“Ah, I needed that,” I sighed, lying on my back on the ground after tossing Estel like a sack of potatoes over my shoulder. She was still winded, panting to catch her breath. She got the best of me a few times too. Lenny, like the overprotective babysitter he is, even went to step in once when Estel surprised me by kicking my feet out from under me and slamming her elbow into my stomach. It hurt like a bitch, but I waved him off. After about the fifth time of waving him off, he stopped trying to intervene. “You needed to kick my ass? Jeez, thanks,” Estel struggled to sit up. I laughed, shaking my head. “No. I needed someone that wasn’t going to be polite to me. Even big brother over there treats me like glass most of the time.” I pointed my thumb at Lenny, watching from a good distance away beside the warrior building. There were others loitering around now too, including Mick and Miles, but they were far away enough not to hear us talking. “I don’t know why,” Estel groaned, rubbi
I tapped my feet nervously on the ground as the silence between Mick and I stretched and I worried about why I was there. “I’m not going to punch you again,” Mick smirked, and just like that, those old feelings of annoyance towards him rose up inside of me. “Like I would fucking let you, asshole,” I growled. I winced, regretting the words as soon as they slipped out. I knew after what everyone told me that Mick was a big reason why I was saved. He stood up for me when his brother was on the verge of writing me off because of distrust. Mick called me family, according to everyone else, and I just called him an asshole. Mick didn’t look offended, to my relief. He just scoffed and smirked softly, sitting back in his chair and folding his hands in his lap. “That’s more like it. I thought you had lost all your fight. The douche gene disappeared with your balls at that resort.” “You wish,” I huffed. “I got bigger balls than you have ever had. What the hell did you call me here for? To
Mick looked at me for a long time, his eyes penetrating mine like he was searching for something. The concern on his face was evident, and made me feel like an ass for the strong refusal to join the pack. He probably just thought I was angry that he asked. I took a deep breath, making sure the headache of Alpha Ford’s command wouldn’t hurt me, then said, “I’m sorry, but I think I need more time.” Mick smiled tightly and nodded after another couple of seconds. “I understand. No problem. Take all the time you need.” “Thanks.” There was a soft knock on the door, and when I turned to see who it was, Sirius started growling right away. It was her. The redhead that was just plaguing my thoughts. Estel. She was standing beside Chloe, a pensive look on her face. “Hey, cara mia,” Mick said brightly. “Is it time for lunch already?” “Yep,” Chloe same right in, walking around the desk to fall into his lap. She seemed too cheerful, hanging off him like I wasn't even there. “It’s time for yo
Rodger POVMy head was pounding. Cold coffee has been fueling me for the past few days as I sat in that disgusting room in the basement of the hotel, trying to make sense of the writings on the wall.“Here, boss,” Kai sat down a steaming cup of green tea in front of me. He cut off my coffee consumption for the day, but I needed something. Decaf green tea will have to work for now.“Thanks, Kai.”“Yup,” he stretched the back of his head, looking over the texts in the books I was studying. “Have you gotten any further?”“Not much,” I sighed. “These writings are not something I can just look up on Google. Scholars study for decades to even gain a minor understanding of what they could mean.”“So you have no idea what any of the writing on the walls says?”I pointed to a group of pictures that looked like stairs, random oval-like shapes, and then a human-like figure. “This is a symbol for a type of goddess. It appears the most together, so it was easier to find references too, but everyth
I continued scanning through all the hieroglyphics in different languages for all the different goddesses of ancient times, until my eyes landed on one. The symbols beside it were close to the ones written on the walls, but so were many of the others. That wasn’t what stood out to me. It was an ancient statue beside the text of a voluptuous woman holding a staff that was in the shape of a snake. The caption of the picture read, ‘THE GREAT GODDESS AND HER STAFF OF REGENERATION’.“Look at this,” I called Kai over, and his eyes widened as he read the lines under the picture too."Is that what I think it is on her cane?""A snake? I think it is. Look at the top where she is holding it." The handle was definitely a snake's head, with a pair of eyes that seemed haunted even in statue form. The snake's head was a stark contrast to the statue's beauty. It really stood out.“Mr. Smith had a cane shaped like a snake,” he whispered. “Estel even mentioned it. She said something was off about it.”
Laura POV“Hmm,” the tip of Mr. Smith's cane tapped lightly on the floor as he twirled it back and forth in his hands. His eyes were glowing eerily, the dark of his irises taking over all of his whites. “Seems we are running out of time,” he murmured, staring blankly out the dirty window.He called Jasper and I here, the only semblance of a house in the camp we're hiding at in the woods far from the pack. I was already upset at having to sleep in a tent like a rat for the past week. Now, it's like he is showing off that he's in the seat of power in the house, flaunting it to me. I haven't even washed my hair with real shampoo and deep conditioner in days, but he still looks clean and well-groomed."Running out of time for what, sir?" Jasper asked.Mr. Smith smirked. I could see his reflection in the glass of the window. "It's time to hold up to your end of the deal. Use your new mate to bring me the girl. Command him now."That sour taste of irritation burned my throat with the urge
Boyd POV “Do it,” the deep voice commanded me again. “You have until sundown. I’ll be waiting.” Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. I rolled over in my bed, grasping my head between my hands. I was squeezing so tight, I knew I would have bruises, but I didn’t care. I was fighting this command. I won’t follow through. I can’t. But at the same time, I can’t refuse. All morning, since before I even opened my eyes, their voices have been plaguing my every thought. It’s gone from Laura's shrill demanding screeching to Alpha Ford’s hostile commands emanating from inside my mind, driving me to madness with the need to comply. My will was on the cusp of breaking, but the consequences of obeying them would be too great. It is a price I would never willingly pay for anything. Even when I hated Mick and despised coming to this pack, I never would have put Chloe’s life on the line or sacrificed her to anyone. Not to them, and definitely not to that monster they serve. Sirius was snarling inside of m
“Estel,” I whispered, being the first to break the tense silence. Mick put his hand over mine, and I could feel his hesitation. Not one outside of us three knew of Estel’s bond to Boyd. I couldn’t leave her in the dark though. She looked at me, her eyes pleading for some answer to why everyone was acting off. I can’t tell her here. Not without raising suspicions. If Beau, Alexi and Jamie knew Estel was Boyd’s mate, that would put more pressure on her to accept the bond, even if there came a time when she might need to let him go. She was stressed enough as it was, and this news surely wouldn't make things any better. I threw a glance at Lenny, who wasn’t told directly about Estel and Boyd, but I knew he had his suspicions. I then looked back at Estel. “Can you come with Lenny and me back to the pack house? The others have something they need to handle.” She blinked in surprise, looking around the room at the stressed faces. Beta Desmond had already gotten up and quietly called a