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I fought the tears, threatening to fall like I was fighting for my life. I should’ve felt good, happy even, that Alpha Kane defended me, but I couldn’t bring myself to smile, knowing very well that at the end of it all, a time would come when he’d defend Rachael over me. Not that I would ever yank her hair for simply existing, but where I’d claim I was his mate, and he’d shut me down. I saw the vision clearly, and it was all I could think about as he grabbed my arm and dragged me to the living room, where I sat opposite him, watching him as he went over a book he’d picked from the other side of the couch he sat on with an air of nonchalance about him. None of us said a word. There were so many things I wanted to say and so many questions I wanted to ask, but for fear of my life, I folded my lips and swallowed the words. We were fated mates, and he didn’t want me, so I had no right to talk about my feelings. He didn’t care. Rachael and her father left shortly after the incident. More
Rune.“I will be away for a while,” came his heavy words. I shifted my weight from one leg to the other, not sure how to process the information. “Away?” I tilted my head. Did he want to go away from me? He nodded. His hair fell to his forehead, covering his brows and a bit of his emerald eyes so that I couldn’t see any emotion in them. “It seems Pearl Crest won’t back off as we thought they would,” Pearl Crest. I’d seen that name somewhere and heard other wolves talking about it. Then it clicked. It was the pack we were at war with. I instantly remembered the name written boldly in a book on Alpha Kane’s desk, along with maps sprawled on it. I nodded and paused. “Does that mean we’re going to war?” I hated how tiny my voice came out. With two fingers under his chin, Alpha Kane considered me for a few seconds before sitting upright to respond,“Not yet, but it’s inevitable,” his voice was resigned. I nodded, but the feeling that he didn’t call me just to give me a heads up abou
Rune.I woke up with a jolt. Beads of sweat marred my forehead, and I shivered in the dampness of the white night dress I had worn to bed. It was still as dark as it had been when I went to sleep. A second ago, I’d been sleeping soundly, and then a tugging in my heart had pulled me out. I tapped my chest repeatedly to help calm myself, and an unconscious sigh escaped my lips. I wiped the sweat off my face with the back of my hands as my eyes darted around the dark room. I laid my head back on my pillow, trying to force myself back to sleep, but uneasiness lodged in the pit of my stomach, making it hard to even shut my eyes. Something was wrong. I could feel it, but I couldn’t place my finger on it. With my newfound frustration, I pushed myself off my bed and went to the window to receive some fresh air, hoping it would dry off the sweat and put me to sleep, but I stilled when I saw silhouettes of two bodies moving around in the shadows.“Did you get it?” One asked, and I recognized
Water!Was my first thought as my eyes flew open. My eyes darted around my surroundings and ended at the worried brown eyes that stared back at me. “Oh heavens,” Marian placed her hand over her chest, and I blinked multiple times to make sense of the situation. I looked down at my body, and my eyes widened in surprise. I sat in a large tub of cold water in the restroom while my skin burned and itched. I parted my lips to try at words, but my voice came out croaked. What happened to me? What is going on?So many questions, but I couldn’t ask. “Honey, take it easy,” Marian dipped her hand into the tub, scooped some water into her hand, and poured it on my face. “You need to tell him!” Soph’s voice came from the bedroom. I whipped my head to the opened bathroom door, where I heard Soph clearly.“She’s on heat! At this rate, she’s going to die if something’s not done,” she paused. “Don’t give me that! You know he’s the only one that can do something about this!” Soph’s voice was str
Rune.Where is she? Where the hell is she?” My eyes flickered and closed.Where was I? Paradise? “Ti- can yo- ear me?” I knew that voice, but why could I still hear it in my head, albeit not clearly? The voice came again, multiple times, but I couldn’t respond. Instead, I peered my eyes open slightly, gaze locked on a streak of white light that seemed close, yet so far away. Where was I? I knew I was dead, but according to the tales I’d heard, I was not supposed to be in the dark. I should’ve been surrounded by a blinding white light, waiting for the moon goddess in my wolf form, to take me to my new home where I’d be reunited with my father and live with him forever while waiting on my sister and mother. The light from the distance told me I might’ve been locked out of paradise since there was no other explanation for why I was in the dark. I shut my eyes again. “I think it’s this one,” there was another voice, and it sounded closer than the first one. “Then get the damn key!” Th
Rune.The moon goddess didn’t take my life as I requested. Instead, she gave me health. Chris had estimated that my recovery would take at least a week, but on the second day, I had already started speaking, and by the fourth day, I was almost perfectly fine. Almost, because Zarah was still not responding to me. When I told Chris about it, he suggested letting her be because Alpha Kane’s negligence hurt her more than anything. Zarah probably didn’t even know we almost died from wolfsbane, which was entirely the only reason we survived, he told me. Without my wolf, I was almost purely human, and wolfsbane does not deal with humans the same fate as wolves.I returned to the pack house the night before with Soph’s help. I had not seen her in the medical house since the day I woke up, and it seemed as though she was forced into staying away from me, as she hinted when she arrived. But she swore to see me today, so I was waiting for her. I had a lot of questions I needed answers to, questio
