"Tell me again, Everything," Adam growled impatiently as Allen finalized the orders that Adam had already sent out and arranged additional resources. He was incredibly efficient as he simultaneously linked members of their own pack and made phonecalls across the city to call in favors from their allies in an effort to gather more information. Ann's disappearance was a huge deal and Adam somewhat blamed himself for her disappearance. If he had been able to reign his wolf in a little more, then perhaps she wouldn't have left today in such a hurry. Perhaps it could all have been avoided. Lexi rolled her eyes impatiently as she paced and threw him a withering look that should by rights have turned him to a pillar of salt. "Listen, fluffy, I Appreciate you trying to rationalize and look for clues in my brief interaction with her whilst she was taken, but the minuscule details that exist in that short exchange won't change, however many times I recount it." Adam snarled in irri
Adam considered Lexi's words carefully. She was right, of course, and she had already done a thorough job of searching the places that Ann should have been, had she genuinely taken whoever had appeared in front of her car to the hospital. With no trace of Ann on any of the security footage from the hospitals they had visited, or in the parking lots, Adam had pulled in a favor from a contact within the traffic administration system. Allen was on his way over to review the security footage as he sat here with Lexi discussing their next move. He wanted to be out looking for her but if she managed to escape and return home, he didn't want anyone else to be the first face that she saw. His wolf growled possessively at the mere thought and the sound rumbled from his chest unwillingly. Lexi flicked a sly glance toward him and a small smirk played at the corners of her mouth. "Are you okay there loverboy?" Adam nodded curtly at her, a little embarrassed at the familiarity that
"As your Beta, you have always trusted me with everything that went on in your life, Adam. I have served you well and faithfully, and our pack has prospered. For once, I'm disappointed in your choices and I cannot stress to you enough just how important it is for me to know what I'm dealing with here so that I can continue to support you properly." Allen said, trying to keep the hurt from his voice as he spoke. Adam didn't reply immediately, simply staring at his trusted beta's expression of hurt as he debated how to reply. How was he supposed to tell him that he had deliberately kept him in the dark because he didn't know if he could trust him to not let his personal feelings get in the way of what Adam decided was right? But it appeared that Lexi was going to save him the trouble of having to injure his Beta's pride as she smirked at him with a twinkle in her eye. "Relax pumpkin… there's been a lot going on just lately and I'm fairly sure that if it wasn't for Ann's stupidi
As soon as Ada hung up the phone she let out a heavy sigh of relief and bit the inside of her cheek nervously as she began to make her way back down to the dungeons. She couldn't be sure, but she was hopeful that Adam had bought into her reasoning for calling. At the very least he hadn't immediately bitten her head off and promised her death, so in Ada's mind, that suggested that he at least didn't completely disbelieve her. The sound of her footsteps echoing down the stairwell sent an uneasy shiver down Ada's spine. Her mother had taken to spending all day down here since they had been confined to the palace. The Elite guards of the Royal Elder Council never left her father's side and he hadn't left his room in days. She had been going backwards and forwards to try to speak to him, but she was pushed roughly away by the heartless bastards that guarded his doorway. Narcissa and Ada had pretty much been left to their own devices. Perhaps they didn't see them as a threat. Ad
Narcissa had managed to creep up behind Ada without her noticing and she sneered quietly to herself. In every sense of the word, this girl had been a disappointment and nothing at all what she had hoped for. "I hope that with you seeing Ann so easily ensnared has made you reconsider the upbringing you were given," Narcissa spoke suddenly from her side, causing Ada to stand abruptly clutching her heart. "A little jumpy aren't we, Ada? You weren't considering doing something stupid now, were you?" Narcissa said as she folded her arms in front of her, one hand still clutching the bloody dagger that she had only moments earlier finished using. Ada's eyes flicked to the dagger nervously and watched with a look of thinly veiled disdain as Narcissa sucked the remnants of blood spatters from her fingers. "Of course not mother. I was simply contemplating my next move." "Our... next move..." Narcissa corrected with a lazy smile, pointing the sharp end of the dagger towards her. A
Ada watched her mother walk away with an empty feeling inside of her heart. This was for her future, and her baby's. That was all that mattered. With a deep breath and a quick glance at the spot where Ann was held, she pulled the phone from her pocket and punched in a set of numbers.It rang a few times as Ada began to pace nervously, her stomach in knots. Finally, he answered."What do you want, Ada?" Brad's cold emotionless voice rasped through the phone.Ada swallowed the lump in her throat and forced a sickly sweet smile onto her face, hoping it would take away the tremor from her voice."Are we not past this yet, Brad? Don't you want to do this with civility at least?" She crooned."Never. I will never forgive you for whatever it was that you did to me that made me..." he answered almost instantly before he was cut off abruptly by Ada's derisive snort."Oh shut up, Brad." She snapped in irritation, "You made the choice to fuck me, it was your decision every single time. Do y
