*KINCAID'S P.O.V*THE COLLAR Of his shirt suddenly felt tight and chuffed against his skin as his gaze was locked with the witch's. Then she looked away and stood in front of the podium. She cleared her throat once and said, "My name is Arlana," She said in a husky voice. "I am the Luna of Amazon River Wolves, Brazil. And I am the last descendant of the great Coven." Her gaze washed over the room. It was deathly quiet as the man waited to hear what she wanted to say."Did you see the way she looked at me?" Kincaid whispered to Liam. Liam shook his head. "You might be imagining it. She is a very beautiful woman.""And someone's mate, you fool," Kincaid snapped. "But I'm serious. She looked at me like she could see through me.""It's a trick people on stage do," Liam said. "Like, they are not really looking at you, but it looks like so. It deals with stage fright and stuff like that."Kincaid scoffed. He knew that wasn't what happened. The witch looked at him and locked his gaze. He t
*KINCAID'S P.O.V*HE TOOK THE next flight back to Scotland. As soon as the plane touched down, he knew something was amiss. He had left the meeting without Liam. Liam was going to get Elsa and then head for Scotland too. There was an SUV waiting for Kincaid in a private parking lot. As soon as he dropped from the plane, he got in the car and drove out like a blind bat. It drove to the pack in record time. He got out of the car. The pack was unnaturally quiet and there was a heavy air in the atmosphere. He barged into the packhouse and saw Adrienne sitting alone near a fireplace. She turned and looked at him, her eyes were tear rimmed and she regarded him with what looked like pity. Then she pointed upstairs. He took the stairs 3 at a time, he gave a knock before entering a room. His father lay on a bed. Unmoving. He would have thought the man was sleeping, if not for his mother's red eyes and the smell of blood coming from his father's body. Beta Marcus stood to the side, his jaws
*KINCAID'S P.O.V*THIS IS A FUCKING shit show, Kincaid muttered to himself. The night was still young and a slight breeze blew across them, ruffling the leaves and whistling through the trees. He watched with a tight grimace as the whole pack bowed their head in reverence as the procession passed and headed to the alpha's tomb. His mother walked slowly by his side as they led the procession, followed by the pack. They got to the cemetery, where Beta Marcus was already waiting. He signaled to the carriers for them to lower the coffin. Kincaid looked around the sad faces watching on. He spotted Liam standing just behind the low iron fence of the cemetery. Elsa stood at his side, clutching his arm. "There should be more people paying their homage to my father," Kincaid snarled through the mind link. Liam nodded subtly. "Remember that most of the alphas are currently in Belfast. The news might not have reached there."Kincaid scoffed. "The news has reached there. I know it." Je replie
*ADRIENNE'S P.O.V*"OUR ALPHA EZRA is dead."That sentence would continue to haunt me for the rest of my life. A sudden wave of sadness filled my heart as soon as I heard it, and the sadness and despair escalated as all the emotions of the pack members grew more sorrowful.I saw Beta Marcus's eyes glaze over and he clenched his fists. Then he looked at me before leaving the room. I hurried out of my room too and went upstairs, to where Luna Amelia was. She remained calm, but the pain radiated through her whole body. When she saw me, she smiled sadly and gestured at me to come in. Alpha Ezra was already covered, but the pale stench of death hung in the air. I sniffled again, she rubbed my back to comfort me, even though she needed the comfort more. "Things are about to change around here, Adrienne," She said softly. But she did not explain herself, she just walked out, leaving me to ponder on what she had just said. What does she mean? Will the changes be good? Or will the further
*ADRIENNE'S P.O.V*THE DUEL IS to start in a few minutes when the moon reaches its peak. I watched as the man called Alastair smirked and walked away. He looked pretty confident, and if we are being honest, he had the right to be confident. Standing beside him, Kincaid was like a little boy, and from the scars and hardened lines on the man's face, I knew he had been in a lot of fights, and won them. Luna Amelia looked distressed too. She was not in support of this, but after the death of her husband, her command was waning and becoming less effective. She could not interfere in the fight. She watched warily as Kincaid stalked off in the opposite direction. I saw Liam hurry after Kincaid, his mate walked behind him, having nowhere else to go, I followed them. "Caid," Liam whispered. "You should not have accepted the duel."Kincaid snorted. "So the pack would think I am weak?" He coughed out a humorless laugh. "Imagine how the other rival packs would react when they hear that the new
*KINCAID'S P.O.V*KINCAID KNEW THAT he should give Caer control. in scenarios like this, Caer was a better fighter. When it came to a duel, a human was not a match for a wolf, but Kincaid wanted to test the strength of his uncle's wolf. After the first wave of attack, Kincaid had come to one conclusion; Alastair was very strong, maybe even stronger than Kincaid himself. But he was at a disadvantage. He was clumsy and pretty slow, and that was what Kincaid planned to exploit. He started teasing Alastair with small scratches, trying to draw him out. Caer had been raging in his head, wanting to come out and take part in the fight, but Kincaid had kept his wolf locked in until the very last minute, and it was even almost too late. After Alastair had gotten his jaws around Kincaid's shoulder and wiggled him like a ragdoll before tossing him in the air, Kincaid could feel himself weakening and Caer was finally released. He shifted mid-air and twisted, taking everyone by surprise.The fig
