Chapter One: A Child
Sophia.
“I swear, this insignificant thing will betray you. Why aren’t you listening to me, Elena?” I ask, pointing at the child she is holding. “I don’t trust him. I have a hunch he’s going to turn on you.”
“No, he won’t,” Elena responds emphatically. She strokes the child’s face softly. “I trust him, and I know he won’t do me any harm.”
“What the hell, Elena?” I say incredulously. “Don't tell me you trust him over me. You put your trust in a stranger over your friend?”
“Sophia, pay attention to what I’m saying,” Elena yells. “I’m not sure what’s wrong with you.”
“Elena, please listen to me.”
“How do you come to dislike this little guy? Why, for the love of the goddess, do you despise him? It’s been weeks since we met him, and you still despise this helpless child?”
I look her in the eye, desperate for her to believe me. “Trust me,” I reply emphatically. “Not only will he betray you, but the entire Shadow Pack. He is not one of us, and he will never be. We should get rid of him before he creates any problems for us.”
She is shocked by what I say. It is written on her face. Do I go too far? Do I talk too much and hurt her?
“Betrayed?” she wonders. “You keep telling me he’s going to betray me. You continue to accuse him even though you have yet to witness him do anything improper. This little one you’re referring to is just ten years old. How can he possibly betray me? How can he possibly betray us? How do you know he will turn against the pack?”
“But…,” I stammer. “But… Elena.”
I can’t think of the perfect words to express how I feel, so I simply stutter incoherently answering her query.
She lets out a sigh. “Sophia, please stop and pay attention to what I’m saying. I’ve had my fill of you. I’m not sure why you despise him so much, but I trust him and know he won’t hurt me or my people.”
“Elena.”
“Hey,” she yells as she raises her hand to silence me. “I’m tired of your allegations. We’re leaving right now.”
Before I can say anything else, she turns and leaves the room with Mark in her arms. A knot forms in my gut when I realize I spoke so harshly to her. If I talk softly to her, maybe she will listen to me.
*****
My name is Sophia Stewart, and I am the third child of the Shadow Pack’s Gamma. Elena Lena is the Alpha's most beloved only daughter and my best friend. She lost her mom in the rogue's attack. Everyone in the pack loves her because she is pure and a kind-hearted girl.
We are out of our pack’s territory to get something in town when Elena spots a little boy putting on a rag. She takes pity on him and feeds him, and when it is time for us to leave, however, the little one refuses to let her go and insists on coming with us as her slave. He insists on following her. He cries and says he is okay, even if she turns him into her slave. He’s fine as long as he’s with her. I hate the idea. How can we allow a stranger into the pack? For goodness' sake, we don’t even know him. Although it makes me angry that he can suggest becoming her slave just to stay with us, we can’t just let any stranger into our pack.
“Hey Elena, we can’t bring him with us to the pack,” I say firmly. “You can't.”
“What are you talking about, Sophia?”
“I know you are having strange thoughts about bringing him along with us. I won’t support you in this decision - we don’t know his origin! How can you trust someone you don’t know and bring him into the pack? Are you not scared he’ll betray us? Don’t you think he’s our enemy spy sent by them?”
“Easy love, don’t you see he is pitiful?” she asks. “He has nowhere to go or live. Why don’t we bring him along with us? Let him live with us.”
“No, we can’t just allow anyone into the pack just because you’re too kind, and who tells you he has nowhere to live?” I question. "Where does he stay before he meets us? How will you allow someone you don’t know into the pack?”
Elena laughs until her eyes are full of tears at my questions. “What the hell are you thinking, Sophia? He is just a kid. How can he possibly betray me or the pack? Stop thinking like this. It’s not good for your health! Anyway, he has no wolf, so there is no way he can betray us!”
“But!”
“No, but Sophia. He’s staying. I’m going to talk to my dad to accept him as one of us.”
I’m speechless. Is she really doing this? I hope she won’t regret this decision one day.
She turns to him. “What is your name, little one?” she asks.
“Mark. My name is Mark,” he whispers softly.
“Mark,” she calls. “You have a nice name. Welcome to the shadow pack. I’ll be adopting you as my brother. The brother I never have.”
