Ivy's POVWhen I hear Spencer’s thunderous roar echo down the dungeon tunnels, I can feel my blood run cold. I turn around, heart racing and breath coming quick. When my eyes meet Spencer’s cool, endless gaze, I feel like I’m drowning. A deep, powerful rage is burning within him. The sort of rage that drives men mad–that causes them to topple empires and tear apart the world. I know it’s an awful thing to think about your own mate, but I’m terrified of what he could do like this. It’s not even that Spencer has an expression of anger right now. It’s an energy that crackles around him, fierce and undeniable, powerful and all-consuming. Most of that anger seems to be directed at Alpha Leo, who tenses up at the sight of Spencer. But a shred of that anger is also being directed at me, and I feel the smallest I’ve ever felt in my entire life. The entire world seems to be balancing on a knife’s edge as Spencer’s ruthlessly bladed gaze shifts from me to Alpha Leo. Spencer narrows his ey
Spencer's POVI hear the warning howl only moments before I feel claws digging into my shoulders. The claws have been carefully sheathed–whoever is attacking me doesn’t seem to want to hurt me. Yet. But in my surprise, I drop Alpha Leo. His body crumbles to the ground as I whirl around to face my aggressor, fists raised in a combat stance. I don’t know who I was expecting to see, but as I look up at a large white wolf, I feel as though my heart is breaking. “Ivy?” I ask in shock. The wolf’s paws are still on my shoulders, and I desperately want to be wrong. How could it be Ivy? Why would it be Ivy? She wouldn’t attack me, she wouldn’t do anything to restrain me–And yet. I can feel the joints of my fingers aching as thick blood drips down my knuckles. I wish I could somehow convince myself that the wolf pulling me away from Alpha Leo isn’t Ivy, but those are her eyes. I’ve spent ages gazing into Ivy’s eyes–I’d be a fool not to recognize them. And after everything we went throu
Ivy's POV“Well, I’m glad the truth has finally come out about the man you abandoned our relationship for.” Spencer’s words echo through my brain, and I can’t help but gape up at him in disbelief. As we’re arguing, Spencer looks downright frightening–he’s towering tall above me, easily twice my weight and sculpted from pure muscle. Red-hot anger burns in his eyes like twin embers, and all that anger is directed at me now that Alpha Leo has been properly incapacitated. A vein on his forehead twitches. All in all, I should be very, very afraid. But for Spencer to accuse me of being the one who abandoned this relationship? My disbelief at Spencer’s sheer audacity counteracts whatever fear or trepidation I may have otherwise felt. I narrow my eyes at him, cracking my knuckles. “Oh, really, Spencer?” I snap. “You must be mistaken. Last I checked, I didn’t get engaged to the first teenager who batted her eyelashes my way! You did that. Don’t you dare forget. You’re the reason we are wh
Ivy's POV By the time Spencer finally seems to understand everything that’s happened here, his face has gone bright red, and he can’t seem to look me in the eye. “So–you were trying to hide Alpha Leo from me so Gamma Everly could get the chance to get to know him better?” Spencer asks in disbelief. “You do realize how misguided that plan is…?” “You don’t get to judge any of the choices I’ve made here!” I snap. “It’s not like I had that many options!” “How did you even find them?” Spencer asks. I press the pads of my fingertips against my temples and rub them in a futile attempt to soothe my nerves. “After you told me to interview Jason and I was on the way out of the dungeon, I heard the sounds of fighting. When I investigated, I saw Gamma Everly and Alpha Leo locked in combat. And, well…” I hesitate, wondering if telling this next part would be a betrayal of Gamma Everly’s trust. She’s always held strong as the pinnacle of Lycan might and force. Her power has often been the onl
Spencer's POVAs I stare into Ivy’s eyes, I can see every ounce of the deep pain she’s harboring. All at once, I feel like the monster everyone has said I am. How could I have said those things? How could I have accused her of any of it? I questioned her faith, her loyalty, my own ability to trust her… The mate bond crackles between Ivy and I, pure electricity. Our lives are linked. I’ll always trust her. I don’t know how to not trust her. “Don’t go like this, Ivy,” I plead to her, gazing deep into her eyes. Ivy hesitates for a moment. Our eyes lock, and I can tell she’s reading me carefully, searching for something. But whatever it is, she doesn’t find it. My heart sinks as she shakes her head slowly. “I have a doctor’s appointment to get to, remember?” Ivy says impassively, pulling her wrist out of my grasp and starting to walk away. I want to go after her. To grab her, to pull her into my arms. If Ivy won’t listen to me, I want to kiss her until she understands that I love h
Spencer's POV“Thank you!” Gamma Everly smiles up at me, overjoyed. She tries to sit up to wrap her arms around me, but winces as she moves her shoulders. The medic quickly shushes her and shoots her a disapproving look, examining the shoulder carefully. “Of course,” I tell her. “Alpha Jameson was a dangerous radical deep in the throes of the enemy’s lies. You saw him near the end–he’d lost it. He’s always been a conniving son of a bitch, and he died that way. But Alpha Leo seems different.” “I think he could be a good man,” Gamma Everly says softly, glancing over at his unconscious form. Her brow furrows in concern at the sight of him. “You really did a number on him, didn’t you?” I shrug. “He did stage a prison break in my dungeon. Which–speaking of. You know we need to figure out how he pulled that off, right?” Gamma Everly nods slowly. “I think I can get through to him,” she says. “It’s like Ivy said–he’s brainwashed, but he’s not rotten. Now that he’s away from Elder Jet and