*ADRIENNE'S P.O.V*I WAS STILL shaken from the howl and although Thea whimpered, wanting to join in the shift and be free, I stamped her back. I was still feeling self conscious and insecure about the rumors following my wolf, so I stumbled away blindly. More people in the pack were joining the howl, I got to the mouth of the woods and finally gave in to my animal instinct, allowing Thea to break free. The shift was painful, because I was fighting against it, and it was not as natural as it should be. I had only shifted twice before. But in a few seconds, the wave of pain passed and I was standing on my 4 paws. It was like a new sensation for me. My hearing was improved, my night vision too, everywhere was brighter. "It feels so good," Thea said and I agreed. She got into a slow jog to warm us up before breaking out into a run. I was enjoying this almost as Thea was. I should do this more often, I noted to myself. But I still didn't know how the pack would take a red wolf. Would t
HIDDEN IN THE shadows, Lucy watched Kincaid and the strange red wolf snuggle under the moonlight. The wind blew in her direction and she recognized the mixed scents. She caught the scent of Kincaid, a scent that she knew all too well, and the scent that belonged to Adrienne. The red wolf was Adrienne?She squinted to get a better look. She had thought the new girl was without a wolf spirit. But now that she thought about it, there had been signs. The first night she had tried to intimidate Adrienne into submission, she saw a flash of red in Adrienne's eyes. She had thought it was just a reflection of light, or she had imagined it. But it turns out that that was her wolf. But why does she not shift regularly, not even when she's in danger? Lucy wondered. Lucy took a step forward and crouched quietly behind a tall shrub. She didn't want to attract unwanted attention to her, and she didn't want Kincaid to know she was there. The wind was in her favor, as it blew away from her, carrying
*KINCAID'S P.O.V*HE COULD FEEL himself. Which was a very weird sensation because he was fluid, like water. He was without form or physical body. He was without a body.It was like he was floating in a dark abyss. He saw a tiny speck of light in the far distance, but the more he tried to go towards the light, the more he drifted away no matter how hard he tried to swim towards the light.Finally, exhausted, he closed his eyes which didn't exist, and allowed the darkness to envelop him.Time did not exist in this realmAm I dead? He wondered."Come..." "Come..." He heard with his nonexistent ears. It was like a soft voice came from everywhere and he felt small but strong hands pull him forward. He opened his nonexistent eyes and saw that he was closer to the speck of light. It bobbed larger and larger as he went through it.He felt a sharp burning sensation coming from his left ribs. Wait, He felt something on his ribs?Concentrating hard, he found the muscle connected to his arms an
*ADRIENNE'S P.O.V* I WOKE UP to peering eyes. They were not the child witch Morraine's, or Cedric's - who still stood a few feet away. I doubt if he had gotten any sleep, he stayed up, watching me and the girl as we slept. The stares that woke me up were those of the Beta and Gamma.Finn's eyes were wide as he peered in. I stood up and shook my fur. Morraine whimpered and muttered something in her sleep, but she did not wake up.I stepped away from her and walked out, they parted ways to let me through. "Liam, take her up to my old room in the pack house," I mindlinked. "Set a warm bath for her and some clothes, and have breakfast sent to her."He looked dumbfounded, but he nodded and said, "Yes Luna." He entered the cell and gently picked up the girl.The morning sun was starting to rise over the pack. For some reason, there was a lighter mood over it. I saw some children chasing a butterfly. I saw Thorr basking in the morning sun with his mate. They both bowed to me.I entered thro
*ADRIENNE'S P.O.V*3 DAYS passed in a blur. Kincaid was not getting any better, but our alignment was improving. We had received more visitors from alphas that were previously against us. They were still a bit wary about me because of the vision that Arlana had told them, but many of them warmed up after a while. We got alphas from some major packs of the world. They all came after hearing what had happened to Kincaid. Liam and Finn helped assist me in being a hospitable alpha in place of Kincaid.I sat beside Kincaid's bed. A dark stubble had started growing on his chin, giving his lower face a darker shade. I grasped his hand, allowing Thea a little comfort by physically touching him. She had been agitated since all these started.I could feel his wolf too very faintly. The area around his wound was turning flaky now like the skin was going to peel off any moment.Remembering the cause for all these, I stood up angrily from my chair. I got down on all fours and slowly shifted. In t