“What!” I scream. “Brother? He’s not just staying here, but also as your brother?”
She smiles sweetly at me before responding, “Yes, my darling Sophia. Starting from today, Mark is my brother.”
“Huh, I hope you won’t regret your decision. Accepting and bringing him into the pack isn’t enough for you. Turning a stranger you just met into your brother is something I pray you won’t regret.”
“I won’t regret my decision,” she replies. “Sophia, honey, I have never regretted anything in my life. We need to go back. I need to show him to our father.”
“We have managed to survive by staying out of sight and not getting involved with other werewolf packs. Why are you insisting on bringing him?”
“I don't care. He's staying.”
Elena leaves with a smile. She is very happy with her decision. Why am I angry? Am I jealous of Mark? Am I angry with him because he steals my best friend from me?
No, he can’t stay in the pack. I won’t allow him. I have the feeling that he’s a bad guy. I must find out his purpose and send him out of the pack as soon as possible. I will talk to him and try to find out what he wants. If I don’t get a satisfactory answer, I will have to take the necessary steps to ensure the safety of the pack. I won’t let anyone threaten it.
Primordial wolf.Sophia.“Hey, wake up!” Rita yells. “Wake up, lazy ass! You’re the only one who is still sleeping. Sophia." I open my eyes to the sound of my name, only to be greeted by Rita’s reprimand to wake up. “What?” I ask with a yawn as I grab the blanket from her. “Can I have my beauty sleep, please?” Rita rolls her eyes and yells at me to get up. “No, you can’t,” she says firmly. “It’s time to start your day. Don’t waste it sleeping.” I’m furious at her. Why is she waking me so early? I reminded her that it’s Saturday and there are no obligations for me today. So I should be able to sleep in as much as I want. I am having a dream full of wonderful things, and then that awful girl wakes me up as I am about to see his face. I am still trying to find my sleep when someone comes in with full force. “What the hell is going on, Rita?” I get to my feet, hoping to drag her out, but I meet with something else. My mother’s angry, burning face. Shit. She stares at me, her eyes bla
Fight.Sophia.“When does he stare at you?” she asks angrily. “Why will he stare at you?”“I don’t know. I think you should ask your mate why he is staring at me,” I smirk. “I’m sure he is attracted to me because of my beauty.”“Are you saying you’re prettier than I am? When Lucas tells me you hate him, I don't believe it. But now, I can tell he’s not lying.”“He’s a liar, sister. Can't you see?"“Why must you despise my mate, or perhaps you don’t despise him at all, sister? You’re just after him, aren’t you? You need his attention, right? Admit it, you have a crush on him!” she says, her voice rising. “He’s mine, and I won’t let you have him!”Wow. She looks different. She’s staring at me as if I’m her prey. Is this my real sister? She’s defending this son of a bitch. It’s hard to believe. I’m witnessing something I’ve never seen from her before. I can’t believe she’s taking his side over mine.“I can barely contain my smirk when you say that sis. Do you think I’m interested in him? D
Furious. Sophia. Furious, my father’s face contorts with anger. His eyes are flashing, his fists clenching, and his breath heaving as he tries to keep his temper in check. He hates me, yet still loves me deeply. He hates me because I always question him. I can feel the tension in the air as he stares at me, silently conveying his disapproval of my actions. His wolf despises me too, though they won’t do anything to harm me, as I’m his most beloved daughter. I love the look on his face. He takes his seat and eats quietly. After eating, he gets up. I can still sense his rage. “Are you leaving now Father?” I tease him. I love infuriating him. It’s fun. He turns to me and glares. “Are you trying to drive me to my grave, Sophia?” He screams at me. “Do you really want to kill your own father? Can’t you just let me be?” I can’t help but giggle. “What are you talking about, Dad?” I ask. “I’m not trying to kill you, and I’m sorry if my behavior makes you think so. Forgive me.” When it co
