Reagan’s POV Although we were traveling in a luxury car, the journey was so long. Not because Phillip was driving slowly. But because of the silence. I had never known Sam to be so quiet for so long. Every time I looked at her, she looked deep in thought.Whenever I asked her if she was okay, she brushed me off, telling me she was thinking about Frank and how, if she hadn’t bothered. No one else would have. The thought saddened me, as everyone deserves to be remembered. “The funeral director has Frank’s service file. It may contain a picture. You could put it in a frame in your new home,” I suggested to Sam. I don’t think Caspian would mind considering his office is full of pictures of our ancestors. I began to think about who would remember me after I was gone. When Caspian thought I was dead, he still remembered me. Then I had a sad thought. What if the people who tried to kill me then went after Caspian? Sure, we would have been remembered as the Alpha Kings, and our names woul
Samantha’s POV “If I cover for you, can you run home and get my spare sneakers?” Garth asked me, smiling and pointing at his feet. “Go yourself. Why do you need your spares, anyway?” I snapped. Garth knows I’ve missed too many training sessions lately. Xavier, the pack’s head warrior, wouldn’t hesitate to report me if I missed anymore. He’s a stickler for the rules. I’ve dedicated so much time to my Luna duties lately that I am on the brink of failing warrior training. Axel would be so disappointed with me. I want to avoid giving him any excuse to say I’m not ready to be Luna, especially when my ceremony is so close. Besides that, Garth asking me to run his errands is a joke. Since I’m the future Luna of the Shadow Pack. Garth, the pack’s Gamma, shouldn’t be asking me to do anything. I watched as Garth bent down and pulled the sneaker off his foot, lifting it to my face. He then poked a finger through a hole in the sole. How could he have missed such a large hole when putti
Alpha Axel’s POV I was goofing off in town with Jaxon and Garth. When Gunner caught her scent. I’ll never forget how focused Gunner was. He forced himself forward and tracked the scent to find his soulmate. The entire time, I couldn’t figure out who had just had their eighteenth birthday. I was less than thrilled to find out it was ‘sensible Samantha.’ She was a few years younger than me, but from what I remember about her, she always had her nose in a book and was at the top of the class in most subjects. Her parents were killed a few years ago in a rogue attack, and she has lived independently since then. I don’t think I have ever spoken to her until she became Gunner’s mate. We socialized in different circles, otherwise I would have known a lot more about her. It’s not that I have a problem with her, she’s just so boring and plain. She’s not engaging or attractive, nor is she visually the kind of woman I am attracted to. To me, nothing was appealing about her. I also did
Alpha Axel’s POV When Samantha’s Luna dress arrived, my mom arranged a special dressing room. Only a select few could go into that sacred room, and Mom said to keep it locked. Ever so compliant, Samantha agreed without hesitation. Gunner was ecstatic, knowing the day was approaching for him to claim his mate. But every time I walked past that room, I got a sense of dread and wanted to rip the door off its hinges and destroy the dress. I hadn’t grown to love Samantha like everyone thought I would. But as I walked past the dressing room on my way to town, I noticed the door was ajar. I was curious, as I knew Samantha would do anything my mom suggested and that she was at basic training with Garth. I pushed the door to check that no one was inside. As it swung open, I stared at the woman inside wearing the white gown, Lily. I had no notice and Gunner saw her. He growled in anger. I quickly blocked him out, fearing what he would do. As I entered the room, I couldn’t help but stare at
Lily’s POV I couldn’t believe what I had done. I held my breath as I expected Gunner to force himself forward and kill me. Samantha was as important to him as Zola was. But after taking a dozen deep breaths, I looked at Axel and internally grinned. That’s when I knew for sure Axel didn’t want her. My plan worked. He was choosing me over her. This was my chance. My chance to become Luna was within reach. All I have to do is get rid of Samantha once and for all. “She’s our Luna. Don’t you dare harm her,” my wolf Fran snarled at me. “No, she’s not. Axel doesn’t want her and Gunner hasn’t marked her.” This shuts Fran up. She knows I’m right. “She’s our friend,” Fran counters. “No, she’s competition. I’m the one who deserves to be Luna.” I retorted. Because that is what Samantha is. She is the one thing stopping me from becoming the most powerful woman in the Shadow Pack. At that moment, I knew how far I was prepared to go to fulfill my dream. “Get into town and do your
Samantha’s POV My eyes flickered open. I tried to rub them, but I couldn’t move my arms from restrained above my head. I cried, as the last thing I could remember was Axel choking me. The next thing I know is that I am tied up. “Zola, what’s going on?” I whimpered, fearing her answer. The chains rattled as I tried to free myself. Hearing movement from somewhere, I called out, “What’s going on?” That was when I caught a glimpse of Lily moving around. Lily had been my best friend since we were young. She was the one I turned to when my parents were killed. As I had no family, Lily was the one I shared all of my precious moments with her. “She was also the one being banged by Axel,” “Wolfsbane,” Zola warned, when Lily approached me. “Why are you doing this?” I cried, not understanding what Lily was doing. Her response floored me. I had taken nothing of hers, nothing. Gunner was fated to Zola. As she got closer, I became frantic. There was only one reason I could do to protect my
