Leah's POV
I felt the butterfly in my stomach, the lump in my throat, and the burning sensation in every inch of my skin. My heart was pounding so fast that I wouldn't be surprised if it suddenly stopped functioning.
Lucas stroked my hair behind my ear. As his fingers flicked across my ear, my whole body started shivering.
Then, he drew himself closer to me. For a brief moment, I thought he was about to kiss me.
I bit my lips so that I didn't make any awkward moaning sound.
I looked into his eyes. He was so close, yet so far away from me.
Then, I realized that he was just checking out the scar on my forehead.
He looked a bit surprised because the scar was almost healed.
He cleared his voice and said, "Your blood is precious to Josephine. Your blood is the only cure to stabilize her condition. You need to be more careful."
The moment he let go of me, I felt that someone was peeling off my skin.
The excruciating pain made me curl up in a ball of fear.
Josephine wrapped her hands around Lucas' arms and said, "Come on, Luke. Tell me about everything in Skagen City!"
"I'll tell you everything later." Lucas' voice was full of affection and admiration. "Now, I've got a gift for you. It's in the living room. Why don't you go and take a look?"
"Oh, Luke. You're so kind. You don't have to bring me a present every time you see me." Josephine looked flattered.
Then, she took a triumphal look at me and asked Lucas, "Luke, what is the gift?"
"You can go downstairs and take a look at it yourself."
"Is it the thing that I've always wanted?" Josephine's big round doe eyes widened with surprise.
"If I told you, it wouldn't be a surprise." Lucas' lips quirked up with a faint smile.
"Oh, Luke! I love you! I love you! I love you!" Josephine quickly tiptoed and pecked Lucas' face before running out of the room.
A moment later, she came back, tittering and giggling like a little girl, with a giant pendant necklace on her long, swan-like neck.
I recognized that pedant immediately.
It was a giant sapphire stone cut into a heart shape. It was the wedding gift that Lucas gave to me on our wedding day.
I only wore it once. As soon as Josephine saw it, he immediately showed a great interest in it.
I couldn't believe Lucas would give that pendant to her.
"How do I look, Lucas? Does it make my eyes brighter?" She circled around Lucas, jumping up and down like a little bunny.
Lucas caught her, held her in his arms, and gave him a long, passionate kiss on her hair.
"Do you like your gift?" He asked Josephine.
"Like it? I love it!" Josephine exclaimed while clapping her hands.
She glimpsed at me like a guilty child. Then, she immediately turned to Lucas, looking sad.
"What happened, Jo?" Lucas asked.
"It's nothing." Josephine lowered her head and said in a sentimental voice, "I'm just thinking, Basil would be so happy to see me wearing this necklace if he was alive."
Hearing Basil's name, Lucas' face immediately became clouded.
Basil used to be his Beta and best friend. He passed in a battle a few years ago and entrusted his younger sister Josephine to Lucas before he passed away. They were supposed to get married until I, Lucas' mate, showed up.
I still kept the photo that someone sent me on our wedding day. It was a picture that shows Lucas holding Josephine in his arms. They were so close and I wasn't sure if they were kissing each other.
On the back of that picture, there was only one sentence -
You are the third person in this marriage.
I knew it was sent by Josephine. But I didn't tell anyone.
My husband and mate was breathtakingly handsome man as well as the leader of the most powerful pack in the North. No woman in their right mind would resist his look and charm.
Being his mate and Luna, I knew I had to put up with a lot of inconveniences to maintain the legitimacy of our marriage and the decency of my husband.
It's for the better of the pack.
"Come downstairs with me, Luke. Today's such a beautiful day and you're back. I'm wearing such a beautiful necklace. Why don't we have a picnic at the lake? Leah will cook for us! Will you, Leah?" Josephine raised her eyebrows while staring at me.
"Yes, Miss." I lowered my head and whispered, trying to pretend that everything was OK with me.
"Go ahead and get ready for our picnic trip. I'll join you later," Lucas said to Josephine in a soft voice.
Josephine nodded and winked at him.
After Josephine was gone, Rosalie leered at me and said, "Why are you lying on the floor like a piece of trash? Are you trying to win anyone's sympathy? Clean up the mess that you've caused and go do the washing now."
"Yes, Ma'am," I whispered, quickly taking up the shattered pieces on the floor.
My head was buzzing. My vision blurred. Some of the shards were embedded into my flesh, but I could no longer feel the pain.
Nothing would rival the excruciating pain of being ignored by my own mate.
