NARAH'S POV I had watched Gina's every move for months, waiting for the perfect opportunity to strike. My heart raced as I recalled the look on her face when I revealed my “evidence.”She had no idea how long I had been planning this, and I was far from over.“Are you hurt?” Isolde asked, rubbing my arms.I looked at the people around me, their faces revealing their concern for my well being. “I'm fine,” I responded with a faint smile.Luckily, her wicked claws didn't pierce my skin. I had played my part perfectly. Each gasp, each whisper from the council members fueled my satisfaction.I could see it in their eyes—doubt, fear, and, most importantly, mistrust toward their Luna, Gina.“I knew Gina was never to be trusted,” Hanadin said.“She's no Luna,” Kacy snapped, her tone biting.Goodness! People are quick to turn against others, I thought. But truthfully, they never really liked Gina to begin with.She was cold toward everyone, especially Hanadin and Sharon, whom she looked down
ALPHA VAN'S POV She reminded me of her. Had she always looked like Reina, but I never looked beyond the facade? Her hair, her smile, her beautiful eyes, and her confidence all seemed too different yet hauntingly familiar.“Mate!” Curtis growled.I felt my flesh creep at the word. It was scary, and yet it seemed to be true now more than ever. Was Narah a second chance mate for Zander, or was she truly my fated mate? What was I thinking? No, no! Reina died eighteen years ago, and I watched her lowered six feet under. Narah was different, but the swirl of emotions I felt was confusing.As I watched her across the table, I felt even more confused. Narah Smith—who really was she before she entered my life?After the banter between Beta Bernard and her, we all moved to the living room. The atmosphere was thick with unspoken tension, and only a few drinks were shared, but not much was said.“I wants Zander to choke on that wine,” said Curtis, annoyance evident in his voice.Narah’s laugh
NARAH'S POV “You're mine!” The words replayed in my subconscious. Like a broken record, it went on and on and on.As we drove back to the city centre, Zander was talking, and I was listening without comprehension. There was this smile that refused to leave my face and a fluttering feeling in my heart.Alpha Van loved me. He loved me as Reina, and that love still pulsed through our bond as Narah. He loved me either way. How is that even possible? Jolts of electricity coursed through my body at the thought. It was unbelievable.As Zander, Isolde, and I stepped into the hotel lobby, the bustling sounds of the city enveloped us. The bright lights and chatter felt worlds away from the quiet solitude of the Woodwick's territory.“You two can go in. I have someplace to go,” Isolde said. “Zander, the car keys.”She held out her hand for the keys. Zander tossed them to her, and she caught them effortlessly. She waved goodbye and left. Neither of us asked where she was going; we simply strutte
GINA'S POV“Why don't you confess and get this over with?”“Confess about what exactly?”“You know what you have to confess about. Don't play dumb.”Voices! The voices in my head were going wild. Voices in my head? No, they're not in my head. It was me and a voice just on the other side of the wall. It's a f**king voice on the other side of the wall—a voice I had been speaking with beyond the damn wall.The air was thick and stale. It smelled like torture in here, and the voices of the tormented seemed to cry out to me. I sat on the cold, uneven floor with my back pressed against the stone walls.My hands were pressed tightly to my ears to prevent the voices from getting into my mind, but they were relentless and somehow managed to get in.Why was all this happening to me?“Gina, you're not going to hold out too long, you know?”“Shut the f**k up!” I screamed at the empty room, the sound bouncing off the walls and jabbing straight to my heart like a f**king knife.“Murderer! Murderer!
