Hi Readers! I apologize for the delay. Work has been crazy, but the updates will get back on track. Enjoy and feel free to comment.
~Nona~ I’ve had my freedom for a bit now, but it isn’t real freedom. I can’t leave this damn house. The only freedom I feel is the fact that I’m no longer chained like an animal and Zora has finally come back. She is as torn as I am though. She feels the mate bond fully, but hates Nero as much as I hate Laslo. They are holding us here against our will. Laslo comes and goes and when he’s here, the mate bond wins out and we have our way with each other. When he is gone, I reflect on my situation and I feel sick to my stomach. In reality, I’m feeling sick in real life. I have spent so much time bending over the toilet, emptying my stomach. I know what this could be, but I don’t want that to be the case. I don’t want to be tied to Laslo forever. I want to gather as much strength as I can and reject his ass. I just can’t find that strength in me. Zora can’t find it either. She has been so quiet and so defeated. We have always wanted our mate, but never under any circum
~Zahara~ Cory completely freaked out when I told him we need to introduce him to the pack. I know how nerve racking that can be, especially under these circumstances. I know he is afraid of how the pack will receive him, but he has to have faith that he will be welcomed with open arms. Cory and I spent the night in bed, but we just held each other and talked. I always enjoyed talking to Cory, even when it was just a short homeroom class in high school. We would discuss anything and everything and I always felt so at ease with him. It probably should have occurred to me that he was my mate, but I had no idea. We decided a short announcement at dinner the next day would be enough of an introduction. I don’t want to over do it for Cory. He is still very timid about a lot of things and I don’t want him to spiral out. My parents agreed that a short introduction at dinner would be the best way to handle this situation. I had some reports to finish u
~Lennox~ Zahara stares at me, waiting for me to tell her what’s going on. I have to admit that I don’t really know what to say. I know Cory has had no formal training and that his world has been forced down for so long. I also know that Cory is of Alpha blood, but I wasn’t prepared for what happened. I wasn’t prepared for what I experienced today.*Flashback* “Good job, Cory. Make sure you put your weight on that back foot and put all of your power into your swing.” Cory is taking direction really well, I have to say. I guess I shouldn’t be surprised. He is used to taking orders and his Alpha blood makes him a bit of a natural. Cory is a quick study and that will make this process so a lot smoother. Cory continues to practice the moves I have been teaching him when we are interrupted by the last voice I really want to hear. “Well look at what we have here boys……the wolfless wonder!” Shit……the terrible trio. How isn’t that they made their way here? We are
~Zahara~ I did not expect to hear what Lennox just told me. He said that Cory’s Alpha aura is stronger than my own and I know mine is pretty strong. He fought back and broke Frankie’s bone; that, alone, is crazy and so not like Cory. He is usually meek and quiet, letting things happen around him while he tries to zone out. I guess having his wolf wake up is changing a lot about Cory and I can’t really be mad about that. Lennox leaves me after telling me everything that happened with training. I am tempted to find Cory and check on him, but I decide not to. I don’t want him to think that I need to check up on him constantly. I want him to be bold and make choices on his own. The more I think about what Lennox told me, the more I believe this may actually be for the best. Word will spread about what happened with the terrible trio and that will bolster Cory’s image with the pack. They won’t see him as some weak, wolfless person. They will see him as str
~Zahara~ Silence fills the room and I’m in awe. Everyone is suffering under the weight of my mate’s aura. Everyone except myself and my parents. Being Cory’s mate means that I don’t fall to his aura; he doesn’t have that type of power over him and it’s the same for me. My parents are still the current Luna and Alpha so they have more power than myself and Cory right now. Neither of my parents has said anything about what is going on. I would have expected them to stop this or reel Cory in, but they are just watching everything unfold. My mom is shaking her head, but she has a slight grin on her face. My dad actually looks proud. He is sitting in the chair tall and proud. My eyes find Frankie and I watch him. He looks to be dying under the weight of Cory’s aura. His arm is in a sling and he is sweating profusely. I reach out and gently touch Cory. He doesn’t look at me, but I can feel his aura receding. Cory takes a step away from the table to fully face
~Zahara~ I could feel Cory’s uneasiness all night long. I tried to calm him, but nothing I said or did worked. His nervousness is not unwarranted, but it is a lot to deal with. I was never going to be able to keep him hidden forever and I think he may have forgotten that. I know he is worried about his old pack finding out he isn’t dead. The real issue is that he can’t remember who did this to him so he is worried that they will try again when they realize he survived. I sympathize with him, but this is where we are. I’ve been up since early this morning. Cory finally dozed off and I took the opportunity to go train. It was an intensive training and I’m glad I decided to do it. I needed the workout just to get some stuff out. It has been a crazy few days and I needed to let some things out. Walking out of the training area, I run into Lennox. “You did well today Len. You really got me moving.” Lennox chuckles and falls into step with me. “How
