Amber’s POV Fire. Red. Hot. Everywhere. It slithered up the walls, eating through homes and people alike. Heat pulsed around me, mimicking my heartbeat. The air was thick and suffocating. Smoke wrapped around my throat like a noose. The screams were heart-wrenching. The hands appeared first, reaching for me. The screams became louder, more taunting. Someone was screaming someone’s name. My name? I glanced around, searching for the source of the screams and also for anything that was not fire. That was when I saw the little girl. I recognized her instantly. She had my golden eyes, and they were boring into me. Wisps of her hair—the same fiery red as mine—clung to her damp forehead. Why was she here? I needed to get her out of here. But before I could move, hands clamped down on my wrist. A jolt shot up my arm, and then I was falling—I woke with a scream, bolting upright in my bed. My breath came out in loud puffs, and despite the cold, frigid air, sweat clung to my skin. My
Amber’s POV The library was quiet when we entered. It was the second time I was here, but I couldn’t get over the heavy silence that seemed to settle up on everything like a blanket. Yeti, on the other hand, looked more at ease than I felt. She bounced confidently through the towering and imposing shelves, looking at home in the books. She hummed thoughtfully, scanning the shelves before turning to flash me a grin. “I’ll look around for something easy. Don’t stray too far. ”I nodded absently, my gaze flickering over the row of books around me. I watched her move fluidly, scanning the books and moving on. I followed her example, glancing through the row of books until one of them caught my attention. It was a dark, slightly crooked, ancient book with years of wear and tear. I reached for the book; it was heavier than expected, and I frowned at the words that I couldn’t read. Flipping open the book randomly, my eyes skimmed over words that made no meaning to me. I turned aroun
Dale’s POV Gregg was convinced the witch was hiding in the motel. We had been sitting for what felt like ages—only a few hours—and we saw no signs of life. The motel stank of cheap cigarettes, fear, and regrets. I wondered why she chose a place like this to hide—if she was even in there. From where i sat in the rental car Silas has gotten us after ditching our cars, I watched the windows. Checking for signs of life, of which ours seemed like the only ones out here. “She’s still in there,” Gregg murmured, hunching forward to peer over my shoulders. He glanced at me. “You know I’m right.” “Shut up.” Trent grumbled, eyes locked on the windows as well. I pressed my hands on my temple, heaving a sigh. “Have you been able to reach Janine?” I asked, glancing at Trent. He shook his head. “I think she blocked us out. All her numbers are taking me to voicemail. Have you tried Amber? ”My jaw tightened. “The same thing. The mate bond would have come in handy right now.
Amber’s POV Janine still wasn’t talking to me. Jonah, her assistant, insisted she was busy, but maybe that was just an excuse? It's been two days, and I’ve seen no sign of her anywhere. Every morning, I hoped I’d see her at the dining table, but every morning, I was disappointed. Mallory, on the other hand, made it a point to stay out of my way—which was a good thing. I was grateful for Yeti too. Although I still wasn’t quite sure I could fully trust her, the fact that she was growing on me still remained. I kept the card, coming up with different reasons each day why I should not call the number. Today—as I did every other day—I picked up the card, turning it over and over in my hand, trying to come up with good enough reasons why I shouldn’t pick up my phone and dial the good lady’s number. The same as every other day, I couldn’t find any good reason, but I still returned the card to my nightstand and left the room. I was supposed to be meeting Yeti for our daily sessions
Amber’s POV Calling Emily was not a mistake. That was what I kept on telling myself as I slipped into the dimly lit hallway. My pulse hammered in my ears, and I kept glancing around, checking to see if someone was coming. No one was—at least, not anyone that will recognize me. But I couldn’t be too careful. The mansion was always busy. There were always people everywhere, but this night, it seemed like they multiplied. I couldn’t turn any corner without bumping into one or two people, or even a group. I kept my hood low and my body as close to the wall as I could get without looking suspicious. Once I was out of here, I would be safe and maybe, I’d be able to breathe. But as long as I was still in the mansion, I ran the risk of running into either Janine, Yeti, or one of my designated guards. Forcing my shoulders to relax, I took a sharp turn. A group of people was huddled close to the kitchen, their conversations bleeding into the corridors, easy and careless. I envied
Dale’s POV For the first time in what felt like eternity, I finally felt like I could breathe. The road was a stretch of endless darkness, broken only by the glow of headlights cutting through the night. Still, the fact that it was leading me to Amber was a sweet relief. My wolf was restless inside; something was off. I gripped my phone, thumb brushing over the screen. There was nothing from either Janine or Amber, and it worried me. Janine should have called me by now after seeing all the missed calls and messages I left her. I glanced at Trent in the driver's seat. “Have you heard from either of them?” I asked. “Nope. But we’ll be home in ten minutes. I’m sure we can check on them then. ”I nodded, exhaling slowly, trying to shake the bad feeling that was crawling up my spine. The witch had not said a word since we took her from her motel room, preferring to keep to herself, which was not a bother to me. I had too much to think of, even if we were a short distance from home.
Dale’s POV “Her wolf did what?” I growled, unable to contain my surprise. I looked from Yeti to Janine. “So, you’re saying that on top of everything else, Amber is at risk of dying if her wolf finally frees itself? ”Both Janine and Yeti said nothing. Of all the things they told me, I guess they doubted that was what I was going to pick up on. First, Amber had almost attacked Mallory, and then she’d been acting strange—Yeti’s account—before disappearing altogether. I ran my fingers through my hair, trying to keep myself together as best as I could. It was just us in the office now; Trent had left to make our new prisoner comfortable and find out how the search was going, although I was sure I wasn’t going to get any good news. The free territory was large—the largest by landmass in the werewolf community—and there were so many werewolves here. All kinds of werewolves from every corner of the community. Even humans who were aware of our kind and curious came here; they w
Amber’s POV I woke with a pounding headache. A deep, grinding pain sat behind my eyes, pounding in rhythm with the beating of my heart. My throat was patched as if I’d been screaming for a long time, and my mouth was dry, with a sharp metallic taste. I swallowed, cringing when the motion sent a sharp stab of pain down my throat. I glanced around me, taking in the darkness, which my eyes were yet to adjust to. My body groaned with the pain of staying in one position for too long, but when I tried to move, I discovered I couldn’t. Something was keeping me from leaving the chair. I tried again, groaning loudly when the restraints pulled me back, biting into my flesh.“What the hell?” I glanced around the empty room, looking for any signs of life or anything that would give a clue to where I was and how I got here…The memory of Emily ramming something into the back of my head shot through my vision, causing my head to ache even more. My heart raced, kicking into a frantic rhyth
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