Garth’s POV I may be the pack’s Gamma, but Xavier made everyone aware of why he was the pack’s head warrior. Just before he knocked me unconscious, I hoped Samantha was enjoying herself. Cal, my wolf, was still healing my injuries when Lily’s mind link came through. Xavier hadn’t realized Samantha was missing from warrior training and immediately started searching for her. I ran as fast as I could to the packhouse, which was when I saw a hysterical Lily being comforted by Jaxon on the porch. “Axel is searching the packhouse, trying to catch Samantha’s scent so she can be tracked.” He told me. Eventually, when Lily could speak. She confessed to being caught by Samantha while she tried on Samantha’s Luna dress. Lily said Samantha went berserk. Which is understandable. That dress is important to both Samantha and the pack. It signifies our Alpha’s union with his mate. What the hell was Lily thinking? According to Lily, Samantha vanished while Lily was changing. Which was when L
Garth’s POV I took a deep breath, covered my face with my shirt, and held it in place. Why wouldn’t Axel and Jaxon tell me what they are hiding? I questioned, as I cautiously took my first step down to the interrogation room. Cal was going crazy because of the wolfsbane. “I’ll be careful,” I assured him. As I neared the bottom, I kept my eyes peeled in case I was attacked. Focusing on my surroundings, something on the step caused me to slip. I quickly regained my composure and realized it was the missing cleaver from the kitchen. I picked it up. “What the goddess is this doing down here?” I questioned. Compared to all the knives down here, this is useless. I worriedly looked around the room and couldn’t help but notice the cupboards were open. My eyes moved to the cell. There was something or someone in there. All I could see was the bare back of the person. From the size of the person in the fetal position, it could either be an older teenager or a woman. Their skin was gray, an
Reagan’s POV Although we were traveling in a luxury car, the journey was so long. Not because Phillip was driving slowly. But because of the silence. I had never known Sam to be so quiet for so long. Every time I looked at her, she looked deep in thought.Whenever I asked her if she was okay, she brushed me off, telling me she was thinking about Frank and how, if she hadn’t bothered. No one else would have. The thought saddened me, as everyone deserves to be remembered. “The funeral director has Frank’s service file. It may contain a picture. You could put it in a frame in your new home,” I suggested to Sam. I don’t think Caspian would mind considering his office is full of pictures of our ancestors. I began to think about who would remember me after I was gone. When Caspian thought I was dead, he still remembered me. Then I had a sad thought. What if the people who tried to kill me then went after Caspian? Sure, we would have been remembered as the Alpha Kings, and our names woul
Sam’s POV It was three days until Frank’s funeral and only five days until the full moon. Five days until I will be marked. I still have my apprehensions, but Zola didn’t. She felt Caspian was my true mate, but to find him, something dramatic had to happen. Whereas I think it’s the goddess trying to make amends.Reagan and I planned on travelling to South View after the funeral, so that I could share my news with Ellie. I didn’t know how she would take it, as I still hadn’t told her about Caspian. I was hoping she would come back with us as Ellie will want to meet Capsian. The main concern I have is that she’s not a social person. But then again, she hasn’t been around many wolves. What if they insult her? She’s likely to kill someone with that power of hers. But that is a worry for another day.But what would happen afterward? Will I want to share Caspian’s life with him at the palace? It’s nice and all, but I am constantly escorted around, and it doesn’t have the freedom a home sho
Reagan’s POV “I believe this is bigger than I first thought,” Richard told me. I grew concerned about my old friend. “Be careful and keep me updated,” I told him. If what he discovered was worth killing me over. He may paint a target on his own back, and with him being out there alone, no one would know for a while. “I will,” he said before he hung up the phone. I spun the chair around and stared out of the large window. The view from here has always been a favorite; that’s why I made it my office. “I should help him,” I told myself. But if the intention was to kill me, I could be giving them another opportunity. If the intention was to dethrone me as the Alpha King, then mission accomplished because the title has been handed over. But I didn’t know which one it was. The door bursting open behind me pulled me from my thoughts. Caspian rushed through it with a huge grin on his face, and he was dragging Sam behind him. She hadn’t come to our suite last night, so perhaps Caspian’s pl
