Irene“I couldn’t believe I was doing this.” Those few words left my lips as I ran through the woods, just as I had been advised to do.I sincerely didn’t know what I was doing, but I was tired of embarrassing myself every single time.I was tired!The weird sounds coming from the dry leaves beneath my feet scared me, but I couldn’t stop. I had to follow the plan. I had to stay hidden until everything passed. The cold wind kept blowing through me as I ran, but I didn’t care.My only thought was to stay far enough away from the house, out of their sight for a long time until everything settled down.The instructions had been clear and Camila had made it sound simple.“Run, hide, wait until they pass by. “I had done this a thousand times in my head. I had ran through the woods in silence, not letting any single soul find me.But now that it was real, my mind raced with thoughts I couldn’t stop.What if they found me? What if Lucien realized I was gone and came looking for me?No, tha
LucienA very random thought hit me when I heard that Irene had disappeared.I wanted to blame myself for everything, but I kept giving myself different excuses.That was her regular behavior, wasn’t it? But her disappearance came as a shocker.And now?It was another entirely different thing that ravaged my mind as I watched Irene walk through the door into the house.I wasn’t sure whether to feel relieved that she had finally returned or to shout at her for playing such a game that never made sense.It wasn’t just that she had left without saying anything. It was the fact that, as usual, she thought she could disappear into thin air without any consequences.But now, she was back, and I had to deal with it all by myself.I chuckled, and my shoulders fell. I was glad, in a way about her return. I was glad to see her standing there, even though she didn’t look happy to be back here.The last thing I wanted was to go chasing after her like some fool, but she didn’t seem to understand
Irene “I don’t know what’s gotten into me,” I heard myself say, even though Lucien was the only one who could hear me. My sudden kindness towards him felt like I wasn’t entirely in control of my actions. Because this wasn’t me! I wasn’t sure what it was. I wasn't sure what had entered me because I had been… nicer, and it felt strange, uncomfortable even. Lucien, of course, seemed to think it was something else. “Are you being serious, Irene? You cooked for me today?” he asked, looking at me like he was reading every move that I made. I wouldn’t blame him. He had always been the observant one. “It’s nothing. I felt like trying out a new recipe, so don’t let it get into your head,” I said to him, and he kept on laughing like a clown. “Something is wrong somewhere, sweetheart. I’m very convinced. Or is it some aftereffect of our night together?” he asked, and I almost hit him with the fork in my hand. No way! There was no way he believed that my nice gesture towards him was a
Irene “You must be sick!” I yelled at him, and my throat was beginning to hurt. “With that being said, I needed you to apologize to me so that we would get over with this,” he said to me, licking his lips, making me even more mad. This man was so unserious. “You expect me to apologize?” I asked, already so mad that I could tear down a building. Kael’s calmness only pissed me off further. He stood there as if waiting for me to beg for his forgiveness, and for a moment, I couldn’t believe it. What did he want from me? Why the hell was he acting like this was my fault? From talking about fate to this? I mean? Make it make sense. I was tired of all these long talks. I could feel my heart racing. This was ridiculous. I didn’t owe him anything, least of all an apology. He cocked his head, and he had a very funny expression written all over his face. “I never had anything against you, Irene,” he started and his voice sounded so cool and so collected that it made me want to punch s
LucienI had to get out of this place.The constant thoughts about my feelings for Irene were starting to eat me up from the inside.Every single look at her and every touch made my heart burn, and I didn’t know how much longer I could pretend that I wasn’t in love with her.I shifted into my wolf form and began to scout the pack. Coming out from the pack house was exactly what I needed to reset my mind. But as I ran deeper into the woods, a part of me knew that I was only delaying the inevitable. I couldn't stop it. It was destined to happen. Why was I so scared of it?“You’re running away again,” my wolf’s voice echoed in my mind.“I’m not running,” I replied, and I was slightly embarrassed by that. “I’m just clearing my head, that’s all. Can’t you see?”“That’s not what it feels like, Lucien. You were avoiding the truth. You knew what you felt. You just didn’t want to admit it to yourself. Why did you keep fighting yourself?” he asked, and I growled low in my throat.“I couldn’t
Irene“You must be joking. Something has to be wrong with you,” I spat out.I crossed my arms, staring at Peris like he had lost his mind.I was very sure that he had lost his mind because there was no other explanation for why he had shown up now, saying nonsense about wanting to be part of my life again.I didn''t know what men think they were. Some mini gods? They think they can always get whoever they want, regardless of who it was.To be honest, I felt insulted. I was very insulted that he had looked at me and told me this.“Irene, please listen to me at least. You are getting worked up for nothing. We once had a thing together and…” He sighed, rubbing the back of his neck.I still didn't understand why he was doing this. Didn’t he realize how stupid he sounded?“No.” I cut him off, shaking my head.“Stop seeing me like a child who doesn't know what I am doing. I will keep saying this to you. Stop walking back into my life like nothing happened. You left me hanging. You disappear
