NEILLA'S POV"Neilla." A voice called out to me, seeming so near but faraway, pulling me out of the car and into the darkness. The air was familiar, the noises of werewolves drew me nearer and when light beamed towards them, I realized that they were all faces I knew.I was back in the pack and the mysterious stranger was nowhere to be found. He had deceived me, the bastard, pretending to want to free me from the clawed grip of the retarded place but feeding me right to them. Within the next second, I felt a horrible pang of pain, like acid burning through my heart. "There was something in the water he gave you," My wolf gasped for air, choked. "He poisoned us."Then she went silent. Livid with anger at the manner of blatant betrayal, I searched around for him, promising myself to cut him to bits and pieces when I have him, but it started to look like bluff . With my wobbling stance and my vision blurry, how would that be a possiblity?I looked up just in time to catch the silhouette
LYKOS' POVIt was pitch dark by the time I stepped out of my car. The flight from Greece had been a long one, followed by the drive to the Moonstone pack. Regardless, two flights and a car drive later, here I was. In all the six hundred and something plus years of life I'd spent, I was managing without a mate, building my pack into an invincible empire, ensuring my people were safe and lacked nothing. All at my expense? Wrong. There was always a right time for things and now was it. There was no single doubt in my mind as I stepped foot on New Zealand's soil. I was determined to find her. Before I'd embarked on the journey, I'd been told by the oracle that this would be the place where I'd find what I most desired but so far, the most I'd gotten was the rotten stench of decaying animal matter. Was this where they laid their dead to rest? I glanced around, sensing no signs of life nor civilization. "How old is this pack again?" I stopped near a boundary marking, meant to separate
LYKOS' POVReaching into the duffel bag in my trunk which I always carried out, I searched for a change of clothes for my mate. Her injuries were gone already and she had been cleaned up by my hands. There was no way in hell I'd be driving out to the airport with her naked.I found a black, woolen turtleneck that stopped at her knees like a regular dress would and black joggers which I had to fold repeatedly at the waist. Obviously it wasn't her size but I had very limited options. The pack didn't even have go-to malls or anything of the sort either.Carefully, I laid her straight on the backseat, moving quickly to the driver's side so I could watch her easily while I drove. I started the ignition, pulling out of my parking spot and deftly maneuvering the car out of the place. "She really is beautiful." My wolf had peeked out to sneak glances at her. I concurred with a proud smirk on my face. "She is. And she's ours."In no time, I connected to the highway, speeding up so I could mee
LYKOS' POV"Stop!" She yelled out of nowhere, kicking against the window and scrambling to get out. There came again, the choking smell of fear. I was certain that this time, I wasn't the reason why.What then was she so afraid of?I turned away from the road long enough to speak to her. "You're going to hurt yourself if you don't stop doing that." My words appeared to work because she stopped slamming her feet into the window and now pinned me with an imploring gaze. She was still terrified. Tears rolled down her face."Please don't take me back, whoever you are. I can't go back there. I'll do anything you need me to, cook, clean, kiss your feet but please don't --" She choked on her words, wheezing suddenly as she gasped for air like fish out of water.Fuck! She was going into a panic attack. Without thinking, I veered off the main road, applying the brakes and leapt out of the car. In a flash, I was opening the passenger door to bring her out. Her knees buckled, threatening to pull
LYKOS' POVNot wanting to dampen the mood, nor ruin the vibe, I tried to crack jokes, retelling the most embarrassing stories of my experiences. My face lit up in surprise when she laughed at all my jokes. It came as a surprise because Annabella never laughed at any, and never hesitated to refer to me as a boring old man with whatever chance she got.I determined in my mind that things would take a different turn from henceforth. There would no longer any need to pin for Annabella's attention nor her validation because I'd be too busy pleasing my mate.My mate.I loved how it sounded in my head. Especially the time I'd rescued her from drowning and it had subconsciously rolled off my tongue in greek. Euphoric wasn't enough to describe the feeling.Despite the way she was cackling in laughter like a dying hyena next to me, the sounds appealed to me like the sweet chiming of heavenly bells would. She really was crafted to match me. Every once a while, the wind would blow against her hair
LYKOS' POVI heard my men approach from behind me but raised a hand, an order for them to stand down. "I'll handle it. Leave us."Fortunately, she'd missed a vein by the skin of my teeth but regardless, I still would have healed pretty quickly. Everything was under my control. Surprisingly, I was even more bothered about what had prompted such violent outburst than the bloodied look of my outfit or the state of my health. In only the short moment I'd spent with her, I was willing to carry the cross in her stead. I was as good as whipped.The wolf retreated, and she took control of her body, with a mortified expression across her features when her eyes scanned my body. It was an instinctive move, reaching out to pull her terrified frame into my arms even when she remained frozen to a spot. I still felt the tremors from the aftershocks of the nightmare and I concluded that her state of mind was all that mattered. She could be clawing into my skin now and I wouldn't bat an eyelid as lo
NEILLA'S POV"Lead the way." I beamed up at him, thinking of the possibilities spread out ahead. I was given a choice to start life afresh without having to feel indebted to anyone. What could be more convenient?He clasped his fingers over mine and leading me towards what seemed to be a luxurious jet, he issued orders to the men around us. They were also werewolves. I gawked at the jet in awe, craning my neck to admire the beauty that it was. Thanks to Mirald, I wasn't entirely clueless on the human inventories because she always made sure to sneak in a few magazines. Who cares where she got them from?"Is this what we're traveling to Greece in?" I quizzed when I looked around and couldn't find any other persons apart from his men."Yes, agápi. What do you think of it?" He replied with a side glance. Didn't he mention something about a palace? Just how much did he have? Was he an Alpha? "One question at a time, agápi. I'll explain everything later. First, we should be on our way."
