Drake POVHow dare they do this to us? We don’t deserve to be treated like this, and in the pack which I was supposed to run and lead. I have married Trinity, but those idiots somehow justify dissolving the marriage. This makes no sense!The muscle along the side of my jaw twitches as I ball my hands into fists and pace back and forth in the middle of my room. I might as well call it a prison, because of the guards standing outside. From the stern look on their faces, they don’t plan to let us out anytime soon. Ugh…My mind zips into overtime, trying to find a solution to this horrible nightmare, but no matter what I think of, it won’t work. I need Trinity here to tell everyone to back off. Bethany is of no use to me now. Plus, she is too weak. How could the moon goddess give her to me as my mate? Was the moon goddess drunk or insane when she decided my fate? I will do great things in the future, and I need someone of a certain level to stand beside me. Trinity is my m
Trinity POVThe private hospital room door bursts open and a ball of flurry rushes inside. “Trinity! My baby!”A guard scurries behind, trying to stop her. “Ma’am, you can’t barge into here. Only authorized people are allowed in, and you aren’t on the list.”Her feet come to a grinding stop, and fire glows in her green eyes as she spins around on her heals. Her long blonde hair flies out and wraps around her neck when she abruptly stops, facing the man. I don’t need to see her face. Her rigid shoulders tell me everything I need to know. The guard gulps as he hesitantly adds, “It is by order of the King.”My mother straightens her back and plants her hand on her hip. Her shrill voice effortlessly slices right through the tall, muscular guard. “The King! No one can stop me from visiting my daughter!”I shake my head and give the guard a silent apology with my eyes while pleading for him to forgive her. “It is alright. She can come in.”The guard turns his attention to me, s
The King POVKnock. Knock. Knock. My conversation with the council abruptly stops and all eyes turn towards the meeting room door. Within a few seconds, the door opens and one of my lycan bodyguards darts into the room. His normal calm demeanor is gone, and his movements are frantic and hurried as he blurts out. “Your majesty, there is a situation.”I raise my eyebrow. “A situation. What do you mean?”He points over his shoulder towards the door. “I think it is better for you to see it than to explain it to you.”My stomach twists. This doesn’t sound good. He quickly adds, “You should go right now.”My guards are trained to keep their emotions in check at all times. His frenzied emotional state immediately puts me on edge as I bolt out of my chair and rush towards the door. The guard scurries ahead of me. “This way, your majesty.”A faint noise in the distance reinforces the guard’s words and his urgency. A sense of dread settles over me as we near the building’s side e
Trinity POV“I can’t stay here. I should be beside my father and help him resolve this.” My frustrations bubble up as my calm alpha mask slips and nearly breaks. My mother cups my hands in hers and gently rubs the back of them with her thumbs. “You have more to think about now. There is an additional life growing within you. I know you take your alpha duties serious, but you haven’t taken the title yet. A danger still lurks back in our pack. As long as Drake and his father are free to move around on their own or talk with others, you will be in danger. I’m hoping the two realize they can’t get anything now that the council and the King have dissolved the marriage. I’m also hoping your father has come to his senses and sees the father-son pair for what they are, vultures.”The beautiful garden fragrances fill my nose and circle around me, but unlike previous times, it can’t calm my growing restlessness or my irritation. I didn’t make Drake become greedy, but he was tempted a
The King POVI scan the packed meeting room. Where did all these people come from? Then, I look down the long table at the council, who still have their calm and professional masks on, providing no hint of what they are thinking to the crowd. Several more of my guards stand around me and behind the table, but I hope they aren’t needed. From the end of the table, I give the lead council woman, sitting in the middle, a quick nod to signal for her to begin. She nods back and bangs the gavel. “Quiet. It is time to begin.”People scurry to their seats while others stay standing around the chairs and at the back of the room. Some are also standing in the doorway. Within seconds, the room falls into silence, with everyone’s focus on the lead council woman. She clears her throat and turns her attention to the front row and Drake and his father. “Drake, please stand.”A faint smirk appears as he stands up and slowly looks at every council member before turning his focus back on the
Lance POV A loud explosion rattles the windows and shakes the building. Frantic voices scream in my head as people from the hospital report intruders, while the guards at the palace inform me about another group of intruders there. My father calmly replies, “We knew this was a possibility, and I gave everyone instructions. Follow my orders and document everything. The guards will capture the intruders soon. I might not be there, but we are prepared for this, and Lance is there. He knows how to handle things like this.” The frantic voices subside while my thoughts go to Trinity, her mother, and Bethany, hoping they are all safe in the bunker. I take a deep breath. “I’m still in my office, but I will head out to the most critical spot right away. Are the intruders under control at the hospital?” A few people mumble, “No.” The familiar voice of a doctor confidently adds, “The group is still in the lobby demanding to know what room is Bethany’s. I don’t believe there are an
