Evelyn's POVEmpty. I had woken up to another empty bed. I reached the spot where my 'husband' should have slept and it was cold as ice. His scent wasn't there. It was everywhere else, but not on the bed. He hadn't slept here last night. I lay still on the bed, staring up at the ceiling, trying to fight the tears that burned the corner of my eyes. This wasn't new. This wasn't the first time. You would think that after being married for eight months, I would be used to this by now. Used to being ignored, to being tortured and tormented emotionally by a man I had foolishly given my heart to. I rolled out of bed and trudged out of my room. I could hear the maids moving around the building, cleaning and chattering. "Luna." They bowed when I walked past them, downstairs. I was following a scent. The one scent that made my heart beat faster and blood rushing through my ears. I found him in the kitchen, naked down to the waist, holding up a frying pan. His dark hair was to
Evelyn's POV "C-Clara," I stuttered when the couple did not stop their obscene act. "What... What's the meaning of this?" She ignored me for a while and I grew angry. "Clara, stop this right now!" She sighed, tossed me a scathing look before disentangling from her lover. Naked, she climbed off the bed and strutted toward me. The last time I had seen her, her skin had been so pale and white. Now she looked so vibrant, it was confusing. "I thought you were sick. I thought you had the disease," I whispered, backing away with each step she took toward me. "Oh, please." She scoffed. "May the goddess forbid. I am hale and hearty as you can see." Roman approached the room then. He shoved me aside, causing me to fall to the ground while he laughed cruelly. "The gig is up, Clara?" "I got tired." She shrugged while I looked on in disbelief. "For how long was I supposed to pretend to be sick? She already married the Alpha in my place, so what's the point?" I gaspe
Evelyn's POV My heart beat faster as I reread the text. Run? What did that mean? Was it Raven? Was she trying to threaten me into leaving Cyrus? "No," I shook my head, sniffing. "He's mine! Cyrus is mine!" I sent him a series of texts, demanding where he was and reminding him that he was supposed to have dinner with me. I got nothing in response, so I waited. By ten that night, my husband walked in, reeking of Raven's scent. "You're late," I sniffed, not moving an inch from where I was. He ignored me, ready to walk upstairs. "I made dinner." "It's late," he replied gruffly. "I had dinner already.” "With Raven," I spat, and heard him growl. I could hear the maids creeping out of their rooms, probably ready to witness another one of the many scenes of us arguing. "It's late, wife. If you're not eating, then go to bed.”"My name is Evelyn!" I yelled, rising from my chair and storming over to him. "And I am your Luna. Your wife. Not that crazy woman!" He stopped in h
Evelyn's POV When I woke up, it was in a ward room. I was surrounded by the relieved faces of doctors and nurses. For a minute, I wondered why I was back in the hospital. Then, it dawned on me. I hastily tried to sit up, clutching my belly. "My baby," I croaked. "Please tell me nothing happened..." The doctor's relieved expression slowly shifted into a grim look. "I apologize, Luna Evelyn." He spoke, and my stomach dropped. "By the time you were rushed here, you had lost the baby." My body trembled. I closed my eyes, leaning back into the bed, trying not to break down. "Did my husband bring me here?"There was silence. I didn't have to open my eyes to know that they were staring awkwardly at each other. Their silence meant one thing. Cyrus hadn't known I had bled all over his elevator. At least not yet. "I would like to be alone," I murmured, turning my back to the doctor and nurses. I didn't make a sound but hot tears slipped down my face as I cried. I had lost m
Evelyn's POV "Let go of me!" I screamed as the soldiers lifted me in both arms and carted me out of my home. "Let go this instant! Cyrus! Cyrus, you can't be serious!" I looked over my shoulders as I was being dragged away from my home. A maid had a sad look on her face as she closed the front door. The soldiers shoved me into a car and drove while I screamed. They arrived at the pack prison and left me down to the dungeon. A place kept for hardened criminals and dangerous people. It reeked of dirt and blood and sweat. I could hear the hollering of the prisoners as I got led through a small hallway down to a prison at the end. I had stopped screaming. What was the point? No one could save me. I had been rejected by my family, treated as dirt, and used as a pawn over and over. And then I yearned for the love of a cruel man who treated me like a prisoner. Because of his lover. "I'm sorry, Luna." One of the guards mumbled in apology as he opened the jail gate. I wal
Gaius’s POVShock! Disbelieve!I could see the two emotions clearly reflecting in her eyes. While I could understand what was going on with her - simply because I was feeling the same way - I didn’t want to prolong the matter in any way. “You…” The disbelief in her voice stretched for over ten seconds before she was able to find her voice again. “You…” And again, she lost her voice. I sighed, knowing that it was only a matter of seconds before the words would plopped out of her mouth. “Yes, we are mates,” I affirmed to her, hoping that she would let go of the matter since I already gave her the confirmation she wanted. However, she quickly proved me to be wrong. “How?!” She bellowed. At that, I got a little irritated. If she thought that I wanted to stand in front of a prison bar and go through a question and answer series, then she was wrong. Also, if she thought that the mate thing was only shocking to her, again she was wrong. I was just trying to hold off whatever roller co
