Anna quickly put a considerable distance between the twins, breathing in deeply and trying to act like everything was fine. It was a fine line she had to balance but for the sake of her kids she would do it well.Her fingers traced the carving on the beautiful dresser and she asked, “I hope you’re not causing your father any trouble?”The twins shook their heads emphatically.Andrew piped up with a, “You don’t have to worry at all, Mommy. Daddy’s taking good care of us. And we got new toys too!”They began to show her all the new things that William had gotten for them and she couldn’t help but smile sadly. William’s gaze was on her and she didn’t dare turn to look at him. He would likely have questions for her strange behavior but she couldn’t answer them just yet.Just more time, the redhead thought. She needed more time in order to get herself together and THEN she would tell William the truth.The ache in her chest intensified.She wanted to hold her children so bad.But how could
“Welcome sir,” the Hunter in charge of the lower ranking men greeted Damon with a low bow as the golden eyed Erikson heir stormed past them, entering the darkened warehouse. As soon as he was far from the sunlight he removed his sunglasses with a flick of his hand.“Where are the captives?” He turned and asked the man in charge, while placing his sunglasses in the inner pocket of his suit jacket.Then he removed his suit jacket, and handed it to another of the men who took the designer jacket gingerly.“The ones we have interrogated are in the cells in warehouse B,” Damon’s subordinate rushed to give his report in tandem with his boss’ large strides down the dimly lit hallway. “There are some that were brought in just this afternoon.”“Let me see their names,” Damon demanded and quickly he was handed a sheaf of papers detailing the list of all werewolves that had been captured and all details known about him.His eyes scanned the papers within seconds, only to stop when he took in a n
As soon as Ethan was sure his dear brother was preoccupied with meetings and would be out of the house, he made his move.He had meant it when he mentioned to William that Anna was acting strangely. And since the Alpha didn’t want to entertain the thought, he had taken it upon himself to do this.Quietly treading down the hallway with no maid in sight, Ethan reached Anna’s bedroom. He tried the doorknob and found it locked.However, he wasn’t a bit discouraged as he knew exactly how to get in.Utilizing the skills he learned as a rebellious teenager who loved to pin everything on his brash older brother, Ethan picked the lock in less than a minute and pushed the door open, storming in.Anna was already dozing off on the armchair when he came in, and her eyes immediately snapped open to look at who was at the door.Bleary golden eyes met Green, and Ethan got a look at her eyes for the first time. The shock that ran over his expression was one he quickly pasted a grim smile over. Intern
Ethan could see how Anna’s expression morph from a pained one to a stoic one. He knew she must be feeling numb by now, as all the hits he had verbally dealt her would affect her psyche.He didn’t care; if there was one thing Ethan did care about, it was his ties to one of the strongest packs in the country. And he would rather his pack succeed than William find happiness with her. If his brother was going to be a good Alpha, Anna shouldn’t exist beside him, mate or not.“I know what you must be thinking. That I am trying to scare the shit out of you,” Ethan ventured to which Anna pressed her lips together.“You’ve tried that before, haven’t you? I know your type by now. You use people just to get what you want, however much you can. You might not be telling me the truth,” Anna replied slowly, letting her feelings be known about him.“Listen, Anna. I may be a lot of things, but a fucking liar isn’t one of them. At least when it comes to things like this,” he sighed, shaking his head at
Revving up her engine, Aléa tilted her head towards the passenger seat beside her, waiting for her younger cousin to hop in. True to his playful disposition, he didn’t even bother opening the door and jumped in with the elegance of a gazelle, shifting this way and that as he settled into the leather cushions.Ah, what a treat. You really have a thing for comfort, Aunty,” Victor used the nickname he and many of their extended family used for her.Rolling her eyes inwardly, she pressed the accelerator without remorse and they went speeding off through the open metal gates of the estate.Woah!Your seatbelt, Victor. We wouldn’t want you to fall over,” Aléa said in a teasing tone, far from her stoic expression. She increased the speed as the car moved through hilly slopes of the Italian countryside, passing through fields that went as far as the eye could see, and even further.She was using this as a method to let off some steam, which was very much needed for her.The meeting had left a
The next afternoon, Anna held the phone in her hands. It was a newer model too, to her surprise.“Thanks,” she told Ethan, still staring down at the phone in her hands. “At least now I have something to hold onto,” she added softly.“Don’t forget, Damon could still be keeping an eye out for you. You should be at least be a little careful not to lead the Hunters to your location,” he stated brusquely, and she couldn’t help but shiver at the thought.It was still surreal how things had changed for her.The man she thought was an okay, if not a little eccentric boss, turned out to be her worst nightmare.And yet, Damon Erikson was the only person that could help her now, to undo whatever was done to her by that injection he gave her.However, she didn’t tell Ethan that and merely nodded in response to the werewolf. The less he knew about her plans, the better. Anna still didn’t trust Ethan, no matter how right he was about her staying in the pack to be a disaster.“Where’s William?” She
