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“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
“Luna welcome, the—”“Not now,” Leila cuts the omega off, runs up the stairs and slams the door to her room shut before she yells in frustration, slapping her palm against her face.How did this happen?This wasn’t the plan.She was supposed to expose Carmela, Carmela was supposed to leave.What does she do now?It was one thing to try and prove that Carmela is evil and not Tatum’s mate when Tatum wasn’t sure of it but now that this ritual or whatever sorcery they did has confirmed it, will Tatum even listen to her?He kissed Carmela outrightly in front of her, he didn’t even bat an eye when she left, he didn’t even look at her.She doesn’t blame him, she’s not mad at him, he has been deceived to believe Carmela is his mate and she always knew it would be hard for him to fight.She stares at herself at the mirror, glancing down at her baby bump.What will become of her child if Tatum decides to go back on his word?Will it grow up without a father, or perhaps without its mother?Can
“What do you mean the head warrior is dead?” Leila feels a squeeze in her heart and her eyes coat with tears as one of the omegas tells her the news as they prepare dinner.Clayton looked hale and hearty this morning.Was he ill? He didn’t look like it, he didn’t show any signs, how could he suddenly be dead?“When was this?” Leila asks in a sullen tone, feeling a sense of defeat come upon her.How is she supposed to clear her name without Clayton to help her with the investigations?“It was announced as breaking news this evening, his body was found laying in the elders chamber,” the omega replies.The elders chamber….it must have happened after she left but was no one there to help him?Leila backs against the countertop, placing her hand on her chest, taking deep breaths to calm herself from the shocking news.She feels some regret.Maybe if she had allowed him to follow her as he wanted, she could have saved him if it happened in front of her.“Finish up here,” she says to the o
“Welcome to my humble and temporary abode Angel,” Leo smiles at Leila, opening his arms for a hug. Leila keeps her face grim, her feet rooted to the spot, barely any amusement in her eyes as she stares at Leo blankly. “My bad,” he chuckles and drops his hands, “we’re not friends yet, according to you. I’m glad you took up my offer. Come, I’ll introduce you to everyone.” Leila narrows her eyes at him as she walks in behind him. His men do not bow or show any sign of respect or anything like that as Leo walks past them. Everyone is just going about their normal duty and activities as if they cannot even see him. Even Tatum who doesn’t force anyone to respect him will not have his men just lazing about when he walks in with a guest. Is Leo really this jovial with his men or is this all an act for her to drop her guard? Make her feel like he is a warm and homely person? She only has one mission here today and that is to find her daughter. Whatever theatrics and schemes Leo has up hi
“I think you should go Leila,” Jenny says later that evening after Leila tells her of her encounter with Leo and how he both directly and indirectly gave her an invitation to his camp. Leila looks at Jenny with shock, not expecting her to say that, “can you even hear yourself? It’s an obvious trap. He already has Amara, if he kidnaps me too, then what happens?” Jenny frowns, “you’re both invitees of the king and I know where you’re going, he can’t actually kidnap you if you walk in there with your feet. This may be our only chance to confirm if he really has Amara in there or not.” Leila sighs, a sad and conflicted look on her face. Jenny has a point but it is also risky too. The Leo she met is a far cry from what she thought him to be but of course, that too might just be pretense. “I have an idea,” Jenny’s face lights up as Leila raises her head to face her, “to ensure Leo cannot do anything silly when you get to the camp, we just have to make the king aware of your visit to Leo’
What does he want with her? Is he going to— “I thought I told you boys to back off, are you trying to scare the lady?” Leo’s voice breaks into her thoughts and she looks at him with eyes agape in shock, then squinted in suspicion. “Alpha, we’re only doing our duty, it’s not safe for you to roam these streets alone, considering our current standing with the king,”one of his men replies. “The angel here knows a thing or two about standings with the king and she’s roaming, is she not? Unless you boys think a woman can handle what your Alpha can’t.” “Of course not Alpha,” the guy immediately goes on one knee and bows to Leo. Leo rolls his eyes and frowns, “you’re always too serious Dexter, I meant that as a joke but if you thought so, you wouldn’t be wrong, this lady here is a special one.” The discomfort in Leila’s heart grows and a tinge of fear rises in her from the words of Leo. He was somehow able to find out that Amara is Tatum’s daughter, what else does he know? Does he know h
