PATRICK'S POV. Asking the guards to fetch the slave girl is a very rash decision on my path but I can’t waste any more time on the matter. Nikolai dating a slave right under my nose is embarrassing enough, I can’t have them embarrass me even further. I had no idea she was a slave, even I was attracted to her, I can’t blame Nikolai for his mistake. The girl must be some sort of witch, inviting powerful men to her life with her eyes. I’m going to get rid of her before she does any harm to this kingdom but I have to do it subtly. Nikolai is my son but he’s also someone you wouldn’t wish to have as an enemy. As an ally, he’s the best but as an enemy, you’ll be sorry. I’m positive Nikolai will accompany her here and I’ll act normal and demand an explanation. The less he knows about my plans, the better. The ceremony is only a day away, I could use it as a decoy. WINTER'S POV. The look on Nikolai's face makes me wish I had told him earlier. I had no idea, a problem like this would
PATRICK'S POV. Just as I predicted, Nikolai is here with the maiden, glaring at me like we’re no longer father and son but mortal enemies. “Where are my guards?” I ask half-heartedly. I won’t be perturbed if none of them survived, they’ve fought side by side with Nikolai at wars and take overs. If not them, who should be able to attest to his ruthlessness, they should have known stealing a woman from him, especially one he’s infatuated with, was a suicide mission. “I’m sure you didn’t expect them to come back alive so why bother asking?” He’s clutching tightly to her hand like she’s going to run away any second which makes me more interested than I should be in her. How far would he go for this woman? I’m curious. “You're right, I didn’t.” I say without a flicker of emotion in my voice. I see Winter shift uncomfortably, she must be disturbed by how little the lives of those guards mean to us and its only right that she is but I still consider it weakness. “Why did you send them?”
NIKOLAI'S POV.What was I thinking? My father was right. My feelings don’t come first. Today is the mate-picking ceremony and if I refuse to pick a mate, I’ll loose the trust and support of the pack. I’ll loose everything that I’ve worked for my entire life.I tried everything I could. I even tried to speak with the elders but it was of no use, there’s nothing they can do about it. My father has announced that Winter will be mated to him in a few days and he’s taken custody of her. The worst part of this all is that I can’t do anything about it, for now at least. I couldn’t bear to look at Winter when the guards came to take her away from me. I’d have killed them but it won’t have solved anything. I knew at the back of my mind that I was going to have to give up Winter before I could do anything. I wish I’d told her so she could be mentally prepared for it but I couldn’t bring myself to do it. She looked like she was expecting it too, she was composed when the guards came for, she d
WINTER'S POV. Having fell into a dreamless sleep, I awoke feeling even more hunger than I felt before. Do they intend to starve me to death? I would pace around the room in agitation but I have not the strength to as much as stand. My stomach grumbles even louder and tears pool in my eyes, I don’t know if I’m crying because I’m hungry or because I’m heartbroken and my life is a mess. I take another look around the room. The curtains are shabby and old, they look like they’ve been around for at least a thousand years. The paint on the wall is starting to peel off the and ceiling looks saggy and moldy, like its going to fall off anytime soon, I think I see traces of white paint but I can’t really tell. The sheets on the bed is dirty and reeks of smoke that I wonder if the room has ever been on fire before. I wonder how I even fell asleep on it? What if the last person that was here died in a fire? No, no. I need to get these ridiculous thoughts out of my head before I snap. I se
NIKOLAI'S POV. I thought about it all night and I’ve reached the conclusion that the only way I can get to Winer is from the inside. My father has always been careless about the number of workers he has in the house, he barely even recognizes them, that’s why he had them put on this silly uniform for recognition. All I have to do is get one of those uniforms and find someone to help me sneak in. I thought about using someone that already works there to get to Winter but if I know anything about my father, it’s that he's great at making people scared of him. Asking one of them would be too risky and if they refuse, the whole plan will blow over because my dad will find out I’m snooping around. I have it all figured out, there’s only one thing that’s stopping me now and it’s who. Who will I send to the lion's den? Sherry has been going in and out of my room an awful lot this morning and its starting to irritate me. The first time she came in, she asked what I wanted for breakfast a
HUNTER'S POV.I’ve thought about all the people that are going to care if I die, they’re only handful and they’ll get over my death before I’m even buried so I have nothing to worry about. I calm my raging nerves with slow and deep breaths as I approach the front gate that is heavily guarded with hefty looking men that can snap my neck in only a matter of seconds.They don’t spare me a glance as I approach the gate, they just open it like they’ve been expecting me. Did Nikolai bribe the guards? He couldn’t have, he specifically said; you are on your own in there. Surely, he would have told me if he bribed the guards. It must be the uniform that I’m wearing.I pass through the gate and marvel at the size of the building. It’s huge. The windows look like glass doors and the walls are remarkably spotless. There’s a garden too and it’s adorned with all kinds of flowers, I can’t take in the