Ivy's POVAs I make my way out of the dungeon, all I can think about are the terrible things Spencer said to me. The various scrapes and bruises ache with every step. I place my hands protectively over my stomach. I wasn’t even thinking about the child when I launched myself into battle, and now, I’m terrified for the baby. I don’t think it’s quite hit me that I’m pregnant. That I’m slated to give birth. That there’s a little life all curled up in my womb, relying on me and me alone for survival. It’s a lot of pressure, and the idea of messing that up…And the dungeon’s cloying, dreadful atmosphere only makes everything worse. When I finally push past the doors and make my way into the main section of the palace, I immediately feel slightly better. I wish I could explain away all the cruel, baseless accusations Spencer hurled my way. It would be so much easier to believe that he was just overrun with stress from the prison break and his doubts got the better of him–that it was all
Ivy's POV“My child.” The words slip past my lips softly, gently, like a warm caress. The image on the ultrasound blurs and twists with static, but I can see the figure lurking within, a tiny infant curled up. I fight the urge to touch my stomach, to feel my baby for myself. “Do we know if it’s a boy or a girl yet?” I ask excitedly, heart leaping. My child. My baby. My daughter, maybe, or my son. No matter what, I’ll love them completely and unconditionally, this beautiful and perfect unblemished thing. I’ll protect them from all the evil this world has to offer. The nurse shakes her head. “Not for another couple months, at least,” she replies. “That's around eighteen to twenty weeks. You’re still in your first trimester! All I’m looking for right now is any indicator of damage to the fetus, but at this point…” The nurse’s brow furrows in concentration as she continues to run the ultrasound wand along my stomach. “The baby looks perfectly healthy. Nothing to worry about. How are
Ivy’s POVThe longer I stay in the hospital bed, the more I can feel myself beginning to crumble. The pain is ceaseless in its intensity, great waves of agony that crash over me without letting up for even a second. I can’t scream, can’t cry, can’t move. I’ve given up on trying to call in any of the nurses when the flareups get too bad–all they’ll do is look at me sadly, scared of doing anything to make me worse, scared of simply standing by and watching the queen die. There’s an IV flowing an endless stream of pain medication into my veins, which is helping somewhat, but it’s not enough. All I can do is feel this. Until it kills me, I suppose. I have no idea where Spencer is–after he rushed out of my room unexpectedly like that, he never came back. I’ve heard some whispers floating around the hospital about a great escapade, about the looming creep of a plague sweeping through the kingdom. If it really is a plague, I hope more than anything that Tala didn’t catch it from me. If
Spencer’s POV“Alpha Fierro, I need you to focus up.” The words are harsh as they leave my mouth, but I’m not trying to be malicious, although it’s true that things desperately need to get moving. The longer I spend in the Sunclash pack, the more on edge I feel. Every wall in sight feels like it’s closing in on me, and I can feel the sickness permeating the air. There’s a heaviness to this place now, an endless sense of dread. I have a feeling that this ground will carry the weight of all its deaths for a long, long time. “Scour the office for anything that seems out of place,” I say. “If your Beta was in charge of the pack in your absence, it’s likely that he was the one putting any preventative measures into place. He may have tried to find a cure–hopefully there are signs somewhere around here.” I look down at the man’s corpse, the papers clutched in his fist and the expression of profound horror on his face. “I read his reports. He seems to have been a confident, driven man. I’
Spencer’s POV‘I think a considerable number of people managed to leave, contaminated or not.’ The longer Beta Wilson’s words echo through my mind, the more I begin to realize the scale of the potential disaster we might have on our hands. Where would any contaminated werewolves go? To the surrounding packs, most likely, and from there, the plague could spread from pack to pack to pack endlessly, ultimately becoming a worldwide pandemic…I whirl around to look at Alpha Fierro. “What was your relationship with other packs like?” I ask him urgently. “If any of your pack members were to turn up there looking for help, would they receive it?” “Probably, yeah,” Alpha Fierro says. “We tended to keep things as peaceful as possible. Unless there was very clearly something wrong going on, no one would have any reason to turn any of our members away.” I curse silently under my breath. “Keep heading towards the pack house,” I tell Alpha Fierro, already starting to walk away from him and back
