Samantha’s POVI froze at the bottom of the porch steps when I saw him. He was there, standing in the shadow of the old oak tree at the edge of the driveway. Dominic.His eyes locked on mine instantly, and he looked like he had a thousand questions in his head and had no idea which one to ask first.For a moment, neither of us moved. It was like the world had stilled, leaving just the two of us in this charged, suffocating silence.I swallowed hard and forced myself to keep walking, ignoring the way my pulse raced and the way my wolf stirred uneasil, yet delightedly inside me. Though I did not share the same joy she felt.“Samantha.”His voice stopped me dead in my tracks. Deep, rough, and filled with something I could not quite name, or one that I refused to — longing.I did not turn around. “I have nothing to say to you.” I did not want to look into his eyes and feel guilty to all the lies that I said. Lena said he had changed, and that he was devastated when I left, and he was here
Dominic’s POVI stood there as she left. The urge to go after her nearly consumed me, but something stopped me, a bitter mix of shame and realization of the fact that I hurt her, that I pushed her away, and now, she did not want anything to do with me.I had no right to demand anything from her. Not after what I had done.The frustration simmered just beneath my skin, fueled by both anger and regret. Regret for the years I had let slip by without finding her, and anger at myself for being the reason she had left in the first place.My chest felt tight as I turned back toward my mother’s house. I had come here hoping for answers, for some kind of clarity, and instead, I was left with more questions and a gnawing sense of failure.“She’s not going to make this easy for you.”I looked up sharply to see my mother standing on the porch with her arms crossed over her chest. She was watching me with that knowing look she always had, the one that told me she had seen and heard everything.“Di
Samantha’s POV“Mom, why do you smell like him?” I froze mid-step at Devon’s innocent question.The twins stood in the doorway of the living room with their faces scrunched in confusion. Devon’s nose twitched as if he was still trying to figure out where the scent was coming from, and Diana was clutching her stuffed wolf tightly, her small brows furrowed.The question struck me like lightning and my breath hitched as I stared at them, my heart hammering in my chest.“What do you mean?” I asked carefully, even though I already knew the answer.“That uncle from the hotel,” Devon said, his voice insistent. “The one who bought us food when we got lost.”Dominic.My stomach churned. How could they recognize his scent on me? I had showered twice since the confrontation at his mother’s house, scrubbing at my skin as if I could erase the memory of his touch. Yet, somehow, my children had picked up on something I could not hide. And time was indeed catching up. They were growing up so fast tha
Samantha’s POV"Oh! I’m so sorry!" said someone slamming into me. I stumbled back, barely managing to steady myself as a stack of papers scattered between us.“It’s fine,” I said quickly as the girl, wide-eyed and clearly flustered, knelt to gather the papers she had dropped, apologizing profusely. I smoothed my hands down the front of my blazer and I gave her a small smile before I walked to the room where the conference hall was.The massive oval table stretched across the center and around it sat Alphas and Betas from various packs having conversations. I was the only woman in the room and I saw the indifferent glances of the other men to my presence as if I did not have the right to be there. I could feel their judgments even without hearing them. Why her? Why would the Moonstone Pack send a woman?I ignored them and straightened my shoulders as I walked to an empty chair near the edge of the table. I refused to let them see my nerves, though the raw power of these Alphas exuding
Samantha’s POV"Dinner? With you?"The words tumbled out of me before I could stop them and Dominic just stood there, in front of me, calmer than I was used to, like he had carefully rehearsed this moment. I was not sure what I expected him to say after the meeting, but it wasn’t an invitation to dinner.“I know it’s unexpected,” he replied, shoving his hands into his pockets. “But there are things we need to talk about, Samantha.”I stared at him, feeling my irritation bubble beneath the surface. “We’ve talked enough, haven’t we?”He exhaled through his nose, something faintly like frustration crossing his face, but he reined it in quickly. “Just one dinner. No arguments. I’ll take you back as soon as you want. I promise.”It was not his words that swayed me, but the way he looked, like he had thought about this long and hard. Like whatever he wanted to say could not wait. And curiosity, my constant enemy, nudged at the back of my mind. “Fine,” I muttered before I could change my min
Samantha’s POVMy entire body froze. “What about the twins?”Her words tumbled out in a frantic rush, each one was piercing like a cold knife to my chest. “Samantha, it’s the twins. Something’s happened.”My stomach dropped, the blood draining from my face. I gripped the phone tighter, and my knuckles went white.“What happened?” I demanded.“I… I don’t know. They are gone. You need to come now.”Then out of nowhere, the line clicked dead.My hands were trembling as I turned slowly, panic bubbling up so fast I thought I might choke on it. I hurriedly reached my bag and looked for my car keys but they seemed to be unrecoverable. Dominic was watching me from across the table with concern etched into every line of his face, but I did not have time now. The twins, they were gone.“What is it?” he asked.I could not speak. The only words running through my head were Annie’s frantic, terrified voice, delivering the news. It can’t be.“Samantha,” Dominic said again, standing now, trying to
