Happy Friday! I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Do you think Gina has allies that will help her, or do you think she's being set up? Have a fantastic weekend! Much Love, Anja <3
GINA The room cleared out quickly and I was immediately flanked by my guards, Perry and Samuel, as they ushered me back into the stairwell that led to my gilded cage. Surprisingly, we didn’t ascend the stairs, but just stood in the stairwell like we were waiting for something. I roll my eyes at the guards, “What are we doing here?” but they don’t respond. They are definitely the muscle without the brains. It seems like they are just the ‘yes men’ who do as they are told without question. The slip of paper hidden under the waistband of my leggings feels like a burning piece of coal against my skin, and my fingers are itching to pull it out and read it, but I won’t risk letting these two buffoons see it or take it from me. “I need to use the bathroom,” I twist my hands together nervously in front of me to help sell the lie. Neither guard looks at me, but one of them grunts in annoyance. “Are you going to let me use the toilet, or do I need to squat right here in the stairwell?”
GINAWith my guards just outside the door, I quickly unfold the paper to read the note. I don’t recognize the handwriting, and whoever wrote it didn’t sign their name. I’m sure that was intentional, so they wouldn’t be caught if somehow Silas saw the note.My hands shake as I begin reading:“You won’t be going back to your room.Silas will not let you go, despite what he promised your mate.We’re working on a plan. Be patient and remain vigilant.”Silas made a promise to Jericho? I didn’t know anything about this, and who has a plan? I wish I knew who this letter was from. I can only assume they are connected with Karli. What am I supposed to remain vigilant for? How will I know if I can trust some random wolf that might approach me?There wasn’t nearly enough information in this note.A loud bang on the door makes me jump, “Silas needs you back in the meeting hall!”Opening the faucet to mask the sound, I tear the note into small pieces and drop them into the toilet, destroyi
JERICHO On my way back to meet with Silas I picked up a note from Karli’s team confirming that my mate had been taken to the location they found out about several days ago. This gave me a small sense of peace that so far everything was going according to plan. Silas wasn’t nearly as upset as I expected when I told him I was unable to get close enough to the kids to take them. This only further confirmed my suspicion that it was just a task to keep me busy and he never actually expected me to get them. Before I could turn and leave Silas stopped me. “I need one last thing from you to complete this deal we have.” “Why am I not surprised,” I roll my eyes while crossing my arms waiting for him to explain my next task. “You will be escorting Rieka to the meeting tonight,” he taunted, “I can’t have some grand rescue mission from Alpha Aleksandr messing up our negotiations.” The glint in his eye showed is pride. This could be an opportunity for me to rescue Rieka myself and redeem m
GINA After a 20-minute drive, we park on the side of the road, and I am forced out of the car with Samuel and Perry. As soon as the doors close and we step away, the driver takes off leaving us stranded. I turn and follow my guards as they trudge into the woods. We make our way through the forest for several hours. It would’ve been a faster trip if we shifted into wolf form and ran, but they apparently thought this would be easier to keep me under their control. They’d be right if my wolf was at full strength. Under normal circumstances she is so powerful in wolf form, that I could easily take both of these guards. Unfortunately, she’s gotten weaker in the time I’ve been away from my mate. I’m not sure that I could take them on in my current condition. I hate that my wolf is affected by this mate thing. I never asked for a second chance mate, and it’s unfair that we are affected by it. We finally arrive at our destination, and it’s a cave on the far side of the forest. Thi
JERICHO As I’m quickly leading Rieka down the narrow path, she does fight me or complain about how right my grip on her arm is. Once the battle started, all the wolves that were previously camped out by the river would have moved into their defensive position, so I know it will be all clear for us when we reach the bottom. This is our first chance to speak alone, and I need her to trust me. “I’m so sorry to put you through all of this.” I hurriedly explain, “I never intended for it to go this far. Silas has my mate, Giovanna.” Recognition flashes in her eyes when I mention my mate, but she remains quiet so I continue, “Silas has been holding her captive and using both of us to control the other. Aleksandr promised to help me get her out safely if I helped to rescue you.” We reach the bottom and I see her looking around for the other wolves, “I have a safe place to take you where we can meet up with Aleksandr,” I added, “but in order to get there quickly and safely I’m going to
JERICHO Giovanna looked so peaceful and relaxed, but it was obvious the moment she began to wake up. Tension returned to her face as she slowly emerged from her unconscious state. Based on what the beta and gamma told me, I was prepared for her to wake up in a state of panic. Gently taking her hand in mine, I prayed that the sparks of the mate bond would help to sooth and relax her as she came to. “Giovanna, I’m here.” I whisper as I rub small circles on the back of her hand with my thumb. A few seconds later her eyes blink open in confusion. I give her a few seconds for her eyes to adjust, and when she sees me she gasps and sits up quickly. Immediately she puts her free hand to the back of her head as she winces in pain. A low growl slips from my throat as I remember Gamma Emmitt saying he had to knock her out to bring her here. If we weren’t still under threat from Silas and his warriors, I would kick his ass for injuring my mate, but I know that even if we have the numbers
