All I wanted to do was get back to my room, but that seemed impossible.The news about me being kidnapped in my own pack had spread like wildfire; although many showed genuine concerns, there were still those few who were only looking for fresh rumours and juicy gossips to circulate."Luna,” someone called from behind me, and I had to school my face into a smile before I turned back. I anticipated another concerned pack member but I had been wrong. It was Jake.Maybe I had forgiven him and let him go, but that didn’t make us friends, so what exactly gave him the right to come speak with me after what he had done?“Stay away, Jake,” I warned before walking on, but he ran to my side.“Please, I really need to speak with you...”“Why? So you could tell me some shitty story about your life and deceive me? Not thank you,” I said, walking on.“Please...”“If you keep following me, I’ll have a change of heart and maybe place you in the dungeons where you belong.”“I am not here for that... is
I didn’t want to believe her. I didn’t. But then, he had told me that night we met for the first time that he needed to convince his father into believing I was his mate; his father was the Alpha King, and he had also told me how he planned to challenge his father... for the Alpha King Title that should have been ‘his’ by now. I also recalled that one time Thane spoke about his father’s unwillingness to let go of the Title due to the benefits he enjoyed as the Alpha King. As much as I didn’t want to believe her, I knew more than anything that she was saying the truth.Thane had never told me he loved me, not once; he had said it the night before that love wasn’t supposed to be a part of ‘this’. Could all these be a game to him?, Could that be the reason he had kept my mother alive, why he saved me?It made so much sense now; Slade had abducted me because he knew Thane without his mate, would never be the Alpha King, and all along I was just a pawn in his master game. The contract was t
I stared off the balcony, watching the full moon. I never really understood the relationship between wolves and full moons till I got back my wolf; there was something peaceful and comforting about just staring at it, but as serene as it was, it still couldn’t calm me.Thane walked in. I knew it was him even without looking. I gave him a few seconds to settle in before I asked.“Are you really going to challenge your father for the title?”“I cannot help but wonder what is on your mind this time Riley.” He says, amused“Is just that the last time you said you were challenging him for 'me’, to keep me safe? But I wonder if that is the only reason.”“No, I wasn’t just facing my father for the solemn purpose of keeping you safe. But I am curious where is this heading to?”“Nowhere. And about Beatrix.”“What about her, Riley?”“I learned... she had been stripped of her title as Commander.”“You heard right.”“I... don’t think you should do that to her,” I say, and Thane walks to me. “Look
I stood still, shutting my eyes like that one animal that believes hiding its head saves it from the danger approaching.“I can see you, you know." Axel taunts“Can you?”"Yes,” he walks to me, taking my hands. He leads me back into his room, where a broken vase remained on the floor. “Sorry for that; Gloria made quite a mess.”“I’m the one who should apologise for eavesdropping; I’m so sorry... I just wanted to visit, and then I heard her voice.”“You have nothing to apologize for.”“You know she was right.” I say. “I don’t know what the pack thinks of me...”“And I don’t care; you don’t have to either.”“Are you free?”“For the whole day, yes,” he says with a smirk. “Why?” he asks, and I was unable to say the words.How do I tell him that I was feeling horny and I couldn’t go to Thane because I was mad at him, so I came here instead?. I couldn’t, not when he just broke up with Gloria?“Nothing, really... I should just leave,” I say, heading for the door, but he whirled me around, pi
I noticed an usual change in the pack today.The atmosphere was tense, and people gathered in small groups exchanging words in low whispers. For the first time, I could walk around the whole space without any attention on me. That was new, not that I complained.I took a corner, only to run into Beatrix. Gone was the girl with red swollen eyes and dishevelled hair; she seemed to have redyed her blue hair, there was a glow to it. Once again, she was back to the girl I knew, the one who always had that calculative smirk on her lips. She was in a black uniform, with the pack logo at the side, and that could only mean one thing."Congratulations, Commander, for reclaiming your position,” I say with a smile that was very much fake.“All thanks to you." Her smile matched mine.“I won’t be assuming we are friends now.”“No, we are not.”“That’s good.” I walked on, and she followed.“Have you heard the trending news?” She asks, and I knew it had to be what everyone was buzzing about, but I ha
“How many know the truth?”“Just the guards.” Freya answers“Are you sure they would keep it to themselves?”“I had told them too, but it was only a matter of time; the elders would get the truth out of them, whether they admitted it or not.”“Then we have to kill them.”“No, they are no danger; I trust them to know what to do.”“But as you said, the elders would get the truth out of them, so this the only way.”“What do I tell the elders when they ask?”“Slade had many enemies.”“He wouldn’t be easily killed by those regulars.”“Then you tell them that I did it.”“What?” This time it was me questioning. “Is there not another way?”"They would easily believe I did this; I have good reasons to want him dead.""Son, there would be punishments for this... I do not need help in carrying my own cross," Freya said, but for the first time I read deeper into words, she cared about him. Though she tried her very best to hide it, she did care for Thane."I was only about to challenge him; I was
