HazelThe guard walked me through the hallways, his hand firm on my arm, though his grip lacked the earlier hate of the wolves who had dragged me here. It was almost soft now, loosened. My heart still raced as I looked at the passing torches and stone walls, their dim light painting shadows that seemed to whisper secrets of the past.I wasn’t sure what awaited me. Would Orion change his mind? Was this some kind of elaborate game he played to test my purpose? The truth was, I didn’t trust him or anyone in this place. But as we turned a corner and approached a large, polished door, I felt the air change.The guard pushed the door open, revealing a room that left me stunned.It was probably the biggest I’d ever been in. The walls were a pale, mild cream, with decorative, crossed wooden beams on the ceiling. A big chandelier with those crystal teardrop things hung from above in the middle, giving off soft warmth all around.The whole place was beautiful: a bed with canary yellow sheets
OrionThe night had been a sleepless one for me, my mind filled with plans uncompleted, and questions concerning the woman–Hazel. Do whatever I can to clear her from my thoughts, her face remained, and the secrecy of her weighed continually upon me. It was only as I was dropping off to sleep that the moon climbed high enough to flood the forest with its light.Morning came too early in the form of a loud, incessant pounding on my bedroom door. “Enter,” I grumbled, voice ridden with grogginess.The door creaked open and my guard stepped in, his back straight and face stoic. “Alpha,” he greeted, bowing his head slightly. “The elders are congregated in the war room. They want to see you.”I groaned and sat up. “This early? Tell them to go away!” I grumbled like a petulant child pulling the covers over my head.“They are very determined to meet you now,” he answered. “They claim it is an emergency.”I sighed and waved my hand dismissing his interruption, “Alright! Alright! Let them kno
Hazel’s povI awoke that morning feeling the chill of the new pack’s land flowing through the tall windows of my room. The bed was luxurious, if nothing else, I thought as I stared up at the ceiling and let it all wash over me. Everything was new. The tension in my gut, the burden of not knowing what would come next, and most notable one—the isolation that swam around me—as I tossed back the silk sheets and stood.Today was the day. I mean, what would I do, stay in this room? There’s a big world out there. I had to go out there and know what kind of pack I had entered.I wouldn’t be able to do that in my room.Maybe I’d learn a little about the people around here, see where I was. The moon goddess knew everyone didn’t need to be treating me like a stranger. So maybe I would not look like one if I joined them and mingled with them.I quickly changed into something more comfortable, feeling the silky material of a black dress against my body as I exited the room.The halls were so m
Orion’s POVI soon found her outside the palace by the hall as she was on her own.I had gone around looking for her and after finding her, I was a bit mad at her for disappearing like that.“You,” I called to her as she turned to see me barreling towards her which somehow scared her but I didn’t care.“Alpha…” she was about to talk as I raised my hand to stop her from talking.“You’ve made this morning a bit difficult for me, haven’t you?” I asked in anger as she held back her breath while I closed the gap between us. “I went to your room and you were missing. What are you doing here? You think you’re a guest to leave and go wherever you want?”“Alph…” but I held my hand up to halt her from saying anything else.“Don’t even say anything,” I snapped. “Next time, I won’t be so nice. Get back to your room before the hospitality I have extended towards you changes toward hostility and stay there until I know what to do with you.”Because of her I had been in trouble with the elders. Di
Orion’s POVTheir movements were slow and predictable, their strikes landing with the force of a feather. It was pathetic.I could feel my insides crawling with what I was seeing.Were these the idiots who would defend my pack?I was shocked.“Excuse me,” I muttered, stepping away from the generals.Kael raised an eyebrow as I walked toward the training grounds, but he didn’t stop me. He knew better than to interfere when I was in this mood.I walked onto the field, my presence drawing the attention of the trainees. They froze mid-strike, their eyes wide as they realized who had joined them.“What..,” I said, my voice low and sharp, “do you think you’re doing?”The two men I had been watching exchanged nervous glances. One of them, a young warrior with messy blond hair, stammered, “W-We’re training, Alpha.”“Training?” I repeated, my voice rising slightly. “You call this training? You think swinging your swords around like that will prepare you to defend this pack?”The trainees shi
Orion’s POVThe man looked around nervously as he held up his drink.“I’ll be a bit sloppy because I've been drinking…”Before he could finish, I smacked the drink out of his hands and stepped up to him with a growl which had him shaking away from me.“I’m not here for games,” I said in anger. “You’re teaching my warriors how to be soft. That would not happen again. Now let me tell you what you are going to do next.”“You will walk away from here and head back into the pack. If I see you close to any one of my warriors teaching whatever fake nonsense this is, I’ll make sure you hang for this.”“ I’m only being merciful today because I’m not in the mood for drying anyone's blood, but make no mistake of repeating this stupidity.”I turned back to talk to the generals as the trainee started to laugh.This had everyone shocked as they stared at me with gasps.I turned back to the man who had made a stance in a bid to fight with me.“What are you doing?” I asked as he smiled.“I’m challen
