LAYLAAs I PICKED to my heels, a part of me expected the Alpha to shift into his wolf, and run after me for some unknown reasons. I turned my head backwards, and I could see the rest of the pack thrown into a frenzy, chasing after me while he stood in his human form watching. My mind broke into disappointment that he wasn't bothered about me, and it seemed rather strange I felt this way.The only lighting in the thick forest I was hurtling through, was the silver rays of the moon that shone down on some part of the dried leaves on the ground. The wide branches and leaves of the maple trees that crowded the area prevented the silver rays of the full moon from lighting up the woods properly. It was thick dark, that if I was in my human form, I wouldn't see a thing.My paws were beginning to ache, while my heart throbbed heavily against my chest. I was beginning to reduce the pace at which I ran, when I felt a claw reach for my hind ankle on the right, causing me to sustain a cut from th
HERMESONE HOUR HAD passed by trying to satisfy Greg's unending thirst for knowledge regarding Layla Luther.His inquisitive personality always provided analytic approach towards solving problems or mysteries. I wondered if he would have been better as a detective, lawyer or even a politician, than the veterinary doctor he was."I don't understand. Why would you want to spare a Lutheran, she is definitely part of the Silver Moon pack, but you chose to house her, and even struck Bennie so hard because he was doing your supposed will," Greg grumbled."She's not part of the Silver Moon and Bennie shouldn't have bitten her," I snapped, amidst rolling my eyes at Greg's inability to comprehend the situation."How do you know she is not part of the Silver Moon pack? She hasn't said anything yet Hermes," Greg replied, expressing his disappointment at my vulnerability.He believed I could easily be maneuvered since I was so emotional, which was absolutely wrong. He probably thought I was feeli
LAYLATHERE WAS SOMETHING odd about Alpha Hermes behavior at the mention of Jacob. I could smell an amount of anger that leaked from him. His emotions were mixed. A feeling of guilt, rage, and pain all merged as one."Did you know Jacob?" I asked, bringing an end to the deafening silence.His eyes glittered red, and he took two steps backwards.My body went numb out of fear, as those bloody eyes reminded me of my father's formidable anger.He shut his eyes, and opened them slowly. He appeared more calmer, but I was shivering out of fear."You don't have to be afraid, I would never harm you," he assured in a gruffy voice, without moving an inch from where he stood.I wondered what sort of pain Jacob could have inflicted on an Alpha that caused so much anger, and hatred at the sound of his name.I nodded in reply, as I regained my composure. He didn't need to yell for his presence to appear threatening like my father does, only his bloody red eyes communicated his anger that almost made
HERMESI FELT A cold knot of dread in my stomach when my mate, Layla asked if I had been mated to anyone else before her. Self guilt was beginning to drown me where I sat, that I darted to my room, opting to leave for the pack house before the stipulated time.No matter what I was told, my heart would not accept that I wasn't the major cause of Sarah's death.Here I was with another mate, who is an offspring of the Alpha that took my Sarah from me. And the moon goddess was cruel enough to pair us together. There's no doubt that I was feeling some sort of emotional attachment with my present mate which was unavoidable.I turned the keys of my room door into the keyhole, and it produced a click sound that signified it had been locked.My eyes darted to the left corner of the room, where my shelf was situated. It housed several books, but more of Sarah's photos.Since I had brought Layla to my house, I had not spoken to the photographic print of my former mate.My fingers traced the top
LAYLAMY BODY WAS accepting Alpha Hermes in a seemingly stupid and awkward manner. Every hair on my body was erected after thinking of his laughter, and I was beginning to flood with wetness at his sudden coldness towards me after I asked if he had a former mate.Every of his actions towards me had an effect, but he sure had several things to worry about other than me at the moment, with the current situation of his pack.The fact that he shouted at a female member of a pack on my behalf made me flood with another round of uncontrollable wetness. I never had anyone stand up for me all my life, but Hermes had proven that he'd always do so.Both my heart and vagina wouldn't stop beating for him, even at the seriousness of the situation at hand. My pant was totally soaked, but I managed to comport myself."Are you okay?" His deeply intoned voice filled my ears the same time I felt his fingers crawl up on my left palm."Yes I am," I whispered, with my lips spreading into a soft smile, aft
HERMESA DARK THREAT has shrouded and it's striking from the shadows. The death of Bennie caught me completely unguarded. Though I wanted to investigate the case alone, a helping hand would definitely be needed since I could not decipher the scent as any of our neighboring enemies, and I wouldn't want to drag my pack members into a personal feud. The death of one was enough.Bennie's murder bothered me, but not as much as the current situation with my present mate. I'd need to attain a perfect equilibrium between my mate and the pack. Somehow, most of them felt she was connected with Bennie's death which was impossible. There had been no suspicious activities or feeling that caught my nostrils since her arrival.As I found solace in the soft mattress situated at the centre of my room, I heard the tapping and dropping of water emanating from the bathroom.Layla was in there, taking a night shower. Should I join her? I asked myself, but quickly answered. It wasn't the time for such. Our
LAYLAINSTEAD OF WAITING for the Alpha to approach me first, I devised another method through which we could speak as I laid on my mattress in the thick darkness.As soon as the first cock crew, I got off my bed, put on my sneakers, tied my hair behind my back, and grabbed some cash I had seen under the bed the first day I found myself in this room. I stopped by Hermes room door indecisively, thinking I should check up on him before going for an early morning run. The thought crumbled at the imagination of ruining my chance to speak with him. I dashed out of the house at a sustainable pace, hoping my plan works.There was a lot of similarities between Palmdale and Westwoods except that the former seemed more lively than the latter. Or maybe, I wasn't familiar enough with the environment yet. But it sure had more trees than houses.As i hopped from one foot to another jogging, my thigh muscles were beginning to get heavy, while my stomach ached, and my heart kept beating faster the sam
