I couldn’t believe my ears. The same Hycinth that should be thanking me was instead accusing me of murder. How? Why?Since he had decided to act like an idiot, I took a deep breath and slowly told him how I got to know about the Gypsy Pack situation from an old friend in the village. I narrated how I entered the Highlands in disguise and my meeting with the Gypsy maids who gave me access to Mariah.When I was done talking, his mouth was hanging open in awe.“You did all of that for me?” He asked softly. “After how badly I treated you?”I rolled my eyes. “I didn’t do it for you, Hycinth. I did it for Lola and Mariah here. What you did to her mother was wrong and you should be ashamed of yourself.”He hung his head in embarrassment. “I know,” he said quietly.“Then why did you do it?” I asked. “And please, don’t tell me that your mother made you do it. You only listen to her when it favours you.”“You’re right,” he admitted. “I was angry. When you left, I thought that I had failed you.
The battle line was officially drawn between me and Gertrude. I didn’t let that bother me as I settled down beside Hycinth at the end of the celebration.It was cold outside but inside our tent was warm and cosy. I snuggled closer to him and he responded by holding me and stroking my back tenderly.Not much has changed since we parted. He still smelled the same and his body responded to mine in that familiar way that I still remembered.We kissed passionately and began to make love tenderly. I didn’t realize just how much I missed the loving touch of a man until this moment. We climaxed together, clinging to each other for dear life.It was a beautiful moment but I felt… empty afterwards. My mind drifted back to Alpha Rowan and I had to shake my head to clear out that alluring image from my subconscious. The way my body reacted just from thinking about him, amazed me.“Are you all right?” Hycinth asked me.“Yes,” I replied and smiled at him in the dimly lit tent.He kissed my forehead
Gertrude kept to her word and limited my access to the children. When I complained to Hycinth, he told me to pick my battles and let his mother enjoy a small victory at least.I hated how he always shied away from confronting his mother. He could see how being separated from the children affected me but he didn’t do much to help. “Just ignore her,” he would say. “She’s just doing that to annoy you and you’re falling for it. She’ll find someone else to bully soon enough.”His lack of action annoyed me greatly but there was nothing I could do about it. I thought about the other Gypsies trapped in the Highlands a lot. I wondered if I could convince Hycinth to attempt to rescue them but there never seemed to be a good time to raise the issue.Life in the Gypsy camp became boring for me. Nothing exciting ever happened and the harsh eastern weather was not even helping.It was the beginning of summer and the weather was very hot. We all abandoned our tents and sat under the trees surroundi
I screamed in pain. Dominic’s blade was stuck between my ribs and he wasn’t in a hurry to take it out.My dress began to soak with my blood. Mattias was beginning to cry harder while still clinging to me.“How could you do this to me,” I gasped. “In front of my child!”“I don’t give a shit about you or your child,” he replied angrily. “You will return to Apex Woods with us to answer for your crimes.”“What the hell is this?” A man asked nearby. “What’s going on here?”It was Sahid the pimp who had tried to woo me to become one of his girls on my first day here. He was dressed only in a pair of pants and his naked torso was sweaty.“Mind your damn business,” Dominic hissed at him.“I know the redhead,” said Sahid. “And that makes this my business.”Dominic unceremoniously removed his sword from my body, cutting my flesh in the process. I cried out in pain again but he ignored me.A small crowd of spectators was already gathering around us but Dominic was unbothered. He waved his bloody
“Sahid!” I exclaimed happily. “You’re alive!”He grinned. “Of course, I am.”“But… what about Dominic?” I asked, looking around. “Where is he?”“The wolf? Well, he split.”“What do you mean by that?”Sahid sighed. He did not show any sign of distress and there were no marks or injuries on him. It was as if he never got into a fight earlier today.“His pals showed up while we were fighting and they outnumbered me,” he said. “When my fellow Lycans saw what was happening, they stopped watching and joined the fight too.”“Oh, my!” I gasped.“Trust me, I haven’t been in such a messy fight in a very long time,” he said with a grin. “It was mad fun!”“Are you kidding? How is that fun?”He laughed. “Babe, this place can be insanely boring. That fight spiced things up for everyone. They liked it too.”“So, where is Dominic now?” I asked.“I told you already. He ran off with his pals. That old lady killed his twin and they dragged him off with them when they ran.”“Darius is dead?”“I don’t kn
“Are you nuts?” He asked me with wide eyes. “How can you be showering for more than thirty minutes?”I was confused. “What?”“This is the east, Babe. We ration our water supply here. Turn off the shower now.”“For the last time, it’s Jade, not Babe,” I said testily and shut off the water.“Sorry,” he said sheepishly. “Are you done? I need to wash off too.”I was too surprised to respond. I had been so sure that he had barged into the bathroom to rape me but here he was, barely looking at my body. His eyes have been glued to mine since he came in.“What?” He asked me as I stared at him.I smiled. “Nothing,” I said and stepped out of the shower stall. “Yes, I’m done. The shower is all yours.”“Cool. Your dress is in my mother’s room. It’s old but I’m sure it will do for now.”“Thanks,” I said and left the bathroom.I strode to his mother’s bedroom and was pleasantly surprised by the room. It had more collections of unique gifts, paintings and exotic rugs from cities far away.There were
