Jemima’s POVAfter Adrian had slept off the previous night after telling me about Sienna, I stayed awake thinking. I had tried and failed to fall asleep, so I had given up and paced my room, allowing several thoughts to run through my mind. It was obvious that my mate had allowed his guilt about Sienna’s death to eat deep into him. I could only advise him to let it go but he had to make that decision himself. No one could force him to. I felt uncomfortable knowing that he still hadn't let go of her but I also couldn't help but empathize with him. If something like that had happened to me, I might not have been as strong as he had been. It was a terrible thing to lose one’s mate and even worse when you are the one responsible for it. But still, I didn't want to have to compete for his affections with a dead ex.If only he could allow himself use our bond to heal. “You should also try that too,” Kiona said. “You still haven't totally let go of the pain Connor caused you.”I heav
Jemima’s POV“You came all the way here to find a witch?” I asked a rather grumpy-looking Adrian who wasn't pleased that I had insisted on Piper tagging along with us.He had thought that it was going to be just the both of us but I wasn't ready to spend hours all alone with him.I found my emotions flitting between sympathy for him, then jealousy and a little bit of anger directed towards him if I was being honest. It hadn't helped that he had said her name in his sleep the previous night. Deciding to allow Piper to tag along with us was to prevent me from spilling my thoughts out to him. I didn't want to come off as being selfish and insensitive. “I would go to the ends of the Earth for you if it means that your life will be preserved,” he answered in a bored tone.Piper clapped her hands in delight. “That's so sweet.”Adrian threw her a not-so-discrete withering look and her excitement instantly disappeared. I threw him a warning look and moved closer to her. “Just ignore him,
Jemima’s POV“Is that supposed to be the witch?” Piper queried, coming to stand behind me and then she let out a gasp. “Isn’t that Abigail?”“The one and only,” I murmured. She tutted. “At this point, she has got to be connected with everybody and everything.”I dragged my gaze away from the picture and my eyes found the desk close to the window. I wondered how I had missed it in the first place. As if the sheer number of books in the living room wasn't enough, there was another huge pile of books on the table. Piper followed my gaze and moved towards the table, muttering under her breath about how one could be so interested in books. She reached the table and picked up a piece of paper that had been lying on the book at the top. “I think this is for you.”Curiosity bit deep into me as I regarded the piece of paper she was holding up. “Thank goodness,” my mate’s voice boomed. “I thought the house had absorbed you two.”Ignoring him, I walked over to where Piper was standing and
Adrian’s POVMy body flared with desire at her suggestive words. I was tempted to take her up on her offer but knew that she was only trying to distract me.Something was certainly up with her. I could see it in her eyes.“Don’t try to distract me, Jem. No matter how much I want to be sexually intimate with you all the time, I won’t be controlled by that. Not especially when something is bothering you.”She smirked. “Never would I have thought that you would ever pass up an opportunity to be intimate with me. I would have to record this date in my diary.”“Whatever,” I murmured. “You will find loads of snacks in the pantry. There is even a tub of ice cream in the refrigerator if you like chocolate flavour.”Her eyes lit up a little at that and I made a mental note to stock up more on chocolate ice cream.“You are the perfect host,” she said, rising from the sofa. I mentally rolled my eyes. “Host? It seems too formal. We are mates.”“You are the perfect mate,” she replied with a grin
Adrian’s POVIn what seemed like no time at all, we were done with the dishes.“That wasn't so hard now, was it,” my mate said with a smug smile and for a brief moment, she almost looked like Sienna. I hadn't thought about it before but they had the same smile, especially when they were right about something. “Spend the night with me.”The words were out of my mouth before I realized it. But I didn't wish I could take them back. I wanted her in my arms that night and perhaps every night from that day onwards.She blinked in surprise. “Are you sure?”“Of course. You allowed me to spend the night in your room last night. I think it's only fair that you sleep in my room tonight,” I replied.There was a flicker of disappointment in her eyes and I mentally cursed myself for making it seem like the only reason I had asked her to spend the night with me was just to return a favour she granted me.Still, I couldn't bring myself to tell her that I needed her. I wanted her to move in and spe
Jemima’s POVI hadn't wanted to fall asleep but eventually, I had dozed off listening to the steady beating of Adrian’s heart. Thankfully, he was fast asleep when I woke up and it was still very early, about four in the morning. It was my opportunity to do what I had planned. As gently as I could, I got out of bed and searched his drawer for a pen and a piece of paper to write a goodbye note. Mentally applauding myself for not giving in to the temptation to give him one last kiss, I tiptoed out of the bedroom. My wolf howled in sadness but I didn't have any other choice. No one else was going to get hurt because of me.Sneaking past the soldiers who were patrolling the territory was the easiest past. I had been working on mastering the art of stealth since I was a child.Before disappearing forever from the Pack, I decided to pay a visit to the Circle of Stones in the forest. There must be something there for me. Something to help me overcome the hardships that were sure to come.
