He couldn’t have said that, and even if he did there was no way that he ever could’ve meant it. A Luna was a serious title meant only for those who had proven themselves worthy. A Luna was an Alpha’s equal in every way possible, they worked together and made decisions together all so the pack’s balance could be maintained and protected. In more civilised times being a Luna was simply being an Alpha’s mate and some Lunas didn’t take it seriously anymore. People like Poppys saw it as a chance to be in charge without earning anything or working for it and spending all the pack’s money.Fredrick never had a luna before so I’d never witnessed either the power or incompetence before. My mother told me tales of the previous luna, Fredrick’s mother, and she is how I would picture Poppy in power, not a good combination.I valued the position of luna with great respect, so for Jackson to ask me that out of the blue with Poppy mere feet away, I couldn’t help but freeze. “I can’t,” I whispered
Jackson's POV I felt hollow like something had just been taken from me, something I knew I would never get back no matter how hard I tried because it wasn’t something I could hold onto, wasn’t something I could force to be mine and stay with me.I could have forced her to stay. I could have grabbed her by the waist and hauled her onto my shoulders and locked her up in the pack house until she agreed to be mine.But that wasn’t what I wanted. That wasn’t love. So I made the harder choice, I let her go. Fredrick had tried to force her to be his, wanted to control her and keep her like an object, I refused to be like that. I was a selfish man, a selfish stupid man and I hated myself for it. If I had seen Elise for who she was and not the person I wanted her to be so I could hate her and ignore her, she might have stayed with me. From the moment I first met her, I’d felt a pull and I thought it was my soul trying to remind me of what happened the last time a rogue had been invited to t
My head ached as I squirmed in my bed. It was a similar feeling to what I felt when I had last drank so I thought I was just having another nasty hangover. The alcohol gave me horrible dreams too, worse than my previous ones, I couldn’t remember the last time I had a dream that didn’t turn out to be a nightmare.I dreamt that I was back in the New Moon pack, that they had found me and had thrown me into a cell. I could remember pleading, kicking and fighting. I remembered not being able to breathe as a weight slammed down on my neck.I curled up on my bed a little tighter and hugged myself, eyes still closed. Then I felt it, the sharp, metal cuffs cutting into my skin like a blade, and heard the sound of metal clanking together.Suddenly, I shot out of bed and looked towards my limbs, my stomach sinking as I saw that my wrists and ankles were wrapped in cold iron. I looked around me, realising that the nightmare wasn’t a nightmare at all, it was real.I noticed the sting of my throat
Frederick guided me out of the dungeons, but instead of going upwards and out of the Pack House, we went lower, down a cellar I hadn’t even realised was there. There was a square-shaped wooden door that had iron locks around it, but with a snap of his fingers, Frederick opened it and we descended.This place was a lot more secure than the dungeons and it frightened what he might have hidden down there, especially if magic was the only way to open it. “Where are we going?” I asked tentatively, reluctant to take another step down.Fredrick chuckled darkly as he turned around with a ruthless smile, “You’ll see.”I didn’t have much of a choice so I continued to follow him, knowing that if I tried to escape, Marcus would be just up the stairs waiting for me. I could try it, maybe I could get past him, but I doubted that it would be that easy.It felt like we were taking forever to walk down the steep narrow steps downwards, like we were headed straight for Hell. I didn’t ask Fredrick any
His wolf, gone forever.The words barely registered. Something like that couldn’t be possible. The wolves of shifters were sacred, they were a gift from The Moon Goddess that bonded us together, to let us know we always had a family and a home to go to, even if someone was a rogue.I was lucky enough to have found a family in the Full Moon pack without a wolf, but now Derek was practically human, barely surviving without his wolf.I never had a wolf to make me feel connected so I knew how cruel life could be without one, how weak and powerless we could be.But Derek didn’t know that. He’d always been so strong and fast, one of the best of Fredrick’s warriors and his family never went hungry. But now he was like me. No. He was worse. He’d never known life without his wolf and now a huge part of his soul had been ripped away from him.“Derek?” I whispered his name, looking for some kind of response from him, anything to show that he was still here with us.It was like he was trapped in
Jackson’s POVPoppy and the others who were injured during the attack were quickly moved to the infirmary whilst I gathered my council to make a plan. It was hard determining our next move and I hated when things like this were difficult because the lives of everyone in this pack were my responsibility. Christian, despite being injured, joined the meeting. He was not going to let ‘a few cuts and bruises’ keep him from doing his duties. As an alpha, I admired that about him, but as his friend, I thought he was a fucking idiot.“How did they get past our borders?” I growled and looked at the wolf who had taken over for Abel whilst he was being held in the dungeon, Becca.Becca had the courage not to look scared as she addressed me, “I’m sorry, Alpha, we don’t know. Their scents and movements were undetectable, even to myself. My warriors were kept on a strict routine because of the celebration. It was like they knew our moves and were able to hide their own.”I looked at Clarissa, “Is
