Current Day.
I sat next to Uncle Harry as he explained some of what my father had told him had occurred, my eyes narrowing as I glanced at him. “How do you know this?”
He offered me a gentle smile. “He kept in touch that whole time. We all did, the three of us, Alpha, Beta and Gamma. But the earlier meeting with Seren, he mentioned when both me and Zane were in the office. He minlinke
d to let us know where the little mischief was. Told us of their conversation because he knew it would make us smile. We knew what she was like.”
I frowned. “And? You think that shit changes anything? It proves Seren was exactly where I said she was. Where she was not meant to be. Where my father died. Yet you sit there smiling fondly about it. Saying her doing that shit made you all smile, when it was her stupidity that caused this fucking mess. My Dad had gone to save her. Therefore it was her fault he died. She killed him!&r
Flashback – 8 years ago Pack had descended into chaos and it concerned me. We had always been so well organized when it came to training for things like this. Perhaps because Rogue attacks were so rare now we were out of practice. But, I had the greatest of faith in all of my pack members, especially my warriors squads and guards.‘Baby, you and the kids are all safe and at home, aren’t you?’ I linked my mate, and Luna, Zoe. Yes, priority was to ensure my pack was safe, but orders were out there, the pack knew what to do. My other priority was also my family. My mate and my son and heir.‘I am, and Marcus is with me, he hadn’t gone to join the boys yet as he had homework to finish.’ Her voice, be it through the link or not was a welcomed sound. I have never been more glad that she was being stricter on Marcus of late to prepare him for the responsibilities of role of Alpha one day. &l
Current day The room was in a pained silence. A cold chill spread across my body, as I walked to the window. I needed a moment. Time to think. Yet, the words of my Uncle were echoing through my mind, and they were not going anywhere. This was not how I had remembered it. How had I not known of this?There were muffled voices sounding behind me, but my mind was so distracted I had no clue what was being said despite my enhanced hearing. My mind was upon the gardens outside the window, and on my Dad. The man that I had lost. He had always been my hero, and seemingly he had died the hero too. Tears stung painfully at my eyes. I hated that I did not know any of the things he had gone through in the short time before he died. He was being the Beta he had trained so hard to be.Footsteps sounded behind me. “So, perhaps if you want someone to blame, Lach, it is me.” Uncle Harry said somberly.“No, Dad. That i
I was rushing, there was no time to wait. I wanted to put this right. I had royally fucked up, and I needed to do all I could to correct that. Of course, I knew it was unlikely to be easy. After all, Seren had seemingly given up all hope of us. I had made her angry. Understandably so. Not only that, but there was still so much to process…‘Fucking process?’ My wolf roared angrily. ‘It is too late for fucking processing. Processing should have been done a long time ago. Did you not hear what your Uncle told you? Your mind was misleading you. Your very thoughts were going in the wrong direction. Your anger taking her away. You could have cost us our fated!’A sinking feeling sat within my belly. I hoped my wolf was wrong. I would need to process all the information I had learned. I knew that. Ignoring it was never going to help. All this had taught me that. But, first we needed to fix this. I could not lose Seren. Not now. Not after everyth
The words Cole had just spoken turned my stomach and made my had spin all at the same time. Not a pleasant combination. I closed my eyes for a moment. I needed to think, and think fast. This was not what I needed right now…“She crashed here the other day… erm, her birthday, remember?” I all but stuttered at him, my eyes suddenly avoiding his. I knew what Cole was like when it came to his sister. Over-protective, and forever jumping to conclusions. He had always been bad, but when their father died he had become even worse. He saw it as being his role to ensure her safety and right now, this appeared to be one of those moments; despite my friend knowing I would never harm his sister.I was trying hard not so show any nerves right now. Nerves would raise suspicion. Suspicion would cause an over-reaction. Neither one of us needed that. I needed to get this interaction out of the way as swiftly as I could, then I could find Seren and fix the mess
Cole’s eyes met mine. Eyes full of questions. Questions and blame. The coldness remained, but I did not have time for the argument we had moments ago been in the throes of. I needed to find my mate. I needed to fix this. I did not wait a moment longer, I was already moving toward the door.‘What do you mean she is nowhere in pack Marcus?’ I demanded. Seren had been in pack not that long ago. She had been in the office with Marcus and I. She had stormed away in one of her mood swings she was known for. We had assumed she needed time to cool down, and she would be good again. How the hell had it gone from that to her no longer being in pack? It made no sense. Had things become too much for her and she ran?‘I wanted to talk to her about the plans she gave me, so I linked her, and I got no reply. So, I thought maybe she was in a mood with me, which would be understandable considering the way she reacted in the office, so I chose t
Cole and I walked into Marcus’s office. Marcus sat at his table, the senior warriors already there, standing either side of him, looking down at the large map laid out on the desk in front of them. They had begun looking to come up with a plan of finding Seren. Thankfully Marcus and the warriors had not waited for us before they begun on working out how far Seren may have travelled. They were well on their way to making a headstart.“You think her friends know anything?” I questioned, wondering if Seren may have called or messaged Ayla or Thea for help or even to say goodbye. The three of them were usually discussing most major things within their lives, so surely this would be considered major, right?Cole shrugged. “I could go and ask.” He said firmly, determination upon his face. Marcus nodded, knowing as well as I did that Cole would need a distraction, and going to speak to someone would likely be better than sitting
