“Careful, do not leave your fingerprints on anything,” Clayton orders his men as they carry Alina’s mutilated body out. Leila mind linked him immediately she discovered Alina’s body and that of the little girl who attends to her.The white room which Leila walked into, now they had lamps everywhere to see, was actually connected to Alina’s life source.She was stabbed multiple times all over her body, her tongue was cut out and she was left to bleed to death. The moment she died, the room also lost its life.It was just an empty room with concrete walls and marbled walls after all.Leila gazes around, her eyes teary, her mind puzzled.Who could have done it? What could their reasons be? She never thought the pack’s witch could be someone so easy to kill.Has she always been targeted? Is it linked to her visit earlier?There are so many questions in her head but she cannot seem to answer any. Something tells her this death has something to do with her visit.It means she is being fol
“I would be glad if she isn’t,” Tatum replies nonchalantly with no sort of hostility much to Leila’s surprise. The way she cocks her head and looks at Tatum with wide eyes shows ample evidence of her shock and Tatum cups her face and plugs a soft wet kiss on her lips. “Don’t look so surprised. I love you baby girl and I hate that I have to divide my attention between you and her. I know you hate it but she’s a stick up my throat, I can’t get rid of her but there’s no way her mark is fake or anything like that, Alina confirmed it years ago. “Carmi is my mate but my wolf doesn’t feel anything for her right now, so you don’t have to worry, I’m all yours,” Tatum replies, playfully pinching her nose at the end of his sentence. A tight smile forms on Leila’s lips and her heart becomes weary, remembering the mutilated corpse of Alina. “What about the recording? You heard it, she—” “Leila….my sweet pea, listen to me. You and I are all that matters. Just know, no matter what, I will alway
“You stand accused of the murder of Alina Whitehart, Leila. How do you plead?”The head of the elder council asks Leila curtly in the pack house chamber.The twelve elders of the pack are present including Trent, Carmela’s father.The chamber is a building built adjoining but separated from the main pack house with an open roof. Despite the modern times, the elders have kept to the old ways and sat on the bare floor with their legs crossed.They sit in a huge circle with Leila sitting in the middle earning glares from all of them and Tatum sits behind the circle, indicating his position as the Alpha.“Innocent,” Leila replies in a calm tone, her eyes fixed on no else but Trent, Carmela’s father who is also the current head of the elders council.It was he who rushed the summon against her and Leila knows it is not random, she feels weary about it but she keeps a straight face, determined to prove her innocence.Normally, a murder case like this should be charged to court under the new
“Luna?” Trent’s voice brings Leila’s mind back to the room.Perhaps as her child grows older, he revitalises her body faster but does it have any negative effect on him?She hopes not.“I was going to say when I visited her earlier, she held my arm too tight and her fingers dug in but the wounds are completely healed,” Leila stretches her arm forward and she sees the shock in Trent’s eyes that he tries to hide but fails.Why is he so surprised? Was it all part of their plan? Did they also kill the witch to frame her?The wound was of a violent nature and they know she has no wolf, if it had remained on her, it would have been hard to defend herself that it wasn’t from a struggle.Leila’s heart thuds gently as realisation slowly begins to dawn on her.“Forgive me Luna but that sounds like a lie, we have all visited the witch at one point or another, she doesn’t have physical contact with anyone so why would she hold you and so firm as to inflict injuries?”“I don’t know!” Leila replies
Tatum sighs defeatedly, looking at Leila with disappointment and disbelief as the words leave her mouth. He was hoping she would be shrewd and not say it, at least not so directly. Doesn’t she understand? Even if she speaks the truth, saying such a thing without concrete proof will be considered blasphemous as the people will turn on her. There is a limit to which he can defend her before they turn on him too and it could lead to an all out riot from the pack members. “That is a serious allegation Leila, do you have any proof?” Trent asks Leila coldly, his eyes narrowed dangerously at her. “I think she only cut from your cloth,” Tatum cuts in sharply before Leila can reply. “You accuse her of murder without proof as well. This case is ludicrous, I will have the warriors do a thorough investigation and get back to me. We are dismissed. Tatum stands to his feet and so does everyone else. He walks over to Leila and turns her away from the men as they also begin to huddle in group
Leila watches from the corner as Carmela steps in with another woman and she frowns. The woman has sharp green eyes and her long white hair cascades down, all the way to her back, dressed in a black leather gown and red shawl on her neck. “Alpha this is Lithoha, the great witch of the silver moon pack,” Trent announces, “she is a direct descendant of the witch who helped Selene create the first werewolf and she is the solution to our common problem.” “Alpha,” Lithoha bows, her green eyes peering deep into Tatum’s eyes before she suddenly turns her head and looks at Leila sharply. Their eyes meet and Leila feels a creepy odd sensation coming over her, she tries to look away but finds she cannot, it is like an invisible force from Lithoha rendered all the muscles of her neck useless. She suddenly feels a sharp pain on her wrist and she winces, pulling her hand up to see the beads of the amulet her mother gave her vibrating at an incredible speed. She may not be versed in such thin