Elise’s POVI tried to keep count of the time I was left down here with Derek. The most time I counted before I lost track because of Derek’s moaning and groaning was thirteen minutes and twenty-four seconds. The cold didn’t help as my skin covered itself with goosebumps and I shivered and my mind splintered between trying to count and think of ways to remain warm. I was half tempted to curl up like Derek and stare into nothingness too, but that would feel like I was giving up. I owed Derek more than that, I owed my family more than that. Fuck it, I owed myself more than that!So after feeling sorry for myself, I stood, feeling like that was the only bit of power I had left.“Hello?” I called out, wondering if anyone else from the cells would respond to me.If they did and were brave enough, maybe we could find a way to fight through this torment and get out of this together. “Hello?” I tried again, hearing only pained moans in response. Except for one voice.“It’s no use, their spir
Elise's POVHe dragged me into an infirmary-type room and plonked me on one of the beds. It was a small, thin bit of metal with a paper-thin mattress so worn and stained with blood and sweat and something else that I didn't want to think about. I could see the springs like they were veins on the skin. The springs dug against my body and I looked up at Fredrick in horror.What was he planning on doing to me here? It looked worse than the dungeon like a torture chamber made only so that Fredrick could patch his victims up and start all over again.I watched him carefully as he roamed around the room, and Melanie came closer and closer. Her fingertips glowed a cold blueish light as she smiled, her sadistic expression mirroring Fredrick’s as she stood in front of the bed.“Who’s protecting you, Elsie?” She asked darkly, the light in her hand beginning to fizzle and crack with each passing second.“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” I mumbled stiffly, knowing there was nowhere left
Fredrick's POV It wasn’t over. Not by a long shot.In that dungeon, trapped like a common animal I had time to think. And in that time I thought of all the ways I could make them suffer. Make Jackson, the puny brat who barely deserved the title alpha pay, and most of all make Elise suffer ten times over.I’d planned to play nice, it wouldn’t do if the other packs saw me abuse my luna, but now I had no choice. I still needed her, her visions of the future would help me take control of the world, but I only needed her alive, not comfortable.“Alpha Fredrick, Master Caius requests your presence,” One of the filthy thralls knocked at my door, daring to order me around.I flashed my canines at the servant, but he was too drained to flinch or show any kind of emotion.I stood without doing more to acknowledge the thrall as I left the private room Caius had designated for me. I think he meant to be insulting. I was an honoured guest yet I got a ‘spare’ room and was being ordered around by a
Elise's POVWe wasted no time hurrying to the dungeons, barely letting the warrior’s words sink in as we hurried into a run. I was a luna now, their luna, I didn’t have the privilege of time to be worried or scared because now I had people to protect.I barely felt myself breathe as I ran to the dungeons where Fredrick had last been held. We entrusted Christian with keeping the pack calm as we went to investigate.All the warriors were on guard and Jackson had given orders, “Secure the grounds and gather the trackers for footprints or anything we can use to find them!”When we saw the cells, they were still locked tightly, but the three of them had gone. There were no signs of struggle against the bars or the locks, no damage to the interior walls and the smell of wolfsbane was still thick in the cells.It was like they’d just vanished.I might've believed that too if it weren't for multiple guards passed out besides the three cells, not a mark on their body but looking pale and uncom
Elise’s POVMy heart was hammering as the rope was wrapped around our wrists and I couldn’t help but stare lovingly at my mate. He was looking at me the same way and I felt like crying.This was it. This was my family. This was my home.My first encounter with Jackson had been me rejecting a pack, and now I was accepting one.“Honoured guests,” Clarissa started, “We are gathered here today, not just to join two mates together for eternity, but to welcome Elise Clares into our pack as our Luna.”Cheers erupted from the crowd and I found myself checkling, a happy tear escaping from my eye. I saw Annabelle and Christian yelling the loudest with Doctor Heath holding his mate close to him and kissing her at the top of her head.“Do you, Alpha Jakson of the Full Moon pack accept Elise Clares as your destined mate?”“I do,” Jackson said without any hesitation as his grip on my hands tightened slightly, “From the moment I met you Elise, I felt something pulling me towards you. At first, I tho
