FIFTY-NINEJaxon had his head lying on the side of Anabelle's bed with his eyes closed but he was nowhere close to falling asleep because he was in agony. The sounds of the machines in the room and the slight rising of his mate's chest was the only thing that made him aware that she was still alive but he could not feel her. It was like their bond was not there and did not exist and to make matters worse his wolf had been silent since the day Anabelle had lost consciousness. His fingers were laced with hers but he wanted her to squeeze his hand, to give him hope. Hours had passed and turned into days and he had been as patient as he could. He squeezed her hand and breathed in her scent but was overpowered by the strong smell of medicine and antiseptic. He now understood why Anabelle despised hospitals so much.Jaxon opened his eyes after a while and stood up from his seat, he looked at the pale body of his mate that was losing colour with each day that passed. He let out a heavy breat
SIXTYPanic crossed Jaxon's mind when he woke up and his hand was empty and so was the spot next to him on the bed. He rose from the bed and rushed to check the bathroom but found no one. The worst possible scenarios formed in his head as he tried to come up with a reasonable explanation as to why his unconscious mate was no longer on the bed he had laid her on the previous night. He ran a hand through his dark hair and then sniffed the air to get any trace of a foreign scent. Jaxon sighed in annoyance and walked out of the room with a quick pace before sending a quick mind link message to his beta. Alec's response was quick. 'What do you mean you can't find Anabelle? You took her home, didn't you?''Goddamn it if I knew where she was I would not be asking for your help,''I'll get people to check around your house and the pa─" "Wait, I think there's someone in my kitchen." Jaxon kept his movements silent as he descended the stairs and focused on the direction from which the cutler
SIXTY-ONEAnabelle spent the rest of the day with Vera and the rest of her friends. Cora and the twins had come after they were told that Anabelle had woken up by Vera. Alec too made an effort to drop by and pass a few jokes and tease Anabelle before leaving to attend to his duties. Anabelle could not believe that she had been unconscious for four days but what she failed to discern more was the place that her mind had created. The beautiful forest, the magnificent flowers and the peaceful animals. It only made sense now that she was awake, such a place could never exist. She could remember hearing Vera's voice and that other voice. The voice that had called her its creation, the voice that had caused shivers to swim down her spine. The aura that surrounded her when that voice spoke was so dominant and overpowering. She decided to keep her experience to herself because she knew that she would sound absurd if she even uttered a word about a forest that never came to an end. She was ha
SIXTY-TWOI looked at the guard in front of me with raised eyebrows and folded arms. I had to work on my intimidation skills but so far it seemed as if they were working since the man in front of me seemed so unsure and frightened. His hands were at his sides but the amusing part was how he constantly kept on wiping his palms on the cloth of his trousers. He was shaking and stuttering. Not that I liked scaring someone but I liked knowing that being a Luna and Jaxon's mate had perks. I could scare people just as Jaxon did."You can call Jaxon or Alec or anyone else in this pack," I kept my gaze straight with his until his eyes fell to the floor in defeat. A part of me felt horrible for doing this to him, Samantha had told me that he was a newly recruited guard and that it would be easy to get through. Samantha and I had carefully devised the plan and it seemed to be going well so far. After Jaxon had left to tend to his work that had piled up over the days that I had been unconscious,
SIXTY-THREEI threw the key of the car on the coffee table and fell onto the couch and stretched my entire body to fit on the three-sitter. I released a breath and closed my eyes, I was tired emotionally and physically. My body was begging to rest and I could not agree more, maybe having this adventure was not suitable since I had only recently regained all my energy. I was so thirsty but my need to lie down was much stronger than the need to have a refreshing drink running down my throat. Ugh! Why did the kitchen suddenly feel so far? I rested my head on my arms and tried to find sleep. My eyes were droopy and I could feel sleep engulfing me. Fingers tracing down the length of my arm woke me up, I looked up at Jaxon through my hooded and droopy eyes. I pushed his hand away and tried to focus on my sleep, just a few minutes and you will be in oblivion. I continued encouraging myself despite the fingers that traced my arm and went up my chin until a thumb was pressed against my bottom
SIXTY-FOUR'I trust you my brother and I know that with your help we will bring our pack back to its former glory,'Jack scoffed and raised an eyebrow at his brother's statement. 'How do you suppose we do that if you show mercy to every person, even scum such as rogues?'Alpha Xavier stood from his comfortable seat and walked to his cousin whom he considered his brother. To him, it was like they were from the same womb and they had been inseparable since they were young. Xavier always considered Jack to be the little brother he never got. Whenever he needed a shoulder, Jack was there. Jack had always been there even when he found his mate.'Glory and strength are not about the number of people that we can force to submit to our will or about the number of rogues we can kill as a pack. We can still be strong by upholding more important values such as cooperation, caring and loving each other.''Let me guess Nancy fed your mind with all these ideas,' Jack rolled his eyes. "This is why w
