Reclaimed By My Alpha's Uncle

Chloe's pov

The air was thick with the scent of pine and anticipation. Above us, the Blood Moon hung in all its crimson glory. Its light bathed the council chamber in a ghostly red glow.

This was supposed to be the pinnacle of my life. This was supposed to be the day I, Chloe Keaton, will register the mating ceremony date when I would finally be marked as the Luna of the Danemark Pack.

I stood on the high stone dais, my white gown catching the wind. Around, where members also present to register their mating ceremony.

I watched in silence so absolutely I could hear the rustle of the surrounding forest. My skin burned with an indescribable heat, the instinctual pull of the fated bond screaming for Dan to appear.

"Dan? I’m on the dais. I'm already waiting at the council. Where are you?"

I managed a smile at no one in particular as I shoved the mind-link outward, desperate for even a flicker of his presence.

Nothing happened. Just a cold wall of silence that suggested that he was either far away from me for the mind-link to not carry through or that he had intentionally blocked me out.

My inner wolf, usually a pillar of strength, had begun to pace frantically, her claws digging into the corners of my mind. I wanted to snap at her but I knew she was the inner representation of the buzz in my mind.

The silence didn't last for long before it morphed into whispers.

"Look at her," a warrior’s mate snickered, her voice carrying through the heightened hearing of the crowd. "Standing there like a lost pup. If she can’t even summon her mate, how is she supposed to lead us?"

"Maybe the Moon Goddess made a mistake," another sneered. "Fated or not, Dan clearly has better things to do."

The humiliation was a physical weight on my chest and it threatened to crush the breath from my lungs. I kept my head high, of course. I couldn't let them see me break but my fingers trembled against the cold stone of the altar.

I was wondering if I should address them or at least say something in his defence when the heavy gate of the council chamber slammed open.

Alpha Dan Danemark strode out. He was breathtakingly handsome as always and his predatory grace and raw Alpha power was enough to make the weaker wolves bow their heads, before I could react when another smell hit me.

It smelled of sulfur and the sickeningly sweet scent of lilies which I knew well to be Bonnie Peters’ scent.

She's an adopted daughter, Dan’s parents took in when she was young, and the third party in our relationship that always finds a way to put her hold on Dan, exactly what I am seeing now.

She was clinging to his arm with her small hand resting possessively on his bicep. She looked like a fragile omega.

She had that aura that made men just want to come to her aid but I knew there was nothing sweet about the girl. I could even see it in her eyes now. When they met mine, they were sharp with triumph.

Dan walked towards me without giving me more than a glance and walked pass me to where the council members were sitting, completely ignoring me.

My jaw remained tight as I faced the crowd determined to let them see how unaffected I was by all this.

"Council Elders," Dan’s voice boomed, his Alpha command vibrating through the chamber.

"Before I register my mating ceremony date with my mate, I have something to say. Chloe Keaton is the mate the Goddess chose, and as such, she will hold the title. She will manage the pack’s laws and lead the female ranks."

My eyes widened in surprise just as a murmur of confusion rippled through the members present. I was just as confused.

Had he just been putting on an act to see how I'd react in difficult situations?

"But," Dan continued, his voice dropping into a low, intimate rumble as he looked at the woman beside him, "we all know that the heart does not always follow the Goddess’s decree.” He paused looking back at me then looked away.

“Bonnie has returned. She is the only one I love. Therefore, while Chloe remains Luna in name, Bonnie will enjoy every privilege, every protection and every honor that comes with the title. I want Danemark Pack to have two Lunas. One for duty and one for my heart."

My jaw dropped open with cheering hitting my ears.

What were they cheering for? Was I the only one who understood how absurd this whole situation was?

How problematic? Yet, they cheered him on for being so graceful and innovative.

Am I that hated among the packs?

Bonnie looked at me with a tiny smile playing on her lips. She had been gone for five years, and in one night, she had dismantled everything I had worked for.

Dan finally turned his golden eyes on me. They were cold and devoid of the warmth I had spent years dreaming of. "Step forward, Chloe. Let's get this over with."

I glared at him as my inner wolf let out a howl of pure and unadulterated rage. I felt the snap of something deep inside me.

