Milton’s P.O.V The incident with Daciana and Mrs. Molly got to the ears of the elders not long after it happened. I was in my office later that evening when Robert walked in. He was upset and I didn't have to ask before he told me what was on his mind. “She shouldn't be here.” He announced. I watched him pace around the office. He was frustrated by Daciana's presence in the pack. He never truly said why, but he didn't approve that I let her stay in my home. “You might be my Beta, Robert; but you don't just barge into my office like that. I won't condone it next time.” I looked at him, annoyed by his presence. He didn't apologize, instead he walked up to my table and placed his hands on the table. “Milton, why do you want her to remain in the pack? Is she your mate?” He asked, his eyes sternly resting on me. “I don't know,” I said plainly, my voice offering no tone of emotion. He raised a brow at me. “I've seen the way you look at her,” he stated. “You're in love with
Milton's P.O.V “Are you busy?” I looked up from my table, and Daciana was standing by the door. She wore a black dress that stopped above her knee. The servants had made sure she had a different cloth for each day she spent in the village with me. “You look nice,” I said in an even tone. She smiled gently and gave me a twirl when she walked into the office. She was beautiful. Her eyes were a perfect mix of chocolate and gold; like rich, deep pools of Amber. Her hair, silky and straight, was packed in a pigtail. It was brown just like her eyes, and her pale toned skin was light and beautiful as moonlight. “Shouldn't you still be resting?” I asked, my eyes darted towards her earlier twisted knee, which seemed perfectly fine. “It doesn't hurt as much,” she responded, aware that I was staring at her knee. “You didn't come out for dinner.” Her statement came out like a question, but I didn't know how to answer her. I massaged my forehead gently. My mind had slipped
Daciana's P.O.V There was a gentle knock on the door when I woke up in the morning. Milton walked in with a towel around his waist. He went straight for his wardrobe and pulled out a black shirt and a trouser. “You've had your bath?” I asked as I watched him slip his hands into the shirt and plant his body into his trousers. I sat upright on the bed. “Where have you been sleeping?” I looked at him. He left his bedroom for me since the day he brought me back to his pack and hasn't slept in it for a night. “I stayed in the office,” he answered, his gentle voice carried by the morning breeze. He turned around to face me once he was dressed. “Did you sleep well?” I wanted to answer him, but then I remembered that I was supposed to be mad at him for raising his voice at me last night. I looked away and lay back on the bed. I could feel his gaze linger on my body as he walked to the bed and sat down. “Is everything alright?” He asked like he wasn't the problem. I didn't a
Daciana's P.O. V I joined up with Milton along the path we'd come from. He averted his eyes when I got close and simply turned forward to keep walking. We didn't say a word to each other as we left the spring, and he would occasionally keep a distance whenever I got closer to him. I tried to comfort myself by blaming whatever it was that happened on him, but I still did not appreciate that I was snubbed all the way back to the pack. There was a cluster of villagers outside Milton's house. A few guards ran towards the house from their duty posts and only one of them came towards us, panting as he stopped in front of Milton. “What is going on?” Milton asked him, his eyes fixed on the crowd of villagers in front of his home. “Adam was attacked,” the guard said in a weary voice. “He went out on patrol with four guards. He's the only one that came back alive.” Fear surged through my body as the guard's words pierced my ears. I was worried about Adam. He was, after all, the fir
Daciana's P.O.V The air in the room grew thick, an overwhelming sensation of fear gripped me as I stood in the room with my father's killer. “You don't look so excited to see me.” Landon smiled mischievously. “How did you get past the guards?” I asked him, my voice trembling. I tried to hide my fear, but I failed. He looked around the room, admiring its features. His eyes fell on a photo of Milton on a desk across the bed. He took it in his hands and gave it a closer look. “I can see why you admire him so much,” he said softly. “He has that innocent look in his eyes. Like he would never hurt a fly.” It was weird hearing someone else talk about Milton that way, but that was exactly how he looked. Despite Milton's overwhelming aura; he looked like he could hurt no one. I shook my head, pushing away the thoughts of a man in my mind while danger stood right in front of me. “How did you get past the guards?” I asked him again. My voice was more firm this time, and he smirked
Milton's P.O.V "Did you hear something?" I stopped behind Adam. There was a voice in distress somewhere in the woods, but it appeared I was the only one who heard it. "Must be the fog," Adam whispered and continued walking forward with Nick and his brother. I looked back to where we came from; the fog had completely enveloped us, and it was difficult to see anything beyond a foot away from where we were. "How much further?" I growled, frustrated by our unending search for even a trace of human hunters. They were clever in covering up their tracks, so it was difficult for Adam to retrace his steps back to where they were attacked. We got to a cliff, the same place we rescued Daciana a fortnight ago. There was a freshly put out fire place, and a bow lying on the floor. “They were here,” Adam said, his eyes darting around for any more clues. “Well, the fire was just put out. They couldn't have gone far.” I picked up the bow and smelt it. There was a trace of blood over