Trinity POVPain slices through my chest as my mother and a few medical staff carefully help me across the open area to a small room and onto a hospital bed. My legs won’t work no matter how hard I try, and my eyes burn, holding back the tears threatening to fall. What is happening to me? My wolf whimpers in my head, and I frantically call out through my connection with my mate. “Lance! Tell me you’re alright! Please! Say something. Anything.”Tear well up in my eyes as my pleas are answered with silence. Why isn’t he responding to me? This can’t be happening. This isn’t how things were supposed to happen.I clinch the front of my shirt over my chest as another wave of searing pain shoots through me. My mother and the medical staff’s words fade away and turn into incoherent mumbles while my mind struggles to figure out what is going on. With each passing minute still lost in confusion, another pain forms in my chest, but this time it is my heart. Please, let Lance be alr
Trinity POV“Where is Lance? Why isn’t he responding to me?” In a slight daze, I stare up at the medical staff, hoping they have the answers I need. But instead of getting what I want, I’m met with blank looks and a few head shakes. A wave of panic hits me. No. I won’t believe it. I push myself up into a sitting position on the hospital bed and grunt, “I need to know where he is and if he is alright. Right now.” My frustrations boil up, but I force them back down. It won’t help me getting mad at them if they can’t reach anyone who knows. The staff nervously looks at each other and then back at me, but no one offers any answers. My mother rubs my back. “Honey, they won’t know right now. If they are running the same protocol as we do, only the people fighting can link with each other. It keeps worried family from filling up the link, and the warriors can keep an open line between themselves. Now stop this. I know you are worried. I’m worried about your father. If this
Trinity POV *** Two years later *** “You look amazing.” A smile erupts from me as I turn and face my parents and brother while they walk into the bedroom. Bright smiles adorn my parents’ faces and my brother cracks a small grin, which I’m still not used to seeing. Through the years growing up, he usually would carry a look of frustration and irritation when dealing with me. But now, he has slowly won the pack over, and they have accepted him as the pack’s alpha. It wasn’t a small thing, either. A few of the pack members held out for what felt like forever. In the end, his heroic actions in various battles, including saving a group of small children, won them over. They couldn’t deny it any longer. My brother deserves the alpha title. His continued effort to improve his alpha skills and knowledge has also helped show everyone he is the right person for the job. I carefully step forward, making sure not to step on the floor length ornate robe. “You made it. I’m so hap
Lance POVMy heart pounds as fear consumes me. It isn’t time yet. The baby shouldn’t be coming now. Something is wrong. I know it. With Trinity in my arms, I run through the mansion towards the front door. The doctors had been preparing a special delivery room in the mansion, so she wouldn’t have to leave. But it isn’t ready yet. They thought they had more time. “UGH!!!!” Her body tightens in my arms while her hands cradle her stomach. Pain, like I’ve never felt before, shoots through our bond and my body. My knees almost buckle as her scream echoes down the hall. I’ve been in plenty of battles and have been wounded many times, but this almost stops me in my tracks. I’ve already told the medical staff we are coming. My gaze stays focused ahead as a couple of staff walk into the hall. I shout, “Open the door!”Bethany and her parents run beside me. Bethany caresses the top of Trinity’s head. “Everything will be alright. They know what they are doing. You are in the b
Trinity POV “How are you doing? You are smiling. Does it mean things are going well?” I ease down in the dining room chair across the table from Bethany. My hand caresses the side of my large baby bump. I almost thought there were two in there, but the doctor has proved to me there is only one, really large pup. A shiver runs through my body. Hopefully, there won’t be any complications when the time comes. Bethany glances up from her plate of breakfast food and nods. “Luckily, things are going better. I’m still not able to eat with everyone in the dining hall, but the doctor thinks I can ease myself into it soon. One good sign is seeing the male staff doesn’t cause me to flinch anymore. I’m so thankful for the King allowing his friend to come and help me. When the doctor first arrived, I was too afraid of him, and all men. But I’m so much better now.” She has come a long way but has so much farther to go. Her scars are deep. “Good. Regardless of where you are at, I wi
