It took a while before the door opened. When it finally did, Rae was shocked. She was staring at a tall male who appeared to be a few years older than her. He had a scar on his cheek that was gruesome and made him look cruel somehow. But that wasn't what shocked her. The male standing before her looked exactly like Fred. If she hadn't heard him being ripped apart by Keegan that day in the woods, she would have thought that he was standing in front of her, that his ugly scars were from the fight with Keegan. The scar on the back of her neck tingled and she had to ignore the need to scratch it. He gave her a sour look and asked, "You're the thieving female, are you?"She gritted her teeth even though she was horrified. "I'm not a thief."He kept looking at her in the same negative way. Rae gulped. She was watching him for any sign that he might know who she was. If he did, it would mean that he was Fred, and she didn’t want him to be Fred. Not in a pack of strangers and away from Ke

Rae woke up more tired than ever. She hasn't slept well. Whenever she closed her eyes, she saw that poor female being punished for making an honest mistake. The cruelty had no limits, it seemed. Tara hadn't lied about that. She had just been lucky enough not to see anything hideous during her first few days. It was her turn to fill the tub with clean water. She stood up while Tara slept and grabbed the half-empty tub. She carried it all the way down the corridor, through the living room, and into the kitchen. She disposed of it outside and filled it with water from the well. There was never anyone around whenever she was filling her tub, so maybe that meant that they did so at night? It would sure facilitate things. She made a mental note to ask Tara about it. The day was somewhat warm, so she knew that it would be an internal one in the kitchen, which was a poorly ventilated area. And with the tension, things would get ten times heavier. And hotter. It wasn't something she was loo

Rae awoke in a much lighter place. Keegan and what happened the previous night was all that was on her mind. She wondered vaguely if it had all been a cruel dream, and prepared herself for the shattering heartbreak she would get from the reality check, but when she saw that she was in a tent of some kind and not in her room with Tara sleeping beside her, she knew it wasn't a dream. It had all happened. She was saved. It was a relief. Rae looked around the room, and saw that Keegan was nowhere to be seen. She sat up, and rubbed her eyes. She felt weak, but not lightheaded. It didn't take too long for her to remember what happened the previous night. She passed out before Keegan could explain everything that had happened while they were apart. There was still much that had to be addressed, though. She had a lot of unanswered questions in her mind. She didn’t hurry in getting out of bed because there was nothing left for her to worry about. She wouldn’t have to get to the kitchen to

The two of them had dinner inside their tent, and Rae ate well for the first time in a long time. Everything was delicious; she ate as if her life depended on it, and perhaps it did. For the most part, Keegan watched her, and he did so with a faint smile on his lips. “Good?” he asked. She nodded. “For you, only the best,” he said, and she blushed. “The cooks here are spectacular. They had months of food kept all over the place. A cruel folk, they were. Starving all of you for their benefit. The injustice makes my blood boil.”“It’s over now,” Rae said to him after she swallowed her mouthful of wine. “You’re here to make everything right. You’ve saved them all.”Keegan smiled, then leaned in for a kiss. Rae felt delighted. She had forgotten the argument they had about StonePaw, and chose to live in the moment. There was no use in stressing about something that hadn’t happened yet. She was only shortening the beautiful moments, and tainting them with her worries and despair. She had

The day of their mating finally arrived. Rae was dressed in the fine dress that Tara had remedied. It had belonged to the Luna of WoodFur, and now it was hers. The design was a little different than the usual ones—the bodice was tight-fitting, and there was a slit on the side of the skirt so she could move freely. The sleeves had been ditched because the days were getting increasingly hot, and overall, Rae was absolutely in love with it. "Thank you," she said to Tara. "I can't take you enough for making this beautiful design for me. I look...I don't think I've ever looked this beautiful.""The pleasure is all mine," she replied with a smile. "You've saved us all from a miserable end. For that, I will always be thankful. You and Alpha Keegan saved our lives."Rae blushed. "It was our pleasure."Tara took her hand in hers and they stared at each other’s faces for a full minute. Rae felt truly grateful for her help. She was the one who she and Keegan put in charge of the house’s affair