Rune.“And where do you think you’re going?” The disapproving glare in his eyes should've told me to say nothing and return to the house and back to my room, but I couldn’t. I just saw the omega that tried to kill me. I had to follow her.“What? Let me go! She’s getting away,” I tried to wiggle out of his hold, but Alpha Kane had always been too big, too strong. The omega ran away and out of sight, but I knew I could get to her if only…“Let me go!” I yelled, hating the beads of tears that rolled down my face. “I asked a question,”“And I need you to let me go! Please,” I turned my gaze back to him. A little black covered the green of his eyes, but just slightly, and when he blinked, it was gone. I paused. What was I doing? Of course, he knew who I was running after; he sent her, and now he was protecting her because he didn’t want me to expose them and their deeds. Seeing as I didn’t make any move to run away again, he released me, and I took a few steps away from him. “Get back i
Kane.“How dare you disrespect me? I am your Alpha,” I ground the words out between my teeth, fingers tightening around her neck, but she didn’t move. Her brown eyes were full of life, pain and strength I’d never noticed before. She didn’t back away or beg for me to stop. “Keep going, and you’ll really kill her!” Ky yelled out in anger. I paused, surprised at his outburst. Ky was more bloodthirsty and violent; he’d never back away from a fight or blatant show of disrespect, which was what our mate just displayed. “Kane! Let her go!” He growled when I didn’t stop. Her eyes turned glassy, and I felt her pulse slow down under my grip. I could tell she was almost out of breath, but fuck it if the smouldering fire in her eyes did not arouse me. Her nearness tingled my senses, and the need to lay her flat on her back and fuck that anger and disrespect out of her threatened my entire being. I knew the effect of her scent on me, but it intensified, driving me insane. I had my fingers aroun
Rune. I stilled as I watched Kane fall to his knees, covered in his blood and others, and more flashes of my dream engulfed me.But things were supposed to be different. We changed our fate, he was supposed to save me and take me back with him to our territory, so why?I looked up to the sky, and the full moon stared back at me, but the more I stared at it, the more I felt as though it was coming to me. Suddenly I felt a sharp pain all over my body, and cracks as though my bones were breaking. “Zarah! What is happening?” I yelled out, but Zarah remained silent. I didn’t know what was happening until my claws began to lengthen, and white fur emerged from my skin, coating my entire body. “We are shifting,” Zarah finally said, “and I will end this!” She added and I watched as she lunged at Black, growling dangerously at him. “Rune!” He called out, but Zarah wasted no time in biting off one of his limbs, giving him no choice but to shift. We ran around the pack in search of my fathe
Rune. Black had arrived shortly after to show me to my room, claiming I’d have more time to talk with my father at dinner because he wanted me to rest since I was pregnant.I didn’t want to leave my father, but I was grateful for the solitude the room provided because I could finally think. I replayed everything my father said to me, picking out the most. My father was innocent, and he knew where my mother and sister were kept, which meant we had to be careful if we didn’t want to be caught. When my father said Black planned to kill him and force me to stay with him, I believed him instantly, because a person who could conceal his real identity to carry out various plans was dangerous and was capable of doing plenty of damage. Before we parted, my father had told me to find a way to contact Kane because he was the only one who could save us, but I doubted I had such skill. I had never initiated a mind link with Kane when we were in the same territory, talk more of doing so while
Rune. Black had suggested we visit my father, claiming that it would help me make a better decision; the decision to go to him. I was so confused, and numb that I couldn’t even cry or scream, instead, I sat stiffly on Black’s back, laying out my thoughts and thinking about what my next course of action would be. It was then I recalled my dream. My dream had some truths to it, like how I’d seen my father with Black, and some Elders, while the entire Shadow Moon pack was wiped away. “I know you’ve missed your father, so I knew this would warm your heart,” I heard Black say, but I was not bothered by him. I didn’t know what was happening, but I knew I couldn’t do anything until I heard all the sides of the story, the most important side being my father’s.Black ran for a while and stopped at the border of territory nearly thirty minutes later. My brows knitted in confusion as I recalled that the nearest pack to Shadow Moon pack was Pearl Crest, and if I was right then that meant Bla
