~Isabella’s POVI woke up due to the excruciating pain I was feeling and realized I was sprawled out on the cold, hard floor. I winced in pain as I sat up and my ribs protested. All the parts of my body ached and throbbed. I tried to remember why I had blacked out on the floor and then Alpha Damien’s voice came to me. He was still in the room, lying on his bed while staring down at me coldly. A dangerous smile appeared on his face when he saw that I was awake.“You are awake, Bella.” He said.When will this be over? This is worse than my worst nightmares!!“Why are you still here?” I managed to ask as I groaned in pain.“This is my room and my palace.” He replied. He got down from his bed and approached me.I instinctively moved back as I wondered if he was going to hurt me again. He says he wants me, and yet he physically assaults me to the point of me blacking out.I wondered what he would do if I continued to refuse his marriage offer. I eyed him warily as he continued to approach
~Isabella’s POVIsabellaIsabellaThe voice calling my name was dark as sin, filled with power as it rumbled my name, but it was also calm. It made me want to run into his arms.Nathan? I asked as I whirled around in the murky darkness.IsabellaI began crying, running towards that voice.Where are you, Nathan? I miss you. Please take me out of here.There was nothing but silence.I called out again. Nathan?Nathan?! My voice grew panicked as I stumbled around in the darkness, sobbing uncontrollably.IsabellaHis voice was becoming fainter.Isabella…wake up.I woke up with a start, breathing hard. I looked up at the wall clock adorning one of the walls and saw the time was 8:00 pm when I woke up. My head banged and pounded as I tried to sit up. I realized I was still in the same position I had slept off in after taking the drugs. I got up on shaky feet and whirled around to see Alpha Damien sitting on the bed staring at me with an eyebrow raised and a cold smirk that infuriated me. R
~ Nathan's POVNathan?The soft, gentle voice caused me to open my eyes and I was startled as I viewed the murky darkness surrounding me.Nathan?I got up on my feet in one quick move and whirled around to survey my surroundings. There was nothing but darkness all around me. Even with my wolf vision, I could not see anything. The darkness began to feel suffocating until I heard the voice again.Nathan?Who's there? Where am I?Nathan, please help me.My brows furrowed as a scent wafted past me.Isabella?He's gonna take me away, please help me! Nathan! Nathan!Isabella?Isabella, where are you? Isabelle, talk to me, please.She remained quiet. Isabella?!I jolted awake, breathing heavily. Sweat was coating my entire body and even the bedclothes were soaked. Jones was standing next to my bed with a worried look.“Are you okay, Alpha?” He asked as he helped me up from my bed.“I’m fine. I just had a dream about Isabella. I guess the mate bond is stronger than I thought. I don’t want to
~ Isabella’s POVI watched with my mouth open in shock as Alpha Damien left after making his declaration. A breath had whooshed out of me and I had felt relieved when I heard Alpha Damien’s words. He is giving me some time to think again. I have nothing to think about, but after all the torture, he's just gonna leave me alone and let me think about it? Could this be a trick of some sort? I thought to myself. I cleared my throat and sat down on the floor thinking of what to do next with the little time he gave me. I leaned against the frame of the bed and tilted my head up as I stared up at the room's ceiling.How many days has it been since I left my pack? Has anyone even noticed my absence? Has Nathan? Even though he rejected me and I barely knew him except as the Alpha of my pack, I miss him. I wonder if he feels the same or if he has found another mate. A single tear rolled down my cheek.Just then the door opened and Luke and the other guard came barging in. They looked so scary
~ Damien’s Pov"Yes, Alpha. Anything else?""No, you can leave."Luke bowed and turned on his heel. I watched him go with a cruel smirk on my face as I thought about the instructions I had just given him regarding Isabella.I couldn't believe I hadn't thought about my brilliant idea beforehand. The only thing Isabella had left in her miserable life at that moment was her pride. And physical torture wasn't going to do the trick.Something that'll tear her down mentally rather than physically would have done the trick a long time ago. I mused.I smiled darkly as I thought about the confusion that had been plastered on her face when I told her that I had given her some time to think about my proposal.She's probably getting excited, thinking I might now leave her alone. At that moment, I wished I could have seen the expression on her face when Luke delivered my instructions to her.My wolf stirred and I turned to the window on my left to see that my eyes had darkened as I thought about
~Damien’s POV “What are you doing here?” I growled as I took a step towards her menacingly and she took a step backwards as well. I glowered at her furiously and I could see her shaking in fear, causing the tray in her hands to also shake. She was carrying a tray containing pancakes and a glass of what seemed to be orange juice. “I…. I was told… I came to give you this.” She said stammering, holding out the tray as she flinched, her arms trembling.“I explicitly gave an order that no one is to come into this section of the garden and you are here standing before me. Do you think I am a joke just because I proposed to you?” I asked, still angry.'No…no, of course not. I… I had no idea. I wouldn't have bothered you…if I had known.""Are you saying that you did not see the guards stationed at the entrance?" I growled."I didn't. And it was Lilian who asked me to bring this to you. She said it was your routine, having this whenever you're in the garden."I pinched the bridge of my nose