Jemima’s POVThe voice was very familiar, irritatingly so. Ignoring the pain in my hand, I brought myself up to a seated position and tried not to get carried away by the beauty of the room. For the first time, I saw the face of my attacker and was momentarily stunned speechless.He was otherworldly beautiful with his copper red hair and emerald green eyes. But unfortunately, he was also a scoundrel. “Why am I here?” I queried. “Weren’t you supposed to kill me?”The ghost of a smile hovered on his sensuous lips. “So you would rather be dead than alive? Interesting.”“Why didn't you just kill me?” I asked again.“I changed my mind,” he deadpanned. “You should focus on regaining your strength instead of asking me questions. You are going to need it.”With that, he rose from the richly embroidered chair and strolled out of the room. Just as I was still battling with the many confusing thoughts in my head, the door opened and a young girl who couldn't be more than nineteen walked in wi
Adrian’s POVThose first few seconds had to be the most heart-wrenching moment of my life. I had sensed the previous night that she was up to no good and I felt pretty stupid for not being more alert. Why the hell had I fallen asleep?My eyes ran through the words on her goodbye, searching for any clue as to where she might be headed. And what did she even mean by she had to leave to protect me and the rest of the Pack? Who told her she had any right to just do that?If I found her, I was going to kill her myself. After hurriedly putting on my clothes and boots, I dashed out of the apartment and headed straight for the forest. It was nearly four-thirty in the morning, she couldn’t have gone that far. My suspicion was confirmed by her scent that permeated the forest strongly. She had been there and hopefully, she might still not have gone out of the forest. I remembered her saying something about the circle of stones the previous night and decided to check there first. Disappo
Author’s POVIt hadn't been that difficult for the Committee of Alphas specifically created for the elimination of Jemima, to be infiltrated.The problem was that every Alpha who claimed that they wanted Jemima gone was allowed to join without question. So blinded were they by their eagerness to get rid of the threat that was Jemima that it didn't occur to them that not all the Alphas or witches who wanted to join the committee were truly on their side.It was a good thing for Elena though. She couldn't join the committee but she had an Alpha whom she could trust and begged him to join so that he could act as a spy for her. Liam, Elena’s estranged older step-brother and the Alpha of the Iron Fang Pack had reasons for not wanting to have anything to do with his younger sister.The first was that she had chosen to distance herself from him long before she even got pregnant with Jemima. She explained that she did it to protect him and didn't want anyone to know that they were related
Jemima’s POVRelief flooded my heart but I told myself not to be too hopeful. Perhaps, Connor wanted to psychologically torture us this way. Giving us hope only to take it away at the next minute. There was no way he could have changed his mind. A gasp fell from my lips when the chains suddenly loosened and fell to the ground. I was free. This certainly wasn’t Connor’s doing.The door was suddenly knocked off its hinges and landed with a deafening bang on the ground. A familiar figure stepped into the room and for a moment, I went completely dumb with surprise. “I'm certain you can get up from that chair. You are no longer bound to it,” the Alpha of the Midnight Pack said, mild amusement in his tone. “Zade,” I breathed out and rose from my seat. “How are you here? Why are you here?”“Well, I drove down here,” he replied, his eyes dancing with humour.I rolled my eyes. “You know exactly what I mean? How did you know I was in danger?”“How I have missed your numerous questions,”
Jemima’s POVConnor burst out laughing. An annoyingly grating sound that made me want to rip his head off. “There’s nothing you can do no matter how much I badmouth your mother. You are practically helpless and harmless right now,” he said. “And I thought you even hated the woman so why are you bothered about me calling her names?”“Fuck you, Connor,” I replied and started to struggle against the chains.“Oh please,” he began, his tone laced with amusement, “If you keep on struggling like that I might just pity you. Stop it already.”I ignored him and kept on trying to see if my abilities would suddenly turn back on and help me get out of the silver chains.“The chains are enchanted, Jemima. And you must have noticed that your abilities do not work here. It's going to remain like that for about an hour. It's rather annoying that every spell has a time limit when it comes to you,” he explained. “But don't worry, you’ll be dead long before the spell starts to lose its potency.”Piper
Jemima’s POVA flicker of irritation passed across Connor’s features as he looked at Piper who was standing right beside me. Because of what had happened the previous night, it was now much more difficult to get her apart from me even for a couple of minutes. “You didn't say she was going to tag along with you,” the Alpha of the Silver Paw Pack began, “Discussing matters that have to do with this Pack is supposed to be private. No outsiders are allowed.”Piper scoffed but I secretly gave her side a pinch to keep her from saying anything. “I am also an outsider, Connor and you are allowing me to even take an active part in something that concerns your Pack,” I replied.He rolled his eyes. “You were born here. Besides, you were the one who chose to leave. You weren't banished.”Considering the circumstances that brought about me leaving the Pack, I was supposed to be mad at him at that moment but I chose not to. Instead, I offered him a sweet smile and said in a firm tone, “Piper has
