Rain’s POV
I watched as her eyes rolled back in her skull and her body became limp. But before she’d even closed her eyes, my arms were around her, catching her before she could fall. In my arms, she felt so light and little. Her golden hair of strawberry blond fell onto her bleeding face, marring it with streaks of red.
Blood...
“Who. Did. This?” I growled, barely able to contain my fury. My wolf was howling, wanting blood. And as I watched the two fools who’d been tasked to watch the prisoners, I felt no need to hold him back. They’d disobeyed my order. I had one rule and I expected it to be followed. And if the fools couldn’t even do that…
They forfeit their lives!
“Alpha,” Elijah said calmly, hoping his subdued voice could reach my raging wolf. They knew that he had the ability to calm him. They even thought he might consider him a friend or a brother.
Neither was true!
My wolf was a wild, savage animal. He didn’t care for anyone. All he wanted was blood! To kill and destroy. He hadn’t killed Elijah so far, because the alpha wolf in question was useful to him. To us!
We had plans for him...
And we needed him alive for that!
Slowly, I turned my gaze onto the man, knowing that there was a murderous glare in my eyes. Vacant and far beyond human reach. They were the eyes of a bloodthirsty beast, looking for his next kill. The next flesh-bag to tear into.
Looking for his next prey...
I liked it!
I hadn’t chosen this path for myself. I’d been brutally and ruthlessly put upon it. It had all happened that night 10 years ago when my life had been torn inside out. When my family had been murdered and my innocence had been ripped away.
He’d set me on this blood path…
Alistar Throme!
The now dead king…
He’d truly been a fool thinking I wouldn’t come back for him. Thinking that he’d be safe behind his castle walls and with his army of wolves to protect him. His mindless little drones doing his bidding.
He’d almost been too easy to kill!
Elijah kept his mouth shut, knowing that when I looked like this, there was no stopping me. And why would he? He may be an alpha wolf, but the pup wasn’t half my strength. Stronger than most, true. But no match for me…
I’d rip him to shreds if he took this away from me!
And he knew it...
“I gave you one rule,” I continued, my voice rough from the power of my wolf. “Don’t. Harm. HUMANS!”
It had been my one and only rule since I gathered this misfit band of mine. I never really planned for it as much as it just happened. I was a rogue. I was one of them, and I was the strongest. I took over their so-called pack and trained them.
Made them deadly!
In return, their life was mine...
“A-Alpha,” Sam said, his voice shaking as he knew what was coming for him. Why he still pleated for his life was beyond me. “That’s Alistar Throm’s daughter!”
I knew that Alistar had a daughter, but I never expected it to be HER!
The woman who owned my life!
In my mind, I’d always called her Azura. Her eyes were so blue, they were like nothing I’d ever seen before. They’d been my solace and comfort during many a painful memory. When the nightmares became reality and when I was so lost, I couldn’t find my way back.
She was there…
And now she was in my arms. I remembered her being quite beautiful back then, but I couldn’t see any of that now. Her eyes were swollen shut, her lips split, and her body soiled. More bruises, marks, and wounds than I could count.
I could feel her pain.
I’d been there once too…
“Did I ask for excuses?” I grinned, knowing I sounded like the fucking maniac I looked to be. And I didn’t let them speak. “NO!” I growled, dropping the smile I’d put on, and wondering what their blood would taste like. “When I give you an order it is to be followed. No. Matter. WHAT!”
I couldn’t explain how one of the most powerful alphas in the world had a human daughter, but to be honest, I didn’t care. All I cared about was the woman I’d been looking for - for 10 fucking years! - was finally back in my arms.
Oh…
And now I was going to kill the idiots who hurt her!
Gently, I put the human girl down--- and then shifted so fast that my clothes basically exploded off my body. My wolf was twice the size of theirs, so even if they shifted, they didn’t stand a chance against me. Sam cried and screamed. Tried to shift, but it was useless. Blood sprayed, flesh ripped, and the smell of gut and iron filled the air.
I shifted back, licking his blood from my hands. My wolf purred with a rough chuckle, loving the taste. He didn’t care that this was a pack mate. Didn’t care that the wolf had been with us for years, helping us fight against our enemies.
He wanted blood.
So blood was what I gave him...
I wasn’t going to question why my wolf let one of the bastards live. I already knew what I wanted to do, and my wolf liked it. Hell, he loved that we were fucked enough to lick up the blood of our enemy. He got sick in the head that night 10 years ago, and I wasn’t much better off.
“Have I made myself clear?” I asked with a grin, watching the horrified faces of my fellow pack members. I especially enjoyed the look of terror on Deckland's face, when he realized that I’d torn Sam into pieces. The little fucker probably thought that he was next.
