LOGINLayla POV
Before I knew it, I was grabbing my throbbing cheek and looking at my mate with tears in my eyes in complete shock. I tried to mind-link my father to help me, but I was blocked, immediate pain shooting through my head advising me that something was curbing my ability to communicate with my family.
“Do not even bother to try,” the man, my mate, sitting beside me said. He straightened his cuffs, as if he was inconvenienced by hitting me. I continued to stare at him as he glanced my way. “Cut the crap, princess. You can get used to that type of treatment if you do not quickly learn your place,” Rafe stated.
“I am a princess. I come from a royal line. I am a strong she-wolf,” I stated coldly. I had shifted before we left, and I was a white wolf. A white wolf who had many talents to develop, as my wolf, Sunny, had promised me. The man simply chuckled as did the driver, who was driving us towards this man’s pack.
“That is the problem, princess. You are spoiled and need to receive a reality check,” Rafe, my mate stated. I looked away from him and watched as the landscape flashed before my eyes. “If you did not want me, why didn’t you just reject me?” I questioned softly. I could feel his glare on my back, as I continued to watch out the window.
He quickly yanked me around to face him and wrapped his big hand around my throat. He was cutting off my ability to breathe, and I clawed at his hands, trying to catch my breath. “Never, and I mean, NEVER, speak of rejection! I will never reject you and you will never reject me!” he roared.
I continued to claw at his hands, tears starting to roll down my cheeks, as he smirked, pushing my face away. My head cracked against the window causing me more pain. I leaned forward trying to catch my breath, as I coughed through the effort. He laughed once again, “You keep pushing my buttons, and you will be showcasing a lot of bruises,” he taunted.
“You cannot keep me contained. I will escape,” I whispered, as he simply continued to glare at me. “You think it will be easy to escape me?” he asked, as he leaned forward. I flinched away from him, afraid of what he was going to do next. “The only good thing that will come from you being my mate will be the alliances that will fall into my lap, the protection from the crown, and the strong pups we will have,” he stated.
“I will never have your pups,” I spit out. Rafe simply laughed, “And who do you think will stop me from making that happen?” he taunted. “You will be amazed at what I can and will do to stop you from recreating,” I responded. Before I could get any further away from him, I felt a pinch in my arm. I yelped before I felt a burn spreading across my limb. “What the hell was that?” I questioned.
Rafe had pulled a syringe out of my arm, “Just a little something to help you relax for the rest of the journey. I can already see my marks forming. I want to save some of the marking for later,” he promised. “You are a vile man,” I screamed as he laughed.
“You will be fun to break, princess,” he vowed, as he sat back in his seat and started to scan his phone. I could not let this man mark me. I would end up bound to him for life, and I would not accept that fate. I felt my body start to relax into the pain. Wolfsbane. Rafe had injected me with wolfsbane. I slowly felt Sunny go silent. I was suddenly alone with this man and I had no way to protect myself.
He pulled me into his arms and held me close to his body. Suddenly he smelled foul and made me sick to my stomach. I felt his hand sliding up my leg causing me to cringe in fear. I fought the wolfsbane taking me under, trying to move away from his sweaty hand. I tried but it was no use.
I slipped into unconsciousness and the last words I heard were “Beta … you and I are going to have a lot of fun breaking the princess.”.
