CHAPTER ONE

"Yes Stormy... Yes right there, don't stop." Liora moaned softly, her claws digging lightly into his shoulders to demand he maintain the pace.

In less than three minutes, their combined scent filled the air as they both climaxed.

The affair between Liora and Storm was no secret to the staff. Well... except to the naive omega lying in the opposite wing of the Castle, fast asleep in La- La land.

"Would you like me to join you in the bathroom Stormy baby?" Liora purred.

She slipped out of the sheets and approached a stark naked Storm. As he turned toward the shower to wash up, she planted a lingering kiss on his chest and neck, her fingers tracing the rigid lines of his abs.

No matter how much his conscience pricked him, Storm felt completely hypnotised. He tried to look away, but her intoxicating scent appealed to his masculinity in ways he couldn't comprehend.

"Yes... please?" he breathed, his voice sounding less like an answer and more like a plea for permission

Her eyes glazed over as he dragged his knuckles across her ribs, her involuntary shiver drawing them even closer together.

"What have you done to me Liora?" He asked before scooping her in his arms into the bathroom.

Their moans echoed against the walls of the bathroom and the heavy scent of sweat and orgasm filled the space until three in the morning.

Afterwards, wrapped in their robes, the room suddenly grew cold. Liora stood by the vanity, staring blankly at herself in the mirror whilst mindlessly fiddling with her long red hair.

"What's wrong baby? I thought we just had a good time," Storm asked, approaching her with slow, uncertain strides. He sniffed the air tracking the sudden drop in her mood. "What did I do to ruin your mood?"

She smirked into the glass, still playing with her hair. "I'm just suspicious. And worried."

"Did I do anything to make you suspicious... or worried?" He nervously wiped the imaginary sweat from his forehead. "If it was about hugging her earlier today, it meant nothing I swear. I _"

"I smelled her scent near the pups' nursery on my way to your room tonight." Liora interrupted, lines of worry etching onto her forehead.

Storm heaved a massive sigh of relief, his shoulders dropping. At least he didn't do anything wrong.

"I'm sure your stupid sister was just tucking the Pups in or something like that," he assured her. He pulled her from the vanity chair to sit on his lap.

"I'm f*cking serious Storm. She had a very eerie aura tonight. You know I've always told you my sister has a scary side she hides from the pack." She sighed, gently laying on his shoulder.

"Baby, there's no need to worry that pretty head of yours over what your weird sister is doing." He tapped her back soothingly, planting soft kisses on her cheeks. "I love you, Liora. Not your pea-brained sister."

"If you say so Stormy..." She pulled back just enough to flash him a pair of wide, vulnerable puppy eyes. "But at least send a guard to check on the pups? Just so I know they're alright."

Storm chuckled at the submissive, cute face she was pulling. He couldn't resist her when she used that tone. "Okay, Your majesty. I'll do as you ask. But promise me you'll go to bed right afterwards, and let me cuddle you?"

Liora buried her face into his neck to hide her triumphant smirk. Safe from his line of sight, her eyes rolled at how easily he was manipulated, though her voice remained sweet. "Deal."

Five minutes after Storms commanded his royal guard, a piercing howl pierced through the night. Commotion erupted through the corridors.

All thirty pups had been brutally massacred.

"Nooo!" Liora shrieked as she reached the Nursery, dropping to her knees.

The air was filled with the metallic stench of fresh blood. Storm stood frozen in the doorway, his mouth agape. As Alpha, his inner wolf reeled with agony at the sight before him: thirty innocent pups laying motionless, their heads completely severed from their bodies. He had never witnessed such wickedness.

"It's all your fault, Alpha Storm!" Liora wailed, throwing herself forward to shove his chest.

"My fault?" Storm gasped, catching her by the shoulders to steady them both. "How could this be my fault?"

"If you had listened to me! If only you had issued the search the moment I told you I smelt her, these innocent pups would still be alive!" Liora bellowed, her face twisted in grief and fury.

Storm had never seen her this angry, but his own Alpha pride was not about to take the hit. "Liora, think clearly. What possible reason could Tatsumi have to butcher children? She might be strange, but she's no cold-blooded murderer."

"Get a grip on yourself, Liora!" Storm said, his hands clenching her shoulders firmly.

Liora burst into a sharp, crazy laugh. "You think so, huh? You want to know why? I'll tell you why!" She aggressively wrenched her shoulders out of his grip, stepping directly into his space. "Jealousy!"

"Jealousy?" Storm shook his head, thoroughly confused.

"Tatsumi is a weak Omega getting married to an alpha. She knows that her fragile body could never bear strong Alpha pups of her own." Liora ranted, her voice dropping to a cold tone as she leaned in close. "So what does she do? She flies into a mad, jealous rage and takes out her bitterness on the future of this pack."

Storm flinched. The logic was twisted but it resonated with his own deep-seated fear of weak bloodlines. "But this is your sister we're talking about here..."

"Yes, she's my sister! That's exactly how I know the darkness she's capable of!" Liora yelled, backing away toward the door. She gave him one final, disgusted glare. "Do with this information whatever you wish... Alpha Storm."

The sharp rhythm of Liora's heels echoing down the hallway, left Storm standing alone in horror. He desperately wanted to believe that Tatsumi couldn't do something as horrible as this, but Liora's poison was already spreading.

Besides he didn't want to lose her. Her theory made sense.

Steeling his heart, he turned to the trembling royal guards. "Assemble a unit. We march to Tatsumi's wing. Now."

When the doors to her quaters burst open, Tatsumi looked up in bewilderment.

"Believe me Alpha Storm, I would never hurt a pup." Tatsumi softly pleaded, fat tears welling her eyes as the horrific accusations were laid bare. "I love them too much, I would die before ever thinking of hurting them."

Storm looked at the gentle Omega, his chest tightening with guilt. But order needed to be restored. "I'm sorry, Tatsumi. But until your name is cleared, you're the prime suspect. Take her."

At his command, the heavy silver chains were bound around her thin wrist. Tatsumi didn't fight as they dragged her away into the cold and musty dungeon.