HUNTER'S POV. I don’t know why I said what I said. I feel so stupid. I thought I was over her but seeing her again—her beautiful eyes— they remind me that I’ll never be over Winter. I was willing to risk my life for her, how did I not see that I was still in love with the woman? I take deep breaths and remind myself that Nikolai is the better man for her and my job is to help them get together not to run away with her. I set the plates down on the kitchen counter and turned to leave. “Going somewhere?” The woman with blazing red eyes asked me and I almost tripped, I didn’t even hear her come in. Can this day get any worse? “No, I was just about to get started on the plates.” I answer and she narrowed her eyes at me. I wait for her to walk away but its like she has nothing better to do than to stand there and gawk at me. I end up doing all the dishes, cleaning the floors, wiping every surface clean and when it was time to take out the trash, I knew it was my only chance to escap
PATRICK'S POV.“I guess it’s today then.” I’m cladded in my royal regalia, ready for the ceremony and I thought I’d stop by and say hi to my little prisoner. She looks better than I expected, I thought that she would have ripped off all her own fingernails by now out of nervousness. Her hair looks even better than it did when she arrived here, there’s no single strand out of place. Am I treating her better than I should?“I guess it’s today.” She replies calmly. I think it’s the first time I’ve heard her speak since she got here.“You sound calm. Do you no longer have fears?” She smiled, something I’ve never seen her do. I still don’t get why Nikolai is so smitten by her but she’s got the looks, that’s for sure.“I still do, I’ve just. . . come in terms with them.” She replied and I raised an eyebrow. Her confidence is somewhat strange but there’s something I’ve come to realize during my lifetime and it’s that different people have different reactions in the face of death. Maybe this
EPILOGUE 2018 A Maybach gears up after the traffic lights turn green. There's a man in a suit in the back seat. He's looking out the window and staring at the billboard of an author and popular model. She's beautiful. He thinks, and he continues staring until his phone rings. "Hello?" "Liam, will you still make it for the meeting?" "Yes, Zach. I'm on my way. There's no traffic, so I'll be there in about five—" The car comes to an abrupt halt. He hears the sound of crash and mutters a curse under his breath. He will not be getting out of this one easily. He looks up and sees the angry driver of the other vehicle already slamming their door closed. He turns to his driver. "What happened?" "I don't know. She just stopped abruptly. I have no idea why. This woman is obviously crazy." He pinches his forehead and comes down from the car after his driver does. She is furious and crazy because the way she's already raving about her bashed car has him taking cautious steps forward.
NIKOLAI Winter's giving birth. I'm as anxious as a live wire. I'm pacing the halls of the house while the midwives and the pack physician deliver our son. Hunter is with me. He's carrying his daughters and feeding them breakfast on the dining table. The house has been gloomy for months since Tara died. This is the first thing that has brought joy to all of us. Our son. I can't wait to meet him. I wonder who he would look like. Deep down, I want him to look like his mother. I smile to myself, and Hunter calls me out. "Pull yourself together. You are embarrassing me." I clasp my sweaty palms together. "I guess this was how you felt when the twins were born." Hunter smiles genuinely. He doesn't do that anymore. There's no reason for joy in his life, and I truly feel sorry for him and for everything he's been through. He lost Daphne and lost Tara, and to think he will always have the memories lodged in his head is pure torture, even for me. "Yes. I'm pretty damn sure I felt much wors
WINTERSix Months Later...It's been six months since Daphne and her father tried to destroy us. Six months since we've heard anything about her whereabouts. Life seemed to go on in contast paranoia that they would be back, especially for Nikolai. I'm almost due. My bump is large, like someone trapped a volleyball inside there. The pack doctor examines me. He says I keep getting weaker and weaker. I've told no one about the conversation Isador and I had the night of Hunter and Tara's big escape. But I know why I'm being diagnosed as weak. I have little time left with my son and mate. It's breaking my heart.I know Elkan didn't survive his brothers wrath. Killian killed him and his triplets before Hunter could make do with his promise. It's beating him up, but he doesn't show it. The fact that he failed those innocent children. It only means one thing, though. Killian owes use all a life, and he will pay up when the time comes.The pack doctor shakes his head. "Your temperature and bl