“This blood ritual, how does it work?” Tatum glances at Leila as he asks the question.Leila’s heart thud with worry, her feet getting restless, a sick feeling in her stomach.Tatum seems to be hanging on to every word that leaves Lithoha’s lips, eager to know more.Does he not even suspect this a little bit? She just accused Trent of being the only one that knew about the mark before his daughter mysteriously got it, the witch who could have proven that as truth is dead and Carmela just shows up with a random witch to perform a random ritual that no one has ever heard about.It is quite clear to see it is no coincidence. She immediately wants to point it out but she clenched her fist against her dress, pursing her lips together.Tatum will only probably scold her or ask her to leave. He is so grounded in his sense of duty and logic that basic instincts fail him.How can she get him to see the truth? Whatever these people have planned will do more harm than good.“It is better if I s
Leila makes her way home without Tatum, Clayton offers to escort her but she declines, saying she needs to be alone. Clayton on the other hand is unable to shake the feeling in his heart, something about the ritual was awkward, it all seems fishy. He waits by the door as the elders congratulate Carmela and Tatum and leave one after the other. Trent is the last one to leave and as Tatum and Carmela approach him, hand in hand, he steps up to them. “With your permission Alpha, I need to have a word with Carmela, it is regarding the assassination attempt,” he says, bowing slightly to Tatum. Tatum’s brows furrow and his eyes narrow at Clayton. “You really need to work on your timing,” Tatum replies, annoyance clear in his tone and he pulls Carmela away from Clayton. “Alpha, the Luna’s life and honour is at stake and I am under sworn oath to protect her. This is an emergency and I will only take a short while,” Clayton replies firmly. A deep rumbling growl sounds from Tatum’s throat
“Everything will be alright father,” Leila gently wipes Darren’s forehead with a warm cloth while the rest of his body is covered in a blanket.He is freezing up, despite the averagely warm weather outside. No one truly understands the nature of this cancer that he has, he gets better a little on his own and then he seems to get worse. Darren nods weakly, his pale eyes full of gratitude.“I have to leave now, I’ll come and see you first thing in the morning tomorrow,” Leila says, she had spent the whole day tending to him after Trent left.“You’re leaving?” Adaline comes in carrying a tray of food, “I made dinner, I was just bringing you yours.”“That’s very nice of you but I’m fine,” Leila stands up and adjusts the blanket over Darren properly, “please take care of him.”“Leila please don’t go,” Adaline drops the tray hurriedly and rushes towards Leila. “I already had the maids prepare your room for you. You’re our only insurance against those men outside. As long as you are here,
Hearing that, Leila frowns. Of course Adaline did not come to apologize to her out of the remorse of her heart, it is only because she knows she’s the only one that can stand up to Trent in Tatum’s absence.While she may be bitter towards Adaline, Darren has remained like a father figure to her, she must go and find out what’s going on.She stands up immediately and leaves Adaline in her office with not even a word in response, wasting no time to rally some of the trusted men Tatum had left behind and makes her way to Darren’s house.Trent must have learnt of her move to take back the seized properties and now he is making another move to undermine her but why Tatum’s parents?What is his goal here? Whatever it is, she is going to find out.“You’re not allowed to go in, no one is.” One of Trent’s men blocks Leila’s path at the entrance to the house with several of them standing outside.They far outnumber the men Leila had brought with her but she doesn’t even need her guards to handl
“Please have your seat,” Leila offers Adaline, keeping her face calm and polite.“Thank you my daughter,” Adaline replies, hurriedly sitting down. Leila doesn’t know how to react to being addressed as ‘my daughter’ from the same woman who would bring hell down on her if she dared to address her as mother in the past.It feels strange and beyond strange, it’s quite discomforting. She tried several times to be a daughter to Adaline and she always got served a bad hand in return.The only reason she’s not rebuking her right now is because the sooner she can handle whatever brought Adaline here, the sooner she can get back to the important work of getting a legal team ready for the battle in court that may happen.“How can I help you?” She replies, keeping her voice curt.“Leila….” Adaline stretches her hand over the table to hold Leila’s hand but she withdraws it before Adaline can touch her and keeps it by her side, a mix of a puzzled and irritated look on her face.‘What is she trying
