Oliver Answering Helena’s questions was tough, but there was no way I was going to lie to her. If our relationship started with lies, it would be tough in the beginning, but it would get easier over time. I didn’t want lying to Helena to become easy. The meeting didn’t go as planned, but the omission wasn’t a lie, was it? I would tell her, eventually. I just didn’t have the heart to tell her now.The council was furious with me. All the people we lost in the war. All the families who had to live without their loved ones. All the resources we used for a war that I stopped halfway through. Not killing the wolves we had as prisoners was the last straw for them. I had to literally bit my tongue not to lose it completely. I didn’t want to lose Helena. I didn’t want to lose my crown, but I would give that up if it meant losing Helena! My parents supported me completely, but my council weren&rsq

HelenaIt took time, but everything was arranged within a couple of days. I was feeling so excited and went looking for Oliver. He was in town with his father taking care of the yule lights that they were planning on putting up all over town. I had seen pictures of the lights in an album Athena showed me and I couldn’t wait to see them in all their glory. We didn’t have lights at the pack house, so this was something completely new to me. As I walked closer to a group of men, I realized I hadn’t found what I was looking for. The scene playing out in front of me wasn’t what I hoped for.“Say that again! I dare you!” Oliver was gripping a Lycan around his throat. The male looked furious as he glared at Oliver.“She is not one of us!” He growled at Oliver, and I was stunned that one of them stood up to Oliver like that. It took me a moment to realize that the she the male was referring to was me! We had been trying our best to involve as many of the staff at home with the arrangements. I

HelenaI didn’t feel right when I woke up. I felt weak and a little light-headed. I didn’t mention anything to Oliver, since I didn’t want to worry him unnecessarily. When I joined Oliver and his parents for breakfast, things felt different. Something in the air was different. It was almost … Lighter. I just couldn’t put my finger on it. I silently had breakfast while Oliver and his parents talked about the yule festival. It sounded so exciting.I just felt as though I shouldn’t get my hopes up too high. Our pack didn’t have lights. This pack did. Our pack didn’t give gifts to omegas and I had a shopping day planned with Athena to buy gifts for everybody. She made sure to tell me it included the omegas. It made me feel so much better to know. But still I didn’t want to get my hopes up.I couldn’t help but feel as if I caused most of the issues in Oliver’s pack at the moment. I felt guilty. I felt as if I didn’t deserve the kindness he and his parents were showing me. The servants were

Oliver“Why are you asking, son?” My father frowned. I sighed. It would be no use to try and explain. I knew deep down that I had killed the guy. I was sure of it. There was no way he could have been behind the attack. My warriors were out looking for any leads. They were trying to find traces of tracks where I last smelled her scent, but so far there wasn’t much news.“They must have come after your mate because of you, Oliver.” King Alaric sighed deeply. “I don’t want to dredge up the past in front of my mate, but that was how we lost our daughter. Someone had a grudge, and we never found her again. We don’t even know if she’s alive or dead.” I knew the story well. Everyone did.King Alaric and Queen Jacqui’s daughter were taken right out from under their noses. The kidnappers took her right from her crib at night. By the time the night nurse realized, the scent was growing cold, and they couldn’t find her again.Queen Jacqui was a werewolf like my Helena. The king and queen were my

HelenaMy life as a slave and a single mother was hard most days, but the days that were good, it was so good I almost forgot about my circumstances. Almost. I feared the day my son would be old enough to work. I knew that most slave owners either put them to work or sold them and I wouldn’t be able to live with myself knowing that I was the reason my son was suffering.I tried to make his little life as bearable as possible. I quickly figured out that escape would not be possible in this city. Slaves who tried to escape suffered the worst consequences and I couldn’t do that to my little boy. All I could do was to keep my head down and work and pray that Oliver finds us some day. As the years ticked by, my hope grew less and less, and I made peace with our lives as they were.I have been bought and sold a couple of times over the years. Some of the masters were cruel, and I carried the scars of their cruelty. They never healed completely because I wasn’t allowed to shift. As soon as o