ELARAAdrien and Aria’s cries fill the air as they clutch onto my dress tightly.“Mommy, who are they?” Aria asks.“Don’t worry, babies. I will protect you,” I assure them, my heart beating at a dangerous pace against my chest. “I will protect you,” I repeat.The man comes closer, and I run my knee into his crotch.He stumbles backward, holding his balls as he groans in pain. “Argghhh.”Before he can regain his balance, I kick him in the stomach with my foot. Remembering the little training Kieran has given me, I utilize all of it.The man reaches to punch me, but I duck and strike a blow to his stomach instead.“Little bitch!” he groans in pain as he grabs a fistful of my hair and pulls my head backward.I try to punch him, but the other man grabs my arms from behind, twisting them backward.“Fierce. I love it. I like to play with my prey,” he grins, his voice irritating my soul.“Take them away,” he instructs the man I have been fighting with.“No. No. Please. I beg you. Please leav
ELARAI have been driving for a while now. I have to park the car somewhere and run with my kids before Kieran is able to track the car.Swerving to the side, I park the car and unbuckle my seat belt.Thoughts of Isla cross my mind. I hate to leave her, but I have to. I am glad that Harold is mated to her because he will protect her.I don’t want to leave her with nothing, though. I have to let her know that I love her.Pulling out my phone, I send her a quick text.“I am sorry, Isla. But I had to leave Mountain Shadow. I couldn’t do it. Kieran hurt me so much, and I can’t just get over it. Please take care of yourself. I love you.”Then, I turn to look at my kids who are in the back seat. “Alright, babies. We have to go now.”“Where?” Aria asks.“I am going to show you the surprise,” I lie to them.“But there is no surprise here,” Adrien says with confusion on his little face.“I know. But we have to get down now and continue with another car.”“Why?” Adrien asks.“You’ll know when w
ELARAMy head, heart—everything—is hurting right now. The pain is just too much. I cannot think straight. I have to devise a plan to escape this place with my kids. Kieran will never allow us to leave if he learns that I’ve caught up on all his lies, which is why I must not confront him.I’ll just leave secretly and be far gone before he even suspects anything.The pack is heavily guarded. Those guards will not allow me to leave. I don’t know what the hell to do.The pain and frustration choking me is immeasurable.Think of something, Elara. Think fast.“Nyla, please come up with a plan. How do we leave with our pups?” I ask her.“I don’t know. This hurts, Elara,” she sobs.She is also hurting really badly. We have been betrayed by our mate. Again. We were so stupid to have believed him. He pretended so well that it looked real.An idea suddenly comes to my mind. I would get Kieran’s car and use it to drive out of the pack. His BMW 7 Series High Security is heavily tinted. Hopefully,
ELARA“What are you talking about?” I ask, my heart beating really fast as I search her face for answers.“I am really sorry, Elara. But Kieran brought you back here because of the prophecy,” she tells me.I hate this suspense.“What prophecy? Please get straight to the point.” My heart is beating out of control.“I heard Reid and Kieran discussing in the kitchen before he found you. They were talking about a prophecy. That Kieran had to find you and bring you back to the pack or he ran the risk of losing his Alpha title in the future,” she said, tears falling from her eyes. “I shouldn’t be telling you this, but you are my friend and friends don’t keep secrets from each other.”What she is saying is not making sense to me at all. Prophecy? I can’t wrap my head around it at all. Kieran brought me back to the pack because he regretted his actions. He brought me back because he loves me. Not because of some prophecy.Vivianne had to be lying.“I don’t believe you,” I blurt out.As I say
ELARAToday is the D-day. The day I will be crowned as the Luna of the Mountain Shadow Pack. The day I will be married to the love of my life. I cannot wait to be his. Forever.Isla and Vivianne are helping me get ready for the coronation. Isla has just finished doing my makeup, while Vivianne is doing my hair. I feel really pampered right now. I am truly blessed to have Isla by my side. I’m not sure about Vivianne, though. I don’t know why I’m still finding it hard to trust her, even though she has shown that she has repented.I am staring at my reflection in the mirror. I look really beautiful. I know that. The beige dress compliments my skin tone. It is a floor-length gown made of flowing chiffon, featuring delicate gold embroidery along the neckline and sleeves. It is simple, yet regal. I cannot wait for Kieran to see me.A knock suddenly sounds on the door.“Who is there?” Isla calls out.Kieran clears his throat. “It’s me. I am coming in now,” he says, and the next thing, the d
KIERANI want to be done with the stupid bet so fast. I don’t even take it easy on Vivianne as I am running at high speed.“Alpha, take pity on me. Remember, you are not competing with an Alpha, but a Beta,” Vivianne mind-links me.“You are the one who wants to race with an Alpha,” I reply as I continue moving fast.“This is really stupid. You forced me to do this. What do you think our Luna would think if she finds out that we are running with Vivianne?” Kai grumbles in my head.I know, right? I know I am making a terrible mistake right now. I should have just declined. The plan is to run to the west border and back to our starting point. As we continue moving, I suddenly catch the faint scent of a rogue.What the fuck? The borders are heavily guarded.Without hesitation, I change back to my human form. I have to catch whoever that is; they shouldn’t have gotten far.Vivianne changes back to her human form, her eyes widening as she looks at me.“Alpha, what happened?” she quickly ask