STARLETTEI still couldn’t fathom why and how Maximus suddenly changed. He treated me like a rag when I came to the pack, and now he wouldn’t stop trying to please me. I believed he had an ulterior motive, but that motive I didn’t quite know. The cat would be let out of the bag soon enough. But until then, I wouldn’t fall for his pretence.“Soon enough, you'll get better than me.” Tom teased.“Soon.” I laughed.We were on the training ground, practicing. I had advanced, and we were using real swords now.“How are things with you and the Alpha now? I noticed that he had been giving that crazy head cold shoulders. I’m glad he’s finally seeing the light after being with her for years. I don’t know why he ever liked her anyway.” He scoffed.“You speak as if you don’t like her.” I observed.He made a disgusted face. “Why would anyone like that psychopath?”A laugh escaped my throat. “I know, right?”“So, how are things with you and him?” He asked again.“I don’t know. I don’t trust his sud
STARLETTEA crowd formed within seconds, most of them gazing at Lauren with horror and a couple of them pointing fingers at me.I knew immediately that it was a trap. I was set up, and I fell for it.I was still trying to process everything when Maximus showed up.“What happened here?” He asked no one in particular.A girl pointed at me. “She gave her a cup of lemonade to drink, and she suddenly started foaming. She was poisoned.”Maximus glanced at me, and my heart rate accelerated. Returning his gaze to Lauren, who was still foaming on the floor, convulsing, he ordered his warriors. “Take her to the doctor immediately.”“Yes, Alpha.” Two warriors chorused and immediately carried Lauren in their arms.After they left, Maximus took a second before finally returning his gaze to me. I couldn’t read the expression on his face, and that killed me. Was he angry? Disappointed? Hateful? I just hope he won’t believe the allegations. I could be killed if I was not proven innocent. The thought
LUCIUS Starlette didn’t poison the crazy head, that I know for sure. Why would anyone even believe that? That girl had a pure and innocent heart. I liked her the very first time I interacted with her. And I barely like people. I couldn’t stand watching her get accused for what she didn’t do. Seeing her desperate eyes as she pleaded not guilty, hoping she’d be believed, broke my heart. Her mate, my brother, who was supposed to stand by her and defend her, forsook her. Instead, he ordered for her to be taken back to the dungeon. I wasn’t surprised anyway; it was who he was—a heartless and self-centred beast. After the interrogation had ended, I marched to the hospital, with rage, to interrogate Lauren, since no one seemed to be smart enough to do so. I had to find a way to reveal her scheme. I wouldn’t let Starlette die, no matter what it took. “Lucius.” Lauren flashed the most fake smile I had ever seen at me as I walked towards her bedside. “So kind of you to come check up
STARLETTEMy whole life was crumbling, with no one coming to save me. What did I do to deserve such a fate? First, I was hated by my own father and maltreated before he sold me to the Alpha King as though I were an item.I had hoped life would be better for me here when I realised the alpha king was my mate, only to have that hope crushed to pieces when he threatened to reject me after giving birth to his pups. I thought that was the worst fate; little did I know that I had something worse coming for me—An accusation I couldn’t save myself from despite being innocent. “I am sorry. I am truly, truly sorry.” I apologized to Iris for the umpteenth time. “I’ve told you several times to stop apologising.” She was as broken and scared as I was. “I have to. I brought this upon us. I should have been smarter.” “It is not your fault. It’s all Lauren’s fault. She’s the reason we are going through this, not you.”“I know. But—but—“ Reality overwhelmed me again, and I couldn’t hold back the h
MAXIMUS I knew Starlette didn’t poison Lauren, but what was even more frustrating was that I didn’t know how to prove her innocence. It hurt me that I had to order her to be taken to the dungeon, but I only did what I had to do. She was being accused of poisoning Lauren, and it didn’t matter if I believed or not; it was just the right thing to do at the moment. It was the pack’s rules, mate or not.Although I was beyond glad that her innocence had been proven, I hated that it had to be Lucius who proved it. She liked him now, and she hated me. She wouldn’t even talk to me; she wouldn’t allow me to explain myself to her, and that was frustrating. I paced back and forth in front of the room, banging on the door at regular intervals, with frustration pulling at my chest, hoping she would finally open the door and allow me to speak to her. She was driving me crazy; thoughts of her were driving me crazy, and I didn’t know what to do with all these feelings. “Nile, do you think she wou
MAXIMUSI woke up early the following morning and got dressed, about to start my day. I had a lot of things on my plate for that day—the escape of the invisible wolf and Lauren’s trial being the most important. I flicked my gaze at Starlette, who was still sleeping, as she had been since I came back to the room last night—or pretending to be.I inched closer to her and pressed a kiss to her cheek. “I’m going out now. Take care of yourself.”She kept on with the pretence, not making even the slightest movement.“I know you are awake, Starlette. You held your breath, and your heart rate accelerated when I came close to you. It takes only a conscious person to do that.” I bluntly pointed out. Slowly, she finally opened her eyes and casted her gaze at me as she stretched. “I was meditating.”“Meditating.” I repeated, an amused smile touching my lips.“Yes.” She replied and quickly shut her eyes closed again.I stood there for a few seconds, staring at her as I contemplated whether to ask