Something about the elders' always invokes fear in me. My palm was all sweaty. Once again, I had to watch Thane being judged by them. There was this sense of deja vu I felt standing here with Axel by my side, but of course, this hadn't been the first time I had been placed in this situation.The elders were all present, cloaked in flowing white robes, rustling softly with every movement they made.The only difference was that this time there were more unfamiliar faces amongst us, members from other packs who had come to witness the great and most feared Alpha, Thane’s demise.Finally Thane walked in.This time there were no excorts by his side. That was the first thing that seemed off. He came to a stop before them.There was pindrop silence, all eyes watching him; he had promised me he would survive this. I wanted to believe him, but at this moment, I couldn't see how it would be possible for him to escape this.“There is a question of uncertainty, Alpha Thane. You were reported to
There was complete pin-drop silence. The dagger remained embedded into the elders abdomen. There was one uniform emotion everyone was witnessing; I could see it on their faces: shock.Thane took out the knife, and the elder fell to the ground, clutching his stomach, his eyes wide with… fear.His skin… There was something weird happening to it; it seemed to be cracking as though his skin was made of porcelain, and then he shattered into pieces, leaving nothing behind but gray ashes.That's when the screams began.“Axel, take her away!” Thane ordered from a distance, and Axel obeyed, immediately picking me up like I weighed nothing and placing me over his shoulders. He carried me back to the packhouse.The others ran too; no one was bold or willing to witness what a battle with the elders would look like. People trampled over one another to escape.There was a loud, ear-piercing scream, like one from a banshee. It was from one of the female elders who knelt before the ashes of the fal
THANE'S POVThe door opened, and Caleb walked in, his hands up as if in surrender. My beta, Axel followed, a gun pointed to his head."Free him," Axel said.Caleb walked to me, taking out the pipes. "The chains too." Axel said, and I could tell Caleb was not going to do that.Axel shot at his leg, but Caleb was strong—maybe even the strongest of all the elders. In the next second, Axel's gun was in his hands, and the table turned."Let him go, Caleb; it's me you want." I warned."You are right." Caleb says, "But I want him dead too."He shot at Axel. I growled, pulling at the chains; they burned my skin. He aimed for me next, pulling the trigger, but the gun was empty of bullets, and he tossed it to the ground."In every single room, I had planted a bomb; all I need to do is press the button, and everything would go 'boom'; everyone in this building would die, and I alone would be left. After a while, you will be forgotten, but for me, I'll take over from you; I will be known and fea
Axel unsheathed his sword before striding towards Nick.Nick let out his wing, flying right over us, but Axel leaped into the air, bringing him down by his wing. Axel pinned Nick down, holding both wings. I watched in amazement as Axel sliced them off, and Nick roared in pain, the bones where his wings had been attached prodded out of his back.Axel passed the blood stained sword to me. I limped to where Nick lay groaning in agony."Didn't I tell you, I will kill you?" Now kneel." I said, and he rose, falling on his knees. "Riley I..."I didn't let him say more; in a clean swipe, I incapacitated his head from the rest of his body.Axel took off his leather jacket and helped me put it on."I know a way out." Axel says, leading me out of the room, we walked down the hallways to an open space."Going somewhere?" A voice called from behind us. Bailey.She held a crossbow in her hands. "Nyaos is dead. Thane killed him. I guess this means our deal is… off."She shot the crossbow at me, bu
RILEY"It's girls time, Nick; you should leave." Bailey said to him, and he gave me a long look before leaving both of us alone. "I didn't remember telling you to stop with the dagger," she said."It fell." I lied.I didn't know if she bought that, but she spoke no more about it, taking a seat beside me."I'm going to tell you a story, one I had never told anyone before. Well, you would die in the end, so it makes no difference.I was in love once. I don't mean the casual crushes and those little feelings girls have. I was in love with Nyaos; he had always been there for me when I needed him; he helped me so many times; I can't even count the number of times he had saved my life. But Nyaos loved another; I was the ‘other woman’, and I knew that. Katara believed we were good friends; she trusted me; she trusted the both of us, and I knew what we did behind her back was very wrong, but I couldn't help myself. Nyaos said he loved us both, and though I always wanted more, I could settle