Spencer’s POVMost of my skin has already been covered by my day clothes, but in the few places I’m not, I can feel the hazmat suit’s crinkly plastic resting against me uncomfortably. I shudder as the plastic continues to shift. It clings uncomfortably to my skin and is far from stealthy, causing a loud rumpling sound to ring out with every step. I’d hoped that we could carry out this surveillance with at least the slightest bit of stealth and decorum, but as the entire haphazard team of us begins to make our way into the Sunclash pack, it becomes more and more evident that that’s just not going to happen. Through the suit’s bulbous plastic dome, I make eye contact with Doctor Danbury, clearly far from amused. She purses her lips, and I can see my own frustration mirrored on her face as we continue to lug equipment around. “I know,” she says, coming up to walk beside me. “Believe me, I hate the suits too. Easily one of my least favourite parts of this job. But whatever wiped this p
Spencer’s POVAs we all sit in the back of a sleek, high-speed limo, I can’t help but feel thick tendrils of dread curling throughout my stomach. Every second I spend away from Ivy feels like I could be missing her final moments, and the fear over what could happen to her is making me sick. “The hazmat suits will be uncomfortable,” Doctor Danbury warns, holding up a hideous yellow baggy bodysuit. The plastic crinkles under her touch. “And the tanks on the back are going to poke weirdly. It’s no fun to wear, I know. But we still don’t quite know the extent of the toxicity of the environment we’re about to enter, so right now, safety is of the utmost importance. It’s possible that we’ll be able to take the suits off once I’ve run a couple tests and deemed the area safe, but I have no idea yet.” “Whatever it is, it seems to be highly contagious,” Alpha Fierro says somberly. Doctor Danbury nods. “The last thing we want to do is bring an uncontained plague back to the Lycan Kingdom, so
Spencer’s POVJust as Beta Wilson and Alpha Fierro make their way out of my office, I see Alpha Leo slip through the doorway. He looks much better than he did the last time I saw him–there are still the occasional cuts and bruises marring his skin, a couple ridged scars in the process of forming, but Alpha Leo seems to be walking without much pain. His posture is straight and his gaze is keen. He looks at me tentatively as he approaches my desk, and I can tell he’s just the slightest bit on edge. “Your Highness,” he says uncertainly. “Alpha Leo,” I reply. “Um, what can I do for you?” Alpha Leo asks nervously. I shuffle a stack of papers on the desk together. “As I’m sure you know, we’ve suffered considerable gaps in our staff,” I begin. “Specifically in our military and guard positions. One of the most notable absences is Captain McAndrews, as I’m sure you remember quite well.” Alpha Leo blanches. “Right,” he mutters. “The work you did during Elder Jet’s invasion was exceptiona
Spencer’s POV“The Lycan Kingdom will come to your aid at once.” Clearly, the ease with which I offer my support comes as something of a shock to Alpha Fierro. His eyes widen, and his face breaks into an expression of gratitude. His posture already seems straighter, like a great weight has been lifted from his shoulders. “Really?” Alpha Fierro breathes out. “Thank you, Your Majesty. Truly, I’d nearly given up hope on receiving any sort of aid at all–I’d almost started believing the rumours…” My eyes narrow. “The rumours?” I repeat coldly.” Alpha Fierro blanches. “Well, I–of course, I never really believed them. But I’m sure it hasn’t escaped your vast reach of influence that some werewolves have been saying things about the Lycan Royal Family that have been rather… out of line. Ever since Elder Jet and his rebellion, things have been different. But I–that’s not important! What I’m trying to say to you right now is thank you, Your Majesty. From the bottom of my heart.” I remain si
Spencer’s POV“Tell me everything you know about this plague.” The command is sharp and electric, crackling with urgency. At Alpha Fierro’s mention of this strange plague taking lives–not to mention its unfortunate coinciding with the Blood Moon–I can’t help but feel nauseous thinking about what could happen to Ivy. There’s been no confirmation that she’s sick with any sort of plague, of course, and there haven’t been any reported cases of illness from those who have come into contact with her so far. But all of that could change at any given moment, and when it comes to Ivy’s life–or the lives of anyone in my kingdom, for that matter–I have no intention of taking it lightly. Alpha Fierro hesitates for a moment. “I’ve been having my Beta send me reports tracking the symptoms he’s seen from some of the infected pack members we’ve got under observation,” he says. “But my Beta is–well.” He stops speaking abruptly, gaze momentarily taken over by sadness. “He’s deteriorating rapidly, to
Spencer’s POVAs I tear my way through the hospital and back towards the place, a million thoughts are racing through my mind. “Where’s he been staying since I turned him away?” I ask Beta Wilson, moving as quickly as I can. The day of my wedding, he’d somehow managed to fistfight his way past all my staff and slip past the wedding chaos to my penthouse. He’d knocked on my door like a madman before pleading with me to take his meeting–the only reason I even did was because I hold a fair amount of respect for the Sunclash pack. But the man had been blabbering on and on about some sort of curse rained down from hell that had overtaken his punishment, and he’d seemed all but mad, and I’d had a million other things on my mind since. “He’s been staying in a hotel within the kingdom for the past week,” Beta Wilson replies. “I’ve done my best to reach out to him over the past couple days, but he’s remained adamant that he only wanted to speak with you. At first I thought it best not to le