Lin swallowed hard as she opened the message that had popped up on her screen from the unknown user. She was a bit nervous but more intrigued than that.
The message read, ‘Your parents’ death may seem like a tragic and unfortunate accident, and I am sorry about that. But my job here is to provide you with the unfiltered and unseasoned truth.’
When she read that part, her heart skipped a beat. She had totally forgotten that a guy was just a few feet away from her, waiting to get her full attention.
But even with how hot the guy was, how could she even pay attention to him when she was on her toes about what No User was about to tell her?
Another text came in, causing the phone to vibrate and make a sharp noise. ‘Lin, it was not an accident. It was done purposely. Your parents’ death was planned and organized by someone and that person is right under the roof of the royal mansion.’
“What the f*ck?” Lin whispered to herself in disbelief.
“What? Is everything okay?” The guy spoke up in concern. He could see the shock, disbelief, and great sadness written all over her. And it pulled his heart to her. He wanted to get to know her.
Lin cleared her throat gently and placed her phone back into her pocket before giving the guy her full attention. The message she had just read was enough to have her overthinking for months.
But at that moment, she decided to push it at the back of her mind and focus on the guy that was right next to her.
“Uh…yeah, yeah,” She replied to him.
“Are you sure?” The guy asked as he carefully studied her. He could see that she was definitely not telling the truth. “You can talk to me, you know.” She shrugged gently before running his hand through his wavy dark blonde hair.
Lin chuckled dryly and took a tentative step back before responding, “Well, I don’t think I can. I don’t even know you, do I?”
The guy took that as the perfect opportunity to introduce himself. “Yeah, you’re kind of right.” He chuckled lightly. “Um…my name is Hunter Blackwood, and I’m the son of the temporary Alpha and Luna of the pack.”
A piece fell into place as Lin stared into the blue eyes of the attractive guy. He was Sarah’s son! “Okay,” She replied softly as she flashed him a small yet meaningless smile.
“Lin Boyce. That’s the name, right?” He felt a bit happy because he could feel the girl opening up to him.
Lin folded her arms on her chest and sniffled. “How do know who I am?”
Hunter could not help but smile. “Let’s just say that your return to the royal mansion was not quiet at all.”
Lin laughed, remembering how loud the alarms were and how so many guns were pointed at her. It had for sure been one of the scariest moments in her life.
“Right, right,” She mumbled in response when her laughter had died down. To be honest, she was actually feeling less alone now that she was talking to the guy.
But the message that had come from No User kept lightly ringing in her mind. She was certainly going to address it real soon.
“You’re the daughter that ran away years ago, the one that was supposed to be the next alpha; the one who was going to be the first female Alpha,” Hunter explained, keeping eye contact with the girl.
“Mmmm,” Lin mumbled and nodded weakly. She really did not want to be reminded of the fact that she had run away from her pack and was not even here to protect her parents or be there for them.
Now, they were dead and there was no going back. There was no time machine to help her erase her mistakes and do the right thing.
All that she had was pain from heartbreak from catching her boyfriend cheating on her, and from finding out that she had lost her parents forever.
She was also burdened with a lot of guilt. It felt like she was drowning and the only person reaching out to her to help save her was this guy she had just met…Hunter Blackwood.
“Come on, I want to take you somewhere,” Hunter suggested. He did not think she would go with him though. He knew that he was good-looking but at that moment, he knew that Lin was not focused on looks.
He knew that she was hurting deeply. He could see it written all over her.
Lin flipped her hair gently and asked, “Where?”
“Do you trust me?”
She furrowed her eyebrows. “I just met you, I don’t,” She replied truthfully.
Hunter chuckled and appreciated her honestly. “Just follow me,” He said with a playful eye roll.
Lin knew that she had more important things to do. Things like replying to the text that No User had sent her so she could figure out who had killed her parents.
But those eyes…those ocean-blue eyes kept calling to her.
She pursed her lips and shrugged lightly before following the guy. They walked through a long hallway that led to the back of the mansion, to an incredible view.
Flowers could seen for miles and the sun was beginning to set, casting a beautiful orange-golden glow on the field.
“My god,” Lin whispered in awe. It was stunning. “This is beautiful.”
Hunter heard Lin but he was too focused on admiring how beautiful she was to even respond on time. He really liked her personality, there was something about it that absolutely shook his world.
Lin glanced away from the field and locked eyes with the guy. The soft light from the setting sun bounced off his eyes so that they looked magical.
“Hunter Jade Blackwood!!” A voice boomed, startling both of them.
Lin’s heart skipped a beat and she looked in the direction of the voice. It was a man with pure white hair, and he looked eerily like the older version of Hunter. He radiated power and authority.
“Dad…” Hunter replied in a nervous tone as he put some distance between him and Lin.
“What the f*ck are you doing with her?!” The man’s voice was filled with annoyance.
