Ivy's POVI gaped up at Spencer in confusion, still trying to process what he’s said through the haze of lust clouding my thoughts.‘Hungry?’ He’d asked. Right.I nod, a bit sheepish. “It’s been awhile since I’ve eaten. I..um... Couldn’t find the dining hall.”Spencer extends his hand to me in a gentlemanly manner. I don’t quite understand what he wants from me, but I still place my hand in his. Compared to him, it’s tiny. Spencer hauls me up from the bed with ease, then reaches down and gathers my clothes from the floor. After he helps me put on my bra and panties, hands lingering on my breasts and hips, he slips the dress over my head and zips it up for me. I can’t help but feel surprised by his actions. Is Spencer choosing not to sleep with me because I’m hungry? Does it find it off-putting? He doesn’t seem angry, though. In fact, he seems to be looking out for me. As I continue to lose myself in my thoughts, my gaze suddenly latches onto Spencer’s. Maybe my confusion is too app
Spencer's POVWhen I get to my father’s office–the office of the Lycan King–I already know I’m in trouble.“Spencer!” My father says when I walk into his office, fixing me with his usual stern expression. “We need to talk.”I close the door behind me and take a seat opposite him. “Yes, Father.”“Did you buy a girl from the Omega auction?” My father asks. I simply nodded, not intending to say much more.“And did you bring her back here to the palace?” Once again, I nodded. He looks at me in shock. “Two years ago, a maid tried to seduce you, and you had her executed immediately. Since then, every she-wolf in the kingdom has been too scared to even approach you. Every one of them desires you, but don’t dare disturb you. Simply put, the women of this kingdom are terrified of you. No she-wolf has ever been held close to your heart. Could it be… is this girl your mate?”My father’s words remind me of the first time I saw her. Ivy. It was at the wedding of that Alpha and his wretched Luna
Ivy's POVAfter Spencer leaves, I abandon all pretense of etiquette and begin to devour my food hungrily. I eat as if there’s no tomorrow, trying to consume as much as possible. As the food slides down my tongue, tears involuntarily stream down my face. It’s been ages since I’ve tasted such fresh and plentiful food.When I finally finish my meal, I make the decision to head back to my room. The moment I leave the dining hall, though, I realize I have absolutely no idea where I am. The castle is so large, I get lost in the winding hallways and corridors in no time. It’s built like the maze–every hall looks the same. Just as I’ve given up hope on trying to navigate the palace, I spot a slight maid polishing a picture frame.“Hello?” I call out tentatively.The maid turned around. Surprise flashed in her eyes when she saw me, but she quickly regained her composure. “Yes, ma’am,” she smiles politely, softly inquiring, “What can I do for you?”“Oh, that’s so kind of you, thank you,” I sa
Ivy's POVI don’t understand why the maids hate me so much.I pace the floor of the room restlessly, frustrated tears pooling in my eyes. The dust covering the floor and hovering in the air makes my nose itch, making it a horrible place to pace in, but what else am I supposed to do? I’m trapped, completely and utterly. I haven’t done anything to any of the maids–they shouldn’t have any reason to despise me based on any of my actions. Is it because I’ve been labeled as an auction girl? Or maybe it’s because I don’t have a wolf? But all of that is based on rumors, and far from the actual truth. None of what’s happened to me has been my fault. I’m an Alpha’s daughter, and I once had a wolf–I only lost that connection because I was forced to drink wolfsbane. Maybe it’s because I’m so weak now that they all hate me so much? But I’ve never done anything to harm them. Or maybe it’s because of Spencer. He is, after all, incredibly charming. And handsome. I wouldn’t be surprised if every
Spencer's POVIvy is missing.I stare at the doorway of her room, which is wide-open and vacant. All the lights were off when I got here, bed still freshly made from this morning. There was a glass of water on her nightstand. Her pajamas were folded neatly under her pillow.Simply put, the bedroom is exactly as it was when we left for breakfast.And Ivy hasn’t returned.I pace back and forth frantically. I’d returned to the room to see her–I wanted to see her, but she’s nowhere to be found.Is she lost? It’s a big castle, sure, but there are plenty of staff here who’d be able to take her to her room. Even if Ivy had wandered outside to explore the grounds a bit, surely she’d have returned inside by now. It’s dark outside–it’s been dark for awhile now.Has she left the castle? No. There are guards everywhere, and they would have reported to me immediately if she had left.‘Beta Roger’ I quickly mind-link my Beta, ‘the girl I brought back from the auction is missing. Seal off the castl
Ivy's POVI’m on the run, and I need to move.Fast.Though my wolf is gone now, my senses are still sharp, and I can hear the voices of warriors in the distance shouting directions to one another. As I crouch in the grass, fear grips my heart in a tight fist.The voices are getting closer.And I have no idea where to go.I need to consider where Spencer thinks I am–whether he thinks I’m missing, or whether he knows I’m running away. The consequences of those two possibilities would be wildly different in terms of how he treats me. While Spencer has been good to me so far, I know that running away would most likely make him angry. He did buy me, after all–I’m under no delusions that he truly cares for me. Maybe I’m just some toy he picked up at the auction, something he can play with patiently for as long as I’m obedient. Maybe he gets off on spoiling me. But if it’s all under the condition that I play nice, I have no idea how he’d react to my escaping. I’m not following orders now.