William’s concern made guilt run through her, and she gently extricated herself from his arms. Her heart couldn’t take it.“I’m fine,” she said with a small smile. “I have to get some rest, okay?”William was confused by his mate’s behavior and didn’t know what to do about it. However, he thought, she must have even been really tired, and so he nodded.“We can talk tomorrow morning,” he said before turning to the twins to spend time with his children before he too slept.Anna was glad to leave the twins’ bedroom and her lips trembled as she returned to her room. As soon as she locked the door, she covered her face in her hands and began to sniffle.“Oh God, what can I do?” She whimpered.She stayed in that position for hours, mourning the loss of the peaceful life she wanted for her family and the feelings she had for William amounting to nothing.It was when she heard a small knock on the door that she finally realized it was midnight. Opening her eyes, Anna slowly stood, her limbs f
The car ride was going so smoothly that Anna’s mind had settled into a lull, pulling her to sleep.It was only the fact that she hadn’t yet gotten to her destination that stopped her.Her thoughts went to her children, and how they might react to her absence. Would they be okay?And William?Her fingers clenched into tightly balled up fists. Already she was missing them, but she knew she had no other way to stay.This was something she could only do by herself.“Uh-oh,” her attention was caught as soon as the man said that.That was when she noticed the checkpoint which made her brows raise as the driver slowed down. A couple of cars were lined up before them and Anna spied men checking each one.She wondered when a checkpoint had existed on this road. To her memory, it hadn’t.Was this Damon’s doing?As one of the men began to walk down the rows of cars walked towards their vehicle, Anna didn’t waste time in making the connection that this could be the work of the Hunters.What coul
Lily couldn’t contain her smirk as she saw Anna’s wide-eyed stare aimed at her. It had taken the work of a couple of her connections for her to figure out William’s whereabouts.It had just been her luck that she had a standing reservation here.The Alpha growled lowly under his breath as she turned to look at him. “What a surprise,” Lily remarked with sarcasm dripping from her voice. Then she turned to Anna, the redhead whom she glared venomously at. She blamed the formerly human woman for ruining her life, and her future with William. “Don’t tell me you two are on a little date.“What are you doing here, Lily?” The emerald eyed Alpha demanded.“What? You didn’t think you’re the only one that can step out on a nice night like this?” She scoffed and folded her arms across her chest. “You know, I was just wondering how you two could be here having a good time when you both have caused so much chaos. You, especially, Anna.” She spat out the redhead’s name with such venom that Anna coul
It was an hour later when Anna arrived at her parent’s place.She knocked meekly on the door, and was startled when the door was flung open.“Anna?” Her father was the one who answered it and she could have nearly cried at the relief in his eyes. He pulled her close into a hug and she closed her eyes briefly from the warmth.“Where have you been?” He asked her, curiosity in his voice. “And how are the twins?”“I had to travel for a bit. For work,” she clarified, the lie that she had come up with left her lips so easily. “The kids are okay as well.”She stepped into the house that she had lived in all her childhood.…Anna woke up from the bed of her childhood room early the next morning. Sleep hadn’t come easily but she eventually drifted off. After an hour of tossing and turning, she got up for a jog and had breakfast.“Good morning mum, dad,” she greeted her parents as she returned for breakfast.Her mother eyed her in silence, and Anna could sense questions on her mind. Having lied
“Of course,” William said in an imperious voice. “My brother saw fit to take his anger out on human girls and murdered ten of them in one night. There is even news to prove that, and he has confessed it to me.”Gasps left the lips of all who had no idea, and Camille’s face turned pale as she processed that.“T-this cant be true-““It is the truth,” William turned to say to his mother unabashedly. His eyes pierced hers with a look of certainty on his face. “And it will always be the truth. That is why,” he continued, turning to his brother. “From now henceforth, I cut all our ties to him.”There was a wave of confusion in the air and Alpha Drake seethed silently.“You are banishing him from your pack?” The Alpha of the Eclipse pack asked and William nodded in the affirmative.“Now that you have seen the truth of what caused the Hunters to come into the city, you have no right to hold these charges over my mate’s head. And you will release her at once. Council, your decision?”The Elder
