KAYLA.
“Kayla” My father’s voice cried out to me, drifting my attention away from Rafael. I looked to see the tears in his eyes and my heart shattered. “I said shut the fuck up!” Rafael, in a fit of rage struck him with a stick.A yell resounded from my lips and I plunged myself between them.“Stop it” I didn’t know when the tears welled in my eyes and then fell down my cheeks. His heart was racing and I could feel it with my hands against his chest. There was also this sizzling sensation before I eventually pulled back. Rafael heaved in deep breathes and tossed the weapon to the grounds.“Please” I whispered to him, knowing I was probably the only person he would most likely listen to. His eyes burned with vengeance each time he looked at my father and even I could remember his strained cries from when he was being tortured in the dungeon. Now, the table had turned and Archer was forced to his knees and to bow to the new Lycan King of the Black Mountain pack who had been our nemesis since the beginning of times.“We’re short on warriors” The doors suddenly barged open and in came my father’s right hand beta. He clutched his bleeding neck and one could tell from his mere sight that we had already lost this battle. “It’s on you now” Rafael inched closer to my father and he framed his chin.“It’s your call.”“Surrender” Archer turned his face and that word came with a scornful mutter. He spat to the floor and a dark chuckle came out of Rafael’s lips. “I thought as much” He said. I just stood there in awe of how vicious he had become from the man i’d saved earlier. I shouldn’t resonate with my father but he kept looking to me with shimmering eyes.“Take them to the dungeon. The same cage in which they threw me in for days” Rafael commanded my father’s beta to arrest him and accompany both him and Rose and the rest of the children downstairs. Archer grudgingly stood and the beta reluctantly reached for his hands.Rafael directed his men to go after them and very soon, we were the only ones left in the room. His woodsy raspberry cologne trickled up my nose and his footsteps walked across the room. He poured himself a glass of wine and downed it in a instant.“What are you doing here?” I was obliged to ask.“Should I not have my revenge?” Rafael threw a question back at me and it was then I turned to him. “You said you were coming back, is this the reason?” There was a crack in my voice and he hefted his arms down.“What other reason, Kayla?” He called my name with a very distinct accent of his but that sentence absolutely gutted heart.“Me?” I could have said but I didn’t.“What is your end goal here?” I ended up asking him and he shrugged his shoulders. “I thought I’d made it clear that I was here for revenge. It’s never easy to have a taste of your own poison, is it?” He asked and I batted my lashes. “But I saved you.” Rafael inched close to me until our heated breathes exchanged in the thin air between us.“That’s why I’m keeping you alive, my love” He slithered through his lips.“You cannot kill my father” I tried to speak up but there was a sharp pain that struck my chest and limbs. It was probably from the torturing earlier and even till now, I still cried out in pain.His large hands were quick to wrap around me as I could almost barely walk. “Answer me” I still chastised nonetheless and there was a smirk that curved his lips.“We can talk in your room” He echoed.My face was suddenly flustered with embarrassment. “I don’t have a room.” I said to him. His lips slightly parted as his hands dug deeper into my skin. He had a lot of questions but none of which came out of his lips.“I sleep on the other end of the dungeon” My voice resonated an echo and so instead he helped me to the velvety couch in the corner of the room. I was reluctant but I later gave in to him carrying me.Rafael seemed to be the most cruel man to everyone else but in that moment, he was quite gentle like I was so fragile in his hands. His gaze was well intentioned and it silenced me even as I laid there. His hands slowly reached across my face as he soothed over my scars.All of them.“Your father is horrible to you. Everyone here is” Rafael broke the silence between us and a lump went down my throat. “Then why did you never leave?” He asked. “I have nowhere else to go, Rafael” I replied him and his name already felt familiar coming from my lips.“You know how dangerous it is being a rogue”“And it isn’t dangerous here? You told me of your sister pouring hot water on you and I could only imagine how much they could have put you through after finding out you saved me” He leaned back into the chair but our eyes never broke apart from each other.“I told you I’ll be fine”“Except you aren’t” He argued. “Rather, you’re here still fighting for the same people that have made your life miserable since you were a kid” He continued and I scoffed. “You think it’s that easy?” It was a rhetorical question and he fell quiet. “Of course it fucking hurts when he lays his hands on me but Archer is still my father and it doesn’t change the fact that he’s still my only relative left in this world” Tears welled in my eyes just then.