Nell wasn’t privy to what was said at the Council meeting. Liam knew from the look on her face she was smarting about that. He consoled her in the only way he could: with kisses.“Is it dangerous, what they’ve asked you to do?”“How did you know?”“Actually, that’s not strictly true.”Robin. Her half-brother turned up at the most inopportune times.“Stay out of this,” he growled. Then: “Would you mind? I’d like some privacy with my Luna.”“Tell her, Alpha. Or you’ll regret it. Trust me, I know these things.”“You volunteered for whatever it is, didn’t you?”She was so astute, this not-so-small hybrid.“Someone needs to suss out the extent of Si’s madness, his ambitions. Why shouldn’t it be me?”Nell reached up a short way and put her arms round his neck.“Because I love you too much to lose you now,” she said.Liam turned sharply, but Robin was already fading away.“You two are so alike,” he murmured, rubbing noses with her.It gave him an idea.The disappointment on her face was kill
Nell was furious when Robin told her what else had been discussed at the Council. He’d not been present but had heard it second hand from Melas.“They talked him into it?”“No, listen to me, Arielle. It was his idea. The elders foresaw something like this coming and decided it could work to our advantage, ridding the territory of Simon Marchant and his supporters forever.”“Is that why you weren’t surprised when he mind linked me and told me he’d been imprisoned by his own brother?”“He also said help is on the way. A two-pronged attack always works better in any battle.”“Had much experience have you?” she huffed, folding her arms.It was then he saw fit to disclose his age and credentials. Her jaw dropped.“I suppose all of you think I’m just a baby.”“No, Arielle. Your coming was foretold long ago,” Melas said, appearing beside a silver birch.“That pipe’s empty,” she said. “At least, I can’t smell tobacco of any kind.” She saw their astonished faces. “Have I said something wrong?”
This time the plan was different. Josh was intending to confront Alpha Liam in person so as to obtain his money. He didn’t really want Nell. She suspected he never had. Thankfully, there were no physical demands and he didn’t say anything overly crude in front of her. There was a lot of cussing, but she supposed that was only natural in a frustrated male.“I keep telling you, Liam is Simon’s prisoner.”“Then I’ll negotiate with him, like before.”Well, that was news to her, and of the unwelcome kind at that.“Would you really kill my pups? They’re innocent,” she said.There was no point telling him one was destined to live among the elves; he would never have believed her. And she didn’t want to drag them into this, as well. Though perhaps such an ancient race of people would take it in their stride.“Maybe not, but the Alphas won’t know that.”Maybe? The inconclusive remark had her fretting all night. At least the motel room was clean and had twin beds. She turned towards the window,
Rae was outraged by Alpha Simon’s request – more of a demand, really – yet heartened by the news Louisa’s childhood friend was here. Then the nerves set in.“Have you seen him? What’s he like?”“You’ll be fine,” Alpha Liam said.“Trust me, they’re not all like you. Other Alphas, I mean.”Had she gone too far? The sound of raised hackles was all too familiar. Her father had been fond of that particular prelude to punishment. Rae hoped he was okay, though didn’t like to ask. This pack had its own troubles.Deborah came to her rescue. “You can say that again. Alpha Liam’s the best of the lot.”“No offence, Alpha,” she managed.“None taken, Rae.”Deliberately, she took an age to get ready, wanting to antagonise someone she now regarded as her ex. Then she panicked, hoping Alpha Brock wouldn’t think badly of her. The nerves were inexplicable. After today, she was unlikely to set eyes on him again.She chose her favourite blue dress and used make-up sparingly, in contrast to the past. As sh
He’d had time to think both before and after Rae’s arrival. They’d had a decent heart-to-heart as well. She deserved better than Si, that was for sure. Hearing that his twin was planning to oust him wasn’t a surprise – once, he would have welcomed the notion – but, for Nell’s sake, that couldn’t be allowed to happen.Liam knew she didn’t care for status given her appalling background circumstances. At least it hadn’t been all bad, though Martin Field was never going to be the same again. He was all she had now, him, the pups, the pack and not to forget the elves, though it wouldn’t be practical to live with them.Could he permit his hybrid pup to live elsewhere? Only if certain conditions were fulfilled. He’d want to see her regularly, that was for sure, and not because he didn’t trust Melas and Robin. After all, he was basing this on a prophecy delivered by Nell’s dying elf mother, something he had never thought to question.When Simon came by, in something of a hurry, he didn’t know
The pups arrived early, a girl and a boy just as her elvish mother had foretold. Nell was stuck for a name for her daughter and then she remembered the no-nonsense she-wolf Liam had met at that ball. Ida seemed to suit the baby, who relaxed whenever she lengthened the two syllables which identified her. Their son was to be known as Cal. She felt close to him, too, just not in the same way. It had been intriguing to discover elves had physically interacted with the pack before and that their blood was in the Alpha’s veins, the ethereal nature of their culture part of his DNA. Simon’s, too. Nothing had been heard from him for months but he lurked at the edge of her consciousness like the threat of the boogeyman which had disturbed her childhood dreams. Olivia was due to stand trial for murder soon. The remains of Rosemary Worthington Field were currently resting on a coroner’s slab while all the relevant forensic investigations were being undertaken. She supposed it would fall to her
They didn’t spot the gatecrashers at first. Most people were being announced; not this pair. Liam’s hackles rose immediately on seeing Jessica, the black-haired stunner he’d denied, and sure enough, Simon wasn’t far behind. They’d chosen the same colour suit, charcoal, he and his twin, which was less of a surprise than the couple’s audacity. How dare they intrude on what was supposed to be Nell’s belated special day? Though he supposed he should cut the she-wolf some slack. Even though there was no longer any mate bond connection, still he felt a tug of sympathy and something else less easy to define. His mate was simply ravishing in a golden ballgown and matching accessories. Holly had been delighted to help her select the right clutch and shoes, though Nell had chosen the dress herself. Off one shoulder, it complemented her new height, though his cousin had reported back she was apt to look through the petite rack. That made him smile. Alpha Brock had warned Nell he would claim
The Alpha King was deeply offended. He kept saying so to his security detail in front of a woozy Liam. At least the bleeding had stopped, thanks to his wolf’s superb healing abilities. Thom was both angry and whiny, distressed because he could no longer talk to Rose.What was that about? Was Nell so far away? Invisible, maybe. No, she wouldn’t do that to Ida.Unless she was in contact with her elvish kin. Rose would take a back seat if that were the case.Rae had insisted on tending to his injuries personally.“This is all my fault,” she said. “I should have overseen the issuing of the invitations. A plus one card went by courier to the Red Moon pack. When I found out I assumed they would decline or that Alpha Leo would attend just to show his face.”“Does Alpha Brock know?”She nodded.“He’s very angry with me for the slip up, though doesn’t blame me for – well, what happened afterwards. Do you?”Liam could hardly say so when she was dabbing at his head wound so carefully.“Maybe thi