RICK FORSON JONES WHISTLED AS soon as Anna was out of earshot. "She is quite a woman, don't you think?"She is, Rick nodded to himself. I have made a very big mistake by sending her away."Are you here with me, Rick?" Jones waved a hand over his friend's face.Rick blinked hard and nodded. "Yes. What did you say?""I said she's quite the woman," Jones repeated. "And to think that you sent her away... damn.""I didn't send her away," Rick muttered, pushing his plate away. "She left on her own free will.""My father should have advised you better," Jones said.Rick scoffed. When Jones was in Barcelona studying, his father who had been Rick's father's Beta, Alex, had stepped in to counsel Rick in Jones's stead. When Jones returned, Alex had stepped out and retired."Nobody knew when she left," Rick stood up and stretched. "Or why she left."Jones raised an eyebrow. "She said something about you discarding her for her sister."Rick snorted. "That is nonsense.""Is it?" Jones asked, he d
MITCH CHESTER"WE HAVE AN incident," Draco said, pushing open the door and walking in. "That doesn't sound good," Mitch looked up from the laptop he had been gazing at for the past hour. He rubbed his eye sockets with the heel of his wrist, they made a squeaky sound. "I needed a break. What's up?""Terry has some troubles he wants to show you," Draco replied."Goddes, no. Not Terry." Mitch groaned. Terry was one of the subjects in his kingdom and the most troublesome one at that. He always had a problem he wanted to show the king or some issue that the king should address. "You know what? Tell Terry that I'm busy. You, take care of that yourself."Draco chuckled. "You're not getting out of this one, Mitch." He pointed. "Besides, it sounds like Terry is truly up to something. He sounded really worried."Mitch frowned and stood up. He could feel his bones creaking. "Not as young as we once were," He muttered. His beast chucked and replied, "We will still be in our prime in the next 30 y
MITCH CHESTER "WHAT DOES TERRY want this time?" Lorna asked, walking beside Mitch.He shrugged. "You know how he is, and his theatrics." He turned and saw that Terry still stood in the heavy wind, Draco stood with him. "It's probably nothing."Lorna followed his gaze and shook her head subtly. "It seems to be more than nothing," she said. "I think this time you should take him seriously. I could go and pick the kids while you men discuss."Mitch scoffed. "No.""But your Highness -""I said No!" She bowed her head in submission and nodded. "You can hang out with them after school..." Mitch said as a guard opened the garage for him. He got into one of the cars.Lorna placed a hand on the window. "I think Terry isn't bluffing." She said in a low tone. "I woke up with a dreadful chill this morning."Mitch snorted. "We are in the ice mountains, waking up with a chill isn't something that is unusual...""It's not that.""Then maybe you have caught the plague," Mitch's lips rose in a smil
ANNA KYLIN CHESTERTHE PAST TWO days went by in a blur. Getting to work in the pack was easier because I already knew what to do. I immediately ordered Marcus and the other medical team to round up the pack members and extract their blood so we could start working on a vaccine.Getting Marcus to work for me was easier than I expected. "It is because he fears us," Ava said in my head. "And for good reason." Marcus is a human was was mated to a wolf. My father had accepted him into the pack on the terms that he could never leave. He avoided any direct contact with me, and I didn't mind. I didn't want to speak to him either. The slimy, two-faced human!My phone rang at the same time as the door opened and a nurse came in. I glanced at the caller ID and picked, "Doctor Kylin," I said."You should change that to Doctor Chester," His growl sent excited shivers down my spine. Mitch had never called me before, so I was concerned. "Is anything the matter?" I asked."The children are fine if t
MITCH CHESTERMITCH PORED OVER the large map spread out on the table. The map included the human community down below, his kingdom which extended into the mountains, and the packs closest to him. He was trying to plot a direction from any of the packs nearby that would lead them to the Northern Border. There was none, and it was making Mitch frustrated.A knock sounded on his door. He grunted. He had told Draco to take a day off and spend time with his mate.The door opened silently and Lorna came in. Mitch sighed, leaned back, and watched as she approached. On closer inspection, it was like her face was more lined than usual like the old age was finally catching up to her."What happened to you?" Mitch snorted. "You look like you aged 100 years in 2 days."She nodded and sat down opposite him. "I made contact with my sisters..."Mitch's face dawned with concern. That contact and communication would sap Lorna of her energy. No doubt that that was why she was looking like an old husk o
ANNA KYLIN CHESTERI DON'T KNOW if I was being paranoid, but it felt like Tick had someone tailing me. Everywhere I turned and went, it was always like I was being followed even though I did not see anyone. Ever since our confrontation in my office, he had not spoken to me.As I made my rounds in the sick ward, going through the patients, I wondered how Rick had found out about my children, and how he knew that they belonged to him."Not 'they'," Ava said in my head."What?""Not 'they'," she repeated. "He did not refer to Addison as his own. He was only concerned about Aiden."I recollected the encounter and nodded in agreement. Rick must have thought that Aiden was his while Addison was Mitch's.Oh how I would have loved that, I sighed. How I would have loved it if I was never pregnant for Rick in the first place and my two children belonged to Mitch.It was a wistful thinking that I would have never imagined I would have. But given the circumstances, I would rather be pregnant for
