ELENA’s POV
I am in the backseat of a luxurious sedan. The seats are black and leathered and the interiors are immaculately spotless; there is air conditioning and a heating system too. I have never been in a sedan before. Father and I used to dream about sitting in a car such as this; we would sit on a grassy spot under a shady tree at the top of the hill at our little village and he would tell me stories of the great vehicles that only the rich rich and powerful possessed, and I would often wonder what it would feel like to be in one.
Now I know. It feels like death.
There is no joy in being enveloped by such luxury and as the car gently hums along the rocky road that leads up a winding hill, I lean my weary head against the tinted window sill, not particularly focusing on anything that whizzes by the window.
I look, but I do not see. I breathe, but I am smothered. I touch, but I cannot feel. I cannot do anything. I cannot e
HUNTER’s POV I look at the girl with my arms folded across my chest. Elena, that is her name. Omegas like her are supposed to be frail and fleeting, but like her name which means ‘the light of the sun’, I see an unyielding fire burning behind her ocean blue eyes and because of this, I know that she is no ordinary omega. This girl is a fighter and no one on the face of the earth will be able to stand in her way until she sees justice served. So how can I reject her plea? How can I deny her the vengeance she so desperately seeks? How can I tell her that once you join the pack, you will forever be bonded to it for life? That there is no escaping the life of the damned once you take the sacred vow? The life of the Storm Riders pack is a dark and treacherous one; one wrong move and it can cost you everything. Everything. I once so desperately tried to run away from all this. I once tried to relinquish my role as the next Alpha in line but y
ELENA’s POV I have witnessed too many deaths lately. Far too many. I should be immune to them by now, but I am not. Truly, how can one ever become numb to a life that is lost? Every life taken was once precious to someone, was once a joy bringer to a loved one and was once filled with hopes and dreams. And if you asked me what I thought about any werewolf pack going trigger happy a week ago, I would gladly tell you that they are sadistic, vile creatures without an ounce of humanity in them. But this is not a week ago. This is today. And today, I pleaded to become one of them. Today, I did nothing while watching Hunter shoot a man without batting an eyelid. The gruesome image, along with all the others will haunt me to the day I die, but I have made up my mind. I will sell my soul to the devil just to lay waste on the beast who took everything from me. I will hunt him to the ends of the earth and make him pay a thousandfold for what he
HUNTER’s POV The night is cool and the breeze is calming, but there is no sense of peace radiating from Elena. As I wrap my arms around her to steady the gun in her hand, she stiffens, and I know all too well why. It is because of Clyde. That man scarred her, hurt her and broke her. And he haunts her even in her dreams. Each night I wake up to hear her muffled cries through the walls that separate our rooms. I had specifically arranged for Elena to sleep in the room next to mine; away from the rest of the men’s and foolishly thought it would give her more sense of security. I was wrong. She thinks no one hears her when she wakes up screaming from her nightmares, but I hear her. Her dreams are relentless and they are eating her alive. Every night when she stifles her cries, I want nothing more than to kick down the door to her room and take her in my arms, to wipe away every tear and tell her that everything will be alright. But
ELENA’s POVI look to my left and right, sizing my competition up. All around me are men; big, tall and strong. Apart from Connor, I am probably…no, I am definitely the most petite in this group. But that does not matter. Having trained alongside most of these men the past few weeks, I have come to know of their strengths and weaknesses; and I am sure they know mine as well. But what I do not know are the strong and weak points of the other men who just came in today. Apparently, they had trained elsewhere.“Hey sweetheart, how bout we have some fun after all this is over?” one of them snickers, his dark brown eyes roaming me from head to toe. I take an instant dislike towards him. He is tall, lean and sports a shaved head, unlike the rest of the men here who wear their crowning glory with pride. There is also a tattoo of a pup’s paw on his neck.I choose to ignore him and look straight ahead at my prize. The
ELENA’s POVI step onto the ring and all around me, everyone quieten down to a hush. A gentle breeze picks up and blows at my hair, sending a few stray strands to dance around my eyes.Dance…yes. This is only a dance, I tell myself. Except it is a dance of blades.Baldy makes his way to the ring and takes his stance opposite me. He winks at me and licks his lips in the most obscene of ways. Maybe I should aim for his tongue first.I tuck the strands of hair behind my ear and stretch out my right hand in front of me with the blade held tight. The tip gleams under the sunlight, and the sun’s reflection momentarily blinds me causing me to stagger back slightly.This elicits a laugh from Baldy. “Sweetheart, why don’t you just give up? You can’t even stand straight!”A few of the men start to laugh and for some reason, a drop of uneasiness penetrates me. The memory of my failure in
