In the air, the stench of other wolves kept Marcus’s inner wolf unresting. It kept crawling back and forth, growling. Marcus was a fighter, so when he had to smell wolves who didn’t belong to his pack loitering in his area made him feel frustrated.
Recently, these wild wolves had appeared and wandered around his pack’s territory more and more. Did they not know this was his area? Or, did they know but did not seem to care at all? Had someone ordered them to do this?
Marcus hissed. If it was either the second or the third reason, Marcus could have had understood. Marcus's pack did not have an Alpha.
Although Marcus was Alpha's son, and in the upcoming full moon, he would take after his father to be the Alpha of the Bailey's, that was not enough for other wolves not to stalk. After all, soon-to-be-Alpha did not mean he would be one hundred percent sure to become one. And even if there was still a Luna in his pack, then what?
But soon, Marcus would officially become an Alpha. His wedding was almost here. It was only a few days away.
Marcus thought of the wedding, and he couldn't help but smile happily. He really could not wait any longer. What could be happier than marrying someone you love?
Marcus hoped that day reached a little faster. When the day was due, he would no longer have to hide in the shadow of his mother anymore but come out like an Alpha. Marcus didn't hate his mother at all. He respected her and loved her with all his heart. However, respect was far different from having to hide in her shadow. Every important thing had to be agreed upon by her. He could not do anything affect the pack without her permission. The wolves obeyed her orders, even though he was their future leader.
"Marcus!"
At the mention of Dorris, she showed up.
Marcus looked outside of the bar to see Dorris quickly stormed to him. Her face was white, and she sounded frightening. Raiz Bailey, who was Marcus's uncle, followed her inside.
As soon as Marcus saw Raiz, Marcus's inner wolf started to go in caution mode. Marcus's inner wolf saw Raiz as its enemy. Not only was Raiz another candidate for the Alpha position, but also Raiz gave off a devilish vibe to his appearance. Marcus's intuition told him that Raiz had something to do with those lone wolves intruding.
Raiz had sharp eyes with a hint of intrigue, quirky eyebrows, high cheekbones, and a voice full of judging tone: "Where are they?"
He asked about the wild wolves. He did not seem pleased to find those intruders had been chased away by his niece but rather annoyed.
Dorris frowned at him: "What do you care about them now? Are you okay, Marcus?"
Marcus did not even have time to say anything before Raiz interrupted:
"If we could hold them captivated, it would be useful, Dorris. A pack of wild wolves appears in our area. Not only that, but they also attacked someone from another pack. Dorris, do you understand what does this means? They're trying to start a war!"
Lady Dorris Bailey turned to look at Raiz right behind her. In contrast to Raiz's anger, Lady Dorris was strangely calm. She looked Raiz in the eye, seriously saying:
"I know for myself the seriousness of the problem. But Raiz, did you see any casualties here? Marcus handled the situation well. Don't try to make things more complicated than they should have been. Leave it!"
Dorris said that, and Raiz had nothing to argue. He angrily left, leaving Lady Dorris and Marcus behind.
Dorris waited until Raiz had gone, then turned her focus at Marcus's broken-down bar. Dorris frowned, asking:
"How many of them?"
"Five." Marcus snorted, recalling the number of wild wolves.
Dorris sighed, eyeing the battered bar for another look, then asked: "You're okay?"
Marcus sensed Dorris's distress. He jumped off the bar, walked up to her, reached out, and hugged her tight in his chest:
"Mom, it's okay. It's a little bit of a mess. When I become an Alpha, things like this are an inevitable part. This ordeal could be a good rehearsal."
Lady Dorris did not respond. However, she quietly decided in her head.
Marcus needed the Browns more than ever. That was the only thing that could protect his throne.
***
Brighton Hotel, second Floor, Irish Café.
Dorris looked at her watch, unamused, quite annoyed. Edsel was late again. This time, he was more than thirty minutes late. If it had not been for Dorris in need of his help, Lady Dorris would have had left twenty-five minutes ago.