LYKOS' POVI returned back to the cabin just in time to see Martin retreating into his corner and Neilla smiling so wide. She was so busy stuffing her face with food that she didn't notice me, which only had me wondering the last time she had a proper meal. I slowed my steps to a stop and watched her eat heartily. It was an addictive sight.I could list offhand a number of she-wolves who tried to act prim and proper by opting for smaller portions of foods or eating vegetables and salads. Wolves were created with a healthy ravenous appetite for food, so it only irritated me when werewolves attempted to control their cravings. However, Neilla didn't seem to care one bit. I wanted to attribute it to her pups but that wasn't it. She really was famished. When she finally noticed me, her smile only grew wider."Looks like Martin has been taking good care of you." I commented, emerging out of the shadows to take a seat opposite her. Even without a word, the twinkle in her eyes was all the e
NEILLA'S POV "You were saying, sweet uncle?" I smiled sweetly at him, enjoying the look on his face. For the first time ever, he bore an expression other than arrogance and it thrilled me to no end. Setting the book down without taking my hands off it nor my eyes off him, I ripped each page disregarding how it scalded my palms. I would heal eventually so it bothered me less. "No! Anything but that, please." He crumbled to his knees, as he begged. "Anything but that. That is all I have of my mate." "Wrong! She did not ask you to avenge her or go taking packs forcefully." I debated in an anger that led me yanking off more pages in quick succession. "If you have lost a mate, you would understand." That touched a sore spot in me and I paused in the middle of my actions. "Lies!" Nia spat out for the first time since I came back to life. "In that book is all the secrets of his existence as a hybrid alongside all the monsters that do his bidding. Do not fall for his wi
NEILLA'S POV I broke down, in shameful admittance of my failure to her. Everyone spoke of my mother in reverence in awe and when they knew I was her blood, they had exalted expectations of me. Even I had expectations of myself only to be slapped with the wicked truth. I was nothing compared to who my mother was before her death. "That's where you got it wrong, my daughter." My mother cooed, as she framed her face again with her soft hands. "You don't compare to me, I don't compare to you. I let sentiments get me into a trap that cost me my family, that cost me you." "If I had killed Vincent a long time ago, when I should have, you won't be in this mess. But I didn't, because he was family to me. He was my only sibling." She revealed, avoiding my face but laying strict attention to my hair. Was it something about my hair or something about the words she was saying? I wondered, pulling out of her hold. "Vincent was your brother and he killed you?" What kind of blood relation was h
NEILLA'S POV"That's not true!" Nia pulled my arm, trying her best to dissuade me from confronting Vincent by myself. "You can't be the Alpha's daughter, you don't know what you're saying!" We turned to her, a buzz of energy humming around us as we replied her. "It is true. If you hadn't said that lie, we wouldn't have been brought to our fate."We turned our focus back to Vincent who slowly descended the short flight of stairs, hands behind his back and that cynical smile on his face.The model definition of a psychopath. "No, Neilla. Let me handle him. Save the kids." Lykos ordered as he appeared by us in the blink of an instant. "I said this is my fight!" We roared suddenly. Frightened, the triplets scampered to Lenora quickly. "Stay out of my business and go be with them!" We warned with our voice ringing out clear.The vein in his neck ticked, his jaw did the same. He was angry with us but who cared? We wanted to get things done with once and for all. "Now, now." Venn's faux
NEILLA'S POV"I can't." Nia said, stopping us in our tracks. Before we started to raise our claws, impatient to strike her down and let ourselves out of the cell, she quickly filled in her reasons."If we do so together, Vincent might discover a little too early of my betrayal to him.""Like you haven't betrayed your own people already."Nia all but snapped at us. "We have already established that, Neilla. You don't have to bring it up everytime." She sighed, "As I was saying, you have to be in here for a few minutes while I go up alone. If the coast is clear, I'll send one of my trusted persons to come get you.""Let's hope they don't betray you too." My wolf spat out cynically before retreating back into the backseat of my head as I took rein now.I felt no remorse for my wolf's words. It was the truth anyway.She said nothing else in reply, went out of the room. Lenora proceeded to secure the locks from within and together we sat in the dim light of the lamp, waiting for her arriv