~Zahara~ This is it! This is happening right now! Cory’s lips on mine have to be what heaven on Earth would feel like. The sparks are amazing and Cory is touching every inch of my mouth with his tongue. Every so often our tongues wrestle, but I don’t let it last too long. Cory is so hard and that is making me so wet. I just got out of the shower and at this rate, I will need to take another shower before I can go downstairs. I run my hand up and down Cory's erection through his pants, wishing I could have skin-to-skin contact. I don’t want to push Cory so I let this play out. Cory has a hand running up and down my thigh and it feels amazing. His hand starts to go up my through higher, finding its way to my hip. Cory snakes his hand around and grabs my ass with a squeeze. I moan into Cory’s mouth and he pulls back. I look at him curiously. I wonder if he isn't ready for all of this. I wonder if I pushed him too far. I want Cory to be comfortable and I wa
~Zahara~ It’s taking everything in me to try to calm Aria and not give in to her anger. If I were to do that, let her take over, we would end up at Wild Tails pack and slaughter everyone. I wouldn’t just stop at those who have directly wronged Cory. I saw how he was treated at school, so most likely, the entire pack was hateful to him. I doubt I would leave anyone breathing. Cory is doing his best to try to calm me, and I know Sylas is trying to soothe Aria. I just don’t understand how people can treat someone as they did Cory. Not just someone but the former Alpha’s son and a child on top of that. Cory has been treated this way for as long as he can remember. Since when is it okay to be abusive and hateful toward a child? Everyone returns to the office after a while, but I can’t focus on the rest of the meeting. My mind is so clouded in sorrow and anger that I can’t grasp what’s going on around me. We need to end this pack’s hatefulness. We need to find
~Third Person~ Four months have passed quickly, and so much has happened. The Wild Tail pack quickly got over the loss of their known leaders. Everyone wasn’t on board with Cory as Alpha, but no one felt strongly enough to voice their opposition. Cory and Zahara made some changes to how the pack treated others as well as how they went about daily life. Cory’s hope was to have everyone feel welcomed and everyone works together to keep the pack going. Even pack members who are against Cory can’t deny the benefits he was bringing to the pack. Cory and Zahara officially take over the Ash Band pack as well. Things continue to go smoothly there as they had before. Flora decided to stay at the Ash Band pack, there being too many negative memories back home. Flora and Maurice found a few common interests and are rarely without each other. The elders took Frankie because of his crimes against his Alphas. Len and Justin were given the opportunity to do better and o
~Zahara~ Elder Langston had his people take away Margaret and Gunner. He had them get rid of Laslo’s body. There were some wet eyes among the members and a lot of distrusting looks thrown toward Cory. I understand that years-long misinformation can’t be fixed in a matter of minutes, but at some point, they will have to let certain things go. I stay near the stage in case anyone had any questions, but no one is approaching me. Cory is off speaking with Elder Langston while his people take care of the cleanup. This entire situation has been crazy but necessary in the end. There is no way that Cory and I could enjoy our future with any of this hanging over our heads. I hate that Cory had to lose so much, but I will be sure to try to make up for it for the rest of our lives. I notice Lennox sitting in a chair, leaning back, looking up at the sky. He has been quiet since we returned, and I’m not sure what’s going on. I should probably talk to him, but before I
~Cory~ I have to say, as surprised as I am, I'm ecstatic for Cyrus. He is a good guy and has always tried his hardest to do right by my dad and me. I'm glad that he finally gets to have his happiness. As great as all that is, it's time to face the crowd. Zahara and I walk outside so we can address the pack. They were told to meet for an announcement, and it seems that everyone has gathered. It's hard to look out into the crowd. I have known everyone here for some time, and they haven't been the best to me. Some of the pack has treated me indifferently, not really doing anything against me or helping me. Others got their jollies from treating me horribly, and I will never forget that. Zahara and I stand off to the side, surveying the group. Lennox and Elder Langston are standing on the small stage that was put up for this. We are in the back of the packhouse, where there is way more space to fit all of the pack members. We watch Bryn and Cyrus walk by, wea