ANNA KYLIN CHESTERTHE HIGH PITCHED WHINE of the monitor was as loud and heavy as a blanketed silence. It was like the other patients also stopped breathing."Are you alright, Doctor?" The faraway voice of the nurse asked. She came to me and placed a hand on my shoulder. "Doctor Anna, can you hear me?"I then realized that the high-pitched whine wasn't from any machine, it was from my head."Hey!" The nurse called. "Give me a hand over here."The whine reduced and my vision became clearer. "I'm fine - I'm fine..." I started to pull away but the nurse held me firm."Are you sure?" She asked. "You look very pale. You should sit down,"Some other nurses came to assist me as I headed out. Doctor Marcus's haze glinted as he looked at me. "Probably her first death!" He scoffed. "Amateur!"I wanted to take his head. But I didn't want to frighten the human nurses assisting me... and deep down, I knew he was right. This was my first time experiencing the death of a patient or case I was handli
RICK FORSON"ARE YOU ANY closer to bringing my son to me?" Rick asked as Jones came into the office."You make it sound like it's an easy job," Jones scoffed. "Like I can walk up there and request for the boy.""Yeah? What's holding you back?"Jones looked at Rick. "For one, they are with the Lycan...""So?""The same Lycan that his family has rebelled against the world werewolves for centuries without failing?" Jones asked. "The same Lycan that his uncle was responsible for the death of the vampire King Vladimir? You expect me to approach him and snatch the boy?""You are just making up excuses, Jones."Jones frowned. He wanted to tell Rick to go do it by himself, but he swallowed his words. "It has to be a silent operation." He said instead. "Maybe during the dark of the night, or while they are in school.""The 'kingdom' doesn't have a school? There's no way you would invade and take him," Rick muttered."It has a school, yes," Jones said. Even one bigger than ours, he thought to h
ANNA KYLIN CHESTERTHE DINNER PROGRESSED silently between me and Janet after Vladimir left. I was not inclined to say anything to her, so I ignored all the stares she sent my way. I was focused on the meal, because I do not know the next time I would eat again. It might not be until the ritual, and if I had any hopes of escaping, then I need all the energy I can get.When I had eaten to my fill, I sat back, watching Janet's thin hands pick at her food tastelessly.“You are vegan,“ I said, noting that there was no meat nor fish on her plate.She scoffed, “Unlike you savages, I care about the lives of animals.“ She stuffed a strip of carrot into her mouth. “I heard that you dogs even eat raw meat. That is just disgusting.““And yet you sleep with a man - a creature that drinks raw blood… you don’t think that is disgusting?“ I retorted, knowing that she was right about us eating raw meat. Sometimes when in our wolf skin, he could go hunting and eat whatever we catch, which could range fr
ANNA KYLIN CHESTERHOLDING ON TO Vorenus softly as he led me out, We walked up a flight of stairs and down a hallway till we stopped in front of a thick, mahogany wood. I took a deep breath as Vorenus pushed the door open and stood aside to let me through. Taking careful steps, I walked into the room. It was like a large hall, lit up beautifully with gold chandeliers. There was a small round table in the middle of the room, and Vorenus was seated at the head of the table.He looked at me as I walked in; his eyes widened slightly, but that was the only reaction he gave. His human mistress sat beside me; the look she gave was a nasty, dirty stare, but she kept her mouth shut. Vladimir's eyes followed me all the way to the table. I nodded at him curtly and took a seat. The table was filled with many delicacies, and even a full roast pig sat in the center.“Thank you for coming,“ Vladimir said.It was not like I had any option; I scoffed under my breath. I turned and looked behind me, exp
ANNA KYLIN CHESTERI DO NOT know how long I remained in the cage — listening to the dripping of water in the far dark distance. But I knew when the sun went down, because the mansion became more active, and the sound of night bugs joined in the sound of water droplets.I felt like I was going to run mad, but the door opened and the butler came in. He was human, I was sure of it, but still, there was something off about him. But I could not place my hand on it. He stood a few feet away from my cell and looked at me in a spiteful manner. “My name is Bartholomew the Fourteenth,“ he said.The fourteenth? I asked myself. Does that mean that fourteen generations of this man's family had lived with and worked for Vladimir?“What you are thinking is exactly correct,“ the butler said. “And no, I cannot read minds, but I could clearly see the confusion written on your face.”“What do you want?“ I asked. If he was going to be anything like the other human in the mansion - Janet, I wanted to prep