For Dorris, time was gold. If there were five minutes late, it would be enough reason for her to leave. A person who does not respect the time of others is someone who was not worth socializing.
Edsel Brown was not only a man who did not appreciate the time of others, but he was also a fake man.
Edsel Brown, Alpha of the Brownson pack, had once abandoned his fiancée and daughter to marry Brenna Brown, daughter of the previous Alpha. To express his sincerity, Edsel had even changed his last name to Brown.
How could a power-hungry man like Edsel ignore such benefits of marrying a Bailey?
Dorris despised such people. Again, if it was not because of the sensitive situation, Edsel was certainly not on her list of options.
Such an irony!
"Lady Dorris."
Dorris Bailey raised her head, her bewilderment fleeting in her eyes, and quickly disappeared. In front of her, Edsel Brown dressed in a formal suit. His greyish hair seemed glossy with overused hair wax. His face showed a smile that looked overly joyful, and friendly but hidden in it was mere selfishness.
Dorris's inner wolf felt unbearable at the faint scent of him. Dorris grimaced.
"Hello, Mr. Brown."
Dorris stood up, reaching out her hand and waiting for him to shake. However, Edsel instead grabbed her, turned the back of her hand upward, and put a polite kiss on it.
This abrupt action made Dorris's inner wolf go wild. She was fuming.
That bastard!
But on the outside, the Luna just made a straight face at him. She dropped his hand immediately, then wiped his kiss away: "I'm not used to this. Sorry."
Edsel shrugged, seemed not to care. After that, he pointed to his side, introducing:
"This is my daughter, Giselle Brown. Giselle, this is Lady Dorris. Say hello."
"Hello, Lady Dorris."
A girl named Giselle reached out her hand. Dorris raised her head and glanced at Giselle. The unwanted child of Edsel had auburn hair color. Her beauty could not be described as beautiful as Tina or other girls Dorris had seen Marcus with. Yet, Giselle brought a different type of pleasing. Those freckles on the sides of Giselle's pinkish puffed cheeks up to the bottom of her nostrils were the highlights of her adorable round face. Giselle has beautiful eyes, too. Giselle's eyes seemed to contain a whole star sky. Giselle's eyes were sparkling, and they caught Dorris's mind in awe.
The girl looked lovely, to say the least.
Dorris's inner wolf felt pleased with this girl. This girl was indeed different. And even though Lady Dorri had seen Giselle's photo taken by her private investigator, meeting Giselle in person still made her feel new.
Giselle pursed her lips, lowering her eyes. As she wanted to pull her hand away, Lady Dorris quickly caught up:
"I'm Dorris Bailey. Call me Mrs. Bailey is enough. Sit down, please."
Lady Dorris smiled as she signaled Giselle to sit down.
Just as Edsel wanted to sit down, too, Mrs. Dorris quickly shooed him:
"Can I talk to Miss Brown privately?"
Edsel was a little stiff. Obviously, he did not expect Lady Dorris to make such request. However, he couldn't switch to his Alpha's voice and threaten Dorris.
Two reasons. First, Dorris was a beta and a Luna. Second, she was not only the Luna, but she also was the one temporaily hold the supreme power at her pack. It was not easy to get her to obey.
Edsel had no choice but to give a faint smile that couldn't have been more bizarre. Then he did his best to muster out a simple sentence: "Okay."
Concurrently, Edsel turned toward Giselle, trying to avoid Dorris's sight. He let out a dry laugh and spoke, but the words were visibly threatening:
"Have fun talking to Lady Dorris, Giselle. I'm sure you don't want to ruin this marriage, do you? Your mother is looking forward to it too."
Giselle gritted her teeth as tightly as she could, trying not to let the growl get out of her throat.
Edsel finished speaking, politely saying goodbye to Lady Dorris and leaving behind the two women sitting across from each other.
