...Darius POV...I was so frustrated. I didn't even know what to do or where to go. The moment I left Wynter's room, I ran outside and changed into my wolf form. I didn't care about my clothes and rather ran deep into the forest. Both Asher and I were on edge. It felt like we singlehandedly betrayed our mate. I know she says it's not my fault. But that doesn't stop me from blaming myself. I was weak. I didn't protect her. I should've tried harder. I should've...I cut myself off as I slump down onto the forest floor. I change out of my wolf form and begin to chuck rocks over the cliff. I'm furious. The past twelve hours begin to swarm my mind. I can't believe I marked and mated another wolf that wasn't my mate. I've waited for years for my mate. Then when I find her, I find out that Catherine isn't my true mate. Catherine had somehow manipulated me into believing that she was my mate. Which makes me wonder. 'How did she get away with it? How did she manage to make me believe that sh
...Wynter POV...Shortly after Kenji left, Charlie came back into the room to check up on me."How's my princess doing?" He asks."I've been better." I say, causing Charlie to laugh. He walks closer to me and checks all of my vitals while also performing other tests on me."Everything looks good." He says."Good enough to leave?" I ask, making his eyes grow wide."What?""You heard me. I know that you know he's my mate. But I can't stay.""But I thought.." He begins; however, I cut him off."If our circumstances were different, then there would be nothing I wouldn't do to stay here. But we both know that I can't. I can't risk putting his life at risk.""Do you really think he'll just let you leave?""He doesn't have the choice. It's a decision I have to make for the both of us." I say, looking away. I can feel my eyes prick with tears with the thought of having to leave him once again.I thought that it would get easier over time, but it only seems to be getting more difficult."I un
...Darius POV...Kenji was right. I needed to stay focused. It was going to be hard, especially after finding out about Wynter, but I needed to keep up the act. I was still unsure of why they had such a need for secrecy. While I got some of my memories back, I can't help but think that I'm missing something. I just don't understand why Wynter would even feel the need to compel me? Not only that, but why did she feel she had no other choice?I was so confused, but Kenji had promised me answers. Answers to my burning questions. In my anger, I had shredded my clothes when I had suddenly transformed into my wolf. Which meant that I needed some extra clothes. While we may be werewolves, and nudity isn't as big of a deal in comparison to humans, there's also a time and place for it. Having an in-depth conversation with your mate about our history together, certainly wasn't the time nor place. Which is why I was heading back to the pack to get some more clothes. Kenji had only brought cloth
...Kenji POV...Was I proud of what I did? Of course not. I hated the idea. But I knew I had no other choice. We had hoped that we had more time. But Darius got back to the clinic much faster than we had anticipated. It took us an hour to get there, and it should've taken him just as long to return. But somehow he had made it to the packhouse and back in under two hours. I had severely miscalculated his need to be with his mate. Before we left, we had come up with backup plans should Darius manage to catch up to us. Which is why I went with Charlie and Wynter. By going with them, I had hoped that I could somehow stall him. Preventing him from getting to her on time.A large part of me wanted no part in this. I wanted my best friend to be happy. Darius had only been with Wynter for a few minutes, and already I could see a change in him. He was happy. Something I didn't want to take away from him. But fate seem to have another idea.Charlie had given me a vial of wolfsbane mixed with s
...Wynter POV...I didn't anticipate that Darius would manage to track me so fast. We thought for sure we would be safely in the air by the time Darius had made it back to the clinic. I was impressed with Darius, while also saddened knowing what Kenji would now have to do. It took everything in me to keep Caedance from taking over. She didn't like knowing that we were not only hurting our mate, but keeping him away from us. I could feel her longing for him.Ever since we've been marked, I can feel his emotions as well. I can feel his hurt and pain as if it was my own. It nearly crushed me when Kenji had to inject him with the wolfsbane. But there was no other option. I could feel the strong emotions coming off of Darius, and knew his wolf was in control. There was nothing that could be said to a wolf once they were that far gone. They would do everything to get to their target. Nothing and no one would get in their way. Which is why our only safe option was to subdue him.I close my e
I pull away from my mom when something she says begins to replay in my mind. "Did you say Xander?" I ask."Yes, why do you ask?""What pack was he the Alpha for?" I ask, as my mind begins to swim connecting the mental dots."Well, he wasn't the actual Alpha at the time.." She says."But for which pack?" I ask."Blood Moon. But why does that matter?""NO!" I scream out, not realizing I just yelled that in front of my mother.I step away from the bed, as everything begins to snap into place."Wynter? What's going on?" She asks, concerned."It can't be." I say, verbally vomiting."Can't be what, dear?" My mom, asks visibly concerned."Darius is Xander's son." I state."Who's Darius?""My mate.""But why does that even matter?""Alpha Xander is the one threatening me to stay away from Darius. He's even threatened to kill Darius!" I shout, as panic fills me.My mom's eyes grow wide in recognition. Everything seems to be snapping into place for her as well.My mom stands up, attempting to
