Bury my name, Alpha

The sharp smell of fresh blood instantly filled the large bedroom. It cut right through the comforting scent of pine needles and velvet.

My body started to shake. I was terrified. He had just chopped off a man's head in a split second. The most powerful Alpha alive was standing at the foot of my bed, casually holding a severed head by the hair.

"I..." The words got stuck in my throat. I looked from the pool of blood soaking the golden sheets up to his face.

Maximus stood there, completely calm. He didn't look guilty or sorry at all. Ending a life seemed as easy to him as breathing.

A heavy wave of fear crashed over me. I pulled the blanket tight against my chest and scrambled back against the headboard. My breath came in short, panicky gasps. I felt scared. Truly, deeply scared. He wasn't just a savior. He was a cold-blooded killer.

Maximus noticed my terror. His dark eyes narrowed slightly, but his stiff posture softened a bit. He took a heavy step toward me.

"Do not look away from me, Lila," he told me dominantly. His voice was a low, deep rumble that vibrated through the mattress. "Look at me."

I forced my tearful eyes up to meet his.

"You have no reason to fear me," he said with absolute authority. "I told you, you are my mate. I will protect you at all cost. No one will ever harm you or insult you again."

I looked at the blood dripping from his fingers, then at the headless body on the floor.

"Is that... is that how ruthless you are, Alpha?" I whispered, my voice shaking. "You killed him just for speaking out of turn."

A dark, confident smile touched his lips. He raised the severed head slightly.

"All for mate, I can kill," he said without a single doubt. "I would tear down kingdoms to keep you safe. To the world, I am a monster. To you, I am yours."

He stepped backward toward the large oak doors, carrying the healer's head like an everyday object. He didn't care about the trail of red drops staining the clean floorboards.

Before opening the door, he looked back over his broad shoulder. "You better rest and don't worry. I will call the maid to clean my mess."

With that, he stepped out and shut the heavy door.

The room became completely quiet. I collapsed back against the pillows, my hands flying to my chest. My heart beat fast. It hammered against my ribs. He was very ruthless like a monster. A monster who was protecting me, even if he would kill to do it. The thought was terrifying, yet a small part of me felt strangely safe for the first time in my life.

A few minutes later, the door opened again.

Three maids stepped into the room. Their faces were completely pale. They froze the moment they saw the blood on the floor.

Without a word, the maids bowed before me. They kept their heads low, too afraid to look me in the eye.

Two of them quickly wrapped a heavy white cloth around the dead body of the healer. They lifted the heavy torso together and worked fast to get out the body. I watched in shocked silence as they carried the corpse away. The head was carried by Alpha Maximus earlier when he went outside, making the sight of the headless body even more gruesome.

The third maid stayed behind. She got down on her knees and started scrubbing the blood out of the rug with a wet rag. Her hands shook violently. She kept glancing nervously at the door, then up at me. She could not hold back her curiosity.

She leaned in close and whispered, "What happened? Why Alpha did this to the healer?"

She stared at the blood on my bed with wide, terrified eyes. "Did you provoke him to do it? Kenneth was the head healer. No one has ever dared to touch him. What did you do to make the Alpha this brutal?"

I just stared back at her, unable to speak a single word.

"I didn't know anything," I whispered, my voice still trembling. "Besides, the healer was the one who insulted me. Then Alpha got mad and attacked him. I never expected that he would protect me like that. He is ruthless."

The maid scrubbing the floor stopped her hands. The room went dead silent for a second. Then, a sharp, ugly sound broke the quiet.

The maid laughed.

It wasn't a soft laugh. It was a cruel, mocking sneer. She tossed her bloody rag into the bucket and stood up, looking down at me with pure hatred in her eyes. The fear she had shown just moments ago turned into bitter anger.

"You are an opportunist," she hissed, her voice dripping with disgust. "You are taking advantage of being an Alpha's mate. You killed the healer who saved your life! Kenneth was the one who kept you alive when the Alpha brought you here half-dead. And you repaid him by letting him get slaughtered!"

My breath hitched. "That's not true! I didn't ask for—"

"Save it," the maid snapped, crossing her arms. "You know exactly what you are doing. You crawled out of the woods, played the victim, and used your mate bond like a weapon. Because of you, our pack just lost its best healer. You think you're safe just because the Alpha fancies you right now? You're nothing but a parasite."

Suddenly, the heavy oak door clicked.

The air in the room instantly turned freezing cold. A thick, suffocating pressure dropped over us, making it hard to breathe. The maid’s face drained of what little color it had left. She stiffened, her jaw dropping open in sheer terror.

The door swung wide open, and Alpha Maximus appeared.

He stood in the doorway, his massive frame completely blocking the light from the hallway. His red eyes were fixed entirely on the shaking maid. His face was a mask of cold, lethal rage.

"What did you say?" Maximus asked.