“And I can’t loose him.”Rafael seemed to be lost in thought for a second or maybe he was just harboring his long term solution. He looked at me and I could tell he saw right through my cracks—that I was broken.Even as I was, my joints still ached and the skin around my wrists were wrinkled and numb. Half my face was paralyzed from all the slaps I’d gotten and other half from the hot water incident.Rafael was right because somehow here I was, still begging him to save the people that had hurt me so much. “I already lost my mother” My hands wiped across my eyes as I sniffled. “I don’t want anyone else to blame me for Archer as well” I pleaded with him, grasping the hem of his robe.Rafael cleared his throat.“I’ll spare them” He decided and I lifted my gaze in disbelief. The tears quenched in my eyes and I was compelled to kiss him in that moment. He stared at me like he had something more to say—or perhaps a catch. But then he shook his head and just allowed me have a moment. “Thank you” I said.“Thank you so much, Rafael”He nodded and a lump slipped past his Adam’s apple. His gaze remained fixated on me for a minute or so. “You saved me Kayla” He replied and there was that accent again that liberated the butterflies in my stomach.“Now I’ll save you.”Rafael leaned forward and laid right next to me. I could feel his hands sweep through my hair but I didn’t care. The chaos had subdued since my people surrendered and the ravaging fire was put out in no time. Night had fallen and I was offered the comfort of a cushion as well as arms that wrapped so tenderly around me. I drifted after some time into slumberland, leaving Rafael breathing heavily behind the nape of my neck.He was restless, and only him knew his truest intentions which was to mark me. He knew I was his mate but then I hadn’t realized because my wolf was yet to awake—to recognize him. I was used to just the connection. He had to untether himself after some time, after which he stood up to wear off the strong emotions that raced through his body.He was impatient and I couldn’t blame him.They say the longer you spend unmarked and in search of a mate, the more aggressive your wolf becomes. Like it doesn’t belong to you.The only thing that could calm him in that moment was a shower and the next thing I heard when I opened my eyes was the running water coming from the bathroom. I wondered why he left to have a moment by himself but it also gave me some time to my thoughts.Just one question roamed my mind.With the undeniable chemistry between us and my parents with the entire Blood Moon Pack held hostage by him, what exactly was Rafael’s plan?RAFAEL.I lifted my face to the shower as the heated water flowed like a soothing cascade. My fingers swept through my hair and it was like I could finally breathe again—whenever I was close to Kayla, I was usually compelled to mark her. My wolf seemed to be troubled unless I did.I knew she was my mate but I doubted she had an idea. Kayla was an omega in the Blood Moon Pack and I was well aware she was yet to find her wolf. Other than that, it was also weird that she was fated to me by the moon goddess. It mattered not because she was the very least in the hierarchy but because she was the daughter of my father's nemesis, Archer.I dreaded taking her back to meet my family but it needed to be done at some point.But right now, all I focused on was calming my raging senses before pulling out of the shower in a robe. I dressed in my custom royal attire and when I looked to Kayla, she was fast asleep on the couch. She was mesmerizing, even with her eyes closed and my heart was tethered
KAYLA."Rafael" His name softly escaped my lips as my knees knocked to the ground. My body became feeble in a second but his arms were strong enough to wrap around me. I forced my eyes to remain open and I saw the same terror filled his."Rafael, what is happening?" There was a crack in my voice and a vein that protruded along my forehead. "I think you're shifting" He muttered with a voice overshadowed by a lightning strike. "Shifting?" I echoed."This is your first shift?" There was a subtle hint of doubt in his voice as I cowered my head. "I need to get you away from here. I need to get you to the river" He quickly said and my mouth hung open with so much difficulty to even speak. When the temperature of my body burned through my clothes, Rafael knew time was not on our side. And so he sped out through the doors on his limbs and I clung unto the hemming of his jacket. He turned into the beast I'd seen before but his was a lot calmer—like he was used to this. The whole journey was
KAYLA. The cold winds gushed into my face as I alighted from the car. The first thing to meet my eyes was the pearly resplendent gates of Rafael’s castle. The building was gigantic with a hundred narrow, open slits for windows. The scent of this part of Oakland was different as well. Way different from back home.As the evergreen trees danced to the tunes of the whirling wind, a colorful bird landed on the pavement right next to me and I couldn’t help but let my eyes wander until it flew back up into the skies. His tower was the heart of Oakland, a building that dated back to centuries ago.I’ve only heard about this place from people or read it in books. Never dreamed of the day I would be standing in front of the hundred feet beauty—the home to the Lycans. A diverse group of supernaturals that spent their whole lives exiled to this place.It was no wonder why they never complained.“It’s beautiful” I blurted out and Rafael’s hands wrapped around my shoulders. There was this state o