Gaius’s POV. “I refuse!”The effect of the words made me feel like crossing over to the other side of the room and strangling the good for nothing man to his death. However, I knew I couldn’t. That was what brought me here in the first place when I could have easily gotten my mate out of the prison hold the man had her in. “All for the greater good!” That feminine voice came over me again, making me release the tightened fists by my sides. *Just a little bit more, and we can kill off the man.* My wolf, Leon, growled within me, also fighting for control just as I was. “Alpha Gaius!” A voice beckoned in urgency behind me. I turned around and saw my guards storming in into the room where I was with Alpha Cyrus. “We came as fast as we could.” This was from my Gama, Dan, who rushed to my side, all his body tensed to indicate that he was ever ready for whatever command I was going to issue next.“You dared to bring your soldiers into my territory?!” Alpha Cyrus stormed at me. I hiss
Evelyn’s POVTHAT MAN!Not in a million years could I ever have thought that that man would end up being my mate. A second mate at that. And how weird could it be that the man ended up looking exactly like him - my dead mate. Archer Hartwood. Just as the name came to my mind, so did the memory of us together. Even though it was only for a short while, it was one I would not forget in a hurry. And I had thought that we would have a lots of time on our hand to create many more beautiful memories. And even as I tried my best to stop the memory that threatened to burst forth, it still came. That night when he had died. It had all looked like a dream to me when one minute we were laughing and chasing each other around, and the next minute, a scream had rented the air and all I saw when I went to the place the sound came from was the dead body of my mate, Archer. Somebody had thought it fun to take a knife through the heart of the man and had left him there in his agony to fend for
“Evelyn, I need you to listen to me,” Gaius said, his voice low but steady, cutting through the anger consuming me. His green eyes fixed on mine, unwavering, even as my wolf bared her teeth and snarled in warning.“I can’t,” I gasped, my voice broken, almost unrecognizable. The primal force inside me surged, raw and uncontrollable, drowning out reason. My claws flexed, slicing the air as I took an instinctive step back.“You can,” Gaius cut in, stepping closer, his movements deliberate, calm. “You’re stronger than this, Evelyn. Look at me. I’m right here.”A guttural growl erupted from my throat, and before I could stop myself, I lunged. My wolf moved with blind fury, her grief a palpable force driving her.Gaius was ready. He stepped to his sides swiftly, catching my wrists mid way. His grip was strong but not harsh, a steady counter to the wildness consuming me.“Evelyn, stop!” he barked, his Alpha tone cutting through the haze like a sharp blade.But my wolf wasn’t ready to stop. S
Evelyn’s povThe room was buried in silence, heavy and suffocating. Gaius’s words lingered in the air, his promise to protect me from losing more piercing through the grief that took over my mind.But it wasn’t enough. Nothing about this felt enough.I stood abruptly, the blanket falling from my shoulders. “I can’t do this,” I said, my voice shaking with barely contained rage.“Evelyn,” Gaius started, rising to meet me, his tone cautious.“No,” I cut him off, walking towards the window, the frustration in my chest itching to be let out. “Sitting here, mourning, letting them walk away with everything they’ve taken from us—it’s not enough. It’s not me.”“You’re grieving,” he said softly, moving closer.I turned to face him, my wolf stirring beneath my skin. “And I’ll grieve later. But not now. Not while Clara’s standing there beside Roman like she’s untouchable. Not while the Council of Elders protects them and refuses to see the truth. They think they’ve won, Gaius. They think I’ll fa
Evelyn's pov“Evelyn, you need to eat something,” Gaius said softly, his voice filled with worry as he knelt beside me. His hand reached for mine, but I pulled it back, squeezing further into myself on the couch. The blanket wrapped around my shoulders felt like the only thing keeping me together.“I’m not hungry,” I muttered, my voice low.“You’ve been saying that for days,” he cut in, his tone strict now, though not unkind. “You can’t keep doing this. Your body needs—”“My body needs nothing,” I interrupted, my voice sharp as my gaze finally met his. “What’s the point, Gaius? Why does it even matter?”He flinched, but instead of arguing, he moved closer, his green eyes searching mine. “It matters because you matter, Evelyn. Don’t you see that? I can’t lose you too.”My throat tightened, the weight of his words settling over me like a heavy wood. “You deserve better than this,” I whispered, my voice breaking. “Better than me. I couldn’t even…”“Stop,” he said firmly, cutting me o