Rosalie rolled her eyes and me and said to Lucas, "I've talked to Doctor Jafar today. He suggested we should increase the frequency of blood transfer to three times a day."
My heart sank.
I pleaded desperately, "Ma'am, Alpha, please don't do this to me. Twice a day is already too much for me. That's why I keep fainting and being scattered all day round. I really can't afford to do it three times a day..."
"I'm trying to have a private conversation with my son. Who do you think you are to interrupt our conversation?" Rosalie looked crossed.
"And don't look for lousy excuses for yourself! You keep messing up because you're clumsy," she added.
Lucas held his mother's hands and said, "Mother, please go downstairs and I'll talk to her."
Rosalie gave me a dark look and walked off.
The whole room was suddenly empty, with me and Lucas alone.
Lucas looked down at me and broke the silence -
"OK, tell me how much money you want for the blood transfer. Name a price."
"I want nothing from you, Alpha," I answered in a low voice, trying to scrape off the blood stains on the floor with a sponge, but more blood kept dripping on the floor from my head.
Lucas sighed. He took out his mobile and fiddled with it for a while. Then, put down his phone and said, "I've just wired another three million dollars into your account. Increase the volume of blood transfer to three times a day, and you'll get three million for each transfer."
"Alpha, I don't need your money..."
"So what do you want?" He started to look impatient.
"Why do you give my pendant to Josephine?" I asked.
"Are you answering my question with another question?" He frowned.
"You gave that pendant to me on our wedding day. Do you remember?"
My voice wasn't loud, but it managed to surprise him.
"Josephine likes it, so now it belongs to her. Do you have any problems with that?" Dark clouds started gathering on his face. A storm was impending.
"What do you need it for anyway? You never go to parties or balls," he added.
You are the third person in this marriage.
Five years of marriage in exchange for this. I failed on so many levels and I was failed by my mate.
I gave up.
I threw the blood-soaked sponge on the floor and said in a calm, steady voice, "I never go to parties or balls because I have never been invited in the first place. Also, I've been too busy folding napkins and giving another woman my blood."
I had never spoken so many words in a sentence to my mate.
My voice was still quiet, but I managed to make my message clear.
Lucas had an incredible look on his face.
For the first time in his life, he managed to really see me.
"You... " he mumbled.
I could sense the nervousness in his voice.
"Yes, me. I'm standing right in front of you. I used to be your Luna, your mate, the service maid and nurse for your mother and your dearest Josephine. But now, I am only myself. A free, independent woman, who wants to have nothing to do with you anymore."
Lucas looked at me like his world was turned upside down.
"What do you mean?" He asked in an anxious voice.
"You've heard me," I replied and wiped the last drop of blood on my forehead. "I'm rejecting you, Lucas."
"Reje... No, you can't do that." His voice turned high-pitched and dry.
For the first time in my life, I sensed fear in his tone.
"I can do whatever I want, Lucas. So, watch me." I stood up, and stepped forward to close the distance between us.
"I, Leah Eleanor Lewyn of the Defiant Pack, reject you, Lucas Logan Steele of the White Walkers Pack, as my rightful mate."
Lucas' POVDid this woman just... reject me? Is she trying to get my attention by angering me? Apparently sometimes women do that. But Leah doesn't come across as needy as Josephine. She has never ever bothered me up till now. So, what's that all about? I was bewildered. To be honest, I had never really paid attention to this woman in the past five years of our marriage. Our marriage was nothing but a simple piece of contract, on which everything was arranged -As my mate, Leah will basically do whatever I ask her to do, including giving blood donations to Josephine on a regular basis. The thing is, Jo was diagnosed with an unknown blood disease five years ago and she needs a specific type of blood to sustain her life. Fortunately, Leah's blood is the right match.In return for donating her blood to Jo, Leah will get my gratitude and thanks, which is realized by a substantial amount of allowance every month. At the same time, since the Luna position has to be filled by my mate, we