KAYLA.I opened my eyes after a rough night to see the sun setting in through the window. My eyelids were heavy but the pain in my body had subsided a large amount from the previous day. It felt magical waking up from a neatly laid, soft bed after living half my life sleeping on a rocky floor.The morning was beautiful until I suddenly felt an arm grope around my waist. I yawned and turned to the other side and behold, I was met closely with Rafael. He shot his eyes open and even when he realized his arms had slipped around me, he was still reluctant to take them off.I paused within his grasp, refraining my eyes from falling to his bare, hairy chest. There was a dragon tattoo spread sexily across his shoulders and it was the first time I'd seen it. His muscles were moist with sweat and even halting breathes escaped his lips.God, this man would be the death of me.His smirk stomped my heart and our eyes met for a few seconds. The morning was beautiful but it was also a time where the
KAYLA.The chirping of the birds echoed above me as I clung to the edge of the balcony. Below I could see where everyone was gathered, hands around their champagne glasses as they exchanged pleasantries. Time had passed and I was somehow able to forget about the whole Rafael thing.Heaving a deep breath, I just craved some much needed air and silence that I got from up here. The winds were colder on this axis, raising the hair across my skin as it gushed into me. Perhaps it was because of the acres of forest in the near distance.The Manila forest was home to many tales and legends—some of which were even too frightening to consider more than a myth. I tore my eyes away from the trees and looked down at the Blood Mountain Pack. There were about a hundred people or more in attendance and a quarter of them were women who came with the hopes of drawing the Alpha’s attention.Rafael.You could tell by the lascivious way they dressed and the large diamonds that fell around their neck. The
RAFAEL. Tearing down the castle doors, I made my way through in search of my parents. "Mother!" I gritted through my teeth before seeing her against the throne. "Ohh Veronica has been looking everywhere for y—""Where's dad?" I interrupted her and she batted her lashes at me. I wasn't interested in Veronica nor was I in whatever she was about to say. And just then, the door opened to my father. "What's going on?" Carlos could scent the tension fill the room."I've decided that Kayla isn't going anywhere" I replied, darting a stare to the both of them. Ingrid was the most bewildered, taking a step down the throne. "What do you mean, Rafael?" She asked."We've already had this conversation and I assumed you'd make the right decision for the very first time" She snarled. "There's simply no way you're getting married to that woman, Rafael" My father chipped in as well and I shook my head at the both of them. Flashing behind my eyes were the memories from the first time I’d met Kayla.I
KAYLA.Ever since I was a little girl, I've found out that journaling was the best way to express myself. Having literally no one else to talk to forced me to pick up a book one day and start channeling my emotions into it. It was the best form of therapy and I usually assumed I was speaking to my mother.Whenever I wrote, it was almost as if I could feel her presence surround me and in the times of tears, I could fell her arms stretch out to comfort me. I usually told her about the wrath I faced in Archer's hands and how everyone hated me since she passed but most of all, I told her how much I wished she was still here.How my life would be so much different if I had my mother by my side.Then one day, my step sisters got their hands on the secret book and their first instinct was to take it to my father. He was furious when he found out all I’ve been saying. I could remember his exact words, calling me selfish and ungrateful for everything he'd done.It was that day he gave me the s
RAFAEL.The royal chambers were occupied with a number of us. Night had fallen and it was time for dinner. I’d called a meeting with the elder betas including Veronica’s father and I watched as he exchanged pleasantries with both Ingrid and Carlos. They took their seats around the table and Veronica set her venomous eyes on me.“I’ve been thinking” Her father started.“My daughter is really keen about the wedding preparations” He added and my mother chuckled. “So is the King” She replied. There was a contagious laughter that went around the table but it all silenced when the door drew open again. My eyes lit up as Kayla walked in.Veronica cowered her head and Ingrid didn’t hide the displeasure flash in her eyes. I ordered when we first got here that she have dinner with us but for the past few days, I hadn’t seen Kayla. It was so much of a relief to see her face and that she was doing okay but I couldn’t shake from my thoughts what happened the last time we spoke.As she took her se