Jackson's POVI took a deep breath feeling more nervous than I’d ever felt in my entire life. I was wearing a dark blue suit with a white rose pinned to my breast pocket, my hair styled and slicked back with The Alpha’s Crown placed securely on my head and my face cleanly shaven for once. Christian had said if I didn’t shave it he was going to strap me to a chair and do it himself. As much as I trusted my Beta, I didn't exactly want slices on my chin for my wedding day.I ran a hand over the smooth skin and tried to remember the last time I’d shaved it properly instead of trimmed, I'd always found the scruffy look made me look more intimidating and I was pretty sure Elise liked it. Oh well, I could grow it back. It seemed like I was trying to think of just about anything to pass the time as I waited fro Elise and tried not to fidget like an idiot.Christian was smirking next to me and I managed to subtly jab him in the ribs.I remembered making fun of him as he waited for Annabelle du
Elise’s POVFrom the second I woke up I was pampered by Clarissa and Annabelle who seemed to be more excited than me for the Luna Ceremony, which was saying a lot considering I was jittering with nerves and excitement. I never expected to accept this kind of arrangement so quickly but it just felt like the right thing to do. I wanted this ceremony to happen, I wanted to officially be Jackson’s mate for the world to see and be the Luna of this amazing pack that I now called family.Annabelle shoved me into a large bath filled with so many bubbles, salts and essential oils that I didn’t think the smell of lilies and roses would ever leave my skin.Then they pulled me into a chair as they dried and styled my hair for what seemed like hours, not in a negative way because the two of them made me laugh as we took photos and told funny stories. They curled my hair so it fell like a wave against my back before they braided and tied it so I looked like a blonde Celtic princess.The makeup came
Jackson's POVAfter we managed to get some kind of normalcy in the pack, there was still an air of stress and anxiety. We had multiple members of Fredrick’s pack join us and made sure we kept them far away from the dungeons and monitored them sufficiently just in case anyone tried to break Fredrick and the others out.“The guards and warriors won’t be too rough with them, will they?” Elise asked the last time I saw her, clutching my arm as she watched some of the refugees being directed to their houses looking terrified.I shook my head in assurance, “No, they have strict orders to treat them carefully unless they prove to be a threat, even then they are to take them down with as much force as is necessary and take them to the dungeon.”No one had seemed to try to convince any of my guards to let them pass into the dungeon or even look that way. Instead, they looked somewhat relieved to know that their former alpha was imprisoned there. Nor did they try to fight my pack. Elise was rig
Elise's POVIt was strange walking through the dungeon, free and in charge rather than as a prisoner. I’d been held captive twice in two different dungeons and had to admit that I wasn’t a fan. Maybe that was because I hadn’t deserved it, but neither had the people who got experimented on at Fredrick’s hand. I felt no sympathy or empathy for the ex-alpha as we reached his cell.There were five guards posted in the dungeons, two to watch Fredrick, two to watch Melanie and one to watch Poppy. They all seemed serious and offered Jackson, Christian and me a bow of respect before immediately resuming their posture and attention.As we rounded to Fredrick’s cell, I had to stop and stare.He looked terrible, not the large, imposing alpha who made everyone tremble at just the mention of his name. His clothes were dirty and ripped, his hair was a greasy mess and he looked like a feral animal. I never thought it was possible to see him looking so pathetic and powerless.I noticed the large amou
Elise's POVJackson asked if I wanted to move into the Pack House before the Luna Ceremony and I accepted. But before I could do that, I wanted to go back to the house I’d lived in when I first came to the pack. Before I could move into somewhere new, I wanted to say goodbye.I hadn’t lived in that house long, but it was the first thing that was mine and held a lot of memories like first connecting with Annabelle and Christian, the movie nights with Annabelle and just a general sense of safety and security.“I can go with you if you want,” Jackson offered when I first brought up the idea. “No, thank you,” I said softly, smiling at him, “I don’t have much to move… It’s just to say goodbye.”He didn’t argue or protest, he simply gave me a kiss on the cheek before I headed off.As I walked through the pack, I couldn’t help but reminisce how everything was different now. The first time I was newly out of chains and was being escorted to my new home by Christian. Everyone looked at me war
Elise's POV It was a question we’d all been dreading and I knew that it was partially my fault. If it wasn’t for me then Fredrick would be dead in the dirt and the packs would have one less thing to worry about. But he wasn’t dead and though I knew it was the right decision I also knew that a lot of the other wolves, both in the council room or not would find it difficult to understand.“With all due respect, Luna, would you mind explaining further as to why we can’t kill him?” Doctor Heath asked me, treating me like his luna already though we hadn’t had the ceremony yet. The others might have been saying it out of respect but I knew that Doctor Heath had meant it. He had been one of my first friends when I came here and he'd helped me through so much that I could never thank him enough for it.“I know it’s hard to believe, but a long time ago my family were blessed by The Moon Goddess.”I paused, waiting for some kind of negative reaction. Encountering The Moon Goddess was rare and