Dale’s POV Everything faded away. The voices, the music, the stares, and the murmurs. Nothing registered in my brain. All that existed was Amber and the thunderous pounding of my heartbeat. She was breathtaking. Literally. The red gown clung to her body like paint, swishing when she began to walk slowly towards me. My wolf growled, eager to sink our fangs into her neck and claim her. Mine. That was what everyone needed to know. She glowed like the sun, but it was her scent—the sweet smell of honey, moonflowers, and cinnamon—that shattered the last of my restraints. I reached for her without thinking, one hand gripping her waist and pulling her into my body and the other, tilting her chin up so I could look into those eyes. Amber. Beautiful, just like her name. Everything about her was so perfect it drove me crazy. The way her body was a perfect fit in mine, the way her lips parted slightly as if she was breathless, the way her eyes flickered between a glowing gold and warm
Dale’s POV ‘You should have marked her!’ My wolf was furious and had every right to be. I had regained control at the last minute, preventing what I supposed was going to be a disaster. I glanced at Amber sleeping peacefully beside me for a minute, and a part of me was thankful I had resisted the urge to sink my teeth into that succulent skin on her neck, placing my claim on her. Even now, after the whole intimacy was over, there was still that underlying fear that the worst moment was not here. I knew I should have held back—the last two times we had kissed, it always ended badly. And now, we even went as far as… I shook my head. Maybe I was overthinking things. It’s been hours, and nothing has happened—yet. Just as the thought slipped through my mind, Amber’s body tensed beside me. I felt the shift in the air before I saw her body move. I was up on my feet before I took my next breath. Her breathing became uneven, and her lips parted as if she was struggling to pull air into h
Trent’s POV (Bonus Chapter) Dale was losing his mind, and it was all the witch’s fault. And maybe Amber’s. But I couldn’t bring myself to fault her for anything given everything she’s been through. I never could have managed being apart from my wolf my entire life, thinking I never had one, and when I‘m finally told I have one, I have no access to it. She’s been through far worse than all of us in this room combined, and that was without counting all the memories she didn’t have. Besides, she wasn’t the one filling Dale’s head with ideas like sacrificing himself. That was all the witch, whom I still couldn’t bring myself to trust. Not after Gregg. The thought of him put a sour taste in my mouth. I glanced at the witch from the corner of my eye. From her aura and the way she carried herself—poised, confident, and stupidly proud for someone with her background—one could tell she was powerful. And with all that power, she still allowed herself to be used by Derrick? How was that
Dale’s POV Amber looked almost lifeless by the time I returned to the room. Where less than a few moments ago she had been burning hot, her body was now as cold as ice. A shiver reverberated down my spine as I lowered myself into the bed beside her. Her skin looked paler than before, almost translucent in the dim light. I glanced at Janine, who was still hunched over Amber, her hands working fervently to close wounds only for another one to reopen. She cursed under her breath, wiping her forehead with the back of her palm as if it was too hot in here. It wasn’t. I ground my teeth, squeezing Amber’s hand gently. “What is going on, Janine? Why is she so cold?”Janine shook her head, her fingers trembling as she tried not to meet my gaze. Probably because she did not want me to see the tears she was trying very hard to hold back. I thought I had gone past the point where I was blaming myself, but I couldn’t help it when the thought sneaked into my head. I did this! I lost cont
Amber’s POV There was fire everywhere. The flames were eating the roof away; it was like liquid, flowing with a ferocious force that wanted to swallow everything. I knew where I was. I was seeing another memory, but this time, I was inside a building, and the little girl was with two people. A man and a woman. Her parents? The woman had flaming red hair, the same color as mine and the smaller version of me. The man is coughing through the smoke, trying to hold the building up to give the woman enough time to scoop the girl up and dash to where the door used to be. Their voices were lost in the roaring flames, but I could see their mouths moving. The man was speaking frantically, shouting something at them. Then the woman left, running through fire with a smaller version of me in her arms. I couldn’t hear what they were saying, but I could tell the girl did not want to leave. She was crying out, reaching for her father. Then it was as if time stopped. I heard a deafening growl,
Ambers POV He freed her? What did he mean by he freed her? I frowned, trying to grasp at any fragments of memory that would help me understand what he was saying, but nothing. ‘Hello, Amber?’ A soft voice slithered into the back of my mind, causing me to almost jump out of my skin. I glanced at Alpha Dale with wide eyes, trying to steady my trembling hands. There was no way that sweet, feminine voice belonged to him. But then there was no one else present in the room with us. What in all of nine hells was that?A shudder rolled down my spine, and I gripped the sheets under me. I JUST HEARD A VOICE IN MY HEAD! Was that my wolf? That thought was even more disturbing than the idea that the voice could belong to another personality inside me. I took a deep breath in, arming myself with a response when something slammed into me. It was a weight of emotions, and it was crushing against the walls of my chest and sank deep into my bones. For a minute, I simply froze, my body