HERMESTHE SCENT OF Layla's arousal still lingered in my room after a hour passed by. I couldn't tell If it provoked or excited me. I was mad at myself for the inability to exercise control. For a moment I had totally lost it when her red cherry lips jammed mine. Resistance seemed impossible, and my wolf gave in to her.With her strong sexual appeal, my wolf was starting to doubt I'd be able to pull through the investigation without sleeping with her, but I was determined to not make it happen.Bennie's murder was not the only reason I was restraining myself sexually from her. The guilt of Sarah's death was very much present in my heart no matter how hard I tried to brush it off."I shouldn't allow this to weigh me down," I whispered to myself, heading towards my wardrobe.I put on a flannel to accompany the black jean that fitted my waist, down to my ankle. The plan I had today with Layla was strictly training, and nothing would prevent that, irrespective of the lack of control displ
HERMESTHE SMILE plastered on my face from watching couples of the pack dance, most especially Hathor and Michael disappeared when I heard Layla's troubled voice. She was struggling to breathe. I stood from the couch and strained to listen but there was nothing. I called using the mind link, still no response."Turn this music down!" I growled, throwing my cup of beer on the floor. It shattered to pieces and garnered everyone's attention along with my growl. The music was turned off and Gregory ran out of the kitchen."Layla is gone," he said."You were with her just now.""Yes. She said she was going to be back but she's not anywhere around.""No, no, no. Who do you think is behind this?" I was evidently worried. If I had danced with her all of these wouldn't be happening."Let's not jump into conclusions. Maybe she went to get something few blocks away and..""I heard her whispering my name through the mind link, Gregory. From her voice I could tell she is in danger.""Oh crap! What
LAYLA "WHAT ELSE DO I do?" I asked rhetorically. "I turned on my family, he made me swear by the moon goddess after you left. Then late at night, he became cold. He thinks he can't trust me." "Can he?" Gregory asked with raised eyebrows. "What do you mean can he? Haven't you been listening? I've literally sacrificed every other thing just to be here." Gregory nodded. "I get you. But you need to give him time, he is scared that's just it. He knows your family is out there and it bothers him that you can return to them anytime." "No, I can't. What are you saying Gregory?" "I'm telling you the Alpha's mind. He doesn't trust you anymore." "There's no way I can return to my family. They won't accept me after the stunt I pulled with them. Not like they were genuinely interested in me from the start. If not for what Alpha Hermes and this pack made me become, I wouldn't be revered by them in the first place." "Hmm," Gregory adjusted his position on his seat, leaning forward and placi
JACOBWITH EVERYTHING I had done for Layla, I wouldn't allow a local Alpha to brainwash her. She was definitely under a sort of spell. I've known her all my life, shielded her from every threat and stood by her when no one else did. Why would she want to choose someone she met less than a year ago over me? He was below standards, a local Alpha to a true blood. I grabbed a small glass vase placed on the table on my room and sent it crashing to the floor, leaving the flowers with no place of residence. I paced crazily around the room, thinking of what else I could do to win Layla over. There was no way I was letting her go. We were meant to rule the Silver Crescent pack as mates before that stupid Alpha came into the picture. He had to die, he and his whole pack. They all needed to be extinct. The support of the current Alpha was crucial. There was no way they could deny the extinction of the desert wolves wouldn't be the best thing to happen at this point. The chief council of werewolv
HERMES I DIDN'T KNOW what to think. I least expected Layla to abandon her family for me. It was confusing. What should I have expected if she warned me of her family's plan beforehand? Maybe she was being deceitful, and this was a plot to get vital information from me pertaining to the chief council of wolves. I needed to be careful. It was necessary to admit, I felt relieved seeing her. It did not occur to me that she was in the vehicle taken down by Gregory. If I knew beforehand, I would have told him to use another vehicle for distraction. The way she stood up for my pack in front of her own was commendable, regardless of whatever harm that befell her as a result of our sudden attack. Still, it could be a ploy. My feelings remained for her but not an iota of trust was left. To build a solid relationship, trust is needed. I pulled over at the driveway of the house and heaved a sigh. Today was a huge relief even if I didn't act like it. No member of the pack was lost and Layla is b
LAYLAI WAS PACING around my room ruminating on why Alpha Hermes didn't pick up his phone when I called. He refused to respond to any of my text either. Was he that mad at me? Or Hunt had gotten to him. Perhaps, Jacob went to Westwoods secretly with another pack unit to end the Alpha. Several thoughts kept running through my mind. I was trying to stay sane. I should probably return to Westwoods no matter the cost.As the hours passed, my fear and anxiety increased. I couldn't sleep or eat. I was really worried. I felt very foolish for telling my family about the conversation between I and Hermes. Now I was going to send everyone to an early grave including James and the man I loved. I was almost in tears. Night had taken over the day and there was little or nothing I could do to stop the coming massacre.I decided to speak to Jacob and Derek at the same time. I should be able to talk them out of it. I communicated with them using the wolf link and we agreed to meet at the living room.