Giselle lowered her head to look at her hot cup of tea, and though she didn't raise her head, she could still feel Lady Dorris was staring straight at her.
Giselle took a sip of the hot Earl Grey tea down her dry throat. Giselle felt uncomfortable knowing that Lady Dorris was staring at her. Maybe she was judging Giselle, too. The feeling inside her was not the nervousness of whether Dorris liked her or not. But preferably, the discomfort of having to be an object for others to judge.
"Your name is Giselle?"
Giselle heard Lady Dorris calling, yet she didn't lookup. She hesitantly replied:
"Yes, ma'am."
"You know why we are here today, right?"
Dorris took a sip to form her cup of tea, eying Giselle.
Unlike the unpleasant feeling when the Luna first saw Tina, Luna's wolf felt much more comfortable and pleasant with this Giselle girl, even if they had just met.
If it was Giselle, who would be the Luna's daughter-in-law, then it was not that bad, Dorris thought to herself.
"Yes, ma'am."
Dorris said nothing for a moment. At first, Edsel offered to marry his daughter and Marcus. Dorris Lady Dorris wanted to refuse, but when she found out Marcus had an affair with Tina, Lady Dorris also turned a blind eye. Edsel then offered to marry his first daughter, Giselle.
Even the fools knew that Edsel was calculating something.
"Pardon me, but if someone forced you, or for some reason, you had to marry my son, then be honest. I need a powerful daughter-in-law who could support my son, yes. But I don't want to force anyone. So if someone forced you to do this, tell me straight away.”
Indeed, Lady Dorris did not want to force anyone. She just deceived them.
She deceived her son into this. And then, she even had in her mind some tricky ways to have this young girl as well.
Dorris liked the girl. And Giselle seemed like she was not into this at all. If Dorris could know whether her guess was correct or not, she could have had figured out another way to lure the young girl in.
Giselle was Dorris's best choice at the moment.
Giselle looked up at Dorris with startles.Her heart was pounding. In Giselle's mind, her inner wolf's voice was urging her: "Say it! Say you were forced to do it! Edsel isn't here! Tell her!"Giselle bit her lip, choosing not to say anything. Her finger under the table fidgeting: "No. I want to do this myself."Dorris blinked, not knowing what to think anymore. The Luna's eyes flared golden for a second then disappeared."You've seen Marcus's picture, right? How do you see Marcus?"Giselle blinked and tried to skim through her memory for the image of a man whose name was Marcus.It was true that Edsel had shown her his picture, but Giselle was not very attentive at the time, and in her head, she was only worried about her mom. So, she obviously could not remember what Marcus's face looked like.Right there and then, Lady Bailey's question seemed a little bit all of a sudden. Giselle did not think Lady Bailey would ask that question.
“I’m getting married soon, too.” Giselle spoke out of the blue. And that had caught Marcus off guard. “Excuse me?” “I’m getting married real soon, too. And to be honest, I’m scared. I’m scared of the thought of having someone mark me. I’m scared of the thought that by then, my life has to be bonding with someone else. That thought terrifies me. Maybe your fiancé is having the same thought at the moment. Don’t scare her more.” Giselle turned away, pouring her heart out. She did not say exactly what happened in her mind right then, but she had some of it out. And the feeling was good. She wished she could out with all of it. But, something is better than nothing. “Are you scared?”, Marcus asked, out of nowhere. Giselle shrugged, nonchalantly reply to him, “I don’t know.” Giselle really did not know. Scared or not, that was not her to choose anymore. It was all for her mom. “Then, if you’re about to w
“Marcus, what are you doing here? I thought you were inside.”Edsel glanced at Giselle, relieved to see that her face was covered carefully.“You guys are too late. I thought something was wrong, so I have to take a look.”Marcus glanced at Giselle, too. But Edsel was quick to block his sight, “You should come in. We can’t break the tradition, you know.”Marcus did not say anything, his eyes never left Giselle. He looked concerned. Marcus saw she was slightly shaking, and he could clearly smell her distress.“Tina, babe, Is something wrong?”, Marcus sounded cared.He wanted to reach Giselle, but Edsel stood firmly in his way, preventing him from getting any closer, “Marcus, please respect our culture.”“I do. But she’s my mate. And she seemed unwell to me.”Marcus heard himself growling along with a deep grunt coming from his wolf.Something felt off betwe
"The Moon is up."Someone behind the door exclaimed.That was their signal.Marcus looked at his soon-to-be mate with loving eyes. He nervously asked, "You ready?"Giselle took a deep breath before firmly nodding. Let's get this done!As they heard the wedding song play, they pushed the door to the garden open. Marcus held Giselle's hand in his; they walked down the aisle together.At first, when Giselle saw all the eyes on her, she was literally shaking. However, Marcus stayed closed to her, his warm body heat transmitted through her white glove, making her heart stay calm. Giselle reassured herself that she was going to be okay.
