>I had no idea if Luca had succeeded in rescuing Maisie in time or not. There was no way to contact him. He was too far for mid-link. I kept waiting for him to contact me for days. The HQ had kept everything hudh hush. If it hadn't been my guy in the center of it all, I would never have known that Maisie probably was about to be worse than a lab rat.After days of not knowing what to do next and spending my days in the office to make sure John wasn't sapred any punishment. I walked exhausted into the loft.I hadn't been there in a while.The place was just as I had left it, except I didn't want to turn on the lights and see how truly empty it was without the one person whom I forced away from me. There were some envelopes in the mail that I just placed on the kitchen island without looking.I walked into the shower and turned it on. I let the cold water wash over me even though it could never wash the pain of betrayal and regret that was eating me up from the inside.I
>On the morning of the event, I was called by Laura to clock in early. A lot of parts that were left to be done fresh on the day of the event needed to get done in time.The event was in the evening, but we were informed that most of VIP guests had already arrived in the pack and were staying in various hotels. Laura had Misha and I run errands till noon. She was too tense because of the pressure from Rory. Everyone was nervous because this was the first project of the company on such a large scale and if everything went well, it could be the very thing that launches the company to national level."My feet are killing me and it's only mid-day." Misha complained dramatically as he sipped his boba tea."Maybe next time when it is such an important day at work, you'd refrain from heeled boots?" I teased and he frowned playfully."But seriously though, I am starving. Like I had my breakfast and its only noon. How am I starving?" He rolled his eyes dramatically and sipped his
>My unwillingness to do anything had nothing to do with the fact that there were things that needed to be done. Whether I wanted to or not was of no importance.But I was curious about the wedding invitation that I had recieved from Alpha Peterson. I knew that Councilor Peterson, his father, was still at HQ, doing his best to get John bailed out without any charges. And as important as that was, it was just as vital for me to find out what Peterson Jr. was cooking.It was nearly a week long wedding with multiple events for the sake of it. But everyone knows that events like these are never just celebrations. When important people gather in one place, there is always more to it than meets the eye.Jacob had done the work on the wedding and found out that a lot of very important people, including many Alphas from all over the territories in America had accepted the invitation and were coming with their families. Some were even coming from halfway accross the world.What
>I got to the venue in my ballgown feeling extremely overdressed for someone who was working that night.I had decided to wear the dress but not the rest of the things which I intended to return after the event. In fact, I was carrying a spare dress. I just wanted Richard to know that I had not rejected his gift but once he saw me, I was planning on changing into something more pratical.I didn't want to give Richard any wrong ideas. I was unable to commit to any one new yet when I was still dreaming of Xavier coming to take me away and tell me how sorry he was to let me go. Giving hopes to anyone else would be unfair to them.I had decided to turn the ball gown as casual as I could by wearing sneakers underneath and no accessories. I missed my howling wolf necklace that I never used to part with until I had given it to Dad when he was in pack jail. I hadn't seen him wear it but since I had given it to him, I didn't want to ask it back. I missed it around my neck though.
>The night began as music wafted in all directions from the live orchestra. All the important people from around the world were present and Xavier decided it was showtime. He stepped forward to meet and greet the people while Eva slowly slipped from the shadows and moved towards the center of the packhouse where the secrets were expected to be held in Peterson office.Richard entered with his sister and they went straight to greet the groom who was the Alpha of a smaller territory at the edge of the Golden Eclipse pack. Anyone who noticed could understand that love had nothing to do with this political marriage and the groom was way happier than the bride.Rory made sure Zoe stayed backstage through most of the event and Zoe didn't mind. She had no intention of catching any attention at an event of such a signficance.An hour after dinner was over and the guests were enjoying the music on the temporarily built dancefloor, Angelina tugged at Zoe's dress with a mischievous
>Eva had slipped from the crowd and it had taken her a while to get inside the pack house since it was crawling with guards.She knew she needed to get to the second floor because that was where Alpha's study and office were. These two were the only rooms in the place with more security than the whole pack house. Which meant that there was bound to be something in there that needed such security.Having Lawrence as an inside man helped them formulate the plan. He couldn't carry on the mission himself because he had to stay close to Peterson as well as keep an eye on Zoe. Which is why he gave every information that he could find to Eva.One of the men in Xavier's entourage was a hacker who had cut down through the digital security of the pack house like a cake without being detected. This made sure that Eva could walk through the hallways without being captured by the security camera reels.When Eva reached the elevator that she needed to use, she yelled at Lawrence through