Milton's P.O.V I sat in my office, my mind a disaster as I processed everything that happened today. Robert, Adam, and Davies all sat across the desk with me, but only one of them understood that I needed time to think. Robert and Davies’ lips were moving, but I didn't hear a word they both said. I sank into my seat better and exhaled deeply, troubled by how often Daciana seemed to attract danger to herself. Robert and Davies' voices grew louder and annoying as I continued to think of a solution. I stood up, provoked by their yapping and slammed my hands on the desk. “Can you both stop being Women for a second?” I growled frustrated. Both men's eyes blinked as they looked at me. Robert was angry, while Davies was annoyed. I turned to Robert first, he held answers to the problem that troubled my heart the most. “What happened while I was gone?” I asked with a calm voice, despite my worries. He looked up at me and shifted uncomfortably on his seat. He cleared his thro
Daciana's P.O.V The world was pitch black when I woke up. For a moment, I thought I had either gone blind, or there was a veil lowered over me. It took only a few seconds before I realized there was a sac over my head. “Is anyone there?” I called out, my voice barely above a whisper trembled as fear clawed at my throat. I tried to move my hands and take off the sac, but they were bound behind my back. I tried to squeeze them out, but it was useless. “Landon? This is your doing, isn't it?” The sac over my head yanked off and the sudden flood of the morning sunlight cast themselves on my eyes, blinding me for a few seconds. Squinting eyes, I struggled to adapt to the brightness of my new environment. There was a fireplace still burning in front of me. Landon sat with his back against a tree. He was chewing on a berry he plucked from the Bush beside and curled his lips with a half smile as our eyes met. “You slept well?” He asked, but it sounded more like a statement filled
Daciana’s P.O.VAdam sat with me at the edge of the pool, our feet gently kicking against the rippling surface of the waters as we stared into the horizon. The sun was well above us now, and the birds which I had scared off when I screamed had slowly begun to return to their nests up in the trees.There was a deer right across the pool from us. It paid us no attention, focused solely on having its fill of water. But each time it had a tree branch snap, it would raise its head and stare at us, watching to know if we were a danger to its peaceful life, until it turned and trotted back into the shadows of the forest.“Maybe I should have struck it down,” Adam said regretfully as we watched the deer leave.I jabbed his side with my elbow and laughed softly. “Why would you say that?” I asked, leaning back with my palms pressed against the ground to hold me up.“Have you ever eaten Venison?” He responded with a question of his own.I paused and looked at him. “You don’t know what it is, do
Daciana's P.O.VThe Moon Festival, and Milton’s wedding ceremony were only days away. The pack was excited, with everyone, young and old eagerly partaking in the preparations.The courtyard of Milton’s house was unusually busy by this time of the morning. The flowers were being trimmed, while the lawn hummed with the sound of mowers shaping it into perfection.Amelia and I didn’t belong here. We were guests, outsiders only tolerated because the Alpha had taken a liking to us. But with his wedding soon, it wouldn't be long before the elders reminded him–subtly or otherwise–that my presence wasn’t welcome, and I had to leave.Standing over the chaos by the balcony’s edge, I quietly watched as everyone went about their designated duties. I didn’t make a sound. I was too afraid of the condescending stares and whispers I’d get if the villagers saw me“Ciana?” A little voice called out to me, soft footsteps approaching from behind me.“Amelia. I didn’t know you were awake,” I smiled, and hu
Milton's P.O.VI stood out in the hallway, my knuckles hovering over the wooden door, hesitation tangling around my thoughts like a thread, pulling me in every direction, but not forward. I let my hand fall to my sides and exhaled deeply, my shoulders dropping as I eased the tension that had risen in my throat.I took a sharp breath, squared my shoulders, and steeled myself. Giving no room to second thoughts, I raised my hand and knocked softly on the door.“Daciana,” I whispered, my voice barely audible. “Are you up?”I pressed my ears against the door, though I didn't need to. I could hear her breathing just fine from beyond it, but I did so anyway.“Daciana,” I called to her again, my voice rising slightly higher than before. “I know you're awake. I can hear you cursing under your breath.”A sudden chill swept across the hallway and Daciana's voice beyond the door vanished. Moments after, I heard her feet shuffle across the floor until she got to the door and opened it just enough