Leah's POVThere was a reason that werewolves didn't want to reject their mates -It was too painful. Every single part of my body was in excruciating pain. I had been branded before, but this was yet the most painful thing that had ever happened to me. As much as I was tortured, there was a teeny tiny bit of me secretly wishing that he wouldn't accept my rejection. I wished he would smirk at me and call me an idiot, telling me that there was no way for him to let go of me. I wished that he would press me on the floor, taking me roughly, forcing me to say his name and beg him to give it to him...I knew it was wrong to still have impossible faith in this train-wrecked relationship between us, but I knew with a simple apology, or a slight nod from him, I would go back to his arms. What can I say? Werewolves are very complicated creatures. We would do everything to stay with our mates.But Lucas didn't show me any signals. He just stood there, frozen in shock. I couldn't tell what wa
Leah's POV"Leah, what do you think you're doing?" Lucas stared at me as if he was gripped by anger and shock. I wasn't surprised that he took Leah's side. But it didn't mean that my heart wasn't hurt. "I'm just taking back what belongs to me," I replied.Josephine's face was distorted in pain. She looked up at Lucas and said, "Luke, I really didn't send her any pictures. I don't know what she's talking about. I don't know why you rejected her, but if it had something to do with me and the blood transfer, I could apologize to both you and her. Anyway, you've been taking good care of me since Basil passed away. It's all my fault. I'm too soft and hopeless. I really can't cope without an elder brother figure in my life." "You don't have to apologize for anything, Jo. I know you haven't done anything." Lucas leaned in close to Josephine. His eyes fixed on hers with a deep, unwavering gaze. His voice was a gentle murmur, low and soothing, yet charged with emotion. Every word he spoke wa
Lucas' POV"Does Josephine need blood transfer?" I stared at Josephine's private physician and asked. Doctor Eliant Jafar was in his mid-50s. He used to be my father's physician, and I trusted his expertise wholeheartedly. Doctor Jafar replied patiently, "Alpha, you have to understand. The diagnosis of a certain disease is a long, hard process. In Miss Solis' case, it's like a relationship.""What are you insinuating, doctor?" I frowned. I don't like it when someone refuses to give me a straightforward answer. Especially when this person is a doctor. Doctor Jafar adjusted himself in the chair, but he still looked very uncomfortable. "A relationship isn't a contract, Alpha. It's more like a negotiation. You need to make a lot of compromises. So is Miss Solis' diagnosis." I started to get more puzzled. "Are you trying to teach me something, doctor? Can I have a simple answer? Is Josephine sick or not?" "The simple answer is no. She isn't sick.""She doesn't need any blood transf
Leah's POV"Miss Leah, welcome back." A silver-haired butler, dressed up in a sleek black suit, bowed toward me. "Mr. Carson. I'm so glad to see you again!" I stretched out my arms toward my father's butler. Growing up, he was like a kind, caring uncle to me.Mr. Carson took my hands and held me up in the air, giving me a twirl. I almost cried out in happy tears, because it made me feel that I was still that little girl, flapping my arms up and down with excitement and thrill. "Alpha is waiting for you. Do you need some refreshment, Miss Lewyn? You've lost so much weight. What have they done to you in the White Walkers Pack? Where's the other half of you?" Mr. Carson wiped the tears from his eyes. "I've already notified the kitchen to prepare your favorite meal. Do you still like cheese macaroni?" "She's no longer five, Carson. Tell the kitchen to cook her some real food. I'm thinking of lots of steaks, maybe a whole turkey." Lucian said. "Yes, Young Master Lucian. Steaks and tur
Leah's POV"Hey, look who's back! My best friend Leah!" An elf-like red-headed girl popped up at my door as soon as my father left."Laura!" I ran toward her and hugged her in my arms. She wrapped her long, slender arms around my neck in a graceful posture that gave her an air of elegance and refinement.Louisa was my cousin. She was three years younger than me. Growing up, I have always considered her my best friend. She had got long, fiery hair that cascaded down her back in soft waves, giving her a wild and untamed appearance. Her big brown eyes were bright and expressive, full of intelligence and curiosity. They seemed to sparkle with mischief and playfulness, hinting at her fun-loving nature."They've told me that you're back, so I dropped everything and came as soon as I could. Oh, my gush! Look at you!" She patted my protruding shoulder blades. "You've lost a lot of weight! You're practically a skeleton! Let's go downstairs and grab something to eat. You look like you're going t
Lucas' POV"Mother, please speak slowly and clearly. I'm going through a tunnel now." I talked to my mother through the in-car speaker. Even though her voice was shattered, I could still tell that she was furious. "Did you reject that bitch?!" "Mother, what are you talking about?" "Leah! That bitch! Did you reject her?" "Yes, Mother. How did you know about it?" I frowned."She's here with someone! She's such a bitch! She..." My mother's hurling became weak because the signal was poor. Leah came back?! And she was with someone?! Was it the man in the limo who had physical contact with her?! "Stop the car," I told the driver, my Beta Jorah."Alpha, we're in the middle of the highway...""Stop the car, right now." I reiterated. Jorah sighed silently and steered the wheel. As soon as my limo parked on the side of the road, I pushed the door open and got out of the car. "Mother, can you hear me now?" I raised my voice at the speaker. "Yes, Luke. Loud and clear now." "Who was w
