Alaric’s POVThrough the help of Fabian Gray, we unbound the spell cast on Lyla. A cloud of smoke appeared, and out came Lyla, who at first looked disoriented upon seeing herself surrounded by too many people. We were inside the courtroom. Alpha Douglas, as head of the council, was presiding over Lyla's trial. There was a general look of amazement, and everyone seemed to hold their breath when Fabian Gray started reversing his spell. Fabian's movements were precise and meticulous. It was no wonder he was the best of his kind and the undisputed Warlock chief. My gaze scanned the whole room until it landed at the back of the courtroom where Luna Bella and Erin were seated. Luna Bella insisted on witnessing the trial. Erin came in support of her mother. I guess it would be hard to tear Luna Bella at bay. Lyla is her daughter, too. After Fabian broke and retracted the spell, Lyla appeared before us in her human form. She looked around, surprised to see the Alphas surrounding her.
Erin’s POV How do you recover from the death of a loved one? One who had been an integral part of you and who had greatly influenced what you had become? How do you cope with the loss, at the gaping hole they left in your heart? They say that for werewolves, losing a mate means eventual death. I never fully understood it until now. I scattered the ashes in the air and saw specks mingled with the wind. They danced together, intertwined like some old lovers until that far beyond. While I watched them go, I murmured in the air, hoping it would reach the ears of my loved one. “Luna, it is time to go.” I turned around and met Boris’ shadowed face. We nodded at each other before my gaze locked with my mate. We do not need any words between us. One look from him is all it takes to calm the storm within me. “I love you.” He mouthed. His words were enough to puncture the dam in my eyes and it burst. In quick strides, Alaric reached my side. He wrapped my trembling body in his arms as
Today is my eighteenth birthday. To most werewolves, this is a coming of age, a milestone celebrated especially when you are one of the twin daughters of the Alpha of your pack. The night was young, and everyone seemed to be having a happy, gaily time celebrating my twin sister’s birthday, but not mine. While my sister enjoyed being the center of everyone’s attention, I am relegated to the kitchen, helping out to serve our guests at her party. I am Erin Acklen, the first among the twin daughters of Alpha Leo of the Red Stone Pack and his mate, Luna Bella. I watched my Alpha father sipped his wine while my mother fussed over my twin sister, Lyla and felt a heavy feeling in my chest. “What are you waiting for?” The head mistress scolded when she saw me dilly-dallying, hesitation all over my face. I bit my lip. The reluctance to follow her orders died in my throat. If I don’t show up at my family’s table tonight, Lyla would not like it. After pulling my hair in a scrunchi
Tears sprung in my eyes when she held my neck and squeezed. I gagged, feeling my windpipe starting to give way due to lack of air. Eyes rolling back on my head in agony, I cried to the moon goddess to save me from the monster that I used to call my mother while Luna Bella continued to squeeze my neck, choking me to near death. “Die, bitch! Die!” Luna Bella hissed, her eyes turning feral while her skin started to grow hairs. It’s the full moon. Werewolves' natural transformation happens during a full moon. At this realization, I was reminded of my mate, Boris. “Don’t dare die.” Maya, my wolf warned me. “Boris is waiting for us to perform the sacred mating ritual.” She added. “But I have no strength left,” I told Maya, arms flailing to the sides. With a sinking feeling, I realized that Luna Bella wouldn’t feel compensated for her sufferings unless she kills me tonight. It was only now that I was made fully aware of how deep her anger runs toward me - the offspring of
I looked at Boris with wide eyes. Shocked beyond words. Boris rejected me. I could not believe that he would throw the mate bond just like that. For what? Because he sees me as a liability more than an asset to his ambitions? Does his ambition to become the next Beta weighed much more than us? “I thought you loved me?” Boris threw his head back and laughed. There was a wild look on his face that I had not seen before. “Love? Do you think you are worthy of love when your family could not even look at you without contempt in their eyes?” That shut me up. Boris is right. How can anyone love me when even my own family could not? Slowly, I sank on my knees. Boris was my only hope. I thought he loved me, but as it turned out, his love is shallow. He could not love me as purely as I needed to be loved. Tears welled in my eyes, blurring my vision. A pain so deep seared into my heart. I could not breathe. My nose and throat were clogged. My chest felt constricted.
“Huh!” I gagged as something cold hit my face. I looked down and gasped, finding myself drenched in water. I lifted my hands to wipe my dripping face and hair, but I couldn’t. Then I felt my head lolling back as a shadow fell over me. “Good morning, princess.” A rogue woman with buck teeth sneered at me. I knew she was rogue because of her particular smell. She looked down at me in disdain while holding an empty pail with its rim still dripping with droplets of water. I presumed the contents of which woke me up from a deep sleep. Warily, I started to sit, propping the heel of my hand on the mossy grass to support my weight. My hands and feet were cuffed by what appeared to be Wolfsbane - a plant that caused mild to serious harm to wolves like me. So this is the reason for the lethargic feeling. I thought I was run over by hundreds of wolves. Speaking of wolves, I remembered mine and called out to her in my mind, but Maya would not answer back, making me worry. It was
I looked at the arrow trapped in the Alpha Rogue’s hand in disbelief before relief slowly washed over me. I staggered, my knees buckling with the sudden realization that I was so close to death moments ago. The man’s free hand held the sleeves of my dress to support me while on his other hand, he held the arrow’s shaft between his palm. I looked at him under my lashes and saw him sneer like he was expecting no less than this bold, unmerciless move from my father. Then, with a casual air, he threw the arrow back to my father. I watched in awe as the arrow took a spin, traveling in shocking speed until it hit its target, and landed on Gamma Alexander’s shoulder. He could have hit my father’s heart if Gamma Alexander did not interfere. Alpha Leo could have died. My breathing stopped as I watched Gamma Alexander pull the arrow from his shoulder and blood gushed out. A wave of nausea hit me as my eyes watered in a mixture of relief and fear. While I do not want to die, I
I shut my eyes involuntarily, my heart thuds painfully in my chest as I wait for the Alpha Rogue’s paw to slash into Boris’ skin. He was still after all, my mate. And though he rejected me, I know it would not be so easy for the feeling to go away. Love can not go away in just a blink of an eye. We broke up, but it does not mean I love him no more. In bated breath, I waited for the kill. “Not so fast.” I heard my father’s thundering voice and before I could blink Alpha Leo and his warriors attacked the Alpha Rogue simultaneously. All hell breaks loose as Alpha Leo lunges at the Alpha Rogue, shifting in mid-air. His warriors did the same, abandoning human form and transforming into their wolves. It was a magnificent sight as tall, muscular men shed their human skin, exchanging it to fur to become wolves. They snarled in anger, attacking the Alpha Rogue one after the other. But the Alpha Rogue gave them a good fight, deflecting every attack delivered to him. His wolf j