RYLAN'S POV I pushed away from the shelves, walking briskly over to the desk situated in the middle of the room. On top of it was an endless pile of old books and I was starting to hope they weren't as useless as the others. My fingers quickly thumbed through the hard covers in search for the one that matched Vlad's description; dirty brown and worn out.As I looked around, I realized almost all the books were the same. Dirty and worn out on all four corners. It was almost an impossible search.The entire collection of books had me on second thoughts. How long had the pack been around for? How come was I not informed of a pack like this?There ought to have been a reason why my father never talked much about them. A reason he probably must have died with.That little reasoning sparked my interest to go through more books to get what I came looking for. If I could find the book, I could get answers to the plague and not just that, I could uncover other things. Certain things were feeli
NEILLA'S POV"Mother!" I screamed, frantically trying to shake her awake. She couldn't leave when I needed her the most. Not when I had no one else to lean on for support, not when everything I thought I had was slipping out of my fingers. Fate was playing a cruel game, dealing a crippling blow right in the spot where it would sting the most.The door burst open and Mirald stumbled in, skidding to a stop when her eyes fell upon Mana Sylveon lying on the bed with her eyelids open as well as the frozen smile on her lips. While I returned to trying to revive her, Mirald offered no help."Don't just stand there, Mirald. Get help. Call Matteo if you have to. I'm losing her. Please..." I cried out in a hysteric voice, fingers trembling and my heart working overtime to keep up with the various emotions coursing through me.Her shuddering sigh filled the room. "I'm sorry, Neilla. There's nothing that can be done now. Mana Sylveon already mentioned that she was going to pass away sooner than
NEILLA'S POV"You're going to leave me?" Matteo asked, disbelief coating his bright blue eyes an extra shade darker. He was also angry and I understood his point of view. It would hurt like betrayal if I was in his shoes. "How long have you been planning this? How long did you intend to keep it away from me?" He quizzed again, anger flashing across his hardened structure. His eyebrows which used to be perfectly arched but now had a busy appearance, furrowed deeply. I let go of Mirald so I could manage my way over to him. "It's not what you think it is, Matteo. Hear me out, will you?"His jaw flexed. He was enraged but calm enough to nod his agreement for me to go on.I glanced up at him. From my advantaged angle, I could see the weeks old beard on his jawline. "Look at me. Look at the things that have been happening to me. First, I get pregnant by that jerk I got paired with for a mate, next I lose one of my pups, right after it's flushed out of me, Mana Sylveon passed away--""So q
NEILLA'S POV The crisp night air bit into my skin, sending icy chills down my arms and spine as I moved quickly among the trees in the woods. So far, I'd manged to dodge a few werewolves along the way, having masked my scent with a strange liquid I'd gotten from Mana Sylveon's old room. I'd seen her use it a couple times.The sound of dried leaves crunching underneath my boots was the only proof of life, everywhere else was dead silent. Occasionally, a call and response chorus would ensue between ravens overhead. Shadows of tress fell in horizontal lines on the ground, an effect of the rising moon from the west of the area I was. Every now and then, my heart would pick up in rhythm to match my breathing pattern; in and out, in and out. Other times, it would begin a fit of slamming furiously as though it could perceive danger looming. Now was one of those times. My swift movements slowed down to a jog before coming to a final stop, peeking out from behind a large tree which served a
NEILLA'S POV The pain shot directly into my head. Regret came flooding into my system as I felt a vein threaten to split open. The insane creature didn't look like it was gonna let go anytime soon.Although I had gone past skilled soldiers, it didn't appear like I was going to make it out of the den of trouble I was in. My wolf's breathing soon became labored. The amount of blood spilling from the bites was beginning to take a toll on us. Mustering every strength we had and with sharp pointy claws, my wolf struck a blow into the belly of the animal gripping our neck.The impact of our blow had it faltering in its grip. Still, it didn't let go. We struck another blow, digging further into it, making a sudden upward movement before pulling out our claws. Along with our sudden withdrawal came the innards of the creature. Its grip loosened as it crumbled on the dried leaves in a heap.Rage pulsed through us as we swiped our claws in quick succession at the filthy creature with its teeth
NEILLA'S POVI didn't know how long I was out for but by the time I was awake, I found myself staring up at a strange ceiling, a moving ceiling actually.No. The house I was in was moving. The sun was slowly peeking out from the clouds to herald a new dawn. The purple/violet skies was hard to miss."What the --" I yelped, as the building shook suddenly, prompting my fall from the seat to the carpeted floor. I was having trouble breathing, yet I needed to know how in the hell I got here."You're finally awake." A deep masculine voice rang out above me. I tried to raise my head so I could look at my abductor but I could only make out hazy features."Where am I? What's happening to me?" I blinked severally to clear my foggy eyesight and focus. "You're safe now, Agapiméni mou. I'm taking you to safety for the time being and afterwards, we will discuss what you were doing in the forest at such wicked hour of the morning." He spelt out again. Even in the semiconscious state I was, his voic
NEILLA'S POV We drove for hours and hours, on a long trail of road which stretched on far ahead of us. I was growing tired of sitting still in a place and my buttocks was starting to hurt. My throat was parched and dry, so was my enthusiasm to start life in another pack. I swallowed painfully as we drove through another billow of dry dust.I groaned out in an exasperated manner. "Where the hell are we even going? We've gone past this road a thousand times. Are you sure you're not some mentally depressed psycho going round and round like this is some toy?" "Ouch." He passed me a feigned look of hurt, pressing his hand over his heart before giving me a boyish grin that had my cheeks coloring slightly again.What was this stranger doing to me?I had to pull my eyes away from his distracting grey ones so I could focus. Despite the fact that I was pregnant, my self-restraint was ticking on explosion.I lolled my head to lean on the glass only to feel a slight pull at the other side of my
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
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