Trista’s POVJohnson’s voice?No. That wasn’t possible. I was just imagining things. It couldn’t be. But before I could think it through, I was pulled from my thoughts by loud yelling. “OVER HERE!” It was guards. The noise of the fierce fight had caught their attention. I looked around. Guards were charging towards us, shifting as they came. Before long, there were at least a dozen more wolves on their way, prepared to fight.The white beast was strong, but he couldn’t fight off a dozen wolves.He stopped then. It sniffed the air and howled. It must have sensed the impending danger because it released Carlos and turned.But before it left, its eyes met mine.They were red. Blood red. The beast paused for only a beat, then it took off, disappearing into the dark night. By the time the guards got to the fight, the white beast was gone. The threat had passed; the danger was over. So the wolves shifted back, one at a time.Everyone began talking at once, demanding to know what had hap
Trista’s POVALpha Jeremy gasped! He was cleary speechless from Liam’s threat. I couldn’t see his expression clearly, but I’d bet my bottom dollar, it was comical.It was a moment before Alpha Jeremy spoke. His voice was low and menacing. “Alpha Liam, do I need to remind you of the alliance between our packs? We are partners. You insult my child, yet I heard it was YOU who started this whole thing in the first place. And for what? For her?” He motioned towards me. “She’s meaningless. Just your useless ex-wife. A rogue that you expelled from your pack. Do you really want to jeopardize our ENTIRE relationship for some stupid whore?”What did he just call me? A…a whore? Anger ripped through me, but before any of us could respond, Hazel stepped in front of Alpha Jeremy.“Let’s talk about victims, shall we? Since you seem so hellbent on pointing fingers. I’ll admit that, yes, in this accident, Carlos is the biggest victim. There’s no arguing that. But in this wedding? I’M the biggest victi
Trista’s POVWe waited with baited breath. Apparently, Lola took his silence as a sign that he was going to say no.So…Lola flung herself at Liam’s feet in a dramatic display. You could hear the fear in her voice as she cried and begged him.“Please, Alpha Liam!” she sobbed. She hugged his ankles. “Take me in. I’ll be a good breeder. Don’t…don’t make me be a rogue. Please.”Alpha Liam shook his feet, trying to dislodge her from his feet.He looked down at her then up at us. Then he turned to Alpha Jeremy.“I can’t take her in,” Alpha Liam said.“PUH…LEASE…” Lola wailed.“I am sorry, Lola. But I can’t take you in. I can’t allow someone like you into my pack. However, I may be able to help you.”She released her hands from his legs and looked up at him, still in a squat position. She sniffled and wiped her snotty nose with the back of her hand.Gross.“You can help me?” she whimpered.“I can try. I might be able to find you somewhere to live. Another pack, perhaps. Or somewhere i
Trista’s POV Lola’s screams pierced the air. I continued to walk away. She was being banished. Her screams were high-pitched. I could hear the pain in her voice. Right now, they were dragging her to the pack border.Just like they’d dragged me five years ago.I had a brief flash of sympathy for her.Five years ago, I’d suffered a horrific double torture. First, the breaking of my mate-bond. Then, being banished.Banishment.It had changed a bit over the course of history because now we could go and live in human society. That hadn’t always been the case. There was a time when a banished wolf had very few options. They were destined to be rogues, forever without a pack. It was dangerous. Many of them died.But now? A lot of rogues chose to integrate into the human world. That’s what I’d done. It wasn’t easy, though. A wolf’s pack is the root of all things. It’s the anchor that holds us. Our security. Our culture. Our ancestral past. Our packs are a primitive bond that holds us
Trista’s POVI couldn’t help but notice Johnson’s naked body as he stood. His clothes had long since been torn to shreds and my tiny cardigan did little cover his muscular frame as we walked away from the water and down the beach. His chest was glistening from the water. Normally, I would have taken a moment to appreciate and admire his perfectly sculpted chest. But time was of the essence. We had to get out of here. So I tried to avert my eyes. Luckily, we had found his torn pants. They must have stuck to his fur or something.I noticed the gash marks on his thighs as we walked along. They looked deep. He also had some across his chest, as well as a bite mark on his neck. The wounds were already healing, but I had to admit, they were pretty bad. This made the situation even more urgent. We had to get somewhere safe so he could heal.We avoided everyone as we walked back to the car. We could see the bonfire flames in the distance and heard loud laughter and howls. Luckily, we managed
Trista’s POVJohnson sat down beside me, beer in hand.“Well, to my first werewolf wedding,” he sighed, clinking his beer bottle with mine.I smiled weakly. “Was it everything you thought it would be?” I asked sarcastically. “And then some,” he confessed.We sat in silence for a moment, both of us uncertain of what to say.“You know, it really was beautiful, though,” he sighed. “I was a bit shocked at first, by the blood and knives. But once I got past that, there was something very meaningful about the rituals. Almost…transcendent.”I nodded. This was a very different Johsnon than the one who had fired off questions like a child during the wedding. This was the Johnson I knew – the mature, retrospective, intelligent Johnson.“Werewolves love their rituals,” I responded. “Some of our rituals date back centuries. We take them very seriously.”He took my hand then and squeezed it. “Were you afraid?”There was no sense beating around the bush. We needed to talk about what happened. I
Johnson‘s POVTrista clinked her bottle with mine and settled back into her chair. Her smile unfurled as she took my hand.I sighed with relief.Everything was okay. She wasn’t afraid of me. I hadn’t hurt her.Thank God. Or the Moon Goddess, as the werewolves say.The pain in my neck was almost completely gone. My mind flashed back to the pain I’d felt when I turned back into a human.I wasn’t being completely honest with Trista. I’d glossed over how much the shift had actually hurt. And I told her I couldn’t remember anything.That wasn’t exactly the truth.The truth was…well…it was almost too horrific to think about.I remember seeing her in the tent. Carlos and his sister had her pinned down. I saw that her dress was torn open. Carlos appeared to be sexual assaulting Trista while she was struggling helplessly. Anger rose in me, and I reshed toward the tent. Then I saw a beast, a big wolf pounce on them. I didn't know what was going on. All I knew was that Trista was in danger. And
Trista‘s POVKnock. Knock. Knock. It sounded like thunder in my head. I opened my eyes and realized it was just Hazel knocking on my door. Sunlight flooded through the window.It was morning. I squinted in the light. I had a headache. I must have drank a bit too much beer with Johnson last night. He must have brought me to bed and tucked me in, too. Because my memory was a bit groggy and I didn’t remember going to bed“Trista?” Hazel called from the living room. “I let myself in. I hope that’s okay?”“I’m coming,” I called from the bedroom. Of course it was okay. I’d given Hazel a key. She was welcome in my home any time.I quickly wrapped myself in a housecoat and went out to meet her in the kitchen. She was already putting on a pot of coffee. I yawned and scratched my head.“I need some serious caffeine, stat,” I told her. Then I glanced at the clock.Oh my! It was past nine!I didn’t hear my kids. Their shoes were by the front door were gone. Johnson must have brought them to schoo