My Alpha's Wolfless Daughter
My Alpha’s Wolfless Daughter – Chapter 29

Future Beta Nate

“I’m going to use myself as bait,” I heard Ayla say and Duke let out a growl.

“Ayla, like hell you are. We have no idea what this pack is capable of and I’m not going to put you at risk. Let the alphas handle the pack. We need to replace King Kaden,” I told her.

“Nate, we need proof. My father and uncle can’t just go to war with this pack without proof and I’m going to get it. I’m more valuable alive to them than dead. I’m going to call my father.” She said, pulling out her phone. She put the phone on speaker and held it up so we could all speak while she looked over the map.

“Sweetie, is everything okay?” Alpha Atlas’ voice filled the room.

“Hey dad, yes I’m okay. I just need your help. Are you able to video chat?” She asked him.

“Just give me a second to get to my office.” He said.

“Thanks, dad. How are you? And Thea?” She asked him.

“Everything has calmed down here. There haven’t been any more bodies or attacks.” He said, and I was grateful for that. I didn’t want my family to get hurt while I was away.

The phone started ringing again and Ayla held it up to her face and answered it.

“Don’t you look nice, Ayla,” the alpha said, sounding surprised.

“Dinner with Andrea.” She said and her father sighed.

“Still hasn’t warmed up to you?” Her father asked and she shook her head.

“No, now the plan is for me to claim King Kaden so I can control him.” She shrugged and the alpha growled.

“What the actual f**k?” He growled.

“I know, but right now, we have a more pressing matter. The body of the mermaid you found was from this kingdom. She went missing two years ago at this spot,” she turned the camera around and pointed at the map.

“Matt’s pack is to the south of there. And I know he would never do anything to hurt you. He loves you and even tried to convince your mother into letting him adopt you.” The alpha said and Ayla gasped.

“Really?”

“Yes, he wanted to protect you, as do I.” He answered.

“Who’s pack is to the north of Alpha Matt’s?” I asked my alpha.

“I believe it’s the Crimson Tide pack. Alpha Gavin hasn’t handed his pack down to his son, yet.” He answered.

“We believe one of their pack members is the one that left the body and took the picture of me. Also, the night of the ball, there was a guy at one of the bars.” Ayla told him and I growled. She never mentioned anything about another guy.

“He must have been the other scent on you.” my alpha said, and I balled up my fists and started pacing.

“Would you recognize him?” Xander asked her and she shook her head.

“I was too worried about Ruby. I pushed him away and ran out of the party tent.” She told them and I was furious. Not only did Jaden touch what was mine, but some other guy.

“I don’t know the alpha personally but I’m sure Matt does. Ayla, what are you planning?” He asked his daughter.

“I’m going to use myself as bait. We can’t move forward without proof and I would never ask you or Matt to put your packs at risk.” She answered.

“Ayla, for your safety, I hate the idea, but I know you have Duke and he would rip that entire pack apart if anything were to happen to you. But I still want you to be careful. I’ll speak with Matt and come up with a way to have warriors set up on the border before you move in.” Alpha Atlas explained.

“Alpha, I don’t like this. If they feel threatened, they could just kill her before we cross the border.” I told him and I heard him sigh.

“Nate, I understand your fear, but this is ultimately Ayla’s decision. If she feels she can get in and expose them, then we need to trust in her,” he said.

“Sir, this is your daughter and you are just going to let her walk in there with wolves who will most likely descale her or worse,” I yelled.

“If it was your pack members being killed, would you do nothing?” Ayla asked me, placing her hand on her h*p.

“Ayla, this is different. I’ve been training my entire life for this. And I have Duke, who is the size of an alpha. It’s not that I don’t trust you, I don’t want to see you hurt or killed.” I pleaded with her to understand.

“Nate, this was not only a threat to me but they killed someone. She had been missing for two years and I don’t even want to imagine the horrors she endured. I can’t do nothing and I won’t. I know how to shoot. I’m not completely hopeless. I will wait for my dad and uncle to come up with a plan and then I’ll work on mine. Don’t ask me to do nothing because I won’t.” She exclaimed.

“Sweetie, I’ll talk to Matt in the morning. With him being neighbors with this pack, he’ll know more. And we can come up with a plan together.”

“Sounds like a plan, dad. We’ll talk tomorrow. Goodnight.”

“Goodnight sweetie.” My alpha said before ending the call.

The tension in the room was rising as Ayla and I stared at each other. I don’t want her to do this. We could devise another plan where she wouldn’t be in harm’s way.

“Xander, are there any female warriors that could take Ayla’s place in her plan?” I asked him.

“I’m not asking someone else to put their life on the line.” She growled before Xander answered my question.

