XavierAs it was daytime, transforming wasn’t an option. Our senses would be heightened, but the risk was too great, so we stayed in human form as we surrounded the warehouse.The warehouse was less than a mile away from where Ruby’s blood had been found and her scent didn’t go past this warehouse. Even though I was right outside I still could not smell the unknown wolves. A wolf has never been able to block their scent so completely.With each passing second of not having Ruby in my arms, I grew more and more aggravated. I had only just found her; we were just getting close, and now she's gone.She’s not gone forever!I clenched my fists before looking to my left and nodding to Randoll, his signal to move forward. He nodded in response and whistled, and the wolves who had surrounded the warehouse charged in.Yells, growls, and loud crashes could be heard as they stormed inside. While we were unable to smell these wolves, I was certain they could smell us and had been preparing for ou
RubyI jerked awake and looked around. When I realized I was still in the dreary cell, I closed my eyes and turned onto my side. I had hoped that the man in the shadows and the chain around my ankle were just a bad dream.But as usual, I never get what I want. The universe has been dishing out shit to me since the moment I was born.Waking up and finding Xavier watching me while I slept was something I’d pick over this any day of the week. I missed him. I missed him so much fresh tears sprang to my eyes. I squeezed my eyes closed to stop them and tried to remember what it felt like to have his warm body close to mine.Whoever abducted me might be watching me right now, might be listening, and I wouldn’t give them the satisfaction of seeing or hearing me cry. I wanted to scream at the top of my lungs, but what would that change? My hair was tangled so badly my fingers could not run through it, and I didn’t need heightened senses to know that I was starting to smell funky.None of that
RubyHave you ever been so hungry that your stomach feels like it’s caving in on itself? So thirsty you can barely pry your tongue from the roof of your mouth? Your mind focuses on nothing but food and drink, drink and food. How a stale piece of bread, a glass of water, or a single French fry might save your life.If you’ve never felt that, you’re lucky, and I hope you never do. I wasn’t suffering from hunger only. My hair was matted to my skull, and I was getting sick of my own foul odor. I’d lost track of how long I’d been chained up in Axel’s dungeon, and I was passing out more frequently due to hunger and dehydration.My eyes cracked open as I listened to the dripping water coming from somewhere inside this dark dungeon. It was making this situation a hundred times worse. Every time I heard it, I thought about how even one tiny drop in my mouth might make this situation a little more bearable.My tongue felt like sandpaper, and my back felt sore from lying down for so long. I, how
His tight hold on my arm would leave a bruise, but I was too scared to care. He was dragging me out of the cell and outside, my weak legs struggling to keep up with him. Fresh air filled my lungs, and my eyes closed for a second before I was yanked forward to keep up with him.“Where are you taking me?” He didn’t answer. “Axel, where are you taking me? Please, you’re hurting me!”I channeled what little strength I had left into pulling away from him. He released me, but within seconds he grabbed me by the hair. Fire blossomed at my scalp, my hair felt like it was going to be ripped out, and I clenched my teeth to stop myself from screaming. My eyes grew teary as I reached up to hold his hand, and I felt him loosen his hold. I could barely see his face, but his eyes were like headlights.He continued walking, and I dug my heels into the ground to not move and started screaming. If he was going to kill me, I wasn’t going to die quietly. Oh, hell, no! I didn’t ask to be mated to him, and
RubyI stared at the small window across the room that was too far up the wall for me to try and break through. Sure, I’d be able to reach it if I stood on the table, but what would happen after I got outside? I’d get chased by wolves that I could never outrun. Where would I even run to? I had no idea where I was to begin with. For all I knew, there was no one but wolves for a hundred miles in every direction.It was morning, but I pulled the covers up to my chin and snuggled further into bed. The small old mattress that had passed for a bed inside my cell hadn’t been much. While this wasn’t great either, there was nothing for me to do, nowhere for me to go, so why not stay in bed a little longer?I had eaten all the fruits and was still full, so I was fine for the most part. All I could do now was wait for Axel to make his next appearance.I turned onto my side, but backed up with a scream on my lips as I came face to face with Natalie. She was lying beside me with her hand under her
Anxiety had me pacing around the room, sitting on the floor, and climbing onto the table to see through the window, which revealed nothing but endless trees. Soon I settled for sitting around the table, my hunger returning. Compared to the torture I had endured up until last night, I could ignore the growls my stomach was making.I’ve thought about going to sleep a few times in hopes of Natalie returning, but she had mentioned how hard it was to reach out to me. Sheneeded her strength to get to Xavier, so I resisted my impulse to nap just for the sake of talking to her again.My fingers drummed on the stained surface of the white table as I wondered if she had warned Xavier yet.I recalled the night I had been abducted, the bliss that had come before the chaos that is, and a heavy sadness settled on my chest. Xavier and I had laid in the woods in each other's arms. I was starting to feel the bond between us, I think. Just when I began to feel drawn to him, I was ripped away. That nig
