Chapter one

“We found her, or someone who looks exactly like her.”

Neil looked up from the food he was eating. He had not been paying full attention to his beta, who had been speaking to him about his upcoming coronation. Since the other pack Alphas had bestowed him with the True Alpha title, there had been so much to do in preparation for the coronation.

“What?” he thundered, every cell in his body revving into high alert.

The beta and the maids standing before him trembled. The beta bowed his head and spoke loudly, his eyes on the floor.

“Forgive me, Alpha. I said that in preparation for your coronation and mating ceremony, we had to be sure your other mate was truly dead since we have never recovered her body.”

“It was never recovered because she was killed and devoured by the rebel pack of Alphas, Scott,” Neil said mildly, his irritation clearly visible. “She is definitely dead and gone.”

As always, he felt a pang of sadness for his daughter. Though he had lost his mate, it was the fact that his daughter, Rosie, had lost her mother that bothered Neil the most. Their mating had been strictly an arranged partnership between his father and her father. He had little or no emotion for her.

Avira Diago had been beautiful, quiet, and lovely. A well-suited Luna whose only desire was to keep his bed warm and perform her duties as a Luna.

That was clearly how she had been raised, to submit completely to his authority as the Alpha, and since her wolf was weak, it was only right she remained in the shadows like a perfect Luna who would bear his pups and warm his bed.

“Someone has seen her, my Alpha.”

Neil frowned deeply, his eyes raging and his claws scraping on the desk. In order to formally become the True Alpha, he needed his Luna, and he was already planning on mating with Sharon Damon. He definitely had no place for anyone else, not even his supposedly late Luna.

“Are you sure?”

Scott swallowed. Since he had gotten this information, he had been so scared to relay it to Neil, knowing fully well how he hated the mention of her name. But he knew if she was still alive, there was no way he would be able to mate with another woman.

“Yes! A wolf from the Flame Pack saw a club stripper in New York City called Amy Stone who has a striking resemblance to your Luna.”

“A club stripper?” Neil asked in amusement, bursting into laughter. So his Luna had survived the Alpha pack and was now a stripper? That was impossible. They were still bonded to each other; he would have felt her. No one could ever survive the rebel Alpha pack, especially one who had been so weak and the mate of the Alpha who was against them.

Avira had wandered alone into the city, and before anyone could notice, she had been taken by the pack. He had tried to save her but had given up when he noticed he couldn’t feel their bond anymore, meaning she had been killed. A war followed, where he slaughtered six of the Alphas and hunted the other four, and if the Moon Goddess had not stopped the massacre, he would have killed them all.

“Scott, I think you need some rest. All these preparations have gone into your head because there is no way my mate would still be alive and I could not feel her.”

“He took a picture, Alpha.”

Neil’s smile vanished.

“Let me see!”

Scott immediately held out a bulky file, and Neil didn’t hesitate as he tore it open. He stared at the picture for so long. It could not be her, and yet the resemblance was something else…

“Postpone the ceremony and clear my schedule for the next two days,” he finally said. “Call the airport to ready my plane. We are going to New York.”

“Are you ready?” Thiago asked her as she stood behind the stage.

“Yes!” She was ready, and she knew it.

“Go get our money, Amy!” He grinned, and she threw him a smile.

The club was filled to the brim that night. Men and women clustered together in pure entanglement. It was booming when Amy walked onto the stage and placed herself firmly against a dance pole.

She watched the eager excitement on the men’s faces and the jealousy looming heavily on the women’s faces as they stared at her. For a moment, it gave her a slight jolt of happiness that made her heart ache. It was as if she didn’t deserve to be happy, like a part of her was missing and she didn’t know what that part was.

Amy looked out at the numerous new faces in the club. They were waiting for her. They were there for her. She closed her eyes as she began to dance, losing herself completely. On the stage, she was Amy Stone, a woman who was completely in control of herself and her life.

Unlike Avira. Avira Diago.

Every movement flowed with the rhythm, her hips swaying in slow and deliberate arcs while her shoulders rolled gracefully. She traced the air with her finger, turning with practiced ease as the spotlight caught the shimmer of her dress. A teasing smile curved her lips, her gaze sweeping the crowd slowly. Her black rhinestone bodysuit hugged every part of her body, and her face felt hot under the heavy makeup she had applied.

She thought about her foster parents and how horrified they would be not only at her dress but at the fact that she was stripping in a club. She smiled as she danced, thinking of their reaction. A man close to the stage smiled back at her, making a gesture. She didn’t mind. It was a part Amy had to play.

Except that Amy wouldn’t go home with any man. It never felt right somehow. She was free after running away from her foster parents, from their expectations and duties they had raised her with, and yet she couldn’t bring herself to engage in any sexual activity with a man. It was as though she had to save herself for someone.

Her song finally came to an end, and the whole club erupted in applause. Amy left the stage immediately and grabbed a glass of water that Thiago offered her.

“That was terrific!” he muttered loudly for her to hear.

She smiled at him and headed back to the changing room, flopping into a chair tiredly.

A few moments later, she heard movement in the hall. She could sense the moment someone stopped in the doorway. The room was small, but she could feel that she was no longer alone. She didn’t open her eyes to see who it was because other strippers were always coming in and going out. But something at the back of her mind told her it wasn’t another stripper or Thiago coming to join her because the person hadn’t moved since she had first sensed a presence.

Amy’s eyes snapped open. A man stood at the entrance, his presence dark and overwhelming. Raw panic seized her throat so tightly that she couldn’t speak or cry out. At first, all she saw was his size. He was tall, very broad, and filled the doorway. A shiver slid down her spine as she realized with a jolt that he was a werewolf. Dark hair, dark eyes that pierced her heart, and a powerful aura clearly showed that he was one of her kind. She didn’t know why, but fear flooded her in waves, liquefying her bones until she couldn’t move.

“Why?” he said tightly. “Tell me why.”

Amy blinked and scrambled to her feet. For a reason unknown to her, his voice sounded familiar.