Rune. I woke to the gentle warmth of sunlight filtering through the small window of the cabin. Blinking away sleep, I stretched and sat up, realizing I was still in Black's cabin. The events of last night came rushing back to me—the unexpected reunion with Black, the cozy cabin, the little talk we had. However, when I noticed the sun shining brightly, I realized I had slept in and Black did not bother to wake me.Frowning, I slipped out of bed and padded to the door, intending to find Black and ask him to let me leave. To my surprise, he was nowhere to be found. A sense of unease settled in my chest as I searched the cabin, finding only silence and emptiness.Resigned, I located a pen and paper on a nearby table and hastily scribbled a note:Black,I appreciate your hospitality, if you’re reading this it means I’ve gone. I’ll see you some other time.Rune.I folded the note and placed it on the kitchen counter, intending to leave immediately. But as I approached the door, I realized
Kane. The night air was thick with tension as I returned to Shadow Moon Pack after my secret mission. The moon hung low in the sky, casting a pale silver glow over the familiar grounds that now felt haunted by the feeling that something was wrong, but I deduced that it was my finding that made me feel that way. My mind raced with the revelations from my short trip to Pearl Crest, where I found they were the ones behind the charms and wolfsbane plaguing my territory. On my way home, I had made plans of what I would do and how to go about ending that pack and everyone in it for good, but upon entering the pack house, I found Soph, Jett, and Kimi gathered in the living room, their expressions somber and troubled. My eyes swept over them, dread pooling in my stomach. “What is going on?” I demanded, my voice low and urgent.No one spoke for a tense moment, their silence deafening. "Where is Rune?" I repeated, my voice rising with each word.Jett shifted uncomfortably, avoiding my gaze
Rune. “Black?”The cool evening air whispered through the dense trees as I stared at Black, my senses on high alert. Scanty rays of sunlight filtered through the branches, casting shadows on the forest floor. It was unusual to find anyone out here, let alone Black. He stood before me, tall and imposing, a smile in his eyes. "What are you doing here?"His smile widened, his eyes a mixture of relief and uncertainty. "I wanted to see you, Rune. I... I wasn't sure how, but then you appeared, as though the goddess herself guided you to me.""In Shadow Moon territory?" I raised an eyebrow, eyeing him warily.He nodded solemnly. "Yes. I had to see you."“What are you doing here though?” he asked, his eyes traveling up and down my body. I shifted uncomfortably in my tank top and black shorts. I ran out of the pack house without thinking and ended up leaving in such little clothing."I... I came out for some air," I stammered, feeling foolish.His gaze lingered on me, his expression unreada
Rune. A sigh escaped my lips when I no longer felt Kane’s presence in the pack; a dreadful feeling of emptiness settled in immediately, as though it was waiting for his departure. However, I had to wipe the sadness from my face when I headed downstairs nearly two hours later, taking note of the omega’s cleaning the pack house instead. Kane was away on a mission and I had a mission of my own; to track down the wolf sending those notes to me, and to make sure no one could tell Kane was gone.“Good morning,” An Omega greeted, making her way up the stairs.“Are you going up to clean my room?” I asked her, and she turned, long black hair swaying behind her before she nodded.“Don’t bother. Alpha is still sleeping,” I told her, pulling off the best nonchalant attitude I could muster so she wouldn’t suspect me, and thankfully she didn’t.Everything was going well, and no one came to ask if they could clean the room again, but it seemed our luck ran out when a group of elders came to seek K
Kane. “I hate to say it but her dreams bother me,” I said with a deep breath, “Especially when it shouldn’t,” I added, running my fingers through my hair.“Does it bother you because you think it could happen or because she’s the one who had those dreams?” Jett asked with a raised brow, and I frowned at him. We were lodged in his house, an hour after I had put my mate to bed. He had opted to drink, but I was more worried about the pack and Rune’s dream to indulge him, and now he was just trying to get on my nerves.“Are you crazy?” “Not quite,” he replied with a little laugh and I shook my head before I turned serious.“On a more serious note, I think I’ll have to visit the Fay soon, to hear more about this dream my mate had. I think we’re missing something very important here,” A sigh escaped my lips at the same time Jett nodded, taking a sip out of his alcohol right after.“If you’re making plans to see her, then that means you accept her? I thought you’d turn to your precious pri
Rune. “Talk to me,” Kane inched closer, staring intently at me. “I don’t know how accurate I am, or if this will mean anything to you, but I had a bad dream that the pack was set on fire, and a lot of wolves died.”My words were met with silence and Kane’s head hung low.“Did you hear me?” I tilted my head to search his face. “Fire you say?”I nodded. “I’m sure Soph has told you about the charms we found in the pack?” I nodded, patiently waiting for him to explain to me the relationship between the two things. “I’m forced to believe there’s a new pack targeting us, and they work closely with witches.”The seriousness of his words settled in and I found myself sitting up straight, my hands in his.“But what do you believe?”“I believe Pearlcrest is behind it. I mean it makes no sense that it’s a new pack because all the leads are somehow connected to Pearlcrest but yet, I’m being told something entirely different.”“Soph told me they are the ones with sightings of more charms?”H