I had never felt so ashamed in my life. I had reduced myself to a petty thief and for what?After I left the brothel, I didn’t know where else to go. I had some money in my pocket and a comfortable dress on my body but that was it.Perhaps I should go back to Freya’s place but then what? She was expecting me to return to her with that cursed necklace. How was I going to find it without running into Dominic and getting butchered to death on the spot?I sighed. Maybe I should return to the Highlands and submit myself to slavery. At least, I would be surrounded by familiar faces.But weren’t those the same familiar faces I had promised to rescue? Damn it!I suddenly remembered Alpha Rowan and my pulse started to race. Gosh, that guy was fine and tempting. Too bad he was a monster. Why were all the fine guys mentally disturbed?“Luna Jade.”I recognized the voice instantly and my stomach twisted into a tight knot. I knew I would be found sooner than later, so I wasn’t surprised.I turned
I lost my temper when Dominic mentioned my son. How dare he? How dare he disrespect the memory of my son like that?Without even thinking about it, I shifted into my wolf form so swiftly that I caught the Betas by surprise. I was instantly free from their grip and they were staring at me in awe.I did a quick U-turn and headed in Dominic’s direction. My fangs were bared and I was ready to tear him apart limb by limb!He didn’t move. He just stood there waiting for me to come at him. Waiting for me to make my move. He wanted to see what I got.I jumped at him, aiming for his throat but he caught me before I could pounce on him. He grabbed me by my neck and hauled me off. I crashed into the seats on the left side of the room.The Betas rushed towards me but he called them off immediately.“Leave her alone,” he said to them. “She’s mine. Let her come to me.”His confidence pissed me off. I ran toward him again and when I jumped at him, he tried to throw me away with the same move but I w
“You’re back,” Rowan whispered happily. I blinked. “Where am I?” “We had to bring you to the pack hospital. Your bones were broken badly from the fall,” he explained. “But don’t worry, you’re the only one here. We cleared out the hospital to give you some privacy.” I looked at him and noticed how tired he looked. There were dark circles under his eyes and his beard was overgrown like his father’s own in the chasm. “I am so sorry,” I apologized. “I have put you through a lot. You don’t deserve any of these troubles you’ve experienced because of me.” “Please, don’t say that,” he replied tenderly. “We are one. You’re my mate and that means that whatever affects you affects me. We’re in this together.” “Thank you,” I whispered. “From the bottom of my heart, I say thank you, Alpha Rowan.” He smiled tenderly. “You’re welcome, Luna Jade. Always and forever.” He leaned down and kissed my forehead softly. “I have some good news for you,” he whispered. “Let me guess, you found the neckl
“Here she is, my lord,” Tarik announced as he led me into Alpha Jaxon’s lair.“Leave us,” he growled and Tarik promptly disappeared.Alpha Jaxon watched me warily like a predator. He was sitting on a wingbacked chair, nursing a goblet of wine. His beard was overgrown and his bloodshot eyes told me that he was piss drunk.“Where have you been?” He asked me. His deep voice rumbled like thunder.“I – I…”“Answer me!” He barked and I nearly peed on myself.Why the hell did I agree to this? Why did I let Lynda talk me into this nonsense? I wasn’t even Sasha, so why should I receive her punishment?“I’m not Sasha,” I blurted out fearfully.“That’s not the answer to my question,” he rumbled again. “I will ask you one more time only.”I swallowed hard. My heart was pounding wildly in my chest.“Where… have… you… been?”I began to shiver with fear. “I am not Sasha,” I repeated stubbornly.He was out of his chair like a shot and was standing in front of me within a second. He grabbed my throat
The last thing I remembered was Albert and Lattie shifting into their wolf forms and meeting Damian mid-air. I don’t even know how I found my way out of the cottage but I did.“I have to get to the Highlands! I have to get to the Highlands!” I chanted again as I ran towards the dock.I couldn’t see Damian but my wolf senses told me that he was already behind me. I could almost feel his breath on my back.As I reached the dock, a boat was just pulling up and the only passenger on it got off through the gangplank. He was a dashing guy that I would recognize anywhere.“Sahid! What are you doing here?”He stared at me blankly. “Who are you?”“It’s me, Jade.”“Watch out!” He yelled and pushed me out of the way.Damian crashed into Sahid, knocking him to the ground. He tried to come after me but Sahid wouldn’t let him. He held onto the Alpha’s hind legs, stalling his movement.“Get away from me, you fool!” Damian shouted and kicked Sahid savagely.Once he broke free from the Lycan’s grip, h
“Slow down, girl. Why are you running?” An old woman asked me.I had reached the southern village and I was heading to the dock to get a boat ride to the Highlands. I’d stopped briefly by an empty stall in the market to catch my breath when the woman showed up.“Are you ok?” She asked.She was standing in the shadows where I couldn’t see her properly but I recognized her voice.“Lattie?”She stepped forward and the moonlight shone on her face. She was staring at me with a puzzled expression.“Do I know you?” She asked.“Not in this life,” I replied plainly. “Where’s Albert? Do you think he’ll be willing to give me a ride to the Highlands?”Lattie was speechless at first. “Who are you?”“My name is Jade. You don’t know me yet or maybe you do and don’t remember, but I know you from another time.”“Child, that doesn’t make sense.”“To you, it doesn’t but to me, it does. Where’s Albert?”“He already packed up and left. I only stayed back this long to sell off my last batch of fresh apples
“You don’t even know me,” I said.“Doesn’t matter,” he replied promptly. “Come here.”I sighed. This new life was filled with more sex than I’d had in my other life. I’m not even sure if that’s a good thing at this point but I could tell that it was purely a physical thing for me at this point.“What a stubborn fellow,” I grumbled under my breath.“I heard that,” he said. “Don’t worry, I’ll make this worth your while.”“Whatever…” I mumbled. An image of Hazim fucking Sasha on her kitchen cabinet flashed through my mind and I nearly gagged. Yikes!“Why do you look like a lamb approaching the slaughterhouse?” He asked me with a chuckle. “You’re not afraid of me, are you?”“No.”“Then what is it?”“I don’t want to have sex with you.”“Oh.” He looked disappointed. “Well, you don’t have to.”I stared at him. “Then how do I get my necklace from you?”He threw it at me and it hit me in the face. That reminded me of that nightmare I had in my other life where Dominic threw the necklace at me.