~Nathan’s POV Laura’s words left me dumbfounded. I hadn't expected her to be so forward about her feelings. Although I was taken aback, I liked that she was confident and went for what she wanted, unlike Isabella who was too timid and soft-spoken. I took a sip of my water and I could feel Laura’s hand reaching out to mine. I allowed her to hold my hand and, trying to figure out if she could truly give up everything for me, I placed down the cup of water and looked at her with what I hoped was a loving expression on her face. “And what if you found your mate?” I asked her.“My mate?” She asked.“Yes. Your mate.” “Then I will reject him. I want to be with you, Alpha Damien.” She said, smiling.I smiled at her ignoring the sharp pain I felt in my chest. It was the mate bond. I will never allow that lowly omega to tie me down. I thought to myself.“If that’s the case Laura, we still need to take things easy. I will claim you as my mate very soon. But before that, I need to attend to
~Nathan’s POV“Really?” I asked, ignoring the emotion that bubbled up and suspiciously seemed like happiness.Jones nodded and the guard that came in with the news also nodded. I cleared my throat, ignoring the way my heart throbbed and pounded.“Where is she? Where has she been? Is she okay?” I asked.Calm down, Nathan.“They found her in a nearby small town. It is the town that supplies us with bullets. They had traced her scent and they found out that she is currently staying with an old man. She also seems to have lost her memory,” Jones said, smiling.“Really? That sounds better. That means that she doesn’t remember what happened between us,” I said, my heart in my throat.“I guess so,” Jones said.“So get the car ready, I will go with you to the village. It’s better to leave her with an old man but her memory loss may be temporary. I need to make sure that she won’t be able to come back here. I shouldn’t give room for any loose ends,” I said as I stood up and moved to my wardro
~Nathan's POV"We found her!" I looked up to see Jones standing in front of me, nearly bursting with excitement. “Where is she?” I asked. Jones explained to me that she was sold as a slave and I needed to hurry up before it got too late. I ran towards the port where she had been spotted and I was glad that I was on time. The people on the ship recognized me and wondered what I was doing and who I was searching for. I finally found Bella but she was already bleeding profusely. Jones and a few of my men were also on the ship, looking for both me and Bella. I lifted Bella who was almost on the verge of losing consciousness and then I was confronted by the men who had bought her, telling me that I had to pay them if at all I was going to take her with me. Just then, Jones saw me and then ran over to meet me. He was glad Bella was safe but then became worried when he saw the state she was in. He ordered one of the guards to get the car ready, led me to the car, and then left for the pala
~ Nathan’s POVThe days were extremely long and the nights were even longer as I and my pack faced off against Damien and his pack in battle. Many of our men had been injured and we also had lost many people in the process. We both finally put a stop to the fight when none of us won. Damien returned back to his pack with his surviving people and I also did the same. The doctors came to attend to me but I insisted that they treated those that needed urgent care and attention. I noticed that I had not set my eyes on Albert during the fights and luckily I found him among the injured men receiving treatment. He was sleeping after getting shot and I was told that he needed to rest. I chastened him for not sticking close to him like I asked. Rather than apologizing, he had retorted that he had held his ground and had been just fine without me."I can clearly see that," I said, raising a sardonic eyebrow and nodding my chin towards his bandaged arm."You may have held your ground, Albert, bu
~ Damien’s POVIt didn't take long before we finally got to the place where Bella was hiding. I didn’t know that Nathan had such a beautiful place hidden in a forest. It was a house by the beach and the whole place was silent and serene. I charged in angrily without admiring the beauty of nature and how beautiful the place was. I searched frantically for her, turning the whole place into a big mess and yelling her name. I finally saw her in the room, sleeping so soundly and the memories of the moments I had shared with her ran through my mind. She woke up grumpily and was so frightened and shocked when she saw me.“What are you doing here, Damien?!” She yelled out.I smiled mischievously when I saw how scared she was. She looked so beautiful and all I thought about was how to make her mine again. I shifted the thoughts away and then moved closer to her.Her voice was tinged with fear and defiance, but it only fueled the fire burning within me. I took pleasure in the sight of her tremb
