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ZACH.“You only lost your ability to walk, but it’s unfair that we… that we had to lose a brother because of it. It’s not fair.” I was staring at my sisters, at a loss for words. I was too blinded by my own misery that I failed to see the lives around me and how I was affecting them. But they were right; I was a doting brother before the accident. A day never ended without me squeezing them for a hug—either with affection or just to irritate them. But when was the last time I did that?I swallowed as guilt washed over me. I did this to my sisters, but I could move forward and do better. “Come here, Ara, Nikka.” I opened my arms and was not even done with my words when they rushed toward me. I was lower than them, so they bent over and threw their arms around me. I embraced them both, hugging them tightly as I pressed kisses on their heads. “I’m sorry.” My voice croaked. “I didn’t know I was hurting you both.”They didn’t say anything but continued to sob in my arms, and I just close
ZACH.“Uhm, Amber. The cream?” John extended his hand, ready to take the cream away. Amber clutched the canister and smiled at him. “I’ll keep it for now. Zach doesn’t need it at the moment, also to make sure he won’t misplace it.”“Ah, okay. Is that okay with you, Alpha?” He asked me.I heard him, but my gaze was focused on Amber, who looked at me with beaming eyes. How could I say no to that? “Yes, that’s fine.”Amber winked at me before walking out of the room, and in no time, John proceeded to assist me with the next exercise. Sitting on a flat surface allowed me to lift my ass, but getting up from the wheelchair proved to be more challenging. John moved me to the corner where a beam was, where I could hold on as he helped me stand on my feet. Most of the force still came from him, and I could only stand for a few seconds before my legs would tremble. But it was an improvement. I started doing a standing exercise when I stabbed my leg with a pen in front of Amber, and I felt a
AMBER.“It’s not white or transparent. It’s green. The darker the green, the stronger it is. It’s herbs—special herbs, thus the color.” Paris explained. My heart thundered as I looked at the white or clear gel in my hand. “It looks like Vaseline cream to me.”“No way. Send me a picture. Does it smell like anything?”“It doesn’t smell at all.”“It has a repulsive smell. Not because it’s disgusting but because the mint scent is too much, and I don’t like mint, so I find it repulsive.”“I don’t smell anything at all. Not even a trace of mint.” I replied, still trying to sniff something, but I didn’t let it get too near my nose, just in case it was a dangerous substance. “Then it might be Vaseline in your hands.” She laughed heartily while I remained silent. My hands shook at the many thoughts running in my head. If this were a fake one, was this just stopping him from improving, or was the effect worse, like lowering his aura? Oh, Goddess, I hope it was not killing his wolf. “I sho
AMBER.After I had spoken with Sidney, we went down together, and I was able to talk with Nadine. I told her everything I knew but made her promise not to tell anyone, as we didn’t want John to be alerted if he was really up to something. After our conversation, I planned to check on Zach, but Mindy cornered me and asked me if I wanted to check the menu she made for the packhouse this week. She wanted to make sure everything was okay on my end and said I was free to make any changes. She didn’t say anything more than that, but I was overwhelmed. She was discreetly giving me back what the accident stole from me two years ago. Yes, even when I wasn’t residing here, whenever I was around, I was the one checking the meals for the house just to make sure it was according to Zach’s taste. And I always took pleasure in that. So I spent ample time with her and the main Omega of the kitchen deciding the meals and what needed to be ordered to make sure we had what we needed.After we were don
AMBER.“I fucking love you, little rose.” Zach murmured between our kisses.“I love you too...” I tried to reply, but his aggressive mouth was drowning my voice. He then pulled away, but he kept holding my face. His eyes were twinkling, and it made my chest swell with pride. “You will sit on my face tonight, okay?”My pussy tingled at his words, and I felt my face burning. I was bold with my actions, but the thought of the position he suggested made me blush. “I might suffocate you.”“Being suffocated by your pussy is not a bad way to die...” He replied, his fingers wiping the wetness on my lips. “But I won’t die yet. I want to fuck you while I’m standing. I want to fuck you with my hips moving…” He spoke again, and this time, his eyes softened, revealing a hint of pain. I nodded my head and cupped his face. “And that will happen!” I said with conviction. Even if this were the only reason why he wanted to stand, I would hold to that and make sure he could walk. So, I knew I needed t
AMBER.“If there’s wolfsbane in it, it could only be traced within 24 hours in your bloodstream, but less time if it’s just a small dosage, so we cannot wait until tomorrow.” I tried to explain in one breath as I helped him into his clothes. “John would never…” He began, but he didn’t finish his words.“That’s why I’m asking you if you really know him well enough to trust him.”He said nothing this time, but I could feel his Alpha aura rising. Of course, if I were right, then he was betrayed by the man he trusted for the last two years. “I mindlinked Drake to drive us. I’m not letting you drive.” He said after a while.I nodded my head while I walked toward his desk and picked up all the cream canisters that I could grab.-----ZACH.“There’s a faint trace of wolfsbane in your bloodstream. It’s too faint that I cannot determine when it was absorbed by your body.” Paris explained as we sat in her office. We had been in this hospital for the last two hours. Nadine and Xander, together
6 months after Amber turned 18Amber - 18 years oldZach - 21 years oldZACH.“Can you believe it? Amara and Jace ended up together? It only feels like yesterday we were picking up Amara in the middle of the forest after Jace threw her out, and now they’re waiting for their pup!” Amber kept blabbering, and her hands were everywhere in the air, like always, whenever she enjoyed the conversation.Amber was like a ray of sunshine. On my bad days, all I needed to do was look at or talk to her, and she would easily calm the chaos within me. She had always been my very own sunshine since we were pups.I chuckled and shook my head, but a smile was still playing on my lips. “Jace was an asshole,” I replied without looking at her, my eyes focusing on the busy motorway of the Neutral City.“He was! But she loves him.”“I think we know that since…” I paused and chuckled again. “...forever? But it doesn’t change anything. He was still an asshole. A very asshole move coming from someone like him.”
