LUCY'S POVI made my way through the kitchen first, doing everything I could to distract myself and avoid my father. I had faintly smelt my dad in a few different hallways as I was preparing earlier today. Being of Alpha blood allowed me to smell greater distances which came in handy today. The kitchen staff stared at me like I had grown an extra head when I came in. “Wow Lucy, you look... beautiful,” Jason said as he looked over me, making me blush. A few of the kitchen staff whispered to each other after glancing at me. I felt on display and not in a good way. “Thank you, Jason. I just wanted to check in to make sure everything was coming along on schedule before I joined the gala.” This wasn’t entirely a lie, but I wasn’t about to share that I was avoiding the Alpha introductions, so my murderous father didn’t find me. “Everything is going perfectly as planned Lucy. No need to worry. Have you smelt anything delicious in the air today?” Jason's question had everyone's attention b
For Goddess's sake, why didn’t I think about the obvious touching factor of the mate bond? Either Leon was in denial or the fact that he couldn’t scent me was really throwing him off. I needed to get out of here. “This will only take a moment Lucy. Go, now!” Leon slipped his Alpha aura out as he spoke to me. Normally this would cause a wolf to submit. Either the fact that I was his mate or that I had Alpha blood caused little to no reaction on my part. He looked at me bewildered before growling at me. Geez, what has gotten into this guy today? He was far grumpier than yesterday. Why would the Goddess mate me with such an asshole? One thing was for certain, I was about to see my father for the first time in four years. Bile rose to my throat as we walked toward the small group of Alphas and Betas. My stomach felt like it was tearing into pieces, and my short-lived freedom was slowly coming to an end as I got closer. Leander smiled at me as I approached, Leon walking next to me at
LEON'S POVSomething was off about Alpha Kragen. When he said Lucy's name, my insides crawled. I knew Lucy was going to be a pain in my ass when I met her yesterday, but she really knew how to take things to the next level. Dad had told us about her when he bought her from the Red Paw Pack. We knew she must be special since Dad didn’t regularly participate in this type of exchange. When he did, he always freed them right away, but he kept Lucy close by. Liam immediately felt protective over her as well. It wasn’t until our mating gala that those same feelings emerged in me. It was natural for an Alpha to be protective of his pack, but I knew that this was different. When I grabbed her arm at the gala I felt an electricity pulse through my body. She didn’t smell like a mate, at least I didn’t think so. She had the same dull, earthy smell as she had the day before. It was rare, but I had heard of hybrid werewolves who were half witch or fae. This could explain the volts of electric
LEON'S POV:Bandit lurched forward in my head, causing a deep growl to erupt from my chest. “Oh, calm down. I knew Lucy when we were kids. My mom was friends with the late Luna. Sometimes Luna would let me and Lucy play when Kragen was out on business,” Tricia explained. One hand rested on her hip, and her eyebrows raised at me.“So, you’re saying that Lucy is the Alpha's daughter?” I asked, narrowing my eyes. “Kragen never claimed Lucy as his own. They told the pack they took her in because the Alphas sister had died giving childbirth to Lucy and her mate couldn’t bear the loss of her but if you ask me, she looks just like the late Luna” she explained in a hushed tone. She looked around the room after she spoke as if to make sure no one heard her.“You’re not a shifter” I responded changing the subject while eyeing her down. I still didn’t trust her and had to keep my guard up. “You’re right, I’m not,” she said with a smile offering no explanation. Where are you? Liam's voice rang
LEON'S POVI’m not entirely sure why but the second Tricia warped into her Fae light I trusted her. I took magic history classes very seriously. I’ve always been a believer that those who possessed magic were our real threat. Pack leadership often focused on rogues and hunters but something in me always wondered about the magic societies and why they never tried to interfere with our packs. Was there something truly deviant at work? Werewolves could be disruptive, and too many packs were still living in the old ways. Buying and selling slave rogues that they did unimaginable things to, capturing magical creatures to steal their powers or torture them. On top of that, a lot of the pack leadership members didn’t respect our Goddess’s gift to us. I had heard many wolves had started to reject their true mates. Alphas and Betas were leading an example that cheating on our mate bond was acceptable if you were at a high enough rank. The entire idea made me sick. I was known to enjoy a
LEON'S POVI could tell that I was inside of a closet. Tricia must have been hiding in here I thought to myself. I watched as a pair of sleek black dress shoes moved heavily towards the girl. SMACK! His palm met her cheek forcefully. Her head whipped to the side in my direction only for a moment before her body went limp and fell to the ground with a force stronger than gravity itself. The girls' eyes looked into mine briefly. Lucy's eyes. I wanted to rush out to her and help her, but I was rooted in my spot. My body wasn't my own, it was as if I could only move and look in the directions that Tricia did in this memory. My eyes flickered up through the slats toward the man, who was none other than Alpha Kragen. He stood hovering over her body emitting his Alpha aura on her which was leaving her pinned to the hardwood floor beneath her. She couldn’t be more than 10 years old. I could see bruises on her legs and arms. Some old and some new. Her cheek was visibly red and appeared t