Ivy's POV“How about you let me fuck you, and then I’ll let you go?”My mind races a mile a minute, formulating my plan.“Deal,” I reply breathily, looking up at the warrior through my lashes.He grins and pushes himself closer against me. I’m already pinned to the tree, and he’s only minimizing the distance between us–I can already feel much more than I want to, but I grit my teeth and bear it. I remember the combat techniques my father had taught me, his insistence that I learn how to fight. I pray silently to the Moon Goddess and my father for strength. I’m going to need all the help I can get. As the warrior’s rough hands start to caress my waist, I reach for a hard, thorny branch nearby. I wince uncomfortably as his fingers poke and prod into my sides, waiting for the moment when he’s the most distracted.He hums in contentment, grabbing me particularly roughly.Anger and indignation spark in the pit of this stomach.Who is this man to touch me like he owns me? I’ve had quite
Ivy's POVI stare helplessly at the lifeless body of the warrior, trembling from head to toe.He’s dead. He’s dead, because of me.Finally, with a great amount of difficulty, I force myself to tear my gaze away from the corpse. Looking at it won’t change anything. This is my situation, and it couldn’t be worse. Tears stream freely down my face as I look back at Spencer. What happens now? He found me. Does he know I tried to escape? Will he kill me for it? Or does his killing that warrior mean he thinks my disappearance was someone else’s fault?Spencer locks eyes with me, and something heavy clouds my expression. I feel like I’m destined to fail.“You ran away,” Spencer states confidently.A chill runs down my spine. How does he know?Now, the Lycan Prince will surely kill me as ruthlessly as he killed that warrior.“The maid lured you to the punishment room. You managed to escape, but you didn’t come to find me,” he calmly states, slowly approaching me. With each accurate statement
Spencer's POVAs I lead my warriors boldly into the night, I feel more determined than I’ve ever felt before. I'm well accustomed to hatred. To loathing. To the sort of burning fury that aches like hot coals in the pit of my stomach, a relentless pain that consumes my every waking thought. Such anger is not unfamiliar to me. But the sheer volume of it I’m experiencing now, knowing that Elder Jet is out there somewhere holding Ivy hostage and hoping to topple the entire Lycian Kingdom in one fell swoop…A quick death would be too kind a fate for Elder Jet. I want to pick him apart slowly and excruciatingly. I want to feel his blood between my fingers and to hear every scream of agony. I want to invent new depths of suffering just for him. “Be ready, soldiers!” I say, keeping my voice hushed as I look back at my army. Gamma Everly and I are leading the troops onward. We move silently and swiftly, scanning the trees for any signs of threat. The trees are tall, branches stretching upw
Spencer's POVNow that we know how we want to move forward, things are quick to fall into place. The centurion who gave us the tip has fallen out of sight completely–I’m assuming that by now he’s getting the medical treatment he needs. I’ve mind linked all the surviving centurions to bring their search parties back to the barracks, too, and now I’m just watching the last remaining warriors trickle back into our camp. The plan is simple. We aim to strike first, and to strike with such overwhelming brute force that no matter his schemes, Elder Jet will be left completely and utterly unable to recover. “If we move through the woods along here, I think we can follow the natural curve of the river without detection,” Gamma Everly says slowly. She traces her fingers along the map and shows me her outlined path. “There’s enough space for all of us to move around the region relatively freely, but the topography will make it harder to corner us. We could use their camp location to our advan
Spencer's POV“What happened?” I reach down and grab the fallen centurion’s shoulder firmly. Beneath my fingertips, the fabric at the joints of his armour is thick and bloody, and the warrior groans as I make contact. He’s not dead yet, though, and that gives me hope. With a little help from Gamma Everly, the two of us manage to bring the man up into a sitting position. He’s moving slowly and unsteadily, eyes clouded with unforetold terrors. I can see his limbs tremble and shake, the clear difficulty of every moment. “I… I was out surveying the area…” the centurion murmurs slowly. “And I was–and there was–” I still can’t see the full details of his face, but beneath his mask, his gaze is darting back and and forth anxiously. “It’s okay,” I tell him. “You’re safe here now.” Comforting people certainly isn’t my strong suit, but he has the information I need. And besides, it feels like something Ivy would do. She’d speak to him softly, gently. She’d nurture him carefully. She’d ma
Spencer's POV“What do you need me to do?” Alpha Leo’s expression is solemn as he faces me. All at once, I can see just how deeply he’s changed over the course of today–just earlier this morning, he was breaking out of our dungeon, not caring who he killed or whose lives he drastically affected. He was ready to return to a wicked, traitorous man and help him take us all down. But now Alpha Jet looks at me with respect and admiration. There’s still a lot more work to do, but he’s reckoned with Elder Jet’s fundamental evils and cruelties. He’s not just ready to change–he’s at a point where he’s more than willing. I smile at him, taking his question as confirmation that he would indeed be interested in aiding the Lycan Army. I point to a large building on stilts right near the back of the barracks. Alpha Leo follows my gesture with his eyes, tilting his head in confusion as he looks the structure over carefully. “Is that… a grain silo?” He asks. I smile. “We’ve got a herd of cattle