It was almost midnight.The party had been over thirty minutes ago. The Brownson pack had already left. The Bailey's pack members still celebrated, but they had winded out most of it. There were only a few staying behind. They were sitting with Marcus, drinking and talking. Their laughter echoed through the quiet garden into Giselle's chamber.Giselle sat on the couch near the windowpane.However, Giselle was a little troubled. She clutched the phone in her hand.Giselle had found an excuse to go back to the front room, even before the party was going on. Edsel, who was playing a devoted father, told Marcus and others that it might be because she was already worried about today's ceremony that she was a little tired then.Lady Bailey quickly understood the reason behind it. She convinced Marcus to let Giselle go to the chamber first. Marcus felt strange, but he followed suit. He would ask her about all of these distant things later.At that time, she wa
Giselle gulped.At this point, words had left her.Giselle's lips quivered. She couldn't speak or think of anything to say that was suitable in this stressful situation.Although Giselle had been opposed to Edsel's Beta henchmen many times before, also, she had been stubborn enough to face the intimidation of an Alpha like Edsel. At such times, Giselle did feel afraid. She should be scared. It was her instinct because she was an Omega, an underdog to all.However, she had never been so frightened as of right then.It was not just fear anymore. Giselle could clearly feel her heart turning upside down. The numbness quickly spread throughout her body, taking over every cell in her body.
"You knew about this!"Marcus exclaimed. Never in his life had he felt so betrayed. Not from anyone else but his mom!His beloved mom!Lady Bailey was in no hurry to answer. She went to the bar and poured herself a glass of wine. She took a sip, then slowly replied to Marcus, "What are you talking about? What do I know?"Marcus frowned, unable to believe that Lady Bailey was still acting as if he didn't know anything."You know my bride is not Tina! You didn't even tell me! You tricked me into marrying a stranger!""Watch your word!" said Lady Bailey sternly, "How do we propose to the Browns? You said you wanted to marry the Brown Alpha's daughter. I had also given them your words. They did exactly what you wanted - A daughter of Edsel Brown. Giselle is his daughter. She is a Brown, too. Her bloodline to her father, Mr. Edsel, was proven. If so, what right do you have to say I'm deceiving you?"Before Marcus could even respond, Lady Bailey continue
The Browns' mansion.Edsel Brown sat at his desk. In front of him was his daughter, Tina's phone. At that time, this phone constantly displayed calls coming from none other than Marcus Bailey.Edsel frowned, thinking that Marcus had seen that the Omega he had married to was not Tina.In his head, he quickly came up with a plan.Edsel cleared his throat. He then picked up the phone, "Marcus?"On the other end of the phone, Marcus's voice rang out. It sounded somewhat surprised, "Edsel?"It was like he was not expecting Edsel to pick up the phone."Your wedding night, and you didn't even pay attention to your mate, but calling Tina like this?""Where's Tina?", Marcus no longer bothered to beat around the brush with Edsel.Edsel nonchalantly replied to Marcus, "I don't know where she was, Marcus. She has disappeared.""She has disappeared?" exclaimed Marcus, unable to believe what he had just heard.Why did Tina disappear?Whe
Hi, With 208 chapters posted, a few months of updating, and dealing with my health issues, the book has finally come to an end. Such a journey! And I'm so glad that I could get to finish this journey with you all :x I know my book was not the best out there, and amongst other great books (I mean there are a lot of great books here) you still choose me, I'm very thankful :x I'll publish a new book soon, hopefully. Until then, I love you :x Thanks for reading this book :x Have a great day :x Hannah
