Mercy had seen Logan return from the bathroom and she watched as he went straight for Sephora. Mercy saw Sephora slip him something, and then saw Logan leave the party. She knew where he was going – to take more Mascu, and part of her didn’t blame him. He was addicted. But when she saw Sofia follow him out, she excused herself and trailed them. She hadn’t expected to see Logan in wolf form, nor to see him licking Sofia. Logan whined when he saw Mercy, his Mercy, with her strong, beautiful eyes. She wasn’t looking at him with anger, or shock. She had pity in her eyes. This was enough to snap him back to his senses. He released Sofia and shifted back, covering his private parts with hands. “I’m so sorry, Mercy,” he said, shivering from the cool night air. “Sofia, go back inside,” Mercy instructed. Sofia was glad to get away from this ‘shit show’ as she called it. She scampered away. Mercy went to Logan and held him closely. The drug still ripp
Olivia was in the wings as Mercy ran in, out of breath. “Where have you been?” Olivia asked. “We’ve been looking everywhere for you! The show’s about to start. Mercy, you’re a mess.” Mercy tried to smooth down her hair. Olivia ran up to her. “Mercy, that’s not the dress we chose. We agreed on the black velvet one, remember? And where’s your violin?” “Never mind what I’m wearing,” Mercy said. “This dress is fine. My violin is right here.” Mercy walked to a box in the wings. “I put it here before the party.” “Olivia,” a contestant said. “Uh, my costume ripped again.” The contortionist lifted her arm to reveal a large rip in the armpit of the unitard. “Oh jeez,” Olivia said. “Okay. Come with me. I’ll fix it.” “Olivia! I can find my shoes. The ones with the heels? Like we practiced!” “Right,” Olivia said, already threading a needle. “There you are. Olivia, I forgot the words to my song. Like, I dunno
With the contestants all settled, Olivia ran to the audience to take her seat. Her work was done, and now she could just enjoy the show like everyone else. She sat towards the back and was surprised when a woman sat down beside her. The woman had clearly seen her coming and had changed seats to the one beside Olivia. “That was really great,” the woman said shyly as the first contestant finished. “I’ve also loved opera. She was talented.” Olivia looked to the woman and nodded. She recognized the woman from somewhere, but she couldn’t place it. “Do you like opera?” the woman asked. Her face was gentle and her eyes were kind. She was much older than Olivia. Where had Olivia seen this woman before? “Yes,” Olivia said, but then the next contestant was introduced, the comedian. Olivia laughed along with the audience at every punch line. She nailed it. “She was funny,” the woman said. Olivia shifted uncomfortably in her seat. Who was this woman an
Gabriel sat, completely stunned. He couldn’t believe it. Was Mercy really…?But he knew that she was. Did anyone else know, he thought? He didn’t think so. Had anyone else put two and two together? Again, he didn’t think so. It took the audience a moment to catch their breath after Mercy’s performance, so there was silence as she bowed her head. And then, they erupted into an applause the likes of which he’d never heard. People jumped to their feet as Mercy received a standing ovation. I have to talk to her, Gabriel thought. As soon as possible. I have to know if anyone else knows. Everyone got up from their seats. The show was over and the gala was about to begin so the audience flooded towards the restaurant, which had been set up for the gala. But Gabriel stayed seated while he let the gravity of what he’d just learned wash over him.Meanwhile, Amelia and Jonathan rushed to the wings, holding hands.“You were marvelous,” Jonathan gushed as the finalists flocked around hi
Olivia stumbled backwards, shocked. “Mmmm, mother?” she stammered. Amelia grabbed Olivia’s arm to steady her. “That can’t be.” The woman looked uneasily at everyone in the wings. “Can I talk to you?” she asked, stepping towards Olivia. “Will you walk with me? So I can explain?” the woman asked. Olivia shook her head in disbelief and turned to Alfred. He smiled gently at her and nodded his head. “Give her a chance to explain,” he told her. “Trust me, I’m just as shocked as you are, love. But she deserves a chance to explain herself.” Amelia and Jonathan agreed.“I don’t know what’s going on, but I agree with Alfred. You should talk to her.” So Olivia left the wings of the stage and followed the woman to the bench overlooking the lake.The gala was in full swing inside and they could hear the music and the people laughing. It was a calm evening, and the water was so calm it looked like glass under the light of the moon. “I know this must be quite the
Lucas. Of course. Olivia nodded. There had been rumors that Lucas wasn’t Sephora’s son by birth, which is why Lucas has been so mean to Jonathan over the years. Jonathan had told Amelia that his brother had even tried to kill him once. That’s why Jonathan had left the pack. It was ironic, because Jonathan didn’t even care about being Alpha. He didn’t want it. But it made sense now as to why Lucas was so aggressive and hated Jonathan so much. Deep down, Lucas must have known that Sephora was not his birth mother. Which meant he wasn’t the rightful heir to the pack, Jonathan was. So Lucas had tried to force Jonathan to leave, to get him out of the way, so Jonathan wouldn’t be a threat. This was all starting to make sense now. “It was a secret, one that I swore to keep.” “What happened after Lucas was born?” “I stayed. For a bit. I didn’t know what else to do. But he…he got worse. Meaner. More forceful. I told him I wanted to leave, and he threatened me.
“Davison,” Agatha smiled. “Come, sit with us.” “Oh no, I can’t stay long. And neither can you. Olivia’s friends are waiting for her at the gala. I just thought I’d check in to see how the little reunion is going.”“Reunion? Dad, did you…did you know about this? That she was coming here tonight?” “Of course. I’m the one who invited her.” “What?”“She looks just like the pictures,” Agatha said, stroking Olivia’s hair.“Pictures? What pictures?” Olivia asked. Something wasn’t making sense here. Agatha told her she had left when Olivia was little. But these two were talking like old friends? “He’s kept in the loop,” Agatha smiled. “Over the years.” “Really?” Olivia asked. This was all news to her. “Yes,” Davison confirmed. “I’ve been in contact with Agatha over the years. She made a huge sacrifice, leaving you. So I made it my mission to keep her updated on you and your life.” “He sends me pictures. And tells me about what you’re u
Sephora recognized Agatha the moment she walked in. That bitch! That human that stole her husband’s heart with her seduction? What was she doing here? Sephora’s mind flashed back to the day she found her husband was cheating on her was a human! Sure, Agatha claimed that he was keeping her there against her will, but she was lying. Sephora knew it. She was perfectly content in her little love nest. The cottage her husband gave her! And now she was pregnant? If the pack found out, Sephora would be the laughing stock of the entire pack! So she had quickly devised a plan. She would keep the baby and raise it as her own. Her husband could keep his pretty little human. Whatever. It didn’t matter. As long as NO ONE KNEW! But then she’d run away and people had found out. She’d gone straight to the Alpha King himself. Sephora had rejected it all, called Agatha a liar. Why would her husband, the Alpha of Blackseed, love a lowly human. It was preposterous! Most people had b