Leila is distraught upon hearing the news, the pain she feels is cataclysmic. She knows Tatum is not dead, if he was her wolf would feel the bond snap and she’ll be in even more terrible pain.Yet, he is nowhere to be found, presumed dead and she has no idea if he got to save Amara or not.What is she supposed to do now? The wedding may have fallen through but it is secondary to the claiming ritual, she is the Luna in the eyes of the pack members whether they said I do or not.“What do you think you’re doing?” Her mother steps into her room, giving her a stern look, where Leila’s sitting on the floor, a mess of tears.“Mother, I—”“He’s not dead!” Liana snaps at her, “you said so yourself. And if I know anything about that young man from recent events, he’ll claw his way out from hell itself to get back to you and he certainly won’t let any harm come to his daughter but when he returns, who does he return to meet, the woman he trusted to be Luna and left his pack to or a pitiful wife
“We have to go right now! I can’t wait another second,” Leila cries, her eyes red and puffy, an unbearable pain lodged in her heart for fear of her precious angel.Anything could be happening to her daughter at this moment. She does not want to even think of it. How is it possible that the one place Leo chooses to attack is just where Amara is?This hardly looks like a coincidence, her heart throbs with pain, pounding in fear. Is it possible that Leo learnt the truth about Amara being Tatum’s daughter and is trying to hurt Tatum by harming her, but how would he have learnt that? Amara’s identity is a well kept secret.She looks back at Tatum from her trembling feet just as he slams his phone down, grunts and runs his hands down his face in frustration, his eyes weary and sad but his rage is clear in them.“I can’t reach anyone over there, it’s like their communications system has been cut off or something,” his voice is laden with worry “That’s why we should be on our way there alrea
It’s her wedding day, it really is her wedding day and it’s not the rushed secret night wedding she had the first time, everything is as she wants.Even if her dream wedding was something small, intimate between just her and her family, she could not deny the pack members who had been abuzz with its attendance so she decided to host it outdoors to accommodate everyone.Several Alphas and Lunas from other packs are also present. It’s a happy day for Leila and the members of the blood oak pack.The wedding was the needed boom of joy to topple the gloom that had overshadowed the pack in recent weeks.Not a single soul wanted to miss it. If they had opted to use a hall as Leila initially wanted, it would be full to the brim and not enough people would get seats.“The crowd outside is wild,” Amanda says, stepping into the room where Leila is getting the finishing touches to her makeup. “This has to be the biggest Alpha wedding I have ever witnessed.”Leila makes a face at Amanda, half roll
“We’re going to the temple?” Leila asks Tatum, seeing the path they are walking down, his hand intertwined in hers.“Yes we are,” Tatum replies with a smile, taking her hand up and planting a soft kiss on it that makes her blush and sets her heart racing even more.She wonders what this surprise may be that it has to happen in the temple. This is the most sacred place in the blood oak pack. Pack members can only visit it on invitation from the priestess of the temple. She has only ever been here once with her dad and even then, she had to wait a distance outside while he went in. The temple is located right in the heart of the pack and yet it is the most secluded place.When they get to the gate of the temple, they are welcomed by attendants who give them water to wash their hands, feet and faces before they are allowed to enter inside.Leila stares in awe at the gigantic statue of the goddess riding a three headed wolf with a sceptre in her hand, the walls of the temple adorned with
“Leila! You have guests!”She hears the sound of her mother’s voice calling her from downstairs and she drops her phone on the bed, which she had been browsing the internet with searching for pictures of a wedding gown and trying to also find a designer even though Amanda swore she had that part covered.Who could those guests be? She doesn’t remember expecting anyone, she’s not exactly the most popular figure in the pack, even though she’s going to be their Luna for the second time.A part of her is honestly quite troubled about how the pack is receiving the news of her wedding to Tatum.It still feels surreal but she knows it is happening. She is going to get married to the love of her life twice in her lifetime. The first time they got married, it was Tatum saving her, now it is her who is more or less saving him by agreeing to be his bride, such an irony.Coming down the stairs, Leila freezes and she takes some steps back, seeing the crowd gathered in her living room, members of t
“I already told you I summoned her, she doesn’t have to answer—” “It’s okay,” Leila gently holds Tatum’s hand to calm him, feeling the change in his aura. She smiles gently at him, letting her palm trace down his blood ridden forearm, her body tingling with a subtle pleasure as she interlocks her palms with his. Tatum unconsciously or perhaps consciously clasps his hands against hers, while looking at her with confusion in his eyes and feeling as one with him in this moment, the power of Trent’s Alpha’s command dissolves into thin air. That pressure that wolves always felt to speak the truth once under the alpha command is not felt by her wolf, what she feels is different. It is a feeling of bliss, a calmness and a knowing that this is meant to be. Her union with Tatum. Whatever happens next, whatever hurdle they have to face, whatever storms they have to brace, whatever challenges may come, they’ll face it together and so out of her own free will and not under the influence of Tre