“Stop! Stop!” Granny shouted as she rushed over.  As she got closer, she realised the first pup she had seen was Felix, and the girl on the floor was Violet Langford. Little shit, she thought. She didn’t need to ask any questions to know that Violet was the instigator, and Arla had retaliated in defence. Two warriors that had been patrolling the packhouse grounds had heard Granny Elsie’s shouts and rushed over. “Mrs Montana, is everything all right?” asked one warrior. “You three,” she said, pointing at Jared, Rocco, and Cynthia, who were still standing, shell-shocked at what they’d just witnessed. “Go home, now, before I tell the Alpha about your involvement.” They didn’t nee

The three of them followed Arla’s scent, which led them out the back door of the packhouse, and Lorenzo mind-linked the patrol team to keep an eye out for her. As they neared the forest line, they heard the sound of raised voices and shouting coming from the front of the packhouse. “Alpha?” Eli mind-linked. “Yes, Eli, go ahead.” “Have you heard of the term ‘angry mob’?” “Yeah...” “Uh, well, we kind of have one here.” “What kind of angry mob?” he asked warily. “Alan and Marie Langford are pissed off. Apparently, something happened with their pup today and they’re accusing Arla of witchcraft. I don’t know what the fuck is going on

Drew and Granny Elsie followed Lorenzo to Arla’s room and watched as he sat on the bed, gently placing Arla next to him. “I don’t want to go, Alpha,” she whispered, her dark brown eyes still shining with tears. Lorenzo felt like his heart was about to rip in half. “I can’t keep you safe if you stay here, Arla,” he replied quietly. “Not without sacrificing a lot of your freedoms.” “But you’re the Alpha!” she exclaimed, trying to wipe her wet cheeks with the sleeve of her jumper. “I know, but there’s a lot more to being Alpha than just telling people what to do.” He reached over to the bedside table and handed her a tissue. “They fear what you can do, Arla, and when people get scared, they do stupid things. I promised your mum I would take care of you, and at the momen

“Drew, can I ask you a favour?” she said, looking up at him. “For you, little lady, anything.” “Can you look after Felix for me? Please?” she asked, her big brown eyes pleading. “Well, maybe not you, I know Betas are important, but can you get someone else to do it? He’s a human, he can’t defend himself from Violet and the others.” “You’re right, I have worked too hard and am far too important to babysit Felix Thompson,” he teased. “But you don’t have to worry, I will make sure he’s looked after.” “Promise?” “I promise.” “Thanks Drew,” she said as tears of gratitude filled her eyes.  She pulled on the front of his shirt and

Stepping out onto the cobbled street, Arla got her first look at her new community in the daylight, and was instantly enchanted by it. It felt like she had stepped back in time, into a quaint village she’d only ever seen in movies, yet it had a familiarity that made her instantly relax. The smell of chimney smoke hung in the air, and although it aggravated her nose with her heightened sense of smell, she knew she’d adapt quickly.  The girls walked to the end of the main street, in the opposite direction Arla had arrived the night before. Another wider section of the lake came into view, and it was breathtaking. It was completely still and looked like glass with the sunlight bouncing off it.  They veered to the left and stopped in a wide open paddock. The training area appeared to be broken into various zones; there was a section with a garden, anoth