Ann's heart sank as the memories came flooding back to her. How could she have been so stupid? She was fully aware when she was driving through that part of the city that it had a bad reputation, but seeing the state of the… whatever that was in front of her had pulled at her heartstrings. The area was home to addicts of both humans and their synthetic drugs and the shifters and magickal beings who had either succumbed to the darker side of magick and paid the price with their sanity or had indulged in one too many apothecaries concoctions that had left them with an insatiable craving that would never be sated. All of them had one thing in common, their exceedingly poor grip on reality and the uncompromising drive to secure the source of their next fix. Despite her wolf's advice and Lexi's, she had decided that she knew better and thought that the poor soul in front of her had at least been deserving of some medical attention. The gash on his head had looked horrific and
Narcissa perched on the edge of the table as she studied Ann silently. The uncomfortable silence extended until the muted sound of voices echoed faintly from outside of the corridor and drifted into the room. "Ah! It looks like our first guest is here!" Narcissa exclaimed excitedly as she slipped off the table and stretched her arms out languidly before her. "Now, not a word little princess, I don't want you to spoil the surprise!" She giggled as drew her fingers across her lips. Ann tried to open her mouth to respond but suddenly found that she was incapable of movement, not only that, a painful fire seemed to be coursing through her veins. She wanted to scream and her muscles fought to writhe against the pain, but they were unable to. Narcissa smirked as she sauntered towards Ann, running her finger down her cheeks as she stared intently into her eyes. "Do you like it, Ann? Isn't it exquisite!" she whispered gleefully, "Ada has a long way to go until
As their convoy of cars and moving vans rolled up the driveway, Ann's stomach twisted uncomfortably as her anxiety set in. Regardless of what her babies were doing to her insides, the effects that her heightened emotions were having on her far eclipsed any discomfort that her pups were causing. She took a deep breath as she tried to calm the anxiety that knotted her insides and made her heart ache painfully. As far as she knew, her father was still living within the palace and she still wasn't sure that she could forgive him for everything that she had been put through because of his choices. In the worst-case scenario, she could always extend the palace to encompass two main living areas so that she wouldn't have to deal with tolerating his presence. She didn't even want to think about how she would explain to her children that they couldn't ever meet the incredible woman that her mother was because her father had an affair, broke the mating bond, and allowed his mistress and
"Right, I think that's the last of them," Adam grinned as he jogged through the huge doors of the Enclave's entrance hall to where Ann was pacing restlessly and Bartholomew was watching with mild amusement. "Finally," Ann sighed as she rubbed her belly with a grimace, "At this point, all I want to do is get my home back to what it used to be." Adam leaned forward and planted a kiss on Ann's forehead. "Are they making things difficult for you?" He asked gently, rubbing her back. Ann reached for his hand with a scowl and placed it palm down on top of her belly and grimaced as another flurry of movement rippled under her skin and Adam blinked in surprise. "Are they fighting in there?!" He asked in shock. "With two stubborn Alpha's for parents, I wouldn't put it past them." Bartholomew chuckled as he made his way over to them, smiling kindly. Ann lifted her gaze and her face softened as she looked at the kindly face of the old man that had been there for them through so muc
When Coral had returned with the Omega that worked as a nanny to the nobles, the baby boy was handed over to her and she waddled off happily, cooing at the baby in her arms as it gurgled happily back up at her. Coral began to work through updating the schedule for Ann as she dictated, adding additional notes that she shared with Allen's device. He would see to their schedule tomorrow as he had several days worth of reports to hear from Adam as to what had happened within the businesses and the Dark Moon Pack while he was away. Lexi made her way back to her room with both Allen and Greyson following behind her. She paused outside her door and turned to them both with a smile. "Sorry to disappoint boys, but I don't feel like getting frisky right now. Quite honestly, I just want to soak all of this crap off me." They nodded at her as she looked at them thoughtfully. "We really should sit down and have a discussion about how this is going to work between us all, you know." she