Derek met Giselle again a week later.The girl was queuing at the coffee shop that Derek was frequent. The two were pretty surprised to see each other there.“You were Derek, from a week ago on the street, right?” Giselle asked him first, with a hint of unsure.Derek beamed at her. He nodded, “Glad you remember me.”“Oh, no. Not that kind of remember,” Giselle shook her head.The manager chuckled, “I know. So, erm- would you mind having a cup of coffee with me?” Derek asked.And surprisingly, after a bit of consideration, Giselle said yes. But it was not rocket science. The girl was curious about Derek and that was all.From what had happened three days earlier, this man seemed to know her and that bothered Giselle. How could she forget if she ever met the guy? He seemed to be a nice guy, Giselle would remember if she had met him before.But then, again, everything about her past was nothing but a blurry mess to her. He might be someone she knew back then. Moving here was such a great
“Giselle-” Marcus said, trembling. He could not believe in his eyes anymore.It was Giselle by flesh and bones! She was not Marcus’s hallucination.She was alive!“Giselle!”The head alpha happily pulled Giselle in his arms, hugging her tightly as if he ever let go, then Giselle would disappear in only a blink of an eye.If that ever happened, Marcus did not know how he could hold himself together anymore.Now that she was here, he would not let her go ever again.His wolf was howling, feeling happy that it could finally bathe in its mate’s comfort scent once again.This was ecstasy.“Wow, easy! Who are you?” Giselle frowned, pushing Marcus away harshly. The girl looked at Marcus with only irritation and confusion.“Giselle-” Marcus found himself dumbfounded. He could not catch on with the situation anymore.Giselle frowned, eyeing Marcus head to toe. The girl then huffed, she sounded so distant, “Do you know me?” Marcus was too stunned to speak. His lips quivered but no words could
A year later.“It’s Toby’s wedding ceremony today, Gigi,” Marcus said, “He’s getting married to your human friend. They both seemed very happy.”Marcus shoved his hands into his pockets, his eyes darting away as he let out a heavy breath.It had been a year then. A year of longing and torment with Marcus.Time had passed but he could never forget the day Giselle fell off the cliff, and how useless Marcus felt over a year ago watching her disappear right in front of his eyes. Though that day had been gone for good, still, Marcus could recall the sadness and such a helpless feeling of a year ago like it had just happened yesterday.Marcus still lived, but he rather d*ead.The head alpha did not seem to be himself anymore but rather an alpha wolf struggling and tormenting himself.He overworked himself to the point of being almost exhausted. He rarely ate or drank anything. His sleeping schedule was a mess, too. He was deprived of sleep. Because every time he closed his eyes, he could no
When Tim and Ben got to the lighthouse, they got no sight of Marcus at all.Raiz’s lackeys’ bodies lay on the ground, no longer intact. Then there was also Raiz, who lay dead behind Marcus’s back. His cause of death might be a b*loody hole in front of his chest, or it could be because of the silver knife piercing through his forehead. Either way, Raiz was dead.But Marcus? They did not know about his whereabouts.The head alpha had been impatience, so he came here by himself first. And for what had happened, Tim and Ben could say Marcus handled the situation well. Yet, where was he then?Did anything unfortunate happen to him?The two looked at each other, frowning.Unexpectedly, they heard Marcus yelling, “Giselle!”The two flinched, rushing to where their head alpha’s calling rang up. And they saw him.There he was, diving under, frantically searching and calling Giselle’s name. But there was no sight of her.“Marcus!”“Alpha!”The two called out for their head alpha, but they got n
