Dominic’s POVThey couldn’t be mine. Could they?I leaned back in my chair, staring at the ceiling as if the answer might suddenly materialize there. The math wasn’t complicated, six years ago, Samantha left. The twins were about five. The timeline fits too well. Too damn well that got me thinking if they were my kids.But then again, Samantha couldn’t have hidden something like this, not without slipping up. I knew her. If they were mine, wouldn’t she have stayed? The Samantha I knew would have never let that kind of opportunity slip through her fingers. She was always so desperate to prove herself, to claw her way into my life, to have my love and attention. She wanted to matter to me, to the pack, and she would have done anything to get there. She would have used the kids to get to me.I scoffed, shaking my head as bitterness crept in. If they were my kids, she wouldn’t have run. She would have used them — paraded them in front of me, dangled them like a prize, something to make me
Samantha’s POV“Don’t you ever scare me like that again,” I warned, pulling the car into the driveway. My eyes flicked to the rearview mirror where Devon and Diana sat silently, their wide, guilty eyes meeting mine.They didn’t respond right away, but their guilt was obvious. Taking a deep breath, I forced myself to stay calm — for their sake. I’d already lectured them, and one reminder was enough. After opening my door and stepping out, I waited for them to follow.As soon as we stepped inside the house, Annie came rushing toward us. Her face was pale, her hair slightly out of place, and her hands trembled as she clasped them together.“I’m so, so sorry!” she blurted, her voice cracking. “I don’t know how they managed to—”“Annie, it’s okay,” I said firmly but gently, resting a hand on her shoulder to reassure her. “I know how much you care about them, and I’m not blaming you. But we’ll need to take extra precautions from now on.”I glanced at the twins, who stood a few feet away, sh
Dominic’s POVThe phone rang three times before Liam picked up."Alpha," he uttered. He knew better than to expect a casual conversation when I called."I need answers, Liam," I said, pacing the length of my office. My mind felt like it was tearing itself apart with a tangle of suspicion, memories, and unanswered questions. "Did you find anything about the twins yet? Who their father is?"A pause. Too long. And it ticked my nerves.“We're digging, Alpha," Liam replied. "Killian's pack records are airtight. No mention of the twins in any formal capacity. It is like they do not exist on paper."I slammed my hand down on the desk and the sharp sound echoed through the room. "That’s not good enough, search the hospitals in his area, Liam. I need every single piece of information about them."Liam sighed on the other end. "I’ll see what more we can do, Alpha. But Killian’s pack is notoriously private. You know that."My jaw tightened. I did not care how private Killian was. I needed to kno
Samantha’s POV“Mommy, look! I made a butterfly!” Diana exclaimed, as she held up her craft project — a messy combination of glitter, glue, and construction paper.“That’s beautiful, sweetheart,” I said, crouching down to admire her creation. Devon sat nearby with his tiny hands busy assembling what looked like a spaceship made of popsicle sticks.A knock on the door pulled me out of the small bubble of peace.I straightened and glanced at Annie, who had just walked into the room. “Annie, keep an eye on them,” I said as I stepped to the door and opened it. Killian stood there. He smiled warmly, but the tension in his eyes betrayed the purpose of his visit.“Killian,” I greeted with a smile. “What brings you here?”“Can I come in?” he asked, his voice was calm but it carried something that put me on edge.I nodded and stepped aside, closing the door behind him. As soon as we were in the living room, I folded my arms. “What’s going on?”Killian’s expression softened as he glanced towar
Dominic’s POV“Tell me you have something,” I said, leaning back in my chair as Liam stepped in, taking my attention away from the file spread across my desk. Liam cleared his throat. “I tracked down some details about the twins.”My fingers drummed against the desk as I waited. He always dragged out the bad news like it would soften the blow, but it never did. It was only prolonging the agony and anticipation to hear something positive, only to end up delivering bad news.“They are under the foster care of a human nanny, that alone was certain.” Liam finally said. “Her name’s Annie. Beyond that, nothing substantial. There is no confirmed information about their mother.”A human nanny? My jaw tightened. That did not align with anything I knew about Samantha. She was many things, but reckless was not one of them. She would not just leave the children in the care of some random human. But, if that was the case, then they might not be her children, because she would not be that stupid t
Samantha’s POV“I think I deserve the truth.” Dominic’s demanded.I stiffened, my nails digging into my palms as I faced him. His eyes burned with accusation, suffocating me with the lies and secrets I had kept hidden.“The twins,” he continued, his voice softening but no less intense. “Who are they, Samantha? Are they yours?”My lips pressed together in a hard line, and I bit back the instinct to respond. He did not deserve an answer. Not after everything he had done. But the silence stretched between us, heavy and oppressive, and I knew he would take it as guilt.“They are none of your concern,” I replied firmly. I did not owe him an explanation, after everything he had done. He had chosen Olivia over me, over us.His jaw tensed, the frustration in his eyes flaring brighter as he retorted. “That’s not an answer.”“It’s the only one you’re getting.”I folded my arms across my chest as a defense and comfort, every muscle in my body coiled like a spring as he stepped closer. The proxim
Dominic’s POV“Have you found her yet?”My mother questioned as she came into my study, making me flinch in surprise. She sat across from me and her hands folded neatly in her lap, she had been hard on me ever since I lost my Luna — Samantha, though I knew there was still concern lurking behind her eyes, after all, I was her son. Mother was never one to press unnecessarily, but when she did, it was because she cared.“Yes, but she doesn’t have to do anything with me anymore,” I muttered, leaning back in the chair and scrubbing a hand down my face.Mother tilted her head, her piercing gaze pinning me in place, somehow, she reminded me of Dad, stern, yet Mom still had softness in her. “And why would that be, Dominic? Have you ever thought about why she would not want to see you?”I stiffened, clenching my jaw. I did not need her to spell it out. The truth hung me like a noose, choking me as if punishing me for the crimes I had done. “I made mistakes,” I admitted gruffly. “I know that.”