Amber’s POV I was nothing but a monster. A monster who had brought the end of an entire pack, including her own parents. Tears poured from my eyes as memories from my most recent dream flashed in my vision. My father, holding up burning wood so my mother could save me. Save the monster. My mother,going back for my father. She never came back. I should have stopped her, kept her with me, but… ‘You didn’t kill them.’ Athena said. Her voice was cold and detached, and it made my heart boil with anger. “No,” I growled. “You did! ”Why did I have a wolf at such a young age? Why did I allow her to cause so much destruction? This thing inside me… I would rather have no wolf than live with something like this… With my nails, I tore at my chest as if somehow I could dig enough to reach the wolf and pull her out. “You killed my parents!” I cried. “You slaughtered the entire pack. And now you’ve struggled your way out, again. Why?”I glanced at my reflection in the mirror. The injuries
Amber’s POV All I wanted was to breathe without the crushing weight of anger, regret, and guilt that was weighing heavily on my shoulders. I stormed through the hallways like a maniac, only pausing when I had to open doors. The footsteps behind me made me know that Fabian and Izzy were hot on my heels, their disapproving faces clear in my mind. Janine and Yeti were still far behind, and I was sure that once they caught up with me, they'd do everything within their powers to stop me. I turned a corner too quickly and stumbled on my feet, suddenly feeling dizzy. Finally, I was in the hallway where the meeting room was, and I was beginning to feel queasy, I wasn’t sure if it was because of how fast I was walking. Still, I took a moment to catch my breath before pressing on. “Amber, wait! ”I pressed harder as Janine’s voice filtered into my ears. Janine and Yeti were catching up, and from here, I could hear their panting breaths as it filled the spaces between us. “What the hell
Amber’s POV I paced the length of Janine’s small office space for what felt like the hundredth time and my arms wrapped tightly around myself. I shouldn’t be here. Alpha Dale was going to be furious – maybe – when he returned and didn’t find me. But I didn’t just want to seat and wait, like everyone was telling me. I wanted to see my friends. I needed to see for myself that Yeti was alive and well. But even after several hours of waiting in here, Janine still won’t let me see her. I tried not to think that she was punishing me for not looking after her well. Maybe she was punishing herself for ever doubting her… I ran a hand through my long hair which was now a scattered mess the same way Alpha Dale always did when he was frustrated with something that wasn’t going his way, and heaved a long sigh. Speaking of Alpha Dale, I felt him like a second person under my skin. Ever since the incident at the red moon when I tried to save him – I wasn’t even sure if that worked – I could fe
Dale’s POV The conference hall was colder and quieter than a grave. As soon as I stepped foot inside, their murmurings ceased and they lowered their heads to the ground like disobedient kids caught by their parents. The thoughts of kids made me think about Amber and the children we were expecting. With everything in me, I wanted to run back to her and never leave her side. But with everything that had happened, there was a lot I needed to do and the first thing was confronting a bunch of old men and women. Beta Trent was speaking to them, as was tradition. A formality that I had heard thousands of times. “This is the nine hundred and fifty-fifth meeting since…” it was almost the same, every time. The only things that changed, were the numbers and reasons for gathering, This time, I wanted to let them know they had no power above me. the council could be manipulated. We all knew that now. Donn had managed and succeeded to get in all of our heads – “Alpha…” my head snapped up as
Amber’s POV My eyes snapped open, blinking as light flooded my vision. My heart rate soared and panic welled up fast inside me. For a minute, all I saw was blurry shapes and figures. I groaned, trying and failing to push myself off the bed… I was in a bed? Why was I in a bed? Where was I? what – “Amber?” A voice called, halting my racing thoughts. There was an edge of desperation and familiarity in his voice that I recognized, but my brain was still booting and taking al the time in the world to respond. Through my blurry vision, a shape moved and warm skin touched my hand. “You’re awake.” His voice carried excitement and a hint of something I knew but I couldn’t place. I closed my eyes tight, waited for three seconds then snapped them open again. This times, I saw more than shapes. The silhouette of a person sat beside me and in a minute, my vision cleared enough for me to recognize the silhouette as Alpha Dale. “Alpha Dale,” I rasped, coughing to clear my dry throat. He shov