I recognised it as the final thread of my loyalty breaking. This was how far I could go.

"No," I said. My voice wasn't loud, but it carried the weight of five years of suppressed pain.

Dan’s brow furrowed. "What did you say?"

"I said no." I stepped back from the platform, my own aura flaring with a sharp intensity that made even the members present blink.

"I will not be your figurehead Luna. I will not be the mask you wear to keep the pack satisfied while you parade your mistress in my face.” I glared at him with intensity.

“Keep your title, Dan. I refuse to be part of this circus because this is what this is, a fucking joke." The curse had slipped out before I could rein myself in.

I turned my back on him and the stunned silence of everyone present, walking off without a single backward glance.

Chloe's pov

I didn't waste time mourning. While the members were still reeling from the disastrous scene, I was in the Alpha's estate, stripping the Luna’s rooms of my life.

I packed one suitcase full of the things that were solely mine.

As I looked around the room to make sure that nothing of mine was left behind, I heard angry footsteps and the next thing I knew, the door to the master suite was kicked open.

Dan stood there, his eyes glowing gold. Ordinarily, I would be terrified and looking for a way to calm him down but today, I merely graced him with a cool glance before I continued my check.

"Chloe." He yelled.

"I'm right here, Dan, what are you screaming for?"

"What the hell is this?" he roared, his scent of woodsmoke and his fury filling the room.

"I’m leaving, Dan," I said, my voice calm as I zipped my suitcase. "I'm sure Bonnie will be happy to take the heart Luna rooms."

"You aren't going anywhere!" He moved with Alpha speed to pin my wrist against the dresser. The heat of the bond flared and the treacherous spark I fought to ignore flared wildly between us.

"Grandpa has been asking about the registration. He dotes on you, Chloe. He’s the only reason the pack members are still considerate to you. You’re going to that banquet and you’re going to act like the Luna he expects."

I yanked my arm back, my wolf snarling at the surface of my skin. "Elder Bryce is the only person in this pack who treated me with actual respect. He saw me as a leader when you only saw me as a convenience."

"Chloe, be very careful." He warned.

"I don't have to listen to you anymore. Because I respect him, I won’t let him be lied to anymore." I looked Dan dead in the eyes.

"I’m going to the banquet but not as your mate. I’m going to tell the Elder myself that I am rejecting you. I want him to hear it from me before the pack gossip reaches him."

Dan’s face went pale. "You wouldn't dare. You’ve been by my side for five years, Chloe, I know you well. You don't have the strength to reject an Alpha."

"You’ve spent five years mistaking my patience for weakness," I whispered.

"Watch how strong I can be when I have nothing left to lose." With that déclaration, I yanked my hand from his and stalked towards the door.

I really was done with him.

The drive to the Elder’s villa was a suffocating one. When we arrived, the courtyard was filled with high-ranking wolves from the neighboring territories.

As we stepped inside, the atmosphere shifted instantly. Every head turned and the whispers were sharper than before.

"Look at her," a young Beta whispered. "The Alpha's shadow finally stepped out of his light. She’s not even looking at him."

"I heard she walked off the dais last night. Since when does a fated mate have the spine to defy an Alpha command?"

For some reason, Dan was waiting for me when I stepped out of the car so I was sure he had heard the whispers, too.

Dan felt the shift. He tried to reach for my hand to project an image of unity for the Elders but I pulled away.

I pulled a silk scarf from my bag and wrapped it around my palm to create a barrier so I wouldn't have to feel the electric hum of his skin.

"Chloe," he whispered urgently. "All eyes are on us." I hissed and walked ahead of him so he could understand that I really was done with him.

I saw Yvonne, my stepmother, across the room. She was already preening, her eyes landing on me with such false sweetness it made my skin crawl.

"Chloe, dear." she said, her voice carrying through the hall.

"We were all so worried when you didn't post the mating registry last night. Don't tell me you're still being difficult? Dan is an Alpha so he has needs that go beyond a simple bond. You should try to be more understanding even as we both know that's not your strongest character."

I smiled at her then glared at her with a sharp expression that made her falter. "It's quite all right, Yvonne. You don't have to worry about the registry anymore."