LUCY'S POVI don't even know how many hours it had been since I sat on the cold hard floor in my dungeon cell. There was a small cot bolted to the floor. The thin beige fabric was torn and clearly worn out. The cell was lined with silver and the bars were silver as well. This tactic was used to dramatically weaken our werewolf side. Being surrounded by this amount of silver would typically cause your wolf to go dormant. Tears were silently streaming down my face. My father always said I was a dreamer, maybe he was right. Or maybe I was an idiot for thinking that I would get a fresh start or that I could avoid him at the gala. To think that I was more worried about my mate finding me than my father. I wasn’t sure if Leon had caught on yet. I know that my lack of scent had to of been confusing but the sparks when we touched were undeniable. Some part of him had recognized that. He argued with Alpha Leander about me being put in the dungeon which caused a bigger scene. He looked at
LIAM'S POVI don’t know what Leon's issue was. Ever since Lucy got taken, he’s been acting strange. On top of that, I was disappointed that Lucy wasn’t my mate. I was so sure of it. The way I felt like I needed to protect her was very abnormal, even more me. When she had the panic attack in my dad's office, it physically made my heart hurt. Leon always told me I was too emotional. Maybe he was right. I tried not to be agitated that Lucy wasn’t my mate, but it kept hitting me in the chest whenever the thought crossed my mind. She was captivating. The second my eyes landed on her, my mouth watered. Her black hair was as dark as a new moon night, in contrast to her bright blue eyes, which made my knees feel like jello when she looked at me.She was petit but curvy in every place that mattered. Her style was rugged and unique, not prim and proper like most she-wolves who often doted on me and my brother. I was surprised when she snapped at Leon for how he spoke to her. She did it with
LEON:We searched until the wee hours of the morning. I was beyond exhausted.Dad had mind-linked us to come home and speak to him. I was itching to go back and see Lucy, but I knew I had duties to take care of, and it was something we would often have to deal with."We should talk after this meeting with Dad," Liam said, catching up to me. We were now reaching the tree line that separated the settlement area and the forest."About what? Can it wait? I want to talk to Dad and head back to Lucy. I need to see her at least a few hours before we get back out on the search," I say.My shoulders are slumped, my body is sore, and I miss my mate terribly. "We can wait. In fact, I could even come with you. I should probably check on Lucy," he sighs.I whipped my head around with what I'm sure looked like confusion on my face."She is my mate. I can take care of her," I say.I know I'm just grumpy because of everything I'm feeling right now so I snapped a little more than necessary."I know
LIAM:My mom quickly grabbed my arm and pulled me down to my dad's empty office. As we entered, she let go of my arm and plopped down on the couch.I watched as she put her face in her hands. Her body was trembling, but I could not see any tears falling."Mom, what is happening? Who is this man? Theodore?" I ask gently, sitting down next to her.I wrapped my arm around her shoulders, trying to peek at her face that was smooshed against her palms. She finally fixed her posture and removed her hands from her face. Her eyes were burning red as if holding back tears.She shook her head left and right before responding."He isn't supposed to be reaching out to you. What did he want?" she asks, now making eye contact with me.I turn to face her better. My eyes search her face for understanding, but I'm getting nothing."He wanted me to help Lucy. He said it was important for everyone's safety," I sigh.Her eyes go wide. I watch as she opens her mouth slightly before closing it and pursing
LUCY:I peeled my clothes off reluctantly once I got to the tree line. I shifted quickly, letting Nia come forward. She wasted no time before we were in our silver coat: white paws and white circles around our eyes.She grabbed our clothes in our mouth.'Don't worry, Lucy. We will do everything we can to find Seth,' Nia tries to reassure me.I'm not feeling confident, but I know we will do our best.We take off through the woods. I forgot how good the wind feels through our fur.'The lake first, yes?' Nia asks. She's in control. I'm shaking internally. I'm so nervous we will find Seth dead.I have to explain to her where to go. I'm not all that familiar with it.I remember being on the cliff and knowing the direction the cabin was from that point, but I can't say 100% that we are headed in the right direction once we are in the thick of the forest.'Leon is going to be furious,' Nia reminds me.'So will Jason, but they're not the boss of us, Nia. I'm tired of just sitting around and