Samantha’s POV“You’re thinner than the last time I saw you.”Lena’s voice pulled me from my thoughts as she placed a steaming cup of tea on the small table between us. She settled into the chair across from me, scanning me in the way only she could — half affectionate, half appraising.I let out a short laugh, one that felt foreign and awkward after years of keeping myself guarded. “I guess life has a way of wearing you down,” I replied.She frowned, her lips pressing into a thin line. “You’ve been through too much, Samantha. More than anyone should have to endure.”I avoided her gaze, my hands warming against the teacup. The years apart had not dulled her ability to see right through me. It was comforting and unsettling all at once, after all, when my mother died, she took me in, cared for me, and raised me to be the Luna I had been. But fate decided to hand me a cruel life I had to escape from.“I’ve managed,” I replied after a moment. “The Moonstone Pack has been good to me. It’s
[SAMANTHA's Point of View]I shouldn’t be here.I shouldn’t have followed her here, but my instincts and my wolf told me there was something wrong, and I needed to check for the safety of my kids. For the safety of the pack. Olivia was definitely planning something against the pack and me. Something much more dangerous than her father was hiding from me and Dominic, and there was no way I would let
[SAMANTHA’s Point of View]“Why don’t you tell us what really happened, Samantha? Where did you drag the Alpha and he came here almost half-dead?!” asked one of the council members, baring his teeth at me. “What is really going on here?”I ignored him and hissed at Olivia once again, my fists tightened, wanting to feel the skin off her face, “If you still love your lif
[SAMANTHA’s Point of View]I was so terrified.My whole body was trembling with fear, but I managed to hide it from Dominic. I wasn't afraid of the werewolf that my husband had just defeated, but rather I was nervous that if I had arrived a little later than I did, I would never have seen him alive again.
[ALPHA DOMINIC’s Point of View]As much as I tried to conserve my strength, the poison in my wound depleted my power after a nonstop fight I was having with this giant, scar-faced werewolf in front of me.[You are not going anywhere. You will die here, Alpha of the Silver Crescent!] He snarled at me.
[SAMANTHA’s Point of View] Something was wrong.I could feel it through the bond.
[ALPHA DOMINIC’s Point of View]Twenty hours since I stepped inside the Black Forest and eight hours after I fought and killed those bear-like beasts and the wounds made by that f*cking bear trap made of silver haven’t healed yet. To lessen the pressure on the wound, I decided to morph back into my human form. I noticed that the wound was bone-deep, and I had to take an hour of rest to at least let some tissue regenerate around the femur. I had been walking half-naked around the forest after I tore my shirt and used it to cover the wound.Blood squelched and spurted as I step my injured leg and I couldn’t stop grimacing from it. The excruciating pain shot up to my thigh, causing me to drag my feet while I searched for the herb. I already went to places that were near water sources, but no plants ever looked like how they were described in the drawing Samantha had provided me as a rough reference.Samantha and Mom must have gone to that meeting, and I felt bad that I couldn’t go back y
[DEVON’s Point of View]I would never let them do this to mommy!This strange feeling of anger made my body feel unusually warm. No. Hot. I felt as though I was suffering from a fever. It scared me at first. I was scared at what I felt and I was scared of the anger I saw on those people’s faces towards us and my mom. But there was no way I would let them get near her. I promised Dominic I would protect Diana and Mom with the best I could. And even though my hands were trembling, I just curled them into fists. I couldn’t let them intimidate us. I couldn’t let them bully Mom!It confused me because I had never seen faces with such hatred before.Diana was on alert as well. Despite our fear, we chose to follow our instinct and watched all of them with cold, deadly stares. We sat on each side of Mom. Both her hands were on our left shoulders as the meeting continued with more hateful words from those old, mean people.I looked up at Mom’s face and realized how strong she was and that she
[SAMANTHA’s Point of View]After telling Dominic about everything I found out about my mother, it was my turn to talk to Lena and ask questions about it.I needed her to explain why she chose to keep it hidden from me.Lena and my mate’s Beta, Liam, went to the house the day after the incident. Dominic hadn’t come back from the Black Forest. With worry, I explained to them everything about why Dominic chose to go alone on that perilous search for the herb. The herb that held the key to unlocking my true potential as a direct descendant of the Primordial Clan.The Mother Luna of the Silver Crescent stayed silent as she sat on one of the sofas in our home, and Liam was looking at her, worried and anxious. I suddenly hesitated if it was a mistake that I told her too soon about this, but despite Lena hiding it from me, she was the only person I trusted aside from my mate. She had been a mother figure to me since I became an orphan and a wonderful mother-in-law to me.“Have you tried calli
[ALPHA DOMINIC’s Point of View]“I can go with you.”“No. You stay here…” I caressed her face and then pushed her hair behind her ear. Samantha closed her eyes for a second as she savored the feeling of my skin rubbing against her cheek. With an anxious expression, she reached out and grasped my hand while tilting her head to the side. Her eyes sparkled with tears when she lifted her beautiful face to stare deep into my eyes as if begging me not to go.“You know it’s dangerous out there. Liam barely controlled the situation that happened in the pack manor yesterday. You even had to call Alpha Vance to send more soldiers to stop the Black Claws from escaping the dungeon, Dominic.” Her voice was full of perturbation as she rested her hands on my chest. “There’s no way I would let you go into that forest alone.”“It will be a lot faster if I go alone, love,” I whispered to her and planted a soft kiss on her pinkish, supple lips. I wanted to kiss her more. I wanted to pin her back into b