“Intruders!”My eyes flew open. Hycinth and Lola woke up with a start too. We could hear loud voices outside our tent and what sounded like a stampede.“What’s going on?” I gasped.“That’s what I intend to find out,” Hycinth grumbled. I could tell that he was seriously pissed about being woken up so rudely.We scrambled to get dressed but we were barely halfway through it when Gertrude burst into our tent. Her eyes were wide with fear.“Quick, we have to flee! There’s an army of werewolves out there trying to kill everyone!” She shouted frantically.“Where are they from?” Hycinth asked.“Who cares? There’s too many of them and they’re here for blood.”We ran outside with Hycinth in front and we were shocked to see the chaos going on outside. The enemy werewolves were pouncing on every Gypsy in sight, attacking them viciously.It only took me a few moments to recognize the Alphas leading them. Fear paralysed me. I knew I should run but I simply couldn’t.Hycinth swung into full battle
All Hycinth and I ever did was have sex at the slightest opportunity. We did it anytime and everywhere until Gertrude became annoyed.“You must have been starved of sex in your previous relationship,” she commented one day. “Don’t you ever get tired?” “You could ask Hycinth that too,” I replied cheekily and that silenced her.Hycinth and I were unofficially mates. His mother had tried to choose a mate for him a couple of times because he never felt the mate bond with anyone.According to him, once he’s had sex with them, he loses interest in having a proper relationship with them. He’s had a ‘taste’ of all the young she-wolves in the pack to the annoyance of the elders.“What happens when I eventually leave?” I asked him when we settled down for the night in our tent later that day.“Why would you leave?” He asked with a questioning look.“I can’t stay here forever. I have several unanswered questions burning in my mind.”“Have you regained your memory?”“Uh, no but I’m curious about
“Who is this?” Gertrude asked as we entered the camp.“This is Jade. I rescued her from the jaws of a beast that tried to kill her.”“Why? What did you do?” She asked me.“I don’t know. I don’t remember,” I said. I’m going to stick to my amnesia story and see how this plays out. I didn’t want to get myself in trouble by saying the wrong thing.“She appears to have lost her memory,” said Hycinth.“Something traumatic must have happened to her. Come on, then. Let’s get you cleaned up and fed.”She led me through the camp where everyone stared at me curiously. She assigned Lola and Cherise to take care of me. It felt odd that they didn’t recognize me.“Your wounds are already closing up,” said Lola. “Are you from the Moon Pack? They’re famous for healing faster than every other werewolf.”“No, I’m not. I’m from…” I bit my tongue before I blurted out my identity.“From where?” Cherise asked me.“I don’t remember,” I lied.“It must be very frustrating to not remember anything about your pa
“We’ll send for you when the time is right,” said Damian.It was two days after the tragic stillbirth of Domarius. My birthing injuries had finally healed but I wasn’t ready to be kicked out yet.“Why are you all blaming me for what happened?” I asked softly.“Because you gave us false hopes. We will send for you when we get over this disappointment. Goodbye, Jade.”He shut the door before I could manage to get another word in. So, here I was, mateless and babyless in what should have been my comeback.I went to Nana’s cabin to see where she’d buried the baby’s body. I saw the small mound of sand where she’d put him and my heart broke.“Who’s there?” She asked from inside.“It’s me, Nana,” I replied.She came outside and met me there. Her expression softened when she saw my tear-stained face.“Oh, Jade. Can you ever forgive me?”“There’s nothing to forgive, Nana. What happened wasn’t your fault. I think we both miscalculated the outcome.”“When are the triplets coming to see the baby’