# Chapter 15 – Ryder's POV: The White Wolf's Awakening
The world stopped moving.
I watched Vanessa's body glow like moonlight had crawled under her skin. Her eyes weren't brown anymore. They burned white, fierce and wild. Those claws that sprouted from her fingers could slice through bone.
My wolf went crazy inside me. He paced and whined, confused as hell. *What is she?*
When her legs gave out, I moved without thinking. Caught her before she hit the dirt. She felt ice-cold in my arms, like winter itself. Her face was white as fresh snow, but her chest still rose and fell. Good enough.
"Stay with me," I whispered.
The run back felt endless. My boots pounded against the forest floor while my mind raced faster than my legs. Every pack had stories about the White Wolf. Legends that turned into hunting parties and blood feuds.
Now she was unconscious in my arms.
---
I kicked open the pack house doors hard enough to rattle the frame.
"Get the doctor! Now!" My voice boomed through the main hall.
Pack members scattered like startled deer. Good. I didn't have time for questions or staring.
"Alpha, what's wrong—" Marcus tried to speak.
"Move your ass and get Martinez!"
The Alpha power rolled off me in waves. Marcus stumbled backward, then sprinted toward the medical wing. Smart choice.
Dr. Martinez showed up thirty seconds later with his bag and two nurses. The man knew how to read an emergency.
"Infirmary," I ordered.
We moved through the halls like we were racing death itself. I set Vanessa down on the examination table. Her dark hair spread across the white sheets like spilled paint. She looked tiny. Breakable. Nothing like whatever the hell I'd seen in those woods.
"Everyone out except medical," I barked.
The room emptied fast. Only Martinez and his team stayed, already checking her pulse and breathing.
Every muscle in my body wanted to stay put. Hover over her. Make sure nothing went wrong. But that's not what Alphas do. We wait. We stay strong.
So I walked outside and started wearing holes in the floor.
---
The hallway became my prison. Back and forth, back and forth. My footsteps echoed off the walls like a broken record.
*Is she really the one?* The thought hammered against my skull. *The White Wolf everyone's been searching for?*
If yes, we were screwed. Other packs would come running. They'd probably try to take me down too, just for hiding her. But the idea of handing her over made my wolf bare his teeth.
She was mine to guard. I'd earned that right when I saved her from those rogues.
"Alpha?" Martinez stepped out, pulling off latex gloves.
I read his face before he opened his mouth. Relief. Thank God.
"She's okay," he said. "Tired as hell, but okay. Whatever happened drained her completely. She needs sleep."
"When does she wake up?"
"Hard to tell. Few hours, maybe more." His eyes got careful. "Alpha, her readings were... strange. Heart rate, body temperature—"
"That's enough." I raised my hand. "Just make sure she gets better. Double the guards around medical. Nobody gets close without my say-so."
He nodded and disappeared back inside.
---
Six hours dragged by before I pushed open her door.
Vanessa was awake, sitting up against the pillows. But when she saw me, pure terror flashed across her face. She pressed herself against the headboard like I was the grim reaper himself.
"Don't come near me!" Her voice shook but stayed fierce. "Just... stay back!"
I stopped dead. Every Alpha instinct screamed at me to dominate, to make her submit. But something deeper held me back.
"Vanessa." I kept my voice calm, steady. "You're safe here. Nobody's going to hurt you."
She laughed, bitter and broken. "Safe? You think I'm safe anywhere now?"
Her tough act was cracking. I could see it in her trembling hands, in the tears she was fighting. This wasn't the woman who'd stood up to me days ago. This was someone whose world had just exploded.
I grabbed a chair and sat down. Put myself at her level instead of towering over her.
"What happened out there?"
The tears came. Quiet at first, then harder. Her whole body shook with silent sobs. I wanted to reach out, offer comfort, but I stayed put. She needed to fall apart before she could pull herself together.
"I was terrified," she whispered. "I thought they'd kill me. Then something inside me just... broke open."
"The white light."
She looked up, surprised. "You saw?"
"I saw everything." I leaned forward. "Vanessa, I need to ask you something. Are you—"
The door slammed open.
Marcus stood there looking grim. Behind him, pack members filled the hallway, voices rising in worried whispers.
"Alpha Ryder," Marcus said. "The elders and the whole pack are gathered. They want you there right now."
Damn it. Word had spread. Of course it had. Secrets died fast in pack life.
I stood up, pulling on my Alpha mask. Cold. Commanding.
"I'll handle this," I told Marcus. Then I looked at Vanessa. Her eyes were wide and scared. "I'll come back. Stay strong."
She nodded barely, but it was enough.
---
The great hall buzzed with nervous energy. Everyone was there. Elders with their wrinkled faces. Warriors standing stiff. Mothers holding their kids close. Fear hung in the air like smoke.
I walked to the front of the room. My footsteps echoed in the sudden quiet. Every eye followed me, waiting for answers I wasn't ready to give.
"Alpha," Elder Morrison stepped forward. His voice carried seventy years of authority. "There are reports of a white-haired woman. Glowing with strange light. The pack is worried."
Worried. Nice way of saying scared shitless.
"Some say it's a bad sign," another elder added. "Others think it's the return of—"
"Enough!" I slammed my palm on the oak table. The sound cracked through the room like a gunshot. Dead silence.
I stared down every face in that room. Made sure they felt my full authority.
"Vanessa is under my protection," I said loud enough for everyone to hear. "Anyone who touches her deals with me personally. Clear?"
Whispers rippled through the crowd, but nobody spoke up.
"We don't turn on guests because of rumors and old stories," I continued. "We're a pack with laws. With honor. With unity. I'll find out what happened in the forest. I'll learn the truth. But I decide what happens to Vanessa. Not fear. Not gossip. Me."
Elder Morrison stepped forward again, looking careful. "Alpha, if she really is the White Wolf—"
"Then we follow pack law," I cut him off. "She's here under my protection. That doesn't change because of stories."
The room went dead quiet. Even the kids stopped moving. This moment would make or break my leadership. Would they trust their Alpha, or would fear make them forget who was in charge?
One by one, they bowed their heads. The elders followed, accepting my authority.
"Good." I straightened up. "Now get back to work. This pack has survived worse than legends. We'll survive this too."
People started leaving, but I caught the look between Elder Morrison and Elder Chen. They weren't convinced. They were scared.
Scared people made stupid choices.
After the last person left, Marcus walked over.
"Alpha, there's more," he said quietly. "We picked up chatter between the Bloodmoon pack and Silverstone pack. They're sending out search teams. Word's spreading about a white wolf sighting."
Ice ran through my veins. "How long?"
"Maybe a day. Maybe less."
I nodded. One day to figure out what Vanessa really was. One day to decide if I'd go to war for her.
As I headed back to the infirmary, Marcus called out.
"Alpha, one more thing."
I turned back.
"Your girlfriend's back. She's waiting in your office."
My blood went cold. Not now. Not with everything falling apart.
"Tell her I'm busy."
"She says it's urgent. About the girl."
I stared at Marcus for a long moment. Then I looked toward the infirmary door where Vanessa was waiting.
Everything was about to get a hell of a lot more complicated.