"Oh?" She smirked, glancing at the door where Bonnie was just entering. "Finally accepted that Bonnie is back to stay?"

"No," I said, my voice cutting through the noise of the room. "I’ve accepted that I’m done with him."

The room went dead silent, showing that they had been watching and listening to me since I first walked in.

An oppressive weight suddenly settled over the hall as the air grew heavy with the smell of air and thunder.

Dan was standing right behind me, his Alpha aura flaring so violently it felt like a physical blow. He loomed over me, his shadow swallowing mine.

"Chloe..." he growled, the sound of a low, vibrating warning that started in the pit of his stomach.

"Who exactly are you done with? I have been patient with you all day yesterday because I know you needed time to adjust but you're now pissing me off."

I turned slowly to

look up into his furious and glowing golden eyes without flinching. "With you, Dan. I'm done with all of it."

Chloe's pov

"What did you just say you're done with?" Dan’s voice was a low, dangerous vibration that made the silverware on the table rattle.

I didn't let my heart rate spike. I didn't let my scent sour with fear. His predatory nature would latch on to whatever weakness he could find and find a way to take me down with it so I looked him dead in his glowing gold eyes and smiled.

"I said I'm done with you, Dan. Is your wolf’s hearing failing or are you just slow?"

Around us, the banquet hall was a vacuum of silence. Yvonne, my stepmother, looked like she’d swallowed a silver bullet, her scent spiking with pure panic on my behalf.

Kyana, my half-sister, was vibrating with a mix of shock and poorly hidden glee. She was happy that I was finally going to meet my Waterloo.

Dan’s fingers dug into my shoulder, his Alpha aura flaring in a desperate attempt to force my submission. "Stop this, Chloe. You're making a scene in front of the Elders. We're going to wish my grandfather a happy birthday, and you're going to act like a Luna."

He marched me toward the head table, his grip like shackles around me. Bonnie followed close behind, her sweet sickening scent trailing after us like a bad case of rashes.

"Elder Bryce," I said, forcing my voice to be smooth as we reached the head of the room. "May the Moon Goddess grant you many more seasons of strength."

"Chloe!" Bryce boomed, his old wolf’s eyes crinkling. "You look radiant. I was just telling the Council, your official bonding ceremony is only a month away. I'm aware you went to register it today, right?"

Dan’s heart hammered against my side. He intervened before I could speak. "We are supposed to, grandpa but something came up, we will need to go back again for the registration,”

Bryce gave him a sharp look. "Make it the day after you return from the Hugrove territory, Dan. No more delays."

"He won't be going to the Council with me, Elder Bryce," I said, my voice cutting through the celebratory atmosphere like a cold front.

The table went still. Dan’s grip on my shoulder turned bruising. "Chloe, shut up," he hissed under his breath.

I didn't shut up. "Dan wasn't at the Council early yesterday because he was hosting a private welcome party for Bonnie. He spent the night in her quarters while I sat at the Council waiting for him."

Leaving the part of how he arrived with Bonnie out and all the shenanigans he said in order not to anger the old man on his day.

I pulled a crumpled slip of paper from my clutch and dropped it onto the white tablecloth."There will be no auspicious date because I’ve already rejected him."

The silence that followed was deafening. Bonnie let out a small, staged gasp while Dan’s face went from pale to a humiliated purple.

Elder Bryce’s eyes flashed with danger but before he could do anything, Dan tried to salvage the optics. He grabbed a shrimp from a platter and started to peel it with trembling hands.

"She's just emotional, Grandpa. Look, I'm taking care of her." He held the shrimp out to my mouth, a desperate command in his eyes. "Eat, Chloe. Stop this nonsense."

"I’m allergic to seafood, Dan," I said, my voice carrying to every table in the room.

"Even a small bite would shut down my throat and trigger a forced shift but you’ve been so focused on Bonnie’s return, you’ve forgotten the last five years of my life."

Bryce stood up, the sheer force of his presence knocking over his chair. "You didn't know?" he thundered at Dan. "You don't know your own mate's allergies?"

Before Dan could defend himself, a smooth voice interrupted. "Why are we all yelling at each other? I want to know, too."

The voice was like dark velvet, vibrating with a level of power that made every wolf in the room instinctively bow their heads.