MAXIMUSEverything around me stilled; my attention focused on her and her alone as I arose from my throne and slowly walked up to her.“What did you say?” I asked again to confirm. “What did you just say?”Looking up at me, her lips curled into a smile. “I am pregnant, Max. We are having a baby.”“Michael.” I immediately called the pack doctor. “Can you confirm, please?”The doctor stepped forward and bowed a little. "Indeed, she is pregnant. I confirmed that when I examined her when she was brought into the hospital for poisoning.”“Take her to her room and make sure she never leaves.” I immediately ordered the guards. I didn’t even have to think twice. After a very long time of trying for an heir, my wishes were finally coming through. The excitement that filled my chest was immeasurable. An heir, finally!It was just sad that it had to be from Lauren.I let out a full-blown laughter, unable to contain my excitement. Finally!“Congratulations, Alpha. Congratulations. Congratulation
STARLETTE Days passed, and I still struggled to forgive Maximus for what he did, even though he continuously bought gifts to appease me. He was my mate; meant to be my protector, but he shattered me instead. Could I ever find it in myself to forgive him?Amidst everything that was happening, I wouldn’t stop thinking about the invisibles and how the prisoner that was captured was from my father’s pack. This troubling thought was too dangerous to share, for fear of putting my father in jeopardy.I was in the library, searching for something to read when I heard the door creak open. Turning to see who was coming in, my eyes met with Tom's, and he quickly turned to leave. “Tom.” I immediately called. This had been going on for a while now; he avoided me and wouldn’t be in the same space with me. I needed to know why.He sighed heavily before slowly turning to face me. “Starlette.” He flashed a smile at me as if he wasn’t about to walk away. “Can we talk?’“Uhm...” He raised a brow. “No
VIOLETI didn’t know how, but I sensed his presence the moment he got to this pack and I had been waiting for him ever since. I was so happy and relieved that Axel was here, even though I still held a bit of resentment due to his betrayal.“You don’t look good.” Axel said, worries flooding his face as he sat on my bed and held my hand in his. “What is wrong?”“My Dad said a witch had hexed me.” I told him.“What? Why?” He asked, confusion saturating his features. That, I didn’t know either as my dad had refused to give me the full details. He always hid things from me, even though it concerned my health.I shook my head. “I don’t know either. But he mentioned that it was the Witches’ clan leader’s doing.”“Kaelin?” He said, confusion evident in his face. “Why would he hex you?”“I don’t know either.” I sighed. “I guess my dad got on his wrong side.”“And he wouldn’t say what it is that is between them. Or what condition Kaelin was giving to ensure your release.” Axel said, more of a
AXELI hadn’t been able to get Violet off my mind since she lost consciousness. Orion even wouldn’t stop howling in pain, desperate to see his mate. When her parents were informed, they arrived within a few hours and didn’t hesitate to transfer her to the hospital in the south. Now, I was in the dark about her health status and nothing could be more frustrating than that. I couldn’t be more glad that my dad had invited me to tag along for the Alpha King’s summit that was to take place in the south. That was my opportunity to check up on my mate.As planned, I was picked up from school and joined them as we travelled to the south. Uncle Lucius, kade and Tom were also with us. We arrived at the south and we were led to a grand hall where other Alpha Kings with their Betas and Gammas also joined us. “I welcome you all and thank you for honouring this invitation.” Silas said, darting his gaze between everyone in the room. “What I have called you here for is really important.” “It
VIOLETAfter Axel left, my feral side was activated, and I growled loudly, desperate to go after him, but Daisy held me back. Using all the strength I could gather, I pushed her away and made for the door. But before I could reach it, she cast a spell and used magic to hold me in place.I had almost forgotten that she was a witch.“Daisy, let me go now! I need my mate,” I growled, struggling to break free. “Don’t let me hate you.”“No, I think you will thank me when you are back to being yourself,” she replied, shaking her head.“Daisy, please,” I cried, frustrated.“Let’s help you get better,” she said as she approached me and undid the spell.I tried to run away once I was free, but she held my hand, looking me straight in the eyes. “Violet, look at me. You know I care deeply about you. And I will not lie to you. Trust me on this one. You don’t want to go after Axel.”“But I need him, Daisy. My body calls for him,” I blurted.“It is normal when you are in heat. You can do whatever y
