I stood there, panting, my chest heaving as I stared down at his motionless body. I won. The realization sank in as I slowly turned to face the crowd who had now broken into cheers and applause.They looked at me differently now. No longer as a slave or a burden, but as one of them.I lifted my chin, my voice steady as I spoke with a loud, breathless voice, my heart swelling with victory.“I am going to bring Aiden back,” I said. “Anyone who wants to stand and fight for their Alpha, come with me.”Murmurs rippled through the group. A few stepped forward. Most didn’t. Fear. It was still there, holding them back.But I didn’t have time to change their minds.I turned to Jeff, who studied me quietly, then nodded once. “Be safe,” he said. “I'll follow you closely but from a distance. Just promise you will be safe.”“I promise,” I whispered.He handed me a horse. I mounted it, gripping the reins as I turned toward the woods. The ones who had chosen to follow fell in behind me.We rode.Thr
But that didn’t stop her from running her fingers over my shirt, her nails grazing my chest as she let out a mocking sigh.“You look pathetic, Aiden,” she murmured, tilting her head with a smirk. “And I have to say, it’s really turning me on.”I scoffed. “You’re delusional if you think any of this ends with me begging.”Her smirk widened. “I don’t need you to beg.” She leaned in, her breath brushing against my cheek. “Just watching you like this is enough.”I let out a low chuckle, shaking my head. “You’re stupid if you think you matter to those men. They’ll use you, Neena. The same way they use everyone else. And when they’re done? They’ll throw you away.”She hummed in amusement, dragging her index finger across my jaw, smearing the blood there before bringing it to her lips.Licking it.I didn’t react, but the sight made my stomach turn.“You mean like you did?” she asked, eyes gleaming with sick amusement. “Slept with me, used me, then tossed me aside when you got bored?”She laug
Daisy’s POVThe rhythmic pounding of hooves against the forest floor filled the silence between us. The trees blurred past as we rode deeper into the dark space, the crisp night air biting against my skin.I kept my gaze forward, focusing on the road ahead, but my mind was far from clear. Somewhere out there, Aiden was waiting, probably in pain.Somewhere out there, he could be hurt… or worse.“Why are you doing this?”I turned slightly, realizing Appa had been watching me for a while now. His horse kept pace with mine, his face filled with curiosity.“Doing what?” I asked, though I already knew what he meant.He exhaled, his grip tightening on the reins. “Risking everything. For him.”I swallowed, unsure how to answer.“Aiden destroyed your life,” Appa continued, his voice calm but firm. “Your pack. Your family. I heard everything he did to you. And yet, here you are, fighting to save him.”I stared ahead, the weight of his words pressing against my chest.“I don’t know,” I admitted,
Bound to a chair, his head slumped forward, bruises littering his skin. Blood stained his shirt, his wrists raw from the ropes that bound him.“Er…ugh! Aiden!”I didn’t think. I ran to him, my arms longing to wrap around him.But before I could reach him, hands grabbed me. Strong, rough hands yanking me back, pinning my arms behind me.A sharp pain shot through my ribs as I was slammed against a wall, knocking the breath from my lungs.Jeff and Appa’s voices roared in the background, but they were outnumbered. Asper’s men surrounded us. A dozen of them. Maybe more.I gasped for breath, struggling against my captor’s grip, my gaze snapping back to Aiden.His head lifted slowly, his eyes meeting mine, and the look in them was unmistakable. A war was coming.And I wasn’t sure who would survive it.“Let her go.”Aiden’s voice was rough but still dangerous. Even tied down, even bleeding, he still exudes power.The man gripping my arms chuckled. “Or what? You're not going to save your littl
"I didn’t mean to—" My voice cracked, but the words wouldn’t come.Aiden’s arms tightened around me, his hand cradling the back of my head. "I know," he whispered. "I know."His voice wasn’t filled with fear, not anger, not disgust.Just understanding.I clung to him, my tears soaking into his clothes.But over his shoulder, I could still see them, Jeff, Appa, the men I’d fought beside, staring at me like I was a monster.And maybe—Maybe I was.☆☆☆☆Aiden's POV :The atmosphere in the pack had changed. It was no longer carrying the vibrance I used to know. Especially since I came back from being abducted by that bastard.Whispers carried through the halls like a slow-burning fire, creeping into every corner, every conversation. It wasn’t just fear, it was uncertainty. And uncertainty could be just as dangerous as rebellion.I heard them. Felt them.Even when no one dared to say it to my face, I could see it in their eyes.Daisy.She was the question no one wanted to ask, the problem n
"She is closer to fulfilling her destiny than ever," he murmured. "The next few weeks will test both of you in ways you cannot yet imagine. There will be war, Aiden. And blood. But whether Daisy stands as your greatest weapon or your greatest enemy, that is up to you."A cold weight settled in my chest. I didn’t realize how much I had been holding my breath until I exhaled, pushing my chair back."I need to see her."The seer nodded once. "Go to her."That night, I found myself standing at the entrance of her room. The moonlight spilled through the window, casting a soft glow over her curled-up form.She looked so small, wrapped in a blanket, her knees drawn to her chest.Her eyes flicked up when I entered, but there was no fire in them.Just exhaustion. And something else. Self-loathing.I hated that look on her. I crossed the room and sat beside her, not saying anything at first. Just letting the silence settle.Finally, she spoke."I hate myself," she whispered.The words cut throu