Leah's POV As soon as I came back home from Lucas' house, I heard Laura's voice - "Leah, you need to see this!""What's going on?" I asked. "That wicked witch has just tweeted! She claimed that you stole her jewelry! That filthy old bitch! I should have broken her legs and stuffed my socks in her mouth yesterday!" "What?" I jumped off the bed. Laura's words came as a shock, jolting me fully awake. "Look!" Laura pushed her phone to my face. "Hash tag DesertRose! The original post of that old bitch has been retweeted a million times and become the trendiest topic of this morning! Everyone is talking about it!"I scrolled down a bit and clicked the original post. There it was. Rosalie's original post -"Daughter-in-law took away my 20-million-dollar jewelry #DesertRose after she was divorced by my son yesterday. Anyone who sees her please tell her to return it ASAP." Followed by a string of peace & love emojis and a picture of the missing necklace.People who retweeted it were al
Leah's POVThe realtor's office smelled like desperation and vanilla-scented bleach. Floor-to-ceiling windows glared with Miami's midday sun, bouncing off marble floors so polished I could see the exact moment the man behind the desk decided we weren't worth his time. His name tag read Bradley Kensington III, which explained the smugness oozing from his salmon-colored tie.Seth shuffled in behind me, wearing a T-shirt that said "I Paused My Game To Be Here" and cargo shorts with more pockets than sense. I wore Liam's shirt and pants that were obviously oversized. We looked like two raccoons who'd fought a lawnmower and lost.Bradley didn't stand. Just swiveled his chair, lips curling like he'd caught a whiff of dumpster juice. "Walk-ins before noon require an appointment," he drawled, examining his manicure. "But I suppose I can pencil you in for a studio apartment tour next Tuesday. Cash-only, of course."Seth snorted. "Dude, we're here to buy a
Leah's POVThe fluorescent buzz of the internet cafe felt like a swarm of gnats in my skull. I'd chosen this place for its stench of burnt coffee and desperation - the kind of hole where men hunched over screens, their dreams pickled in porn and energy drinks. The clerk at the counter was all greasy hair and nicotine fingers, his eyes widening when I leaned over, my shadow swallowing the glow of his monitor."Where's your boss?" I asked, letting my voice fray at the edges, a threadbare thing.He blinked, throat working. "Who're you? What d'you want with him?"I smiled, all teeth. "Tell him I’m pregnant with his child."The lie tasted like rust. The clerk's face went slack, a fish gasping on a dock. He bolted, chair screeching, toward a door marked STAFF ONLY. I followed, silent as a blade, my boots sinking into carpet sticky with spilled soda. The basement door swung open ahead, and a man's roar clawed up the stairs -
Finn's POVLycidas flung the car door open, tossed me into the back seat, and slammed it shut, locking it with a click. He climbed in, pressing himself over me, his voice a low growl. "I'm gonna tie you with a chain to me like you're a fucking dog. Torture you bit by bit, make you wish you were dead."Just as he moved to take me, I felt a jolt - sudden lightness. I twisted around and saw the slave, that dumb bastard, yanking Lycidas by the shoulder. He ripped him out of the car, hurling him to the ground, and the whole damn door came off in his hands. I blinked, shocked - he hadn't left.A slave had actually attacked the fucking Lycan Prince. Just when I thought I'd seen everything.The slave stood over Lycidas, chest heaving. "Stay away from my master."Lycidas didn't wait until he finished his speech. He roared, his body shifting in a blur of fur and claws, transforming into a massive wolf. He lunged, pinning the slave to the dirt, jaws snapping
Finn's POVThe moon hung heavy outside, its bloody glare slicing through the dark, painting the room in shades of red and shadow. I gasped as the slave pressed into me again and again, his hands rough and greedy, clawing at my scarred skin like he owned it. My body rocked under him, sweat slicking my flesh, the air thick with heat and the stench of lust. He was a nobody, some grunt I'd plucked from the shadows, but fuck, he moved like he knew me - hard and relentless, pinning me to the mattress with every thrust. My breath hitched, ragged and loud, but my mind wasn't on him. No, I'd calculated this shit down to the second.Lycidas was coming. I could feel it in my bones, that prickling certainty crawling up my spine."Take me to the window," I rasped, my voice raw, edged with something dark. "Fuck me at the window."The slave didn't blink, didn't question it. He grunted, scooped me up like I weighed nothing, and hauled me across the room. My face slammed