>I needed some fresh air after what had just happened on the dancefloor. For some reason, dancing with the Alpha of the pack in front of the world's most important people came secondary to having seen Xavier watching me dance with the Alpha of the pack at such an important event.Seeing him there brought feelings that I was not ready to face yet. It was too soon. I wanted to stay out there in the dark garden as long as I could. Everything was going wrong. Richard's proposal, the dress, the dance, Rory. And now, Xavier was here. Was it too much to ask for a break? What was next? Everyone to know that I was wolfless omega running from my past?I sighed.I could hear the orchestra playing and I knew Rory was not going to give me a break. She was already upset at me getting a dress from Richard and him making sure that I wore it. It wouldn't take long for her to know what happened at the dancefloor and I have no iea how she is going to take that.I took a few deep breaths t
>I didn't see Zoe again after that dance.But I knew that the image of her in that gorgeous gown twirling in the arms of another man was going to haunt me for long. It didn't help that the man was none other than Alpha Richard Peterson, only son of the Councilor Peterson who was notorious for his suspicious behaviors. Not to mention, the way he defended John even after all of John's atrocities were brought to light.I was still confused how did Zoe get to this pack of all the packs in North America. I had wanted her to be safe and then I had handed her the papers to the one pack that was probably going to be worse than her original one. How had that happened? My mistake was not checking the papers, but who made the original mistake of making those papers?Eva had returned later and the look on her face told nothing if she had found anything or not. I had ordered everyone not to mind-link at the party. So, that no one could be any more suspicious of our reason to accept
>It took an hour and a lot of emotional blackmail on behalf of Aunt Julie to convince Zoe to let Xavier go with her to Kansas City. And that too only on the condition that nothing would be expected of her and it was only a test for Xavier to see if he can keep to his word.After a lot of persuasion and tales of mates, second chances, belief in the Moon Goddess, and the fact that technically Xavier was the only one left in the world who was hers and on her side for good, Aunt Julie smiled and patted Zoe's back, "I'll go up and tell him that you need to talk. Be nice, okay?"Zoe didn't dare roll her eyes at Aunt Julie, she respected her way too much for that. But she did shake her head slightly knowing how Aunt Julie managed to convince her but she let her do it. If anyone had any right to Zoe, it was Aunt Julie after everything she had done for the Simmons family and how she had been so much more than just a distinct cousin of her Dad and their housekeeper. She was family a
>Zoe climbed up the stairs decisively while Xavier stayed in the garage trying to calm down and make peace with the fact that his forgiveness was going to take some time. He was hopeful that it would come eventually, just a bit late.He wanted to tell Zoe about Claire so she would stop worrying about him going back to her. But, Zoe already had so much on her plate, that she didn't need to be pulled into everything Claire was a part of. Xavier felt like it was pointless to make his worries hers when she hadn't even forgiven him yet.The more important thing was staying by her side. Which meant, he had to persuade her to let him come with her. The world was a much darker place than she knew and he wanted to protect her from it even though physically she didn't need protecting.Plus, he had no idea how idea what awaited them at those coordinates. Since it had been more than a decade since those numbers had been put down on that letter, there was a possibility that they would f
>"Zoe, I cannot relate to your pain or anything you are going through. So, I will not even try to say that I understand. I don't. And I know how many times I have let you down," He started the speech he had been working for hours as they drove to Silver Moon two days ago."Don't, please," Zoe tried to turn away. She wanted the apology. She had spent nights dreaming of the moment Xavier realized what a huge mistake he had made to let her go. But, that was not the moment for it. She was already an emotional mess."Let me, please. You need to hear this and I need to say this." He cautiously stepped closer and held her arms gently to ensure she didn't leave without hearing but could if she wanted to."Why? You didn't care about saying or being heard a few months ago." Zoe looked up at him bitterly, his touch igniting sensations stronger than she had ever felt because of her heightened senses."Believe me or not but I really thought that letting you go to have a new life was th