GINA My mind felt groggy, and I was in a haze as I slowly woke up. Where am I? My eyes refused to open, and I was struggling to remember what happened last. There was a tingling sensation in my hand, combined with the subtle warms of fire. The sensation began to move in circles across the back of my hand. “Giovanna, I’m here,” a smooth voice whispers. I know that voice. Why do I know that voice? My eyes finally cooperate and blink open. I’m looking at a handsome face that feels very familiar. Suddenly, everything comes flooding back to me. My mate, the red wolf, running through the forest trying to gain my freedom, and then I was knocked out. Quickly sitting up, I instantly realize was a mistake, and the back of my head throbs. Wincing, I raise my hand to rub the spot when I hear my mate growl. “Are you alright?” he asks as he lifts his free hand to gently touch my head. “Yeah, I’m fine. Just a small bump.” I whisper as I begin scanning the room to see who else is her
JERICHO After the alpha reinstated me as a member of the pack, they finalized the plans for all possible scenarios for the upcoming battles. The finalized battle plans were shared with all the warriors, and then we waited to hear from the scouts. Wild animals are smart. They can sense when danger is near, and while our wolves are predators, we don’t hunt often enough to cause this kind of silence in the forest. It feels like all the creatures have abandoned the forest, which can only mean that our enemies are drawing closer. Minutes later I see the alpha’s eyes shift as he receives a mind-link, and his entire body stiffens. Alpha Aleksandr mind-links all the warriors at once to let us know that the enemy forces have split into two and will be attacking from opposite sides. Thankfully, we have a plan for that. When the wolves broke through the tree line, there wasn’t a clear leader, but we all moved into formation and prepared to meet them head-on. Some of us are in wolf form,
JERICHO The older wolf speaks up for the first time, and his voice is much rougher than I expected. “You’re her mate and I trust that you know what’s best, but where should I wait?” “There’s a dinner down the road, you can go eat lunch there, and one of us will come for you when we think she’s ready.” Mr. Akir nodded and turned to leave, but I saw the disappointment in his eyes and dejection was evident in his posture. I felt for him, but Gia is my priority right now, and I don’t want to overwhelm her with too much all at once. Once he’d rounded the corner, I quietly opened the door and stepped inside. Jill followed me and I asked her to wait in the living room while I go up to check on my mate. Before I even reached the bedroom door, Gia was exiting the room sniffing the air with her eyes wide in shock. She paused and looked at me, a million questions swimming in her golden gaze, but she didn’t say a word. Gia took a couple hesitant steps closer to me and began sniffing my c
GINA“…You’re settled with your mate, and soon you’ll have a pup.”As soon as the words left his lips, my mouth dropped open, and my hands instinctively went to my stomach. Could I really be pregnant?! I look down while simultaneously lifting my shirt to reveal my well-defined abs. I don’t look pregnant, but of course you wouldn’t be able to see anything this early.Suddenly, I could feel and hear the little fluttering heartbeat of the pup inside my womb and time stands still. I wanted to laugh and cry and panic all at once.“How did you know?” I whisper in awe as my fingertips lightly graze the taut, tan skin of my mid-section.Jericho just laughs, “You’ve seemed a bit distracted lately, always looking around like you’re on high alert, so I’ve been listening for the last couple of days, attempting to hear an extra heartbeat.”Everything makes sense now. My heightened senses are an obvious sign that my protective instincts have been turned up a few notches.“And you’re just NOW telling
GINAProving myself to the alpha and luan was my top priority. They agreed to let me recruit help, and Karli and Matthias were at the top of my list. I’d never gotten to know them as well as I should have, but now that we’re working together, I’m taking advantage of the opportunity.We have spent so much time together over the last several weeks that, now that I’m not holding back like I used to, we’ve gotten to learn a lot more about one another while we work. We’ve been using a meeting room in the pack house so we can keep all the information is a safe and confidential location.We started out by discussing the Blood Eclipse pack members who we knew without a doubt would love to be a member of a pack that would actually value them and look out for their best interests. Even when I was keeping my distance from everyone, I could tell that some of the pack members were honestly just looking for a home. They didn’t deserve to be caught up in Silas’ power struggle.Next, we had to compare