“This mysterious savior of yours seems to be one of a kind,” Jenny says after Leila recounts her ordeal at Leo’s camp to her. “I guess he is,” Leila replies, her eyes holding a conflicted look, her thoughts still unsettled about the probable identity of the man and his proximity when her life is in danger. “Jenny.” “Yeah.” “Is it possible for one’s wolf to change, maybe by magic or a spell?” “Why do you ask?” Jenny squints, her face becoming doused with scrutiny and a hint of sudden realisation, “wait. You don’t think it’s Tatum, do you?” “I don’t know…” Leila replies, her voice sullen and dry, her heart soaked in grief, “if such a spell was possible, I suppose I would think so. I mean, who else would come to my rescue like that but him and his choice to stay mute too. Plus Tatum has a habit of doing things and keeping me in the dark. I’m just so confused.” Jenny heaves a deep sigh, pity covering her eyes. She sits beside Leila on the mattress and drapes her hand around her. “D
Leila immediately takes off in the direction through which she came, the guard at the post takes a swing at her with the silver spear clutched in his arms but she ducks underneath it, her heart pounding hard and fast as more guards join in the chase. She reaches the fence and in one swift move, she leaps over it but the barbed wire tears into her back and the side of her arm as she lands but the pain doesn’t deter or slow her down. Leo already has Amara, no doubt to have an edge over Tatum, if she gets caughts too, it will only make things worse and judging from what she has heard about Leo, he could do much worse than just capture her. The sound of the dogs barking and men yelling gets louder as she takes off into the deep of the woods. She almost shifts so she can gain more ground on the dogs who she can see closing in on her from her peripheral vision when she remembers the dangerous spell cast on the capital, way before Antonio even became king. It is a tale every child growing
“If your mind's made up, give me a few hours, I’ll do a cloaking spell to keep you hidden when you get there, go get our little warrior and bring her back,” Jenny replies, giving Leila a hug. Leila feels a bit of relief hearing that. With a cloaking spell, she can easily move in and out of the camp undetected and hopefully, she can get Amara out. Armed with Jenny’s cloaking spell which Jenny channeled into a bracelet around Leila’s wrist, Leila heads to Leo’s camp. As long as she keeps the bracelet around her wrist and avoids water getting on it, the ordinary eyes of men will not be able to see her. Her eyes scan the camp’s walls—high wooden fences reinforced with barbed wire and guarded by sentries, their sharp eyes scanning the darkness for any movement. She can see their figures in the distance, shifting in and out of view as they pace. She holds her breath, listening for any noise that might betray her presence. Even with the cloaking spell, she still has to be very careful, o
The next day, Leila makes her way to the palace to officially answer Antonio’s summon. She would rather be looking for Amara or Tatum right now but it’s important that she sees Antonio too. The last thing she wants to do is give him an excuse to legally place any kind of punishment on her or pack using her disobedience as an excuse. “State your business,” a rough looking guard, a guy as tall as a mountain, confronts her at the gate. “I’m here to see the king by his summon. I’m Leila Cromwell, Luna of the blood oak pack,” she replies, staring at the gates that stand tall and imposing. The guard grunts and they his eyes change colours, showing he is mindlinking, possibly confirming if she was truly summoned by the king. “Wait here,” the guard frowns, before walking through the gates and into the gate house. Leila’s heart thuds nervously as she waits aside. A lot depends on the outcome of her meeting with Antonio but what would she even say to him when she sees him? The man singl
Leila’s heart races, her breath becoming unstable from Jenny’s revelation as she tries to make sense of it. “If it wasn’t for Amara’s power that caught him off guard, he would have captured us right there and then but she bought us enough time to escape and stay hidden until Tatum and his men arrived and the moment Tatum left with Amara, Leo and his men stopped their onslaught and went after him,” Jenny concludes. Leila sighs sadly and massages her temple. This endless cycle of torment and confusion just seems to never want to stop revolving around her. She knows Amara is alive but she still cannot ascertain her safety from what Jenny is saying. It makes no logical sense for Tatum to bring Amara to the last place that she should be and another thing is how far the North Star pack is from the capital. It’s a very long journey that would take travelling through different packs and despite the measures she put in place and people she had sent to different packs in search of Tatum and A
A terrific sigh of relief escapes Leila, her eyes going wide in shock and she hugs Jenny again, tears falling out of her eyes, a rush of relief filling her heart. For many nights and days she has prayed and hoped that Amara would be safe, that no harm should befall her but why the capital, why did Tatum choose here of all places to bring her, right under Antonio’s nose. What is his plan? She breaks the hug and tugs Jenny by her arms, “do you know where she is, can you take me to her?” She asks, her heart pounding wildly, nothing would bring her more joy right now than seeing her little girl again, seeing those shiny pretty eyes, her bubbly personality. The last time they saw Amara was withdrawing into a shell because of how different she was from kids her age and how they treated her. Will she still be the same or will spending time with her father have that effect removed? “Leila , calm down,” Jenny replies, a bit of a sullen look in her eyes, “I know where she is but it’s not t