HUNTER They had beaten me to a pulp, but they were going to need more than that to end me. I just need to know if Tara is alright. Since Daphne carried her into that separate room, I have seen nothing and heard nothing. My wolf is terribly weak. I struggle against the chains. I've been doing that for hours. Killian came and asked Daphne when she was going to kill me. She may hate me now, but I know she can never do something as horrendous as that. Daphne still loved me. I couldn't kill her as well if given the chance. There was just something holding us back. She stalled my execution date until two days from now. Meaning, Nikolai has 48 hours to rescue me successfully, or I have just that amount of time to break free before they sell her off to Ander. I need to save her, or else I won't forgive myself. I struggle against the chains bound to the ceiling above. It hung me up. I pull with all of my might, but nothing can save me from the weakness freezing my wolf out. I feel helpl
NIKOLAITheir weapons are laced with wolf's bane and poisons of various calibres. We are outnumbered, and it's also impossible for us to win this war against Ander. My wolves are perishing all around me, and I feel helpless. Ander is on his horse wrecking havoc with the mighty scythe in his hand.I run for him, growling as my fangs gleam under the afternoon sun. He's about to hit one of my closest wolves from behind. I dive on his horse and throw him to the ground, cartwheeling and dodging the scythe's blade by a narrow miss.Ander roars, getting on his feet. It's between the both of us. I'm not armed, and I know I've got to be careful while going against that blade. Winter warned me about that, and I promised myself I would make it out alive.I charge at him, and he comes for me as well. We clash, baring our teeth. Our wolves around us are still going at each other. Still, it is clear that Ander is winning. He shoves me to the ground. I bring out my leg and swipe it across, making him
DAPHNE Tears burn my throat. It didn't occur to me that he would actually find my replacement. I still loved him deeply, but I couldn't disobey my father. If he chose me now, I would have abandoned everything and saved him from this hell. But the man I love is interested in another woman. This must be my karma. I walk into the barren room where Tara has been kept inside. I know she's scared, but I'm so livid that I could pluck out her entire hair. How dare she steal what is mine? "Ander would love to hear you survived his trap. He would take your sorry ass back and punish you for life because that is what you deserve." Tara starts begging. She knows what it's like to be slaved under Alpha Ander. Not to mention being punished eternity by him. It's pure hell, and I want to laugh at the terrified look on her face. I do laugh. "What? Scared, are we? This is what you get for taking what's not yours." "I didn't know you and Hunter were an item. I met him by chance and he said nothin
HUNTER I told her not to go. I told her I had to stay put right here inside the damned pack house, but she just won't listen. One thing I've learnt about Tara is that she's as pig headed as they come and can't take no for an answer. She literally dragged me out from the house to come and pick herbs in the woods. Her argument is that it's close by and we won't be gone for more than half an hour. It takes only a second for things to go epically wrong, but I don't know why I can't resist her anymore. When she speaks, she always finds a way to get to me, and she doesn't even do much. She only just has to say the word. I don't what to make of it, but I'm trying to school myself into making this the only time such would repeat itself again. Sure, she can pick her herbs for now, but next time, I won't consent to something as careless as this, leaving the pack house unguarded. She's in front of me, skipping happily into the woods. I'm always happy to see her smile. The sight of it just m
WINTER I dread waking up to this morning because I know what it means for us. Nikolai wants us to do this. He wants us to pay Jacob a visit, but I don't think I'm ready. Jacob was the man who hurt me. Although he seems repentant, I still can't tell what his heart would be like. I'm stepping out of the bathroom when he meets me halfway. Nikolai hugs me. Last night brought us a lot closer intimately. I was so darn sure I would have his babies after that. He made sure of it. But then, would the curse of Rose find me now that I am Winter. Will I still not be able to have kids of my own? "Hey, babe." Nikolai calls me, resting his forehead against mine. "You look stressed. Don't be stressed." "You know why I'm stressed." "I'll be right there with you. You don't have to be scared because you have me protecting you always." He has a point. I know he will never abandon me. Nikolai loves me so much. He proved that last night, and I'm certain he will always have my back in everything. I do
HUNTER I walk ahead as soon as I walk towards my room in the Alpha's home. She's right behind me in the next minute. I saw her hold back her words before Nikolai was out of respect. I knew the second she was in the clear, she was going to come at me with everything she's got. Funny enough, I'm anticipating it. I'm also anticipating seeing more of her in those pretty clothes. It's new for Tara. "Ever heard of give people their flowers, Hunter?" She crosses her arms as she falls in step with me. Nikolai and Winter have occupied the main stairs, so we are going all around to get to my room. Tara is just following me without a clue about where she's going. "That's the most senseless thing I've ever heard." She blocks my path, walking with her back when I don't stop coming forward. "Take that back." Tara slaps my chest. Coming from a werewolf, her hit does justice, and I almost break a wince. "I won't take it back, Tara. Because it's my opinion." "I found you empathetic at first