JERICHOI had no intentions of mating with Giovanna tonight. My only goal was to earn her trust and further break down her walls that were keeping me at arm’s length. I’d been fighting against my wolf all night, trying to remind myself that we needed this to be different.Everything changed when she said she wanted me to mark her. My wolf surged forward, and I gave up on fighting to hold back my instincts. I took her up to our bedroom, and slowly explored every inch or her beautiful body. I took my time memorizing every curve, and finding the perfect spots that drive her wild.Based on what she told me, I doubt she’d ever experienced what mating could be like when your partner gives of themselves without selfish ambitions. I wanted this night to be something she would never forget, for all the right reasons.It was just after the fourth time mating that my canines extended, and I sank them into her flesh, forever marking her as my mate. She immediately returned the favor, and the pain
GINAJericho kissed me, and my heart stopped. I sat there frozen as his perfect lips caressed mine and the tingles from the mate bond spread across my face, down my neck, and kept moving until my whole body was alive and thrumming.He didn’t seem deterred by the fact that I wasn’t kissing him back. I could feel his passion, his desire, and his determination. He slides his tongue along the seam of my lips, and I automatically opened up and allowed him to explore my mouth.It was amazing how he could kiss me with so much passion, yet it still felt tender and romantic at the same time. I slowly began to move my mouth returning the kiss when I heard him growl, “Mine” in satisfaction.The kiss felt amazing, but just as he was moving to pull me closer, for reasons I couldn’t understand or explain, I pulled back. I looked down at his lips, which had already begun to swell up slightly, and I was tempted to dive back in.When my eyes moved up to lock with his, I could tell the mate bond w
GINA I wasn’t expecting my ability to join the pack being dependent on my mating and marking Jericho. What happens if he rejects me? Will the pack reject me too? That’s it! I can’t handle the stress of not knowing anymore, I have to tell him tonight. I can’t put it off any longer. It’s time to rip off the band-aid and stop procrastinating. If it goes horribly wrong, I can leave tonight. I’m not sure where exactly I would go, but I’ll find somewhere. When Jericho pulled back to look at me, I could feel the emotion welling up inside, but I did my best to not let it show.“I’m sorry, I should have asked you…” he stumbled over his words, “You do want to stay and join the Silver Eclipse Pack, right?” Although he was asking my opinion, he didn’t phrase it like a question. It felt more like a statement of expectation and him looking for confirmation. The shock of it all was too much, and I just stood there with my mouth hanging open. What do I even say to that? When I didn’t an
GINA Jericho must have noticed my lack of appetite, and he seemed concerned, but he didn’t say anything. As we left the diner and headed to the pack house, he continued to hold my hand and comfort me with his touch. The walk back to the pack house only took a few minutes, but by the time we arrived, I was so stressed out that when the beta greeted us at the door, I immediately asked to use the powder room. There was one just around the corner from the entry, so Jericho let me know he would wait by the door for me to return before heading for the alpha’s office, though he was reluctant to release my hand. While I didn’t feel as if I would vomit, my body continued to heat up, and the knots in my stomach refused to release their tension. After splashing cold water on my face, I stared at the reflection of the woman in the mirror. This is the first time I’ve really stopped to examine myself in, I don’t know how long. So much has changed over the last seven years. I haven’t changed
GINA I hadn’t realized how exhausted I was until Jericho left me alone in the cottage. After he took off for the training grounds I contemplated getting up and cleaning a bit, but I just couldn’t seem to force my legs to cooperate. I resigned myself to taking a short nap and then I’ll get up and do some cleaning while exploring the rest of this house. When my eyes opened it was barely light out, and I thought I’d done a great job of taking a short nap, but the moment I felt Jericho’s heavy arm draped over my waist, and smelled his sandalwood and Irish whiskey scent, I realized that my short nap must have actually been hours. Now that I’m paying attention, I feel significantly more rested. It must be dusk. My eyes scan the room for a clock of some sort so I don’t have to get up and disturb my mate. He must be even more exhausted than I was. He had to take off and work on something while I got to lay here and sleep. My eyes stop when I notice a beautiful bouquet of flowers sit
JERICHO Since I’m unsure what the gamma wanted me for, I decided to quickly change before heading to the training grounds. I quickly grabbed a pair of athletic shorts and a t-shirt from the laundry room and trade out my jeans and dress shirt for the more casual outfit. Arriving at the training grounds five minutes earlier than I promised, I have a few moments alone to think about what I might have been called here for. I know the Alpha and Luna are still busy at the pack house receiving condolences from all the pack members who are grieving the loss of our previous alpha. Gamma Emmitt is in charge of the training and warriors, so my best guess is that this has something to do with either training or the prisoners who are currently overflowing from the various holding cells that are scattered around the territory. It only takes a couple minutes for the gamma to appear, and I’m thankful that he’s so punctual. “Hello, Gamma.” I greet him with a smile and a nod. “Hey, Jericho. So