Willow String lights glittered above me, giving the outdoors a bit of color. Not our that, a couple of artificial flames torches lit up the space around me. In fact, I was bathed in more light than I could ever imagine. In my quest to admire more and more of the space, I found my gaze tilting towards the heavens. The night sky was pitch black, with just a couple of white dots that could barely pass as stars. It didn't help that the moon wasn't even out yet, and I couldn't help but feel weird. I always loved looking at the sky. It had a direct effect on my mood sometimes and now that it was blank, a sad smile made its way to my lips. It wouldn't be like this for long though. Today was the coronation, and usually, the moon was always present whenever the new Alpha and Beta were to be crowned. Without it, it was said to be a bad omen and the beginning of a rough and treacherous rule for the pack. Hopefully, the moon would show up before the main festivities started. Someone's l
Carter The party was in full swing, but for the life of me, I just couldn't bring myself to enjoy it. No matter how hard I tried, I just couldn't. I'd tried watching the dancers dancing on stage, and the fire eaters doing their thing, but even that didn't help either. No matter what I did or tried to do,my thoughts always circled back to one thing. “Save it.” Father had snapped. “I will make sure you pay for this Carter. You will not go unpunished. Mark my words.”“If I hear so much as one slip up from you again, I really don't mind picking a random member from the party and crowning him.”The mere thought of it was more than enough to have me shuddering in my clothes. Tonight, I was dressed in a three piece suit. I had a soft side for fashion and always dressed my best, but not today. Today, I'd just thrown on the first thing I had seen, and luckily for me, it just had to be a three piece suit. Who in their right minds would be excited to pick out clothes when their right to t
Willow The look on his face was more than enough proof to show that he never saw it coming. I'd thought, perhaps there would be an easier way to break it to him, but I guess not. All I needed to see before I made my choice was how he wanted to take me to his father, like he hadn't walked out on me the other night. I really didn't want to think about it, I already said I wasn't going to, but apparently, the only motivation I needed to change my mind was the scene I'd just witnessed before coming here. Yeah, that's right. Asher and that girl. While I was roaming the crowd and busy searching for Carter, I'd put my ears down for gossip as well. No one, literally no one seemed to be talking about her and I wasn't exactly sure how I felt about that. Was she some kind of ghost? A ghost guest? How did she just show up? And why was the first person she walked up to, Asher?The more I tried to piece things together, the more confused I got and it made me mad. My mind was a mess and if th
Carter The loud rise and fall of the pianos and harps swelled around me, but I couldn't bring myself to concentrate on it. It was a beautiful piece, and I was on there verge of tipping the musicians, probably after the ceremony. I would have gone now and had it done with, but I had other important things to attend to. Or more specifically, someone more important to attend to. Willow. With the way she was pressed flush against my body, it was hard to think about anything else. Despite the loud music and the even louder chatter of the guests, all I could focus on was the way her heart thumped loudly in her ribcage. I could hear it, and it made me wonder just how much thought she was giving to the proposal I'd drafted. “Ome week, for one whole week, you'll get to do whatever you choose to try to get Asher to notice you. If it works, then you're free from our original deal.” My words rang in my head. It echoed all around me and the more it did I couldn't help but feel like I'd just
Willow I couldn't believe it. I couldn't believe it at all. No, I could, but I just didn't want to. Maybe if I could delude myself that what I'd just seen wasn't really the truth and my mind was just playing tricks on me, it would be true. It was a random idea, but it was possible, right? Wrong. I couldn't be more wrong. As I stared at the two people standing beside the elder at the podium, I just knew my hallucination had come to an end. I thought I only had to endure one thing going wrong tonight when Asher walked off with that girl, but apparently, I didn't know what was coming for me. First he had walked out on me with her in his arms, and now this? He'd just announced her as his mate. Shit.I couldn't stop staring at her. The more I did, the more my heart bled but I was way past caring at this point. She was all smiles with Asher's hand intertwined with hers and if I was being honest with myself, they actually looked good together. She was a brunette, with her brown wavy
Carter. None of the festivities mattered to me anymore. Usually, the crowning ceremony was filled with so much life and vigor, and if I was being honest, this one was bubbling with life, but I couldn't bring myself to partake in any fun activity. How could I when the plan I thought was going to work out, had literally gone south? Willow. A wry smile made its way to my lips. Call me stupid or whatever, but for a moment, I really thought she was going to turn down my offer. The details surrounding how she and Asher had ended were still unclear, but I knew with the way he'd been treating her post break-up, that was enough to show her Asher's true intentions. That was literally all the closure she needed.But I guess I couldn't be more wrong. I hadn't expected it when she told me she was going with my new proposal. The moment the words slipped past her lips, it was like a knife to my heart. I almost didn't concentrate on my coronation any more. I shook my head. There was no use thi