Hunter was scared, there was no doubt of that. He had been warned to stay away from Lin from the moment her arrival spread through the town like wildfire. His father had warned him but still, he wanted to see the talked-about daughter of the Alpha and Luna of the pack that had run away. And she was certainly not what he expected. Well, he did not know what to expect but a beautiful and innocent girl whose eyes were filled with great regret and pain was not his list of expectations. “Dad…” Hunter walked towards his father, but before he could even explain himself, the man hit him hard across the face, causing him to inhale sharply as the pain swept across his jaw. “You dare disobey me?!” Hunter’s father spat the words in his face. The man chuckled without humor as he ran his hand through his white hair. “I should have known. I should have known that you would have found a way to mess up again.”Hunter swallowed hard as a painful burn settled in his chest. Tears threatened to fall f
Lin felt like her heart had stopped as she waited for a response from No User on the phone. But it seemed like none was going to come if she was just going to wait around. “Hello?” She managed to say. “Please…please, I need answers. I’m drowning here.” She could feel the tears building up in her eyes again. The person released a small sigh after hearing what Lin had to say. And just like that, the call was dropped. “No,” Lin whispered to herself. “No, no, no.” She took the phone from her ear and hurriedly tried to call again. “Please pick up, please pick up,” She chanted as a few hot tears slid from her eyes. But it was useless. The person didn’t pick up. Even though she called for almost thirty more times, it was just useless. “Gosh…” Her lips quivered when she spoke. More tears flowed from her eyes as she stared at the phone in her hand. Then a sudden rush of rage began to fill her, causing her to scream loudly, throwing the phone hard against the wall. Her knees then buckled
“Hurry now, dear. No one makes the council wait,” Sarah said to Lin as she lingered at the door. Lin had to take a few seconds to think. Did she even want to be the first female Alpha of the pack? The only real reason she came back was because of her parents. She came back because she had heard they were dead. She never wanted to be Alpha to begin with. It was just too much for her. The responsibility, being in the public eye, and having to be a certain way; it was just not for her. She had no desire for it. But now, with her parents dead, she had to step up. She had to put aside her personal desires so she could let their legacy live on. “Okay, okay,” Lin mumbled in response. “Where can I find something to wear?”“Check in the closet. Look your best and make sure that you don’t delay, dear,” Sarah said and then walked away, finding her way to the grand gathering. The grand gathering was a huge meeting that involved almost everyone in the pack. Everyone in the pack would come to
Lin was taken aback. What did Hunter’s dad just call her? “Excuse me?” She did not intend to let it slide. And there was no way she would sit there and let her birthright be stripped away! That would just be a spit on her parents' grave that her pack so happened to be celebrating. “You heard me, dear. Now, sit the f*ck down and let the grown-ups do what grown-ups do.” Lin’s heart was beating fast, and she could feel the adrenaline rushing through her veins. She felt angry and disrespected and gosh, she hated it!“Stop talking to me like that,” She tried her best to say in a respectful way. She did not want to come off as a rude outsider, because she already knew that her leaving the pack to live in the city with humans would certainly be the excuse that her people would use against her. “Baby girl, I can talk to you any f*cking w–”Lin did not even wait for him to finish his sentence, she snapped and slapped him across the face. It was after she did it that she fully realized what
Hunter licked his lips and then ran his hand through his blonde hair. He walked close to her and stopped just before reaching the cell. “You ran away for years. You left your parents, your pack, your culture. And for what? To live with humans?” Lin felt a stab of pain in her chest and seeing the look of disgust across Hunter’s face only made it worse. “You don’t understand.” “Lin, your parents died and you didn’t even know! You didn’t find out until a week later!” She felt a hard knot in her throat and a few tears escaped her eyes without her permission. She had already been beating herself up for all that but hearing Hunter say it out loudly, shook her to the core. “Yes, I know. I know that I f*cked up.” Her voice broke. “But it was too much for me. You have to understand that I was way too young and everyone was putting so much on me. Plus, you know it, the pack was not ready for a female alpha. You heard about the riots.” Her voice got firmer at the end. Hunter scoffed. He sho
Lin’s heart was beating so fast that she could literally feel it. Her throat burned due to the councilman’s tight hold around it. And the way he pulled on her hair made her cry. “Roger…” Sarah begged her husband but in a delicate and careful tone. She was trying her best not to upset him.The councilman enjoyed the rush of adrenaline that ran through his veins. He felt powerful and that fed his ego. He ignored his wife and shouted in Lin’s face, “Beg me you, you sl*t!”“I’m sorry…I’m sorry, I’m sorry,” Lin cried out the words under her breath as her knees buckled. She was now only being held up by the man. Tears flowed from her eyes freely and it felt like she was going to die.Due to his tight hold around her neck, she could not breathe well. And it was only getting worse. Sweat rolled down her face and pain filled her scalp. “I can’t breathe,” Lin managed to say as she started to panic. “Please…I can’t breathe…” She tried to pry his hands from around her neck but was not strong en
Depression. It is a very slippery and dark slope that could lead to one doing stupid things. Things that they would never consider if they were okay. Lin Boyce, the one next in line to be the female alpha of the pack was now officially a nobody. And not just a nobody, but she also had nobody. She had lost her boyfriend, her parents, her birthright, the respect of her pack, and was now slowly losing her mind. As she lay there on the hard and cold floor, her mind spun. She had never cried in her whole life like how she had cried for the past few hours up to now. To top it all off, she had just been physically, verbally, and emotionally abused by one of the councilmen who was meant to protect her. If not for his wife, who knows? She could have died right in that basement. Her phone suddenly started ringing and she released a shaky breath before reaching for it. Her head was pounding and the pain that surrounded her neck was only getting worse. When she glanced at the screen, she sa
Maybe it was the fact that his dad had always treated him and his mom like crap. But at that very moment, Hunter felt like going down to one of the security rooms and getting a pistol so he could put a cold metal in the man’s head. There was not a month that would go by that he or his mom would not get a bruise or wound from that man. They had to be perfect for him, or else they would pay. Even the smallest mistakes were punished. Sometimes, Hunter wished that he and his mom would have just left in poverty and lowliness, rather than accepting to come and live with his dad. The man was a monster. “Why did he hit you?” He asked as he tried his best to deal with the anger that kept building in him. He had an online therapist that helped him with his anger issues but to be honest, he did not think that it was working. Because he was angry almost all the time. Except recently…when Lin walked into his life. Yes, he still got triggered, but not as much as before. He actually forgot abo