CAUTION: THERE WOULD BE VIOLENT SCENES IN THE FOLLOWING CHAPTERS; PLEASE READ WITH CAUTION.THANE.I could do it; I knew I could break through the chains. Rage is one powerful thing. I pulled hard, and the chains broke off. I ripped out the pipes that had been used to pass the fluids into my bloodstream, and I staggered to my feet. I heard footsteps approaching, and I positioned myself beside the door. Nyaos walked in; he noticed the empty chair, I could smell his fear; he should be afraid. I shut the door behind him, and only then did he notice me; he turned, his eyes widening in terror as I plunged my hand into his chest, past the crunch of his ribcage, and deep into his heart. His mouth opened, frozen in a silent scream."The cursed weapon isn't the only way to kill an elder." I whispered before I pulled his heart out. The sight of blood was so intoxicating it ignited a lust for blood in me, I wanted to spill more blood. An elder had been brought to nothing in a matter of minutes
RILEY.I couldn't turn back; if I did, he would see the tears I could no longer suppress; that would destroy everything and my little act would be over, so I didn't turn back when he called, I had my eyes pinned to the door. "When I get out here, I will kill your lover, Nick, and after that, I will kill you, bitch."Those words would forever haunt me. He sounded so cold. I wondered for the first time if I did the right thing; my fear was that my attempt to save would cause him to lose the little humanity he held onto."You did well back there." Nick says, "I almost believed that maybe you never really liked him. He seemed very angry; I would stay as far away from him as I could if I were you.""Stop talking.""Oh, come on, this was the deal; get over..."I punched him right in the face, cutting him off; blood dripped down his nose and his eyes flashed with anger. He slammed me against the wall, and my skull, still fragile from his previous attack, hit the wall hard. For a moment, all
I remembered Regnux's words; he had suspected Riley; he must have seen something, something I was too blind to see.I also recalled Riley's disappearance and how all of a sudden she wanted to tag along anywhere I went. She was the only one who knew where I had kept the keys to Bailey's cell, yet I believed there had been a spare key. I was ready to believe everything but the truth that had been right before my eyes.A fool. That was what I was.The evidence was clear, and yet... yet, I didn't want to believe it. It couldn't be true. Once I had been heartbroken, Bella's death had left me in so much pain I couldn't heal on my own. Axel had bonded with me to share my pain.But I hadn't loved my mate like I loved Riley, and that's why I refused to believe it; the truth was clear, and yet I wanted it to be a lie; I wanted there to be some kind of explanation to it."Riley, if you think you are doing this to help me in some way, then don't. This won't help me, tell me this is all lies."The
THANEI couldn't move. It must be these damned fluids being passed into my veins. I was forced to endure hours of pain and agony, the only comfort I got during that time was the minutes I spent thinking about Riley.My fear was that they got her too; I didn't mind them taking me; I was ready to bargain my life to save hers if it came down to that, she could go back to Axel, I was confident that he would take good care of her and she could live the rest of her life happy. The only problem was that in this position, my life wasn't really good enough to make the bargain. I hated to say this, but I was completely at their mercy, and that could only change if I managed to take these damned pipes out.The pain only worsened with time; maybe this would be my end. I had spent my life killing people—yes, the majority of them were those who challenged me and others who were just in the wrong place at the wrong time, so this could be karma catching up with me. My only wish was to have a few more
I always knew Bailey wasn't a good person; from the very first time I saw her, something about her was off-putting, but this was beyond evil.She was not only going to torture Thane but torture me too. He would hate me; even in my death, he would never discover the truth that she had been the one compelling me, and yet... it would be worth it if he stays alive in the end. Yes, he wouldn't have his wolf, but he would still have his life."And how do I know you won't stab me in the back after I am done with what you've asked?" I questioned. I couldn't trust Bailey; I knew that."You don't really have a choice here, do you?"That was equally correct; I didn't exactly have a choice. "Take me to him.""Give him a day; he is too weak to react now.".....A day.That's what Bailey asked for, but I would have preferred if I walked right into that space and said it all to him at that moment; at least it would be over, but now I sat here, alone, thinking about what I was about to do; I didn't
RILEY'S POV I was alone in the empty containment room, chained to the chair I had been placed on. The footsteps approaching got my attention. Bailey was back, again. "Your mate is here. Just as I had said, feelings make us weak, and that was his downfall." "Don't you dare harm him." I warned, struggling out of the chains. "I guess you would want to see him, right?" She questioned me, and I gave her no answer; I wouldn't let her see how desperately I wanted to go to him. She walked to me, taking off the chains, and I immediately bolted for the door. The moment I touched the handle, the silver burned my hand. "You may call it karma—you remember the silver dagger you used on me?" she asked. "Let me out." "I'll do that, but first, we need to make things clear. In whatever you do, you will not try to escape this place. Got it?" She ordered, and I nodded, compelled. "Good, now come with me." I followed her out of the room. The building seemed ancient, clearly an underground h