Finn's POVThe car growled low as it carved through the night, the city's edge bleeding into a haze of filth and neon. I slouched in the back seat, one arm slung over the leather, staring out the window as the slave market loomed closer. Its lights pulsed like a fevered heartbeat, red and sickly, casting shadows that writhed over the cracked pavement.We rolled up to the fighting ring, a piss-poor setup of ropes and stakes stabbed into the dirt, spotlights glaring down on the carnage. Two werewolves tore into each other, fur matted with gore, claws slashing through flesh like it was nothing. One - a scrawny bastard with desperation in his eyes - took a hit that split his muzzle wide open, blood spraying the crowd. They roared, a mix of wolves and humans drunk on violence, fists pumping the air, bets flying like spit. The taller one, a hulking brute with shoulders like a fucking ox, smashed his fist into the weaker wolf's skull. Bone crunched, loud enough I heard it ove
Leah's POVThe sterile stench of antiseptic clawed at my throat as I stood beside Liam’s Nonna. Her arm lay bloated on the mattress, purple veins snaking beneath skin stretched thin as rot-stained parchment."A carrot," Liam had choked out earlier between sobs, "it’s swollen like a goddamn carrot."Talia hovered at the foot of the bed, her knuckles bone-white where they gripped the metal rail. Humans always held onto things when their world frayed — rails, hands, lies.Liam's crying cut deeper than any wolf's snarl. Not the proud, wounded howls of my kind, but wet, shattered noises that made my gums ache. When the doctor came, he collapsed on his knees, fingers twisted in the man's lab coat, begging in a broken voice -"Do something. Anything. Please."The doctor's eyes slid to mine once, quick and guilty, before he murmured platitudes about pain management. I tasted the lie before he spoke it."Weakness." My wolf br
Lycidas' POVDarren looked away. "I have no interest in learning that." I leaned against the car door, trying to seem casual. "Would you like to go out for a drink? My treat." He turned his head, his voice firm. "I don't drink at 10 AM." "Well, we sure can do something else without drinking alcohol."He glared at me angrily. I quickly backtracked and raised my arms. "I mean, we can chat without drinking." He lowered his head again, not saying a word. "I insist. Don't make me force you," I said, moving closer and whispering in his ear. "I can be really persuasive."I saw his fists clench, his body tensing. I casually put my arm around his shoulder and started walking him towards my Bentley.As we walked, I could feel the heat from his body, the tension in his muscles. I wondered what had happened to him, what had turned this once-confident man into something like this.Once we rea
Lycidas' POV"Get up," I said, jerking my head toward the headboard. Finn scrambled to his feet, awkward and unsteady, and I watched him climb onto the bed. The mattress dipped under his weight, and I followed, letting the chain drag behind me like a hound on a leash. I grabbed his wrist, hard enough to bruise, and looped the cold metal around it. The clank of it locking into place sent a shiver through him, and I felt it under my fingers. Good. Let him shake."You think you're sorry?" I asked, leaning close so my breath grazed his ear. "You think that little apology downstairs means anything?" I yanked the chain tight, pinning his arm above his head, and he gasped, his lips parting in a way that made my blood hum. "You don't get to decide when you're forgiven, you fucking slut.""Yes, Sir," he whispered, his voice small, broken. His eyes stayed on me, pleading, but I didn't care for pleas. I cared for power, and he gave it to me every time he bent.I sat
Lycidas' POVThe sunset hung heavy outside my window, its crimson glow bleeding through the curtains, casting jagged shadows across the room. I'd dragged the man back to my lair, his wrists still bound tight with the coarse rope. The stairs creaked under my boots as I hauled him up, his useless squirming only stoking the fire in my gut. I flung him onto the bed, the frame groaning under his weight, and watched him thrash like a trapped animal, his voice grating against my ears."Let me go!" he barked, his words sharp and desperate, clawing at the air. "I must go see my pro officer today! Otherwise..."I loomed over him, my shadow swallowing his form, and let a smirk curl my lips. "Otherwise, will they throw you in jail again?" My voice rumbled low, a predator's taunt, and I savored the way his eyes flickered with panic, even as he tried to hide it."Let me go!" he snapped, his tone brittle, cracking under the strain. He twisted against the ropes, his scar