Eden pov
There were no words in my vocabulary I could use to describe the pain I felt while my so-called mate stood there with a grin across his lips. Didn’t he feel the pain? Why didn't it affect him like it did me?
As I stood there, everyone’s eyes on me, I felt like a claw was forced though my ribcage, clutched my heart and set it on fire. I could feel the invisible thread that connected us weaken.
The kind stranger’s words echoed in my head. He saw it coming, I kind of did too, but I had nowhere near enough time to prepare myself for the moment of disaster.
Although my initial reaction was complete shock, something within me moved and I nearly gave into the instinct to drop to my knees and beg him. Beg him to reconsider and take me away from this awful place.
The sad part was that my pleas wouldn’t do anything but make me look weak in their eyes. Weaker than they already taught me to be, definitely not a woman worthy to become one’s Luna.
So, I closed my eyes and sucked in a sharp breath to ground myself. Everyone expected a reaction from me, something I refused to give.
With nothing to lose, I opened my eyes, met his gaze and spoke up. “I, Eden Larue, the daughter of Aman Larue, accept your rejection, Alpha Asher Williams and hereby announce I refuse the rightful place as your Luna.”
The smug look disappeared from his face the moment the last word left my lips. His face twisted in an expression of pain as a loud gasp left him, the glass slipped from his fingers and he threw his hand over his heart.
Kayla was there, at his side, to comfort her lover while tears streamed down his cheeks and I found an odd pleasure in watching him double over in pain.
“You never told me Aman Larue was her father!” The Alpha snarled at my step-mother, struggling to breathe through the pain.
So that was what his shock was about? My father’s name? I suppose the big, bad Alpha wasn’t the brightest star in the sky if he didn’t see the connection of a last name we shared.
“I- I didn’t think it was of importance,” my step-mother stuttered.
“Of course, it was! He was my father’s best friend!”
As the commotion grew louder, I slowly stepped back and disappeared in the kitchen before anyone noticed my leave. This was worse than I thought. Without a wolf, I could easily survive the rejection, but the fact that this man came from the pack that my parents escaped, the pack that wanted me dead was truly terrifying.
Now, he knew where I was. He knew who I was, so I had to get out of here before he tried to fulfill the sick plans his pack had all those years ago.
No one bothered to acknowledge my absence, so I ran downstairs and hid in the cell. I had little to no belongings, a set of change of clothing and a photo of my parents, so I shoved those in a torn-up backpack and hid the bag in the darkest corner of my room.
As I paced the small cell, I kept running my hand though my hair like that could help me come up with an exit plan. I had to do it tonight. I knew the patrol schedules by heart, I knew how often the guards walked through the premises and when I could sneak out unnoticed.
Besides, since I wasn’t a part of this pack, no one would feel it when I left. I could get out of the territory and no one would notice until someone came looking for me.
I had so many chances to escape over the years, yet I never used them in hope to find my mate and fear of the outside world. The pack members might have been abusive, but I knew it was worse out there. Rogues, criminals, vampires and even humans - all of them were to fear.
Suddenly, I froze in my step. Why was I scared of humans if I was one of them? Shifters had to fear hunters, but I didn’t have to. I didn’t have a wolf and the last connection I had to supernaturals was destroyed in that dining room when my mate rejected me.
Just as the thought of him crossed my mind, the door to the cells opened and someone ran down the stairs. My heart nearly stopped as I thought of my step-mother or her husband coming here to show me my place, but instead, the man who had rejected me stood in front of the cell.
Like a man on a mission, he stalked towards me, grabbed my shoulders and forced his lips on mine. I tried to push him away, but he didn’t budge and spoke in-between the forced kiss. “Tell me you still feel it, Eden. It’s not fully gone, we can repair the bond, tell me you fucking feel it!”
When he finally released me, I stared at him in horror. He stole my first kiss. I can’t believe this is how it happened. Tears brimmed in my eyes as I tried to back away, slapped a hand over my mouth and shook my head.
He destroyed the bond, there was nothing to repair anymore.
“No! You can feel it, I can and so can you! It’s still here! Get your shit, you’re coming home with me!” He screamed at me.
The crazed look in his eyes made him look like he had lost his mind. I was too scared to speak up, so I kept shaking my head in denial. I didn’t feel the sparks, the bond was gone and there was no way I was following him to a pack of murderers.
I knew Alphas were known for having short tempers and anger issues, but I didn’t expect the slap he delivered. He used so much force, I fell back, hit my head against the concrete wall and tasted blood in my mouth.
When I looked up at him, tears streamed down my cheeks while he was pointing his finger at me and screamed. “I will return in a couple of hours, I highly suggest you rethink your decision while I’m gone, because next time, I won’t ask. When I return, you’re coming with me, like it or not.”