My heart stopped because I knew that voice well.

Modric Danemark strode toward the table with the effortless, predatory grace of a true king. Dressed in a charming black suit, his eyes were piercing and cold.

At sixteen, I had accidentally confessed my love to him in a dark hallway, mistaking him for Dan. I had been running from that memory and his overwhelming scent ever since.

"Dad," Modric said, nodding to Bryce. "Sorry I'm late. It seems I arrived just in time for the execution."

"Uncle Modric," Dan muttered, his scent turning sharp with genuine terror. He was terrified of the man who actually ran the Danemark Empire.

Modric’s gaze swept over the table, landing on me. A faint, knowing smirk played on his lips. "I came back to see a Luna take her place. I didn't realize I’d be watching an Alpha lose his."

Dinner became a nightmare after that. Bryce was too livid to speak to Dan and Bonnie in a desperate bid for attention managed to "accidentally" cut her finger on a wine glass.

"Oh! Dan, it hurts..." she whimpered.

"Grandpa, I have to take her to the infirmary. She’s bleeding." He didn't even look at me as he swept her out of the room.

He didn't realize that by leaving me there with the Elders after I'd publicly rejected him, he’d just handed me my freedom on a silver platter.

"I’m leaving, Elder Bryce." I said softly, standing up. "I have a territory dispute to mediate at dawn."

Bryce looked at me with deep regret, then glanced at his third son. "Modric. Take her home and I don't mean to Dan's estate. Take her wherever she wants to go."

Minutes later, I was trapped in the back of Modric’s SUV. The air was thick with his oppressive Alpha presence. I expected him to mock me but he remained silent as we tore through the night.

"Where to?" he asked, his voice low. "I know for a fact you aren't going back to the den you shared with that boy."

I hesitated, then gave him the address to my own apartment downtown. "The Heights."

His aura cooled instantly. "The Heights. Drive."

I stared out the window, avoiding his reflection. "Is the scene outside that fascinating, Chloe?" he asked suddenly. "Or are you just afraid that if you look at me, you’ll have to admit you’re finally free of the lie?"

"I'm just tired, Modric." I whispered. "Wake me when we get there."

I didn't think I’d actually sleep, but the scent of cedar acted like a sedative. When I woke, a heavy blanket had been draped over me.

Modric was focused on his laptop, earphones in, his sharp profile illuminated by the screen. He was ignoring me, giving me the one thing Dan never did: space to breathe.

I unbuckled and slid out into the night. As I reached my door, I looked back at the SUV. I could feel his eyes on me.

It felt freeing to finally be in a space of my own.

"I'm done," I whispered to the empty room. "I'm finally done."

Chloe's POV

The silence of my apartment at The Heights was the first real peace I’d known in more than five years.

It wasn't just the lack of noise or lack of someone else's presence. It was the absence of Dan’s oppressive cologne plus the sickly sweet smell that Bonnie wore all the time. Combine the two, and it threatens to blow your head off and not in a good way.

My inner wolf was usually a ball of energy that had curled into a tight ball in the corner of my mind, exhausted from the public humiliation from our fated mate. This was a rarity for my wolf, and it brought my mood down, too.

I walked out to my small balcony that looked out over the flickering lights of the city. As a high-ranking wolf, living among humans in a flashy apartment was a statement of rebellion.

My father, Alpha Donald, hated it. To him, the Heights as a neighborhood was a fishbowl that put wolves on display.

According to him, it was for weaklings such as myself who couldn't handle the raw power of the Steele Pack's territory. I had stopped trying to prove him wrong.

I checked my bank balance on my phone. It was a modest sum, built from years of acting as a law speaker and mediator for territory disputes.

Unsurprisingly, it was the kind of work my father considered unladylike and also beneath me as an Alpha’s daughter.

I was just a few thousand dollars short of buying this unit outright. Once I did, I wouldn't just be independent, it would make me untouchable.

Of course, the peace didn't last. My phone vibrated with an urgent link from my father.

"Chloe, bring Dan home for dinner tonight," Alpha Donald’s voice boomed through the speaker.

He cut straight to the point without stopping to ask about my personal affairs. "Yvonne has prepared the celebratory feast. Come back early."

