneath her, and she falls flat on her stomach in front of the Omega. She lifts her nose to the air and breathes in deeply. The smell of hazelnuts and chocolate invades our senses. He smells so good.

Freya looks up at him, and her tongue hangs out of her mouth. The Omega takes a step back from us with his eyes wide with shock.

'Freya,' I chastise her. 'You are scaring him.'

'No, I am not,' Freya huffs.

She gets to her feet and sits down in front of him. But still, our handsome mate refuses to say anything to us.

His golden blonde hair shimmers in the fading moonlight. His bright blue eyes look at me with curiosity, but his whole body is shaking with fear.

'Give me back control,' I tell Freya.

Reluctantly, Freya relinquishes her control, and after a very painful shift, I find myself kneeling naked in front of my mate. The word "mate" escapes his lips.

I look up at him and smile, but as soon as I do, my mate drops to his knees before me. He shimmies out of his shirt and gently drapes it over my shoulders. I slide the oversized t-shirt over my head and stand up, but my mate does not stand with me.

He merely looks at the ground and mumbles, "My Alpha..."