...Darius POV...One minute everything was good, the next moment, I see a look on her face. Her face morphed from a look of peace and longing to a look of fear and sadness. Before I could do anything, she ran away from me. I was too surprised to react at first, but when I finally realized what was happening, I chased after her."Wynter!" I yelled, chasing after her. I didn't realize she was so fast. I had to use all of my power to catch up to her. I tapped into my wolf, something I had never tried before. I could feel Asher blend with me. We were no longer two separate entities, rather one being. 'Asher, how are you doing this?' I ask my wolf.'I don't know. It's instinctual.' He replies."Wynter! Please stop!" I call out to her.I can feel my instincts wanting to change into my wolf form. I push my instincts to the side in fear of scaring her. Instead, using everything in me to catch up to her. We continue to dodge around trees and ducking under low branches. Suddenly realization d
Wynter simply nods her head, this time not filtering any of her memories. I watch horrified as I see my father threaten Wynter beyond recognition. I fall to my knees seeing everything she's gone through. The pain, the loss, the heartbreak. I can feel it all. I don't think she meant to, but I saw what happened to her when I first found out that Catherine was my mate. The pain and anguish I put her through. All the times Catherine and I were intimate with each other, caused her unbelievable pain. I can't believe I did this to my own mate. I feel completely shattered. Suddenly the images stop, and when they do, I notice that Wynter is nowhere to be found.I stand up, needing to find her. I sniff the air, tracking her scent. I don't think she's gone far, her scent is still fresh. I begin to wander through the woods making my way to her. After passing a clearing, I notice her sitting by the lake. She's sitting along the waterside, curled up into a ball.I slowly make my way to her. She
...BONUS CHAPTER......10 Years Later......Wynter POV...A lot has happened in such a short amount of time. Not long after the merger of our two packs, did more requests come. Alphas far and wide were coming to us in hopes of merging our packs. What had begun as an alliance designed to help strengthen the packs, soon became to act as a Peace Treaty. Each pack we aligned with, were given the same conditions as Crescent Moon. The ranking members would remain in power, so long as they came to myself or Darius for any critical decisions. We had merged with so many packs, that we were no longer separate packs, but one happy kingdom. One of my more recent projects was to create a city devoted to the rehabilitation of rogues. Those that had been rogue would now have the opportunity to reenter pack life once they were deemed to not be a threat. Many of which had already successfully made the transition. Given our extensive reach, we were more easily able to help those in need. We now had en
...Wynter POV...After a lengthy discussion we all came to the unanimous decision to merge with the Crescent Moon Pack. Everyone had very valid concerns for not merging with them, however, I knew Alpha Landon's pleas were genuine. He was only coming to us as it was his only option. Without a merge, his pack could be killed. A fate no Alpha would ever want for their pack. The five of us decided to go over a sort of job description if you will, for Alpha Landon. He would be a valuable resource, but at the same time we couldn't afford to give him too much power. In order to successfully merge the two packs, there had to be one concise leadership. If others felt that they could turn to Alpha Landon for their problems, it could risk a mutiny.So while Alpha Landon would have power, he would have to go through either myself or Darius to make critical decisions. It was the only safe way to merge the packs, while also allowing Alpha Landon a position as well.Before informing Alpha Landon of
...Darius POV...After Wynter and I had finished, we quickly showered and got ourselves ready to meet with Alpha Landon. I was confused as to why he suddenly showed up. But decided not to look too much into it until I had a chance to hear him out.Wynter stayed by my side as we entered my office. Alpha Landon was seated in the chair in front of my desk. However, he stood as Wynter and I entered my office. "Alpha. Luna." Alpha Landon addressed us, bowing slightly.I had walked over to my chair behind my desk. Wynter dutifully followed, and planned on standing behind me. However, Wynter was my Luna and my equal. Whatever Alpha Landon had planned on talking to me about, now involved Wynter. She had just as much say as what happened in this pack as I did. Which meant that I wanted her to be treated as an equal. I reached over to her, and guided her to sit on my lap. I smiled as Wynter quickly obliged my unasked command, and sat on my lap. I kissed the side of her cheek before turning to