SIXTY-FIVE"My grandfather was a stupid bastard if you ask me, he was hungry for power and I guess it worked out. Look at where Blazepelt is now, one of the most feared packs in our world. If Alpha Xavier remained Alpha then Blazepelt would have just been a memory." Melanie's face was void of any expressions as she continued explaining."Alpha Xavier tried to run the pack with what he considered as the right way, he did not want to be part of the wars that occurred between packs and wanted justice, fairness blah blah blah...it obviously did not end well because other packs started attacking and Blazepelt was lacking manpower. Most of the pack's territory and borders were invaded and Blazepelt was on its knees but Xavier still wanted peace, pathetic right?" Melanie flicked her ponytail and sighed. She was so good at narrating this story, obviously, she would be good at it after all this was not the first time. She narrated it as though she had been there when her grandfather went to w
SIXTY-SIXAnabelle had no idea where she wanted to go after everything she had got to know, she certainly did not want to see Jaxon yet. She drove for a while without proper navigation and stopped when she realised that she was on the way back home. She shook her head and turned the car in the opposite direction, she drove to the person who always gave her refuge when she needed it...the person who was more than a friend to her. She drove to the one person who knew her more than herself. Her mind was still hazy when she pulled up by Milo's ice cream parlour, the colourful setting of the place making her head spin even more. She got out of the car and went into the building, nodding at the people that greeted and bowed to her.Macy was behind the counter like always with a fake smile, she bowed though when she saw Anabelle and gave her a small smile it seemed real that Anabelle had to close her eyes and open them once again. The smile was still on Macy's face, and Anabelle smiled back
EPILOGUEAnabelle had Jaxon's arm around her, it was the comfort that she needed at that moment. His scent was what she needed more than anything. Everything around her was dull and dark just like the clothes that she was wearing including the weather. Jaxon tightened his hold around her waist and looked down at her because he could feel every emotion that she was feeling. She looked at the graves of the fallen members and guilt and pain swallowed her. How did the loved ones of all these people feel? "It's okay, my love" Jaxon whispered to her and kissed the top of her head. She looked up at him and gave him a sad smile before walking away and going towards Adam's grave. She could not believe that he was gone just like that. He was so young and had not even experienced the joy of having a mate but Anabelle was glad that he had not found his mate because if he had they would have been disappointed and in pain over losing their mate. She remembered how hurt Micah looked and she wished
EIGHTYTAYLOR'S POVIt was like the sky knew of our loss, it was completely dark and the rain was heavily pouring down and hitting the roof. I could hear the strong wind blowing on the leaves of the plants as I looked outside through the window of my and Danielle's room. The turmoil in all our hearts was almost the same as the gloomy weather that swept everything away. I looked down at my fingers and curled them up, trying to keep warm. If only things had turned out differently. My heart clenched with every memory that rang through my head. Her laugh, and those shiny green eyes, haunted my dreams every time...when I slept and when I was awake. Every thought of mine always trailed back to her. Whenever I cooked something I thought about what she would think about it. When I said something I wondered if she would agree with my words. If she were here with me, would she wake me up and tell me that I was having a horrible nightmare because it sure felt like one?The rain poured and swept
SEVENTY-NINEAnabelle could not comprehend what she was looking at. Bodies were lying everywhere, it was a terrible massacre. She could tell that Amaris was no longer holding back and was indeed doing what she promised to do, to wipe off werewolves. The smell of blood was heavy in the air and the number of bodies only seemed to increase as they drove to the pack house. Amaris had attacked the pack's centre and killed anyone she spotted. Guilt ate at Anabelle as she looked at the cadavers of people that were once so alive. 'Ana, where are you? I've tried to evacuate as many people from the pack house as I can but Amaris is killing the warriors that are trying to hold her off like they are mosquitoes.' 'We are almost there,'Cora's words haunted her mind, Amaris was on a killing spree and she would not stop until she killed the last werewolf. Her leg started moving and she constantly chewed on her bottom lip as they drew closer to the pack house. Anabelle gasped when the house came in