Sam’s POV I rolled over and thumbed the hard lump under my head. But I hit something solid, something that moved. I instantly freaked and thrashed about, screaming, fearing the worst. “Sam, Sam. It’s OK,” a voice told me. I quickly recognized that it belonged to Caspian. As I calmed myself down, Caspian threw his arm over me and dragged me to him. The closeness to him helped me relax.“What am I doing in bed with you?” I asked him when I was ready.He moved a piece of hair off my face. “You fell asleep last night, and I didn’t want to wake you. So I carried you to bed.” He sniffed my hair and then kissed the top of my head. “I haven’t slept that well in a long time,” he told me gently.I want to be annoyed with Caspian. This wasn’t the deal. We move at my pace. But how could I be mad? I had the best dream. I was in my family home with my mom and dad. We were eating dinner at the table. It was an ordinary family event, and the meal was nothing special. But they were there, and we were
Reagan’s POV Sam and I have slept in the same suite since we arrived. Sam takes the bedroom, but she leaves the door open as she likes to know I’m around. This upsets Caspian, as she is still closer to me than him. But should that change, he is more than welcome to sleep on the couch.A positive outcome of Sam spending time with Caspian is that her nightmares are less intense. I know she still has them, but she doesn’t wake up screaming.Whereas in my dreams, my dark-haired mystery woman continues to taunt me. When she touches me, I feel alive even though I can’t move or speak. She runs her fingers through my hair and over my skin, sending sparks of electricity to my core. Although I have had many sexual encounters in my life, none of these women has ever made me feel the way she does.My dreams are so intense that I have to rush to the bathroom most mornings. So Sam doesn’t interrupt me while I deal with my erection. I like to think that the mystery woman is my mate, and I am dreami
Reagan’s POV It took Caspian and me several days to review and fix all those files he signed. Like hell was I doing it alone, as I wasn’t the Alpha King anymore. Caspian needed to learn how to fix his mistakes. The Wolf Council was not happy either, as their workload had just increased. But they should have done their damned jobs in the first place. “I hope you have learned from this,” I told Caspian.“Reagan. I’ve taken full responsibility for my screw-ups. But I don’t know how these files made it past these reports got past the Wolf Council without being investigated.” He told me this daily, and he raised a good point; whoever was responsible for the investigation knew they were passing incomplete files to Caspian. I just can’t figure out how they got him to sign them off. One, maybe two, could have slipped past him in the early days. But there were dozens, and it had been going on for weeks.“Could you live with yourself knowing an innocent person suffered or died because of your
Sam’s POV Caspian was beaming as he invited me to see the private palace gardens. “Won’t you get in trouble with the Alpha King? What if he finds out I’m there?” I told him I would offend him unintentionally. Zola also had her concerns. “If he tries to have me sent to the dungeons again, I am out of here!” Caspian looked like he was thinking, and then told me the Alpha King was with Reagan. “I only got the head of security job because Reagan went missing. I was the second choice for the position. I never thought I would get it. Now Reagan’s back, and classed as my advisor, the Alpha King prefers to talk to him rather than me,” he said, snickering.I followed Caspian as he walked along the empty hallways. Then he stopped in front of a glass door. I felt naughty as I walked through it. But once I took a few steps outside, I forgot all about the Apha King. It was beautiful. Everywhere you looked, there were beautifully pruned flowers in every imaginable color.Caspian walked beside me
Reagan’s POV Although I have never needed the services of Dr. Monroe, I have met him many times over the years. I have relied on him for his medical knowledge more than anything. He is also an asset to have around for those people who are wolfless or pregnant.At first, he felt awkward, and he kept calling me ‘your majesty’. I was no longer the Alpha King, and I had to keep correcting him. In the end, he settled for calling me ‘sir’ as he didn’t feel comfortable calling me by my first name. To distract himself, he talked about the pregnancy spike within the kingdom. It was good to hear, as new pups meant the next generation was being born. He measured multiple parts of my body with a tape measure. “Do you have a preference on what style of leg you would like, sir?” I hadn’t even thought about it.“What are my options? What is your opinion?” I asked him.“This is not the sort of thing we offer in the wolf kingdom, so when I was asked about it. I did a quick bit of research on what hum
Reagan’s POV It felt strange walking into the Alpha King’s office. It was once a place where I spent a lot of my time. But now I am no longer the Alpha King, and it belongs to Caspian. So much has changed since I have been gone. Yet this room remained the same; Caspian hadn’t changed a thing. But everything in this room is a memory for us both. Portraits of our elders, pictures of our parents, and photos of us from our youth. There is even a picture of the family we were so close to once upon a time. I cherished that picture; it was our mom’s last photo before her murder.A man was sitting at Caspian’s desk. But my business here was to meet the Wolf Council. Phillip opened the door for me, and I made my way inside. Every man got to his feet and bowed his head in respect.I am no longer their superior, but they treated me as if I were. I took a seat opposite my brother, who now sits at the head of the table. Everyone sat down, except for George. He was a senior member of the Wolf Coun