KIENAMy eyes feel heavy but I force them open, feeling the pressure in my head intensify as my body begins to stir awake. The endless dabble between consciousness and unconsciousness has left me feeling drained and weary.My mind vaguely registers the fact that Zedane is still sitting beside my bed. I wonder how long he has been in that position. He thrusts a glass of water in my direction. "Here. Have a drink."I close my eyes shut again. I can't stand the cold intensity of his gaze right now. I'm already in enough pain as it is, and the fact that I cannot even remember anything that happened after I was plucked up in front of the gates makes it all that worse."This isn't the time to play childish games, Kiena. Have something to drink, we need to have a talk." Just like his eyes, his voice is also steel hard and devoid of emotions, except maybe anger.I try to get into a sitting position after I manage to pry my eyes open, but a groan works its way through me an I slink back down,
ZEDANEIt's been a whole month since I found Kiena lying half-dead beneath the bushes that were cut into a makeshift tent for her. Whoever it was that took her wanted me to find her, and probably dead too.I can still taste the dangerous flavor of fear that had cloaked me after I found her in that position. It was something I had succeeded in preventing for well over a decade, almost two, but in a single moment, a woman was able to bring it right back."Are you even here?" Lunil asks along the bond we share with the pack.My eyes snap in the direction that his mental voice came from and our eyes lock on each other. I nod once to let him know that all is well and then pick up the pace, but he isn't far behind."You don't look like all is well with you. You've let the same rabbit run past you twice without so much as blinking in its direction, and that's very unlike you. You're an exceptionally skilled hunter, something has to be wrong if you're missing game like that."I cut him a glar
KIENAIt's been a whole month, one entire month since I got back to the pack, and that douchebag Alpha wolf, who should also be my mate, has been treating me to the coldest set of shoulders I've ever seen.He barely speaks to me, matter of fact, we barely even cross parts. But like the idiot that I am, I run outside hoping to catch a glimpse of him after I heard his enraged howl, but once again I'm met with cold eyes, curt words and an all round disinterest in anything that concerns me.I step out of the shower feeling even worse than I had when I stepped in. I don't even understand why my wolf is intent of not speaking to me, yet overpowering me with her excessive emotions. Like the very unnecessary guilt I'm feeling right now, even though he has made it clear that he was only concerned for his pack and not me.My head snaps in the direction of the door as a knock rings out. "Who's there?""Lina." The tiny voice on the other side of the door calls back.I sigh as I walk over and pull
I had a simple saying, "never react in blind panic when you're faced with a scary situation."Guess what though? Fate had a saying too. "Never make rules without consulting me first."After its saying is a maniacal cackle that I would normally have found comical, not so much today.Panic, of the hot, blind and wild variety, is swimming through me; running along my veins on torrents of fire.My eyes scour the entire congregation of smiling faces, coming to rest on the one person I don't want to see today or ever, sitting ramrod straight in the first pew.Our eyes lock on each other and a veil of anger covers me from the inside. Proud and stubborn, regally dressed and oozing selfish success is none other than my traitorous Alpha - because I refuse to call him my father - Dimitri Vocci.His golden gaze burns on mine, a silent dare for me to question his authority. His lips are pressed in a flat line, awaiting patiently the submission he knows would come next.I lower my eyes, dropping t
KIENA"Ms. Vocci, last daughter of Alpha Dimitri, do you bind yourself to this man? To fight with, support, give heirs, and become flesh and blood with him, till death do you part?"Xhecon stares at me expectantly, an air of arrogant dominance pouring off him in violent waves. I can feel the stillness of the air as the entire combination of Whitevalley and Dark forest packs hold their breaths in anticipation. My response would be the key to securing an alliance that benefits no one but the Alphas involved, at least that's what it seems like to me.My mouth moves before I can stop it. "No." The sound is feeble though, barely audible even in the hush of the cathedral. I know the exact moment the pack priest catches my response. His breath hitches and his eyes widen to very large proportions. I would laugh, but that would mean death so..."What did you just say?" Xhecon asks in a cold hum, his voice menacingly low.I square my shoulders and raise my chin defiantly. I did say I would ra
KIENAHold the fuck up! Did he just say MATE? As in bound by magic, flesh, blood and pack? Surely even my imagination cannot be that good.When last did I get my ears cleaned? Oh curse my deformative memory! Dear Whatever powers that be, I promise to be thirty percent more awesome than I've been in my 24 years of existence; just let me hear clearly what this handsome rock is saying."What did you say?" There's a visible vein throbbing at the center of Xhecon's forehead, the tick tock rasp of the beast within him."Kiena Vocci is my mate, and I have come to claim her. I see no reason why you should even expect an explanation when she owes you none, and me even less."That's what he said. That's exactly what he said. But wait! Hold on a second."You have no idea what it is that you're getting yourself into, son." Dad's voice is laced with unsurpressed venom."I believe you would do me the honour of enlightening me.""You've been Alpha for how long exactly? A week? Trust me, you do not w