>"What are you so happy about?" I asked Aunt Julie whose excitement was confusing me.Instead of answering me straight away she sat me down on a couch with a nostalgic look and held my hands motherly before finally speaking."Did your Dad ever tell you that you have your mother's eyes?" She asked with a soft sad smile.She didn't wait for me to answer, probably because she knew the answer to her question. She resumed, "Of course not. He did his best to remove any mention of her from his life. That was his way of dealing with his grief."What about my grief? I wanted to ask but I chose to listen.She was right, no one was allowed to talk about Mom in our house. I was never allowed to ask any questions. Aunt Julie tried her best to fill that hole in my life but for a ten-year-old girl, no one could replace her mother. I barely had any memories of her either. The psychiatrist had told Dad that it was a form of PTSD. I don't remember what the trauma exactly was, but apparentl
>Zoe ran to her room and gathered the contents of the box. She got her old laptop and searched up the location. She rushed back down and went outside to the broken car.Xavier and Aunt Julie followed her as Zoe opened the backseat door."You can't go in that. I doubt it's even going to start." Xavier commented."It better. The coordinates are a two-day drive away." Zoe replied without looking at him. Then, she suddenly turned to him, "Key?" She brought her hand forward expectantly."Zoe," He started but she was getting impatient, "Key, now."He sighed, fetched the key from his pants pocket, and placed it on her open palm. She grabbed it and turned without a thank you. Aunt Julie tried to protest, "You can't let her go alone,""I'm not. Don't worry, " he said and waited for Zoe to try starting the car. He crossed his arms and waited as she turned the key in the ignition, but the car didn't start. Zoe stubbornly tried to keep trying instead of admitting that he was right. T
>"What are these?" Zoe put the envelope on the coffee table between herself and Xavier.Glad that she was finally talking to him, he leaned, his brows furrowed in confusion and concentration, "Letter to you?" He said."The number, what are those?" Zoe resisted the urge to roll her eyes or go over and kiss his confused expression. She knew he was trying not to upset her further. She didn't know why he suddenly cared but a small part of her was relieved that he hadn't mentioned his chosen mate yet or gone back to her. By the looks of it, he was only worried about Zoe. She didn't want to let him in her heart and get it broken again but she wasn't sure if he had left entirely the first time either."Looks like coordinates." He thought out loud."I knew it." Zoe snatched the envelope back, their fingers brushing for a moment and both tried to not show how the touch affected them."I can get the location checked. That is, if you want.." Xavier offered softly.Zoe didn't answer b
>"Weren't you informed not to call? The lines can be intercepted!" I whisper-yelled into the phone as soon as I was sure neither Aunt Julie nor Zoe could overhear."This one's fine, Sir. I made sure. And this is urgent." Jacob spoke in a hushed tone like he was afraid."Well?" I said expectantly, urging Jacob to resume."We were found. Some of our men work for your father and call him Alpha. I don't know how they found out." Jacob informed."Did they take Claire?" I asked expecting the worst."No. They tripped off an alarm I had planted around the area and I got a fifteen-minute headstart. I drugged Claire and took her before they could get us. They knew about the underground room." He told."Where are you now?""At the Shaw Safehouse. I cleaned up any evidence of the underground room being in use before we left. They won't know Claire was there." Jacob reassured me and then said, "But the bad news is, the cleanup team at Golden Eclipse didn't do as great of a job.""W
>The next morning, Zoe was up and out of the house just as the dawn broke through the sky.She had a restless night, the same nightmare burning her mind whenever she closed her eyes. She had waited for her wolf for so long. And then, she had taken even longer to accept that, unlike her fellows, she would never be able to transform into one because she was wolfless.Now, she had a beast. Granted it was not a regular wolf but an animal nonetheless and she wanted to transform. Her mind focused on her need to feel herself shift consciously just to be sure that it had actually happened. Also, this newfound focus helped distract her from the grief of her father.She called out to Dahlia and fell to her knees, trying to force her bones to move, for her skin to get covered with thin grey fur and for her canines to elongate and sharpen. Nothing happened.Dahlia did her best to aid her human but it proved futile as no matter how hard either of them tried, Zoe's body refused to trans
[WARNING: This chapter contains details of gore and death. Proceed with caution.]>That night Zoe slept in her old bed. Apparently, no one had known about their departure from Golden Ecplise or their arrival at the Silver Moon.Xavier chose to stay and Aunt Julie asked him to stay in Joe Simmons room but he refused knowing that when Zoe found out, she would be furious. She blamed Xavier for her father's death, and truthfully, so did he.Aunt Julie wanted to ask about Xavier about his pack but he had been so quiet that she decided otherwise.Zoe sat on her bed looking at the contents of the wooden box. She stared at the pictures. This time with more attention to detail than she had earlier in the day. She read the notes behind each. Some were normal comments about the picture while some were in the same language as the bundle of paper and needed to be decipered. It was just all too much information to be digested at once. The only good thing that came out of opening that