Lance POVThe scent of blood and sweat, along with something rotten, assaults my nose and has me wishing I would have brought something to counteract it. Trinity marches beside me, but the stench doesn’t seem to affect her. Her eyes are fixed on the door a short distance ahead of us. Muffled screams of agony seep out from under the solid metal door, while the determination in her gaze never wavers and stays strong. Our heavy footsteps echo through the corridor, signaling the end is coming soon. In a hushed tone, I huff, “I’ll handle the interrogation. There is no need for you to put yourself in danger. You have…”Her lip twitches as she steps ahead of me and grabs the door handle. With steam rolling off her, she growls, “I’m fine. You don’t need to worry.”She yanks the door open and lets it slam against the wall before she storms inside.If I have thought the stench was bad in the hallway, it is nothing compared to the overwhelming foul smell in the dingy room. Blood
Trinity POVPeople. Everywhere. My feet slowly drag along the cement floor as I make my way through the bunker. Every spot has been converted into a hospital area. The medical staff have packed beds in any place where one will fit. Each patient has the same symptoms as the next. As soon as the white mist got near them, they collapsed.Luckily, all the medical staff had gotten to the bunker in time before any explosions happened or any chemicals were released into the air. I still have heard nothing from my father regarding his pack, but I’m going to assume the same thing has happened there. I silently pray to the moon goddess he got all the medical staff safely in the bunker before the chemical attack started. My stomach churns, and a sense of dread gnaws at me. If the goal was to break Alpha Derrick out of his cell, his brother has gone through all this and has come up short. The lycans had prepared for this and were waiting. Anyone stepping close to the dungeon or the al
Trent POV My father’s voice booms in my head. “The King and Queen are under attack!” My stomach sinks. It can only mean one thing. The wait is over. Seconds later, a howl reverberates through the training grounds, and my head whips around in its direction. Luckily, after healing me with my sister’s blood, I feel like a kid again. My energy is off the charts, and I seem to have a spring to my step, even when I’m angrily stomping around. I turn back to the field full of warriors. “This is it. We have known this is coming. Use your training and don’t let them get to the pack house. They must be stopped at all costs.” My alpha voice confidently roars out with my last sentence. It doesn’t hold the force and authority it will once I officially take my title and go through the ceremony, but it is still a command they must follow. The large group nods before turning towards the warning cries. Through the pack link, my father barks orders and the group scatters in all dir
Trinity POVSeveral weeks have gone by without an incident. The information the King had gotten must be wrong, but I have a bad feeling in the pit of my stomach. This isn’t over yet.Everyone in the two packs was getting restless and wanted out of the bunkers, so my father and the King had no choice but to allow it. Neither of them wanted to agree. The two could have stood their ground, but they didn’t have a solid reason to deny the people’s demands. Plus, everyone was lashing out at each other. Being locked up for a few weeks, even though both bunkers are fairly large, was getting on everyone’s nerves. If they had to stay down there much longer, there would have been a fight within packs. Something tells me they will regret their requests. Lance tightens his arm around my bare back and pulls me closer to his broad chest. “Babe, what is wrong? Are you not feeling well? Is there something wrong with the baby?” The corner of my mouth curls downward as I shake my head and s
Trinity POV“Why do you need more blood? Is something wrong with me?” A flicker of fear takes hold of me, and my throat tightens. “Is there something wrong with the baby?”Please don’t let there be anything wrong with my pup. Please. The Queen looks up from her table full of medical supplies and shakes her head. Confusion fills her eyes. “No. Nothing is wrong. I’m wanting to see if I can isolate and reproduce the qualities in your blood which provide the healing powers to my son, your brother, and Bethany. If I can isolate what makes your blood different from others, I can generate enough for whatever may come our way.”My eyebrows knot together as I tilt my head and stare at her. “I don’t understand. Yes, my blood heals people faster, both lycans and werewolves. But what does that have to do with trying to isolate the reason for it?”She gives me a faint smile and a soft chuckle. “Is your pregnancy having this much effect on your thinking?”I scrunch my eyebrows closer
Lance POV“Are you sure?”I glance across the desk at my father as he rests his elbows on his desk and drums his fingers together. The slight smirk and spark in his eyes dare me to answer incorrectly. Taking a deep breath, I reluctantly shake my head. “I don’t know. I’ve been coming home late and leaving early to avoid her as much as possible. She has said nothing.”He raises an eyebrow. “Has she even been awake to say anything?”I shift nervously in the chair as he stares at me. His gaze is like a spotlight I don’t want to be under. After a few seconds, I slowly shake my head. “I think she has been asleep.”He snorts and rests his arms on the desk. “I don’t think ‘think’ will work. If she is anything like your mother, she has been awake and waiting to see what you will do. She has probably called her parents and has gotten all the information she wants about the attack and her brother already. There is nothing to hide or sneak away from. If she was going to go to her fa