Eden povThe day I have been waiting for ever since I had to move in with my step-mother turned out to be a nightmare, not a scenario of a fairytale I was hoping for. When the Alpha left, my step-mother came downstairs to berate me. She did her best to come up with every excuse under the sun to blame me for what happened. Before she left me, she made it a point that Kayla was the best option for the Alpha and I had to stay out of their lives so I don’t ruin the beautiful relationship those two had. According to her, the Moon Goddess had no idea what she was doing when she paired souls and I had to grow up and face reality as it was. I didn’t react to the insults, didn’t answer questions and didn’t acknowledge her words. All I did was stare in the distance and let her have it. There was no point in telling her anything about the Alpha’s words because I knew I was leaving before he returned and dragged me from one hell to another. Besides, she wouldn’t believe me even if I had a r
Eden povAs promised, once midnight rolled around, I snuck out of my cell and went to the old man at the end of the hall. I spent hours pondering ideas how to unlock his cell just to be met with the surprise that his cell had never been locked. I helped him out and led him to my little space to grab the backpack. He was right, the poor man really was old and had difficulty moving, but since I promised to get him out of here, I didn’t let him convince me to leave him behind. The pack was sound asleep when we got to the top of the stairs and opened the door to the main area of the building. Not everyone, though, as we heard some voices in the distance. I glanced at the old man and nodded towards a darker corner. “You stay here, I’ll sneak into the kitchen and grab some food for us. Don’t question me, I know what I’m doing,” I whispered. He didn’t look too pleased, but did as I told him. As I snuck into the kitchen and grabbed some fruits from the pantry along with dry foods we could
Eden pov“Leave me and run. You have a bigger chance to get out of here alone. Head to North, that’s where you will find a safe shelter. Run and don’t look back.” Although his words were barely louder than a whisper, they held so much power, bravery and selflessness I knew I couldn’t leave him behind. A person, who was willing to put his own safety in jeopardy deserved salvation as much as I did. I knew we couldn’t outrun the patrol or fight them off, but what we could do was use anything we could to our advantage. I looked around and tried to figure out which route would be the best. So far nothing worked like I had planned, but somehow, the very thing I feared the most turned out to be the distraction I needed. The growl I expected was so powerful, it might have shaken the ground around the pack house. The sound alerted the patrol and they instantly took off towards the building, leaving us behind. I glanced at the old man and grinned. “Think you could run until we get over the
Eden povWhat was the chance that two people who managed to escape hell kept running into more danger? Seriously, fate? Ever since I turned twenty-one, every step I took brought more danger. Like a never ending tale of misery.And now, I was fearing that the misfortune of my life might stick to Richard. He was a nice old man who didn’t bother anyone, and because of me, he was in danger. I had no idea how he was treated by the pack members, but if it weren’t for my insistence to run away, Richard would have a roof over his head. Oh, yeah, and he wouldn’t stand near a forest fire, a detail I shouldn’t forget. “Where?” I asked once I got back to my senses. Unlike me, although old, Richard was a werewolf and his senses were way better. I bet he could smell the smoke from miles away while I could notice that only if the fire was very close. “Close,” he muttered and scrunched up his nose. I watched Richard as he closed his eyes and let out a silent ‘shh’ sound. I held my breath while R
Lucius povFrom the moment we stepped on this territory, I knew the underground market was worse than my spies reported. Every building we passed was another orphanage or hospital. There was no way that a pack with such wealth and infrastructure as this one claimed to have had nothing but abandoned children and injured warriors. “They lied,” Titus, my second in command, whispered. I nodded my head, letting my eyes roam the surroundings. All suspicions aside, what had my senses alerted was that by now, I had counted thirteen orphanages, but no schools and there wasn’t even one playground for the pups they claimed lived here. Not only did this place look suspicious, but it also had a stench of something I couldn’t put in words. I felt like I stood in the center of everything wicked, cruel and malicious.Worst of all, the feeling sunk deeper and rooted itself when a very pregnant looking woman wobbled her way towards us. She had a wide smile across her lips, but her eyes were empty,
Lucius povThe moment Titus ran away, the so-called Luna slowed down until we walked side by side. She did her best to rub herself against me. When she tried to place her hand in mine, I took a step to the side and glared at her. Maybe she understood me, maybe not, but once she opened her mouth, I realized she was very well aware of everything she was doing. “Oh, don’t be like that. I’m somewhat human and loneliness without my Alpha around has its toll on me. I just want some company.” Sure, to someone else, she might sound like a lonely woman, but in my eyes, she was nothing but a power-hungry mutt. She didn’t have an Alpha, she wasn’t a Luna and there was no saying whose child she was carrying. If she was carrying any. “I will show you the Alpha suite. You will fall in love with the bed, it’s so comfortable, like clouds,” she beamed as she opened the door to the massive building and let me inside first. Just like in the rest of the territory, I didn’t hear any sounds. If there w
Lucius povMy heart started racing while I couldn’t suck in a breath. Titus, the forever observant asshole, noticed the change in my demeanor within seconds. He shoved the man he was holding in a headlock towards one of the warriors and ran to my side. Titus tossed my arm around his shoulders as if he feared I might lose my footing. “Lucius, what is it? Are you getting worse?” He whispered the second question to ensure my men didn’t hear him. I shook my head as I struggled to fight Xabat’s attempts to grasp the control. If the hothead were to succeed, he would surely scare our mate away and I wasn’t willing to risk it. The Goddess had forgiven the family sins, she had granted me a soulmate, I was willing to go down in flames along this place if it meant I could keep her. “Mate,” I choked out, only for Titus to hear. We had once discussed the possibility and the risks that were most likely to follow, especially with the brainless fool that resided within me. “Xabat, calm the fuck
Eden povLazily, I blinked awake and realized I needed to use the bathroom really badly. The thought of running around the forest to find an area I could use sickened me, but it was what it was until we found a proper living space, I had to suck it up. Only… That wasn’t quite the case. I had no idea where I was, but there was a weight pressing me down into something soft beneath me and it felt like limbs were tossed over my body. On top of that, whatever was obviously lying nearly on top of me was so hot, my clothes were sticking to my skin, I was drenched in sweat. Holding my breath, I tried to wiggle out of the vice-like grip someone or something had on me. It stirred and I froze while my heart was beating against my ribcage at such speed, I feared it might stop any moment. Then, came the sharp intake of breath and deep, husky voice. “Where do you think you are going?” A man asked. My head was spinning - where was I and why did I sleep next to a complete stranger? The surviva