I was high up in a tree, well hidden in the canopy's leaves and branches, watching the massive Alpha below. His eyes were frequently out of focus, indicating that he was mindlinking his people almost constantly. I carefully selected an arrow and took the tiny vial of liquid from a pouch.It was a particularly deadly poison, a concoction of extracts from several lethal plants and snake venom from several different species. Raphal had given it to me, and I had no doubts about its effectiveness. This was the most lethal poison he possessed.It should be able to kill an Alpha in under five minutes. I dripped the thick liquid onto the arrow, coating the arrowhead as well as a portion of the shaft. I carefully nocked the arrow and drew my bow as I focused on the Alpha below. I had previously observed his pacing; he had beaten down a circle in the grass and circled it continuously.I waited for a longer period of awareness while he deliberated on a difficult decision. When he went to relay p
I aimed a poisoned arrow at the milling crowd. Things were falling apart in the attacker's organization, but just as Raphal and I had suspected, there were a couple below who were keeping the original plan, whatever it was, in motion. Raphal's presence was palpable as he moved into position and readied himself.I stepped out from behind the tree and aimed my arrow at the third in command. I quickly transformed into a wolf and crept behind a large log. That guy had been keeping the majority of the attackers in line. He screamed in agony as his hands gripped the arrow lodged in his stomach. As they approached him, their heads turned toward him before spinning in the direction of the treeline.I took a deep breath to boost my confidence. I would have shaken in my boots if I had been wearing them. I must be crazy. What was I thinking when I agreed to this?!I climbed to the top of the log."There!"One of them had noticed me right away. I proudly raised my head before grinning at those wh
"Etheral… Please tell me that you were unaware that you were pregnant when we did all of those risky things. And did you know that you are using a poison which you could inhale?" he said slowly as if he was pretty sure he knew the answer.Of all people to notice, Raphal was the first one to break the surprise. I was filled with chagrin... In Raphal's mind, allowing someone expecting a child to get in the way of any potential harm was right up there with possible death. There was no point in lying because he would pick it up right away. In defeat, I sighed."I realized a few days ago."Raphal's rage grew, and I braced myself for an explosion. When it didn't arrive, I was surprised. His rage had subsided and he was now irritated."I can't believe you didn't tell me before I let you go off on your own. If I had realized that, I would have tied you up and hid you deep in the woods while I took them all out by myself."I grinned, thanking the heavens for my good fortune in today’s fight an
Tony was still chained, and he stood there watching us as the other three men worked on his chains. "Any idea what they were after?" Tony asked the Alpha. "I have never heard of an attacking group simply chaining up Enforcers. They usually try to kill them outright. I am glad I am alive, but it just doesn't make sense to me.""This was actually a pack from far east. Part of their plan was to come here and wipe out our pack and kidnap the women and children to boost their own numbers," Kalil explained. “The main reason why they simply tranquilized everyone down was that they knew there was one person in particular that they were after, but they didn't know who it was yet. They didn't want to endanger the person they had come to see."Tony asked, perplexed, "Who were they after?"He sounded just as perplexed as I was. Why would a pack attack another pack just to kidnap one member? Confusion was present in the minds of everyone else who was listening, with the exception of the two Alphas
I smiled as I saw Raphal give Ruby a rose. He had carefully removed the thorns from the stem. Ruby wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him on the cheek. Raphal could hardly be pried away from Ruby's side, and she was equally smitten with him. In her curiosity, she had agreed to the strange conditions revolving around their first meeting four days ago. Raphal had been really strict with showing how sacred the mate bond and Ruby felt the same way. It’s been a week and they had barely left each other's side. Raphal got accepted in the pack and performed the acceptance ritual yesternight."I simply cannot think of mates better suited for one another, except for us," Nix said as he winked at me.I shook my head with a chuckle. "They are so similar in terms of being ferocious that it could almost scare the whole town. You and I seem to be almost opposites in most things though," I replied thoughtfully.Raphal and Ruby approached us and sat on the padded garden bench across from us.
We followed Alpha Kalil to the pack borders to find out if the painted wolves are still there while Luna Mary parted from us and went to town to comfort the people who heard Evan’s grievous call. Nix and Raphal tried to stop me from coming along with them since I was pregnant but I was persistent. I have told them that I have seen a painted wolf and learned from the hoary stories of elders that they won’t attack unless they were provoked. Besides, I just am two weeks pregnant.Alpha Kalil allowed me to come with them, pushing Nix to sigh in defeat. Ruby assured Raphal that if the situation worsened, she would take care of me as well.When we got there, I heard low growls and a whimper. Evan and a few fighters kept their guard up and did not attack first, they only blocked the painted wolves from our view. They quickly made way for the Alpha and Nix stopped me from taking a closer look.“Stay here,” Nix said and I can feel his protective instincts kicking in through the mate bond. I wi
Mua and Ren stayed beside Alpha Arva’s side while Kyi, Pau, Koe, and Lea dine with us. Koe and Kyi are basically twins and Lea and Pau are mated with each other. Everyone in the dining hall seems surprised to see the tribe staying in our pack territory for a while. My Omega senses are open and have been receiving positive emotions from the pack, some are in doubt and fear but most were fascinated by their human form. This is the first time I have seen them in their human form too. When in human form, they seem approachable and innocuous. Painted wolves rarely shift forms on land, only when sailing that their human forms took over. That is to keep the enemies at bay.I had a dream of joining their expedition once when I was young and fond of reading history books but history says that only their tribe member could accompany them in voyaging the vast ocean. I even believed that they own the ocean.“I assume that Ren is the Alpha’s mate?” Nix asked, still irritated by the presence of pai
Nix was surprisingly early today and quickly dragged me out of the room. Tiffany greeted us once we went downstairs and handed me a handkerchief. I said I don’t want to wear a blindfold but Nix insisted that it wouldn’t be a surprise without it.Obviously, I couldn’t see where we are going, but I used my senses to smell the surroundings. Cheating but I dislike the suspense I am feeling. In the first few minutes of our walk, I smelled the scent of some pack members busy in town and heard a lot of noise. Then that noise faded and the smell was replaced with forest and mushrooms. Nix and Tiffany weren’t answering my questions and they simply guided me on what I am stepping on. I tried to reach Nix’s surface emotions and I can sense his excitement with a tone of protectiveness still. I didn’t want to ruin his mood so I try to act as unaware as possible.Slowly, I can smell the faint scent of Ruby, next to her are Raphal and Nathan.“We are here,” Tiffany said, holding back her anticipatio