Scarlett’s POV“They’re lying to you,” said Ryker. “Listen – don’t talk. Anyone could overhear. They’re all in on it, Scarlett.”A jolt shot through me. Last I remembered, Ryker was about to be made the Alpha of our pack. But if my hazy memories ended roughly four years ago, then he’d been the Alpha for a while. I swallowed hard. Why was he calling? Was he trying to save me?I glanced at the Omega. He had his eyes squeezed shut and his fingers in his ears. His lips trembled – no, he was talking to himself, muttering la, la, la, over and over to himself to block out the sound of my call. That didn’t seem like the behaviour of a villain. Did it?“You only know what they’ve told you. But Scarlett, you are being held by Alpha Enzo of the Moose Creek pack. You know his reputation. You’ve heard the rumours. I am your Alpha, and you are a member of my pack. The Desert Oak pack.” He cleared his throat. “He’s taken your memories. He did this to you. But don’t worry. I am coming to rescue you.
Enzo’s POVI lay awake in the darkness, my head pounding, my heart throbbing. Memories of our time together flashed spitefully through my mind’s eye: seeing her for the first time at the Mating Ball, making love to her on the cliff’s edge, tracing her scars with my fingers and learning each broken, perfect piece of her. Seeing her again in the library after months apart. Yelling at her; being yelled at by her. It was messy and imperfect, but that made it all the more so.I loved her painfully. I hated that I’d let my temper get the better of me. Marla and Emila were both right – I was being selfish. That thought did the rounds every few minutes. Groaning, I rolled out of bed, chugged a stale glass of water that had been on the nightstand for at least a week, and then slowly moved over to the window. I pressed my clammy forehead to the cool glass, the condensation blurring with my sweat.“Fuck,” I muttered, banging my head gently against the pane. That brought back images of shattered
Scarlett’s POVTalking to Alpha Enzo – just Enzo, I corrected myself – had only served to make me more confused. He’d looked so sincere, so sad, when he’d told me it was his birthday. I couldn’t imagine loving someone, only to be forgotten.But, try as I might, I couldn’t remember him. And yet I could remember Ryker. Who was telling the truth? I had to believe it was Ryker, for he had no reason to lie. He’d always walked around like there was a pillow stuffed into the chest area of his shirt, but he was harmless. He was my Alpha. He had to be looking out for me.Something told me that wasn’t the case, though. I thought it had to be the mate bond, tugging me in Enzo’s direction more and more. That was why I found myself sneaking out on the evening of his birthday, after he thought I’d dozed off, to bake him a cake and pick him a bouquet of wildflowers.I’d crept back up to his floor in the pack house, wanting to use the smaller kitchen he had up there. I didn’t fancy answering the ceas
Enzo’s POVMedic Emila’s mental voice was flustered as it slid into my head via a mindlink. ‘Alpha Enzo! Alpha Enzo!’I groaned, rubbing a hand over my drawn face, and sat up. I’d stumbled upstairs to my cold, empty bed, noted that someone had been in here but not cared enough to investigate, and dropped face-first onto the covers. My bed smelled of Scarlett, like pine and wild berries, and I’d inhaled deeply. Twenty-three. It was the oldest I’d ever been, with the most cause to celebrate ever – my first birthday with my mate by my side – and yet it had been, by far, the worst.I sucked in another long, slow breath now. Her scent was still here, but fainter now, blurred with my own. My heart panged.‘Yes, Emila?’‘Scarlett isn’t in the medical centre. Please tell me she’s with you.’Fuck. Suddenly, I wasn’t tired anymore. I bolted upright and shot out of the bed, dragging a t-shirt and a woolly jumper on and shuffling into my discarded pair of jeans. I shivered at the touch of the co
Scarlett’s POVBy the time I was starting to calm down, I was completely, utterly lost. Chest heaving, I bent double and sucked in breath after breath until my head stopped spinning. I’d wandered aimlessly, too exhausted to run, too full of adrenaline to stop.I looked around desperately. The damn pine trees all looked the same. If I’d ever been out in these woods before, I couldn’t remember them. Enzo didn’t trust me. No, it was worse than that – he didn’t care about me. Me as I was now, anyway. There were these moments between us that I didn’t quite understand, moments where he looked at me like he was in love with me, but those looks were always tinged with frustration at best and, at worst, pain.Slowly, I stood up. I had to lean against a tree trunk to hold myself up. My eyelids were drooping, but I couldn’t fall asleep here; not in the middle of the forest with no sense of direction. Then again…It would be light when I woke up. I couldn’t even see the mountains now, and they w
Enzo’s POVDawn came, and there was still no trace of Scarlett.The search parties came and went with the same updates: areas of the forest had been disturbed, but the same evidence could mean that a deer or bear or even a real wolf had run through the undergrowth, trampling it and leaving behind strands of fur. I paced anxiously at the front of the pack house, waiting for Bennett to tell me something of use.I’d considered beating him up a fair few times to get the answers I needed, but Davin had reminded me that he could yet be useful. “He’ll be more inclined to help if his face is intact,” he’d said. I’d just pulled a face in return.I was pretty sure Bennett already could be helpful, but he was withholding information on purpose. Grinding my teeth, I chose to ignore him for what felt like the thousandth time that night.“There is something,” he muttered, his brow creasing. “Something… dark.”Okay – I couldn’t ignore him entirely. I huffed and shifted around so that my back was fa