Lucy:I feel like I could suffocate from being stuck at this cabin.Can you say cabin fever? Literally."What's the deal with Seth?" Trish doesn't exactly beat around the bush. I loved this about her, though."What do you mean?" I play stupid. No one needs to know. Leon didn't say anything, but I could tell he had an inkling there was something under the surface.Not to mention, I felt like this entire thing was my fault. Seth had been through so much, and the last thing I ever wanted to do was hurt him."I can understand you are worried about Seth, but you cried, Luce. I was born during the day, but not yesterday," she says, rolling her eyes.She's intuitive. I'll give her that.It's a warmer day than it has been. We're sitting in our classic spot on the porch.Trish is gently pushing the swing with her foot; the other was curled up on the cushion.My feet barely reach the ground, so I have both of my feet criss-cross on the swing."I already have a mate, Trish. Does it really matte
LIAM:He can tell me this information is news to me.He glances at his watch and then back up to me before pushing me out of the room."Come along," he says, motioning me to follow him out the front door."You're lying! That can't be true." I yell after him before rushing out the door and slamming it shut."WAIT! HOLD ON THOMAS!" I shout when I realize something he said.He turns around, looking at me with an unreadable expression before he sticks his index finger into the air."Theodore," he corrects me. "My name is Theodore. You can call me Theo if that's easier for your small brain to handle," he says with much irritation.Gosh, this guy is grumpy.I finally caught up with him. We're making our way through the forest. It's darker now, and I'm wondering where we are, but I have to ask him my first of many questions."You said Lucy's dad. Who is Lucy's dad, and why would he kill her?" I ask.I hear a twig snap to my left right after Theo's arm extends out in front of me, making me ha
LIAM:I'm following this strange man through the hallway when I decide I've lost my mind.That has to be it.'He feels familiar now that we're around him,' Bo says, suddenly not the one panicking."That's because I am. It's interesting how similar our interactions have been each time," he responds as we enter the living room."Sit, sit," he gestures to the couch. I walk over to it and sit down without hesitation. I'm like an obedient child, doing as I'm told."We must make this fast; we don't have much time," he says, sitting in a chair directly in front of me."Uh, okay?" I say, not feeling all too comfortable about this situation."The first time I met you was in a dream state. We met twice, and after the second time, I realized you had forgotten your dream and all the time we spent together. I knew I would have to do this another way," he says firmly.His hands are thin, his fingers nimble and wrinkly. He is playing with a ring on his left-hand finger, twirling it around anxiously
LUCY:He talked about Savina being in his room like it was an every day occurence.Of course I knew I had no right to be upset but I am. I'm pissed off he brought her up like he hadn't fucked her.I had to hide the smile that creeped on my lips as his dad spit out the water in his mouth. I knew some of it had to hit the back of Leon's shirt.Good. "So that's why she has been lingering around the pack house like a lost puppy." Leander laughs making my insides crawl.This she-wolf was about to piss me right the hell off.I can hear Tricia's chair screech against the floor as I clench my jaw.Leon's eyes go wide again. "Oh no, hunny, it's okay. Leon wouldn't do anything stupid," I hear Jason say as he comes around the island in the kitchen but it's too late."I swear to the Goddess Leon," I start to say before I close my eyes.I can feel the fire erupting on my hands. It's vibrating through me but I'm more in control this time.I lift my hand up, flames flickers from my fingertips."Yo
LEON:"Is there something I should know?" my dad says looking between me and Lucy.She is sinking back into me. Normally, I wouldn't complain but I can tell she is scared.Tricia is focusing on Lucy. Her usual bravado behavior seems to have crumbled for some reason.Lucy looks up at me with her piercing blue eyes, she doesn't know what she should or shouldn't say. I respect her for leaning on me in this situation."I don't know if it's relevant to this but Seth had... developed feelings for Lucy," I say running my fingers through my hair.I lean back in the recliner thinking through the night that led up to this. I can feel Lucy's body tremble so I start tickling her back. This seems to calm her down from my experience.When we talked through the mind link, he seemed fine."Wait, Seth had feellings for your mate?" my dad asks as if I didn't make it clear already. I know what his real question is though.I close my eyes, trying to suppress the rage this makes me feel, knowing that Seth
LUCY'S POV:Leon seems so comfortable with the entire situation.I feel exposed."Leon, go put some clothes on her," Tricia says knowingly, making my cheeks flush.I look up at him, and to my surprise, he doesn't hesitate to listen."Fine," he says, grudgingly, pulling me back down the hallway and up the stairs to my bedroom."I can't wait for your bedroom to be my own," he says in a happy tone that should make me happy, but I can't help but think about my second mate."Right," I say, trying to acknowledge what he is saying. He pauses and looks at me."What does that mean?" He asks as he sets me down on the ground."Oh, nothing. We just have a lot to get through first—my Dad for starters," I say, distracting him with the reminder of what's to come."Eh, I'll just kill him," he says nonchalantly, making me whip around to look at him."I mean, I could challenge him, Lucy. That would solve all of it, right?" he asks in the sweetest voice.'No,' Nia growls at the idea.We both know that