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Lisa’s POVNichola intruded on my leisure time with Mom. To my shame I tried to cut her off until she told me the pack’s future was at risk.What could I do?Rene was staring into space – more accurately, she was looking at the picture of the Moon Goddess on the wall – and, out of the blue, she spoke.“Save Amy,” she gasped, convulsing and clutching her chest. “You must.”I didn’t want to leave my mom, but knew Maggie could be trusted to care for this woman old before her time.Something was nagging at me which I sensed may be vital to Rene’s well-being going forward. Then I had it. Mom was not the most talkative being these days yet always managed a phrase or two whenever my wolf emerged, a rare occurrence at best.She had once confided her own was slow to develop language skills. Was her wolf pure Micmac? It was no use speculating now when I needed to act.Sprinting to Alpha Kane’s office – Amy had her own – I saw that the guard was missing. On a break? I was debating whether to ale
Amy’s POVI was excited to think I wasn’t quite so powerless this time around. The cell paradoxically didn’t seem as claustrophobic given my surprising companion, though I was still wary of him.Anastasia had counselled me to wait. I couldn’t. My boss – former employer? – may disapprove, even though she applauded initiative. I supposed my blind spirit friend was only being cautious. In her own way, Agatha could be as devious as Jake, if not more so.I supposed I owed her a lot. Without the network I wouldn’t be where I was today.In a dungeon?Bless Ariadne and her quirky sense of humour.Should I wait?That’s up to you, Alpha, came the astonishing reply.I began to wonder how far back I should aim for given that I wasn’t entirely confident in my ability to pull this off. It would be awful to go right back to the start of it all and find myself chained up overnight. Not so pleasant, either, would be the prospect of revisiting that time I’d spent suspended and naked in the pleasure roo
Amy’s POVEven Kane fell for my ruse. I didn’t want to alarm him, but it had to be done. If I could elicit some sympathy from Lisa so much the better. My aim was to spread confusion. It was credible that my hormonal body would be affected by being spirited through time, despite Agatha’s capable gloved hands.“I’m so sorry if I’ve caused this,” I heard his sister say.Then strong arms enveloped me – not the Alpha’s – and I knew who it was by the intoxicating scent, muted now. These days, there was just a hint of nutmeg and damp grass.The infirmary held different smells, not all of them pleasant.“I’ll be okay,” I mumbled. “Just a dizzy spell.”“Why was she in your dungeon, Alpha Kane?”My mate had folded his arms across that magnificent chest of his.“In case it escaped your notice, I was there too,” he pointed out.“Yes, but in what capacity? Chief torturer by the look of her.”Lisa came clean, admitting, “I was the one who put them there.”“Why?”His tone was puzzled rather than agg
Amy’s POV The danger was the same and it was as cunning as ever. If I hadn’t lost my heart to him all those moons ago, I would probably have given up on Kane long before now. Not that I didn’t want a male partner; I did. We’d talked a lot about equilibrium. I wanted his firstborn pups to know the good in him just as much as I was determined to raise them right and make sure they never forgot Selene’s name. Her picture hung in the Luna’s Suite, now a large nursery. I sometimes shook my head, wondering what Kane wanted of me. A whole football side, plus cheerleaders? I chided myself for thinking in stereotypes and yet, what if the girls were playing and the boys dancing with batons? When I decided she was well enough, I enlisted Rene’s help. She suggested involving Lisa, so she wasn’t left out. “Talk to his wolves,” I urged, “one in particular.” It was a surprise to find out Rhett was splintered. Misha took it badly. Hadn't she known all along? That was why we needed Akum and Nichol
Amy’s POV As we walked away to have a confab with the pack doctor, I felt something wet on my cheeks. I hadn’t been aware I was crying. “Don’t give up on him, Amy,” Jarvis said. His soft voice only made me feel worse. I had never heard him use that tone with anyone else, not even Chrissy. I summoned my inner scorn, in Misha’s absence. “As if I would.” I hoped my moping wolf was proud of me, wherever she was. “This thing, it’s unusual, but it’s bound to be curable. I wonder if my aunt would be able to advise us … ” “No more outsiders, please.” I hoped I hadn’t given offence. Putting my hand on his arm, I added, “Beta, we have to keep this contained.” “Like a virus, Alpha Amy?” “Exactly. And call me Amy when it’s just the two of us.” I winced at how that sounded. Just like Kane had said to me, once. Back when things were normal. If you considered being suspended in a dungeon, subsequently interrogated and treated like an object the norm. Not to mention the drenching, the nudit
Amy’s POVWe had a new Medical Council now and item one on the agenda was Kane and what to do for the best. No-one ever voiced the opinion that he should be executed and I was determined to quash such a suggestion if it ever reared its less than pleasant head. I wasn’t keen on the idea of some sort of operation to surgically remove Blaylock either.How did you destroy a phantom?Certainly not with green slime. Why had I watched ‘Ghostbusters’ for the seventh time?“Maybe you should leave, Alpha Amy.” I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. Had Lisa gone mad, once again, or did she have an ulterior motive? “For your own protection,” she added, smiling sweetly.“I’m not about to abandon the Crescent Moon pack at a critical time like this,” I stated. “Besides, he seems to respond to me more than most.”“Exactly. He’s over-stimulated.”My face burned. The little cow.“Care to explain that?”The ice in my tone would have diluted the strongest whisky.Lisa blushed. She covered her heated che
Amy’s POVI went to see Kane in the dungeon, finding no pleasure in the irony of it. We’d begun this way and now an ending was in sight. Trembling, I ordered him to be cut down. The whites of his eyes were red, though I knew there’d been no vampire incursion. At least, not one which appeared in the jailer’s log.Trying not to worry too much about conspiracies, I asked myself once more why there was so little blood on him and very few stains on his clothes.We took the elevator, accompanied by a stern looking Darius. I had never felt less like groping anyone.I asked the Gamma to wait outside, assuring him it wouldn’t take long. In fact, I had no way of knowing that.“Take a shower,” I ordered. “And no funny business.”I wasn’t entirely sure what I meant by that.He raised a brow.“Not even for the cameras?”I shoved him, harder than I had meant to, and he stumbled. It gave me no satisfaction whatsoever.Then I sat down to wait.A naked Kane emerged, rubbing himself down with a towel.