His vengeful queen. Sophia. “Wait a minute, Elena,” I say, pursuing her after the alpha leaves. She comes to a halt and turns her back with a questioning look, saying, “Hello, Sophia, it’s you. I have no idea you are running after us,” she sneers. “Is there something you need?” Is she always like this? What causes her personality to change? How can she transform into someone else, or did I not recognize her? I take a step back and watch her, trying to figure out what is going on. It is as if she is a wholly different person, and I can't understand why. She seems to be hiding something. “What is wrong with you, Elena?” I ask. “Is there anything I did to irritate you?” “I’m not sure what you’re trying to imply here,” she says innocently. “Did I hit you or something? What are you insinuating, Sophia?” “No! No! It’s not like that. I’m only worried about the sudden change. Is everything alright?” I ask, staring at how tightly she grips him. Suddenly, Mark runs behind Elena. El
Sophia.I warn her, “If you don’t let me go now, I’ll do something you’ll never expect,” I threaten. But she drags my hair painfully instead of letting me go.Sneering, she replies, “Do you really think you can beat me the same way you beat and kill Matt? I’m a lot stronger than you think.”Without another word, I turn around and kick her hard in the shins. That plastic-looking face. She lets go of my hair and stumbles back in pain, screaming, and with blood pouring from her nose. I stand there motionless as my heart races. I stand there, motionless, my heart pounding. She looks up at me with a look of shock and pain on her face.“You bitch!” She screams. “What have you done? How dare you hurt my beautiful face?” I attack her again before she can defend herself. I begin to hit and kick her in the stomach. First, it was my sister in the morning, then Elena, and now this slut. Are they trying to kill me? I won’t hold back again. Not again! She will suffer for all of them this time. Grabb
Rules. Sophia. “I see what you’re saying. Go meet the alpha,” she whispers. Her disappointment is evident. “I’ll save the food for you.” Everyone can tell she’s disappointed. “Do you have to leave us, Father?” I ask. “Do you really need to turn your back on your meal just to attend to the alpha?” Aside from my mother’s unwillingness, I have a terrible feeling about this. He sighs. “You don’t understand how this stuff works, Sophia. It’s my duty. I have to protect our pack, and the Alpha needs me now for an emergency meeting. I’m sorry, Bella. I will make it up to you. I have to go now.” “Don’t be late,” my mother utters as she packs his food. Father turns and leaves. We all know that my mother despises cooking and her mate refuses to eat. But it isn’t his fault. It is that stupid Alpha who didn’t know the right time to call him. Why must he call him when he is about to eat his mate’s food? I blame him. Throughout the time we are eating, Mother is quiet and sad. I can see the hu
The Primordial Wolf. My father’s demise. Sophia. “I will kill anyone who kills,” he says. “Don't keep begging me to let her live. She must be punished.” Did I cause my mother trouble? We only come here for my father, but I hate it when they treat my mother like that. All I know is that I want them to pay with their blood. I want to destroy their souls. “Alpha, before you sentence me to death,” I say. “I need to know about my father. Where has he gone? What happened to him? Where did you keep my father?” “Your father?” He inquires. “Why are you asking me about him? Where is he? I have no idea where he is. I have never seen him today.” What? Is he joking? He didn’t see my father? “Is that why you are here?” He asks. “Does anyone tell you I kidnap your mate and your father?” “What are you talking about, Alpha?” My mother asks. “My mate tells me he is coming to meet you. You ask him to see you.” “It just doesn’t make sense to me what you are saying, woman. You mean that your mate
Mother. Sophia. “You must pay dearly for endangering my daughter’s life,” she growls. “You will pay for this,” she says, her voice full of rage. “I’ve always wondered where this tiny devil gets her diabolical heart. Now I see, she gets it all from you,” the beta adds, still reeling from my mother’s clutches. “Your entire family is a demon. You are all possessed by a demon.” My mother’s expression changes and her eyes become darker, like the abyss. “Do not speak of my family like that,” she howls. Her fangs protrude from her mouth as the wolf inside her takes control. I can feel the energy radiating from her. It’s almost like her rage can be seen in the air. Her eyes blaze with anger. “I order you to stop right now,” the Alpha command. “Who do you think you are? This is not a place where you can do whatever you please, Bella. My beta is right about you and your family. Your entire family is evil, including your partner, whom I hold dear in my heart. Let me tell you, woman, I know