Without any hesitation, and not even a blink of an eye, Raiz’s blade c*ut through Giselle’s throat like it was nothing.Not only Marcus was too stunned to react, but only Giselle.The cut was quick. So quick that Giselle did not even feel the sharp edge of the knife slashing through. Only when the damage had been done, as the stingy feeling rushed in with the burning sensation that flooded her neurons, did Giselle realize what Raiz had done.Giselle looked down and widened her eyes in disbelief as she saw b*lood quickly staining her front dress.Her wolf immediately got into action, spreading its healing ability to keep Giselle from dying.The Stephern’s omega was lucky because it was not a cut caused by a silver knife. Otherwise, she would be dead by now.“Stop right where you are!” Raiz raised his voice, and he caught Giselle’s attention.And then, Giselle heard a raging roar. The roar was so scary that it even terrified Giselle’s inner wolf.Looking up, the Stephern’s omega saw Mar
“Aren’t you happy now that your beloved uncle calls, Marcus?” Raiz said smudgily.“Where’s she?” Marcus got straight to the point.“My oh my, aren’t you worried about her?” Raiz chuckled, “And here I thought you two are separated. How silly am I! I almost got played by your little one, nephew.”Marcus stayed silent for a quick second before replying, “Let Tina go!”His words hit hard.“Pardon?” Raiz raised an eyebrow as he glanced at Giselle.The Stephern’s omega quickly turned away, avoiding his gaze. Tightening her fists, Giselle bit on her lips hard enough that she tasted blood.Even though she had a guest that Marcus would call Tina’s name out in the very first place, Giselle still felt somewhat hurt.However, she must endure this feeling.As she said, Marcus and Giselle were histories. Apparently, Marcus would think of Tina right away. Also, it was kind of humiliating for Raiz that he had chosen the wrong one.Marcus probably had not heard about Giselle’s missing yet. Be that as
"What do you mean Giselle is gone?" Marcus sounded disbelief.How could she be gone?But f*uck it, he had no mind to think about it anymore.He had to get to the hospital first!.The special department was in a hastiness.Securities and guards were seen at every corner of the hospital and its parking lot, desperately searching for the Stephern’s omega, who had gone missing. Every little detail counted. Therefore, they were doing their best searching for her.Marcus barged into Giselle’s ward, where Fynn had already been there. The doctor leaned on the window pane that Giselle kept opened and facing the door. He looked troubled.The head alpha looked around the whole room, frantic.“She has been gone when I came here,” Fynn sighed, “We have no idea where is she. We have been searching throughout the hospital but could not seem to find her anywhere.”“Did she go out alone?” Marcus nervously asked, “Have you checked the surveillance footage yet?”Much as he wanted to jump right to his f
"Let me go!"Marcus was startled awake to find he was no longer in Giselle's dreadfully cold and cramped hospital room. He was at his house now, asleep on the couch since God knows when.The head alpha sighed, and slumped back against his couch.Resting his hand on his forehead, Marcus stared at the ceiling, remembering what had happened this afternoon.Giselle had told Marcus to let her go. She still did not have any particular feelings, however, Marcus could hear a little bit of inner pleading in her voice.Marcus knew it would be best if he let Giselle leave the mess that was him. But at the same time, he could not. Just as he thought about letting Giselle leave, Marcus could not bear it.He was too blind beforehand. He let his anger cloud his mind and made a terrible mistake.***“Let go of me!”Brenna and Tina shouted out loud. The two were kidnapped and brought to the forest within the Ashes pack territory.In such a place, no one could interrupt Lukas took out his anger on them