LucienI felt it before I even saw it.It was like a constant itch in my chest and a restless pull in my bones.I felt the urge to return to the forest and I could not ignore it.I had already scouted the territory once tonight, but something told me I needed to go back.So I obeyed and the moment I stepped outside, Irene's scent hit my nostrils.I tried my best not to run too hard as I followed the scent but bet me, my feet were moving faster than I wanted.It wasn't just her scent, I could also feel some traces of distress.Finally, I saw her.She was laying on the cold ground with her hair sprawled out on the dirt.My breath caught in my throat. I didn’t think about what to do, I just moved to get her because she didn't look like she was in a good state.I knelt beside her, my hands reaching for her and I tried to find out what went wrong.“Irene.” I called her, shaking her vehemently.I quickly checked her breath and her pulse and they were both okay.That was a relief. She had no
LucienI felt like a jerk. And when I was already a few steps away from her house, I decided to go back.Not because of anything else, but because I already felt so guilty leaving her all to herself.I might have been a jerk, but I wasn't heartless. I loved her and I cared.“You’re pathetic, Lucien. Get away from me!”These words from her hit me before I could even step fully into her room.Irene stood near the window with her arms wrapped tightly around herself, her eyes red but still burning with anger.She wasn’t crying anymore. She had already wiped away her tears, but now she was furious, and every bit of it was aimed straight at me.I shut the door behind me, exhaling through my nose.I knew I should have walked away, but I couldn’t. I knew that I should have let her be, but seeing her in that mood made me feel terrible.I couldn't leave her. Not after hearing her cry. Not after seeing her crumble in a way she never had before.“Irene… At least you should allow me to talk. You w
Irene's POVI tried to sleep. The warmth of the blanket should have comforted me, but my instincts prickled beneath my skin. I was too restless. The bond between Lucien and I hummed with something heavy.Then I heard it—his voice, cold and full of command.“BOW DOWN!”“Lucien?” I echoed, and sat up instantly. My breath was caught in my throat. That wasn't a command whispered in private. That was Lucien's Alpha voice; the kind he'd used on Silas the first time we met. He told me to stay inside, but that was the last thing to do. I threw the blankets off and dressed quickly, tugging a robe over my body. I left the room and ran down the hall. I met a few guards posted around.“What's going on?” I asked breathlessly.The guards looked at themselves before one of them answered. “Alpha Lucien is exposing the traitors. The Council of Elders are being arrested.”“What?” I was shocked. Lucien hadn't said anything like that this morning. Why had he asked me not to come out? I didn't wait for
Lucien's POVThe morning sun barely broke out before I had my bath, got dressed, and crawled back into bed with Irene. She smelt nice after the thorough bath we had during midnight.“I need to meet the council,” I said, tightening the last button of my shirt as Irene stirred beneath the sheets.She opened her eyes slowly, still drowsy from the night we spent locked in each other's arms. “Good morning. What did you say?”I leaned down and kissed her gently, brushing her hair from her face. “You look so beautiful, Irene.”She giggled and kissed me. “That's not what I asked you, Lucien.”“I am meeting the pack council.” I repeated slowly. “This is something I should’ve done a long time ago, it's not too late now, though. But I need you to stay here.”Her brows furrowed, worry creeping into her gaze. “Stay here? Why?”“Because I can't risk you getting hurt again. Not like before.” I kissed her, slower this time, memorising the softness of her lips. “Please, Irene. Trust me, huh?”Her sile
Lucien's POV“I have stitched up his wound. He would come around in the morning. It's nothing serious.” The healer assured us and I gave him a nod of gratitude.Irene stood still, not wanting to leave the room.“Silas will be fine, Irene. Let's go to our room.” I whispered, pulling her away from the healer's chamber. Silas had passed out because of the blood he lost, but the healer assured us that he would be fine. I had no intention of going to the hospital, I wanted to do this low key and get to the councils when they were totally relaxed. Irene didn't argue with me this time, she just held my hand tight as I led her out. She made sure Silas was settled and he was breathing. “Will he be fine?” She asked silently, her voice warm.I nodded without saying a word. She seemed to trust my silence because she willingly allowed me to lead her down the hallway, past other rooms, until we got to our room. When we reached the bedroom door, I paused, reluctant to go in with her. She might b