CHAPTER 81. A MAFIA?RYDER“What the crap, man? What's gotten into you?!” Darius spat, shoveling to his feet.“Don't you even think of playing dumb with me. The jig is up. I just spoke with Jason, you damned bastard!““I don't know what you're talking about, dude. What did that miserable rogue say to you to get you all worked up?!””You're the miserable one!” I barked, railing free from the guys and delivering another punch to Darius. They held me back immediately, pinning my hands to the back, “Fucking let me go!”“Ryder, get a hold of yourself. What's come over you?” Fred cautioned, pulling me back, it wasn't easy to keep me caged. They were using up all their energy on it.”What is this?“ Giveon asked confusedly, glancing from me to Darius, “Dude, what's Ryder talking about?” Giveon asked him, but he still wouldn't admit it.”I got no clue, I think Ryder just lost his mind,““The hell I did! You had Hara kidnapped, and then you went ahead to inject rogue blood into Jason. And until
CHAPTER 80. SO HARD TO SAY GOODBYERYDER”How is he, Doc? Is Jason gonna be alright?” I asked one of the doctors who have had him under survey ever since he was confined here. We were standing at the entrance of the room, an attempt to stay far away from Jason's earshot.”I'm afraid not, Your Highness,” The Doctor sighed dejectedly. There wasn't an ounce of hope in his tone. Got me scared.”But, he got out of his coma, right? And he's talking now. Isn't that a good sign?” I badly wanted to be told that Jason was gonna be alright. That's all I wanted to hear, but it doesn't seem like I'm gonna be hearing that from the doctor.”This is the last stage for him before he completely loses everything to the rogue blood in him,“”What? Wait, I don't understand–””Your Highness, Jason's case is complicated. I mean, he's the first pure blood with rogue blood in his bloodstream. And even though we're not sure how extreme his case is, we do know that he's gonna have the basic traits of a rogue,“
CHAPTER 79. NO MORE SECRETSRYDER48 hours passed and I was released from confinement. There was no solid evidence to attach me to the crimes and Tiffany took care of providing me with an alibi. So they had to let me go.On my way home, I was restless. The war was yesterday, but according to Tiffany, the war didn't happen. She wasn't sure why, but all she knew was that Red Moon Pack's warriors didn't show up. Something wasn't right and I was itchy to find out what it was. But more than that, I was in a hurry to get back home to Hara and my unborn child.“How's Hara doing?” I asked Tiff, she was right beside me in the car. Her gaze lifted from the phone she held, and she was hesitant in giving me a reply.”Uh, she's fine,“ Her reply was not convincing at all. It got me edgy.“Tiff, is something wrong? You seem agitated, and you've been avoiding my gaze. What's wrong?”“Nothing, Ryder. And please, don't ask me any more questions. I don't have an answer to them,” She whined, forcing her
CHAPTER 78. A SIGNHARAI walked past the lobby of the hotel and headed for Roland's suite. It's been tense at the palace since Ryder was arrested. The warlords wouldn't even let me come out, I had to lie that I was going to see Hailey. Still, they weren't at ease with me leaving. I wouldn't be surprised if they were tailing me right now.I just needed to speak with Roland. I'm all shades confused, but I had to be sure he had no hand in this crisis Ryder was facing. I know Ryder too well, there's no way he killed those humans. Someone was setting him up, I just need to be sure that it wasn't Roland.I got to his suite and was gonna knock but I heard his ecstatic voice talking to someone and I had the urge to eavesdrop. “Yeah, everything's going according to plan. With Ryder locked up, my pack warriors have a good chance of defeating Ryder's four warlords…“He waited for the other person in the line to say something and then he chuckled and continued.“I know the four warlords are str
