ISABELLA
While my brother angrily watched Zira dance with Hunter. I left and went to his room to look for Victoria. It was empty. Where the hell is she? I angrily walked back to the party, and then it hit me. Like times before, the smell of sweet pea and vanilla invaded my nose.
"Mate is near," my werewolf Jas purred. &nbs
ISABELLAI stared at Victoria with my mouth slightly open. "Victoria...""This is my home now, Bella, and I don’t want to run away again," Victoria said as she approached me and grabbed my hands. "We don’t have to run away."
ZIRA This felt like a dream. I had dreams like this before. Usually, I’m in the woods surrounded by the smell of pine and oak or on the beach listening to the sound of the waves. Then he would appear and pull me into a hot, steamy embrace. Then fireworks and a happy ending. I was sitting on a soft California king-sized bed surrounded by a sheer black canopy this time. That’s when I saw him walk out of the bathroom. Isaiah. There was so much steam covering him that, for a second, I thought it was coming out of his skin. I watched him walk over towards another door. Maybe a closet. He had nothing but a towel around his waist, leaving very little to the imagination. I could feel the lump in my throat as the scent of cinnamon and pine tickled my nose. Then it disappeared as quickly as it came. My heart raced so fast I thought it would jump out of my chest. I wondered if he could hear it. Could he feel my eyes preying on his body as he moved across t
ISAIAH I felt a headache throbbing against my head. Then, slowly, I opened my eyes and saw a blur run out of my room. Who the hell was that, I wondered as I looked around and noticed I was lying a few feet away from my bed. Naked. How the hell did I end up on the floor? I took a minute to stabilize myself before slowly getting up off the floor. "Not our mate. You should be ashamed," Devon growled. "Yeah, well, where were you last night? I didn’t hear you stopping me then," I snapped back. He growled at me inside my mind and disappeared. Good, I didn’t need his mouth right now. There was a knock on the door, and with each one, my head felt like it would split. "Breakfast is ready, sweetie. Come downstairs," my mother yelled. I dragged myself to the bathroom and showered as I tried to remember the events from last night. The last thing I remembered was going to my room and showering. Then there was a girl waiting for me on my bed. I returned to my messy be
ZIRA It’s official. I’m a COWARD! It’s been a week since the party, and I avoided Isaiah the entire time. I never got my papers, so now I’m stuck here like an idiot. I was never going to be able to leave, which my mom was happy about. Isabella could tell I didn’t want to discuss it, so we filled our time with her upcoming nuptials and ways to kill her mom. Yeah, she can be crazy. While building the courage to get my papers, I continued training in the woods. It was one way to work through stressful times and escape my problems. Most hunters use the bushes or trees to hide, but I like to use the trees. It gave the best advantage, and no one ever looked up. I was lounging in the tree near my favorite place in the entire territory. A small brook ran off a cliff into a large river below. It ran along the land bordering four pack territories with trees as far as the eye can see. I was lost in thought when I heard rustling nearby. Instantly I went into a defensive stance, w
ISAIAH Three weeks later I left the bathroom and noticed Zira sitting on my bed on her phone. Immediately, the memories of our passionate night came flooding my mind. Not right now, not right now. I focused on controlling my urges as I prepared for this arrangement with Alpha Zack. There were a few details about this marriage arrangement we had to iron out before signing this little treaty between packs. After some studying, I knew he needed this more than we did. Recently, his pack has been subjected to frequent attacks. With our help, we could make it non-existent. Thanks to my dad, my warriors were thirsty for some action. I rushed to my closet before she had a chance to look up and put on some boxers and a tank top. She smiled when I walked to the bed to get my jeans. "I think I finally convinced your diabolical sister not to poison your mom’s tea," Zira said, standing up. "Yeah, is that all she was planning to do," I asked, knowing my sister had a plan b an
ZIRA After the moment on the cliff, we were almost inseparable. Well, as much as we could be between his Alpha duties and my training. For the first time, I understood what a mate’s bond could feel like. Even far away, I could close my eyes and feel him. And if, by magic, he would send me a cute text saying he’s thinking of me. Occasionally, we would find ways to meet at our cliff for a long-awaited make-out session befor
ISAIAH The moment she kissed me, nothing else seemed to matter. Everything felt right in place. No one existed in the room but us. I pulled her closer to deepen the kiss. I wanted as much of her as I could get. "Ahem," my mother interrupted loudly. "Well, isn’t this a twist of events?"
ISABELLA My mother glared at me as I ran from the table. Knowing her, she wouldn’t mind if I followed through with Alpha Zack’s proposal so she could plan a weird double wedding. Just the thought makes me sick. I headed to my room to get my phone and bumped into Victoria. She was coming from my room with a box in her hands. Her face was stained with old tears, and her eyes were full of new ones. Jas whimpered in the back of my mind. I knew she missed Victoria’s werewolf, Rae, as much as I missed Victoria. She finally noticed I was staring, and she quickly wiped her face. "Picking up the last of my stuff," she said with an attitude. Even her angry face was cute to me. "I’ll get out of your way and let you plan your wedding." She picked up the box and went for the door, but I blocked the way with my arm. "You don’t have to leave, Vicky," I said, running my hand down her arm. Inviting those sparks I had longed for, for weeks. "I’m not getting married anymore." She looke
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.