I was pretty sure he would have heard of my stunt at the party last night, but as usual, he was choosing to ignore me.

To him, my decisions were nothing but an attempt to go against him. Or maybe he was assuming that an Alpha’s command could overrule a wolf’s public rejection.

"I’m not calling Dan, Father," I said in a hard tone. "If you want him there, you invite him. I’ll simply show up to make things clear in person." I hung up before I could hear his response.

I arrived at the Steele Pack Estate at 5 p.m., still dressed in my standard mediation suit for Pack lawyers.

The heavy doors to the main house were opened by Sherry, our longtime housekeeper and the only person who still addressed me with respect due to my mother’s lineage.

"You’re back, Little Luna," Sherry whispered, barely keeping the pride from her normal stoic expression.

"Not a Luna, Sherry," I corrected gently, patting her hand. "Just Chloe."

The moment I stepped into the foyer, the air around me turned sour. My father stood at the top of the stairs, his Alpha aura flared just enough to make the air feel heavy.

Beside him stood Yvonne, my stepmother. She was as always in a gown that was two sizes small for her frame and a perfume that showed just how desperate she was.

"Why didn't you change into something more appropriate before coming back?" Donald demanded, his eyes raking over my suit with disapproval.

"Arguing laws like a common beta is one thing, but appearing before your mate like this is a disgrace."

"I told you, he isn't my mate anymore." I said, walking past him toward the lounge. I stopped in my tracks because the man I had just renounced was sitting comfortably on the couch.

Dan looked up at me, and I recoiled at the possessive heat that flared in his face. It made my skin crawl.

"Why are you here?" I didn't bother to hide my displeasure.

"I phoned Dan and told him to come. That was what you told me, Chloe." My father came to his rescue, offering him an apologetic smile.

"Don't take her attitude to heart, Dan. Chloe has always been blunt and careless with her words."

Dan’s lips curved into a smirk that didn't reach his eyes. "That’s exactly what I like about her, Alpha Donald. She has a fire that needs to be, eh, tempered."

I let out a growl of disgust that took Dan aback. He didn't expect I would be this vocal in front of my father. He must have hoped to use his presence to worm his way back into my life.

"Where are your manners?" My father roared. If Bonnie was around, it would bring her to her knees. Me? I was unfazed.

"You guys go ahead and eat," I said, turning my back on them. "I have no appetite for whatever theater you’re performing tonight."

I headed upstairs to my old room, needing a moment of solitude before the inevitable explosion, but when I pushed the door open, I found it blocked.

I pushed until the door gave way. It pained me to find that my room had been stripped of my belongings.

"Chloe, you should really learn to knock before barging into my room."

I turned to see Kyana, my half-sister, leaning against the doorframe. She looked smug, and like her mother, her perfume couldn't mask her desperation.

"Your room?" I narrowed my eyes. "Kyana, you have five minutes to explain why my room is full of your trash."

"Your room is bigger," she shrugged. "And you don't even live here anymore. What’s wrong with me using the space? You’re not really getting your fur in a bunch over something this small, are you?"

It wasn't about the space, it was the way she and her equally trash mother were trying to erase me from the house I grew up in.

I didn't say another word to her. Instead, I simply bent down, scooped up a heavy box, and hurled it straight out of the window.

"Chloe, are you crazy? What are you doing?" she shrieked.

"Let's find out."

Chloe's Pov

The commotion upstairs finally brought the "Alpha" of the house's attention upstairs. He stood at the landing and stared at the mess that Kyana had created in my room, but the growing fury on his face was mostly directed at me.

"Yvonne, go see what these children are fighting about." He snapped at Yvonne, who was still out of view.

Yvonne glided up beside him, her fake smile still firmly in place. "Honestly, Chloe, every time you come home, you end up distressing our Kyana. She’s still so young."

"She’s twenty-two, Yvonne," I snapped. "If she hasn't learned common etiquette by now, it’s because her mother failed to teach her. If she acts like this in public, the neighboring packs will think the Steeles have no upbringing."

That knocked the smile off her face. "We’ll talk about renovations later. This villa is due for a change anyway."

