Amy’s POVReality was kicking in and I was feeling increasingly down as the days went by. Chrissy must have noticed my glumness but she never said a word. That was probably why I didn’t flaunt my bond with Jarvis. Well, one reason anyway. I was convinced she liked him, at the very least. Misha had gone into an almighty sulk. I felt bad for her. These days we were like separate entities.Though she hadn’t been with me for long it felt like forever.Examining that feeling, I realised we needed each other. That part of it had never been in doubt.After the mating ceremony, I’ll talk to Jarvis.There was no reply until later when I was washing up. Don’t ask. I had to do something with my hands.Felix doesn’t believe you.And that was all.A pack warrior I knew vaguely by sight approached me in the kitchen. Somehow, I didn’t feel apprehensive; the housekeeper uniform was like protective armour. Being Alpha Kane’s slave should have protected me unless he decreed otherwise but I had my doubt
Lisa’s POVDiana came to see me not long after my conversation with Michael. By now I was starving and also enraged by her bare-faced cheek. Then I wondered if he’d put her up to it.She was the bearer of welcome gifts in the form of sandwiches, fruit and caffeine.“No salad, I’m afraid,” she said.I was touched that she’d remembered until I recalled the circumstances surrounding me saying it which had led to my frustration and Jake’s notching up yet another conquest.Inviting her in, I decided to be gracious. This was her family’s place, after all. Dare I ask how the Alpha King had come to be living here? Maybe not, once. But this was a new me, newly awakened to the way I perhaps should have behaved all along.As I munched my way through the first one, which contained grated cheese and sliced tomato, I was grateful enough to unbend even more.So I made the first move, the opening gambit as they say in chess.“I’m trying to make up my mind what to do for the best.”The beauty sitting
Kane’s POV I kept looking at Grandmother’s list. When I was sober. Should I put Elaine through her paces? I was sure Selene would want to participate, which would remove all the enjoyment. Sadly, my Luna-in-waiting wasn’t on there. Maybe she didn’t have enough brains. Though the warrior from the Black Hills pack seemed equally as stupid as the one-time head Omega. Equilibrium was now restored; there was no chief among the lowly. Elaine had abused her position and I would give no-one else the opportunity to do the same. Chrissy would no doubt have been fair-minded, yet I knew she wouldn’t have relished being in charge and would be open to abuse from the very peers from whose ranks she had risen. They would get away with murder, like someone already had. Or would do when Dorothy breathed her last. The old Luna was hanging in there. I didn’t visit her so often these days; it pained me to see her like that, whether or not she had played me false. Correction: nobody was getting away wit
Jake’s POVI went to see the Alpha King about the man and the girl. It was probably a stupid thing to do. I wanted to get back into his good books and if he didn’t know about these two, it might pave my way.He was sitting in the library, perusing a great tome concerning wildlife, or so it seemed. Actually, underneath that, was a book about Vlad the Impaler. I misread the last word and made a crass remark which he might have expected about antelopes not being readily available in the States other than pronghorns.The Lycan just stared at me with those reddening eyes before showing me the book’s cover. I have to say those fangs were much larger than Mina’s.“I’ve made a discovery,” I said.He sighed. “Was the key in the lock? I’ve told Diana about that before.”So he did know about this pair.“Who are they?”The look he gave me told me I was pushing it. I held his gaze for as long as I could.Eventually, he waved an airy hand, still concentrating on his biography. “Relatives of Diana a
Amy’s POVKane dismissed me soon after my faux pas. I’d meant no disrespect about his parents’ relationship but he was easily enraged these days.It couldn’t be for the same reason as me, surely? Though my mood swings had to be curbed. I wasn’t an Alpha female yet.The packhouse was a busy place right now and full of shifters wanting their own way and to be informed of the best places to run.It wasn’t just the visiting Alphas who were annoying, their Lunas were equally as bad. There would be even more tomorrow, the day of the party, though at least they wouldn’t want accommodation.Everywhere was spotless, I had seen to that whether personally or by supervising the Omegas and maids designated as cleaners. There was just one place to which none of us had any access, including Kane, and that was his pleasure room.Who had taken the key, and why?Well, it wasn’t any of the Omegas and I was working my way through the maids. All this wide-eyed innocence in terms of being a thief was makin
Lisa’s POV“You lied to me.”Maybe I shouldn’t have accused the Alpha King, a Lycan, of such a thing and in that tone of voice, but I was so angry.“Only about that one thing,” he said, gazing at my mother’s moving fingers.She was drawing a gazelle and it was so good to see.“Kane’s your sworn enemy because of her, isn’t he?”“Not just mine. He despises all the Lycan clans.”“Then why is he mating the daughter of one?”“Haven’t you worked it out yet, Lisa? He wants to be on the inside so he can discover her whereabouts.”I looked at him, anxiously.“Will you ever let her go? What about me?”“Come back downstairs and we’ll discuss it. I’m not the monster you might think.”I followed him with reluctance, leaving the woman who had given no sign she recognised me.“Thank you for trusting me with this.”I owed him my gratitude for that at least and had been brought up always to acknowledge a good deed.“You could have lied to me, pretended she was a stranger to you,” he said, pausing on t
Amy’s POV The scrolls were now in my possession for all the use they were. As usual, we’d been interrupted, thankfully given the way he was eyeing the bed in that room. I was under strict instructions to return them before midnight. Did he think I was going to sell them on the black market or something? There were a lot of figures, combined with names and dates, but nothing of significance leapt out at me. I was bleary eyed from consulting hospitality checklists of my own devising. Why was I so painstaking in this? For him or for her? I had given up trying to second guess myself. When I judged the hour was late enough and that Selene would be contemplating her beauty sleep in advance of the big day ahead, I made my way upstairs. Testing myself, I used the lift, noting the new bags under my eyes and that my long hair was in need of a twist or something. Alpha Kane wouldn’t appreciate my news, or lack of it, that was for sure. I entered once I had his shouted permission and was ast
Kane’s POVI wasn’t myself and couldn’t seem to control my baser urges. Dorothy was nearing the end of her life. Only her she-wolf physiognomy had kept her going until now. It was driving me crazy. Still, that was no excuse for the way I’d behaved with Amy. What I’d put her through was unforgivable and now I had a Luna to appease.My Beta came to see me in the small hours. I heard his complaint to the bitter end, even though my head was splitting in two and I was seeing double.Had someone drugged me? It was a distinct possibility.“You need help, Alpha Kane,” he said.His sympathy was genuine. I had always liked Jarvis, a good man who would tell it to you straight.“Is Amy okay?”“She couldn’t stop crying,” my Beta told me. “Inviting Alpha Solomon was a step too far. In my opinion.”“I’m going to kill Selene,” I said, clenching a fist.“You didn’t know?”“I forbade it. Where’s Amy now?”“In my quarters. Alpha – ”I cut him off before he could explain that he was her mate.“Bring her