10 DAYS AFTER THE ACCIDENT. AMBER.My head was throbbing, so I remained lying down with my eyes closed. My head pain was getting manageable compared to how I felt when I woke up two days ago. I was told it had been a week since the accident, and before I woke up, I kept drifting in and out of consciousness after I had blood transfusions. I lost too much blood, and without a wolf, my body was as frail as a human.It had been a week, but it felt like it was just a moment ago when I was cramped up in the crashed car and Zach passed out in front of me. I was hysterical while talking to Dad on the phone. He tried to pacify me while getting information until he passed the phone to Cyrus, my twin brother. Cyrus then told me Dad was calling people to locate us. I heard Cyrus, and it made me cry more. I kept begging him to save Zach.I was terrified. There was blood everywhere. I could also smell smoke and gas—the idea of the car blowing up was terrifying, like waiting for death to happen.
AMBER.“If there’s wolfsbane in it, it could only be traced within 24 hours in your bloodstream, but less time if it’s just a small dosage, so we cannot wait until tomorrow.” I tried to explain in one breath as I helped him into his clothes. “John would never…” He began, but he didn’t finish his words.“That’s why I’m asking you if you really know him well enough to trust him.”He said nothing this time, but I could feel his Alpha aura rising. Of course, if I were right, then he was betrayed by the man he trusted for the last two years. “I mindlinked Drake to drive us. I’m not letting you drive.” He said after a while.I nodded my head while I walked toward his desk and picked up all the cream canisters that I could grab.-----ZACH.“There’s a faint trace of wolfsbane in your bloodstream. It’s too faint that I cannot determine when it was absorbed by your body.” Paris explained as we sat in her office. We had been in this hospital for the last two hours. Nadine and Xander, together
AMBER.“I fucking love you, little rose.” Zach murmured between our kisses.“I love you too...” I tried to reply, but his aggressive mouth was drowning my voice. He then pulled away, but he kept holding my face. His eyes were twinkling, and it made my chest swell with pride. “You will sit on my face tonight, okay?”My pussy tingled at his words, and I felt my face burning. I was bold with my actions, but the thought of the position he suggested made me blush. “I might suffocate you.”“Being suffocated by your pussy is not a bad way to die...” He replied, his fingers wiping the wetness on my lips. “But I won’t die yet. I want to fuck you while I’m standing. I want to fuck you with my hips moving…” He spoke again, and this time, his eyes softened, revealing a hint of pain. I nodded my head and cupped his face. “And that will happen!” I said with conviction. Even if this were the only reason why he wanted to stand, I would hold to that and make sure he could walk. So, I knew I needed t
AMBER.After I had spoken with Sidney, we went down together, and I was able to talk with Nadine. I told her everything I knew but made her promise not to tell anyone, as we didn’t want John to be alerted if he was really up to something. After our conversation, I planned to check on Zach, but Mindy cornered me and asked me if I wanted to check the menu she made for the packhouse this week. She wanted to make sure everything was okay on my end and said I was free to make any changes. She didn’t say anything more than that, but I was overwhelmed. She was discreetly giving me back what the accident stole from me two years ago. Yes, even when I wasn’t residing here, whenever I was around, I was the one checking the meals for the house just to make sure it was according to Zach’s taste. And I always took pleasure in that. So I spent ample time with her and the main Omega of the kitchen deciding the meals and what needed to be ordered to make sure we had what we needed.After we were don
AMBER.“It’s not white or transparent. It’s green. The darker the green, the stronger it is. It’s herbs—special herbs, thus the color.” Paris explained. My heart thundered as I looked at the white or clear gel in my hand. “It looks like Vaseline cream to me.”“No way. Send me a picture. Does it smell like anything?”“It doesn’t smell at all.”“It has a repulsive smell. Not because it’s disgusting but because the mint scent is too much, and I don’t like mint, so I find it repulsive.”“I don’t smell anything at all. Not even a trace of mint.” I replied, still trying to sniff something, but I didn’t let it get too near my nose, just in case it was a dangerous substance. “Then it might be Vaseline in your hands.” She laughed heartily while I remained silent. My hands shook at the many thoughts running in my head. If this were a fake one, was this just stopping him from improving, or was the effect worse, like lowering his aura? Oh, Goddess, I hope it was not killing his wolf. “I sho
