***Every day was tougher with the broken mate bond, knowing that I could no longer feel Ellen troubled me and it was worse that I couldn't do anything about it. I was stuck in a goddamn hospital bed and I have no idea how long I'll be here. Every moment that passed, I couldn't help but think about Ellen drastically forgetting about me. My hunch was that Ryker propelled her to do the interview and I hoped that I was right. I hoped that Ellen was still the woman I knew and not the one the media portrayed. I looked out of the window, it was the full moon and unlike other nights, Dylan was still down. The door opened and Meredith walked in, she was alone and carried a cup of tea with her. She set the saucer down on my table and sat on the bed. "I got something for you." She reached into her dress and pulled out a letter. "It's a reply to the letter you sent." Hastily, I snatched the letter from her. "Only one?" I gave her a look. "There is no reply from Ellen yet. I don't think y
~Ellen~I smelt blood, like a rusted iron placed under my nostrils. I am alive. I squinted, accepting the sharp ray of sunlight and hoping it would blind me. Or better still, kill me. The cries from the Ocean Howls warrior as they roasted to their death rang in my ears over and over again, and each time I felt a heavier guilt. It was a nightmare that continuously disturbed me for days. How could I still be alive? I had purposely gone five days without food or water. If I wasn't restricted by the chains that bound me, I would have ended this torture myself five days before now. I was in the same standing position, for so long that I could barely feel my legs now and I had avoided food and water, basically anything that would contribute to my health, but I still woke up every time that I believed I had finally succumbed to the cold hands of death. I opened my eyes fully. I had cried so much that even the sharp sun rays couldn't take any tears from me. I felt dead but the mild so
The first thing I did when I woke up was to check the gemstone necklace, it was still seated in my pocket; unnoticed by Ryker and his men. I withdrew it and clutched it around my fingers, recalling all the sweet memories of Ace and me. Could it be true? Is Ace really alive? I sighed, blinking back the tears. That slave, was she trying to tell me that Ryker hadn't killed Ace as everyone thought at the expense of her life? Or perhaps, I was reading more meaning into it? I was so confused and unsure of what to wholly believe. If Ace was alive, where could he be? Why wasn't he coming back? From their conversation, Ryker doesn't seem to know where Ace is either. He seemed sure that he got rid of him. There was no one to give me an explanation of the situation, so I knew I had to find the answers myself, and my first goal to achieving that was getting out of Ryker's camp alive, which I knew quite well would only be possible if Ryker suddenly turned compassionate or dies. I strongly doub
***I sat still at the vanity, staring blankly at my reflection while the makeup artists touched my face according to Ryker's preference. My fingers fiddled with the hem of my dress out of nervousness but I kept my expression completely blank. It was the best way to hide the rage tearing me apart inside. Just yesterday, I had announced my plan to become Ryker's mate ostentatiously, going exactly by his words and today I was preparing to be marked by him. This would be our first private encounter since my discovery of the possibility that Ace could be alive, and I was willing to use all my cards on it. It would be my only chance. Since Ryker's suggestion, I had tried to follow his demands without excuses, hoping it would get him to trust me but I didn't want to bet my all that it was working. For someone who had lived his entire life as a rogue, a rejected species, trusting would be a little too difficult for him. After the transformation, I was stripped and dressed in a seductive
__There was finally a reply. It was three days since my last letter when Ellen wrote me back. At this point, I could conveniently stand without any support but I wasn't stable at running and walking for a long time. My face was now completely unwrapped and it had healed a great deal, at least enough for me to recognize myself. Sean had assured me that in two weeks my strength would have accumulated enough for me to leave, he advised that I leave then but I planned to leave earlier. I knew it would only be a matter of days before I gained enough of my strength, and I believed it would be enough to carry me to my pack. Meredith stood at the end of the bed, watching me with subtle eyes. I dropped the paper, throwing my gaze to the side. I had expected it but I hoped that it wouldn't come to this. I wondered if I could blame Ryker for this as well. Everything that had gone wrong since my confinement, I blamed him. It was hard to accept that Ellen wasn't mine anymore, and it was hard
_Ace_I went through my progress stat with Sean and I couldn't be more relieved, the scars had dried up a great deal and I could comfortably move around for some time. "It's amazing how fast you're healing. On a normal day, your condition wouldn't yield this much progress in such a short time. You must be a special kind of Alpha," he complimented, smiling through his eyes. "That doesn't mean you can leave yet," Meredith walked in, "right, Sean?""That's right, you still have some days to go," he added before walking out. I flexed my muscles and a wave of satisfaction hit me when Dylan responded, his strength gave me hope. "You heard Sean, you can't leave yet," Meredith reminded. I shrugged, "only I understand my body, and right now I feel like I can cover ten mountains before I feel a bit of discomfort. That's how much my body is itching to move.""I know but you have to listen to Sean. He's the practitioner." She warned, "By the way, I got you something." She reached into her dre
