The text jarred me to a halt and a chill ran down my spine as I reread it. It was him, I knew it was him.How did he have my number?Chase studied me apprehensively. “What’s wrong?”“Nothing.” I lied, shoving my phone into my pocket and giving him a bright smile.Everything was wrong and my lies were building up.“Darling,” His brows lowered with worry. “you’re trembling.”“It’s nothing. I just got a text from my stepmother filled with her typical empty threats and it made me pause.” I shrugged casually. “She wants me to come home but we both know that is not happening.”At the mention of my stepmother, Chase’s mood shifted suddenly; his eyes turned brooding.“I’ve heard a few things about that family of yours.” He scowled. “They should pray I never meet them.”I sighed. “I too pray you never have to, they are horrible.”He brushed back the strands of my hair that had escaped my ponytail and tucked them behind my ear then gave me a crooked, comforting smile.“Forget them, let’s go put
Chase's POV“I saw them, they were right there! Those rascals shifted and ran off before I could get to them. I would have broken those gangly legs of theirs.”I shot a scorching look at the decrepit building she had pointed to then lifted my face to the sky begging for patience to deal with old Janine. Behind me, Ron snickered.'I'm going to kill you.' I told him over the link then turned to the female that had made us come all the way to the South side before the sun was fully out.“Janine, I asked you to let me know if you see any suspicious individual or if any hostile situation arises.” I explained slowly.She crossed her arms and with a stubborn frown said, “Yes, and those Oliver's boys are criminals in the making.” Then increasing her voice so that Oliver, her unfortunate neighbour, could hear, she shouted. “Criminals!”'I'm done, it's too early for this.' I said to Ron and stepped back.The ever-diplomatic Ron took my place and tried to reason with Janine with the patience of
Chase's POVWe agreed that Henry and I would go to Lunagrove while Ron would be in charge of the pack in my absence.The time for breakfast had passed but I was famished from my disappointing morning task so with Henry in tow, I headed to the kitchen to grab something to eat.“This is all so frustrating,” I swore. “I’ll wring Greene's neck if he harms Hwan any more than he already has. We need to figure out the story we’ll tell to get in and get out.”“I know, just let me eat something to help me think. Shit, I wonder how Maya dated that psycho.”I grabbed an apple from the fruit bowl. “Don't make me remember that, I might do Earth a favour and actually kill him.”“Speaking of Maya, did the injury heal up?” Henry asked as he reached for a carton of milk.The apple on its way to my mouth froze mid-air.“What injury?” I asked carefully.He spun around and gaped at me like I had just uttered to dumbest thing he had ever heard.I frowned in annoyance. “Tell me wha—"The blood...Now that
Maya’s POVI heard Chase's footsteps and scrambled to shove the crumbled photo under my pillow before he ripped the door open.I had expected a knock but his sudden entrance threw me off-guard. Standing up, I flashed him a toothy smile that hid my inner turmoil.Did he know?The look in his eyes was hard to decipher as he studied me but when I stepped closer and reached out for him, he shifted away from my touch. My smile faltered, that small action affected me more than it should have.“I'll only ask this once.” He said finally, his voice like ice. “Where were you last night?”My heart leapt to my throat.'There was no way he knew,' I thought 'and if he did, how could I explain the truth to him?'A truth that I did not even fully know or understand yet, but I knew it would hurt him. This had to do with his late parents, after all.Lies bubble onto my tongue instinctively and I felt queasy as I let them out but I did so regardless, forcing an open expression onto my face.“I was dead
Maya's POVLater that day, I reluctantly went downstairs to grab a snack before returning to my room to sulk. I hoped I would not cross paths with Chase, I did not want to see that look on his face that made me feel like a stranger to him.“Hi!”A flurry of red curls flew into my vision after the voice, blocking my exit from the kitchen.“Hi?” I replied, peering down at the girl’s pale face. I realized with surprise that she was the one who had smiled at me when I was first introduced to the pack.“Um, hey there. I saw you at dinner the other evening, what’s your name?” I asked.“Faith.” She smiled, her eyes glinted with mischief and I had a feeling that she knew she was delaying my much-needed escape back to the solitude of my room with the lone granola bar I had managed to snag.“Okay, Faith,” I said, resigned. If I bumped into Chase, then so be it “How may I help you?”“Oh, no. I want to help you.” She said, emphasizing the ‘you’.“Um, okay? What exactly do I need help with though?
Maya's POVI had no doubts that I had woken her. The numbers on my bedside clock blinked harshly in the dim morning. It was 5:27 am but I could not wait.My hand trembled as I clung to my phone, my pulse still struggling to decelerate from the scary pace that my horrifying nightmare had pushed it to.There was silence then Freya's voice returned, this time filled with irritation.“What do you want? Why are you calling me by this time?” She snapped.“I cal—"“Then again, criminals like you don't exactly have manners. Say, Maya, you've always pretended to be good, did our Alpha's rejection hurt you so much that you had to throw your life to the wind for such a stupid revenge? Arson, really?”Her smug laugh suggested that she could not care less whether or not I had been hurt.'So Kylan had made our rejection publicly known but contorted the truth to make it look like it was him who rejected me.' I thought but could not summon any energy to care about that fact.I was too emotionally dra
Chase's POV(Back to when they left the house after Chase confronted Maya)'Are you good?' Henry's worried voice sounded in my mind as we sped for Lunagrove in our wolf forms.I knew his question was concerning Maya but I did not want to think about her so I just said;'I will be.' Because I was an Alpha first and foremost, my members were my priority and right now, Hwan needed me.I could not afford to be distracted. Bracing myself, I buried all thoughts of Maya's dishonesty and focused on the task at hand.We managed to come up with a ruse that we believed Greene would fall for but we got there late so we lodged in the Lunagrove's hotel and waited for the night pass.The next day, we went to their pack house at the break of dawn and requested to speak with the Alpha.The stoned-faced guard had been reluctant to call for Greene but when he heard my name, he did so instantly.As we had expected, only I was allowed to meet Greene so Henry had to wait behind as I walked into the receivi
Chase's POV “Fuck!” Greene cursed, running restless and through his hair. “Fine, I accept your offer, don’t go to Augo.” Letting out a silent sigh of relief, I gave Greene a tight smile. “Lovely. Now, where is Hwan?.” “Ferg.” He called out and the brutish guard from earlier appeared. “Release the male we have locked up downstairs.” “Yes, Alpha.” “Wait,” Greene said, casting a furtive glance my way, he added. “Clean him up before bringing him up.” “Great,” I clapped as the brute left. “I'll wait in the foyer. The proposal and contract will be in your inbox by next tomorrow." When I saw Hwan, fury rose within me and I spun and stalked towards Greene. “You never got solid evidence but you did all that to him?!” I growled, my wolf dangerously close to the surface. He took one look at my eyes and stepped back, his inept confidence withering away. He deserved to be scared! Hwan was covered in bruises and could barely stand upright, leaning heavily on the guard that had brought him