-RAINA’S POV- Valen threw his head back and released a rumbling, sonorous laugh. What was the joke? I thought that he’d be mad at me. When he finished laughing, he intently gazed at me, pulled his lips into a lopsided smile, and sneered. “You know my feelings so well, Raina.” What should have been a silent battle between us transformed into an activation of passion. Depth cried out to depth as the venereal mate bond did tug-of-war through our locked eyes. “Valen!” Luna Sianna vehemently demanded a direct answer, breaking up our fervid tussle. Gingerly, his deprecated emerald orbs met the challenging gaze of his mother. “Of course not.” His enunciating tone abetted me to question the stark assurance of the declaration. He was really frustrating, but still, I simpered in self-satisfaction. His obsessive gaze was fixed on me in a way that stated he was going to make me pay for it. It was unfair to put him in the spot, but it was time for me to step out and demand that he claim me. H
-RAINA’S POV- "Why does he get to stay?" Vaheed shoved his way forward past the others, displaying utter disapproval. “He should not be around her!” Instantly, Valen erected himself from the wall, facing Vaheed. His wolf bared his teeth and showed his presence and possessiveness, as his claws extended. Losing his temper slammed a gargantuan aura into the entire room. Veins populated on his forehead. He was ready to finish the brawl that had started at the bar in Furborg City. Vaheed flinched because this time Valen’s attacking position was different. It was dark, turbulent, and hellish. Clutching the sky-blue sheet, I held my breath and my heart beat wildly. My pulse thumped inside my ears. They should not be fighting again. Oh, goddess! A premonition of Vaheed's blood sprinkling over the white hospital floor tiles flashed across my mental vision. Two fighting alphas would be terribly bloody. “Boys, end this now!” Even Luna Sianna was peeved with her twitching eyebrows. Vance, th
-RAINA’S POV- Ultimately, Valen sighed in surrender and acquiesced with a go-ahead expression. My wolf yipped and warmth curled inside my gut. I wanted to kiss him right then. Too bad every part of me ached, preventing that reality. Additionally, the agonizing sensation from the physical contact would turn that first kiss into nothing more than a horrible memory. Doing the honors, I announced, since he wouldn't clear the air. "Valen's my mate. That’s why he wants to stay by my side." A sheen of happiness coated me. My eyes brimmed with tears of mirth and the smile tugging my lips broke into a pleased grin. A spark flared in his emerald orbs as they penetrated mine with a look that gave me a pleasant chill. Despite my ailment, excitement filled me. Can I jump on him now? Instantly, I wanted everybody to clear the room. "Oh, goddess!" Venus shrieked gleefully, then abruptly dulled in facade. "Oh." She realized what that meant for Vaheed and Valen, and quaked, "Oh no." In retaliatio
-VALEN’S POV- "Son, we need to talk." Dad summoned me through our mental link. "Come to my office." "I'll be there in a few minutes," I replied, and cut the link, opening my eyes and using my fingers to massage the ache in my forehead in a clockwise, circular motion. “You better not leave our mate’s side,” my wolf dictated. His pining augmented the same headache that I was trying to expel. “The meeting is important and we need help with our mate bond.” I reminded him in annoyance. It was inevitable that Dad would meet with me and Vaheed after our fighting. Dad encouraged unity among his children. He was strict, principled, and disciplined. Only Venus got the softer side of him. “Devin, I need you to stay with Raina while I go and see my father.” I beckoned my future Royal Beta. “I’m on my way,” he reported. Previously, Raina had gone quiet until she fell asleep. I never left the hospital room and was still sitting in the chair next to her bed. I was angry at myself for her suf
-VALEN’S POV- "That's not good enough!" The senior witch did not deserve my pugnacity. At this point, I could not control how unsettled my wolf was with what we were hearing. This was fucking insane. I can't stand another minute in this useless meeting. After relying on these witches for a solution, I sat here and was being told that they had none. I sprang from my seat and began pacing the floor. My aggression was building and I was about to shift. My hands clenched and uncoiled as my breathing increased due to exasperation. "Marlena will have to retrace Valen's and Raina's activities for the day before we can affirm anything," Miriam spoke to Dad, unfazed by me. She was accustomed to our alpha paroxysm in years of dealing with both Grandpa Victor and Dad. Due to the old Lycan-witch covenant established with the royal lineages, as long as they are honorable and help to protect our pack, we would never hurt them. "What do we do in the meantime?" Teary-eyed Hailey emotionally aske
-VALEN’S POV- Dr. Stone and three nurses clad in white uniforms and stockings surrounded a vigorously panting Raina. Washed in cold sweat, she sat up in bed holding the two sides of her head, her wide eyes blinking furiously. Flush-faced and frightened, shaking uncontrollably with the rapid drumming of her heart, she seemed completely whelmed by the mental terrors. Under her own deluded mind's seizing attacks, she was a victim held captive in its dark abyss. “Raina, sweetie,” Grandma Stone spoke calmly. “You’re safe. The earthquake is over.” Desperate whimpers came from her and she kept repeating my name. Making me want to do something, anything, to alleviate her pain. I'm uncertain that Raina and I will ever feel the power of the mate bond like we ought to in its natural course. Or even if there was a 'Raina and I’. Devin stood at the right side of the three-sided covered sepia bedside table observing. As her pain connected intensely within me, details of the world around me fade