Carter I was cursed. That was it. That was the only explanation I could think of at the moment. If I wasn't, then things were supposed to be going smoothly for me, right? Even though I'd decided within me that I was probably under some kind of hex, merely acknowledging it wasn't going to do me any good. If I wasn't looking for a way to break the spell, then I had to at least undo some of the damages the hex had caused, right? Right, but how the hell was I supposed to come up with a solution for the most recent development that had just gone haywire? Willow. Father had decided to meet with Willow and now, she was nowhere to be found. Finding her wasn't a problem, I could easily bet where she could be. Wherever Asher was, she was bound to be nearby. If she wasn't trying to shove herself in his face that is. I ran a hand through my hair, letting a deep sigh slide past my lips. The party was still buzzing, but not as before. A handful of the guests were starting to retire, and I w
Willow My footsteps echoed in the hallway, but I didn't let that deter me. Even if it sounded like my flipflops alone could bring down the whole house, I didn't care. I was going to do what I wanted to do and no one was going to stop me. Not even Carter. He hadn't made a fuss when I'd gotten up this morning. We weren't married yet, so we still had our separate rooms, but I was surprised when he'd showed up at the front of my door something like an hour ago. His eyes were red, bloodshot even and I could bet he hadn't slept a wink last night. I wanted to, but I just couldn't bring myself to ask him the reason why he'd decided to torture himself in that manner. “Are you sure you really want to do this?” He'd asked. I didn't miss the tone of his voice though, he didn't want me to go through with it. At all. “I mean, you made your answer clear yesterday, but a whole night is a lot of time to rethink your decision.”“Yes.” I had In fact thought about what I wanted to do, and I wasn
The night was dark, with only the gentle light from the moon shedding and casting its warm glow over the earth. Stars littered the night sky, and against the pitch black backdrop of it all, the scene above looked nothing short of a beautiful painting. The sound of leaves crunching underneath someone's feet cut straight through my thoughts. Immediately, I turned to the side, and standing a couple of feet away from me, was a black wolf, tall and mighty with its beady eyes staring down at me. A couple of moments passed as we both stared at each other, none of us daring to move. Something swirled in the pit of my stomach and before I could make sense of all that was happening, I found myself transforming back into my human form. My fear heightened when I realized whoever it was, was still in its wolf form. I didn't have to think too much because I'd barely mumbled the rest of the questions, before the wolf morphed into his human form, and the moment he did, a huge smile made its wa
I gently pushed the door to my bedroom shut. When a small click reached my ears, I heaved a sigh of relief. I had no idea why I'd just done that. Mum was probably halfway to slumber town now, so why was I so worried that I would have woken her?I sighed again, before gently clasping my hands together. A slight tremble rocked my fingers, but I kept them together, going they would stop soon.Luckily for me, it didn't last long. The moment I witnessed the last of it, I headed to my study desk in the corner of the room and pulled out my books. I had a test in the morning, and AP Chemistry, isn't something you just waltz through with an empty brain. I knew there was trouble the moment I read the first line and was unable to grasp anything. After trying for the second and third time, and still nothing had changed, I just knew I was cooked. There was no way I could focus on studying, not when there was something on my mind. No, not something. Someone.Zayn.No matter how many times I t
Silence filled the air, except for the tip of my fingertips drumming against the steel table in front of me. I had no idea why this man, Shadow, had gone with steel tables. Did he not have any class? I understood that he ran an underground business and was trying to keep things tough and scary, but who said the affairs of the underworld couldn't be spiced up with some class?Take for example. I was a perfect fit Or perhaps the steel table wasn't such a bad idea. Now that I thought about it, it wasn't exactly useless. Let's say Shadow's warehouse happened to get raided by a rival group right now, this steel table could actually come in handy. Just by flipping it over, it could actually give Shadow ample time to bring out his gun and attack. “Why don't you take a picture?” I let out suddenly, causing Shadow to flinch. I watched as he blinked back a couple of times, obviously trying to readjust his eyes to his surroundings again. A sly grin made its way to my face immediately a