Lisa’s POV I’d received the most devastating news, having taken the opportunity to consult the pack doctor. Noah took it much better than me. I expected he would apply for a second, fertile mate now. But he didn’t. My kind and thoughtful mate, who was prepared to take me back after everything that had happened, even came up with an eye-popping solution to our ‘problem’. The photo he snapped of me said it all; my mind was well and truly boggled. He said we could take steps to adopt Kayleigh. With both Alphas currently unable to give their consent, he assumed two Betas would be enough. I was doubtful, but Noah was right. “Congratulations,” Jarvis said. Francis just smiled. “We were hoping someone would come forward,” he said. Maybe things happen for a reason, Trudie’s untimely death and my barren state coming to light had allowed Kayleigh to be saved from the shifter orphanage. I hoped the little girl would see it like that when she grew up and not hold anything against my family.
Kane’s POV It soon became clear that Miss McGregor wasn’t a rogue she-wolf. She explained that she’d been heading back to her pack above the border in Canada when her car got a flat. Jake had offered her a lift when he spotted her hitchhiking. She said he’d been on his own and never mentioned another female. I would question him later. Expecting my Luna to burst through the door and start what the humans called a cat fight, I can’t say I was disappointed when she didn’t. After a brief lecture on how lucky Miss McGregor was not to be considered guilty by association, I stood up and looked her in the eye. “You can go,” I announced. She cocked her head on one side, regarding me critically, and I knew it wouldn’t be quite so easy to dismiss someone like her. Not without proceeding to formally reject her. Faith Isla McGregor beat me to it, not even hesitating over my surname and the name of my pack. I couldn’t believe the nerve of that she-wolf. It didn’t seem to cause her much pain,
Lisa’s POVI was pleased to see my brother so happy and even unbent enough to invite Amy to tea. Kayleigh was there, moping a little, but she brightened up when she saw the Luna. Noah was supervising the border guards. Again. I’d pouted a lot until he told me Kane was thinking of appointing another Delta.He swore me to secrecy afterwards, but Amy knew. Of course, she would.“Does this mean there will be two Alphas again?” I asked, when my daughter was paying a visit to the bathroom.“No chance,” she said. “But it’s cool. Kay looks much better.”“Do you think so? I wish she would cheer up.”“She’s been through a lot.”Did the Luna think I didn’t know that?“Have a scone. Fresh from Ray’s bakery.” My visitor hesitated. “Go on. Take one at random. I haven’t poisoned them all,” I joked. To prove that, I selected one with blueberry jam inside and took a small bite. “Mm, delicious. I don’t know why I didn’t think of commissioning your stepfather to bake my daughter’s special cake.”“He’s n
Kane’s POV“If I’ve won, I want you to … ”Amy whispered the rest.“What? No way,” I said, and went on to issue a stern warning.Just for a second there I was tempted to cheat, claim she'd lost. Until –“Be nice,” she hissed, putting emphasis on the second word and fiddling with the knot on her blindfold.I watched her struggle for a while – why didn’t she just lift the whole thing over her head? – before going across to the monitor and calling up the incriminating evidence.“You won’t like it,” I warned her, again.That had been a part of my reply when she said, “Show me the footage of you and Omega Sharon. All of it.”As if there had been other encounters in the past.The truth was laid bare, making her huff with contempt.“Satisfied, Luna?”“I thought as much. She was faking it. On your orders?”“Yeah,” I managed, feeling like I’d just crawled out from under a rock and couldn’t find my way back there.Exposed, just like Amy, yet in a very different way.“She must have told everyone
Amy’s POVIt soon became apparent that Jake was lost to us. I missed Ingrid, too. Was he treating her right? I hoped so.Mom was inconsolable for a whole week and then, in typical Velma fashion, she moved on. That must have been something to do with Ray. One for the homilies, he was. She kept twittering on about my brother making his own way in the world.As far as I was concerned, he’d always been rogue material.I was biding my time to catch Kane off guard and then I would strike. In the nicest possible way, of course.It wasn’t long before we were back to sharing the same bed again. His hands kept straying to my tummy. So much for emergency contraception.I’d been feeling really sick in the mornings, something I’d not experienced much the last time around. Making him wait fit in well with my plan.Coaxing him back to our quarters that afternoon, I had a surprise in store in the form of a new game.This time, my intention was to win, though I allowed him a say in the ‘rules’ we were