CHAPTER 77. OUR CHILD?RYDERThe blaring siren sounds awakened me from my slumber. I had a throbbing headache, coupled with the fact that I found it hard to shrug off the dizziness. I'd sedated myself to sleep and I wish I didn't. Now waking up was hard, and my nerves are weak. I tried again and it was futile.I had to implore my wolf side and only then could I shake off the remaining effects of the sedatives. I was fully awake now, and yeah, the blaring siren sounds were real and fucking close.I hopped down from the bed and hurried outside, dressed in my sweatpants and a loose shirt. The hallway was a mess.“What's going on?!“ I asked no one in particular, as I brushed past running bodies.“I think the humans are trying to start a fight!“ A random voice replied. Everyone was in panic and it got me more anxious to hurry outside and see what the hell was going on.I froze in my tracks when I got outside and saw a long line of policemen in my front yard. Also, they had guns and we're
CHAPTER 76. A WAR TO KEEP HERRYDER“What?!” I was already hurrying inside and they came behind me. “They sent over the warning at midnight, a few hours after you left the nightclub,” Jay explained, "And in the letter, it stated that they were giving us two days to let Hara return to them, or we go to war,”“That's absurd. Red Moon Pack doesn't stand a chance against us. They might have good warriors but they're just on the same level as our trainees. Waging a war against us is suicide,” I was gloating, I was being downright disdaining and arrogant right now. But that's the only reaction I could come up with. In all honesty, I'm a bit anxious about this news. I knew it would come to this someday, the very moment I set eyes on Hara in my pack, I knew this day would come. And when her mate showed up, I knew it would come faster. And here it is, the bloody day I get to choose between Hara and the safety of my pack. After last night and how blunt she was about her feelings, the Ideal r
CHAPTER 75. SO EASY TO BETRAY MERYDERTime went still. Our breathing slowed. Distant chattering faded into thin air. My heart banged hard against my chest. I tucked my sweaty hands into my pockets. I could feel the low whimper of my wolf as he slid to the back of my mind. Hara's outburst just spiraled me and everything else around us off balance.”Wh-What did you just say?“ I asked in a weak stutter. But dear Goddess, I heard her loud and clear. I just wished she would be a little bit considerate of my bleeding heart and not repeat what she just said. But she did, she repeated it, more firmly this time.“What if I wanna leave, Ryder?“ She asked, “What if I'm suffocating here and I want nothing more but to be free from you?”“You really wanna leave?” Tears intercepted the free flow of my words, and they made their way down my cheeks. But she didn't seem to care.”Maybe,“”Was that why you defended him back there? To show me just how much you still love him?””I just didn't want you t
CHAPTER 74. I'll RATHER BLEED THAN LET YOU GOHARASeeing him standing there plunged me into a depth of panic and despair. Tears stung in my eyes and made their way down. He was yet to say a word, but his eyes were doing all the talking. He was blasting me with his eyes, telling me to go straight to hell. His eyes held a dose of rage I'd never seen before, and a greater shade of bitterness. He was hurting, more than I thought he would. My endless tears wouldn't let me talk, and even if they weren't in my way, I still wouldn't talk. What could I possibly say to fix this? Nothing, nothing I say right now would quench the fire of rage in his eyes. All I have to do is brace myself up for it.”Grab your stuff!” He ordered me glacially, quavering from anger. His clenched fist was hungry to ruin someone's face.I flinched at how thunderous his voice was. I ran back into the bedroom to get my bag and the bundle of my messed-up clothes. When I got back into the lounge, it was a bloody disaste
CHAPTER 73. IT HURTSRYDER“And that's a wrap,“ Tiffany declared exuberantly as the Frenchmen signed their part, sealing up this deal.I was ecstatic, but the fuck, I had to pull myself together. This deal was worth trillions and just what I needed to kick off my estate project. I haven't felt this fulfilled in a while, the feeling was surreal.The three Frenchmen stood to their feet and we shook hands with them.“I look forward to working with you,” One of them said in a heavy French accent. It's kinda insensitive that I didn't even grab their first names. Tiffany took care of all that. She took care of everything, to be honest. All I did was attend this meeting and sign the papers.”Me too. Have a safe trip tomorrow,” I beamed, stuffing back my hands into the pockets of my pants.“Again, I love your tux. The designs are fabulous,“ The youngest of them commented, breaking off in between sentences. English wasn't his first language and he seemed to be having greater difficulty with it