ISABELLA The houses passed me like rolling film until I realized I was at the mall. I made my way inside and followed the stupid sounds of girlish laughter. I hated that someone was happy. I didn’t want anyone to be happy, but I had to face it. I didn’t want to hear my mother’s mouth about my mood dampening their day. Before entering the shop, I had to fix my face. Pretend everything was fine. I didn’t want to get a third degree. I didn’t want anyone to ask me anything. I would be fine if I could get through this with a nod. I walked in, and Alaia was showcasing a white dress. It was a delicate patterned lace layered on lovely creamy-colored silk. The bodice was adorned with pearls, and the bottom flared out triangularly. Alaia turned in the mirror, and I saw the cut-out displaying her nice, blemish-free back. I was impressed by how beautiful she looked, like an angel, and the dress was perfect. “And then we’ll have your hair up in this fashion and accessories with some long
ZIRA After leaving the little rendezvous with Zack, I continued my search for my necklace. I checked everywhere within fifteen miles of the packhouse. I was sure I left it somewhere close by. I spent hours searching until I gave up. What was I going to tell Isabella? “She’s going to hate me!” I yelled to no one in particular. “I’m not a good friend.” “Stop with that. You’re not improving my mood,” Nina sighed. “What’s going on with you, Nina? You’ve been acting strange since we caught Isaiah watching us in the woods.” “Why was he watching us? Probably thinks we’re going to claw off his mate’s pretty face,” Nina growled, baring her teeth as a mental picture of her clawing Alaia’s face flashed in my mind. “You know, Nina. You have an anger issue. Maybe some training can help with that,” I suggested when I noticed my nails lengthening from Nina’s anger. Nina huffed at me before disappearing into my mind. I guess training was out of the question today. That’s fine with me
ZIRA “There’s someone in my room, and I can’t pick up their scent,” I linked to my dad. He was by my side within a flash with my brother on his tail. My hand was still on the knob. I took a deep breath and prepared myself as I opened my door. My brother and dad burst in before me and pounced on the person trying to leave through the window. Suddenly, her scent was a bit more prominent. “Stop, guys,” I said, pushing my dad and brother off Isabella. “It’s just Isabella. See?” They moved back as I watched my mom’s frame fill the doorway with a knife in her hands. I guess last night really did a number of them, too. I helped Isabella off the floor and gasped at her appearance. My dad turned around, but my brother stared at her with his mouth open. Isabella stood tall with nothing but a white bra and matching panties. She didn’t attempt to cover herself, so I grabbed the nearest thing, my comforter, and covered her. “Sorry, I was trying to hide, but your closet is a mess,” Isabel
ZIRA My mom looked at me. “Let’s be delicate about how we approach this,” my mom said. “So, you...told her?” I hesitantly asked, ensuring I understood her correctly. Isabella shook her head. She told us what happened at the bridal shop and how Alaia mentioned her “connection” with Victoria. When her mom questioned her, Isabella panicked and ran. I waited a minute to digest everything, but my mind kept repeating the same thing. They were picking out dresses for Alaia, Isaiah’s mate, for the mating ceremony that was in two weeks. Two weeks! The mating ceremony was equivalent to a wedding. Mates are joined together in the eyes of the pack and the Moon Goddess. Isaiah just met this girl, and they’re already having a ceremony. I guess the mate bond is strong enough to turn people you thought cared and respected you into a total dick. I felt like I had just been slapped in the face. Again! “Zira!” My mom ran to my bathroom and came out with my medical kit. I looked down at my ha
ALAIA After Isabella left, Luna Bella wasn’t in the mood to keep shopping. I tried to comfort her, but we all returned to the packhouse. Fortunately, I thought the trip wasn’t a bust as I admired the dress we picked for the mating ceremony. Mating ceremony. I couldn’t believe I was here. Granted, it wasn’t the person I would have loved to be mated to, but Isaiah was definitely close. He was tall, handsome, and charismatic. He had the body of an Adonis, soft, curly black hair, and his eyes... His gray, stormy eyes were to die for. He was the complete opposite of my James. They were both tall and handsome, but James was ginger with green eyes and freckles. It was weird thinking of James while lying on my mate’s bed. Yet, after all this time, my love for him never faltered. My thoughts returned to when James and I hung out in my pack before Maria was his mate. No matter how crappy my day was, he always found a way to make me feel better. Whether with a joke or a snack he stole from