~Zahara~ Cory is so much stronger than he realizes. He keeps getting thrown curve balls, but he rises above and makes it out the other side. I’m not sure how I would have handled all that Cory has had to deal with. We sorted through the presented evidence, which is all compelling. Elder Langston has gone through it and has alerted the other elders. Everyone now knows what happened to former Alpha Brian Williams, and it’s tragic, to say the least. He picked a woman who he felt would make a good chosen mate. He accepted her son and treated him as his own. The minute he brought in his own son, there was an issue, though. From the information we gathered, it looks like they decided to end the Alpha’s life because of Cory because Cory exists. His existence is a reminder that the Alpha created a child with someone else. The thing about it is that he met his fated mate. The fact that they didn’t immediately choose each other is a testament to his loyalty and se
~Cory~ I’m so so tempted to end him right here and right now. Laslo is passed out, and it would take nothing for me to snap his neck this way or even rip his throat out. A hand into his chest, going for the heart, would work as well. Something in me is telling me that isn’t the way to go, that I need to be better about this. I let Laslo drop to the floor and get some warriors to fit him with silver chains so he can be transported back. Nona is still holding onto my mate, and it's a bit troublesome. I want nothing more than to rip her from Nona and truly show her how much I missed her. It is a struggle to hold myself back at this moment, but I really don’t have much choice. “What are you going to do with him?” Nona is using a whispered voice. A part of me doesn’t understand why she should care, but then again, it makes sense. They were fated mates, and that is something hard to turn off. Yes, they rejected each other, but those feelings can still linger to
~Cory~ Laslo came at me quickly, throwing his fist at my face, but I was able to dodge it. That didn’t deter him, as he threw an elbow back and was able to connect with my ear. We kept going like this; Laslo coming at me and me dodging his attacks. Laslo quickly became angered and shifted into his wolf. I spent some time fighting his wolf in human form, and that seemed to anger him even more. I have never been in a position to fight back or to defend myself before, Laslo always having an advantage over me. Now I know who I was always meant to be, and that isn’t someone who is supposed to be a punching bag. Once I shift into my wolf, things get more interesting. Laslo is coming at me again and again while I try my hardest to cut him off. I want to end him, but I don’t want it to be quick. There is no enjoyment if he isn’t able to fight back a bit. Laslo is fighting back. He continues to swipe at me, and each connection is a new sting. I can feel
~Zahara~ Laslo left the room quickly, and that propelled me to try to get out of these restraints. I have to get myself free before Laslo comes back, or I’m sure that he will try to finish what he started. I don’t know how long he’ll be gone, so time is of the essence. I twist and pull, trying my hardest to loosen up the ropes around my wrists. These ropes seem to be expertly tied. The ropes are as tight as when I first got there. Damn, I wish I had Aria right now. I could be out of this quickly by just extending a claw and slashing the ropes. I shake that thought out of my head and focus on the task at hand. The hallways are filled with the sounds of people crying and screaming. I want to know who’s attacking. Maybe it’s actually my pack; if it is, I know I will be out of here soon. If it isn’t my pack, I need to get free, so I can defend myself if needed, but these damn ropes won’t budge. GRRRRRRR! I can hear screams, ‘stop
~Laslo ~ “We’re under attack.” “FROM WHO?!” I growl out, shaking the cave and causing dust and pebbles to rain on our heads. “I…..I….I’m nnn…nnot sssssssure.” Pathetic! I push past the weak wolf with the intent of seeing what the hell is going on. I turn to Zahara, seeing her bent at the waist and breathing heavily. “We will finish this later.” I head down the hall and watch people running back and forth in front of me. I have no idea who is attacking, but I plan to find out. “Laslo!” I see my mom at the cave entrance, and she looks distraught. “What the hell is going on, mom?” She looks outside the cave, at me, and back again. “It’s Ash Band. They found us.” I growl ferociously, and those around me still look fearful. “Take care of Nona and Zahara. I will handle this; it won’t take long.” I can’t believe that weak fucker actually found me and came out here. What did he expect would happen if we met
Time went by fast but slowly at the same time. I tried to sleep and eat, but the anxiety of what's to come took over. I'm beyond ready to start this because I will have my mate back when it's over. I will be able to breathe again once I get my mate back. I head downstairs and out the door to meet with everyone else. Lennox is waiting for me with Elder Langston, Beta Cyrus, and a bunch of our warriors. We have a plan and are ready to go with it. It will take us about 45 minutes to get to the area of caves. We plan to travel in three groups and come from different angles. The plan is to take the site with as little bloodshed as possible. The only blood I want spilling is Laslo's, and I want to take care of it myself. We divide into groups, and half of us in each group shift into our wolves. The rest of us get on all-terrain vehicles to back us up. They will stop a bit away from the area and pick up anyone who tries to flee. We start to run, and I