And all because of one small human girl.
Isn’t life ironic sometimes?
“Yes, Alpha!” Elijah replied calmly, the only one not surprised or taken aback by my actions. Considering the shit the bastard had seen throughout the years, I wasn’t surprised that he’d taken it in stride. If I wasn’t mistaken, there was even an exasperated sigh in his tone.
My wolf liked it...
My gaze turned back to Deckland and the wolf immediately stiffened in blind panic.
“Y-yes, Alpha!” he exclaimed, his voice shaking with fear.
“Good!” I grinned--- and then dropped the smile like a bad habit. “Now jump on one leg!”
The idiot actually seemed confused. Fear permeated the room as he looked at the other wolves in the room. I wasn’t sure what he was looking for. Validation? He was fucked and he knew it. Hell, everyone knew it, and still he actually had the audacity to question me.
“Wh-wha---?!” The idiot asked--- and then screamed, as I dug my claws into his ear and skull, pulling him close.
“Did I stutter?” I bellowed, growling and letting some of my wolf’s power out, making the wolf in my clutches cry out in pain and fear. “Do as you’re told, or I swear, shitting yourself in public, will be the least of your worries!”
He whimpered but obediently lifted one leg up in the air. I let go, and like a good fucking mutt, he began to jump on one leg. I eyed the surrounding wolves, seeing the horror in their eyes as they saw the powerful, feared, and strong worrier whimper and obey like a fucking dog. That’s because he knew something they didn’t…
Not yet anyway…
Elijah knew about the darkness I kept inside. The dark part of my soul that I kept hidden from everyone else. The part that only my enemies saw. Or just anyone who generally pissed me off. They knew I was damaged. And they knew I’d molded those damaged parts of me into sharp, deadly weapons...
Satisfied, I went back for the human and picked her up. So light in my arms, so little. Yet the darkness inside of me suddenly felt so much brighter. My wolf let out a soft whine and stretched, just wanting to be close to her.
My blue-eyed angel.
My little Azura...
Rain’s POVI took her to the hospital wing of the castle, barking orders left and right at doctors and nurses to fix her. I couldn’t help her in this; she was human, so she was even more fragile than even the omegas. Not that I particularly liked having weaklings like omegas in my pack. They were good for cleaning and fucking, but not much else. I did remember a time when I was told that “the strong protect the weak”. But out in the real world, weakness was weakness.And weakness got you killed!Which in turn made me a fucking hypocrite, because I would die protecting the little human on the bed. She was the fucking embodiment of weakness, and still, I’d lay down my life for hers. I’d kill every single wolf that would want to harm her. Pack or rogue. Hell, I’d even kill my own mate in order to protect her.She was MINE!For 10 years I’d been searching for her. Planning my revenge had kept me going all these years, but she had been the one who kept me sane. The thought of meeting her a
Selena’s POVI woke up to my entire body aching. My muscles felt like I’d just run a marathon and my skin felt hot and tight. My one eye felt weird, my hands and feet hurt like a son of a bitch, and my nose felt like it was the size of a baseball, making it hard to breathe.Well, I guess it beat being dead, I thought, fighting to open my eyes. But the first ray of light that hit my eye, left my head feeling like a mind-field. And those mines were going off in a not-so-sexy way.Shit!Perhaps it was better just being dead, I concluded, feeling like my head was about to split in two. The pounding felt like a pulse, sending shock waves of pain throughout my entire body. I felt sick and bile threatened to rise, but I somehow managed to swallow it back.Instant regret!My mouth was dry and all I did was hurt myself even more. Well, it wasn’t the first time my father had beaten me bloody and then sent me to my room to heal up. I ran my tongue over my lips, noticing the split. That was going
Selena’s POV“Selena,” he rumbled as if tasting the sound on his lips. “Like the Moon Goddess. I see the resemblance.”I couldn’t help the warm memories he awoke inside of me. It had been my mother’s idea. When I was born, my hair was even lighter than it was now, and my eyes looked dark blue. As I grew older, my hair grew darker and my eyes lighter. It made my mother even more resolute that my name should honor the Moon Goddess.Selena…My mom had always been the one who showed me what it truly meant to love someone. My father had always been gone for his job and there were times when I grew up, I was convinced that he didn’t love me. He was always happy when mom was around, but whenever it was just me and him, he would ignore me.My mom was different.She would spend her nights reading bedtime stories to me. Brush my hair and braid it. I sat down to have tea with my dollies and would spend hours in the forest.I used to love being in the forest.My mother was a great mom. Even as th