_Ellen_-I stopped dead in my tracks, staring at the amount of injured rogues, almost half-dead, fighting for a chance to live. It was at this point I understood why Ryker asked for my help, I knew all along that he never wanted to involve me in the feud between him and Derek but seeing the helpless situation, he had no other choice. I had no idea if this meant that Derek was winning but I hoped it did. I got to know about the war through the maid who brought me food and since the night Ryker tried to mark me, I never saw him again. It had been three days already and from what I gathered, the fight was still as tough. "What happened?" I asked the guard who had brought me to the healthcare center at Ryker's order. "Just do what you have to." He frowned and left my side, leaving me to the other guards. A guard was brought in to assist me and I noticed how concerned he looked as we attended to the rogues. Seeing his vulnerability, I decided to try my luck and obtain some informat
***My heart rambled in my chest but I tried to maintain my balance as I awaited my fate. Different thoughts danced in my head and it was hard to process what was going to take place next. I could no longer hear their voices and it made my heart thump louder. Would Derek give in and share me with Ryker, or would he be selfish enough to have me all to himself? I've always known Derek to be selfish but in this case, I found myself doubting. If Derek and Ryker joined hands together, getting out of this hellhole would be an impossible task. At that stage, I could only be saved by a miracle. It will be entirely over for me. I was diverted from my reverie when the door was thrown open and Ryker burst in with his men. "Seize her!" He ordered and before I could react, I was grabbed by two of the guards, with both my arms pinned behind me.Ryker glared at me, fire in his eyes and I knew my fate had been sealed. Derek must have declined his offer hence he was going to use me to confront him
-My fingers ran through the gemstones, a grin resting on my face. "This is forever beautiful," I cried, letting him twirl me around gently until I was facing him. "You sure you don't want this one instead?" He asked, referring to the expensive gold necklace on his palm, seated in a jewelry box. "That one is a bit old.""I'm sure," I beamed. "It was through this necklace that I was able to know that you were alive. I was ready to give up to Ryker. I had prepared to die after he killed the warriors, but this gave me a reason to live."As I spoke, I remembered the Rogue maid who had lost her life for revealing Ace's situation to me. Bless her soul. I was alive because of her too. "To me, this is the most beautiful jewelry in the world, and it is important to me because it is important to you, too."Ace nodded, his eyes lighting up. I could sense that he had briefly recalled a part of his past. It was the day of the coronation for Ace's new position and we were in our room after get
-My thumping heartbeat decelerated as I stared at Derek's lifeless body, my eyes filling up with tears of relief and gratefulness. Ace dug his claws into Derek's chest, uprooting his heart and signifying the end of the war. Like a whiff, all the memories and history I had with Derek raced through my mind. "It's finally over," I heard Acantha sigh, and the tears dropped from my eyes. It was really over. Derek was dead! It was over for good. My nose crinkled in disbelief, my eyes furrowing as the reality settled within me. My gaze shifted to Ace and despite the loud chants and celebration, I could hear the beating of my heart clearly. Despite the amount of people around, my eyes could somehow only see Ace. Amongst the crowd hovering around him, his gaze found me, too, and before I could burst, I swooped into his arms. He caught me easily and I buried my face into his chest, releasing my emotions shamelessly. Two of our greatest enemies were now gone for good!Ace nuzzled his face
-Ace held my hand, stopping me from getting any closer to Derek. "This is not over, I promise you," he gritted, his eyes sending daggers at me.We watched quietly as he contested with the pain, trying to subdue it. He attempted to get up several times, cussing violently every time he failed; his eyes were filled with rage and determination as he continuously tried to move. After a final hectic attempt, he crashed to the ground and burst into laughter. "It's funny how easily fooled you can be, Ace," he cackled, blood dripping slightly from the side of his lip.I figured he was trying to buy time and gather his strength again so he could take us unaware but before I could act, Ace charged at him. "No, it's funny how you think you can stall me while you buy some fuckin time," Ace grabbed him up roughly. "Why?" Derek scoffed, feigning strength even though he was limping. "You're scared I'd beat your ass up if I wasn't in this situation?""We both know what the truth is-"Then why d
-Ace glared at Derek, making sure his body obstructed mine."You will have to go through me first to have her!"Derek's steps faltered, and he seemed even more angry. "If that is what you want then I shall do as you please and get rid of you.""You seem to use your mouth a lot, don't you?" Ace scoffed. "I use it better, too; you can ask your little mate to tell you what I mean."I put my palm in Ace's, ensuring he held me, and preventing him from rashly going at Derek. Derek was trying hard to provoke him and it made me wonder what he was up to. "We had a little fun while you were out there in the wilderness, struggling to survive."I opened my mouth to speak and vehemently curse at Derek for lying but Ace beat me to it. "She must not have liked it as much as you think seeing how she still tricked and escaped from you. She came back to me, that should tell you a lot of things.""Still she betrayed you!""Oh Derek," Ace breathed out, "you don't get it, do you? What matters is whos
-We stood in the open, ensuring that the passage to our secret safehouse was out of sight. Everyone took their position, mine was beside Ace, as we heard the enemy's footsteps approaching. I held my breath, trying not to squirm under Ace's hold. I knew he would at once detect my discomfort and send me back in. I didn't want that; I wanted to face Derek; I burned to see him fall with my own eyes. Derek showed up first, leading the warriors of his pack; he growled and roared as they approached us, arrogantly announcing his presence. Ace moved me to stand behind him and I stayed without arguing. I took the chance to fix my discomfort, ensuring that I showed no weakness in front of Derek. "What a surprise, it is indeed true that you survived. Fuckin luck," Derek mocked, scoffing at Ace. "Well, it's too bad because this time, you're going to the land of the dead, and there is no escaping it.""If I were you, I'd do more fighting and less talking. Did you forget you're in my territory?"