Jemima’s POVThat night, after I had discovered that my mother only abandoned me because she wanted to protect me, I couldn't sleep. I had later placed a call to my mate to let him know that I was okay and also to tell him about the letters I found in my father’s Study. “You really should stop pacing and come to bed already,” Piper suggested, her tone laced with concern. “How do you expect me to just do that, Piper?” I queried. “For most of my life, I have hated my mother for what she did and now I am just filled with guilt.”“But you shouldn't feel guilty,” she replied, heaving herself into an upright position on the bed. “We both read those letters and it was clear that she needed you to think that she abandoned you. If you had known the truth you certainly would have gone looking for her.”An exasperated sigh fell from my lips. “I really need to find her. We can get through this together. Her life is also in danger.”“Well, you have already said that you know who you are going t
Author’s POVFor Connor, going through some humiliation rituals was necessary for a person to achieve the desired end result. Before learning about the situation and how it would affect him, the Alpha of the Silver Paw Pack had never imagined that he would ever go down on his knees in front of a woman he had formerly rejected. It was humiliating but he had to do it. He had despised her a lot when they were still mated and he had found out that she was wolfless. At least at that time, she was.Finding out just a few months after he rejected her that she wasn't actually without a wolf and was actually so powerful, would have made him regret rejecting her if not that her powers, which were from a strong ancestral bloodline, were going to lead to the end of his reign.Thankfully, he wasn't the only one who thought that uniting all the Packs as one was totally unfair as it was going to strip them of their leadership positions which would also result in losing privileges and benefits tha
Author’s POV“Mom, you know that was wholly unnecessary,” Tamar began as she helped her mother get settled on the bed. “Knowing how powerful she is, you shouldn't have provoked her like that.”Abigail gave her daughter a look. “If I didn't know any better I would have thought you were on her side instead of your mother’s.”Tamar rolled her eyes. “All I'm saying is that you should be careful when dealing with her. She is no longer the frightened girl with low self-esteem that you used to know. She’s changed.”“It means nothing,” Abigail replied stubbornly. “She can't be more powerful than thousands of us put together. And do not forget that we have the support of a few witches. When the time is right, we are going to put an end to her existence.”Tamar tried not to show how uncomfortable she was with her mother's words. It wasn't as though she was totally against bullying her step-sister, but killing her was an entirely different matter. Even though she tried to ignore it, she still
Jemima’s POVTamar was instantly by her mother’s side, murmuring words of care while Piper wrapped her arms around me. “Thank you,” she murmured. I wondered why she was thanking me. Tamar helped her mother to her feet and within seconds, they were out of the Study. Piper released me to go lock the door which they had left ajar. When she returned to where I was standing, I realized that her eyes were wide with fear. “I knew I should have come here with you,” she said. “Has it been thirty minutes since I left the room already?” I asked and she shook her head.“Your mate called and was really mad at me for not being with you. He ordered me to come to you and call him the minute I get here,” she explained and then started to dial his number. “You do not have to do that now,” I said, snatching the phone from her hand. “I am going to call him and give him an explanation.”She rolled her eyes. “You had better do that now before he starts blasting your phone with calls.”As if on cue,
Jemima’s POV“I think I would prefer to remain standing,” I replied, not daring to take my eyes off her.The last time we had a conversation alone was when I came to her to report Tamar’s betrayal. She had laughed in my face and told me that I was a good-for-nothing who didn't deserve to be mated to an Alpha. She also told me that she was certain that the Moon Goddess had somehow made a mistake. “Whatever,” Abigail said. “Whether you choose to sit or stand is none of my business.”Of course. Why wasn't I the least bit surprised? “So why exactly am I here, Abigail?” I queried. “If it's about the salvation of this Pack, Connor and I have already spoken about it.”“I also need to give you my two cents about the situation,” she replied. “As an elder of this Pack and also the soon-to-be mother-in-law of the Alpha, my opinions are of importance.”I mentally rolled my eyes wondering who the hell had made her an elder. She wasn't even qualified to be one yet. Or did being a mother to the