320LORNA DID NOT know her next move, or why she washed the mind of this vampire, but she knew she had to do something, and this seemed like the first step.“Rise,“ she commanded.The vampire stood up robotically and looked at her with his soulless eyes.“What are you doing here?“ she asked him.“Keeping watch on the borders of this kingdom,“ he replied.“Why?““I was just following orders,“ he said.“Whose orders?“ Lorna asked, even though she already knew the answer, but she wanted to be sure.“The king,“ the vampire replied.Lorna scoffed under her breath. Vladimir. She turned and looked at the way she had come from, considering her options. Should she take this vampire back to the kingdom where he could be interviewed by Mitch for information, or should she take the more riskier option and tell the vampire to take her to where Anna was being kept prisoner?She looked back and forth a couple of times, then she made her decision. She was not going back to the kingdom. She and they w
LORNA LOOKED OUT the window and watched as Mitch addressed the guest from the Red Moon pack; she saw the way they looked at him with awe and adoration. They were here out of respect for him and love for Anna.She turned away from the window and went to the bed where Aiden was sleeping, brushing her hand across his forehead. He mumbled something inaudible and shuffled slightly, but he did not wake up. She sighed sadly, wondering what the medical personnel were going to make of this. Aiden was not entirely in a coma. He responded to touch, and she had seen his flicker in his eyelids when Mitch had whispered something in his ear a few hours ago. It was just like he was in a deep slumber without being able to wake up. She imagined it to be like he was trapped in his own body.“If only your mother were here,“ she muttered in a small voice. “She would know what to do to bring you back.“ Lorna spoke gently to herself. She sighed and leaned in to kiss Aiden's forehead. She felt very connected
MITCH CHESTERMITCH COULD FEEL the animosity in the tense air as soon as they walked in. Draco was behind him, and Delta Adam walked beside him as they walked to the front of the hall. All heads followed their movement. Mitch stopped and overlooked the senate; he cleared his throat to stop all side talks and make sure all the attention was on him before he said, “We have some guests in our midst,“ he said in a strong voice. “And I expect us to be hospitable and treat them well.““They are from the inland pack,“ a small, stubby man muttered.“From the lunas former pack,“ Mitch nodded. “And they are here to help us in rescuing her. I hope we will be able to put aside your differences and work together.“The hall was silent for the next few seconds, so Mitch continued, “And they brought some weapons to give us an added advantage,“ he said.“We will be fighting with weapons now?“ Sil asked, astonished, “Like the humans?“Mitch cocked his head and nodded. “I'm afraid so,“ he said. “We need
MITCH CHESTERMITCH SAT DOWN heavily and examined the faces of the members of the Senate before him. They knew something was off in the balance of the kingdom. He cleared his throat and said, “What called for this meeting?““I think the meeting is long over due, Your Highness,“ Lane said in a small voice. Mitch looked around at the nods of agreement around the table.Mitch snorted.“We got the news that we had guests.“ a fat man muttered. “Guest. Warriors from another pack. As if the military in this kingdom is not enough.““So it means there is a heavy war coming,“ Sil said. She paused and continued, “A war that would mean we are accepting help from other inland packs.“A ripple of murmuring went round the pack again.“It is not just any inland pack,“ Mitch said. “They are from the red moon pack. Luna Anna's former pack.““Talking of Luna Anna,“ Sil cut in. “Where is she?“Mitch sighed. Truly, there are so many things that they need to address. Where would he even start? He asked him
MITCH CHESTERMITCH HAD BEEN waiting for the past 20 hours. All the pent up and nervous energy was making him agitated. He hated waiting, but that was what he had been forced to do for the past 20 hours. When he could not take it anymore, he went upstairs to Aiden's room, Lorna was still there. But up in Aiden's room was another waiting session as they waited for him to wake up.Lorna sat up when Mitch walked in. He looked around and noted that Elijah and Oliver were absent. “What of the boys?“ he asked.“They left an hour ago," she replied. “They had to eat and wash up, but I think they will be back here anytime soon.“Mitch nodded and sat down heavily with a sigh. He rubbed his eyes with the heel of his palms.“How did the meeting go?“ Lorna asked after a few seconds of silence.“As fine as it can get,“ he said.“You and Enrique did not clash heads?“ she asked. Everyone knew about the both of them.He shrugged, “We did. But we came to an agreement.“She smiled softly. “That is good
315ANNA KYLIN CHESTERI HAD NO idea how long I had been locked in the cell when the door opened. I sat up expecting it to be Vorenus; instead, it was the skinny, sick looking mistress of Vladimir. Her name was Janet or something like that.She stalked to the front of my cell and pouted at me. “So you are a woman… and pretty too.“ If that was meant to be a compliment, it did not sound so, as it was laced with venom.Gathering some energy, I stood up. I was taller than her and was pleased when she tilted her head to look up at me. She took an involuntary step backward. I smirked at her.“You are never going to take Vladimir from me,“ she blurted.“What?“ I gagged. Who was this dumb lady? “If you are thinking I am here of my own free will to snatch your undead boyfriend, you have the brain of a 15 year old high schooler.“She placed her hand on her hip and frowned. “And what? You have the brain of a mature woman…“ She frowned and leaned closer to me. “Wait a minute, don't I know you?”I