The drive to the City had to be one of the longest and most awkward I think there had ever been. Three friends who had spent countless hours together in the car over the years, all now sitting alongside one another with not a word to say between them. Tension hanging heavy within the air while we all waited stressfully to arrive to our destination. The city was one within only half an hour from the pack. A decent distance when it came to being far enough away to give us the privacy we needed as a wolfpack, but close enough for the supplies and things we also needed. It also meant that it offered some escape for those wanting to have time away from packlife… and I cannot help but wonder if that was what Seren had been looking for.Cole had not spoken a word to me. His darkened eyes glowering at me from across the car instead. I knew he had questions, and the unease he was feeling was evident from the way his fingers were tapping upon his thighs. But I don’t think
The words my friend had said sunk in, and my body felt like it was in agony, while time seemed to have stood still as my mind ran away with itself. City hospital had been in touch. That meant one of our pack was injured. Seren was missing. It could only be her. My sweet Seren. My heart twisted in pain. She had been fleeing from pack, and in doing so had put herself in harm's way. She had been hurt, and now lay in the hospital... my mind swam with horrendous images and thoughts. All bringing me back to the possibility of losing her. Losing her now before I had a chance to tell her I was wrong. Before we were able to fix things. Before I could say I was sorry...Chaos was beginning to ensue around me, snapping me from my daze. Cole had rushed back through the door of the office having left only moments ago to begin to speak to Seren’s friends in our bid to find her. “What do you mean the city hospital Marcus?” Cole demanded. “What do yo
Lachlan’s words meant a lot, and I could see the genuineness of them as he spoke. That meant as much to me as his previous apologies. I should have taken that opportunity to talk to him. Especially now that my mind was beginnig to feel like my own again, but my brother was sweeping me out of the cabin and toward the car before I could respond. Cole wanted me away from Lachlan, or away from the conversation that was developing. So, I was marched to the car. I had expected Lachlan to follow. Assuming he too would be ready for a break from the cabin. But, once again Lachlan did what Lachlan did best, he stayed away. Or, more specifically, he watched me walk away...I would not lie, there was an unexpected ache in my chest as I was ushered away the short distance to the car by Cole. Maia whimpered as she quickly realized the footsteps behind us belonged to Marcus and not to Lachlan. A brief glance back told me he had not stepped foot from the cabin. He was
I had walked away from their argument unable to listen any further. Anger bubbling beneath my skin. I wanted to say so much but knew it was not my place. Marcus and Cole already appeared to think so little of me, I did not need to make things any worse. So walking away seemed the better option. But I sat upon the chair on the decking looking out across the forsest. The front door remained opened and I could hear every word that was being said. Hearing Seren come to my defence shocked me to my core…The words of the man who was meant to be a friend invariably hurt, but, this was his sister he was trying to protect; and in his mind this was no more than I deserved. He believed I had treated her badly, and he wished to see me suffer. Yet Seren came to my defence time and again. Giving her brother the reasons why the things I had done were not as bad as they may seem.In truth, as I sat there and listened as our past was discussed everything hit home. Hard. It truly was as bad as it seeme
Lachlan opened the door to the cabin, by brother and Marcus strode inside. Neither one looked happy to see him, nor did they acknowledge him as they passed him by to stand inside the living area. I had not wanted them here, but Lachlan had taken it upon himself to assume that I did. He had not answered my question, instead choosing to tidy up and avoid me at every opportunity. Which considering the size of the small cabin was quite a task…His eyes had expressed a thousand words the moment they met mine, which I think is why he had quickly averted his gaze, and moved away from me. He knew that I would be able to read his thoughts from his eyes. I knew Lachlan too well. In choosing to rush around the cabin occupying himself he was only silently allowing more secrets to be revealed. More things had been said between him and my family, I was sure of it, and one way or another, I would get to the bottom of it.“Aww, Ren, you look better.” Marcus offered
Seren was acting oddly. No. Not oddly, sultry. Needy. Not that she hadn’t been acting like she wanted me the past few days, because she had. She had been in heat. Wanting me was all she had had on her damn mind, but this seemed different. The alteration in her tone told me her wolf was pushing forward too. My own wolf had done that enough in the early days, I knew what it meant...Tyr may have been lingering here and there while Seren was here, but he was not back. Not fully. So he was not able to communicate with Maia I didn’t think, so maybe Maia was hoping to connect with me? Either way she appeared to want her mate.But her wanting to encourage the two of us told me something was off. She had always been quite supportive of Seren’s choices, but it seemed right now she was defending me. She was pushing for things to work for us. And while I would understand a wolf wanting it's mate, she knew how bad I wad for Seren. She knew the things I had done.
