Breakfast, like yesterday's lunch, is uncomfortable, although Clarisse tries to converse with Selene from time to time to ease the hostile atmosphere her mother has been creating since she arrived at the pack.After breakfast, Connor, just like yesterday, takes her to see other places in the pack, specifically the most important buildings that are part of Redwood Wolves. It's only now that she learns Connor owns a significant textile company in North America, the one that collaborates with her father's company in Tierra de Pinares.Patiently, Connor explains every detail of the operations in each building until they reach a common area. There, several omegas are busy making preparations for the guardians' lunch. All of them bow their heads in respect when he enters the gigantic hall, but then their gazes land on Selene, an unspoken question forming in their eyes, especially upon seeing their alpha holding hands with a stranger, one who is not a member of the pack."She is Selene, your
A wave of confusion overwhelms Saya as she feels Sorem's front paws wrap around her while they roll together to the center of the hall until they end up on top of each other. Selene shakes her head and frowns, looking through the eyes of her wolf at the one who stopped her from reaching that idiot. A huge wolf, with orange-brown fur, white ears, and green eyes, has her completely pinned to the ground with his nose barely brushing Saya's. His warm breath mingles with her beast's, and she feels a pleasant tingling sensation running through her entire body.Selene blinks a couple of times before frowning and pulling Saya back. Connor does the same with Sorem, both returning to their human forms.“It's okay… just calm down, honey,” Connor's voice is smooth as silk while he doesn't move an inch away from Selene.Saya is already calm inside her mind and willing to do what her mate says. She turns abruptly and gets up from the floor. He smiles directly at her, his green eyes seeming to look
Selene takes advantage of the opportunity to look around the entire room now that she's alone. Now that she’s back from the tour, she can smell the chlorine and other cleaning supplies in the place. All the windows are open, and the natural sunlight fills the room. A pleasant breeze sways the curtains, and from her position, she can see the trees swaying outside the walls.She walks fully to the balcony railing and has a perfect view of Redwood Wolves from there, even the main entrance. To the right, there's a fairly large field. She doesn't recall Connor taking her there yet. Several women are in that area, apparently training. She has already decided that she will go there later; she needs to clear her head a bit and running outdoors will undoubtedly help her.Her stomach growls suddenly, and she decides to go down to the kitchen for a snack. Since no one seems to listen to her, and everyone avoids or runs away from her, she takes the kettle herself and makes a cup of orange tea wit
“Miss Clarisse, your mother is calling you to the living room,” Analia opens the door and interrupts the conversation between her and Selene at that very moment. Inwardly, Clarisse sighs in relief, glad she doesn’t have to explain that matter to Selene. Her brother could punish her if she meddles or speaks too much, so she simply nods and gets up to walk toward the exit. Selene is even more intrigued. Could all the children be Jackson’s and Beltrán’s? It seems that doubt will remain unresolved for now.In the end, she grabs one of her books and goes back to the garden she had seen earlier. She stays there for almost the entire afternoon, not even going to lunch, and though it sounds funny, no one looks for her during that time. It doesn't seem unbelievable to her, as almost everyone seems to avoid her.Late in the afternoon, tired and not in the mood to stay there any longer, she goes to the kitchen and prepares the same tea. Analia is there with another young woman who helps in the k
Selene wakes up, feeling trapped by a huge arm around her waist. She tries to wriggle free to get out of bed, but every time she moves, Connor’s arm tightens, holding her firmly in place. He’s too possessive, even while asleep. The damn bond has already got him tightly.After several attempts, she finally gives up. There's no point; the mate bond between them is already very strong, and as the days go by, it’s likely he’ll start to become even more possessive of her, just like Saya is with Sorem. Connor’s wolf is beautiful, and she would love to snuggle into his fur and place her face on his chest to feel the beating of his heart.That thought makes her smile despite how bad she felt yesterday with everything Mrs. Carla said to her, but Connor’s scent all around her relaxes and soothes her, just as hers does for him. Now she doesn’t feel as overwhelmed as she did last night.The room is still dark, which means it’s still early. Selene turns slightly to be chest-to-chest with him, slow
Selene exits the bathroom a long while later. As she is choosing the clothes she will wear, someone knocks on the door, and one of the young women who helps in the kitchen enters with a breakfast tray in hand."Good morning, Miss Selene. The alpha asked me to bring your breakfast to your room," the young woman says timidly, with her head bowed, as she approaches a small table to set down what she brought."Has he already left?" Selene is still upset, and not even the beautiful red rose next to the coffee cup can cheer her up. The hunger she had since yesterday has completely vanished, first due to Carla's confrontation, and now due to that little argument with him."Yes, miss. He won’t be back early. Beta Jackson, Mrs. Carla, Beltrán, and other trusted guardians went with him. Generally, when they all go out together, they disconnect completely from the pack and return very late at night."The young woman leaves the room, and Selene is left pondering the oddity of the situation. But s