Evelyn’s povWhen I woke, the world was muted, hazy around the edges, as though I were emerging from a thick fog. The sharp ache in my body was overwhelming, radiating from my abdomen and seeping into every nerve. My lids fluttered open, and the dim light of the room filtered in, casting long shadows on the walls.The first thing I saw was Gaius, seated at my bedside. His hand clasped mine tightly, as if letting go would cause me to slip away. His face was pale, his eyes red-rimmed, his usual controlled demeanor replaced by an expression I’d rarely seen on him: anguish.“Evelyn,” he breathed, his voice breaking with relief. “Thank the moon.”I tried to speak, but my throat was dry, and my lips felt cracked. “What… what happened?” I managed to rasp, the words scratching painfully as they left me.“You were poisoned,” Gaius said, his voice low but laced with fury. His eyes darkened as he spoke the word, and his jaw tightened as though he was forcing himself to remain calm.The memory of
Evelyn's povThe scent was unmistakable. As soon as I opened my eyes, it hit me—the rich, comforting smell of the meals my mother used to make. It was a blend of herbs, spices, and something warm and hearty, familiar and safe. I could almost hear her humming in the kitchen, the sound that always seemed to follow the delicious aroma of her cooking. For a moment, I thought I had drifted back in time, back to when everything was simpler, when my biggest concern was running through the halls of the packhouse with my siblings, laughing and carefree.I rose slowly from bed, the lingering warmth of the covers against my skin making me want to sink back into them. But the smell pulled me out of my stupor, and I couldn’t resist. I slipped into my slippers and walked quietly down the hall, following the scent like a trail.When I entered the kitchen, my steps faltered. There, standing at the stove, was Clara. She was stirring something in a pot, her focus completely on the task at hand. I co
Evelyn's pov.The day felt heavy, as though the weight of everything I’d been struggling with had finally caught up to me.My steps were slow as I made my way through the corridors of the packhouse, my hand resting on my stomach. The baby inside me had grown stronger, more active, and yet I could feel the toll it was taking on my body.I’d been so caught up in the chaos of everything around me—Roman, my father, Gaius, and the constant pressure of the pack—that I hadn’t taken the time to care for myself.Today, I was going for my checkup, and I could only hope that the doctor would have some good news.Gaius walked beside me, his presence a constant source of comfort. His hand brushed against mine every now and then, a subtle reminder that no matter what was happening around us, I wasn’t alone.“How are you feeling?” he asked, his voice low and concerned.“I’m fine,” I said, though my words didn’t feel as convincing as I wanted them to. “Just tired.”“You need to rest more,” he said,
Evelyn’s P.o.vThe weight of uncertainty hung heavy over the room. Gaius, Lisa, Adam, and I sat in the study, the air thick with tension as we tried to piece together our next move. My father’s whereabouts—or what Roman believed to be his fate—loomed over every word spoken.“We need to consider the possibility that Cyrus has him,” I said, breaking the silence. My voice trembled slightly, but I forced myself to speak clearly. “If Roman isn’t lying, and if my father’s not dead, there’s no one else who would go to such lengths to keep him hidden.”Lisa nodded thoughtfully, her gaze sharp as she exchanged a glance with Adam. “It would make sense,” she said, tapping her fingers against the armrest of her chair. “Cyrus would gain leverage over you that way. And we know he doesn’t shy away from using people as pawns.”Adam leaned forward, his elbows resting on his knees. “If Cyrus does have him, we need proof before we act. Otherwise, we’re walking into a trap.”“I know that,” I replied, try
Evelyn’s P.o.vThe silence between Gaius and me stretched long and thin as the car sped away from my father’s packhouse. I couldn’t shake Clara’s words, her hesitant voice playing on a loop in my mind.He’s not coming back. Roman thinks he’s dead.No matter how many times I replayed it, I couldn’t accept it. My father—dead? No. It wasn’t possible. He was too strong, too clever to be taken down so easily. But the doubt wormed its way into my thoughts, gnawing at my resolve.Gaius’s steady grip on the wheel was the only anchor keeping me tethered to the moment. I could feel his glances, the weight of his concern, but I didn’t have the energy to meet his gaze. Instead, I stared out the window at the passing trees, their green blur doing little to distract me from the storm in my chest.“Evelyn,” Gaius said softly, his voice cutting through the hum of the engine.“I don’t want to talk about it,” I said flatly, not looking at him.“You’re not fooling anyone,” he replied, his tone gentle bu
Evelyn's P.o.vThe air in the packhouse was suffocating. My wolf moved uneasy beneath my skin, her unease mirroring my own as Roman stood before me, his expression a mixture of defiance and barely concealed fear. His hands were clenched at his sides, his jaw tight, but his eyes betrayed him. “I told you,” he said, his voice wavering despite his attempt at control, “I don’t know where Father is.” “Liar,” I said, taking a step closer. My voice was steady, but inside, my anger simmered, threatening to boil over. “You’re hiding something, Roman. Just tell me the truth.” “I’m not hiding anything!” he snapped, though his gaze darted to Gaius, who stood at my side, silent and imposing. Gaius didn’t speak, but his presence alone was enough to make Roman flinch. I narrowed my eyes, my wolf growling low in my chest. “Do you think I’m stupid? Do you think I don’t see through you? I know you know something. Stop wasting my time.” Roman’s lips pressed into a thin line, and he took a st