"Sure," I replied coolly. "But why bother renovating when you can have Dad buy Kyana a whole new territory as her dowry? After all, my mother’s ghost might not like the new decor."

Mentioning my mother was a low blow, and I knew it, but so was her mentioning renovating the mansion when this place was the only place that still had traces of the life my mother lived.

By the time I went back downstairs, Dan and my father were standing in the foyer in a hushed conversation.

"Alright, it’s getting late," my father said in a light, jovial tone. "Dan just returned from the border. Chloe, go back with him and take good care of your mate. Let him rest."

"It is not my place to take care of him." I said, stepping into the light.

"Let’s go, Chloe." Dan said, completely ignoring what I had just said as he followed me out to the car. "We still have to register the mating at the Council tomorrow, don't we?"

I whirled around to look him in the eye. "I told you, Dan, we are done."

Dan’s patience snapped. He grabbed my shoulders and dug his fingers into my skin hard enough to break it. "Enough of this rubbish, Chloe! Bonnie is my sister. How many times do I have to explain that?"

"As soon as you convince yourself of that."

"What?"

"Can you promise on your precious wolf that you won't ever see her again for the rest of your life?"

He looked away from me. "See? You can't do it. Just thinking about what goes through your mind when you look at her makes my wolf sick with disgust."

With a growl of pure frustration, Dan shoved me into the passenger seat door of his SUV. "You can be disgusted all you want, but a rejection? That’s not happening. You’re mine until the Goddess says otherwise."

With that, he shoved me into the passenger seat of his car. He didn't wait for me to buckle myself in before he drove out of the compound like a rogue on steroids.

I watched as the car went faster and faster. "You might be done with your useless life, but I'm not. Slow down or I'm going to shift here and rip your car out."

The only thing Dan cherished more than Bonnie was his collection of cars. His jaw clenched as he eased off the accelerator.

Soon, we reached the Danemark Estate. I didn't wait for him to say anything else. I went straight to the guest quarters. He followed me in, but he went upstairs to the master suite.

He must not be in the mood to force me to do anything. I fell back on the bed and fished in my bag for the burner phone I used to monitor the pack's social links.

Right now, there was only one person on my feed: Bonnie Peters. She had just posted something only five minutes ago.

I clicked on it. It was a picture of a rare moon-cut diamond that had been privately auctioned for the price of 47 million dollars with the caption, 'A welcome home gift from my brother. He's the sweetest.'

A knock sounded on my door, and I quickly hid the phone. I was not surprised to find Dan standing there. He looked a little bit guilty as he held out a small box.

"I saw a style you liked while I was at the border," he said. "I picked it up for you."

If I hadn't just seen Bonnie’s post, I might have been fooled, but looking at the box only made me get more clarity. I was nothing but an afterthought to him.

"That’s too kind of you," I said with a forced smile. "You really shouldn't have spent so much on me."

"It’s nothing," he shrugged, his irritation returning. "I’m just reminding you. Council at ten tomorrow. Don't oversleep."

My real phone buzzed. I looked down to find a message from Kyana: "Serena, are you with Dan? Wanna bet Bonnie could call him away with one link?"

She deleted it immediately, but the damage was already done.

"Chloe, I’m talking to you," Dan snapped.

"Register tomorrow. Got it."

Right there and then, his phone rang. He checked, and his entire demeanor changed instantly from cold to desperate in a heartbeat.

"Bonnie," he said breathlessly. "Where are you? I’m coming right now. Wait for me."

He didn't even look back at me. He sprinted for the stairs, and seconds later, I heard his SUV roar out of the courtyard.

The entire thing made me burst into laughter. What a joke!

I didn't waste another second. I pulled my suitcase back out. This time, I was thorough. I pettily packed every silk shirt I had ever bought for him. I sprayed a new perfume that masked my own scent.

Dragging my traveling suitcase downstairs, I ran into one of his housemaids. "My lady, are you going on another mediation?"

"No, dearie," I said confidently. "I’m leaving and never coming back, tell that to your little Alpha when he comes back." As I said those words, it felt more convincing to me than the last time. I knew it was the best decision because of how at peace I felt even though I will be going solo now, never fully count myself as part of my father's pack members.