Saya starts running aimlessly in the opposite direction of where she saw those she-wolves enter. Selene marvels at the scenery through Saya and her eyes. Just like when she first arrived, her eyes widened in amazement. This place is stunning, incomparable to anything she has seen before in the Amazon or Tierra de Pinares. The play of light and shadows created by the sun and the trees is a spectacle to remember forever. They even seem to become one with nature, as Saya can perceive the fluttering of butterflies and the movement of the smallest insects.The breeze is fresh and offers the peace and freedom she longed for, but as they advance, the sequoias become even larger, and her sense of direction gradually fades. Saya isn’t too worried about this situation. She has always been an excellent tracker, and Uriel has taught her a lot about the positions of celestial bodies. Although it is daytime, she can still navigate by the direction of the wind and her keen sense of smell, one of the
Connor spent the entire day at that damned meeting with the council, although at all times he thought of Selene and that argument they had before leaving. He imagined everything would be fine, until he arrived at the mansion and found this disaster. It’s clear that no one notified him because it is forbidden to disturb him during those meetings; he even turned off his phone so that no one could interrupt him. Despite that, everyone in the pack has been ordered to keep Selene away from the border. Everyone knows the reasons—why didn’t anyone stop her? Why weren’t there guardians in that area to prevent her from passing through? Why did she take that exact path and not the other one that leads to the safe zone? There are too many questions swirling in his mind as he ventures into the red forest, as they call it. This is territory claimed by Augusto, his father's bastard brother, the man responsible for the greatest massacre of their pack fifteen years ago. Since then, he and Augusto ha
The alpha watches Selene and knows something is wrong with her. Her hair moves in the same spiraling motion it once did when she was very angry in her room, and a whitish aura emerges from her body. Something is about to happen, and the sharp gasp from Alexia at his right confirms it. His gamma can feel every one of her emotions. Suddenly, Selene opens her eyes, and although she says nothing, Connor senses that she’s trying to warn him, so he speaks to all his members present through the link. “Everyone. Down. Now!”Immediately after that, a strange but powerful explosion knocks everyone down; a hellish noise, a blinding light, and a strong tremor spreads across several meters in diameter. The alpha lifts his gaze slightly, still dazed and with a piercing headache from the impact, and he can see Saya crushing Augusto beneath her massive, furry body. The tables had clearly turned. The rain falls even harder, but everything is still visible thanks to the light radiating from her
A terrifying silence spreads through the entire forest for what feels like an eternity, one that makes Carrie hold her breath, anticipating the impending disaster. Until the first movement happens. A massive orange wolf with white ears growls fiercely as it leaps and positions itself just inches from Selene. Carrie lets out a small gasp, startled, but it's too late. As she brings her hand to her mouth, Sorem can see exactly where she's hiding, and he makes it known by flashing his powerful and terrifying fangs. Before the huge orange beast can react, a black, unpleasant-looking wolf, though equally large, lunges at him, and they both begin tumbling through the underbrush. At that moment, a pair of female wolves surround Selene to protect her as an all-out battle breaks out just a few meters away from her. Several wolves, all renegades, attempt to get close to Selene, but none have any real success against the beta and the Redwood Wolves' guardians.The noise in the forest is i
Carrie waits for just the right moment when Augusto and his henchmen move far enough away to dart out of her hiding spot. She needs to reach Selene before Augusto does. Twice, in the past two days, he’s come dangerously close to her. Even though he can’t see her due to the protective bubble, he might sense that someone is nearby and realize something is off.After running non-stop for several minutes, Carrie finally reaches Selene. She makes sure no one has followed her before taking a closer look.Selene is curled up in a fetal position, her face twisted in pain, softly whimpering."I’m sorry, but tonight I have to break your bubble," Carrie whispers near her. Her brow furrows, it's not what she wants to do, but she has no choice. Selene needs care while she remains unconscious, and another storm is predicted, bringing even colder temperatures. She also overheard Augusto talking about what he’d do if he found her, and she simply won’t allow him to hurt her. If Alpha Connor finds her