SEVENTY-EIGHT"We lost three men, and if we include the library caretaker, Mr Cray...then we have lost four pack members." Alec gave the report to Jaxon and sank back into his seat. "We were able to retrieve the bodies of the warriors, they were horribly scorched because of the fire but hopefully we can give them proper burials.""And the witch, Mr Cray's sister?" Anabelle asked."Well, that is none of our concern. She was banished from the pack for practising dark magic and we are not responsible for her as a pack, we have certain customs to follow as a pack." Alec replied and shrugged at the end.Anabelle wanted to argue with that decision, surely the woman deserved a proper burial too. Despite being a witch she had also been killed by the person that killed the men of Blazepelt. Anabelle wanted to speak out on what she thought but Jaxon held her hand and when she turned to look at him he shook his head. She understood from the look in his eyes that she should not argue, his eyes pl
SEVENTY-SEVEN"Are they actually having sex?" Adam whispered horribly next to Danielle's ear. Danielle turned to look at him and hit his arm."What do you want them to do? It's a man and a woman in the same room and they are mates by the way." Taylor looked up at Adam from the pan. "This day has been quite eventful and despite the time no one knows how long it is going to be night," she added and continued stirring the food that she was preparing. With the Alpha and the Luna in the pack house, she had to include them too in the meal plans, not to forget she had hungry warriors waiting to be fed. "They've been going at it for quite some time now," Adam commented and looked up at the stairs. "You will not be able to get enough of your mate when you find her and then maybe you will understand." Micah joined in the conversation and took out a seat around the kitchen counter. He was finally in clean clothes and had washed off what had happened earlier. "Thank you," Taylor smiled up at M
SEVENTY-SIXAnabelle was crying hysterically and kept on shaking Jaxon's body to get a response from him. Even a twitch of his fingers would have been enough for her. The temperature was getting higher as more trees caught the fire that Amaris had started and the fire circled around them. She could see the others trying to fight against the flames, trying to find a way to get everyone out safely. Two men had come to her and told her that they hard to get out of the place, they wanted to carry Jaxon but she could not let go of his body. She kept crying and wailing because she felt empty without him, if this was how Jaxon had felt when she was unconscious then he was strong. She already felt like she could not live anymore but he had dealt with her going into and out of unconsciousness. She pulled him closer to her and hugged him to her body, his head on her chest. She could hear the beating of his heart but she was so worried because Amaris had cast a spell on him. What if she had don
SEVENTY-FIVEAmaris knew that he could win with one move but he decided to let Anabelle have her fun. In the end, whether he won or "lost" he would continue with his plans, nothing could stop him. He considered this fight as a little treat before the actual meal, it was a way to pass the time as his mind came up with more ways to end Jaxon Ryker and the werewolves. He could defeat Anabelle with his eyes closed, he was her after all. Whatever she knew, he knew...all the knowledge of fighting that she had gained from those two warriors. He was definitely better at fighting compared to her because he had learnt over the years of roaming the mortal world. Anabelle and Amaris had been going at each other for quite some time, and none of them was yet to land a hit. While Anabelle was the one throwing all the attacks, Amaris continued to easily avoid her hits smoothly. It seemed to everyone that was watching that Amaris knew Anabelle's moves more than herself. Amaris was smiling while Anabe
SEVENTY-FOURVera's leg was shaking nonstop, the heel of her shoe making noise and her arms were crossed in front of her arms. Millions of thoughts and possibilities were going through her mind. She knew that if Anabelle had been in her place she would have been the first one to fight for her, she would not be seated and waiting on news as she was. Anabelle would not have been in this room like her, she would have risked everything to save her. She was angry at herself for staying back when her best friend needed her. She should have guessed before that either Jaxon or Alec would try to stop her in some way or another. Alec had called Milo to look after Vera and that meant not letting her out of his sight. Vera could not blame Milo as he sat on the bed eyeing her, he was only carrying out the Beta's order and keeping his mate safe. She was angry at him because he did not understand a word she had said since he locked her in this room. Milo kept on saying that he was doing it in order
SEVENTY-THREEJaxon wanted to plunge his claws into Amaris, he had felt anger before but he was livid. All his life when people angered him there was no Anabelle but now she was there and this person had dared to mess with his mate. He glared at Amaris and growled, a loud and vicious growl filled the air. Amaris only smirked more when he knew that he had angered Jaxon. Everything around him was starting to blur and the only thing he could see was the glowing person in the air, his anger had fully clouded his sense of judgement. He was about to stand to attack when he realised that there was a weight in his arms, he looked down and his anger dissipated when his eyes fell on his mate's beautiful face. Jaxon knew that he could not afford to lose his cool, although he did not trust any other person except for himself to protect his mate he carried her and ushered her into Micah's arms because he was the closest to him. He turned back to face the threat while Micah knew what he had to do