Selena’s POVHis?!“Am I your mate?” I asked with a curious frown. It was the only logical conclusion I could come up with. The only time a wolf would ever give a human a second glance would be if she was his mate; and considering he'd let me live despite knowing who my father was, it made sense that I was his mate.And I didn't know if that brought me comfort or terrified me even more.“No,” he replied, playing with a lock of my hair. “If you were, that would make things so much easier for me.”I didn't know what to do with that. I tried to make myself more comfortable in the hospital bed, despite his closeness. But it was hard with his imposing presence.And the fact that he didn't understand the meaning of "personal space". Because the second I pulled away, he just followed.Nothing made sense!If I wasn't his mate, then why did he treat me as if I were?In a bold tone, he continued speaking, as if he had been reading my thoughts. "I want you," he emphasized. "And I want you to wan
Selena’s POVI tried to stay awake figuring out my situation, but the drugs finally dragged me under. However, I only had a restless rest as the pain of the whip on my back made it hard to be comfortable. The nurse came back and changed my bandages, but it had me almost wishing to be back in the torture chamber. She wasn’t shy about her dislike for me and bluntly told me I didn’t deserve to live!“You deserve that pain,” she’d said, with a cold tone and a vacant look in her eyes.That was a low blow…But honestly, I couldn’t really blame her. My father was a cruel and evil man – and the fact that I was my father’s daughter was enough for her to hate me.But I’d never asked to be his daughter!I’d never asked to be trapped here in this golden cage
Selena’s POV“What---?!” I gasped when I was finally able to process the scene before me. “Wh-what’s wrong with him?”I heard him before I saw him. His breathing was ragged, each inhale was a desperate battle. I recoiled in horror. His skin was marred with bruises and cuts. His clothes were torn, clinging to him like a second, broken skin. Dried blood crusted at the edges of his wounds, some still seeping, staining the floor beneath him.His eyes were empty, a void where a spark of life should have been. I wondered how many days he had been in this nightmare, how long it had taken to break him down to this shell of a man.“He’s being punished,” Rain said, smirking in a way that had a cold chill running down my spine. “He disobeyed my orders. To prove that he’s capable of following them, I’ve given him a simple task to do.”“Do what?” I asked,
Selena's POVBut movement caught my eye and my head slowly spun to see the wolf once more. His eyes pleaded with me, as he begged for forgiveness – his voice raw and hoarse, as if he’d been screaming from the top of his lungs. He beseeched and cried, urging me to show mercy…Even after he’d shown none.Still, my heart wasn’t hard nor cold like that of a werewolf...“Pl-pl-please?” I pleated, shaking with fear and wondering how this man was going to punish me for asking. I was now officially in uncharted territory, not knowing what direction was up. But to my surprise, Rain gently caressed my cheek. His finger dipped under my chin and forced me to look up at him.“Of course, my Azura,” he said sweetly. He gently kissed my cheek, the warmth of his lips, making me suck in a breath. Not even Greg, my so-called fiancée, had ever dared to let his lips touch my skin. A
Selena’s POVThis man could turn “hot and cold” into an Olympic sport! Not only did he pick me up into his arms again, but he took me to the rose garden where a wonderful picnic awaited us.“Tell me if you get too tired,” Rain said gently, helping me to sit down at the table. “I’ll take you back to the hospital.”“What’s this?” I asked, feeling more and more confused about all of this. I tried to keep my eyes on him, as he walked around me and readjusted the IV drip that I had to drag around.“I’m trying to impress you,” he replied bluntly, pulling out his own chair and sitting down across from me.“Is that why you let him go?” I questioned, feeling like perhaps I was beginning to put the puzzle pieces together that were Rain Blood. “Because you want to impress me?”Was that what it was? Had he let him go to win my trust? And even if it was it still didn’t answer the million-dollar question:WHY?!“Was
Selena’s POVDarkness clung to the towering trees, their gnarled branches twisting like skeletal fingers against the night sky. The only sound was the crunch of dead leaves beneath my shoes and the distant rustling of something unseen.My hair stood on end!Something wrapped around my foot and I swallowed a scream, as I crashed to the ground. Every cell in my body seized up and my fight or flight instinct made my skin prickle. My mind was a jumbled mess as I kicked and clawed my way back to my feet, frantically seeking out the hands that had gripped me…A tree…I’d gotten my foot tangled up in the root of a tree. Exhaling in relief, my hand gripped my chest, physically hurting from the whole ordeal. I’d known that running off into the forest in the middle of the night wasn’t the greatest of plans – especially because I didn’t have a flashlight or night vision – but I