*ADRIENNE'S P.O.V*I OPENED THE door and walked in. I saw the faces of the men turn and look at me. I saw their eyes widen in surprise at what I was doing here.It was Evian who opened his mouth and spoke first, "Luna, you shouldn't be here."I cocked my head. "Oh, I shouldn't?"He shuffled. "No, Luna. This is a meeting for the leaders...""Well, isn't someone missing?" I questioned, gesturing towards the empty chairs at the head of the room."Yes," Evian said, "But that is the alpha's seat."I smiled wryly and walked up to the seat. I maintained eye contact with each of the men as I sat on it. "I am the alpha now until my mate is well"The room was too stunned to move or speak anything for almost a minute. I swiveled slowly, the gentle creak of the seat brought them back. Finn cleared his throat and said, "Now we have the alpha in our midst " he winked at me.Liam nodded. "We can continue."I crossed my hands on the table and listened to them as they laid out the problems. Kincaid's
*ADRIENNE'S P.O.V*TWO DAYS LATER..."You had better wake up, Kincaid Stuart," I whispered. I could not keep on holding the tears in me, and I felt them drip down my face. "You have a child waiting for you. What will I tell him when he asks for his father?" I laid my head on his chest. "How will I tell him that his father died a few months before it was born?" I cried, his heart beat very slowly and faintly.It has been two days since the stab wound, and to his credit, Kincaid has stayed alive longer than his father who only lasted for a couple of hours. Kincaid's longevity gave the pack some new glimmer of hope. I looked up when I heard the sound of someone coming in. It was Arlana. She had really been helpful in tending to Kincaid over the past few days.She wiped her hand on her expensive-looking suit pants. She looked at me sadly and said, "Come, you shouldn't burden yourself with this sadness." She dragged me up with my arm."Are you any closer to finding how to reverse the curs
*ADRIENNE'S P.O.V*THE CROWD OF healers parted way as I approached. They stepped aside and gave me access to Kincaid. He was lying on the bed, his skin was deathly pale and there was a nasty purple wound on his side. The same place where I had that sharp pain a few hours ago."I'm so sorry, Adrienne," Bonnie whispered, clutching my hand. I turned to look at her, her eyes were red and tear-rimmed as were everyone's here. I could not afford to break down too, so I kept a strong face and nodded."He will heal, wouldn't he?" I asked, knowing the answer fully well. I had seen this wound before. Those months ago when I hid in the corridor and peeked through the doorhole at Alpha Ezra's final moments. His injury had been exactly like this. It was like deja vu. Like the moon goddess was playing us on repeat."He should already be healing," A younger girl cried as she carefully cleaned the wound. I looked around the room. Liam was stonefaced, I could not tell what was going on in his head. Hi
*ADRIENNE'S P.O.V*THE MEN HAS been gone for some hours now with some of the pack's warriors. I did not feel exposed one bit, I knew I was still surrounded by friends and people who would put themselves on the line for me but my mind was distracted.I paced the office tirelessly in a bid to distract my mind. Elsa and Bonnie came in to stay with me for a while, also trying to distract me as well as themselves, but it was not working. Eventually, they left me alone.I walked out of the office, Cedric was waiting for me outside. He was watching Trixie intently from across the room. He stood up as soon as I came out, I sighed at him and walked out of the pack house. I wanted to go to the healer's Grove where Bonnie normally spent her day. I had always been interested in learning about the herbs and how they were used, but I didn't want to see Amelia. I was sure she would immediately know about my condition. But I didn't want her to, not until I told Kincaid.So I stumped on what to do, or
*KINCAID'S P.O.V*THE ALPHA OF THE Brazen Moon pack, Marc, must have felt the change of energy and known that another alpha was close by.He stepped out of his packhouse, which was a low and long bungalow. Marc was a short and squat-looking man. He took one look at the incoming party of Kincaid and he shifted into his wolf immediately, knowing that there was no ground for talking.His Beta and scanty army followed suit and shifted too. They looked like a pathetic sight when compared to Kincaid.Alastair made a gesture with his head and his men leaped forward, spreading their flanks and going ahead. The few warrior wolves of the pack also joined in the attack. Leaving Kincaid and Alastair against the alpha and his Beta."As an honor," Alastair mindlinked. "The alpha is all yours." Kincaid grunted in approval. Alastair snarled and ran ahead, he collided heavily the the beta and they crashed out of sight. The alpha looked left and right, he was unprotected as all of his men were engage
*ADRIENNE'S P.O.V*"WHAT IS GOING on?" I asked, hurrying after Liam and my brother. They seemed too preoccupied to even hear me. "Finn?""We think the alpha has gone on what might be a suicide mission," Finn replied."You," Liam called, pointing to one of the warriors lounging underneath a tree. "Find out the last place Alpha Kincaid was last seen." The warrior nodded and hurried away. "You," he pointed at another young man "Go to the garage and check if some cars are missing. Report back to me, either through the mind link or in the alpha's office." The man went away to do Liam's bidding. "Cars?" I asked. "If he wanted to go anywhere, couldn't he just shift and run there?"Liam nodded. "Yes, he could. But not to where we suspect he might be headed.""Where is that?" I prodded as we walked into the packhouse and to Kincaid's office.Finn pointed at the map. "Newcastle.""Why?" I asked, looking at both of them. "What's in Newcastle?""It was just a theory," Finn said uneasily."Tell m