XavierI could hear a bird chirping in a tree a few meters away, but it sounded like it was resting on my shoulder. My ears twitched as another bird answered the first one's call, and I tried my best to tune them out. I focused on the wind in the trees instead as I continued to walk along the path in the forest. I was heading to the cliff where Ruby and I had sat and talked so long ago.No, it wasn’t so long ago, I thought as I shook my head. Only a week has passed with her being missing. While it was only a week, it was far too long for comfort. It felt like an eternity.Natalie has been missing for just as long, and I’m not sure how much longer I can survive not knowing what has happened to either of them. My hands clenched at my sides as my rage began to consume me yet again.Being without Ruby and not knowing if she was hurt or not was taking its toll. My wolf has been clawing under my skin to the point that I’ve woken up with my sheets and clothes ripped by my claws and fangs out
Natalie“Axel’s a fool to think the Council won't try to dissect him as well for having a human mate. Whatever judgment falls onto our pack because one of us is mated to a human will happen to him, too” Xavier said.I watched him as he paced back and forth, his hand on his chin. We were filling Mathieu in on what was happening, and word had been sent to the rest of the pack to stay indoors until their alpha said otherwise.All that really needed to be said was that the Council would be visiting, and all wolves would scatter without being told to anyway. Everyone avoids contact with the Council as much as they can. No one wants their lives looked into, their privacy invaded and stripped down to nothing. That's what the Council likes to do. They feed on knowledge like rats feed on garbage.“Axel thinks he’s acting in the interest of his pack,” I said and Mathieu, who was sitting with his elbows on his knees and his hand over his mouth, looked my way. “But he isn’t seeing the bigger pict
That's what I wanted to say, but I kept quiet instead. For the first time, he was speaking to me as if he was talking to another person. He wasn't giving me orders or talking down to me, and I couldn't help looking at him.His expression was still one that screamed ‘talk to me and get punched,’ but his voice didn’t hold as much exasperation. However, I didn’t respond. I couldn’t fault him for looking out for his pack’s interests, but I was certain there were other ways for us to handle this situation without resorting to abduction and involving the Council.“Who was the man that came into my cell?” I asked after a while.He looked over at me, a confused look on his face as he shook his head. “What man? I was the only one that visited you in your cell.”Had I been hallucinating or dreaming? No, someone else had visited me.“There was someone else. I know that was real.”The car slowed at a stoplight, and his hand fell away from the steering wheel. “I remember you asking who else would b
RubyAxel woke me up while it was still dark outside and ordered me to take a bath. He gave me new clothes, told me to brush my hair, and then gave me toasted bread and an apple before dragging me outside.The cold air nipped at my exposed arms and face as we walked briskly to a black SUV. My eyes danced from left to right but it was useless to try to see anything. It was too dark for me to make out anything other than the house we had just left.He opened the door for me, which had been surprising. I had expected him to throw me into the backseat blindfolded and handcuffed with the way he’s been treating me, yanking and throwing me around as if I’m a bag of potatoes. After two and a half hours after driving what seemed like endlessly, I realized where he was taking me.The sun had finally come up, and the world around me was finally visible. We were heading back to the Blackmoon Pack. I could tell that’s where we were going the second we drove past the Witches Brew Tavern Xavier had
He then turned to Xavier, who was standing beside me and took his hand. “And you must be Xavier.”Xavier shook his hand firmly. "Welcome to our pack, Mr. Crescent.I hope your flight was a smooth one.”“It was.” The side of Olcan’s mouth curved as he spoke. "It was.And if it wasn’t, this was still a…necessary trip.”Olcan turned away to stand by the Enchanted’s side, and Xavier narrowed his eyes at him, then her. He glanced over at me before lookingher way once more. “You’re an Enchanted, yes?”She nodded. “I am–you can see that from my hair. However, not many Enchanteds have white hair, especially young ones.” Her eyes drifted to me as she said that, and this time, I arched a brow in response.From what I understood, the stronger the Enchanted, the more white in their hair. She could sense the strength of my power when I should be nothing but a fledgling, so that comment was a jab at me. She looked to be in her early thirties, so she was young to have white hair as well.“Well!” Ol