Selena's POVI had no idea where I was, and rather than walking around like a headless chicken, I needed a plan. First things first. If I was going to escape, I needed more information. More precisely, I needed a map and figure out where I was located. And much to my dismay, my best bet was the library--- which I’d just escaped.Stupid!I turned on my heel and, with my heart pounding, I retraced my steps--- and once more nearly ran straight into a pair of guards.Shit!Flattening myself against another doorway, I held my breath as they walked past, their conversation a low murmur. My fingers dug into the wooden frame as I forced myself to stay still. At this rate, I was going to be caught before I really escaped. For now, I’d been lucky. But I didn't know how much longer I could rely on luck or on the scent neutralizer to save my butt.I needed to get my ass into gear or else I was fuck
Selena’s POVMy heart pounded a million miles a minute, as my mind slowly realized what they were planning. Looking back at the door, I wondered if the guards had finally left. I had to get away from here. I had to escape so I could warn Rain!“You know,” the older officer said with a grin I didn’t like and clapped Greg on his shoulder as a fatherly figure would have. “Your father would be proud of you.”So Rain had killed my father’s beta too?I couldn’t say I was too sad to see him go either. My father’s beta hadn’t originally been in on my father’s plans to kill the King and Queen but hadn’t done anything to stop him either. And I didn’t care how much you were stuck between the devil and the deep blue sea, that was just plain wrong!“Thank you, Will,” Greg said, his voice carrying a rare note of sincerity. Which really didn’t say much
Selena's POVNot wanting to risk being spotted by patrols – if they had any – I ducked back behind the curtains and crunching low, I passed it. My mind spun as I desperately tried to figure out where in damnation I was. Why would Rain take me away from the palace, knowing how many people wanted me dead? But then again, I didn’t think Rain would do that…The image of Greg flashed before my mind again.So--- not a dream then!But--- that raised some serious questions for me! As in--- had Greg actually come for me? Why? In all our time together I’d never had gotten the feeling that he--- you know! Well, cared for me! Sure, he’d sometimes been the one to take me back to my room when and if he walked in on my father beating me senseless. But he never stepped in to stop it. Or said anything about it for that matter…Thinking back, I think that my interactions
Selena’s POVI woke up slowly, feeling a strange heaviness in my entire body. As if something was crawling up and down my spine that made my skin itch. I couldn’t really describe it, but the feeling was like something when you wake up from a nightmare you couldn’t remember.Just wrong!Feeling unsettled, I reached out for Rain, wanting to bury my face in his warm chest and cling to him until the feeling went away. But to my surprise, his side of the bed was empty.Had he gone to work already?Against my brain’s advice, I blinked my eyes open, slowly getting used to the light. Only to realize that the light wasn’t the morning sun as I more or less expected, but a pale, artificial light coming from a chandelier hanging overhead. Frowning, I didn’t recognize it! Hell, when looking around I realize that I’d never been in this room in my life…Memories from the day before
Rain’s POVNo, can’t kill him, I reminded myself, much to my wolf’s dismay. Sure, he was annoying to listen to but he was good with numbers. Numbers were important when you ran a pack. So, no matter how boring accountants were, they were needed.No killing…Which still didn’t make my wolf any happier. He was frustrated that his mate hadn’t realized who we were and that she belonged to us. That she still kept part of herself locked away from us and until she fully opened up to us, we couldn’t claim her. It frustrated him---And that frustrated me!The animal didn’t understand the complexity of the situation. She believed she’d lost her mate even before they were able to recognize each other, and so she needed time to sort through her emotions. And I tried to be understanding…I really did!But I was getting tired of consta
Selena's POV“Is anyone guarding the secret tunnels?” I asked, slowly getting to my feet, my heart pounding so hard in my chest, I could feel my pulse rushing in my ear. I tried to force down my panic, but it was impossible. My whole body was shaking and air settled like lead in my lungs.Rogues…Why did it have to be rogues?!My mind clouded and darkness seemed to crawl into my vision. Images of the past wanted to force their way into the present. Echoes of flesh being ripped apart and screams of death t
Selena’s POVI smirked conspiratorially, hoping to throw Joey off his game. I shuffled the deck of cards, my fingers moving smoothly over the worn edges. Joey sat across from me at the small wooden table, his expression unreadable with his arms folded over his chest and holding the cards close to his chest. The late afternoon sun cast a golden glow over the courtyard, warming my skin despite the seasonal turn. The trees still clung onto their yellowing leaves as if their lives depended on it. The mountains were turning brown, ans while some might call it a boring and dead color, I liked
Selena's POV“Hey,” I heard from somewhere far away, and I realized that I’d been swallowed up in my own world. “Come back to me.”I looked up--- and smiled when I saw Rain’s worried face. Maybe it was because something about him reminded me of the Prince. Or maybe it was just wishful thinking, I couldn’t be sure. But something about him just instantly put me at ease. That could make me forget my past and---What my father had done!