NEILLA'S POV My ears picked up on the sounds of commotion from way above us. Nia must have as well because she paused briefly so she could tilt her head to the side and listen. "What is that?" I asked in alarm. She shook her head, rose from her seat. "I cannot say for sure." She ventured close to the heavy doors. "If my guess is right, then Vincent, or should I say Lonnie, has lost his mind yet again." "Tell me, does this happen frequently?" I quizzed, my eyes following her every move even as I paid attention to the distant commotion. "You don't want to know how many times he loses his mind in a day. Whatever character he might have been displaying to you was a faux." She added, finally coming back to sit. The noise had all but stopped. However, it was reduced. I found that the kids were no longer playing with their toys. They probably heard the commotion too. I thought back to the short time Vincent add I spent in each other's presence. I found it almost impossible to
NEILLA'S POVNia arose from her position to give I and the triplets a moment to ourselves while she stepped to the darker room with the human girl, Lenora. The kids made sure to talk my ear off with half baked stories of their adventures, the friends they made who were just the fake servants that abducted them that day "I told them about our birthday." Jade was saying. She found a spot in the curve of my arm and settled there. "How aunt Nia told us to follow some people so she could have time with us."Her story drew my interest, same time repelled me. Did I really want to know how they were abducted? The truth of how it really happened?I decided against it. "That's enough, Jade. I'm glad you're here with me, alright?" She nodded and as she did so, the tendrils that were peeking from her crown, bounced."When mean uncle said you wouldn't come back to us, it hurt my feelings so much. I yelled at him and told him he was wrong. He was laughing at me." Juno said, his face reflecting t
NEILLA'S POVI hastened my steps, pushing to meet up with Nia who had become interestingly faster than she was some seconds ago. The servants who saw us coming only took a second to observe me, perhaps out of curiosity, before they immediately lowered their heads.I had seen more than ten of them do the same.What were they scared of?Who was Lonnie?"He's not going to do anything to his sister, is he?" I voiced out my thoughts as we hurried along the hallway that didn't seem to have an end.Nia's grip on my wrist tightened further and she inhaled sharply. "Trust me, you do not want to know."We took the very first turn before getting to the end of the endless hallway. It led us down several stairwells. A few servants met us on their way up. I heard their little whispers as soon as they thought we were out of earshot. "She's going to be in trouble." I managed to catch.I was already in trouble, that was a no-brainer. I was just yet to figure out a way to extricate myself and my tri
NEILLA'S POV.Nia recovered from the shock of seeing me. She turned to the siblings with an angry glare. "What is she doing here? I thought you said you were not going to bring her until you have made a bargain? Why didn't you give me a heads-up first?"Venn leaned back in her seat to regard Nia properly. She plucked one seed of grape and bit into it slowly, taking her time. She dropped the other half of it."I see you have forgotten your place. That is not a problem. Might I remind you that you work for me and not with me and you know what that means, right?" Nia rolled her eyes, nodded all the same. "Still, you should have said something."I didn't even let their conversation come to an end before I started to vent. "Nia, how could you?" We might not have been on cordial terms, but this was an outright betrayal of trust. "We trusted you.""Oh, please." She replied with scorn. "That was you being gullible and that's on you, not me."Everything started to make sense to me. Her sudden
NEILLA'S POVThe long walk from the portal brought us to a yard whose environment brought back a feeling of nostalgia to me. The stranger whose name was Lonnie, walked behind me as Venn went up front. She had reverted to her normal self on the way which I had to admit to myself, was more unnerving. The werewolf façade was a misleading representation of the true nature of her being. There was so much innocence in her pretence than in the form she presented to us.I decided instead that I could deal with the veiny, bloodthirsty vampire that she really was. At least, dealing with people in their true elements made all the work easy.We came to what resembled a throne room with vault ceilings, flower ornaments in each corner, an entire floor of polished marble against which the soles of my boots thudded.There were several paintings of one man whom I guessed was probably the Alpha. With a strong and chiseled jawline, a aqualine nose over a mouth that looked like it said little but promi