“We should all get some sleep. It’s been a long day. Ayla, we can talk over your plan once the alphas get back to us.” Xander said.

“I understand you want to do something, but in this case, it’s best for you to do nothing. You were attacked by rogues when you were up in the mountains on our pack lands. They are weak compared to a wolf who belongs to a pack,” I explained.

“And they want me alive. I’m the perfect bait.” Ayla retorted.

“Ayla, they will rip you apart to save their pack. Can you just listen to me, please? Just because your scales are worth a fortune, doesn’t mean they won’t kill you. They will and I won’t allow you to put yourself at risk. Your father and uncle can handle this,” I told her.

“So I just put their packs at risk?” She argued.

“Ayla, we don’t have all the pieces yet. Just calm down and we will all come up with a plan that works for all of us.” Xander said, trying to defuse the situation.

“Nate, I can get in there and get the proof we need. They could have more mermaids and we are just going to let them suffer!” Ayla yelled as she started to pace.

“All I’ve heard this entire time is that this is my world and I have to be this princess. And I can have two princes protecting me, but I can’t do the same? I’m not broken. I may not be trained, but I lived under a bridge for over two years when I was a teenager. I know how to protect myself and to get information.” She huffed and I sighed.

“I’m not saying you are weak. I’m saying that you’ve never gone up against pack wolves that are trained to kill. I know you could get the information we need but I don’t want you to. Dealing with humans is one thing, but dealing with wolves is entirely different. They will kill you.” I told her.

“Fine,” she huffed, throwing her arms in the air. I looked at the others before looking back at Ayla who was walking toward the door to leave.

“Fine? What the hell does that mean?” I asked her.

“It means you aren’t getting laid wolf toy.” Prince Silas chuckled and I growled.

“It means, I’ll focus on being the pretty little princess and you four can handle the rest. Maybe I should just go replace King Kaden myself. Maybe he’ll make me feel useful.” She whipped around and glared at us. I felt a ping in my heart at her words.

“Baby,” I called out before she gasped. She turned her back to us and rested her hands on her knees.

I didn’t make it to her before she let out a scream and I was thrown back against a bookshelf. I g*****d as the back of my head hit a shelf and my body slid down, breaking all the shelves on the way down to the floor. I hit the floor with a thump and books flew everywhere.

Rubbing the back of my head, I sat up and looked around the room. Books were everywhere. I didn’t come back to my senses until I saw Ayla lying face down, not moving. Stumbling, I rushed over to her. Kneeling, I saw her nose was bleeding.

“Ayla!” I yelled, rolling her over. I took her into my arms. I started to smack her cheeks to get her to wake up.

“What the hell was that?” Xander g*****d, crawling over to me.

“I have no idea but Ayla isn’t waking.” I rushed out panicked.

“Baby, please, open your eyes.” I turned my attention back to Ayla.

The doors behind me flew open, hitting the walls with a bang. Warriors rushed in and Xander started barking orders at them. They were helping the princes as I had Ayla in my arms.

“Nate, you’re bleeding,” Xander said beside me.

“I’m fine. We need a doctor.” I yelled. I was praying Ayla would open her eyes.

“Her nose is bleeding,” he said. But I was more focused on making sure she was still breathing.

“Duke, what the f**k happened?”

“I’m not sure. But you shouldn’t underestimate our mate. She is strong,” he answered.

Ayla whimpered before she g*****d and I held her against my chest. I was ready to burst into happy tears.

“Nate,” she whispered, and I looked down at her.

“Open your eyes, baby. Please,” I said, nudging her nose with mine.

“I can’t, my head is pounding.” She answered in a whisper.

“Let’s get her back to her room. I’ll get my mother to come check on her.” Xander told me. I nodded before lifting Ayla to my chest and standing up with her in my arms.

I stumbled but Xander steadied me so I wouldn’t fall. I had a massive headache from my head being bounced off the bookshelves. But I was more worried about my mate, to care about my condition.

“Ayla, try to stay awake until my mother can check on you. We need to make sure you don’t have a concussion.” Xander told her.

“I’ll try.” She whispered, resting her head on my chest.

Xander ordered one of the warriors to take us back to Ayla’s room while he helped the princes and got the library cleaned up. He said his mother should be at Ayla’s room soon.

Her breathing evened out before we made it back to her soon. I shook her, trying to wake her up. She needed to be checked out before she could sleep. Whatever happened seems to be taking a toll on her.

“Ayla, stay awake, baby. We are almost to your room.” I told her and she whimpered.

“Everything hurts.” She cried, tears running down her cheeks.

“I know, baby. But I need you to stay awake. The doctor needs to check you over before you can rest. Just talk to me. Do you know what happened?” I asked her.