Samantha’s POV“They’re gone. I don’t know how—” Annie’s voice cracked, but I was not listening anymore.The words echoed in my head, pounding like a drum. Gone. My legs felt numb, but I pushed past her into the house. My eyes darted around frantically, looking for any sign of Devon or Diana. Their laughter, their little shoes in the hallway, anything. But there was none.“Where are they?” I shouted, spinning to face Annie. She flinched, her hands wringing together as she tried to speak.“I… I don’t know, Samantha. I was… I left for just a second. I swear. They were here. I don’t—”Dominic spoke, cutting through her panicked rambling. “Where were you when they disappeared?”I knew he was angry, I could hear it in his voice, but it was buried under his calm face. I could not say the same for myself. My chest heaved as I fought to keep breathing through the panic and anger.“The backyard,” Annie stammered. “They were playing. I came inside to grab their snacks, and when I went back out—
Dominic’s POV“Alpha, they are at Olivia’s house.”The words came from one of my men over the phone and my grip tightened as he relayed what they had just confirmed.“We saw two kids being brought into Olivia’s place earlier tonight,” he said. “Didn’t think much of it until we got a closer look just now. It’s them, Alpha. It’s the twins you were looking for.” I was relieved to hear that the twins were alive and unharmed, but they were in Olivia’s house. A place they should never have been. And my pack territory was miles away from Killian’s, it would have been impossible for them to just wander around and end up here in a few hours.She must have taken them. And that thought made me more furious. Olivia had no right to touch the kids, worse, she had no fucking right to take them from their home. That’s kidnapping!“I’m on my way,” I replied, ending the call without waiting for a response.I turned to Samantha, who was pacing near the car, and her hands clenched into fists, trying to
[SAMANTHA’s Point of View]I couldn’t believe what I was hearing from my mate.Diana and Devon stood in front of me; both faces were filled with guilt as they fiddled with their fingers and pouted their lips, too embarrassed and ashamed of what they did.
[ALPHA DOMINIC’s Point of View]“You don’t understand the situation here, Alpha Dominic! I am helping you!”I snarl ripped in my throat as I pushed him away, dropping his body on the dusty, marble floor of the old library. I started walking in circles around him like a predator ready for the kill and was aiming to slit his throat if he ever made a wrong move.
[DEVON’s Point of View]“Devon, we have to go!”“Shhh!”“Madison must be already in the room!” Diana grabbed me by the arm and forced me to return to the playroom. ‘I
[SAMANTHA’s Point of View]I had to know what was really going on.Why was my mother involved with those people? What was her part in what was going on at Silver Crescent? All I knew was that Lena was my mother's best friend. They’ve always been together, discussing the issues in the pack, and Lena trusted Mom—her judgment and Mom’s advice were always appreciated by Mothe
[ALPHA Dominic’s Point of View]I was on my way to the pack house.My eyes were focused on the road while my mind was on Samantha and my kids. Feathers appeared on the muscles of my jaw as I ground my teeth. I couldn’t leave them when things like this happened in the pack. Liam was right. It was worse than we imagined, and the first thing I had to ensure was my family's safety.
[DEVON’s Point of View]I sensed something wasn’t right, and I knew Diana felt it.I caught her looking at me the second Madison and Cynthia left the room. I was anxious and confused, but Diana's stare made me confirm that these feelings were not just uneasiness but an instinct that she and I had been feeling since Mom suddenly disappeared days ago.“I’m scared, Devon,” Diana whispered as she pulled her blanket halfway over her face. “Can you feel it too?”I was scared, too, but I couldn’t show it to my sister. “Yes, something is wrong. Mom and Dominic have been acting strangely since they came back. Liam said they are just dealing with something to help the people of the pack.”“I can sense Mommy always being anxious,” Diana murmured, teary-eyed. “How long are we going to stay here? I miss home. I miss Annie.” she pouted her lips, almost crying.“It’s okay, Diana. I believe Mom is doing her best to solve whatever is happening.” I gave her a reassuring smile. “Things will be better.”
[SAMANTHA’s Point of View]After I read that horrifying letter, I thought of searching for any suspicious things around the manor, especially the twins’ room. How could those people perpetrate the inside of the pack manor?! Did they have spies here? Should I tell Dominic? Or will it only bring chaos to the pack, knowing there are enemies inside my husband's turf?The panic made my stomach tighten, and I decided to solve this alone. Dominic was already dealing with the incident at the eastern gates, and I couldn't distract him when he already had so many problems to attend to with his Beta. This would only divert my husband's focus to the real problem of the pack.“Miss Samantha, is there a problem?” Madison noticed my distress after I had slipped the letter into my jacket pocket. She looked at my pocket with a puzzled look and then at my face.“N-Nothing, Madison. Nothing's wrong. How are the kids? Are they asleep?”“Yes. Diana insisted she would rather not sleep yet, but Master Devon
[ALPHA DOMINIC’s Point of View]My brain kept convincing me that I had to stay and solve this.But my heart and feet wanted to go to where my car was parked, drive back to the Pack Manor, and stay with my mate and the twins.
[SAMANTHA’s Point of View]“I’m sorry if we have to head back so soon. I know you still have so many questions you want to ask Ethan, but Madison already texted me that the kids are looking for me.”“You shouldn’t feel bad about it, love. I know you want to focus on this matter as well. But the kids are important too. And after you were gone for days, Diana and Devon became too worr