I stood rooted in my spot, my blood boiling. I didn't even bat an eyelid when the sound of Alessandro's car driving out of the compound reached my ears. My mind whirled with a million questions and a thousand more thoughts. How dare he? How could he even do such a thing?I'd always perceived Alessandro to be a heartless and ruthless monster, but the last thing I expected was him bringing a little boy into the equation. Leo was still a little child for fucks sake!I pressed my eyes shut, and the moment the darkness engulfed me, I regretted it immediately. Leo's bruised back and face filled my vision, his wounds taunting me. I shook my head as I imagined his wails and sobs.Leo was a delicate boy, the best kid in the whole world. He didn't deserve any of that and that wasn't even the worst part. The part that made my blood boil and crack at the same time was the fact that it wasn't his fault in any way. I'd brought this up on him. Me, I did that. Strip. Alessandro's authorita
My heart leapt to my throat as the sound of something scurrying along the floorboards reached my ears. I sucked in a deep breath as I sunk deeper to the edge of the wall, my back coming in contact with the bed's fluffy headboard. As I hugged my knees, I rocked back and forth, hoping the little gesture would calm my thumping heart and calm me down a bit, even if it was in the tiniest of ways.It didn't work. It wasn't working. Not at all. Not yet. I sucked in a deep breath as I allowed my heartbeat to return to its steady pacing. I heaved a sigh when it finally stabilized. I was tired, tired of living like this. But did I have any other choice? I wasn't sure. I didn't think so. It'd been two days since I walked out on Alessandro. Tao days since I'd locked myself in my room and refused to come out, and even as time ticked by, I still wasn't sure if I regretted my decision. A frown appeared on my face at the thought of a sour memory. No matter how hard I'd tried to forget a
Fear raked through my body as my heart steadily picked up its pace. Cold chills raced up and down my spine as I stared wide eyed at the scene in front of me. At this point, I wouldn't be surprised if I was cursed or something. Cursed to always find myself in situations like these. But that wasn't the part that bothered me. A little curse here and there never hurt anybody. Hell, maybe I'd even cursed myself. I did have a knack for messing around with Ouija boards and all when I was little. The part that bothered me was how I always managed to find myself in situations like these, no matter how hard I tried to avoid it. After Dagger had dropped the bombshell and given me an ultimatum, I was stumped. I went blank. He couldn't get my attention until he poked me with something. I didn't think much of it, but now that I did, I couldn't shake off the feeling he'd done something. Ejected a tracking device or chip into my body maybe, or perhaps he'd even poisoned me. The ideas were end
I watched as the blue flames lit the tip of the cigar that was tucked in between my fingers. As I pushed the flames closer to where I wanted it to be, something caught my eye. How the hell I was able to notice it was strange to me, but now that I'd seen it, I just couldn't ignore it. Just in between my fingers where the cigar sat, Red hue tainted my skin. I wasn't exactly sensitive and I barely bruised, so this was definitely a discovery. A sly smirk made its way to my lips. I didn't even have to think hard to figure out why the skin in between my fingers was pink, or better still, turning red. For the past hour, or more, I'd been replacing rolls and rolls of cigars the moment I exhausted the last one. At some point I'd lost count of how many of the smoke machines I'd inhaled, but I knew they were a lot. I was pushing myself and maybe if I didn't hold back, I would finally know my limit. If I actually had one, that is. I exhaled a huge puff of smoke, after inhaling for a coup
My mind reeled with a million and one things all ar once and I swear if I didn't find a way to stop it, I just might run mad on the spot. I'd just told them I knew Alessandro. Shit. If I was being honest, I had no clue if I'd done the right thing or not. I suspected foul play the moment I realized I wasn't Alessandro’s captive. Who else knew of my existence? Papa had taken a wide step back from indulging in businesses that were a norm in mafia families, so there was no way I could be in someone's radar. But the moment he knew I recognized Alessandro, I just knew I was in deep shit. I hated Alessandro, literally everyone did, even Antonio. But as I stared at the murderous glare my captor wore as he arranged an array of weapons I didn't recognize, I quickly came to the conclusion that there were more people that hated the man. Even more than I did. And it shocked me to the bones.Who the hell was he? Was he working alone? What was his relationship with Alessandro? And what
Chapter 82Destiny's POV I was anxious, and literally nothing I did was calming me down. Instead, the more I tried, the more I failed woefully at it too. There wasn't any technique I hadn't tried. I had tried counting to ten and back again, and even making a conscious effort at trying to regulate my breathing, but it just wasn't working. It was a surprise how Carter hadn't noticed how fidgety I was. Or maybe he had, he has just decided that he wasn't going to comment on it, and even that didn't sit right with me.My stomach churned, pulling me out of my quick monologue. Before it could let out another sound, I folded my fingers in front of my belly. I wasn't exactly sure it was going to do anything, but it was too late to try to take back what I'd just done. So instead, I fixed my gaze as I tried to remove the invisible dirt that had found their way underneath my nails. The car was silent, save for the gentle hum from the engine. The civilization that whooshed by also seemed to