Lisa’s POVSomething was off about the atmosphere in the nursery. Dan usually got the blame but this seemed different. Even more unwholesome, if that was the right word to use about my only nephew.I didn’t visit the pups with my daughter any more. She was sensitive and tended to kick off if she knew we were going there.Noah and Kayleigh were closer than ever. I tried not to resent their easy relationship while I had to work at it. Maybe she sensed my annoyance and that was why she clung to the Delta when he came home to us. Or could it be that because I was always around she missed him more?I told myself that was it even though it bugged me. A lot.Picking up Dan’s rattle one day, I felt a surge of power. Static electricity, I thought. It didn’t plug in, that was for sure.He went ape until I gave it back to him.Dora wasn’t like that. She didn’t seem to mind when he took her toys off her. Maybe she was in awe of him – or frightened. I couldn’t be sure and knew better than to menti
Amy’s POV The pups were hard work but I became engrossed in what was mainly pandering to their needs. It gave me time to think. I didn’t miss the decisions I had to make, the daily squabbles which had to be sorted between maids and Omegas. They were trivial in the scheme of things. It made me smile to think of the Alpha dealing with petty rows about dirty looks and the more serious allegations of slacking, which tended to be unfounded for the most part. Some of the older servants had heart conditions and they needed more regular breaks. If he reinstated punishment in what had been CC’s room I knew I wouldn’t be able to sleep at night in that same bed. Yet I couldn’t stop him. I had no say and wouldn’t be aware of anything like that given that I was stuck here for the most part, even for meals. He deserves to know. Misha, now’s not a good time. Do it. Or Rhett will tell him. Are you threatening me? My wolf didn’t answer, retreating to sulk, presumably. I knew she was right. The
Amy’s POVSomething was going on. Something I didn’t understand. People were murmuring to each other and occasionally gazing at me. Was I paranoid? This had happened to a human at school, all because she had a fondness for snacks between meals.Suzie’s a renowned pie maker these days. At least she was.They’re not sniggering any more.Someone asked Chrissy in a loud voice if there was any Sharon fruit, to general titters. I didn’t get the joke. At least not until later when she knocked on the door to our Suite.I was tossing and turning in what had been the pleasure room.“You sent for me, Alpha Kane. And here I am.”“Give me a twirl,” I heard him say.What? I wanted to jam the pillow over my head, but I was curious.“Do you like it? I sewed it myself in my spare time.”“Very fetching.”There he went again with those old-fashioned words. Was I the catalyst, being around Mina and not ‘suffering’ myself. Still, I was proud of my extensive vocabulary so perhaps it was less noticeable wit
Kane’s POVCC told me more than once that a good whipping would convince anyone not to re-offend. I didn’t subscribe to that notion. My belief was that discipline should be relative.Amy had failed as a Luna when she allowed the rogue she-wolf to abduct her without a fight. I intended to pit her against Lori, an up and coming female warrior, who had once shot her by mistake. That should serve to punish both of them.Maybe I would sell tickets, for charity of course.My Luna had betrayed me by succumbing to my former Beta’s kiss. At the same event, maybe I could have my pack members – men and women – line up to claim her lips. Standing up for hours, hungry and thirsty, her mouth swollen and parched. That would teach her.And now I had found the blister pack containing something which fuelled my fury yet further.A public whipping seemed highly appropriate.I knew I would put her through none of the above. She had always been mine to ruin.If it wouldn’t hurt our twin girls I would have
Kane’s POVIf I had to absorb Blaylock, surely Garrett would help me control him? I could only hope. Asking Rhett would just depress me, because I already knew the answer.My priority was to rescue my cousin’s girl. We had a date to watch a movie for fuck’s sake. And Noah would surely not survive a prolonged invasion even though he’d been doing better recently. I needed my Delta and Kayleigh needed her stepdaddy.As for Lisa, words failed me. Her scream had alerted us and yet she must have been the one to lure the mage upstairs. My guess was she’d visited the lab and seen him.I was hoping to save him, too, if only by hosting the Lycan wolf once more. Though the mage was way down the pecking order. Probably last.In fairness, it didn’t seem as if Amy and Jarvis were lovers or even planning to be. Yet the crisis had elevated a level. Maybe they were just biding their time.I knew I couldn’t afford to think like that once Blaylock was in situ. The ancient Lycan would probably pounce on