“I don’t know. I was angry and then my chest pain returned. The pressure made me scream and then it’s blank.” She whimpered. Tears still streamed down her cheeks and she couldn’t open her eyes.

“It’s okay, we will figure this all out after you get some rest,” I told her. Leaning down, I kissed her forehead.

Sparks tickled my lips. They were much stronger than before, but maybe it was because my body was over-sensitive after the adrenaline rush. I didn’t have much time to think about it as we walked up to her room. The warrior opened her door and I entered. Walking over to her bed, I laid her down.

There was soon a knock on the door and I called for them to enter. The same warrior from earlier opened the door for a woman. She had strawberry blonde hair and Xander’s green eyes. I assume this is his mother.

“Hi, I’m Dr. Lorelei Evans, Xander’s mother.” She introduced herself. I shook her hand.

“I’m Nate Winters, Ayla’s mate.” I introduced myself.

“You must be the wolf?” She asked and I nodded.

“And this must be Ayla,” She said, walking over to the bed.

“Ayla, sweetie, how are you feeling?” She asked her.

“Everything hurts.” She whispered.

“Can you open your eyes for me, please?”

“I’ll try.” She whimpered. Her eyes fluttered before she slammed them back shut.

“I feel like I’m going to be sick.”

“Okay, let’s get you to the bathroom. I know you have to check your cycle.” The doctor said, helping Ayla up.

“When we are done in the bathroom. I want you to clean that wound on your head.” She told me and I nodded.

There was another knock on the door and I went to answer it while Ayla and Dr. Evans were in the bathroom. This was not how I thought this evening would go. Answering the door, I found the princes and Xander standing on the other side. I stepped out into the hallway to give Ayla and the doctor some privacy.

“My mother must be with Ayla?” Xander asked and I nodded.

“So does anyone have an idea of what happened?” Prince Chase asked.

“Prince Silas, you remember the beach at Alpha Matt’s pack?” I asked him and he nodded.

“What happened?” Xander asked.

“Ayla was pulled away from me by a mermaid warrior. And I assume it’s when Prince Silas punched me in the face.” I stopped and glared at him and he shrugged.

“Ayla screamed like that and we were all hit with that same force. When I looked back up, the water was flowing around her, protecting her. When the water fell away she was standing in her black dress.” I explained.

“It would seem something is protecting her, but what? When she gets upset or scared she will partially shift or use great strength.” Xander said.

“But her shift isn’t normal. We don’t have claws. And she has them, and her scales cover her like armor.” Prince Chase mentioned.

“And then she doesn’t remember what happened.” Prince Silas chimed in. I rubbed over the bite she gave me earlier, it was covered by my shirt.

“Could she have a wolf?” Xander asked me.

“I don’t sense a wolf in her. Wolves shift at the age of eighteen. Some sooner but most at eighteen. I got Duke when I was fifteen but didn’t shift until just before my eighteenth birthday.” I explained.

“Maybe she’s a late bloomer? But Ayla hasn’t mentioned anything about hearing voices.” Xander told me.

“Duke hasn’t said anything. He would have been able to sense if she had a wolf.” The door to her room opened and Xander’s mother stepped out.

“How is she?” Xander asked her.

“Everything seems to be normal, besides the pain. I gave her some painkillers and she is now asleep. Whatever happened took a toll on her body.” The doctor informed us.

“All you boys should get checked over as well. All of you were hit pretty hard.” She gave us all a pointed look.

“I think the library got hit the worst. It’s going to take some time to get all the books back in order,” Xander said.

“Note to self, don’t piss her off in the library.” Prince Silas chuckled.

“At least let me make sure none of you have a concussion and then you can all get some sleep.” She said and we all nodded.

After we were all in the clear, I entered Ayla’s room. She was asleep and I could hear her steady breathing. I went into the bathroom to have a shower. Pulling off the shirt, I noticed the bite mark was still just a bite mark. Nothing had changed.

“Duke, why hasn’t it healed yet?” I asked him, getting into the shower.

“Because she claimed us.” He purred. And I sighed.

“I told you she couldn’t.” I scolded him.

“Maybe you should have more faith in our mate.” He told me before retorting.

I rolled my eyes, I was too exhausted to argue with him right now. How can she have a wolf and be a mermaid? There had to be more hybrids, but I’ve never heard of someone having both. But then again, I didn’t know about mermaids until after I met Ayla. But when a witch is mated to a wolf, their children are one or the other, never both.

Sighing, I got out of the shower. My brain was going to explode before I could answer any of these questions if I didn’t get some sleep.

I dried off and pulled on some boxers before climbing in beside my mate. She rolled into me and I wrapped an arm around her and pulled her closer while I stared up at the ceiling.

Someone somewhere has to have some answers.