Spencer's POVAs the centurions lead their recruited parties out into the distant woods, I can feel the cold hand of horror slowly clamping around my heart. Of course, my main goal with sending out these search parties is to determine just how much of a threat Elder Jet truly is right now. Of course that’s what I’m trying to do. But in sending out all of these patrols, there’s something else I may be able to figure out, too. I’m hoping against hope that one of the parties will be able to figure out where Ivy is. But with that hope, there’s fear, too. What if they find Ivy, but it’s too late? What if all I can rescue now is her corpse? Or what if she’s alive, but broken and hurt beyond measure? I don’t want to see her injured. She’s been through so much–I don’t know how many more traumas she can take. Especially with the baby. Oh, Moon Goddess above, please protect Ivy and my baby. The warriors that aren’t members of any of the search parties spread through the forest, lying in
Spencer's POVAs Gamma Everly and I walk through the amassed ranks of the full might of the Lycan Army, all I can think about is Ivy. Where is she? What’s happening to her? I have no way of getting into contact with her–what if Elder Jet did something? How would I know? There’s a part of me that wants to take Elder Jet up on his offer of surrendering, if only to guarantee Ivy’s security. But I can’t do that. I can’t trade away my kingdom for her. If I did, what sort of king would I be? Besides, I wouldn’t put it past Elder Jet to break his end of a hostage exchange. Alpha Leo is the only piece we have to trade back, but Elder Jet doesn’t seem too attached to his spies, likely for this exact reason. No. The only way to ensure Ivy’s continuous and lasting security is to fight for it myself, tooth and nail and wickedly sharp claw. I can’t let anything bad happen to her. I lock eyes with Gamma Everly as we complete our sweep of the battalions. We have a massive military, easily big
Ivy's POV“You’ll never get away with it!” I’m gripping the bars of my cage as tightly as I can, but even despite my pointed efforts, I can feel myself beginning to slip. My hands feel like they're made of gelatin, and I can’t force myself to move them how I want to. My knuckles unclench, and my fingers are as useless as limp noodles. Elder Jet lets out a cold chuckle and pulls away from me. He takes a couple steps back, clearly enjoying the sight of me doing my very best to regain control of my body. I’m doing everything in my power to try and suppress the potion’s effects, but what can I do, really? I can feel it coursing through my body, bubbling into my stomach before being absorbed through the lining and into my bloodstream like some sort of sick, infested stain. I lie back on the ground, chest heaving. Grass tickles the back of my neck, and I can feel the particles of dirt clinging to my skin. I have no control right now. I don’t have anything. I’m completely and utterly u
Ivy's POVWithout a moment’s hesitation, my kidnappers pull me into the crowd of advancing rebel werewolves. I suppress a shrill scream as I find myself in the surge of bodies moving forward. It’s like swimming upstream, and my arms ache as the kidnappers drag me towards the center of the swarm. The world seems to spin around, and I lose track of where I am, lost in the crush of bodies until I suddenly burst out the other side. I stumble slightly, held up only by the guards. As I struggle to regain my balance, I take a look at my surroundings and realize that I effectively made it through to the other side. Instead of still being tangled up in the army, I’m standing in the center of a large makeshift camp, watching the rebel werewolves from behind as they make their way towards the palace. A sense of impending dread keeps over me as I watch the rebels approach. It’s sickening to see–the Lycan Palace will be under siege soon, and I don’t think anyone there knows it yet. I cast a fu
Ivy's POVAs my kidnappers continue to walk me through the halls of the palace, I’m doing everything I can to keep myself calm. I look between the two men, and they look back at me, the warning evident in their eyes. At this point, I’m assuming they’ve got to be working for Elder Jet–after all, Elder Jet’s men have kidnapped me before. Elder Jet would want to deal maximum damage to Spencer, which means he knew exactly what he was doing by taking me. He knows just how much I mean to Spencer. All I can do now is hope that Elder Jet and his cronies don’t find out about my pregnancy. And because my kidnappers are likely working for Elder Jet, I’m terrified that means they have connections to witches and their strange magic, too. They threatened to kill Jason if they received any sign that I mind linked anyone for help–normally I’d call it a bluff, but after those red potions, after seeing the things a witch’s magic can make a person do…I’m terrified of doing something wrong and doom