Chapter 48Axel's POV Blake stood still by my side, unmoving. I had been sitting in the same spot for quite a while, thoughts swirling and racing. I felt ashamed of myself. I wasn't even strong enough to protect my mate and now, she was to be with someone else. My brother. "Don't beat yourself up over it", my beta comforted me. "You can't do anything about it""She's my mate and I can't even do anything to protect her. I have to give her to my brother to ensure no harm comes to her. I don't deserve to be called an Alpha if I can't protect one person I treasure"Blake sighed, settling next to me. "Can you stop? Not many people may know you as much as I do so I think I'm in the best position to say this", he started. "If you're giving her up, then there must be a really good reason for it. When you're able to get rid of all those threatening you, you'll get her back"I didn't believe his words, not a single one, but I grasped onto the hope that Selena would one day understand why we
Chapter 49Selena's POV Three servants, one make-up artist and two hairdressers fussed over me. They had arranged my dress four times in the last ten minutes, the make-up artist had applied an extra layer of blush every fifteen minutes and my mood was extremely sour. "What jewelry would you prefer?", a servant questioned, pointing to three different jewelleries on the table. I simply ignored them, sitting as still as a mannequin. They passed a knowing look amongst themselves before randomly picking one, shackling me to it. "The ceremony is just about to begin", the dressers announced. "Get her ready"Lily walked into the room, standing right by me. She placed a firm hand on my shoulder, comforting me. "Everyone's waiting", she started. "Are you sure about this?"In all honesty, I wasn't. But I nodded. "Let's go girls", they clapped in excitement. I almost rolled my eyes. Of course, they wouldn't have an idea what it was like to be handed over to someone you may just hate, like
Chapter 50Selena's POV Everyone stared with smiles on their faces, as I walked down the aisle alone. My stepmother, stepfather and Elsa's faces held more glares than smiles but I didn't care as I was more focused on keeping my tears and anger at bay. Asher was standing at the altar, his face conveyed how happy he was though I was certain it was all for show rather than his true feelings. He offered me a hand, providing support as I stepped on the makeshift stage carefully crafted for the two 'love birds'. That was the decorator's words, not mine. I nervously glanced around the guests, searching for Cecelia or any semblance of hope that this wedding would not hold. But there was no one. Even Axel was missing. "Do you, Selena, take Asher to be your lawfully wedded husband?"I took a shaky breath. Just how shocked would they be if I suddenly declare my disinterest in marrying Asher? Elsa would probably have a field day about my plight, stepmother would all too willingly give Elsa t
Chapter 51Unknown POV Asher felt something stir in his heart the moment Selena smiled brightly at him. He realized then, just how much he wanted to see that smile again."Gosh, it's beautiful", Selena breathed out. "You'll love it more in the morning", Asher chuckled at her innocent awe filled eyes. "You've never seen one?""Never", Selena answered almost immediately. It was the only conversation they were having where Selena indicated the slightest bit of interest and she wasn't glaring, scowling or looking at him like a ticking time bomb. "My step family once went on a vacation", she gave a sad smile. "I couldn't tag along because obviously, stepmother thought it would be too much of a financial burden to take me"Asher listened intently. "When they got back, Elsa blabbered on and on about how beautiful the ocean was. I was so intrigued and I thought I'd never get to see it even after I die", she shook her head. "It's so silly""No, it's not", Asher refuted. "That's a beautiful
Chapter 52Axel's POV "Just calm down. Maybe she doesn't mean it", Blake tried to comfort me. "I mean, she was obviously upset so she may have said some things she didn't mean""She meant it", I shook my head. "How desperate could she be to just spite me that she had to get married to Asher?", I questioned. "It's just crazy""Well, don't worry too much. Have you tried calling?", he asked. I nodded in the affirmative. "Yes. But apparently, she blocked me""Okay...", he dragged out. "You can just settle things with her once she gets back after a few days""They'll be there for a month", I mumbled out, growing more hopeless. Blake kept silent this time, finally giving up on finding the 'bright' side of things. After Asher and Selena left for their honeymoon, I felt completely downcast and heartbroken. Selena had every right to be upset at me, even I felt upset at myself but I only wished she could understand just how desperate and helpless I was. I'm trying my very best to ensure sh