NARAH'S POV“How's it going with Gina?” Liora asked, her eyes glued to her cell phone screen, the glow casting a soft light across her face. The rhythmic tapping of her fingers was a constant in the charged silence of the car.I glanced at Chris through the rearview mirror. He smiled thoughtfully, brushing his hair back with an ease that opposed sharply with the tension in the car.“Honestly, it’s bad,” he replied, the corners of his mouth still curving upward, as if the situation amused him. “They’ll think she’s mad.”“That's because she is mad,” I said steadily, refocusing my attention on the road ahead. “She and her mother are alike.”The car rattled over a pothole, and I gripped the steering wheel tighter.“You are definitely right about that,” Chris said.“Doctor Rowan is dead—twice. And now Chris Stevens is born—twice,” I murmured, a hint of sarcasm in my tone as a small, satisfied smile graced my lips.My brother Chris was alive. I had only mourned the loss of the real Doctor R
LIORA'S POVAs we left the woods, the scene around us shifted from the haunting stillness to the bustle of police activity at the site where we found the deceased Doctor Rowan.Whatever power Zander wielded, it had certainly proven useful. I wondered how he had managed to direct the cops to that location and what he even told them.Narah asked Chris to take the car while she caught a bus back to the hotel. I chose to follow Chris, compelled by a longing I had never fully understood—a yearning that felt both reckless and thrilling.“Did you know what your mother was like?” I asked Chris, breaking the silence that enveloped us.His eyes, steady on the highway, flicked momentarily toward me before returning to the road. A broad smile spread across his face, and I could see the memories of his past, particularly of his mother, dancing in his mind.“She was more than amazing. She was great… super awesome,” he replied.It seemed words weren't enough to describe her. That was something I cou
NARAH'S POV My mind refused to process the shocking information at first; It was utterly unbelievable. How could the same man Anakiyus had worked for be the one who had given Liora to him eighteen years ago?Eighteen years ago Ankaiyus had started searching for the Moon jade, causing chaos wherever he went, all for a gem that was in Alpha Van's possession.“He betrayed his Pack exactly eighteen years ago when he said I was sent to him. He left me with a woman named Stella and would often visit. He used to lead the rogues even before he became one,” Liora said. “When his wife died three years later, he murdered some people and was banished.”Since the gem could resurrect, why did he need it even before his wife's death? He was never the one who needed it to begin with; his need for the Moon jade only grew after his wife died. The weight of the revelation pressed down on me, a suffocating haze of confusion and dread that enveloped my thoughts like a thick fog that refused to lift.I w
NARAH'S POV The long drive to the Woodwick's Pack territory made matters worse for me. Why did it have to feel so endless? The constant replaying of the phone call swirled in my mind, and I couldn't help but think: would he be alright?My heart raced as I imagined the worst—Alpha Van struggling for breath, the urgency in Kacy's voice echoing in my ears. “You don't have to worry too much about him,” Chris said over the line. “It's just the effect of the enchantment. Just like his seizures. It'll get worse from time to time until the enchantment wears off or he breaks free.”“Why is it taking so long?” I asked, tears threatening to spill.“The enchantment is really strong. Whoever enchanted him is powerful.”Gina! The name ignited a fire within me. I'd make sure she understood the consequences of her actions. I bet she didn't care about Alpha Van’s pain. She must be laughing and enjoying the whole scenery.Why did I love him so much? I never intended to form such a bond, but somewher
GINA'S POV “Reina is back, she's back.” The words stumbled out of my lips, as tears filled my eyes.“This is bad, really, really bad,” Ria cowered.As I lay helplessly on the narrow metal-framed bed, staring blankly at the cold, cream-coloured walls of my prison cell, all I could think of was how I had been such a weakling and a fool.I couldn't even control my own mind and all this time, I thought I had been in control of a situation, whereas I had been a mere puppet. My father and mother had been the ones controlling my life, pulling the strings however they liked. I had my fair share of evil in my blood, but looking back, I wasn't always like this.I admitted that the first mistake I ever made was sabotaging Reina’s relationship with Arthur by setting him up with her cousin, Dahlia.I did it out of pure jealousy. I hated Reina. That was what I thought. The truth was I never hated her. No, I didn't. She was the best part of my life until she wasn't. I had the most fun with her whi
LIORA'S POV Clearly, I was overthinking it. It was a door that led to the kitchen, and maybe the maids had to use it often. Okay, maybe it was a trap. As we entered the hallway, the darkness enveloping us, panic surged through me. The air was thick with the scent of savoury dishes that clung to me like a fish on a hook. At the end of the hallway, a door stood in the center, slightly ajar. Lights flickered above, and sent shadows dancing across the walls. The distant sound of faint voices, talking over one another, escaped from behind the door, filling the creepy hallway like haunted ghosts. As we marched onward, a few feet from the door ahead, we saw another wooden door by the side of the wall, old and rugged. It felt out of place compared to the others. Though wooden, the door we had just walked through and the one ahead were made of strong oak and had fine engravings of different patterns on them. Whereas this particular door was thin and as plain as day. Nas proposed we shoul