AXELViolet in heat was wild and hot as fuck. She became a hundred times more attractive, and I could barely hold myself back. But taking her in this vulnerable state would be me taking advantage of her, and I didn’t want that. If we were going to make love, I wanted her to be in her right senses. I wanted her to want me when she could think straight. But now wasn’t the time.“Daisy.” I reached out through the mind link.“Yes?” she responded immediately.“Can you come back, please? And grab some ice packs on your way. Violet needs you,” I told her.“Why? What is wrong with her?” she asked, worry evident in her tone.“She’s in heat,” I said.“It’s great that you are with her then. You are the only one that can make her feel better since you are mates,” she responded teasingly.“We haven’t done that yet. And I don’t want our first to be when she’s in heat. She was mad at me before she went into heat, so I know she would regret it if anything happens now,” I explained to her.“Okay.” She
VIOLET“My beautiful daughter,” my dad’s voice beamed from the other end of the line. “How are you? Have you called me to tell me about your first shift? I am glad that your boyfriend, Emmett, helped you through your first shift. I heard you have a beautiful white wolf.”Of course, the bodyguards reported back to him.Axel’s jaw tightened, his knuckles turning white at my dad’s words.“Dad.” I cleared my throat, cutting straight to the chase. I didn’t want to waste any more time engaging in conversations like that with him. “I want to ask you something, and I want you to be honest with me.”“What?” he asked immediately.“Are you working with Lila?” I shot the question at him.He went quiet for a moment, then sucked in a breath. “Why do you say so?” he finally asked.“Please just answer my question. Are you working with Lila?” I pressed.“Violet, dear. This is not something you should concern yourself with. Just focus on your studies, okay?” he said.He wasn’t denying it, and my chest
VIOLETMy entire body continued heating up, so was my desire for Axel to rip off my clothes and bury himself inside me.“Axel...” I breathed, as I took his hand and placed it on my breast, urging him to play with it.He pulled his hand away, looking at me with an expression I couldn’t quite read. “Violet, you are in heat. You are not thinking straight.”“I know exactly what I am doing,” I retorted, desperation thick in my voice. “I want you, Axel. Please don’t deny me of you. I am all yours. Take me now.”Without hesitation, I cupped his face in my hands and leaned in to kiss him, but he promptly jerked away from me. Tears welled up in my eyes, my heart breaking at the realization that my mate didn’t want me.“Violet...” he sighed.“You don’t want me. You hate me.” Tears poured down my face.“Wait—what? I don’t hate you, Violet,” he said immediately, looking perplexed.“If you don’t, then you will...” I grabbed his shirt and used it to pull him closer, attempting to kiss him again. Bu
VIOLETEver since my first shift, both Onyx and I had felt lighter, but not light enough to escape the sting of Axel’s betrayal. I was relieved that Indie had survived her suicide attempt, and she was even back to attending classes and participating in other school activities.But what I couldn’t wrap my head around was why the both of them didn’t seem to be speaking with each other. I had asked Daisy, but she wouldn’t tell me anything. As much as I disliked the both of them at the moment, I was curious to find out why—but not curious enough to ask any of them.Emmett had been really supportive, always by my side, trying so hard to put a smile on my face. Even after I had made it clear to him that I could never accept his proposal, he didn’t mind. He simply wanted to be with me, to spend time together. Truth be told, I also enjoyed his company.I was hanging out with him when I lost track of time. And when I finally checked what time it was, it was already time for the game the wolves
AXELLila had won. Again. And we had no idea what she was planning. But now we had the hint that she was working with Silas. After we realized our plan had been busted and Lila had shattered the black vase, I wanted to follow my parents back to the pack house to join in solving the mystery from there, but they didn’t allow me. They insisted I stay in school. Truth be told, nothing interested me in this shithole academy anymore.Violet wasn’t speaking with me. She seemed to be really enjoying Emmett’s company now. They were always together, the sound of their laughter being a torture to my soul. I could barely stand this anymore.We were all at the training hall for combat class. They were together as usual, their eyes lighting up as they conversed. It took everything in me not to storm over and kick the motherfucker in his damn balls.“I also don’t know what he is doing with that girl!” I suddenly heard Emily’s voice say as she stood beside me.I sighed, shaking my head slightly. I di
VIOLETI wondered why Emmett’s wolf was so eager to meet mine, but I didn’t press for answers. I simply let his words go. As we ran into the forest, I noticed the two bodyguards hurrying behind us. “Ugh... I hate this,” I groaned loudly. “Hate what?” Emmett asked. I stopped running, taking a moment to exhale sharply before nodding toward the bodyguards. “Them. I hate that they have to be here while I have my first shift.” “We could just go back to the academy and do this some other time,” Emmett suggested. “No,” I quickly said. I wanted to do this now. Onyx needed it. I shot my gaze at the bodyguards, with a hard frown masking my face. “Can you at least make yourselves invisible? Like, keep a distance?” “It’s not safe out here, ma’am. We can’t take our eyes off you,” one of them replied without a single emotion on his face. It was clear that no matter how much I tried, they weren’t going to budge. I exhaled sharply, frustration spreading through me. “At least turn arou