Silas’s POV“Kael! Your time is up, man. Stop hiding.” I yelled into the empty hallway. Blood smeared my knuckles, and the lifeless bodies of Kael’s men that I had fought with were strewn across the floor. I was angry, and I needed to get to Kael to discharge that anger. I pushed open the last door at the end of the hall and let myself in. I discovered it was a mini bar. The room was dim, soaked in the amber glow of an overhead fluorescent light. The air was thick with the scent of whiskey, its smell made me wipe my bleeding lip with the back of my palm.“Kael!” I called angrily.He was slumped in a leather chair, his shirt unbuttoned, and an empty bottle dangled from his hand. He was wasted, asleep in fact.I stepped in and shut the door behind me. He didn’t stir. Rage and grief filled my mind as I lunged at him.“This is for my father!” I plunged the dagger forward but was stopped midair.“Shit!” Kael cursed, his eyes locking tight on me. He gave a strangled gasp, the bottle slipp
LucienWhile I was still trying to get myself as I stood beside the dead body. I heard a loud shout from outside. What can to me was my guards and Silas. I hope nothing had happened to them. I looked at the corpse on the floor which I had already decided was Irene and I tried to look for a way to get the corpse back to my pack. That was going to be very difficult because I didn't know how to do that. I needed help from Silas and my guards. But, I didn't know how I was going to do all that without attracting the people that we were hiding from. I was thinking so hard and while I tried to reach a conclusion. I heard a loud thud outside like an earthquake. I ran out of the room and I was that Silas and the guards were being rounded up by some guards. We were caught! I rushed towards them and one of them saw me and tried to jump on me. "Get your filthy hands off me!" I growled, slamming the guard against the wall with enough force to rattle the wooden frame.We had arrived and if
LucienI knew that this information came as a shock to me but I was not totally surprised. It was something that was expected from people like Kael and I had always suspected his ass. "He played us. Kael played us all,” Silas said. His face fell flat like he just got hit by a trailer load of disappointment. I remember when Kael promised him a lot of things and how he was so loyal to him. But, now everything has backfired. It was sad for him but I didn’t flinch when Silas said it. I couldn’t. I was too far gone in my thoughts to react the way he wanted me to. That feeling that had been sitting on my chest like a stone since Irene disappeared had finally taken shape. Kael.I should have known.I leaned forward in my seat and my fingers steepled under my chin as I replayed the last words we had heard through the bug in Peris's car. Kael, casually spitting out the exact location where Irene was being held, like it wasn’t someone’s life he was toying with."He sounded so... proud,"
LucienWe sat in my car, parked far enough from Malcolm's mansion to avoid suspicion, yet we were close enough to pick up every word through Silas' little device. The night was unnaturally still and calm and it was only the faint hum of Silas' recorder that played between us.Silas leaned forward, fiddling with the device volume. "Just listen, carefully,” he informed me and after that, Chris' voice came through clearly. "We are fighting for something that matters, Peris. The park spies are the backbone of our survival. If we can get our hands on the document…""The one with the names?" Peris interrupted."Yes, all of them. Every spy hidden in every pack. If we find it and deliver it to the right Alphas, we can expose corruption and reset the system."I let out a dry laugh. Are they mad?"Reset the system? By throwing us into chaos? These people are very sick!”Silas stayed quiet. I could tell he was trying to process it all.Chris continued, unaware of how his words were slamming a
Lucien"He is already on the move and he’s not alone, Lucien,” Silas said immediately as he stepped into my study. He didn’t bother knocking and he didn’t even shake when I whipped my head around so fast to look at him. My goodness! What was that? I appreciated the effort he was making towards this and I didn't damn care if he lacked courtesy or not. What I wanted was good information! "You followed Chris? How did it go? Please, spill the tea," I asked, heart thudding louder than it should."I did. Not for long, though," he said, moving to close the door behind him. "I didn’t need to. I know exactly where he is going."I stood up slowly, brows pulling together. "Where?""Malcolm’s house. There’s a meeting happening there and Chris isn’t the only one attending,” he informed me and my heart dropped.This was very concerning. My fists clenched and the veins on my face popped out. Of course Malcolm would be involved. The man had always rubbed me the wrong way. He was too quiet and
LUCIEN"If he's hiding something, I'm going to find out. Even if it kills me,” I assured myself as I grew suspicious of Chris' disappearance. This was strange and I knew that it didn't just happen. It was not a coincidence. Something was happening in the background that I wasn't aware of. “He's up to something,” another thought ran through my head as I paced across my study.My instincts were clawing at me, telling me something was wrong and I could not ignore it because it was always right. It kept telling me someone close had betrayed me and now, all fingers were pointing at Chris. I know I couldn't be too sure about things but I was suspecting and I was sure of it. I hadn’t seen Chris in days.Every time I sent someone to find him, they returned empty-handed. No one knew where he went. No one had any answers to the numerous questions that I had asked about him and I was getting sick of it.My fists clenched at my sides. Chris was my Beta and my friend. He was the one I truste