ALAIA The air was thick with tension, fueled by a deal gone wrong and, most likely, the copious amount of alcohol I scented on the breath of the guard holding me. Our eyes didn't leave each other, and for a split second, I tensed up before taking a controlled breath through my nostrils. "How dare you show your face here, witch," he growled in my face. I responded with a blank face and placed one of my hands on his chest. "You have three seconds to let me go before I rip your heart from your chest and nail it to the wall. One..." I dug my nails into his shirt as his hand tightened just a bit around my throat. "...two..." I was hoping my little threat was enough for him to release me. Honestly, I could do what I said, but that would use up too much of my power, and it would be a total waste. A slight glow radiated from my necklace, and I could feel the guard's resolve shaking, but it wasn't enough. "Let her go," I could hear Nas say behind the guard. The guard growled at me bef
THIRD PERSON VIEW Zelda, Zira, Isabella, and Luna Bella sat in the living room as an uncomfortable silence filled the air. Isabella and Luna Bella avoided eye contact while Zelda looked at her daughter, Zira, to do something. Zira looked at her mom and mouthed, “What?” “I don’t know, something,” Zelda mouthed back. Zira sat there trying to think of something to say, but nothing presented itself but one. Luna Bella was scary when she was pissed, and Zira knew the slightest mistake could set her off. So, what she said next was crucial. “So,” Zira started putting on her best smile, “a lot has happened in the past twenty-four hours, right? I survived a rogue attack. Isaiah found his mate. Isabella’s mate is a girl. This should be a celebration of all celebrations, am I right?” Zelda face-palmed herself while Luna Bella and Isabella looked at Zira like she was crazy. This is what happens when you leave it up to your daughter. Zelda thought. Yup, that’s my best friend. Ru
ISAIAH I’ve been standing near this door for five minutes now. What the hell was wrong with me? I’m an Alpha. I shouldn’t have been this nervous about coming here. I wanted to give Zira the time she wanted, but I knew my mother was here. Her car was parked right out front, which meant Isabella was there too. Besides, I can smell their scents, along with hers. Zira. So, they’re okay, and I can wait until they return to the packhouse. I started to leave when I felt anger coming through the door. I should intervene. To help out. “Can you make up your mind? The faster we do this, the faster we can get back to Alaia,” Devon growled. “Obsessed much,” I teased him. “Yes, and you should be too. She is alone, and we’re chasing tail.” “I’m not here for Zira!” I snapped back. “Sure, whatever you want to say to yourself. It’s not like we share a mind,” Devon said sarcastically. Ignoring Devon’s comment, I knocked on the door. I waited, and no one answered. I was about to knock aga
ISAIAH Water splashed on my face for the hundredth time as my son’s laughter filled the bathroom. I looked down at Arias, who apparently got a kick from throwing soap in my face. Each time seemed to make Arias laugh more. “Arias, we’ve been in here for twenty minutes. You have to let me wash you,” I said, trying to grab him, but Arias slipped out of reach. “That’s it. I’m coming in.” Arias shrieked, trying to get away from me. I couldn’t help but laugh. Who knew bath time could be this fun? After another ten minutes or so, I was able to thoroughly wash and dress Arias for bed. I laid Arias down in his crib and grabbed a book to read from the bookshelf. Arias climbed out of his crib and
ZIRAI stretched and yawned as the light from the window crept across my face. I reached across my bed and realized it was empty. I instantly sat up. Panic starting to set in. I looked around the room for him, and it was empty.I was on my way to get out of bed when the door to my bathroom opened. James walked out and noticed my panicked face. He cocked an eyebrow, with a smile playing across his face.“What?”“I thought,” I said, trying to catch my breath. “I thought you were gone.”James laughed. “Where would I go?” James asked sarcastically. “You barely let me pee without hovering over me. And that snoring-”
ZACKAfter Alaia’s death, getting things back together slowly improved as the days passed. I took her body back to my pack to have a proper burial. Mirja didn’t think she deserved it. She wanted to burn the body, but I stopped before she could.True, Alaia was evil, and I knew that. However, she was still my sister, and I felt partially responsible for everything that had happened. So, I brought her home and buried her next to our parents. She was their problem.After that matter was settled, our days were filled with rebuilding the Blue Moon Pack. With the help of Alpha Isaiah and Alpha Fiona, we were now working at a ninety percent capacity. Most of the houses were rebuilt, and Bronx proved to be a responsible Beta. George and Harry came around more often. Harry was obsessed with Mirja’s knowledge of
ISABELLA"No, no, no!"Luna Bella's screaming filled the entire hospital room and down the hall. She sat in bed, holding her hands out in front of her while Victoria stood in front of her. Victoria sighed, holding a teacup of medicine in her hands."Luna Bella, you have to drink this to get better," Victoria said to her, clearly frustrated. "Are we seriously going to go through this every morning?""Are you seriously going to force me to drink that crap," Luna Bella growled at her.Hitting the breaking point, Victoria growled back. "Drink it!"Luna Bella leaned back with a shocked expression before glaring at Isabella, who sat back, watching everything unfold.