Chapter 53Unknown POV It took a considerable amount of effort before Selena was able to fall back asleep after Lily had broken the news to her. She felt bare and exposed, secretly blaming him for her predicament. When Asher had walked into the room that morning, she involuntarily brought the blanket up to her chest, throwing him an awkward smile which was a dead giveaway that she was hiding something. Asher didn't feel anything was off, taking her sudden kindness as a way of warming up to him. He took a bath, walking out of the bathroom, clad in nothing but a towel hanging loosely on his waist and a towel for his hair. He ruffled it, drying the hair mechanically. Selena slowly appreciated his beautiful body, a sad attempt in distracting her from repeatedly checking her phone after less than a minute in hopes of seeing Axel's name flashing across the screen. It was pathetic but she still missed him. It hasn't even been seventy two hours. "When are we leaving?", Selena questioned
Chapter 54Selena's POV Ever since Asher told me about the conversation with his brother, I had beaten myself up about everything. Because of my stupid pride and the unnecessary anger, I jumped into marriage with an asshole. But, Asher had been treating me well which made it even more difficult to hate him. He had kept his promise. On one hand, I'd be willing to run back to my mate but he would never mark me or tell the world I was his mate. Then there was Asher who turned out to be a lesser jerk than I had originally thought. He was surprisingly understanding and I knew I could live a comfortable life with him.If I stayed here long enough, the mate bond holding Axel and I would wane without him marking me, and I could forget about him. I felt so confused. The possibility of falling for Asher had never crossed my mind, yet here I was. "You up?", Asher peeped into the room, smiling brightly the moment his eyes met mine. I returned his smile. We had fallen into some routine. Eve
Chapter 55Selena's POV The ocean was breathtaking though I remained a bit afar off, for fear of the large waves. The crashing dance of the large waves was almost hypnotic. Asher stood next to me, a small smile on his face as he watched me. The wind caressed my skin but mercilessly ruffled my hair, the long minutes of brushing it down was wasted in no time. Lily stood aside, setting out the food and drinks. Amidst the noise of crashing waves and howling winds, there was a serene calm that came with it, like the winds whispered words of comfort until you couldn't think of anything but the spellbinding effect of your surroundings. Asher's phone rang loudly. It was a bit surprising because we barely received any calls out here. The ringtone was shrill, unlike his usual ringing tone. "Excuse me", he threw me a small smile before walking off. The moment I was about to continue staring at the ocean, I caught his hand pulling out a small flip phone, like a burner. I spent a minute pond
Chapter 140 Axel's POV I walked out of the pack house and into the expanse of land now littered with my pack members. They were in little groups, talking amongst themselves in hushed whispers. When they noticed my presence, they immediately fell silent, looking up at me with expectant faces. The last time I stood before them, we were on the verge of making the most important decision of the pack. I've never felt so much appreciation for that day than at this point. More and more werewolves gathered and I leapt onto the elevated stage, facing them. "Night Reapers, it has come to my notice that the pack, Blood Red, has fallen." The whispers rose once more and with a lift of my hand, they were silenced. "You've seen the commotion outside the gates. Those are from the survivors of the pack. They've come to us for help", I paused, surprised that no one said a word. "Now, I bring the decision to your table. What do we do?" The question spurred them into action, some yelled that
Chapter 139 Selena's POV It took two months and five days before we heard any news about the packs. Technically, we heard news of progression and the added advantages the alliance offered to those packs, virtually every Alpha was involved except ours. As far as I was concerned, we were officially cut off. The strategy put in place by Axel worked. We had food, water and basically everything we needed within the pack. It made things considerably easier. No one complained and as days passed, more werewolves came forward as volunteers. Soon, we extended our little plan in agriculture to other aspects, like furniture making, fabric design and then, no distant time I was setting we were making waves. Orion and Zephyr were growing up quickly. Werewolves always had a weird aging style. We grow up quickly, then remain almost dormant before we begin aging slowly. Lily's presence was difficult to come by. She was mostly invested in Blake and I'd be honest when I say that their relati
Chapter 138Selena's POV I took three large gulps of air, like it would be my last moment of peace. Today was the day we were expecting the Alphas and to say the atmosphere was more than tense was an understatement. Axel had come clean to the pack, revealing the details of the visit to every member. He also told them about his decision and gave everyone the chance to either counter his decision or agree with him.Most of them agreed, the few that thought it was reckless were soon convinced that Axel was making the right choice. He gave them his reasons. Then, the topic of how we were going to generate incomes for ourselves even after we cut ourselves off from the other packs arose and Axel gave them the stellar idea on agriculture. The farmers came forward, pledging to give their all while some volunteered to help. By the time dawn broke, we were prepared. As prepared as we could be. "You ready?"