ZEDANEI don't want to look at her. I don't want to touch her. I don't want to be in the same space as her. Dammit! What the hell have I done? Why would I let my impulse take control of a situation I could've avoided? I'm mated to a freaking Omega wolf. Of all of the she-wolves in existence, it just had to be an Omega wolf that I would swear away my existence to.The mating bond and all the magic that comes with it is settled over me in a chokehold. I can barely breathe against the danger that is cloaking me in flavored scents."Do you speak?" Kiena asks as the van rolls away from her father's territory and back towards my own.I don't respond. Don't even turn around to look at her. That she is perched that closely to me in this small space is already doing enough to me."Zedane, right? I'm talking to you." She tries again.I still do not respond. Just continue to stare out the window beside me."Are you being deliberately rude? You can let me out here if you're going to be so ridicu
ZEDANE The rain is cascading down the roof in strong pellets. A storm that marks the grief that has settled over the pack since the news a week ago.“Alpha,” Tunil, my second in command and best friend, calls my attention from the door.I turn to face him. “What do you want?”He eyes me up and down. “You might want to put that attitude aside for a while. Everyone is grieving and you don't get to be the one who takes his out on everyone else.”I would have his tongue out by now if he wasn't my best friend, and right.“What do you want?” This time my voice is darker and has dropped several degrees.“The funeral rites are about to start. We cannot keep waiting on the rain to let up, so we made a makeshift shelter to hold the fire.”I cock my head, looking at him but somehow unseeing. “We will wait.”“Alpha, we…”“I said we will wait!” I thunder.He squares his shoulders and shifts from pack subordinate to friend. “I already told you that we cannot keep waiting. It's been a whole week. An
KIENAIt's been a whole month, one entire month since I got back to the pack, and that douchebag Alpha wolf, who should also be my mate, has been treating me to the coldest set of shoulders I've ever seen.He barely speaks to me, matter of fact, we barely even cross parts. But like the idiot that I am, I run outside hoping to catch a glimpse of him after I heard his enraged howl, but once again I'm met with cold eyes, curt words and an all round disinterest in anything that concerns me.I step out of the shower feeling even worse than I had when I stepped in. I don't even understand why my wolf is intent of not speaking to me, yet overpowering me with her excessive emotions. Like the very unnecessary guilt I'm feeling right now, even though he has made it clear that he was only concerned for his pack and not me.My head snaps in the direction of the door as a knock rings out. "Who's there?""Lina." The tiny voice on the other side of the door calls back.I sigh as I walk over and pull
ZEDANEIt's been a whole month since I found Kiena lying half-dead beneath the bushes that were cut into a makeshift tent for her. Whoever it was that took her wanted me to find her, and probably dead too.I can still taste the dangerous flavor of fear that had cloaked me after I found her in that position. It was something I had succeeded in preventing for well over a decade, almost two, but in a single moment, a woman was able to bring it right back."Are you even here?" Lunil asks along the bond we share with the pack.My eyes snap in the direction that his mental voice came from and our eyes lock on each other. I nod once to let him know that all is well and then pick up the pace, but he isn't far behind."You don't look like all is well with you. You've let the same rabbit run past you twice without so much as blinking in its direction, and that's very unlike you. You're an exceptionally skilled hunter, something has to be wrong if you're missing game like that."I cut him a glar
KIENAMy eyes feel heavy but I force them open, feeling the pressure in my head intensify as my body begins to stir awake. The endless dabble between consciousness and unconsciousness has left me feeling drained and weary.My mind vaguely registers the fact that Zedane is still sitting beside my bed. I wonder how long he has been in that position. He thrusts a glass of water in my direction. "Here. Have a drink."I close my eyes shut again. I can't stand the cold intensity of his gaze right now. I'm already in enough pain as it is, and the fact that I cannot even remember anything that happened after I was plucked up in front of the gates makes it all that worse."This isn't the time to play childish games, Kiena. Have something to drink, we need to have a talk." Just like his eyes, his voice is also steel hard and devoid of emotions, except maybe anger.I try to get into a sitting position after I manage to pry my eyes open, but a groan works its way through me an I slink back down,