-With Henry's suggestion, we swiftly gathered around. He had already drawn out a quick plan on how we were going to face Derek and his goons, and he discussed it with Ace. Inputting Acantha's suggestion, we came to a conclusion on how to face our attackers. Ace stepped out and dished the instructions and everyone immediately set to work. Leaving out the pups, younger and ailing wolves aside, the rest of us came together to be grouped in smaller forms. There were many hidden parts of the Ocean Howls pack that the Crimson pack or any other pack was not aware of. Ace had reconstructed the country after his father's defeat in a way that we would mostly have the upper hand against the enemy. That was a big advantage for us. Ace regrouped the warriors into ten smaller groups and individually gave them a goal, coordinating each group separately. Some groups were focused on studying maps of the Ocean Howls Pack territory and securing strategic locations for refuge in case our attackers
Ellen-"Our only way in now is through the emergency back gate; hopefully, through it, we can arrive at the pack house in time before Derek's men reach it," Ace revealed. He was a lot calmer now. "Who else is aware of this entrance?" Acantha asked, being cautious. "Only Henry and I know about it. Out of safety, we didn't reveal it to the pack members yet. I constructed it as an emergency exit for situations like this, there is also a safe house behind it. I believe Henry must have evacuated the members to the safe house," Ace spoke. From the tensity of his breathing, one could tell how furious he was. The situation had gotten chronic. If Acantha hadn't stopped him at the time she did, from running after the warriors, things could have taken a drastic twist. I didn't want to imagine what could have happened. Ace led us to the emergency exit, and we walked as quickly as we could. If we could arrive before Derek's men, we would be able to prepare ourselves beforehand.
"Your bravery reminds me of your father," Acantha voiced after being quiet for a while. "No matter how hard I try to overlook it, I see his face when I look at you. How did he die?"I lowered my gaze, talking about my parents had always been a sensitive topic for me. It was something I didn't fancy discussing with anyone. It was the only topic that could break an Alpha like me. Georgia was the only one who had successfully managed to get a word out of me concerning it, and it was probably because she experienced the torture with me. "I'm sorry for bringing that up, it's fine if you don't want to talk about it," Acantha apologized. "No, it's okay," I bit my lower lip, making my expression stoic. I needed to get over it, and also build my relationship with Acantha. For Ellen's sake, I wanted to do this. "I was twelve when he was murdered, he died trying to protect me after we were attacked unaware. My mother was killed on the same day, she was raped to death, and I was made to watc
-"Ace, I-I can't. My powers are gone," Ellen vibrated, her hands shaking out of fear, her eyes teary. I glanced at the beasts who had already reached us and I pushed Ellen to my side so my body was facing them.She started to shake her head, trying to stop me from my thoughtless decision but I was hell-bent on protecting her. With her powers gone, it was even more dangerous for her to be close to these beasts. I would rather die than watch her face that fate. In despair, I prepared for whatever was coming, determined to fight even to death. Just as they growled, attempting to jump at us, I felt a familiar presence and her voice echoed through the cave when she spoke. "Acantha!" I heard Ellen exclaim in excitement. I turned to find Acantha emerging towards us, holding a staff in her hand that radiated a great amount of power. The strength that exuded out of her alone was enough to cease the beasts' steps. Calmly analyzing the situation, she stepped in front of me, facing the bea