LIORA'S POV “So this is the Moonlight territory? Not bad,” I said, impressed. “Hey, keep your eyes on the guards,” Anakiyus ordered. I wrinkled my nose in disapproval and mimicked him in a quiet, disturbing mockery of a voice, which sent Nas chuckling. “What is it?” Anakiyus asked, oblivious to the shenanigans going on behind him as we walked through the bustling street which led to the Alpha's house. “Nothing.” Nas croaked immediately. Anakiyus looked between Nas and me, his expression grim, his eyes narrowing with suspicion. As his gaze landed on me again, my shoulders rose and fell in a lazy shrug, my hands drifting up to accompany the notion, as if to say, “I swear it, I have no idea what's going on.” I flashed an innocent smile to convince him, and he still didn't buy it. He shook his head and slowly turned away, his eyes scanning the street ahead. Nas and I exchanged a quick amused glance. I let out a sigh, thanking the heavens I wasn't caught imitating the humourle
NARAH'S POV The air seemed to vibrate with tension, and I could feel the weight of Gina's gaze on me like a physical touch that made my skin crawl.“Hope you've been well?”“You're the last person I thought I'd see,” she said, her voice soft as wool.“And yet, here I am.”“Isn't it a coincidence?” I've been doing a lot of thinking. Earlier, I was just thinking about you, and guess what? I found something weird.”I cocked a brow. “Really? What did you find?”“You're not just a stinky maid. When we first met, my intuition about you was right,” she breathed slowly, savouring every word. She seemed to find it interesting, basking in her own words, like a puzzle she had just solved. “And what intuition is that?” I asked dryly.She smiled in a knowing manner. “You're wolf-less, like someone I used to know, someone who you remind me of… someone DEAD,” she said. “You see, when I was a cub, about ten years old, there was something I read in a book once that fascinated me. I dreamt about it
NARAH'S POV “The Alpha has fallen into a coma, but there's nothing wrong with him scientifically. There’s absolutely nothing I can determine,” I heard Doctor June confirm. “That's because it's a witch's enchantment,” I said, stepping into Alpha Van's room, my footsteps echoing in the stillness. They all turned back to look at me. Miss Kiara's eyes narrowed. “An enchantment?” she asked. She was sitting beside Alpha Van, her hands clasped around his. Tears had dried on her face, and her eyes had turned red as velvet. She had been away for a long time, so she definitely didn't know anything about her children or the things they were going through. “Yes, an enchantment. Alpha Van had complained about this to Doctor Rowan, and it's not new that he's been having seizures and needed medications to stay well.” The words escaped my lips freely, and I didnt even care to stop there until Kacy interrupted. “Narah's right,” she declared. “Van talks about a woman in his dreams and voices in h
GINA’S POVAs Jeremiah carried Van on his back, Beta Solomon, Kacy, Kiara, and some of the Pack guards went along with them. Jeremiah was taking him into the house, while Kacy was outside on a phone call with Doctor June.The heat of the tension pulsed through my veins. I thought Van suddenly passing out was an excellent distraction from the bone of contention—Liam and me.“What's going on?” my wolf, Ria, asked, afraid. “Gina, did you feel that? Van has broken free from the enchantment. How's that even possible?”Nothing was impossible. I was scared he would have broken free sooner, and that was why I had Chris as a backup plan, giving him those stupid magic pills to keep him in check. Although, since Van had stopped the medication, he was bound to break free from the spell sooner or later. He was tremendously strong, after all. I hated to admit that I was impressed.He whispered something to Narah while struggling to breathe. What did he say to her? At that instant, her eyes met mi
NARAH'S POV “He didn't tell you the truth?” “No, he didn't,” Sharon said, wiping her tears. I didn't expect Liam to actually tell her, but when Sharon had a slight change of mind about proceeding with the plan, I asked her to speak with Liam. If he told her the truth about him and Gina, then she could leave peacefully, as she wanted. However, since he didn't tell her, the plan was still on. The entire wedding party would have to see who the Luna had been having an affair with, and for Liam… well, he'd have to deal with his brother afterward, just as Gina would have to deal with him too. I held Sharon's hand, squeezing it gently, I said to her, “Let's go. You've tried your best to give him a chance. Whatever happens now is not your fault.” She blinked several times, fighting back tears that stung her eyes. It was time to go downstairs. The guests were already waiting, and so was the groom. The weather was nice today. The cool wind carried on peacefully, and the birds sang their
GINA'S POV Today was the day I finally gave my love away. The thought of it alone sent a shiver down my spine, and I slammed my fist on the headrest of the bed, making the frame creak in protest. “I hate my life,” I groaned sluggishly, sitting up right. Last night was f**king hell, and today was… was there anything worse than hell? If there was, you could f**king bet I was living in it. I squeezed my face at the strong stench of booze that danced particularly around me. My mouth felt parched. My tongue was sticky, tasting the lingering flavour of last night's cigarettes and alcohol, a failed attempt to drown and set my sorrows ablaze. All that alcohol doused with wolfsbane and I still couldn't get drunk. The sun filtered through the curtains, and as my eyes drifted across my room, squinting, all I could think of was how miserable my present situation was. Rufus was lying next to me. I gently stroked his fur, and he opened his eyes before shutting them again. I lazily got
NARAH’S POVMy heart was still pounding in my chest when I pulled away from Van.“I'm sorry to interrupt, but I found the gloves,” Corolla said with a knowing smirk, though her expression was vaguely flustered.I couldn’t help but feel a sense of unease settle deep within me. She was putting on a bra top, tights, and sneakers. Her red hair was tied up in a ponytail. She must have been working out with Alpha Van before I arrived.“You're not interrupting anything, Corolla,” I whispered, my breath catching in my throat.She took a step forward, her gaze never leaving mine. “I heard about your wedding. I'm sorry it went south.”I blinked, trying to steady my breath as I shook my head. “Thank you. I guess... It was for the best—”“Was it?” she interjected, her voice gentle yet firm as he stepped closer, closing the distance between us.Her scent—fruity, with a hint of something more primal—wrapped around me like a blanket, but her appearance darkened—something between concern and somethin