Amber’s POV It was settled. Derrick was insane and not only that, he was delusional as well. I clamped my mouth shut, biting the inside of my cheeks to keep me from laughing out loud. Was this his plan all along? To become our supreme Alpha? Was it just me or did he or his other followers not realize how ridiculous he sounded? I yanked my hand away from him and he growled, giving me the stink eye. “Do you not see it?” he asked. “The promise of a better life I am dangling in your face. Think of all the things we could accomplish together.” I gritted my teeth. “I’d rather die…” I spat out. “Than do anything with a killer such as yourself.” Shock and anger flickered across his features but he quickly masked with an amused expression. “Suit yourself then,” he laughed. “I gave you a choice, call it an olive branch but you’re slapping my hand away. Well, you no longer have a choice. You will do what I want else, they’ll be consequences.” I raised my brows. “Yes? Like what?” “Alpha D
Amber’s POV I couldn’t reach anyone through the mind link. I needed to reach Janine and Beta Trent to let them know the plan fell to pieces. We failed. No matter how hard it was for me to admit it. I wasn’t sure if I had been able to reach Alpha Dale, or even pull him out of that spell. I didn’t want to give up hope, but what else was there? I had seen what she did to Eric with my own eyes. His battered body as she dragged him in like a rag doll. His wolf was going to heal him, sure enough, but how long was that going to take? What were they even doing to him? Anger mingled with determination inside and a plan began to take shape in my head. I pressed my back on the cold stone, keeping my eyes trained on the cell bars that were keeping me in. Its been a while since Derrick dumped me in here. I heard nothing outside, I saw nothing past the darkness and had to rely on my sense of smell and hearing. Two things which had never failed me before. Maybe I was overestimating myself, b
Dale’s POV … Mallory was dead. Her limp body crumpled on the ground under me, her neck bent to a sickening angle, revealing a gash where my wolf tore through her. He had torn through every part of her like paper in his pure act of rage and anger. Without permission, he had initiated a shift, tearing through me like a tornado. Blood dripped from his fur. Blood was everywhere in the room. His head snapped up as the wind carried the scent of magic to our nose. He sniffed, growled and snarled. The wolf turned sharply to the closed door, as a deathly snarl ripped from his throat. Just then, the heavy oak door blasted open, crashing hard against the wall. My wolf growled at the intruder and rage rose inside me like bile. Witch, I hissed inside. Outside, my wolf growled. I knew he wanted to say that this was my fault as well. I had trusted her and brought her into the home I shared with my mate, but I didn’t want to hear it. Guilt was already eating through me. the people attacking my
Dale’s POV Everything was peaceful and warm and I was wishing it would remain this way forever. I smiled down at the figure beside me, grateful to the goddess that I got to share this moment with her. Amber was barefoot on the grass, her hands in mine and on her face, a smile that was as radiant as the sun. Mine. I told myself. She was mine and will always be mine. I frowned as her smile faltered, my eyes darting to her feet. “Maybe we should get you some shoes,” I said, my smile snapping back in place. When I looked up at her, she was trembling. My smiled fell as I saw blood pooling into her white dress. Her hands clutched mine desperately and she fell to the floor. I fell with her, holding her face with both my hands to keep her focused on me. Panic and pain burned through me and I began to feel hollow and empty. What was this feeling? “Wake up,” she whispered, placing gentle a hand on top my own. “Wake up, Alpha Dale.” My frown deepened and I struggled to understand what
Amber’s POV I saw only red. Athena wanted to charge at Derrick, pour all our powers into him but this was the only chance I got to save Alpha Dale till who knew when again? Still, I couldn’t take my eyes off Yeti’s lifeless form on the ground. I felt a pang of pain in my chest. She was here because of me. “What did you do?” I cried, my fingers digging into Alpha Dale’s skin unconsciously. “What did you do to her? Do you have no conscience?” The smile that formed on his lips made me froze. He looked like someone who had lost their senses. But then, that made complete sense. Only someone who was insane would be capable of the things this man did. “Now, you have seen the kind of person that I am,” he said softly as if we were on a date and he was trying to convince me to accept his heart. “Even my daughter cannot get in-between me and what I want.” I was momentarily stunned that I did not know my jaw was hanging open. Did he say… “What do you mean by that, you bastard?” I fired. “
Amber’s POV The last thing I wanted was to meet Alpha Derrick, but that was exactly what Celia intended to achieve. Panic flooded my chest as she led us through the wide hallways. Even with the loud music blasting through the walls, I could hear my own heartbeat and Yeti’s. There was no getting out of this without looking suspicious. Besides, Celia wasn’t the kind of person who backed down once she had set her sights on something. I could only hope our glamour was enough to see us through meeting Alpha Dale. My heart stuttered the closer we got to the ballroom and as soon as we crossed the door, time seemed to stop. My mind ignored the swirling ballgowns, laughter and glittering chandeliers and immediately focused on the man in the middle of it all. Even with his back to us, I still recognized him. My panic metamorphosed to full-blown fear but this time, I was desperate to maintain my control and composure, although those words sounded very foreign to me. As if hearing my thoug