"We don’t have time for doubts. We are moving now."He took a step forward, dividing the rebels into two groups."I will lead the first group," he continued, his tone unwavering. "Aaren will stand beside me. We’ll strike the neighboring villages, make Aiden come to us."He turned to the second group, his expression hardening."And while Aiden is distracted, Klaus will lead the rest of you straight into his home. By the time he realizes what’s happening, we’ll have already won."The room was silent for a beat.Then, cheers. Applause. The promise of victory thick in the air.They had waited years for this moment. And now, it was here.While he was splitting them into groups, there erupted a commotion and when he asked what happened, he learned that two people were trying to fit themselves forcefully into the group that were going to invade Aiden's village.Asper immediately knew why they did that as he could see the fear on their faces. They were afraid to be involved with the group tha
The realization fueled my rage, but there was no time to stop. I kept running, pushing my body past its limits.Neena’s laughter rang in the distance as I disappeared into the night.And with every step, one thought echoed in my mind. This was just the beginning of a war.The moment I burst through the town gates, my lungs burned from the effort of running, but I didn’t stop. My heart pounded in my ears, drowning out everything else as I stumbled into the center of town."Sound the alarm!" I yelled, my voice raw with urgency. "We’re under attack!"The guards standing near the watchtower exchanged confused glances before the weight of my words sank in. One of them sprinted toward the large bronze bell in the square, grabbing the rope and yanking it with all his strength. The deep, resounding clang echoed through the night, waking the entire village.Doors flew open. People rushed out, fear and panic gripping their expressions. Mothers pulled their children close, warriors grabbed whate
“Your claws, right?” Daisy asked her. “In case you haven't noticed, the strange energy in the air died along with Asper. Whatever magic he was using is now gone, and so are your false powers. You're just plain old Neena now.”Neena looked up in horror. “No, no, this can't be happening. Please, don't kill me. I could still be of use to you. Keep me as a slave or anything.” She collided with Appa as she backed away and he shoved her angrily. Smiling, Aiden turned to look at Daisy. “Do you want to do the honors?”“With pleasure,” she replied, licking her lips. “No, please,” Neena pleaded and so did Abut Daisy ignored their cries as she extended her claws. Neena turned to run but Daisy suddenly appeared at her side. “When you see Leon on the other side, be sure to tell him I sent you, and that I did it happily,” Daisy said and Neena looked at her with dismay.With one vicious slash, Daisy sunk her claws into her. But she didn't stop there. She continued slicing her, just like Neena had
I heard a satisfying cry from him but he still didn't give up. The earth rumbled as we struggled with each other, hoping to get the upper hand. We inflicted several injuries on ourselves, yet, none of us gave in to the other. The longer we fought, the more energized I felt. I guessed it was the same with him because his attacks became more and more intense. He tried to throw me to the ground, but I held fast and when I saw that he was concentrating all his energy on that one move, I reached out with my second paw and swept him off his feet. He didn't move after that and I turned back in Aiden's direction. He was sitting with his back against the wall of a nearby house and Neena was standing close to him. I growled and started running in their direction but I had only gone a few meters when I heard teeth gnashing behind me.“Daisy! Behind you!” Aiden yelled, pointing in my direction. I turned as fast as I could but it wasn't fast enough to defend myself from Asper's attack. His pa
I'd never felt so much hatred for anyone than I did myself in that moment. Since I had nowhere else to go, Aiden's pack was the only place I could return to, even though it was the last place I wanted to go. That was the only place that still felt like home and it was Aiden that made it feel that way.Now, with his absence, I wasn't sure it was going to feel like that again. Dejected, I walked away from the burnt house and headed back. As I walked through the woods, I stayed on alert, ready to defend myself against anyone that might attack.I knew Neena and Asper would still be looking for me, and if they happened to come across me as I was heading back, then I would have to be the one to defend myself. I held my claws ready as I went, jumping at every slight movement or sound. But I had no trouble on my way back. At some point, I realized I was heading in the direction of the cottage and changed directions immediately. Nothing could ever make me go back to that dreary place. I was r