THIRD POV After her little laughing fit, Alaia turned her attention back to Mirja, who was trying to claw her way out of Alaia’s grip. Alaia could see her brother stalking back and forth beyond her little shield, looking just as helpless as his little mate. “You know,” Alaia started with a malicious smirk, “it tickled me when I found out you were my brother’s mate. All this time, I couldn’t figure out why you always dismissed my plans of wanting to kill him. Subconsciously, you were always on his side. You just didn’t know why. So now I’m going to enjoy killing you while he watches.” Alaia tightened the hold around Mirja’s neck as Mirja gasped for air. Alaia was so wrapped up in her fury to kill that she didn’t notice anyone entering her space until the last moment. She whipped around and came face to face with James. 
THIRD POVAlaia blocked another attack from Deacon as he pushed her away from Arias and Zira. From the corner of his eyes, he could see Zira finally getting up and assessing the situation.Alaia looked around, confused. James’ wolf, Deacon, was attacking her, but she could clearly see James’s body in the hall. Unfortunately, her mind was so clouded that she couldn’t figure out who was real. Besides, this wolf was moving too fast for her to focus on attacking.This…this wolf had to be an imposter or some sort of trick. She thought.Deacon kept attacking her, pushing her back, and she could feel herself getting weaker, or maybe it was tiredness. She watched Deacon stand between her and Arias. The one whos
THIRD POV It took a moment for Zira to realize she was being carried. Then, she looked up and saw James, who noticed she was awake. “You...you rejected me,” Zira said softly, and it tugged at James’s heart. “James would not reject you, Zi. I can tell he loves you,” James said to her. Zira looked at him, confused. “You’ve never called me Zi before, and why are you speaking in the third person?” “I’ll explain when I get you as far away from here as possible,” James said as he proceeded down the long hallway. They descended a few hallways before Zira squirmed out of James’ hold. “No,” Zira screamed. “I have to get Arias. I have to find him.”
THIRD POVThe sounds like that of beating drums echoed throughout the woods as werewolves collided with each other. More rogues descended upon them as they tried to hold the line. Deacon maneuvered as best as he could, taking down a rogue every step of the way, but they seemed to be multiplying. He did his best to concentrate, but he felt pain spiral throughout his body occasionally.Zira. He had to get to her, but there were too many obstacles.“Portals are open,” George linked him.Deacon immediately started running towards George when a rogue jumped right before him. Maybe it was because he was only a few minutes away from her, but he felt a new kind of energy surge through him.
THIRD POVMary gripped the bottle behind her back as the rogues glared at her. She tried controlling her fear as she approached them, but it slowly took over as she felt her legs shaking slightly. She was still just an Omega with meager fighting skills.“No one should be in this area,” growled the she-wolf as she gave Mary a once-over, noticing the shaking. “Why are you here?”“Luna Alaia,” Mary squeaked out before clearing her throat and failing to stand tall. “I’m here at Luna Alaia’s request. She wants me to check on the baby.”Mary tried to step through them, but the she-wolf held her back. Mary was able to get close enough to spray the pheromones on the she-wolf.