ZEDANEMy feet halt on their own accord, the hairs on my skin stand at attention, my wolf half growling inside of me in restlessness. "We heard her just a moment ago." His complaint is growly and filled with irritation. "I know." My response is immediate and angry as well.I try to reach out to her again but to no avail. Something is even more wrong than it was when we first entered the woods. My fingers turn her bracelet this way and that, using the warmth that somehow still lingers on it to try and feel her. I don't."Something's wrong." He complains again."I would really appreciate it if you'd stop stating the obvious."The flow of magic that binds Kiena to me is... weird. It still exists, so I know she's still alive, but something has happened with it. I can't find it in my mind's eye. Almost as if something has cloaked it."I think she's been kidnapped." My wolf supplies again. "And whoever has her must have a shit ton of magic at their beck and call to be able to keep us trap
KIENA"I would never have guessed that someone of your standing would betray Zedane. He's been nothing short of amazing to all of you in the pack." I scold the traitor hotly.He laughs. He simply laughs at my heated judgement. "Coming from someone who takes his kindness for granted repeatedly? That's rich.""What do you want from me? If you're doing this to get me to betray Zedane, I'd have you know that I would rather die before I let anyone turn me against Zedane. Not everyone is as twisted as you are.""You think top highly of yourself, Kiena. Or should I call you Luna?" He makes a tsking sound. "You would need a certain level of intelligence before you can even be considered for the position of mole, and you, my dear, are seriously lacking in thay field." I feel heavily insulted by the insinuation that I am stupid, enough that I feel my mouth spitting venom before I can put a hold on it. "Coming from someone who's choosing to bite the very hand that has fed him for so many years
ZEDANESomething is amiss. I know that the very moment that I step out into the manor. Herome hurries after me immediately. "Alpha. The Luna is not back in the packhouse yet. I thought she was going to return with you."A sigh works its way past my throat. "I've been away for a number of hours and none of you thought to communicate her disappearance with me until now?" My temper is rising to the surface really quickly and even though I know it is irrational, the though of her being in possible danger makes me want to snap the necks of the wolves who should've been more careful."We couldnt stop her from leaving the pack. She left immediately after you did and we assumed you jad found that out.""Of course I found that out. I also expected that she'd be back here by now." I pause and inhale a breath. "Get some men to help you search every square inch of the pack.""We already searched for her everywhere in the packhouse, but we couldn't find her. I also cannot feel her link to the pac
UNKNOWN 15 YEARS AGODarkness, cold, pain. Al three of the things my kind usually thrived on, but is suddenly the worst kind of nightmare we could ever face.We feed on blood, consuming the very essence of living creatures that keeps them as that, but we made a vow long ago, after we realised that there was more to the earth than an eternal war; we would never eat of the blood of other rational creatures like ourselves. There were humans, but we ate them up with such swiftness that very few remained, and those who sought a haven of any kind from us turned to one thing. Witchcraft."Get the hell up! You think you're here to lounge? You're here to suffer, for evert single thing that your kind has ever done to us."The woman who kept us immobile and reeking of despair screamed at the top of her lungs, each word coated with an insane load of anger. And evil."What do you want with us? We're barely up to the age where feeding off of other creatures is in our control," the young boy whose
KIENAMy heart is still thudding with undilued anger long after Zedane walked away. How dare he constantly remind me that I am not allowed on my fathers property?A simple memory flashes in my mind's eye and I sigh. He was right, after all. As much as I hate to admit it. I denounced every tie I had to Whitevalley pack and the Vocci name, and had my father - if I can even call him that - threaten to kill me if I ever dared to show my face near him again. Yet I constantly ignore the warning and trudge hopelessly in that direction.I start pacing, thinking of a way to make myself better at the whole leadership thing. I was really only thinking of a way to help the pack, and Zedane, but instead I made him so mad that his mood had to be perpetually ruined till he got there. Being well aware of how manipulative my father is, I should have been the one to protect Zedane not throw him into the den while he struggled to rein in his temper.Another long sigh finds its way out of my throat, but
ZEDANE"I didn't expect that you'd have the balls enough to show up here unannounced." Dimitri welcomes me with a snide comment as soon as I walk into the room.He's sitting on a huge sofa, something that's shaped like a throne, complete with the brass that lines the edges, and a back as high as..."I didn't think you'd consider it unannounced still after all of the forewarning you had." I don't have the energy to keep the anger out of my voice.I've been pissed ever since I noticed that Kiena was trailing me. I wonder just how dumb she would think of me that she'd trail my single car with another one, without even making an attempt at camouflage. "Seems to me like you're forgetting where you are." Dimitri's tone is now icy, and his eyes are glaring daggers at me. The guards surrounding the room poise at the tone of his voice, each one with their gaze trained on me like they are even remotely capable of causing me any form of harm."You're making such a dramatic declaration at the s