Thanks for reading.
Amy’s POV Delirium wasn’t taking over completely, though that was what I continued to pretend. I was tempted to experiment with invisibility though realised it could mean the end of me if I couldn’t reappear to be treated by Black himself, a very efficient medic. I never would have guessed that. Little by little, I worked it out. He had wronged Lori, too, not just the real Diana. Maybe he had been sent packing and maybe he’d just gone away for a while. That so-called diary contained a grain of truth and nothing more. Satyr would need someone like Dick, as I thought of him now, to carry out his dirty work. It was a good job he’d been here or I’d have been history by now. That tourniquet probably saved me from bleeding to death. Though I knew she’d been trying to end his life. Lori, the mistress of the year. The gun-toting betrayed female who had dished out nothing more than friendly fire. She didn’t hate me; she never had. It had been a part she was acting. No doubt a pack member s
Amy’s POVIn some ways I had always been on my own, despite having a family. None of them were what you might call the reliable kind. I fought my own battles, learning the lesson early that the good guys don’t always win.Surviving was the easy part. My body was still sore and now I was forced to watch the arm wrestling contest between Michael and Kane, knowing I was the prize.They appeared to be allies now, which could only spell disaster for me and werewolfkind. The traditional branch.If only I were fit enough to run. I dreamt about that time I came upon a linden tree in the woodland, resting my paws on it and knowing a rare peace. If only basswoods were more prevalent I would jump out of the window now and – and what? Urge Misha to save us both.Without Rhett she was a miserable creature. I felt it, too. His loss was hopefully not permanent.Could Kane be pretending? I knew in my heart that wasn’t so.“Think you can take me?” the Alpha King had sneered.“Watch me.”Truman was iss
Amy’s POVAnything for the cause. A worthy cause. A lost cause. I was panicking like when an aircraft climbs, my mind a knotted jumble of words and phrases.Yet I was only too coherent when Alpha Kane came through the door.“What’s going to happen to Jake and my mother?”He drew a finger across his throat, saying, “Eventually.”Did that spell torture? I knew it did for me.I reached out in vain.Where are you, Rhett?He’s sick.Oh Misha, you don’t have to be here for this.So much for loyalty. Soon I couldn’t reach her, either. Instead I tried my best to contact Truman, the employer with a sense of fun.“Help me,” I begged.“Take off your clothes. Every last stitch. I want you bare and available in there.”Kane jerked his head towards his pleasure room. I shook mine.“You’ll have to kill me first, Lycan,” I dared.The terrible growl would certainly have upset Dorothy.An unlikely saviour turned up in the form of the Delta, Francis. As far as I was aware, Ugly Hattie was still with Mic
Amy’s POV I was passing Kane’s Suite when I heard the distressed cries coming from within. It sounded like a woman. The words were foreign to my ears which could mean only one thing: Rene was on the loose again. Hurrying along to see Lisa – my original destination had been the old Luna’s room – I enlisted her help and we went to see what we could do. The mother and daughter spoke the Micmac tongue while I stared at the Alpha. Though he didn’t say a word, he didn’t need to; his expression was enough. It said, Help me, Amy. What else could I do? This had been my purpose all along, to shore up Kane. I went across to the bed and took his hand. It wasn’t clammy as I had feared and his pulse was steady. “Forgive me,” he pleaded. “Make me,” I replied. There was the ghost of a grin. “Same old sass. I’ll have to take you in hand.” I leaned down to whisper in his ear, “Only when you’re well again.” My slave dress was modest, if drab. His gaze was drawn to my choker, the one which rep
Amy’s POVI liked spending time in the gardens. Sometimes I asked Noah to help me assist Rene to leave her comfort zone in order to create in the fresh air. We had discussed sourcing some paints for her, a palette and he reckoned he could knock together an easel, no problem. Lisa’s true mate was very protective and I knew he was good to her which made what happened next all the more surprising.It was awkward being accused of something you hadn’t done by a ranking female who was so very credible. Did she have poor eyesight like her grandmother? Was she malicious, like Selene used to be? Lycans were unpredictable, everyone knew that. And hormones coupled with the disappointment of not having conceived – what can I say?She must have known it wasn’t me. My body double was stiff of movement. I’m not sure who suggested Rene could paint it and the inbuilt ‘bikini’ donned at the pull of a lever – don’t you just love gadgets? – would resemble scanty underwear from a distance.When Amy II’s l
Kane’s POVI couldn’t allow the challenge to go unanswered and yet I was in no condition to lead an all out attack. My Gamma may have been a traitor yet the decapitation and delivery had laid down a gauntlet. The Crescent Moon pack had to respond not just to save face but to make the point that our transgressors were for us to deal with in-house.If the Alpha King got away with this then not only he would hold me in contempt.I’d asked Amy to take notes and was hoping to have her input. I knew what she was like. Thoughts would be churning round in that head of hers non-stop. When I asked for her opinion unexpectedly, I knew she wouldn’t be coy. Unlike Jake, she was one of us now.“We don’t even know where he is.”My Luna didn’t want there to be a fight, obviously. But we had already been attacked by way of a slight and I couldn’t let it go.“Maybe I should torture your father,” I said, cruelly.“Take that back.”This was getting us nowhere. I apologised, though hadn’t entirely ruled i
Amy’s POV I was scrubbing the floor in the dining area when Noah came up to me. “Not here,” I hissed, almost as if the two of us were guilty. “Have you seen Lisa recently?” he asked. “I can’t find her anywhere.” The pack warrior looked terrible but I wasn’t about to tell him that. “Go and check with Selene.” I knew the Luna’s Suite was likely to be the one place which hadn’t been searched by him. He wandered away, still disconsolate, and I began to feel culpable for something which wasn’t my fault. Then I sensed the Alpha’s aura. “What was that all about?” he demanded. “Your sister is missing. I mean, he asked me if I’d seen her. Alpha, I – ” “Relax, Amy. I know you’re telling the truth. I overheard some of it. Leave that. I came to fetch you to the meeting. Francis has an idea.” At least my dress wasn’t dirty. “You want me for the notes?” “And your opinion.” I tried not to glow because of the faint praise. As it happened, the Delta suggested we send a group of pack she
Lisa’s POV My mind was made up. I couldn’t stay here knowing my mate had cheated on me. And with her, the one I’d trusted and tried to model myself on. That was why I stole the pendant and made my way to the portal, a hoodie concealing my features on what was an overcast day. Michael would probably use me, I knew that. I was planning to tell him pack secrets solely to hurt my brother, who hadn’t punished that slut enough, and Selene who would be raising pups in a beaten pack which existed only as a satellite to serve the Alpha King. The Luna had eventually told me it was nothing what Noah and Amy were about. I wasn’t having that. Maybe it was a male thing because I couldn’t sense a second, Lycan wolf rising to the fore inside me. I would own this treachery as the younger sister who had messed up not once, but twice. Well, I’d been forced into it. It’s not too late. Go back. Nichola wasn’t keen to be under Blaylock’s control. Neither was I. Hurt and a sense of betrayal can lead y
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