Natalie“Axel’s a fool to think the Council won't try to dissect him as well for having a human mate. Whatever judgment falls onto our pack because one of us is mated to a human will happen to him, too” Xavier said.I watched him as he paced back and forth, his hand on his chin. We were filling Mathieu in on what was happening, and word had been sent to the rest of the pack to stay indoors until their alpha said otherwise.All that really needed to be said was that the Council would be visiting, and all wolves would scatter without being told to anyway. Everyone avoids contact with the Council as much as they can. No one wants their lives looked into, their privacy invaded and stripped down to nothing. That's what the Council likes to do. They feed on knowledge like rats feed on garbage.“Axel thinks he’s acting in the interest of his pack,” I said and Mathieu, who was sitting with his elbows on his knees and his hand over his mouth, looked my way. “But he isn’t seeing the bigger pict
XavierI could hear a bird chirping in a tree a few meters away, but it sounded like it was resting on my shoulder. My ears twitched as another bird answered the first one's call, and I tried my best to tune them out. I focused on the wind in the trees instead as I continued to walk along the path in the forest. I was heading to the cliff where Ruby and I had sat and talked so long ago.No, it wasn’t so long ago, I thought as I shook my head. Only a week has passed with her being missing. While it was only a week, it was far too long for comfort. It felt like an eternity.Natalie has been missing for just as long, and I’m not sure how much longer I can survive not knowing what has happened to either of them. My hands clenched at my sides as my rage began to consume me yet again.Being without Ruby and not knowing if she was hurt or not was taking its toll. My wolf has been clawing under my skin to the point that I’ve woken up with my sheets and clothes ripped by my claws and fangs out
Anxiety had me pacing around the room, sitting on the floor, and climbing onto the table to see through the window, which revealed nothing but endless trees. Soon I settled for sitting around the table, my hunger returning. Compared to the torture I had endured up until last night, I could ignore the growls my stomach was making.I’ve thought about going to sleep a few times in hopes of Natalie returning, but she had mentioned how hard it was to reach out to me. Sheneeded her strength to get to Xavier, so I resisted my impulse to nap just for the sake of talking to her again.My fingers drummed on the stained surface of the white table as I wondered if she had warned Xavier yet.I recalled the night I had been abducted, the bliss that had come before the chaos that is, and a heavy sadness settled on my chest. Xavier and I had laid in the woods in each other's arms. I was starting to feel the bond between us, I think. Just when I began to feel drawn to him, I was ripped away. That nig
RubyI stared at the small window across the room that was too far up the wall for me to try and break through. Sure, I’d be able to reach it if I stood on the table, but what would happen after I got outside? I’d get chased by wolves that I could never outrun. Where would I even run to? I had no idea where I was to begin with. For all I knew, there was no one but wolves for a hundred miles in every direction.It was morning, but I pulled the covers up to my chin and snuggled further into bed. The small old mattress that had passed for a bed inside my cell hadn’t been much. While this wasn’t great either, there was nothing for me to do, nowhere for me to go, so why not stay in bed a little longer?I had eaten all the fruits and was still full, so I was fine for the most part. All I could do now was wait for Axel to make his next appearance.I turned onto my side, but backed up with a scream on my lips as I came face to face with Natalie. She was lying beside me with her hand under her
His tight hold on my arm would leave a bruise, but I was too scared to care. He was dragging me out of the cell and outside, my weak legs struggling to keep up with him. Fresh air filled my lungs, and my eyes closed for a second before I was yanked forward to keep up with him.“Where are you taking me?” He didn’t answer. “Axel, where are you taking me? Please, you’re hurting me!”I channeled what little strength I had left into pulling away from him. He released me, but within seconds he grabbed me by the hair. Fire blossomed at my scalp, my hair felt like it was going to be ripped out, and I clenched my teeth to stop myself from screaming. My eyes grew teary as I reached up to hold his hand, and I felt him loosen his hold. I could barely see his face, but his eyes were like headlights.He continued walking, and I dug my heels into the ground to not move and started screaming. If he was going to kill me, I wasn’t going to die quietly. Oh, hell, no! I didn’t ask to be mated to him, and
RubyHave you ever been so hungry that your stomach feels like it’s caving in on itself? So thirsty you can barely pry your tongue from the roof of your mouth? Your mind focuses on nothing but food and drink, drink and food. How a stale piece of bread, a glass of water, or a single French fry might save your life.If you’ve never felt that, you’re lucky, and I hope you never do. I wasn’t suffering from hunger only. My hair was matted to my skull, and I was getting sick of my own foul odor. I’d lost track of how long I’d been chained up in Axel’s dungeon, and I was passing out more frequently due to hunger and dehydration.My eyes cracked open as I listened to the dripping water coming from somewhere inside this dark dungeon. It was making this situation a hundred times worse. Every time I heard it, I thought about how even one tiny drop in my mouth might make this situation a little more bearable.My tongue felt like sandpaper, and my back felt sore from lying down for so long. I, how