Scarlett’s POV“Ryker,” I breathed, frozen to the spot. My wound throbbed. I felt each lance of it in that moment. “You aren’t safe here,” he whispered, glancing behind me. “I have somewhere safe I can take you.”I nodded. Ice splintered down my spine. Something told me not to trust him, but of course I had to. Who knew who else was lurking in these woods? “Okay,” I whispered back. “Then can you explain?”“Explain what?” He took my hand and started to lead me in a zig-zag pattern through the trees. “Everything.”* * *Ryker was silent as we wove through the woods. All I could hear was my heartbeat thundering through my body, ricocheting off my bones. I held back shudder after shudder, torn between wanting to rip my hand away and knowing my death or capture would be certain if I did.Eventually we reached a car. Ryker opened the door for me.“Thank you, Alpha,” I murmured. “Alpha?” He huffed out a quiet laugh. “It’s good to know you still respect me in that way. I know Alpha Enzo i
Enzo’s POV“He’s got us chasing our tails, Alpha.” Marla leant across the table, eyebrows raised, and flicked me with the end of her ponytail. I jerked up and frowned at her. “This has to stop.”I leant back in my chair, my brow still furrowed, until the front legs came up off the floor. We were in the meeting room downstairs, regrouping after yet another failed search party. Davin had sent scouts with another update – Bennett was travelling through Wales, a part of the world that had no connection to the Wolven Realms whatsoever. We’d expected him to go to Australia, Russia, or Argentina – not the United Kingdom. He’d spent a week in Scotland, a week in England, and was now tracking some old, long-forgotten legend through the Welsh valleys.I’d kept searching closer to home, aware that Bennett could be leading us away from Scarlett’s real location. Our search parties were spreading further and wider across the Canadian Realm, dipping down towards America. If one of the Chosen had her
Bennett’s POVThings had taken a while to fall back into place after the battle. With the pack house left in ruins, Scarlett and Enzo had worked with his parents to rehome everyone that lived inside it while it was rebuilt. His mother and father had stayed close, lending their expertise as they got to grips with navigating life post-Ryker.They hadn’t been the only ones to stay, though. I’d asked to remain in Moose Creek. Enzo had accepted my cagey reasoning with narrowed eyes, but he would’ve said yes to just about anything with his mate’s hand on his arm. In truth, I didn’t know where else to go now. Everything in my life had been building up to this. Crafting prophecies for people to find, leaving breadcrumb trails, making messages, telling everyone just the right thing at exactly the right time – I’d never known a moment to myself. Now that was all I had. And I couldn’t See my way forward. Not anymore. I’d told nobody that Scarlett hadn’t been the only one to lose her powers t
Scarlett’s POVI opened my eyes.Sunlight blinded me. No – not sunlight. My own light, golden and magical, surrounded me. Held limp in its grip, it lifted me into the air.But I – I’d been dead. Hadn’t I?I remembered the feel of my life leaving me. I remembered losing my energy, my strength, feeling my body wilt beneath the weight of the magic tearing through my veins and rushing out through my palms. But now the wind was here, holding me, healing me, and I felt it dance across my skin, through my hair, as it pulled my arms out and pointed my legs down towards the ground. I remembered dying.But that wasn’t all I remembered. Vague, fuzzy shapes filtered into my mind, taking form as the light raised me higher and higher. I saw humans, knew their names, saw Adelaide, saw a city and a death and a chase, saw Bennett and a library and Enzo – My beautiful Enzo. How could I ever have forgotten all that we had shared?The memories poured in as my brain healed, the light coming from within
Bennett’s POVI was dying. Such a fact was two things: simple and irrefutable. To fight it was futile; to ignore it was idiocy. But I had done as I had been bid by the visions that had plagued me since birth. I had fought the prophecy and, I hoped, saved the world from the tyranny breeding at its wolven heart.It was hard, seeing the world in pathways and possibilities. Even now, as I lay upon the gleaming white floor of Moose Creek’s medical centre, sedative spilling through my veins and blood streaming from my chest, photos of the futures forking from this moment blinded me. I saw Scarlett stood amidst the dead, the only survivor in a war she’d never asked for. I saw her bent over her mate’s body, sobs wracking through her. Then I saw her fumble for the outstretched claws of a fallen werewolf and use them to slit her own throat.I squeezed my eyes shut at that one. It did nothing to halt the visions, of course, but it always made me feel as if I had some semblance of control over