The next morning, as sunlight streamed in through the windows and bathed the room with a warm glow, William stirred first.Anna slept soundly in his arms, both of them half-naked. The memories of the full moon the previous night made him smile. It had been better than he had expected. Luckily his Beta had fulfilled most of the duties William delegated to him, so the Aloha was free to enjoy the night with his family.“Hey,” Anna woke up with a small whisper leaving her lips. She felt his warmth all around her and she felt safe.It had been a long time coming, she thought, and she didn’t want to leave the bed anytime soon.“Sleep well?” He smirked down at her as she pressed her body against his.“Too well,” her voice was akin to a purr as she spoke. “Anyway, I think it’s nearly last breakfast. I’ll have to get ready to go into the city soon.”Ah yes, that.William’s mood soured and she noticed it quickly.“Will,” she sighed and leaned into him. “Please. You know this is necessary.”“I k
Anna was surprised to find Ethan approaching them.“Ethan?” Camille also sounded stunned to see her younger son there, and coming to Anna’s defense.“Mother, enough of this,” Ethan said in a calm tone, not showing any signs of anger.“B-but-“ Camille’s face reddened, out of anger or embarrassment or both… she didn’t know.“Focus on the festival. Stop with this,” he told her. “Focus on the festival.”“Focus on the festival? What about the Eclipse pack, and our relations with them? What about Alpha Drake?”“Everything is being taken care of,” Was all Ethan said before turning to glance at a stupefied Anna.She looked away, not wanting to show emotion to him of all people.She noticed the twins were staring at them from afar with curiosity in their faces.Camille was shocked at her younger son.“Ethan, I had never expected you of all people to defend her after all she has done,” she vehemently said.“And I am not,” Ethan sighed; his mother was hard to dissuade when she fixated on certain
“This is so cool!” Andrew jumped atop the picnic blanket in an excited manner that Anna couldn’t help but smile.There was a buzz of excitement in the air.As Anna played the snacks and fruits out for the twins to eat, there was the sound of a throat clearing that made her and William turn to see who it was.“Alpha,” it was a guard who bowed deeply. “There are some delegates from the Grey Hills Pack and the Moonlight Pack here. They wish to see you.”William refrained from giving into the urge to pinch his nose and only let oit a small sigh, and nodded.“Very well. I will be there in a bit. Have them wait for me in the study,” he ordered the guard and dismissed him with a wave. The guard bowed and left, before William turned to his mate, meeting her gaze.Before he could say anything, she spoke, “It’s alright, Will. I’ll handle things here for the time being.After William left - but not before giving her and the twins kisses each - she sat and enjoyed the snacks while they watched m
Ethan wasn’t surprised about his brother wanting to spend time with his family, and he kept his opinions on that to himself - being the one who never saw the point in all that, he wouldn’t even touch that topic with a fucking ten foot pole.However, he did have a point to make.“It’s easy to forget your duties if you focus too much on your family, brother,” he crossed his arms as William’s glare increased. “Alpha Drake will come for blood soon enough. I don’t think we’re ready for that in any way.”“Let me worry about that, Ethan. And focus on enjoying the rest of the day. The festival is just starting, you wouldn’t want to miss it. And afterward, Ethan, then we will have much to discuss.”William’s words made Ethan’s brows furrowed in confusion. Why did his brother have that tone, as if he had some plan he had kept under his sleeve? It couldn’t be could it? The Alpha had never shown any indication in the past day of strategizing.However he couldn’t outright question the Alpha now.“
Anna didn’t know what to say after William was done talking. She had not expected to hear that sort of thing coming from him. He used to be so stone cold towards her, at least on the surface… and now things had changed. For the better or for worse, she didn't know just yet, but she was pleased and warmed by it.“Will…” she began to say only for him to continue.“Anna, all you have to do is promise me that, and I won't have a problem with anything else. No matter what, don’t forget you're my mate and you are my top priority. You and our children, and our family. It matters more to me than anything.”The honesty wasn’t one thing he expected either to come from himself, especially with her. He had once prided himself on being unruffled by shows of love and affection that most other 5 men his age seemed to fall under the thrall of. William particularly recalled an occasion in which a VIP client spoke fondly of his wife and daughters and asked William if he had any himself to which the Alp
The sight of her two children writhing in pain on their beds made her heart beat faster and she rushed towards them, frantic.“Andrea? Andrew?” She pressed her hand atop their foreheads to check their temperatures and found, to her dismay, they were feverish.The sight of their pale, withdrawn faces even in their sleep was heart wrenching. Anna felt helpless. What could have been wrong with them? They were fine yesterday!As though some supreme power had read her mind, the door opened and William walked in, his lips moving.“Good morning-” his words were cut off as he took in the look on his mate’s face. She looked incredible, her hair down to the blue dress she wore, but it was the display of terror in her eyes that stopped him in his tracks.“What’s going on?” he asked, and she rushed to him, tugging him to their children’s beds.“They were like this when I found them. Will, what could have happened? Maybe they ate something or… or-”The emerald-eyed Alpha grabbed his mate’s hands a