Orion’s POVI watched the door open with the timid woman getting into the room.Hazel, my guest, showed up with a smile as she stood by the door.“Alpha,” she said as I waved for her to sit down.“Hazel,” I noted, watching her sit. “How is your stay at the palace going?”“It’s going well. I came to thank you for accepting me and tell you it’s been great staying here at the pack. The people here aren’t really… accepting but it’s been okay.”I smiled and leaned back in my seat. “Not everyone will welcome you to the pack but that’s where you make yourself at home and relax. How’s the umm…”I pointed to her belly as she held her belly with a laugh.“You mean, how am I doing with my pregnancy?” She noted as I nodded. “You can say the word.”I nodded. It wasn’t everyday that I saw a pregnant woman being jovial around me.“If you want to go back to your pack I can escort you personally to the place.”She looked scared for a second before getting back her bearings as she looked around the off
Orion’s POVI followed her a few steps away. Mara crossed her arms and stared at me darkly. “She is not coming along well,” she commented drily. “She knows nothing, absolutely nothing, worse still, she is so clumsy… an accident waiting to happen! Where did you find her?”I sighed, rubbing the back of my neck. “I know it’s a lot to ask, Mara, but I need you to give it your best shot. She’s part of the pack now and we have to make room for her. It could be good for her—and good for us too.”“Good how, alpha?” She asked with raised brows. “She can’t even get anything right. I’m hurt watching her go around like she knows what she’s doing. Look at her. I’m pretty sure if we were at war and I asked her to hold up a spoon she would hold a tray instead.”I laughed at that but knew I was wrong for that. “It’s no laughing matter my alpha,” she chuckled as I nodded.“Look, I know but can you actually help her get better at what she’s doing? I don’t think she would get anything from being yell
Evelyn’s povA soft knock on the door made me jump, and my maid stuck her head in with a worried look on her face. “My lady,” she hissed, slipping into the room and closing the door behind her.I pushed myself up, wincing as I did so. “What is it?”She hesitated before speaking. “Everything is going according to plan… but the Alpha seems suspicious.”I sighed and rubbed my temples. “I know. He’s not a fool.”She nodded and stepped closer. “What’s the next step?”I took a moment to think, then a slow smile spread across my face. “Now we play the long game. I’ll make it look like I’m walking away… giving Hazel time to heal. But I’ll be close enough to strike when the time is right.”My maid bowed. “Understood.”I tossed myself back against the pillows, squeezed my eyes so hard that a few tears spilled out. I would be an angel in Orion’s eyes—for now. Hazel had made it through another day, but I wasn’t finished with Hazel yet.Orion might have thought that he could keep me away, but he w
Evelyn’s povThat morning, I felt ready for what was to come that day. I got up and put on something nice but not over the top, it had to be responsible looking and it was what I hoped Orion would think if he saw my outfit. In the dining hall, Hazel was already there eating and already dressed up.“Good morning” I said with a smile before sitting across from her.She looked up, a little surprised. “Good morning, Evelyn.” Her voice was soft, hesitant.I poured myself some tea and picked up a slice of toast. “So, are you excited for our shopping trip today?”Hazel gave a small smile and nodded. “Yeah, I guess. I haven’t really gone shopping like this in a while.”I chuckled lightly. “You should not be bothered about a lot of things. I’ll handle the cost. You should just give on what you need. Clothing, cute shoes and maybe even accessories.”She laughed a little, and I noticed she was starting to slowly let her guard down with me. “I just really need some casual clothes… or a few dresse
Evelyn’s povIt was late, the moonlight barely shining on the path as I headed to find Leif in the dark shadows near the edge of the pack lands. He was leaned against a tree, his arms crossed and his eyes sharp when he looked up at me. He must have sensed my seriousness because he pushed off from the tree to stand tall.“I need you to do something for me,” I told him.He smirked. “What now, Evelyn? Another one of your schemes?”I rolled my eyes. “Don’t act so self-righteous. You’re here, aren’t you? You know what I always call you for so don’t act so scared now. Listen, tomorrow Hazel and I are going shopping, and I want you to set up an attack.”“An attack?” He arched an eyebrow.“Yes, an attack!” I bit out. “Get some of your men—masked, obviously—and do it. Make it look real. I want her scared as hell, but don’t hurt anyone on our side. I’ll take care of the rest.”Leif tilted his head to the side, narrowing his eyes as he studied me. “And what’s your endgame this time?”I took a st
