It was already quite late when I dragged myself to our bedroom. I felt exhausted but satisfied with the work we had done today with Marissa. I haven’t heard of Duncan since lunch, but I was guessing he was busy, so I didn’t bother him.I went for a shower, and I felt myself relax under the hot water. I was planning on raiding his bookshelf, and snuggle up with a book till he comes back. But when I stepped out of the bathroom, I found him sitting at the end of the bed.“Hi,” I smiled at him and he stood.“Moira,” he stood up, and I stepped to him.“Duncan,” I put my arms around his neck and looked into his eyes.“I think we should talk,” he said, but his hand went to hold my waist on instinct. “Moira, you…”“I told your daughter that I loved you,” I finished it for him, even surprising myself, how calm I was.“Yes”“Your wolf can tell if I told the truth, can’t he?”“He did,” he sighed, putting his forehead against mine. “I feel so bad.”“Because you didn’t trust me? Because you kept s
I was sitting in his office again.I was getting fond of this armchair as I spent more and more time in it because I refused to be left out of pack matters. I attended every gathering, even though I usually stayed silent.Two weeks have passed since I arrived to the Blood Moon, and we had three rogue attacks in this past week. None of them were serious like the first one, which happened on the night I was accepted into the pack, but still, it made all of us uneasy. They told me they used to have this many in a month, not a week.I watched the men deep in discussion, already forgetting about me. I listened to each and every report of the patrol leaders and it made less and less sense. Jason, who was lucky enough to be there two of three times, said that now the attackers retreat before the reinforcements arrive.It seemed like they wanted to keep us under pressure, but for that, they weren’t strong enough. Our men usually returned with light injuries, healing up in a day’s time. They d
It took only two days for Noah and Josh to organize the meeting. We were sitting in the Rover just like when I left, with Noah driving and Caleb dozing off in the front seat. I held Duncan’s hand and stared out of the window.It was a beautiful, sunny day. Spring was finally kicking in, and the forest started awakening. Maybe I should seduce Duncan to go on another run with me when we get home.Noah stopped at the packhouse, and I saw Richard and Josh waiting for us. This time, there wasn’t that big fuss, I thought with a smile. We got a polite welcome, which honestly hurt, but as Richard and Duncan headed inside, Josh came to me with a wide smile and open arms. I returned his smile and hugged him. It felt so nice, but it earned us a growl immediately.I looked up at Duncan standing at the top of the stairs, staring at us. I gave Josh a peck on his cheek, then ran up to him.“Don’t be like this. He is like a brother to me,” I assured him through our mind link and put my arm in his. He
We ran fast, and we ran far. He took the lead, and my wolf followed him. I didn’t have any idea where we were anymore, but I trusted he would know his own territory. When he finally slowed, I saw something glistering in the afternoon light beneath the trees. I followed him to a clearing and saw a small lake.The whole place was simply lovely. The water seemed to be crystal clear and spring flowers bloomed everywhere around it.“It’s the Silver Lake,” the realization suddenly hit me, even though the lake was not silver at the moment. It was said that the Silver Lake got its name because under the moonlight the water looks like molten silver. There are even some legends saying that the lake has some special magic to it.Duncan went all the way to the water, and his big wolf laid down. I went and stretched out next to him, letting our wolves enjoy each other’s closeness and the warm sunlight.I don’t know how much time we spent there. Even just lying by his side in silence felt good.“Wi
I was lying in the pleasant warmth of Duncan’s arms when I heard the noises. We looked at each other and quickly got up. I threw on my clothes and hurried after Duncan, who was already outside the door. I heard a pained moan and sobs, and I frowned. “It’s Sabrina,” Duncan said without doubt, and headed for a door down the corridor. He stepped in without knocking, and I peeked in from behind him. He knelt down next to a dark-haired woman, who was sitting on the floor, crying in pain, and I could sense her anxiety too. Only when Duncan moved a little, I saw that the woman was heavily pregnant, and she sat in a puddle. Her water must have broken just now. “Alpha,” I heard her weak but respectful voice as she bowed her head. “It’s okay Sabrina. I will take you to the clinic now, okay?” he asked in a gentle voice, and she nodded. “Where is her mate?” I asked, a bit worried. “It’s Gabriel. I sent him to the north,” Duncan said, sounding defeated. “Shit,” I cursed under my breath. “Ye
The southwest border was quite far off, so I quickly shifted and took my shirt with me. I started running, and I caught up to Duncan halfway to the border. He only spared me a glance, then went on.“What is it about?” I asked, trotting to his side.“They caught someone crossing our border. Noah must have had a really good reason for making a fuss about it. The kill order is on.”“Do patrols really kill everybody who crosses the border?” I asked, a bit shocked.“They should, but as you can see, they don’t. How is Sabrina?” he changed the subject.“She is a happy mommy of a beautiful baby boy,” I said, my heart growing warm again.“Had Gabe made it on time?” he asked, slowing down a bit.“Yes.”“Good,” he nodded, and we walked the remaining distance in silence.Getting close to the border, I saw Noah standing by a figure on the ground, wrapped up in a blanket. I also saw members of the patrol nearby. The border was about 100 meters away, behind the trees.We sifted, and I pulled my shir
I just sat there, not really knowing what to say, when he reached for the drawer and pulled out a book from the very bottom of it. I watched him flip through the pages, and an old photo fell on the desk.“It is the only photo I have left of her,” he said as I reached for the picture.A beautiful young woman was smiling happily, crouching down and hugging a little boy, around 3 years old. For a single moment, I adored the cuteness of him with the messy black curls and the mischievous smile, then turned my attention to the woman.They weren’t really alike. Elena Rose O’Sullivan was a fragile little woman with blond hair, her green eyes sparkling with joy even in the fading old photo. She was truly beautiful, and she was happy. Not just seemed like. Somehow I felt that then and there she was truly happy.“She was the same age as you here. It was before he started beating us. They had a few quarrels even before that, and he hit her even before I was born, but nothing like what came after
His POV—Flashback“Mom?” I called her for the thousandth time, but she didn’t answer. I couldn’t even smell her in the heavy rain. I just went on blindly, deeper and deeper into the woods, not bothering with the pain in my ribs and face. Yesterday was quite a bad day. The old man went berserk again, and I know he hit her too after I passed out.“Mom!” I screamed again at the top of my lungs. She must be hurt. All she needed was a nasty cold from this stupid rain. I knew she wanted to get away a little, but I couldn’t let her be all alone. If something happened to her, I would surely go nuts.I suddenly got out of the forest and saw her. She was standing at the edge of a cliff, and my heart skipped a beat. What if she falls?“Mom,” I called silently, just loud enough for her to hear above the sound of the downpour, not wanting to surprise her.“Hi, my baby,” she turned to me with a smile and I instantly knew something was off.“What are you doing here, Mom? You will catch a cold in thi