I woke with a start, shocked to find Lachlan looking down at me, an unreadable expression upon his face. He was leaning against the wall of the cabin, his arms crossed, and those big, beautiful dark eyes of his were watching me intently. Should I be freaked out he was watching me sleep? Maybe... yet oddly, I found it almost reassuring... I rolled over on the bed to face him, stretching slightly as I did, and his eyes observed every slight movement of my body“What is wrong?” I questioned, noticing for the first time since my arrival here that the rush of heat upon waking had lessened. I had to hope that could only be a good sign...Lachlan offered me a questionable smile, before shrugging slightly. “Nothing, Ren. Why would something be wrong? I just came to check you were okay. You have been asleep a while.”I nodded. That seemed plausible. I had no clue how long I had been asleep. It felt like sometime since I had come
I walked back through the now familar trees surrounding the cabin,my phone to my ear. "So you don't think it was as strong?" I questioned.The supply drop had been completed a short while earlier by Colton, but I had waited until Seren was resting until Ileft the cabin to go and collect, as I had done each time previously. I did not want to leave her when she needed me, nor did I want any other wolf in close proximity to my mate whilst she was in heat. But, from what my friend was telling me, that may not be too much of an issue now."The scent has certain dissipated. I think another day and it will have gone. Is she feeling any better?" He asked.I chuckled. "I don't think she would tell me either way, Col, she is making me guess at best. Anything but admit she is struggling. Shows weakness, right? Seren will not let me think she is weak." I told my friend, who in turn began to chuckle too."Damn, that sounds like somebody I know. Hmmm,
Pain. Heat. Tenderness radiated through my body. As did warmth. No, not warmth, boiling, temperatures. Hours? Days? I did not know now. I was in a state of confusion. Agony. Discomfort. Sobbing. Screaming. Crying one moment, yelling the next… I did not like this. How was this a normal state for anyone or anything to be in?!‘Why won’t he help us?’ I wailed to Maia. She was our wolf, why could she not talk to his wolf? Surely he could convince Lachlan to surrender to the matebond again. He had done it before. This good-boy image did not suit him. If he would surrender to the matebond we could ease this pain. Put an end to this suffering. It may even bring us closer...‘We have gone over this. So many times.’ She snapped, and she was right. I had begged her so many times, and I had argued this point with Lachlan too. He was not about to give in to me. He was determined to do the right thing. Why he deemed this the ri
I saw pain and anger flicker across Seren’s face at my words. I had expected nothing more. I had known the moment I had chosen to say those things that it would be the last thing she would be wanting to hear. She had sought me out for a reason. I was her mate. She knew the relief her mate could bring when in heat. Angry with me or not, she was willing to bypass that to gain the relief she needed. But, I was not willing to sink to that. And, no matter the pain nor anger I was causing her, and hating that fact, I knew I had to do this. It would be too easy to give her what she craved. But it would be wrong. We were not together. Yes, we may be fated mates, but we had agreed not to be together. I had surrendered to the matebond before, and in doing so I had hurt Seren and regretted that massively.I knew she saw this as me trying to hurt her, but it was me trying to do the right thing. Thankfully, with Tyr being absent resisting her was somewhat easier as
My whole body burned. It ached like never before. And now added to that was the delectable scent of my mate. I am sure it smelled stronger than it had previously, or was that what happened when a she-wolf went into heat? He smelled divine, I knew that much. I was desperate to be close to him. Rip those close right off his body…But Lachlan had stepped away from me. And now his eyes were dark, with a frown etching his face as he avoided my gaze. What was wrong with him? This was not how I had imagined this woud go. The last time we had seen each other he had wanted to talk. And all the times he and I had been intimate Lachlan had been unable to resist. He was insatiable. My scent should trigger that, I was sure of it. I had imagined the moment he caught a note of my scent and realized I was in heat he would pull me to the cabin and rip my clothes off. Make up for the time we had lost. Ease the pain I was feeling...But, just now he had stepped away from me. That