-VALEN’S POV- Painstakingly, I had to leave Raina to collect the necklace from Miriam. It's very beautiful and I think she will especially like the gold chain that goes with the pendant. She's pissed that I left in the middle of our conversation, but I presumed that the necklace might essentially come in handy. Taking all precautions was necessary. I'll protect her with my life. We can't live like this. Her tiny voice replayed in my head. It's true, I will not deny it. Also, it left me speechless. The truth of the matter was that I was addicted to her. As daunting as the separation was, she had no idea how I zealously aimed to be her everything. I wanted to kiss her frown away and soothe all her discomfort. Tingles shoot all over my body despite barely touching, and that would be the mate bond declaring that she's the one. Perfectly born to complete me. It hammered my fucking soul that I couldn't walk with her cradled in my arms from the hospital. Currently, I was on the ground f
VALEN’S POV What on earth was this attitude for? For a long suspended moment, I was left frozen in my spot, contemplating the best course of action to defrost the fiery darts she was pointing at me. My wolf wildly circled my head as he understood our predicament. The plight had him acting like he was pmsing. He jumped around and scratched in my head irrepressibly. With Raina, he exclusively displayed this unruly behavior. Naturally, at her discomfort, his initial reaction would always be to caress her. It made being around her hard, but being away from her was even more challenging. “Calm down, Zeus,” I warned, and blocked him out to obstruct the control he was tackling me to have his way in touching Raina. “Don’t pretend that you don’t want to hold her,” he yapped. “My forearms are empty and just waiting for her to live in them.” “I do understand, but you know the dangers. Stop behaving like a drunk nutjob.” I scolded and pushed him into a dark corner since he would not comport
VALEN’S POV-I side-eyed Gamma Blayne furiously. He immediately bowed his head and averted his gaze.The stench of blood got stronger, permeating my senses, causing my legs to speed up. I can't stand the thought of any more of our members getting hurt or killed."What the hell..." I trailed off as I inched closer, crouching down and examining the line of dead bodies. It was just downright sick and twisted to use them for a ransom note effect.A chill entered the air that made everyone shiver. Raina’s eyes widened at the gruesome sight.Venus gasped, going pale with a hand flying over her mouth. “This is barbaric.”All their necks were slashed by claws and two of the deceased were used for the punctuation marks. Reading from left to right, it stated: ‘We have not forgotten, and we are coming for her.’Gamma Blayne crouched at the lifeless body next to me. He touched the wound on the man’s chest, inspecting it. “The gashes aren’t as deep as you’d expect, but this one got a double tap en
VALEN’S POV-Together, Theo, Thaines, Jason, and I pushed forward in our wolf form. Leaves and twigs crunched under our pounding paws. The sight of the full moon took its turn in the sky and the faint wind skimmed my fur.The grim sound of battle reached my ears long before we reached the outskirts of the station. We arrived united, skidding to a halt as we met the bloody scene with hard eyes and fangs bared. The air was thickened with the stench of sweat, blood, and death. Gruel residues of combat.Looking around the field for a target, the sounds of gnashing teeth, angry snarls, and painful shouts that had previously filled the air vanished with the rogues that swiftly fled through the tree line, leaving an eerie silence.“Cowards!” I roared internally, anger filling my veins.“Go now! Don’t let them get away!” Gamma Blayne shouted orders to a specialized team of elite wolves to pursue the escapees. He stood naked, heaving and curling his hands into fists, and his head whipped to sp
VALEN’S POV-“What’s my Alpha doing in a place like this?” Albert the old bartender had the nerve to joke as he wiped down the triple-fronted bar counter with a chuckle.“It’s a bar. What crime have I committed?” Although he was jesting, I was in a foul mood.Arbitration Day with those bumptious Alphas has finally ended. Things at Alpha Camp were going well with Valiant. Devin’s still in his coma and Raina seems to be in a bad mood. She was madder than a fucking hornet and shanghaiing my mental space.Yesterday, everything went downhill. Devin’s condition showed no change and I did not find the damn Worgen. I came here to clear my mind from the weight of failure that settled over me.All I wanted to do was head to Raina’s room and hug her. But knowing that she’d probably bring up Mercedes again, I detoured here. The thought of her name made the beer in my hand so damn distasteful. Out of panicked desperation, I’ve been spinning my wheels all day to come up with a way to get through to