HUNTER’s POVThe basement is dark and dingy with only a lone lightbulb hanging from the slabs above. It swings like a pendulum, casting moving shadows all around. There is no window air in this stale and murky room. All the better. This is not a resort, this is a dungeon for my VIPs. And today, I have a very important guest who hangs by the shackles of the brick walls.“Let me go!” a young man screams as he tugs desperately against the chains that bind him. Veins pop out on his neck and sweat glistens on his body as he struggles to catch his breath in this suffocating room.“Please, Alpha. I am merely here for the trial. Nothing more. I’m no spy. Please, let me go…”His shifty eyes fall on Liam who stands next to an iron stove, heating an imprinted iron bar on heated coals of braziers. A symbol of a wolf amidst a raging storm is fashioned at the end of the bar and it glows in a variety of w
ELENA’s POVThe blazing sun is starting to dip below the horizon and it is a beautiful sight. It bathes everything it touches in a pale dusky pink glow, melting like molasses beneath the horizon of towering trees. Overhead, a flock of birds soar across the sky, all dashing back to their nests to settle in for the night. But it is far from over for us for we have now entered the final round of this trial.“Alright people, get your asses on the shooting range. Now!” Helios yells, waving for us to move faster. We all stand in a horizontal line but just as I step forward to take my spot, a spasm of pain shoots right up my wounded arm and I wince. Looking down, I see that the makeshift bandage is now soaked with blood. A trickle has somehow escaped the confines of Hunter’s shirt and it drips onto the ground.“Move it, Elena! We don’t have all night!” Helios yells in my ear and I cringe at his deafening
ELENA’s POVBy the time the last shot is fired, the sun has bid its goodbye and the moon is high up in the sky. I squint my eyes, peering at the targets that are a distance away and try to see how I fared. The abstract silhouettes come to a halt and are riddled with bullet holes, but it is hard to see whose shots were the best.Helios raises a hand, signalling for us to lower our guns and we do as we are instructed. Hunter gives him a nod and Helios strides to the very far end of the shooting range. I swallow thickly and look over to Hunter but he does not meet my gaze. He has put on a new shirt, a dark blue one this time and with his arms crossed, his face remains a blank slate; I cannot tell what is going through his mind.I look the other way and see the faces of the other competitors. The way their eyes shift nervously and their hands fidget mirrors exactly how I feel inside. As if sensing how I feel, Connor looks my way giving m
ELENA’s POVI creep silently to the door. Freya has back facing me and my blade over her head. The situation is desperate. Fear seeps into me as I stare at the dire situation in front of me. Hunter has fallen on the ground and he stares at Freya in confusion. It is still my face he sees.Time is not on my side. With just one stab, Freya can kill Hunter. I curse myself for having fallen for Freya’s trick earlier, if only I can shift right now!“Remember this moment Alpha Hunter.” I hear Freya say and she moves to bring down her blade.It is time to rise to the challenge. I lunge forward, effectively catching Freya by the waist and we both tumble to the side.“Freya, no!” I yell, holding tightly onto her. She screams in anger, turns around and we come face to face.I gasp.Her face is melting, her skin is peeling off and blood drips from the raw skin underneath. I am staring into a nightmare.
HUNTER’s POVElena does not talk as she stays in my arms and I have to wonder why.She pulls back from our embrace with a smile still etched on her face and I palm her cheeks, looking into her eyes, searching for an answer. But when I stare into the windows of her soul, I see nothing. I see only coldness in her sea-blue eyes. There is a tinge of fear too.Something is not right.“Is something the matter?” I ask her. I am concerned about her, she has had a lot on her mind of late. Especially now that Freya is back.Her blue eyes do not blink and her smile does not change. She merely shakes her head and pulls my hands away, motioning towards the bow tie that lays innocently on the bed.I notice that her nails are long. That’s odd, I don’t recall ever seeing Elena having long nails like these before. She usually keeps her nails trimmed and neat.“Are you going to choke me with th
HUNTER’s POVMOMENTS BEFORE FREYA ENTERSI stand in front of my mirror and adjust my bow tie for the umpteenth time only to flood the whole of the guestroom with a chorus of foul four-letter words.I tug violently at my tie and throw it on the bed, wondering why anyone has to dress up for the coronation. We’re werewolves for goodness sakes, not some high strung politicians who prance around in suits and do nothing but talk and play golf all day long.Conner gingerly picks up my tie and passes it back to me. I grunt and grab it from his hand, trying and failing at fixing the bow tie yet again. It sucks that I suck. And I never suck. “Maybe you should get Elena to help,” Conner suggests.It is a brilliant idea. The boy is a genius.“Go get her.”Conner smiles cheekily at me. “Should I ask everyone else to stay away from the guest room u