"Well, I certainly wasn't expecting that." Ann said a little breathlessly as she looked between Lexi, Allen and Greyson. Adam shared the same concerned expression as she did at the revelations that Eromaug would clearly stop at nothing to get his hands on Lexi. "You're absolutely sure that your father is willing to ally himself with us?" Ann asked as the baby in her arms began to stir and protest at the noise and unfamiliar surroundings it had found itself in. Lexi snorted loudly. "Of course he is. How could he not when his daughter is your right hand woman?" She winked. "We should put it to the council first." Adam said somberly as Lexi groaned loudly. "I'm sure they'll be thrilled at the opportunity," She muttered sarcastically as Ann laughed. "I think we should get hold of Bartholomew so that he can help us find a way to ‘tell' the council of our alliance, rather than ask for their permission." Ann mused thoughtfully, "He's pretty knowledgeable about who supports us,
Ann and Adam stood on the front steps of the Enclave, eagerly waiting for the return of both of their Beta's. Adam chuckled as Ann fidgeted with her hands and struggled to stand still, her gaze fixed on the curve of the driveway. "They'll be here soon, don't worry." He soothed, wrapping his arm around her as she nibbled on her bottom lip. "What if something happened though?" She worried as she rubbed her little bump in an act of self soothing. Adam's eyes glazed over slightly as he linked with Allen and then grinned down at his anxious wife. "Allen said stop worrying, it's not good for the baby. They'll be here in seconds." "But…" As promised, the front end of the transport pulled around the corner of the driveway and Ann let out a sigh of relief. "See, my Queen? Nothing to worry about." Adam chuckled as he watched them pull to a stop in front of them. As soon as the door opened and Lexi's head emerged, Ann broke away from Adam and bolted down the steps towards her.
Lexi knew that she was still conscious, but the pressure that engulfed her head, and the rigidity of her body teamed with the almost distant voices of protest from Allen and Greyson let her know that she had no control over what was happening right now. The initial black curtain that had descended was suddenly filled with hundreds upon hundreds of memories from her childhood, all played out in glorious technicolor and accompanied by sounds and smells that made her heart ache with familiarity and her breath catch in her chest. There was no way that she could catch each and every memory at once, but she could see it clearly. The bond that both she and Eromaug had shared at an early stage was filled with love and an intensity that she had known only with Allen and Greyson. By the time the images had begun to fade in her mind's eye and her vision returned, she was overwhelmed with emotions. As she sat there trembling, clasping her hands together tightly so that she wouldn't cry wit
Lord Brarthroroz guided Lexi over to one of the chairs around the table and gestured towards the flap of the tent. "Make sure no one enters for the time being, Steve." He said with an air of resignation to his voice as he took a seat next to his daughter. Steve nodded expressionlessly as he moved to the open flap, released the material to close it and ducked through to stand outside. "You two should sit as well," Lord Brathroroz advised as he gestured to the seats across from Lexi, "This isn't easy for me to talk about." He continued with a grunt. Greyson and Allen moved to comply and took their seats next to each other, both of them focused on Lexi. Lord Brarthroroz sighed as he turned back to his daughter and cupped her face fondly. "Before I start, I want you to understand that before your mother and I had you, neither of us realized just how deeply we could love and the desire to protect you from harm eclipsed everything else in our lives completely." He said gently a
It hadn't taken their force long to clear the halls and clean up the bodies that were left behind. The losses had been minimal on their part and considering the forces that they had thought they would be up against, their plans had meant that they had been far better equipped than the coven itself. The Coven had left very few prisoners alive, and the ones that were still breathing were in pretty bad shape. Lexi and the other healers and medics had done what they could but there was no growing back limbs…no matter how proficient of a shifter you were. Lord Brarthroroz had stationed huge numbers of his daemons within the winding passageways and caverns that the coven had previously inhabited and returned to the surface with his portalmancer Steve at his side. He strode angrily across the makeshift camp to the command tent and paused at the entrance, glancing across at the medical tent where Lexi had been working. Currently, she was cleaning her hands off as her mates watched
She stood and with one last look at the lifeless body below her, turned her attention to the chaos at the other side of the room. Narcissa had no problems keeping the attacks of the wolves at bay and Lexi could feel the emotions of the past few minutes bubbling wildly inside of her as she stormed towards her, her eyes blazing furiously. Her father was still making little headway against Eromaug, but she wasn't concerned about his survival, he was more than capable of taking care of himself against his bastard of a brother. Narcissa on the other hand…she had a lot to fucking answer for. Lexi strode through the fighters battling the twisted Daemons that had emerged from the shadows, throwing her magick lazily towards the monstrosities as she passed, a sneer curling at her lips as the shifters watched her in terrified awe. It wasn't long until Narcissa noticed her approach and her face split into a sneer that matched Lexi's as she swept her arm in front of her, knocking the ma