Jason POV It had been a long night. I had tried to contain my disappointment and frustration that Layla had chosen Samuel. I knew there were things between us; things that needed to be ironed out. I had hoped we would all share one bed, but that was not the case. It caused me a fear I hated to admit. A fear that she may not accept me as her mate. I did not know how I would survive a rejection from Layla. I did not know if I would survive if she chose Samuel only. I spent most of the night considering the various scenarios and none ended favourably for me. Now we were all silent being escorted to the palace. I knew we would have a challenging day facing the Wolf Council, the Queen and Rafe’s lies. I only hoped we would be able to prove that we were mates to Layla. That we would be able to discredit Rafe and his claims that he was Layla’s mate. I wondered what would have happened
Samuel POV It felt so right having Layla in my arms. Well, on my shoulder. I knew we had a way to go yet, but that she came back to us meant she wanted us … right? I could not prevent the fear in my chest. We had been so close to making the worst decision of our lives and all because we had accepted everything at face value. As we reached our floor, Jason moved around us to open the door to our main suite. We each had our own rooms within the suite. We would have to determine how we would make things work; for now, it was important for us to speak with Layla. To find out her concerns and share our worries. “Put me down, you beast!” Layla screamed as she squirmed on my shoulder. She was still making a strong effort at pounding on my back, but it only served to make me laugh even more. She would be a strong mate, but could not hurt me. Physically, that is. I slowly lowered Layla
Layla POV I watched as a woman in red leather and high heels walked to stand before all of us. “Director; I thought you were coming tomorrow,” Alpha Lucas stuttered. “I had a chance to leave early. I just met with the Queen. Imagine my surprise when she stated that one of my representatives was preparing to take a young woman into custody,” she stated. I felt a glimmer of hope, as I waited to see what would happen next. “Her fated mate contacted us to support him in getting her back from the Alpha twins of the Dark Forest Pack,” Lucas commented. “You were sent to get to the bottom of everything,” the director replied. “I did. The Alpha twins hid her from us; we had to assume there was foul play involved,” Lucas indicated. The director turned to focus her intense stare on me. “Alpha Lucas,” she stated coldly. “Yes,” he squeaked out. “I do not see a mark on her neck,” the Director observed.
Jason POV “We should go to one of our suites,” I started to say before Layla cut me off. “No, I want answers now,” she interrupted. As if realizing her defiance would push Samuel, I stepped between the two of them. “I am sure we all have some things to explain,” I stated calmly. Layla turned her glare from Samuel to me, “What?!?” I demanded, confused by her glare. I felt of the two of us, I was the more reasonable twin. “I am not the one who was rushing off to a bonding ceremony with chosen mates!” Layla yelled. “No, you just left us behind!” I countered. “I left you behind? I had no choice! I was taken, if you recall,” she yelled. Samuel looked at her, “How the hell would we know? We were not even there!” he reminded her loudly. “Surely William advised you what had happened,” she stated, confused at the conversation. “When did you become so friendly with our warrior?” I ques
Samuel POV I immediately recognized the voice from the back of the room. I turned and smiled as I saw both my parents entering the ceremony hall. My father’s face was red with rage, as he approached the stage, holding my mother’s hand. “What are you doing here?” I asked, pleased to see them. “Clearly saving you two asses from making the biggest mistake of your lives,” my mother bit out. Jason chuckled, as did many in the audience. My parents walked up the stage to stand in front of us. My mother had never been one to hold back and clearly, she was prepared to fight tonight. “What in the hell provoked you to take chosen mates?” my father demanded. Both my parents had been adamant our entire lives that we wait for our fated mate. That while the wait would be challenging it would be worth it in the end. And the Moon Goddess never made mistakes. “Elder David has been blackmailing us
Layla POV I had woken up early this morning feeling better than I had in weeks. I was more aware of my surroundings, and I felt like I was thinking clearly. I had waited to see if I would hear anything from my wolf. I did not. But I was confident something had shifted. I heard a tap on my door and then my mother entered my room. She breathed deeply and looked at me excitedly. “Do you feel that?” she asked. “What?” I responded, cautious to respond. “The dark magic has been removed,” she replied confidently. “You mean what I am feeling is real?” I asked. “It is sweet girl,” she replied as she moved forward to hug me tightly. “I am sorry for everything you endured,” she confided in me. “It was not your fault,” I whispered, but she continued to carry the burden of guilt. “I need to get to the Dark Forest Pack,” I stated. My mother looked at me, surprised by my words. “What?” I