~ Nathan’s POVBella pouted and whined and complained, but I did not heed her pleas. It hurt me to see her sad and letting her out of my sight to go so far away, especially during a time like this went against my protective instincts."But, Nathan. I don't want to go. I want to stay here with you. Pleaseeee." She begged, looking up at me with those eyes that could bring a man down to his knees.I moved closer to her and palmed her soft cheek with my hand."I don't want you to leave either, Sunshine. But you have to, Damien is doing all of this because he is after you and has a grudge against me for taking you back. You're my weakness, but you are also my strength. I can't lose you, no matter what."She tried to protest again against it, her brows furrowing together in consternation."Please, Bella. Don't argue with me over this. Think instead of our baby, I'm only trying to protect you both."At my words, her eyes softened and she bit her lip, staring up at me through her lashes.Afte
~ Nathan's POVIsabelle whimpered at the soldier’s words. I turned to look at her briefly, noting her pale face and sweaty brows. I turned back to the soldier. "Get me, Jones, immediately!" I barked out.He bowed and hurriedly left.I turned back to Isabella who was beginning to look ill.I sat down and pulled her closer, bending down to look into her face."Hey, look at me," I said softly, trying to calm us both. Her despair was hurting me as well."Are you okay?" I asked her when her eyes came to mine.She whimpered again, her eyes wide as she clutched onto me."I'm sorry, this is all my fault and…" She could not finish her sentence, she slumped and I reached out to catch her, closing my arms around her as my heart stuttered and missed several beats."Isabella? Isabella! Wake up, please!" I begged, helpless to do anything as her eyes closed and her head lolled against my chest.My mind raced as I wondered what could be wrong with her. Just then, Jones came in with a soldier behind
~Nathan’s POVAs soon as Damien proclaimed war, Bella and I were immediately surrounded by his guards and sentinels. Some pointed their guns at us, the others baring their teeth and claws at us. A couple of them even completely shifted into their wolf forms, causing many of the guests to exclaim in horror. I stood in front of Bella, putting an arm out to ensure that nothing would happen to her because I could sense her agitation and fear, while everyone else watched in horror. As I mentally tried to calculate the odds of us escaping and leaving without any harm, I began to regret announcing Bella as my Luna and declaring war against Damien without any preparation. Bella, I thought to myself. She was my first priority. I have to get her out of here, alive and uninjured. At that moment, I did not care about myself or how things could end up for me, I just needed Bella to be safe and healthy. One of the wolves dared to move closer and I snapped my teeth at him, warning him to stay back
~ Nathan’s POVI stared at Bella in confusion, bewildered as to why she was suddenly treating me that way. My eyebrows furrowed as I thought about the previous night and if I had done something to her I was not aware of.I asked her what was wrong, but she just screamed at me to get out.I was initially hurt when Bella asked me to get out of her room. However, I noticed her hands had been trembling as she yelled at me and her cheeks had been flushed, but not with anger. I wondered what had gone wrong. I put my mouth to her door and tried to whisper reassuringly to her."I love you, Bella. No matter what, remember that I love you and will protect you with all of my heart."Thanks to my heightened hearing as an Alpha, I was able to hear the small sob she let out. There was another sound after that, it sounded as though she had slapped her hand over her mouth to prevent any more sounds from escaping, but it was too late. I was by then, certain that her sudden behavior was not due to her
~ Isabella’s POV“I know the whole thing, Bella! I know who Nathan is and your relationship with him too! How dare you!” Damien glowered at me. I was so shocked when I heard him but acted as though I had no clue who he was talking about. Also, to protect me and Nathan, I yelled at him, asking him who Nathan was.“Who the hell is Nathan?!” I screamed out, feeling so scared.He smiled mischievously and then strangled me.“You are still denying that you don’t know him! How dare you try to divorce me just because of him?! I know that he is Nathan Grayson, the Alpha of the blood moon pack!” He glowered again and then released me.I stammered, my mind racing with confusion and fear. How did Damien know about Nathan, and why did he seem so amused by it?Damien continued to laugh, a wicked glint in his eyes. "You thought you could escape from me so easily, Isabella? I know everything about you, every move you make." His voice was cold and calculating.My heart pounded in my chest as the real
~ Isabella’s POVIt was morning and I woke up from my bed feeling grumpy. I could still perceive Nathan’s scent in my room and the memories of the previous nights flooded in my head. I could feel the heat rush into my cheeks as I thought of how careful he had been with me. Thinking of how he had promised to free me from Damien's clutches made tears of joy and relief spring to my eyes. I sat there on my bed, not doing anything else, just smiling and content to rest in the knowledge that soon, I would be free from Damien and back to my old pack. My blissful respite was soon cut short when doubts began to creep in. What if I'm not accepted by the pack? I was once the pack's omega and runt. And now? They are supposed to just accept me as their Alpha's mate? Who would believe and accept that the omega is now their Luna? I shook my head, trying to dislodge the traitorous and painful thoughts, but they kept on coming like persistent shadows in the corners of my mind. I knew that returning