HERMES"GIVE ME A goddamn reason to trust you after what you did to me last night, huh?" the sheriff barked."Because we could have taken down your whole team this morning, but we chose not to and decided to come along as your friends. Can't believe you show your hospitality to friends by shooting them and locking them in a cage," I responded in a guttural whisper, leaning towards the prison bars."Alright, let me handle this, Alpha." Gregory stepped forward, pulling me backwards. We had been locked up for two hours while the sheriff was doing his duties. He didn't look a bit comfortable; he was probably finding it hard to comprehend the changes in his system."Listen, Sheriff. You are putting us all at a big risk, including yourself," Gregory stated."How? You bastards are to be blamed for whatever crap I'm feeling now and you expect me to let you get away with it?" The sheriff interrupted harshly."Relax, your voice is a bit loud. I know how you feel, I know everything is loud and i
LAYLAHEARING THE ALPHA rage frightened me so much. I couldn't bear to listen anymore. I dropped the phone with shaky hands. I was not sure if my choice was right. I know my heart was with Hermes, and nothing could be done to change that. But with the anger filled voice I just heard, it was hard to tell which feeling was greater, the fear or love I had for him. He just threatened I and my family. Honestly, I was scared to my marrow. Not because of the threat, but because I had no idea which side to be on if things escalated into a war between the packs.My phone rung. I had no effrontery to pick knowing it was him. Right now, all I needed was space to think. Behind the anger he showed were broken pieces he was trying to hide, that I could understand. Though, I wanted to be with Hermes, I had to play it cool with my family and Jacob. Things appeared to be under control since I agreed to stay. I know it could go out of control if they knew my mind was changed.Instead of sleeping in the
HERMESMY EYES OPENED at the sound of my ringing phone. What was so important that couldn't wait till dawn. This was the middle of the night and I was trying to sleep off my worries. I reached for my phone and contemplated picking it or not since it was an unknown number. I opted for the former and to my delight, it was the voice I yearned to hear."Layla?" I inquired, amid jumping off my bed in a mixture of surprise and excitement."Yes," she responded."I miss you. Where have you been?"There was silence. "Hello." I walked towards the window anxiously. Probably, she was outside, calling on me to open the door."I'm with my family," she responded finally. I almost wish she didn't. My fear was confirmed. Still, I refused to believe.I chuckled. "Nice joke. But your family is right here. Are you outside? Do you need me to get the door for you?" There was no response again. "Hello."She sniffed. "No, I'm not. I mean I'm with my real family, the Silver Crescent pack."My heart was so hea
LAYLAGLASS CUPS PRODUCED a clank as they touched each other. Everyone had a smile on their face. "Cheers!" We all said amid gently ramming our cups into each other while an orchestra performed in the hall-like living room. Our mission to take out an important pack member in the hierarchy of the North claw was successful. Thanks to my plan.While the North claws were too busy celebrating their new affiliations with members of various packs including ours, I, Jacob, and Derek were waiting in one of their rooms for a beta or two of the pack to walk in then we strike.We were shocked when the Alpha of the North claw pack walked into the ambushed room. It turned out we were in the wrong room, but it was for the best. We targeted betas of the pack, but the moon goddess walked the Alpha into our trap. Who were we to back down out of fear?The fight with the Alpha was tough. He matched the energy of three betas. He was indeed a strong Alpha. Eventually, we won, breaking off an arm before sli