"That’s enough!" Clarisse shouts, seeing Connor completely out of control, hitting Jackson for the thousandth time for neglecting the security near the ceremony. "This isn’t his fault! What had to happen, happened. Period. You need to get a grip, brother, in this state, you’re not going to achieve anything.""I just…" Connor’s voice is barely a squeak, his exhaustion evident. "…I just want to find her. Damn it!"It’s been more than 48 hours since Saya ran from that place, and none of them have been able to track her. A storm hit the following morning, but even then, the alpha didn’t rest from his search, nor did he allow anyone else to. He’s exhausted, as are the others, but the weight of losing his mate, combined with the pain he’s feeling in his chest, is hitting him harder than anyone else."I already told you," Jackson gasps, looking at the large wound on his side after trying to fight off Sorem just moments ago. "Everything was covered. I personally checked every spot for a week,
The freezing air hits Selene's face as she takes a few steps toward the room. She's shivering, even her jaw starts trembling uncontrollably. She has no idea what's happening to her, but she doesn’t feel well. Nothing here feels right.There are double doors open, curtains swaying in time with the wind, torches and scented candles, creating a romantic atmosphere from every perspective, except hers. She can hear murmurs from the back of the room, then laughter hers, Inés’s.She stands still for a few seconds and takes a deep breath before continuing. It doesn’t matter what’s in there; she has to see it, face it.As she gets closer, Inés's voice becomes clearer, but she hears nothing else except grunts from the person with her, followed by strange noises, gasps, moans.She reaches the door, which is only covered by curtains, and with a trembling hand, she pulls them aside just a bit to see. It's a room, she already knew that. It’s lit by many candles, the floor is polished wood, and ther
A chilling cold washes over Selene as she keeps a steady pace on this path she’s never explored before. In fact, the alpha had once told her that it wasn’t allowed to go this way. Yet here she is, heading toward an uncertain, unknown destination as night falls, her heart racing, but her mind set on discovering the truth.She’s already covered several kilometers, too many, in her opinion. She’s tired and sweaty, but she can see a glimmer in the distance. Could that be the place marked on the map?Moving cautiously for a few meters, she spots several guardians spread out across the area. She decides to climb one of the tallest trees to get a better view. If there are guardians here, they must be protecting something or someone.Once at the top, she carefully surveys the entire area. There’s a structure a few kilometers away, with lights and movement. That’s where she needs to go—it’s the point marked in the note; she has no doubt.With great concentration and using a technique her grand
"I don’t know what happened. I just got here and went into the water for a few seconds, and then you arrived," Selene explains, her brow furrowed. She’s confused too. Falling asleep underwater isn’t an option, especially not for so long, or she would have drowned. So what happened during all those hours she’s been here?"I’m sorry..." she whispers softly, seeing the distressed look on Connor’s face. He can’t resist her scent and kisses her. He kisses her so passionately that Selene moans at the urgency of her mate. Within seconds, the space between them disappears, giving way to an erotic and romantic dance under the beautiful and brilliant moonlight. Since their wedding night, there hasn’t been a single day they haven’t given themselves to each other. But today… now, it feels different. It’s as if every part of this nature is joining them both.Back at the mansion, they both head to the shower, much calmer. It’s almost dawn. After a shower full of kisses, they go to bed together to s
The days pass with excruciating slowness in Redwood Wolves. Connor has spent most of the week working with Jackson and Beltrán, while Selene has been helping with administrative tasks at the clinic and the daycare.She hasn't heard anything from Inés since the last time she left that note in the bush, and Selene still hasn't told the alpha about it. She’s not sure if she should go to that place or not. It could be a trap, but it could also be the truth, and it’s gnawing at her mind."We should tell your grandfather," Saya says in her mind, but Selene disagrees. The last time they spoke, two days ago, he was very agitated, even worried about something she didn't know. Burdening him with this seems unnecessary.Selene walks through the training field, heading toward the border. Some of the guardians glance at her, but they don't say anything or stop her. Taking care of the children at the clinic has been her main task these days, and fighting with the doctor and nurses, who think they'r
"Luna..." Clarisse sits beside Selene on the bench. "My brother told me I could find you here. I came to see if you needed anything.""You don't have to call me Luna, Selene is fine," Selene replies, her gaze fixed on the field where a group of three children are playing. There's a fourth child watching the game from a few meters behind, sitting on the grass. He looks pale and downcast, his expression quite lifeless."My brother is the alpha, and you're his mate, my Luna. I can't call you anything else.""Formalities aren't necessary between us, Clarisse. I consider you like a sister. Besides, you're one of the few people who’ve treated me well since I arrived here," Selene responds.Selene's eyes don’t leave that little boy. He looks about eight years old. She saw him in one of the photographs in the mansion and recognized him quickly when she took this seat half an hour ago, although, to be honest, all those children look quite similar.A middle-aged woman walks up to the boy and gr