The pressure of his leg on my neck restricted my airflow and I found it hard to breathe. I struggled against him but he was too strong and when I realized that struggling was only making things worse for me, I gave in, ready to accept whatever was going to happen. Jeff was still unmoving and he had also returned back to human form. Neena was the only one still in her wolf form and she maintained her distance from Asper. She was still scared of him even now that she had the advantage. Asper pressed my neck harder, making me cough as I inhaled dirt in an attempt to breathe. Forcing my hand to move, I brought it up to pat his leg repeatedly but he kicked it away with force. I winced from the pain that shot up my arm and I could hear my own heartbeat thudding against the ground as I anticipated what was going to happen next. That was probably the end of the road for me. Neena was the only person that could possibly help me in that situation and I couldn't trust her to do that, not if A
It must be the same witchcraft he'd been using back at the cottage and I wondered where he got it from since everything related to witchcraft had either been burned or destroyed many years ago. The people gasped, all of them murmuring in fear as they backed away from the advancing wolf. Its howling became louder, and at some point, all of us had to cover our ears. Then it stopped suddenly. Both the walking and its howling. Its eyes were glowing red, just like the color of the sky and I suddenly remembered that it was the same color Daisy's eyes had been after Asper had injected her the second time. Turning its head from side to side, its eyes took in everyone present and in a split second, it launched its huge paws forward, striking three people dead in that one move. Everyone scattered immediately after that, running in whatever direction that came to their mind. “Attack!” Neena yelled and the six men that had come with her rushed forward immediately, like puppets. One by one, th
“There's no moon in the sky, you fool, and it's not even night yet,” Jack chided. Thankful that their attention had been directed away from her, Neena took the opportunity to put more distance between herself and them. She'd only gone a few meters when one of them suddenly turned in her direction.“Hey!” He shouted and the others returned their attention to her immediately.Jack pointed at the sky as he approached her. “Are you the one doing this? Is this some trick to help you escape from us?”“No. I don't know anything about it,” she replied.“We'll see about that,” Jack said and started running towards her. Her heart raced and she took to her heels, fear gripping her. “You're only delaying the inevitable,” Jack shouted behind her and she ran even faster. She knew the others had joined him too. She could hear their feet slamming against the ground as they chased her. After a few seconds she realized she was heading in the wrong direction. The path she was taking would lead her bac
“You all should stand aside,” I said calmly, hoping that my words will resonate with them. “If you fight me, I will not hold back.”“Then don't hold back!” someone yelled. “We're tired of your rule!”“Yes! Like Appa said, it has brought nothing but death and destruction!” Their words broke my heart, but I kept an emotionless mask on. “Is this really what you wish? For me to kill you all?”“Ha!” Appa cried from the back. “You're such an arrogant man, Aiden! You think you can kill them all? Your own people, people you trained?” Jeff glanced at me, and I saw the worry in his eyes.“No.” I cracked my neck. “My own people wouldn’t do this to me. I'm killing the traitors.”With that statement, silence fell upon the crowd for a moment, as though the people were thinking about what they'd gotten themselves into.Then someone charged at us. I took on a fighting stance, my eyes focused on my target, only for the sky to suddenly go from bright blue to pitch black, and finally, it turned to a
Dear goddess, she'd used the same witchcraft that Asper had.“This is bad,” Jeff muttered.“As bad as hell,” I agreed. Then I gave him a nod, and we both decided to turn and walk away. If she could create a barrier where I couldn't enter, then she definitely could make one where I couldn't walk away.“Too late,” I heard her giggle as though she'd read my mind. The next minute Jeff and I were slamming into another invisible wall. I jumped and whirled around to meet her, frowning.“Let us out.”Instead of laughing, she glowered at me. “So what? So you can go and look for Asper? Or so you can fuck Daisy?” I grinned at her questions. “Both, actually. And you have to be kidding yourself if you think you can just randomly call my woman's name like that.” Beside me, Jeff let out a groan and ran a hand down his face.My answer seemed to infuriate her, because she snarled and took a step towards us. “No one leaves if I don't let them. Those are the rules of the game.”She had the audacity to
“Don't be stupid.” He had a vexed expression. “He can handle himself. He didn't become a feared Alpha for nothing. You, on the other hand, have more likelihood of failure than of success.”I paused and turned. “What?”“You'd only slow him down.” His expression was grim. “Whatever he's doing, let him do it by himself, Daisy. Besides, he has Jeff. They’d be alright. Come on, go to bed.” I conceded and left for my room again, but when it was night, I opened my eyes and looked out of the window, only to see many men camped under it. Initially, fear of an ambush filled me, but their faces were familiar, and after close study I realized that they were the guards who'd been present earlier. But why were they- oh.Appa must have placed them outside my window after our discussion since he didn't trust me. I scoffed, and quietly stepped out of the room, hoping that my housemate was sound asleep. Then I looked out the kitchen window. It was devoid of men. Thank goodness.As soon as I found