RAINA’S POV-Theo bent and picked up the folder. He placed it on the desk and fell back into position.The file contained four candidates. Me being one of them. It depicted the Alpha cabal, who represented seventy percent of the werewolf kingdom, voting on whom they advocated to be Queen. Mercedes gained the highest votes, while I had a meager one percent. I saw Tallulah Rumer’s photo, an Alpha-Female from the Rym Greyback Pack in New Zealand. Next was Kristen, the Alpha-Female Valen pitted me against in the sparring competition for the world to see.Then there were pages of signatures and pack seals to officiate the petition in demonstrating which candidate held their favor. This was the beginning of an uprising. It could plunge the kingdom into chaos if Valen’s choice upset them.My heart chipped away at the daunting situation. Mercedes bowed her head to hide the gloating smile that curled on her lips.Okay, I see you Mercedes.“Your Royal Elders marshaled me for the task. Their old
RAINA’S POV-"Oh, goddess!" Venus squealed at us, after entering the loft with Mercedes, dragging her by the ear. She dramatically threw one hand over her harlequin eyes while maintaining her hold on the girl."Damnit Venus! Can't you knock?" Valen snapped, clearly still riled up from the hormones stirring between us. He quickly yanked up his sweatpants, though the bulge was quite prominent."How was I to know that this would be going on in here!" Venus yelled back, keeping her hand over her eyes. “Who would ever bang in their kitchen?”“People with mates, little sis,” Valen replied low and gruff, and I sensed the shift in him.My face blushed bright red in embarrassment. I reached over and grabbed my shorts, clumsily slipping them on while sitting on the counter. Once I was mostly covered, I was ready to jump down. Valen's large hands gently grasped my waist and quickly helped me down to my feet."Of all the people in the world, why would you bring Mercedes here, Vee?" Valen asked, t
RAINA’S POV-"Morning, my beautiful Bluebella," he whispered, wrapping his arms around me while I cooked at the stove. "Smells delicious.""Good. I hope you’re hungry," I trailed off as he nuzzled my neck.My breath hitched in my throat as I stared back into his eyes. My stomach flip-flopped."Valen," I moaned. "Don’t make me burn our breakfast. Get the plates."He grumbled, and without moving his body away, the front of his body bumped against the back of mine as he reached his hands up to the black metal shelf to take down two square plates and put them on the left counter.Then he hugged me around the waist, resting his jaw on my shoulder, and angled his head sideways to look at me. My heart fluttered wildly."Baby, you didn't have to do all of this," he said softly. “That’s what the kitchen staff is for.”"Nonsense, I will feed you when I feel like it," I replied with a smile.He just beamed at me. “You’re amazing. I know it’ll be as good as it looks,” he remarked while his hands
RAINA’S POV-I scoffed. "Save me your speeches. I'm tired, and I'm going to bed."Crawling into my side of the bed, I laid down and was about to pull the cream blanket when Valen yanked them away from me. I glared at him."Give me the blanket," I bit out, sitting up with my eyes narrowing at him."Stop being jealous," he insisted in a sharp tone, with the blanket in his hand.I scoffed again, "Who said I was?” I shrugged, swallowing the thick lump of emotion in my throat. “I don't care.""I know you are because, if I were in your shoes, I would be too.” He confessed in an ominous undertone, “To be honest, the guy wouldn't live.”My gaze drifted down his impressive form. Mountainous muscles covered his chest, dipping into cut ridges on his abdomen. Despite the anger, heartache, and humiliation churning inside of me, I wanted to rip those pants off him and throw him on the bed while I had my way with him.Redirecting my thoughts, I simply muttered, "Whatever. Keep the damn blanket."I f
RAINA’S POV-"She attacked me." Mercedes lied, curling into a fetal position with her hand on her stomach, pretending to be in serious pain.“That’s not true.” Again, the rage pulsed through me and I struggled against Valen, wanting to get back to hitting her. "Let me go, Valen. Let me go, and I’ll give her another good black eye.""Raina!" Valen shouted in my ear.I huffed and stopped when I felt him tighten his arms around me. When I relaxed, he let me go and turned me around to face him. His eyes scanned my face and when it landed on my bruised arms, his emeralds darkened.His jaw ticked when he turned to look at the she-wolf on the ground. "Mercedes, mind telling me how your Luna got bruised?""I don't know." Mercedes wheezed, sitting up and clutching her abdomen. "She almost choked me to death.” She gasped, dramatically. “I can’t breathe.""You'll live," Valen responded indifferently. He turned back to me. "Go back upstairs, Raina. I'll deal with you later.""But it wasn't even my
RAINA’S POV-“You must be bored out of your mind.” For a brief moment, Mercedes' brows furrowed deeply as she tried to analyze me. Then she sighed loudly and shooed me with her hand. “You are excused, Raina. I seem to have misplaced my interest in anything that you have to say.”"My words are for her, not you." It sounded pathetic to me as well, but it was the truth.She eyed me skeptically and rejected with disdain in her voice, “No. Your chatter is not on my to-do list.”Thankfully, I spotted a ring of keys on the wall and grabbed it. I fought with the faulty lock until I found the right one and swung the door open.Her expression quickly changed to down-right mistrust. "What do you want with my wolf?" she snapped."She’s mine." I stepped inside the cell, pulling closed the metal grill door behind me.Unafraid, she stayed seated, and her eyes lit up in anger. "Not yours,” she protested bitterly. "I pity you. Fucking pathetic.""Your habit of wanting everything that's mine is infuriat