“And hereupon he called his cavalier. This cavalier was so grand that if any one lower in rank than himself dared to speak to him, or to ask him any question, he answered nothing but ‘P!’—and that meant nothing.” Both girls were out now. I closed the book, kissed them both as gently as I could on
Sarah POV The stable hands were as kind to me as they had been to Chloe, and I was shown several horses, from which I opted for what seemed the gentlest, a brown gelding named Jack. I copied the leg-up maneuver to get in the saddle, which was more comfortable than I had thought it would be. A groo
Sarah POV I recognized it was entirely possible I was going to vomit right there on the paved path. Yes, right there in front of the girls, the two stoic bodyguards, and Zane, Sarah Astor was about to toss her cookies. I would be apologizing for months. Then the ground steadied, and then it stea
Zane’s POV “Are you all right?” I asked Chloe, whom I had protected in my arms as the rocks fell. “Mommy?” she asked. Her face was covered in dirt, but there was no blood. She was trembling, but I could tell she was trying to be brave. “Where’s Mommy?” It was hard to see with so much dust in t
Sarah POV Inside the basket was a tiny werewolf pup, pink and perfect with deep blue eyes that instantly claimed me. Why had I not remembered that initial instant connection, the command of those eyes to save her? No wonder putting her in an orphanage was never going to work. “Chloe,” I said, th
“When can I go home?” I asked. She laughed a little. “When the doctor clears you, but don’t think it’s going to be sooner than a day. We need to keep an eye on you.” Her eyes flickered to the alpha beside her, and I knew I was receiving the best care the hospital had to offer. An unknown but sli
Sarah POV He turned to look at me, each of his hands holding one of the girls’. “I loved the mother of my children,” he said. I smiled, though my eyelids were closing. “Of course you did.” After that, I dozed. Sleeping, my dreams were troubled, and when I was awake my thoughts and feelings w
Zane told me he needed to stay on top of things, patted my hand, and left me with the girls and the bodyguard. The girls and I talked and napped until dinner, when they went home (under protest). I ate surprisingly good food for a hospital and slept until morning, minus the various times people came
Sarah POVAfter the onsite security personnel and police had come, taken Ella’s body along with our statements, and then left, it was early morning. I worried about the girls, but they were as keyed up as I, and finally we all just piled on Zane’s bed, which was now my bed as well. Zane had his arms
Sarah POVGinnyWolf: Sarah is a MOON WOLF??!! Are you KIDDING ME?WhiteKnuckling: This is a hoax. Total bullshit.PPPPJohnP: I knew it.ShangHairSurprise: Will she be reforming the Luna Temple again?Rosemary&Sage: Hey now, PPPPJohn, THAT’S bullshit.With a laugh, I put the phone in the purse Lainey
Sarah POV“We all fear death,” Zane said.That wasn’t what I meant at all, and I told him so. My dress turned to silver in the moonlight, and I held his warm hands in mine.“If you seek the truth, stop seeking enemies and find the moon,” I and the statue and someone else said, speaking as one.He lo
Zane POVIt was thallium poisoning.“The treatment is proceeding with Prussian blue, which traps thallium to keep it from being further absorbed, as well as activated charcoal and forced diuresis,” the doctor, whose name I learned was Vassles, told me.Sitting by Sarah’s bedside, I was trying hard n
Zane POV“Alpha Zane!”Never, in all the years he had been working for me, had I heard such a sound of panic in Hans’s voice.I looked up and out my window. Hans wasn’t in the house. I saw him frantically waving at me over by the poppy garden almost a mile away.I ran down the stairs and out of the
Sarah POVThe day was lovely—perfect, even. The girls were back in school and making up for lost time, Zane was in his office and waved to me as I walked past the villa, and all the “lieutenants” had gone home.It was odd to look back on the past year. Had there ever been more than a day here and th
Ella POVMy contact at the prison told me Hayes followed his script exactly, and for the moment, I decided to put the wolf out of my mind. Few things had ever worked out as nicely as discovering the good doctor’s gambling addiction, and Hayes had several million reasons to do as he was told.When th
Sarah POVThe second Zane and I were in the car, I raised the partition for some privacy, turned to Zane, and asked the question burning acid in my stomach.“Do you think he actually hurt the girls?”Zane shook his head, but his eyes were haunted. “Not physically, but we’ll have to talk to them, see
“We found your money,” I said.“I thought you would.”We sat another few minutes in silence. “So, who was paying you? Who got you to betray my household?”Hayes smiled to himself.“Something funny?”“Do you think I’m some lackey doing someone’s bidding for a few dollars?” he asked, meeting my gaze n