Milton’s P.O.V“I didn’t say you could come in.”I was writing down a report on the preparations for the moon festival. It was all I could do to keep the thoughts of Daciana away from my head. The sound of her voice when my hands caressed her skin. The warmth and sweet aroma of her body…My plan to keep her out of my head was failing, until Davies walked into my office without permission.“I don’t recall ever needing your permission to come see you,” Davies frowned as he took a seat across the table. “What are you doing?” He asked, leaning forward to steal a glance at the piece of paper between us both.“Arrangements for the festival,” I responded without sparing him a glance.“Good.” He said firmly, and sank back into his seat.I paused, feeling uneasy with the way he’d accepted my answer so gladly. “Why good?” I asked, dropping my pen and finally gazing at him.“Because there’s someone here to see you,” he smiled proudly.I glanced at the wall clock above the office door, it was alm
Daciana's P.O.V Exploring the village a second time with Amelia gave me deja vu of the old woman and her crumbling relic store. It was strange to be back in the midst of people. They kept their distance and stared at us like some virus roaming their streets.Amelia didn't seem bothered. She was excited to finally be somewhere peaceful enough to let her be a child once more. A place where she could be free to play around all day and night.While we walked down to Adam's home, a boy just around Amelia’s age or a year older approached us and stretched out a hand to her.“Hi… I'm Silver.” He smiled, rocking forward and backwards slightly on his feet.Amelia looked back at me, like she needed my approval before saying a word. I smiled at her and she quickly spun around to Silver and shook his hand.“I'm Amelia.”“You're new here. I haven't seen you before,” said Silver. His smile widened as he studied Amelia curiously.“Yes. I just arrived a few days ago,” Amelia responded.“Are you stayi
Daciana's P.O.VI walked back to the bedroom with a knot in my chest. I didn't understand why, but I was bothered by Milton's conversation with Robert and Adam.When I got to the room, I couldn't keep my feet still. I paced the long length of the bedroom, hands clenched around my body. Was this why he didn't bother looking for me when I left?Amelia was more concerned about my sudden mood swing. A little while ago, I was happily discussing with her. Now,I was not even aware of her presence. She stood in front of me to block my path, hoping to get my attention, but I bumped right into her.It's safe to say she did get my attention, but not how she'd expected to.“Are you hurt?” I asked, leaning over to help her back on her feet.“I'm fine,” she answered, rubbing her hands over her butt cheeks. “What about you Ciana?” “I'm fine,” I lied, gazing into those beautiful brown eyes of hers. “I just need some time alone.”“Is this about Milton?” She asked, striding over to the bed and liftin
Daciana’s P.O.V “You’re weak,” I heard a voice whisper in my ear. It was calm and gentle, like the morning breeze, but it was condescending and taunted me. I felt a cold shiver run down my spine, my world engulfed in a smolder of clouds. “Let me in,” the voice came again, a little louder than the last time. “You can’t do it all by yourself.” I tried to look around me, but I could barely make sense of where I was. There was a tree somewhere in the middle of what appeared to be a river. The Moon reflected brightly on its surface, and the wind carried gently above the waters. “Is anyone there?” I hollered, but no one answered. I appeared to be alone, but I was overwhelmed by a sensation of a strong presence. There was something out there, something with an immense power that filled me with dread. My throat hitched as I took a step towards the tree. The path got sloppy with each step closer; the earth clinging to my feet and threatening to suck me into the ground. I didn’t stop. I fo
Milton's P.O.V It had been three days since Adam brought Daciana back to the village, and she was still unconscious. I'd spent those past three days getting to know her little sister, Amelia. She was quite the charmer and had a knock for pranks and mischief. One morning, she walked into my office and leaned against the wall, crossing her arms over her chest with a confidence that seemed far beyond her age. “Are you Ciana's boyfriend?” She asked, her tone as blunt as her words. I raised my head from my paperwork and stared at her. I was at a loss for words. My mind rattled by such straightforward courage and interrogation. I leaned back in my chair and let out a hearty laugh. “Why do you ask?” I replied, amused by her audacity. Her eyes narrowed suspiciously as she stared at me, carefully observing every move that I made while seated across the table from her. “She's always said that boys are dumb. And none of the ones in our village were tough enough to handl
Milton’s P.O.V“Won’t you go after them? She’s been gone for three days now. Are you not worried?”I stared at Robert, puzzled by his questionable growing concern for the safety of Daciana. He suggested last night that we send out a search party to look for her, but I refused.I didn’t think she’d do something so reckless. I was worried about her, but I was also furious with her. She disobeyed me, roped my best friend into her plot, and ran off into the woods to go save her family. I was angry with her–angry that she had disobeyed me, and likely put herself in harm’s way, but I couldn’t stop smiling each time I realized that she had outsmarted my guards. Her courage and resilience to defile me were truly admirable. “Adam is with her,” I reminded Robert. “I’m sure they’re fine. Besides, I promised myself I wouldn’t get involved in her decisions. She’s not mine to command.” I let out a defeated sigh and reached for a cup of wine before me.“She’s too dangerous to be left alone,” said