Chapter 14 – BurnThe pack house has been absolute madness with only a week left until the mating ceremony. I was cleaning guest rooms today and preparing them for guests who will be occupying them later this week. The room I was currently cleaning was the same room Alpha Knox had given me after my father’s death, when I came to live at the pack house. It serves as one of a dozen guest rooms now, while I sleep on a dog bed in the laundry room.With a towel in one hand and glass cleaner in another, I wiped down the mirror in the bathroom. Then I moved to the closet door that also had a full- length body mirror on it. I cleaned the mirror and stopped to look at my own reflection.I was wearing black stretch pants and a loose fitted brown sweater that complemented the amber colors in my eyes. I stared a moment later at my breasts which looked fuller and my hips that had slightly widened. I turned sideways and lifted my sweater up. A small bump was starting to show on my one month belly,
Chapter 15 – The HoleTwo days to go, but who’s counting! I can almost taste freedom from here. Or maybe it was an omelet I could almost taste. Ursa was on her cellphone talking to the florist and cooking herself a late breakfast. I glanced over at the omelet and it was filled with ham, sausage and vegetables. Just the way she used to make them for my father.I was on dish duty again, washing the breakfast dishes. Ursa had been so busy preparing for the ceremony that she had not given me a scrap of food the last four days. If it hadn’t been for Max, the pup and I would both be starving.Ursa turned around to get a plate for her omelet and ended her phone call. “Awe, is the little mutt hungry?” She taunted me. Just two more days, I reminded myself. Two more days and I was done with her and her cruel behavior. I looked over at the flames on the stove and in an instant her omelet was on fire. Thick smoke billowed up in the kitchen. Bon Appétit, I thought to myself as people raced around
Chapter 16 – BrokenCRACK! I let out a scream and tried to shield myself from the whip. I was panting hard and looked around for Ranger, but all I could see was darkness. There was nothing. No Ranger. No whip.I heard the sound of the CRACK again and realized it was only thunder. I was still in the hole. The earth around me was cold and moist from the heavy rains. I was beyond hunger pains and dehydration. I had lost a lot of blood and felt so weak.“Please Moon Goddess, bring me home.” I prayed as I shivered from the cold. “End my suffering.” Everyone I loved was gone, I had nothing, and I didn’t belong here.“I’m here Lucy.” I heard Lia’s broken voice.“Lia? Where have you been? I thought you left me?” I cried, relieved I wasn’t alone.“I sent all my energy to our pup, trying to protect it. I’m sorry Lucy, I let you down.” She whimpered with grief.“Lia, it’s not your fault. It’s his. He never deserved us or the pup.”“I’m too weak to heal you, I think we’re dying.” Her voice was la
Chapter 17 – Run“WHYTHEHELLWASN’TINOTIFIEDIMMEDIATELYWHEN SHE WOKE UP?” I heard Ranger roar outside my door.“Sir, she just woke up twenty minutes ago.” Delta Cole said. He was on guard duty outside my door and had switched places with Max. I had been awake last night, but Cole looked into the room this morning and caught me with my eyes open.Dr. Baker was in the room examining me when Ranger swung the door open. His hands were clinched in fists and his piercing blue eyes trained on me. In a flash he was standing next to my bed. Feeling the tension in the room, Dr. Baker, excused herself. “I’ll be outside if you need me.”Ranger stood silent for a moment looking me over before he spoke. “Why didn’t you tell me about the pup? My pup?”A lump formed in my throat thinking about my baby. “You rejected me because I was weak. I wasn’t going to let you reject our pup too.”“You couldn’t have hidden it much longer. You were planning on running away with my pup, weren’t you?”Hell yes
Chapter 18 – CaughtThe wind had a chill that promised flurries of snow this evening. Lia was in control and running through the dense mountain woods heading north. She only stopped twice for water.There’s no way Ranger’s trackers could find us now; Lia was so fast compared to other wolves. Her super speed made the scenery blur by fast. The further north we went, the colder it got. A few more hours of running and the sun was setting.“We should find a place to sleep for the night.” I told Lia.“I can keep running Lucy, I’m picking up a faint smell of rogues and want to make sure we’re safe.”I didn’t think there would be many rogues this far north because winter is coming. The snow tends to move rogues further south, towards warmer weather and more resources. We continued to run for a few more hours and the snow flurries started to come down. Lia had thick fur to keep us warm, but I could feel her getting tired after running all day and we both needed sleep.We stopped at the opening
Chapter 19 – Mate AgainI opened my eyes and saw a dark blue bed canopy with gold trim overhead. I was in a huge bed under warm blankets that had amazingly fluffy pillows. The ceilings were high with beautiful inlays, the windows were grandiose, and the furniture looked fit for a castle. Where the hell are we? I thought as I sat up in the bed and scanned the impressive room I was in.The big wooden door creaked open and a she wolf poked her head in. Her jet black hair was in a cute pixie cut and her blue eyes sparkled. She smiled and stepped into the room completely. She may have been a little bigger in size than me and a few inches taller, but she had a powerful aura.“Ah, Lucy you’re awake.”How did she know my name? She looked a little familiar, but I couldn’t place her. She stood silent for a moment with her eyes glazed over mind linking someone. A moment later her focus retuned back to me.“Your shoulder had to be reset, but Dr. Ross said you should be healed in a few days.”“Why
Chapter 20 – MineDiesel’s POVI pulled her out of the water and dropped her before me using a water bubble. She looked up at me with the most unique amber colored eyes that ignited a fire within me. Her face held fear and she uttered “Ranger,” before she fainted.Did she think I was Ranger? How did she know Ranger? I wondered if she was from Dark Moon, and why she would be so far north.“Turn around!” I growled at the warriors. She was naked and I didn’t want anyone looking at her. I mind linked my Gamma, Zeke, to bring me some clothes.I walked over to her and held her to my chest to keep her warm and so I could inhale her scent, it was sweet lavender and vanilla. The most amazing thing I’ve ever smelled. Her skin was sending tingling sparks through mine and Duke immediately recognized her as our mate.I brushed her long wet hair away from her face, she was a beautiful little thing. Zeke’s wolf appeared behind me and had some clothes in his mouth. “Thanks Zeke.” I said as I took the
Chapter 21 – Comfort“Lucy, no one is telling Ranger anything. You’re safe here. There’s still a lot more we need to talk about and sort out but it’s getting late. You need to eat something and get some rest; I know you’re exhausted. I’ll have Helga bring you some dinner from the kitchen.” Alpha Knox assured me as he stood to leave.“My bedroom is at the opposite end of this hall Lucy, if you need anything, please don’t hesitate to come over.” Payton said and left.“I’ll leave you two to talk.” Alpha Knox closed the door behind him. “Sounds good to me,” Lia purred in my head. I did a mental eye roll.Diesel was still sitting on the bed, facing me. “I don’t know everything that happened at Dark Moon, but I know there’s more. I’m not going to force you to tell me everything, but I do want to know. When you’re ready, I’m here to listen.” Diesel told me.I nodded my head. I felt anxiety growing, if he finds out I was used and tainted he wouldn’t want me. I was too weak to protect a pup.H