* * * Max’s POV * * * “What do you mean my mate was here?” I ask him, feeling dumbfounded. Is that what this feeling is?“What were you taught about mates, before you were sent to the nights’ watch?” Damian asks me. “Probably the same as any nine-year-old wolf, I guess. That a mate is a gift from the Moon Goddess, it is fated. That they complete you and when you meet them, it’s no longer gravity holding you to the earth, it’s them”, I answer him.“Max, buddy, there are lessons beyond that basic crap you were given. About how a scent can make you feel like you’re losing your mind, even if the scent is from days ago. How your mate is the other half of your soul. How crazy your wolf will become when he knows his mate is near and how he will continue to be crazy until you find them. Trust me pal, your mate was here”, he tells me.“I need to go and find the scent, go and find my mate”, I tell him.“You will scare your mate away, you look wired. I think you need to eat, shower and sleep.
* * * Damian’s POV * * * I leave Max to have his shower and freshen up, while I go in search of food. He really looks like shit. His eyes are bloodshot, and his hair is stuck up in every direction. I’m hoping we can find his mate once he’s sorted himself out. He’s done so much for us, he more than deserves a happy ending. The councilman had spoken to me and several others last night, asking questions about the type of man and the type of Alpha Max is. Apparently, the council will help him. I’m surprised that having Jasper as part of our pack hadn’t worried the councilman, but he seemed impressed at our peaceful coexistence and how we were making it work. I make my way through the packhouse in search of food. I’m about to ask for directions when the most delicious smell of freshly baked pastries and cake hits my nose. I follow the smell until I reach the dining hall and see the kitchen doors. I look around the dining hall as I walk to the kitchen. The flooring has marks to show the
* * * Eve’s POV * * * This morning is just too much to handle. It started with the revolting task of trying to make the guest wing clear of the backlogged drain smell. Then the visit from Beta Damian, who observed far too much and acted far too weird for my liking. Although the weirdness now has a reason. He could be Becca’s mate. Not only could he be Becca’s mate, but he may also have been around my mate. Me. With a mate. Of course, I’ve dreamt of what it could be like, but I’ve never dared to hope that it could happen. I mean, after all, I don’t leave the pack and I very rarely leave the packhouse. I don’t think I’ve ever met another wolf from another pack, in all my time here. The pastries and muffins have cooled enough to be placed on the tiered serving platters that we now have. It’s amazing, the lengths that Alpha Charles will go to, to make sure that his pack appears to be flourishing. That the pack appears to be well looked after and happy. The fact is the only ones who app
* * * Max’s POV * * * Damian was right. A shower was just what I needed. Once the cold water hits me, I feel so much better, and my mind feels a lot clearer. I’m eager to continue our discussion on whether or not it’s my mate's scent I have caught. We only learned what a mate was at a young age. It’s not until we turn 13 years old that we will begin to learn everything there is to know about mates. I had missed out on that. Living and serving at the Nights Watch didn’t entail educational classes. Damian returns to the room as I leave the en-suite, the smell of the food literally has my mouth watering and my stomach rumbling in appreciation and he encourages me to eat. It’s more of a bribe actually. He will talk only when I eat. We sit at the table, the mouth-watering smell of the various delicacies calling me. It’s like I’m a child again, unable to make up my mind about what I want to eat. So I do the mature thing, and I take a bite out of everything. As I’m enjoying a chocolate c
* * * Alpha Charles’s POV * * *That stupid Omega just had to come out of the kitchen and have her bruised jaw and head wound seen by the others. What was she trying to achieve? I’d forbidden her to come out, she could have made an excuse. But no. She had dared to defy my orders. I’d noticed the looks on their faces. She deserves her punishment. It feels good to punish her, it’s been far too long since I’ve shown I mean business. Maybe the others will now listen. That man and his wolf have come out of nowhere. I didn’t even see or hear him enter the kitchen. The first I know of his presence is his wolf’s teeth tearing into my shoulder and throwing me across the kitchen. It hurts like a bitch. It’s been some time since I’ve fought and even longer since I’ve been injured. Who is he to interfere with how I run my pack and how I punish insubordination? “Who the fuck are you to challenge me? You will regret this boy,” I tell him as I prepare to add another to my kill list.He’s edging t
* * * Eve’s POV * * * The last thing that I remember is Alpha Charles beating me. He’d viciously and repeatedly kicked and punched me. I haven’t received a beating like that in years. I’d required Hospital treatment that last time. There’d been a fight, between who I can’t say. There were crashing and banging sounds and the angry snarls of wolves. Something had squashed me and then, my vision had started blurring and I’d felt ridiculously hot, and then I’d blacked out. The blackness had welcomed me, it beckoned me closer and embraced me. It provides me with a way out of the pain I’ve been feeling. I accept its embrace and I float weightlessly in its darkness. A place I don’t feel pain. A place I am safe. The black abyss is still present but fading. I’m on the edge, between the abyss of nothingness and reality, but I’m partially aware of my surroundings. I’m laid on something lumpy. Something lumpy with soft sheets. My body feels battered, tender and bruised. I try to open my eyes,
* * * Max’s POV * * *The Nurse witch-wolf has mind-linked her husband, Walter, she says he’s called. She says she’s told him to gather all the visiting Alphas and councilmen in the meeting room at once. While Doctor Andrews has stabilised Damian and transferred him to a Hospital bed, I’ve called my pack to request a small team of my strongest warriors to attend the Mountain View pack urgently and without delay. They will be here within the next hour. I told to use their wolf form once they reach the national park. Travelling in wolf form over rough terrain is much quicker than travelling by car. I’ll deal with the damage limitation of possible sightings by humans at a later date. For now, my mate is my priority. Nate and I are crazy for this girl we have never met. Walking to the meeting room, in silence, beside Dorothy, my mind wanders. It’s as though my soul has stopped the search it’s been on for a time that feels like forever. As though it no longer sees nor seeks a path, yet
* * * Eve’s POV * * * I come to with a thudding headache; I clench my eyes shut against the dull pain. My whole body is throbbing, and it stings something rotten, my wounds are slowly healing. I bite out a curse and try to move my left hand to inspect the damage - except my hand doesn’t move. I then try to move my right hand. Again it doesn’t move. Panic wells up inside of me, something is restraining my arms. My legs are also immobilised, which I realise when I try to move them. Why am I restrained? Restrained on a bed. Oh merciful Moon Goddess, please don’t let them abuse me, I silently pray.Everything is black. I can’t see, but my eyes feel physically fine. I wiggle my eyebrows and feel fabric rub against my face. I must be blindfolded, I think. The violent hum of electricity streaking through the air assaults my battered head, calling forth a grimace of agony. A steady dripping sound of liquid echoes all around me. When I try to focus on the sound, it seems to be coming from a