...Darius POV...I awoke to the sounds of birds chirping. I could hear a faint heartbeat nearby and felt an incredible warmth. I opened my eyes to see Wynter lying on top of me. Memories of early this morning began to swim in my mind. I kissed the top of Wynter's head, careful not to move her. She's been running at full tilt ever since she woke up from the hospital. We had nothing pressing that needed to be taken care of, so I decided to just lay here and watch her sleep. I smiled as I remembered our lovemaking from earlier. The feeling was so euphoric. We had both longed for this moment in so long, that it felt like we would never get it. Now that we had the chance, I never wanted this moment to end. Without even trying, Wynter made me the happiest man in the world last night. I began to daydream of our future together. Of Wynter chasing around our pups, as I watched from behind. I pictured myself training our son to fight and to become the next alpha. I pictured Wynter running to t
...Wynter POV...As Darius and I continued to run through the woods, I could feel Caedance grow stronger. It was almost as if we were feeding off of our surroundings. The rush was making us stronger. For the first time, I felt truly in control. I had the sudden urge to test my abilities. So far, Darius had managed to not only keep up with me, but he even managed to run past me. I was both stunned and proud. I wanted to perform a few tests of my own. Caedance had given me some suggestions, and I had wanted to see if they would work. Caedance had suggested we try to hide from Asher to see if he would be able to find us. Much to my surprise, he managed to find me each time. Typically when I would try to hide, I would attempt to cloak myself using a mixture of camouflage, similar to a chameleon. I would focus on my surroundings and soon found myself becoming invisible. I had to hide my scent from him as well, which was probably the most difficult task. Each time I had done it, Darius had
...Darius POV...The air in the room had gone serious as Wynter announced her suspicions. While Wynter and I hadn't had the chance to properly discuss what had happened, we were both suspicious of the outcome. People don't just come back to the dead without being changed. I also can't deny the change I felt inside of me. I had long suspected that I'd been changed, I just wasn't sure exactly how. I already felt far stronger than I already had been. To the point that I often found myself having to dial back my strength. I also felt far faster than I had been. It was as if all of my senses had been heightened. I could now see far better along with smell things from a large distance. I had gone for a run the night I had first woken up after the battle. I had a strong sense of restlessness. The urge to get out quickly became the only thing I could focus on. It was as if my entire body had been electrocuted. Every fibre in my being needed me to go on a run. To get out.I began to have flas
I felt uneasy as we made our way back to Darius' office. I could tell that Darius sensed that something was bothering me, but refrained from asking me. There was just one thing that I couldn't seem to forget. Once we made it back to the office, we all quickly resumed our positions. Darius sitting beside me, placing a hand on my knee as a sign of comfort. I found myself biting my lip as I continued to chew over the thoughts plaguing my mind.I looked over towards Kenji, waiting for him to restart the meeting. Kenji stood up, but didn't start the meeting right away. My anxiety started to run full-course. Before I knew it, I found myself speaking out."What does this mean for us?" I watched as all heads turned to me. Waiting for me to continue."What do you mean my child?" The oracle asks.I find myself nervously biting my lip. I look at Darius for support. I watch as Darius nods his head for me to continue."Xander had told me that if Darius and I completed our mate bond, that it wo
...Wynter POV..."Upon the seven daughters of the seven daughters, the completed ritual shall activate the rise of the true king. While lightning strikes twice, a proposal shall mark the age of love and become the fall of unholy ones. It shall be when fire burns red, the forgotten princesses face, will trigger the return of the resistance. Once the green sea swallows towns, a challenge shall mark the start of war and witness the return of the fallen. Those in power will bend to one knee, bowing before the lost queen.""So what does that actually mean?" Darius asks."It basically means that one the descendent of the Kazakh wolves finds her true mate. The true king will come about. A moment in time, born out of love, will result in the downfall of the ones unloyal to the couple.""But what about the princess triggering the return of existence?" I ask."Wasn't that when Xander first realized or at least suspected your origins? He constantly tried to keep you away from me." Darius remarks
...Darius POV...I was quite possibly the happiest man on earth. The love of my life just said yes to marrying me. She may have already said yes to me once before. But I didn't think it really counted. The first time I hadn't planned on asking her, but I thought there was no better time to do it. I had just shown her how I truly felt about her. No other moment would ever be as special. Even though we were mates, I didn't know for certain if she was going to say yes or not. A proposal isn't ruly a proposal if there isn't a ring. Something I had kicked myself for not having at the time. But it was just so spur-of-the-moment, that I had even surprised myself. While this may not have been the ideal proposal, at least I had a ring for her. I know it would never make a difference to her, but I felt she deserved the best. I wanted to show her how special she was to me. I would make up for my sporadic proposal later this evening. When Wynter was in the hospital, I was continuously plagued by