Chapter 137Selena's POV Lily looked like she'd throw up anytime soon while I was simply too stunned to say a word. "Isn't that poisonous?"Lily asked no one in particular, her eyes still fixed on the frog. "I don't think so", Orion answered, inspecting the frog. It was a miracle it hadn't leaped out of his hand and to an unlucky person's face. "Can you let it go, honey?", I coaxed. Orion stared at me with a sad look. "But why?", he whined. "It can be my pet."Except, werewolves don't keep pets. Our wolves were like pets, but on a way deeper level. It was part of us. "No. It can't."We were in a staring contest for at least thirty seconds before he finally gave in. "Whatever", he tossed the frog aside and it landed right on Lily's lap. Before I could react, Lily let out a loud scream. It echoed throughout the clearing and was just about to tear my sensitive eardrums.
Chapter 136Selena's POV For the next few days, we ignored everything. Axel and I focused on nothing else but ourselves and the kids. We had a family day out, of course Blake and Lily decided to tag along and we held a little picnic just for ourselves. Truth was, it was inevitable that Axel would have to give his reply concerning the alliance bug for now, it felt much better to simply live in our own bubble. Orion and Zephyr were bickering on the color of the sky while I lay on the blanket, my eyes shut as I basked in the warm sun. "I can't believe you", Lily was speaking, throwing a punch at Blake. I could tell when he muttered a low 'ouch'."It's serious though", Blake was trying to say. I had tuned out of most of the conversation and the one I had managed to catch snippets of didn't make any sense. I pried my eyelids open, scanning for Axel as he had been awfully quiet. His back was turned to
Chapter 135 Selena's POV "What?", I echoed, the sound loud enough that it bounced off all the walls. "An alliance?" Axel expected my reaction as he barely even reacted to my shrill. I'm certain I had alerted at least half of the staff members. "I thought so too", Axel stated blandly. I rifled through my head, searching for anything that made sense. An alliance between werewolves is nearly impossible, if not completely. That's the reason why it didn't happen, ever. It was way too risky and if not careful could cause war between packs. If Alpha Boris was proposing an alliance and the rest of the Alphas agreed with him, he was either very stupid or desperate. But, what for? "An alliance is...impossible." "I thought so too", he echoed, and I threw him a glare. "Are you even listening?", I asked. "Yes." But I co
Chapter 134Selena's POV The pack gates creaked open, revealing a number of stern faced and cold gazes of the Alphas. Their eyes scanned the crowd for a few seconds before they resumed their walk, soon standing in front of Axel and I.If Axel felt nervous, he didn't show it. His face was set in a stiff position as he watched them in return."What a pleasant surprise", he stated, his voice anything but pleasant or surprised. One of the Alphas chuckled, his eyes twinkling in amusement. "Thank you, Alpha Axel", he bowed, a motion which can barely be considered a bow but sufficient enough to pass as one. "What brings you here?", Axel asked, his brows creased as he stared at them all. "I wasn't aware of your visit.""And yet...", the werewolf gestured around him. "There's an entire group waiting.""Information tends to reach us quickly."The werewolf seemed more amused than offended as
Chapter 133Selena's POV "It's not what you think", I pointed out but Lily's amusement poured from her very pores as she stared innocently at Blake. Blake walked slowly into the room, his eyes darting from Lily to me, eyes narrowed. "Uhun", he answered under his breath.I threw a stern glare as Lily let out a muffled laugh and that seemed enough to cause her to straighten up. "Selena's right. I was just being silly. Before Blake could answer, we heard the shuffling of feet outside the door but the thing is, there was more to it than just the occasional movement. They seemed more than panicked. Lily, Blake and I exchanged confused looks before we hopped up, rushing towards the door. My mind drifted to the kids first, knowing Axel would be able to take care of himself. "What's happening?"Blake asked a maid rushing away but she seemed to be too much in her panicked state to realize who was
Chapter 132Selena's POV "Unfortunately, I'm not you", I glared. "Even though I wish with everything in me that I was."Axel's hand was entwined with mine, his thumb tracing lazy circles on it. "I hate you. So much. And I hope you'll suffer for as long as possible for the penance of your wickedness. I hope the world becomes a living hell for you and I hope you never find peace."The cell door creaked open, and my stepmother stepped out, her lips and brows turned down and her neck bent. "Forg...""Letting you go doesn't mean I think of you in a better light than I used to. But, you staying here will just mean you're a part of my life. I don't like that thought."She didn't make a move to say a word which contrasted to the manner which she had used to cut me off whenever I had something to say I'm the past. The cell holding my stepfather opened next. He looked like he had aged a century from