“I’m sorry about what happened to your wife and child William, but I fail to see what this has to do with killing your own brother and his family?” I raise my brow in question. The silence had stretched out between us. I waited, hoping that he would continue, but it would seem that he was done with telling his tale of woe. My heart ached for him, to have been cast out not once, but twice by his father, and to then loose his mate and his unborn child on top of that, it was a lot for any person to go through. But how was any of this relevant?
“You don’t get it do you? I lost everything. Everything that ever mattered to me. I spent my life apologising for the mistakes of my brother, protecting him because I was the oldest. I watched as he got everything that was mine, whilst I lost everything.
“He had the perfect family. The mate to be proud of, sons to continue the Black line. My father’s blessing and the crown to go along with it. I was left with nothing.
“I s
Alexander We returned to the castle with Rosalie’s bracelet safely tucked away in my pocket. The whole time my thoughts churned with how Rosalie came into possession of the trinket. The vaults that held his family jewels and money had been locked since I had taken back control of the castle. No one had access to them bar me. I had the only key, which remained hidden in my office. The only other key that could have got into the vault was the bracelet, which was hidden away with the rest of the set. I knew that I was right. It had been me that placed them in the chamber. Doubts clouded my mind like smoke. Perhaps she had managed to find my key and break in? But then wouldn’t I have noticed her scent in my study? No, I was certain that she had not been in there. In fact, I couldn’t even remember a time that Rosalie had set foot into that part of the castle. My thoughts returned to when Rosalie first came to the castle. I h
Alexander “That’s where she is?” I look up at Estelle who seems to wobble slightly where she stood. “Yes.” She croaked out before falling back into a chair. “Be quick, I sense something is not right.” She didn’t need to say anything else, I turned and was out of the door heading down the stairs before could even blink. “See to her Lucille.” I shout over my shoulder, not stopping to wait for an acknowledgment. “Sire.” Arthur’s urgent voice rang out through my head, making me pause slightly. “My lord, rogues heading towards the western border.” “How many?” I bark out, agitation starting to flood my system. I needed to get to Rosalie, I didn’t have time to deal with rouge attacks. “Two Alex. They are coming in human form under a white flag.” I breathed a sigh of relief at his words, at least I would not have to deal with bloodshed before I left. If they were coming under a wh
Alexander Tearing off the clothes from my back, I strip down, my body morphing into my wolf as I go. By the time I reached the tree line, Silas was in charge of my body. Having grown up in the fields and woodland that surrounded Castle Black all of my life, I knew every inch of the land around the castle. It didn’t take much for me to know exactly where Rosalie was just from looking at the map. In my youth, me and some of the other boys thought it a fun game to head out into the dark woods as a show of bravery. Not just because it was forbidden, but because of the stories of creatures so deprived and ruthless that live within them. We thought it was just that, stories that our parents told us at bedtime to ensure we behaved. In reality, the dark woods were a dangerous place beyond what any of us realised at the time. We would take turns in seeing who could get the farthest before getting to scared and returning. It was a backwards game of chi
I barely made it out of the settlement before something large and heavy knocks into me from the side. Knocking both myself and Rosalie sprawling across the floor. I am quick to get back up onto my feet and stand over Rosalie in a protective stance, my teeth barred as a wolf comes into view. A black wolf stands before me, so like my own it was uncanny. My mother had always joked that me and my uncle were so alike that if she hadn’t given birth to me, she should wonder that I was William’s son after all. And now, seeing him standing before me once again, I could understand why. The only different between us. Was the grotesque scar that ran the length of his face, and the milky white eye from a long-ago injury. He shifted back into his human self. Gesturing for me to do the same. Reluctantly I followed his suit. I knew that I wouldn’t be able to communicate with him unless I could talk, but I was reluctant to leave Rosalie unprotected. “Ne
Returning back to the castle took longer than it should have done. By the time my uncle had disappeared, Rosalie had passed out on the woodland floor. I could do nothing to rouse her and so I ended up carrying her the rest of the way back. As I broke free from the woodlands, Arthur rushed out to meet us, handing me a warm cloak to cover myself and another for my mate who was soaked through to the bone. “Call ahead and get the maid to bring up warm water and fresh clothes.” I command the men around me, refusing to let go of Rosalie, who was nestled so closely against my chest I couldn’t bare to part with her. “And then fetch the pack doctor.” My men dispersed to do what I commanded. Arthur remained by my side, looking at me expectantly for answers. “He has made it clear that he wants the castle back. We have until Spring to be ready for the attack. I want the war council called and ready to meet by first light.” “That’s three, maybe four months
Rosalie The water hit my skin like shards of glass running through my veins. Wincing against the pain as Alexander holds me and gently lowers me into the water. I try to clamber away from the torture, but he holds me firm, whispering words of encouragement to me. I could barely hear what he says, the pain is all I can think about. “It hurts.” I cry out, trying to break away. “I know, but this is the quickest way to warm you.” His words were soft and brushed through me like a gentle caress. I look up at him through my teary eyes and try to relax back into the bath. My whole body spasming as the intense heat engulfs me. Eventually, the pain begins to ease, and rather that the feeling the two extremes of hot and cold all at once, my body temperature begins to rise, and for the first time in what felt like forever, I could feel my fingers and toes again. I look down at my body, noting how my fingernails were caked in mud,
I woke up on mine and Alexander’s bed, completely disorientated and unsure as to how long I had been out for. My mind felt foggy like I had just risen from a bad dream. The fact it was pitch black outside told me that it was late at night. I woke with the feeling of heat burning my skin, like I had just climbed into a bath that was still too warm. Pulling myself up, I step gingerly from the bed. The pain in my collar bone from where Alexander had marked me throbbed painfully, a stark reminder of the fact he had marked me against my will. Only the pain seemed to have intensified. It worked its way down my arms, and chest, all leading to a point in between my legs that throbbed just as intensely as the mark itself. Hate surged through me, all of which was aimed at the man who had claimed me as his. It wasn’t so much that he had marked me, it was more the fact that with this mark, it meant that there was no hope for escape again. At least not without tell
I fell in and out of consciousness. Each time I came around I tried once again to open the door or to gain someone’s attention, only to be pulled back under by the burning need within me and the darkness dancing around my peripheral vision. I could no longer hear Nancy’s shuffling outside my door. Everything was silent. That was until the pain in my gut kicked in once more, and the silence was broken by my garbled moans. I tried to push through the pain, but I could barely move past wrapping myself into the foetal position. Even when the door was pushed open and I was forced back by the door, I didn’t notice. It was like all of my other senses had been turned off, and pain was all I could feel. “Rosalie.” A concerned voice echoes through my mind, but I couldn’t place who it was, or where it came from. I cried out as another wave hit me. “Shit, Rosalie, I need you to get up for me sweetheart.” The voice came again. Could it be…? No, it couldn’t be Alexander, t