Hazel’s povI sat across Evelyn, gazing at my half eaten breakfast, trying to make sense of everything that happened. She was making an effort alright, but I couldn’t help thinking that there’s something more to this.“Hazel?” her voice brought me back from my thoughts.“Yes?” I said with a confused look on my face.“The food park. Would you want to go with me?”I blinked, not knowing how to reply. “A food park?”She beamed at me. “Yeah! It’s a lot of fun and the food there is amazing too. We can try different types of cuisines, maybe do a little bit of exploring while we are at it too. It’ll be good to…bond.”Bond? Right. That word, I wondered if she knew what it meant.To be honest everything within me wanted to tell her to get lost but I knew it would be rude of me to say that to someone who was trying to be close to me. She was trying to be nice and here I was thinking of how to be mean. I wanted to say no, that I couldn’t go, but I knew that I couldn’t do it.There was no excuse
Evelyn’s povThe moment I entered my room, I summoned my maid. She came quickly and made a little bow. “My lady?” she said, as she always addressed me.“Well, I want you to get something nice for Hazel this morning, chicken and peas, or whatever else she likes best.”I could feel the tension rise between us as the maid had not expected that from me.Her eyebrows rose, but she didn't say anything. "Yes, my lady," she said eventually. "And do you want me to prepare it with... the poisons or with anything else?"I narrowed my eyes at her. "No," I told her, just as firmly as before. "Not yet. Eventually, yes, but for now I need her to think I'm someone who cares about what happens to her... someone she can trust. I’m trying to lure her in so she can be on my side and not be against me. That way maybe we can be friends and I can show her that I’m not so bad.”The maid hesitated in a bow for a moment before she nodded. “I’ll see to it at once.”“See that you do.” I waved her away and watche
Hazel’s povI woke up that morning feeling intense pain in my stomach. If that was the only problem I was having then I wouldn’t complain, but to top it off, my head felt like it would explode from the thumping going on in it. I suddenly got nausea and felt like throwing up but held it back as I laid in bed.I winced in pain and put a hand over my stomach, willing whatever it was causing this havoc to subside.There I was, just closing my eyes to try and get the pain away as my head throbbed mercilessly when a knock came at the door. I groaned louder. I was not in the mood for visitors. Grunting, I pulled myself up from the bed and trudged over to open it, every step causing my headache to increase tenfold.A frown instantly formed on my face at what stood before me – Evelyn, all perfect smiles and sugary sweet expressions.The rage that filled me up that morning was nothing to write home about. I just wanted her off my sight and I would do anything to have her gone. “What do you wan
Evelyn’s povI couldn’t move after hearing that. I was frozen in my stead. My heart pounded in my chest in a furious manner as I held onto my stead and prayed for the best.She was pregnant? With Orion’s child? My head spun and each gasp became harder than the last as I sucked for air that wasn’t there.Before I knew what happened, I turned around and was tearing down the hall as I ran back to my room. “This can’t be happening,” I whispered to myself, feeling like my heart was about to beat right out of my chest. “No one is taking Orion from me—not her, not her child.” I paced across the room, my mind working at a mile a minute. This wasn’t a threat; this was an invasion. If Hazel thought she could come waltzing into my pack and take Orion was her man, she had another thing coming.My wolf started to bring up ideas.“Maybe we should shove her down a bridge or something. I don’t like to share.”But I growled. “You don’t need to tell me twice. I want her gone and gone for good. I hate
Evelyn’s povOrion was standing near the entrance, deep in conversation with one of the guards when I arrived back at the packhouse. His powerful aura dominated the space, but as soon as he noticed me, his eyes locked onto mine. I didn’t look away. Instead, I held his gaze until he started walking toward me with that same commanding stride that made everyone step aside.I sighed softly, bracing myself. This was going to be tricky.“Thanks for finally showing up,” he said with a frown. “What were you really thinking?”“My alpha, I have no idea what you’re talking about,” I said with an innocence as he growled and got close to me.“What do you mean by that?” He growled. “You took her to a club. You took hazel to a club without even consulting me. Why would you do such a thing?”I bowed my head, letting a subtle tremble creep into my voice. “Alpha, I’m so sorry. I wasn’t thinking. I really am. Please forgive me. I don’t know it would be bad. I only wanted to bond with her in some way. Th
Evelyn’s povI swirled the drink in my glass, the golden liquid catching the muted light of the room. The music vibrated through my feet, but my thoughts roamed elsewhere. Where had Hazel wandered off to? Not that I cared—I pushed her from my mind and took another sip. She can handle herself.“Where’s your friend?” The bartender asked me as I shrugged.“How the hell should I know?” I asked as I took a sip of my drink. “She can get lost for all I care. This is a party. Maybe she’s somewhere else failing someone.”I was about to bring the glass back up when a figure slipped onto the stool beside me. My gaze flickered up, and for a split second, I winced before painting on a smile. It was Kael.His muscular shape had me turned on temporarily and if he wasn’t the beta I would have gone for him. But I wanted to have a partner who would be second to none and would be strong enough to make me higher than everyone in the pack.Being with the beta wouldn’t give me the same confidence as being