Enzo’s POV I blinked into a sudden burst of gossamer sunlight. “Scarlett,” I rasped, choking up blood. All of me hurt, save for my heart. That was lighter than it had ever been. She was okay. She was a vision in the dying light, her auburn hair with its blonde ends glimmering softly, like the shimmering surface of a ruffled lake; her beautiful blue-green eyes wide, shining with unshed tears; her stance strong and proud and powerful, even as she fell apart at the sorry sight of me. “Fuck,” she whispered, her eyes filling. “Enzo. Oh, God…” “I’m okay,” I grunted. It was a lie. A dying man’s lie to make the love of his life feel better. Blood streamed from my neck; my body felt numb from my face down. The pain was gone, but my feeling was gone with it too. I was outside now, and I’d definitely been inside the last time I’d been conscious. Had my body been trampled beneath the paws of hundreds of Ryker’s wolves? In the heat of battle, it was just as likely that my own pack had buried m
Scarlett’s POVI stared numbly at the doorway. Emila stood at its centre, hands on hips, her expression all furrowed brows and wide eyes. “Scarlett!” she gasped. “What are you doing?”I met her gaze unflinchingly. “He doesn’t need to be in an induced coma,” I said boldly. I’d never felt so damned bold in all my life. “Does he, Medic?” I spat.She held her hands up and walked towards me slowly. “I’m not sure what’s got into you, or why you’re doing this, but please, Scarlett, step away from my patient. He needs to rest to heal.”Doubt started to creep in. I clutched the sedation tube, letting it dangle from my fingers. I’d been so sure…What if I was wrong? Had I just signed Bennett’s death certificate?Gritting my teeth, I held still. He’d woken up before when I’d used my magic to keep the sedation at bay. And he’d told me to stop her – had he meant Emila all along? He had to know what she planned to do to him. My resolve firm once more, I looked back up at her.She smiled weakly, app
Enzo’s POVWe were pushed back further and further. I was the last one standing in the doorway, using my huge wolven body to block out the attacking army. Though we were fighting a losing battle, I was proud of my wolves. We’d kept Ryker’s pets at bay far longer than I’d thought we’d ever had any hope of doing. The sun was dipping lower in the sky, brushing the tips of the massacred pine trees, burnishing their bottle-green needles a deep, glittering gold.It also shone on the pools of blood. The ground was soaked in it, rivulets running down the slight hillock upon which the pack house stood. Bodies of wolves broke its streams; my wolves, Ryker’s wolves. They were clawed and bitten, missing limbs, missing chunks of fur and flesh. Such violence would stain the land here forever.But worse still than the gore and the sightless eyes of my fallen warriors was the gnawing worry about my mate. I hadn’t seen Scar since she’d run into the crowd. Unable to mindlink her, I was left drowning in
Scarlett’s POVI ducked through the wolves, narrowly avoiding the swiping, slashing claws. Nobody seemed to notice me as I ran – they were focused on the other wolves with teeth bared and blood soaked into their muzzles. I brushed under the bellies of those in Enzo’s pack, using them to protect me from the enemy wolves.Then I was pushed forward by a surge of movement from behind. Arms wheeling, I stumbled through the front line of our warriors and fell, head first, into the tangle of Ryker’s wolves.“Fuck,” I gasped, smacking into warm, bloodied fur. I bounced off its firm, muscled body, and rolled until I hit paws. Then I scrambled to my feet – Only to be clawed down my face. I bit back a scream, pressing my palms to the wound. Blood streamed between my fingers, pouring over my eye. I squeezed it shut. My head throbbed; each pulse shook me, the cut burning and stinging. Barely able to see, I ran, my back bowed, zig-zagging through the writhing mass of wolven bodies.Running through
Enzo’s POVI shoved down my terror as the wolves swelled around us, a writhing, unforgiving tide. Like a stone upon the shore I stood firm, knowing I must withstand its force. My terror was not for me, and neither was my determination. It was for her – my mate, the beautiful woman sat upon my wolven back – and for my pack members. They had not chosen this fate, no more than Scar or I had. This was our only chance to make it right.Scarlett knotted her fingers in my fur. She leant forward and whispered, “I’ve got you.”Then the enemy was upon us.I surged forward, meeting them rather than allowing them to breach our front line. My Beta and Gamma lunged with me, our movements so well practised we barely had to think of them. I had to adjust my balance more with Scar on my back, but it was instinct, raw and as natural as breathing, to keep her secure atop me.My jaw locked around a grey wolf’s neck. I clamped down, pulled back, tore flesh from bone. The wolf fell to the ground, dead. Blo
Scarlett’s POV“Pretty much,” said Isaak, his gaze downcast. He shuffled his weight from foot to foot. “I’m sorry.”“Why did they target your sister?” I asked, leaning closer to the cell bars. He shrugged. “She’s the only family I have left. They knew I’d do anything for her, I guess. Even…”I nodded. “Even this.” But then my eyes narrowed. “How did they know you well enough to target her?”Isaak’s cheeks flushed. He started picking at his cuticles and refused to meet my eyes. “They have scouts too,” he said. I felt convinced it was a lie. Before I could push the matter, though, Enzo grabbed my arm.“Hey,” I said, trying to pry his fingers off. They were white knuckled. My belly hollowed out. “What is it?”“Marla just mindlinked me,” he whispered, glancing furtively at Isaak. Understanding immediately, I towed him out of the cells and up into a nook at the top of the stairs. My back was pressed flat against the wall; Enzo huddled close, biting his lip as he looked around anxiously.O