ZACH.“Uhm, Amber. The cream?” John extended his hand, ready to take the cream away. Amber clutched the canister and smiled at him. “I’ll keep it for now. Zach doesn’t need it at the moment, also to make sure he won’t misplace it.”“Ah, okay. Is that okay with you, Alpha?” He asked me.I heard him, but my gaze was focused on Amber, who looked at me with beaming eyes. How could I say no to that? “Yes, that’s fine.”Amber winked at me before walking out of the room, and in no time, John proceeded to assist me with the next exercise. Sitting on a flat surface allowed me to lift my ass, but getting up from the wheelchair proved to be more challenging. John moved me to the corner where a beam was, where I could hold on as he helped me stand on my feet. Most of the force still came from him, and I could only stand for a few seconds before my legs would tremble. But it was an improvement. I started doing a standing exercise when I stabbed my leg with a pen in front of Amber, and I felt a
ZACH.“You only lost your ability to walk, but it’s unfair that we… that we had to lose a brother because of it. It’s not fair.” I was staring at my sisters, at a loss for words. I was too blinded by my own misery that I failed to see the lives around me and how I was affecting them. But they were right; I was a doting brother before the accident. A day never ended without me squeezing them for a hug—either with affection or just to irritate them. But when was the last time I did that?I swallowed as guilt washed over me. I did this to my sisters, but I could move forward and do better. “Come here, Ara, Nikka.” I opened my arms and was not even done with my words when they rushed toward me. I was lower than them, so they bent over and threw their arms around me. I embraced them both, hugging them tightly as I pressed kisses on their heads. “I’m sorry.” My voice croaked. “I didn’t know I was hurting you both.”They didn’t say anything but continued to sob in my arms, and I just close
ZACH.Amber helped me prepare breakfast that we could find in the cabin, which meant home-cooked oatmeal and coffee, as I only kept grains or non-perishable food here. I would bring more if I planned to stay, or I would just let Apollo hunt to keep us full.I thought last night was the best I’ve ever had, but everything just kept getting better. Having Amber around was like an antidote to my depression. Despite the gloomy weather outside, inside the cabin was full of sunshine. She’s definitely my sun—my whole universe revolves around her. Why did I ever think I could survive without her sunlight? As much as we wanted to cocoon ourselves in the cabin, we needed to face life. John, my therapist, will arrive soon, as I was not able to cancel our session today as I had planned. After Amber and I fixed our makeshift bed and washed the dishes, she asked me if we could come back here another time, and I told her we would come back soon. I just needed to let Arlo and Drake know I would be a
Back to the present.ZACH. Amber was already fast asleep beside me. Her head was resting against my chest. I was not even sure if this was a comfortable position, but one thing was evident—she didn’t want to let go of her hold on me. I did this to her. She was clinging to me with the hope I would still be here when she woke up. I had no plans of leaving, but I knew I was still not absolved of my sins to her. In fact, I added a new one. I didn’t tell her about Estelle. Not yet. She just got out of her agony caused by me, and I didn’t want her to go back to that misery. I would find a way. After I told her about Alpha Grant and the blood contract I signed—omitting the part where Estelle was involved—she sat up and asked me the exact day the contract would take effect. We have 55 days. Rather than sulking or blaming me for keeping it all to myself, she came up with numerous ideas of how we could beat the contract. I listened to her, mesmerized by the confidence she was showing.
Continuation of Flashback from the previous chapter.ZACH's POV.“Step down as an Alpha so we don’t need to have further discussion. I’m sure your father will be willing to take back his pack. Or give it to your Beta.”“Can you hear yourself, Alpha Grant?” I scoffed. “It’s my pack. It is not a toy that I can simply hand to anyone because I can no longer play with it.” “Did you forget what’s on the list of what makes a shifter eligible to be an Alpha?”“Of course I do! And nothing states in there that any physical disability would prohibit anyone from being an Alpha!”“Section Three, line twenty-three. An Alpha must be physically capable of protecting his pack or any shifters in times of danger, through but not limited to physical combat, transporting, and eliminating the enemy, and I could go on and on in this section.”“I can protect my pack!”They laughed, and I was starting to think I would lose my pack by the time they dismissed me. I had already lost my ability to walk, and Amber