FREYA’s POVThe transformation is complete. I stare at my reflection in the mirror of the dressing table only to see Elena’s face looking right back at me.I blink, so does the girl in the mirror. Then I smile, and she follows suit. The glowing liquid worked, I look exactly like my sister. And by wearing her clothes and carrying her scent, I might just be able to trick Hunter into thinking that I truly am Elena.I cannot wait to see the look on his face when his ‘dearly beloved’ stabs him in the heart. The thought of plunging a knife deep into his chest sends me into a peal of laughter.Wait.I quickly cover my mouth even as the real Elena stares at me through her bloodshot eyes. I may look like Elena, but I certainly do not sound anything like her.Hmm, interesting. The liquid only works on physical features.But it doesn’t matter. I take Elena's comb and run it through my hair bef
ELENA’s POV“Freya, it’s time to end this insanity, once and for all.”I stand up and turn to face Freya with my hand still clamping onto her wrist. She goes completely still, just like how she used to whenever she got caught with her hand in the cookie jar as a child. For a moment, uncertainty and fear crack her face.“You knew?” she asks, her voice wavering.I take no pride in this moment. And when I speak next, there is pain in my voice; pain that mirrors how my heart feels right now.“You don’t have to do this Freya. You can still have your old life back. You have mother, Dylan and me. We love you. I love you.”She blinks and I sense a remnant of the old Freya existing deep inside the woman who stands before me. I look at the needle in her hand and she notes my gaze.“It’s poisoned,” she says flatly.I shake my head. “Freya,
FREYA’s POVElena steps into her airy and spacious bedroom and I follow suit, quietly closing the door behind me and locking it. She turns around at the sound of the lock clicking and blinks her doe-like eyes at me. I hate it when she looks at me like that, she’s making me feel she is the innocent princess in a fairy tale and I, the evil witch or something.My lips pull into a smile and I walk over to her, taking her hands in mine.“We don’t want any interruptions when we doll you up, do we?”Elena giggles and shakes her head. So gullible, so dumb.I lead her to the bed like a lamb going for slaughter and make her sit on it. Then I walk over to her wardrobe and pull open its doors to reveal a limited selection of t-shirts, blouses or jeans.Her choice of clothing is appalling; my sister does not dress up, nor does she primp herself. It’s hard to imagine how Hunter fell for her in the
ELENA’s POVThe day has finally come. Starting today, Hunter will no longer be just an Alpha of the Storm Riders pack, from today onwards, he will be king above all packs and rule throughout the lands of the northern region.It feels all so surreal and I have to pinch myself just to make sure that I am not dreaming. I remember being so excited that I could not sleep at all last night, tossing and turning in bed until the crack of dawn. And because of the lack of sleep, I feel like a zombie right now. A thrilled one nonetheless.This morning, the packhouse is abuzz with excitement. Everyone is busy preparing for Hunter's coronation. Helios is especially proud and he oversees the preparations like a nervous father awaiting his son’s graduation.I see him now as I descend the spiral staircase. He is barking orders to Conner and a few other pack members. Even Happy John has come over to help out.“Careful with t
ELENA’s POVI find Hunter later that night, strolling along the fields where we once practised our shooting for the trial. It was here that he trained me to become the marksman that I am today.Here, I am reminded of how he held me in his arms on this very field, steadying my then trembling hands and teaching me to look past the pain and to just focus on the target at hand. I look at him and my lips curve up into a smile, I would not be who I am today if it were not for Hunter.I owe this man my life. He is the light of my life, the reason I live and breathe.But tonight, his scent is grave and thoughtful and I walk by his side without speaking as he strolls with both hands clasped behind his back. It is a clear night and the stars shine bright above our heads without twinkling.“How’s Freya?” he finally asks after what feels like an eternity of silence.I kneel by the side of a little pond next to the field
ELENA’s POV“Hello, Elena.”It is Freya. She stands at the doorway to the packhouse. Her hair which is usually never out of place is a mess and muddied locks cover one side of her eye. Her face is soiled and her once beautiful blue dress, torn and tattered.Nevertheless, she smiles when she sees me. I suck in a deep breath and fist my fingers so hard my nails create indents in my palms.“Freya.”The conversation with Hunter is still very fresh in my mind. My sister tried to kill him. And now she is back.“I thought I asked for you to leave and never come back,” Hunter’s voice calls out from the foyer. He strides over to where I stand and links his hand with mine, intertwining our fingers together.Freya gulps and tugs at her dress. Lowering her head, she whispers, “Please, forgive me for my insolence Alpha. I – I do not know what came over me to have done what