Alpha Hudson’s POV I am devastated. I should demand she stay at the River Valley Pack with me, her father. But Millie is right. Her mate offers her a chance of happiness, and I was content with what I had, even though I had lost my mate. I just want to be selfish and keep her all to myself for the rest of my life. But that would be like robbing her of her life, her happiness, her future. I should set my feelings aside and encourage her to lead a full life. That is what Veronica would have wanted, that is what I would have wanted had she been in my life all of this time. I can visit her at Spring Valley Pack anytime and she can visit me here at the River Valley Pack. She will also visit Millie as well. I know I will have plenty of contact with her in the future. I make her aware that if she does not wish to stay with Maddox, she always has a home with me. Which gets Maddox annoyed, but I don’t care about him. It is her well-being that is most important. I can always
Lottie’s POV Everything changes tomorrow. The look on Caren’s face tells me she knows it, too. But that is tomorrow. At least we have today. There is so much to do. My priority is to make sure our mom will be okay and comfortable after we have gone. My gut instinct is to make sure she has enough food in the house and we leave the gardens in a manageable condition. Mom hates the gardens being untidy. They usually left the front garden for me to tend to. I love the scent of the freshly cut grass. I also used the time to trim my mom’s rosebush and I often talk to her at the same time. It makes me feel like I have a connection with her. I want to have one more conversation with her before I leave. The back garden is Caren’s responsibility. She grows a lot of our vegetables in a vast patch of it. She even grew some apple trees when she was younger. We haven’t bought fruit or vegetables for years. The men are discussing vehicles when Caren announces she is going to tend to he
Lottie’s POV Maddox gives me an enormous hug when I walk outside. “Ready?” he asks. “Physically yes, emotionally no.” I tell him honestly while looking at my mom through the window. “She will be okay, we can visit.” he says, reassuring me. “Ember, how does this gift work?” I asked her. “I am not telling you unless you promise I will get to meet Xavier later,” she responds. I obviously annoyed her, seeing that I am not letting her meet up with Xavier again for their official mating. “That’s blackmail.” “No, that’s negotiation.” I looked at Maddox and told him what Ember was saying. “Please let them meet. Xavier is going crazy. He is saying I am torturing him and that you are holding his mate against her will.” “Fine,” I tell Ember and Maddox at the same time, “Tonight I am not missing out on time with my mom or dad.” Ember howls with joy. Speaking of dad, I went and found him, for some time alone. We took the box of pictures to my mom’s grave. We laugh,
Millie’s POV I have left Lottie some clothes outside for when she returns. Which she had better get back soon. It’s the last night with my girls for a while and I want to enjoy some time with them. That wolf of hers sounds like a handful. It matches her personality, I suppose. I finished preparing some food when Lottie and Maddox walked in, smiling. “I take it you have some happy wolves now?” Lottie giggles. “She blocked out, but Ember has told me she is satisfied.” I know Lottie is the same age I was when I met Aidan, but she seems more innocent than I was. Maybe it was my upbringing. Witches were expected to take part in rituals once they gained their powers. But only witches and warlocks over 18 had sex during rituals. The rest of us were expected to watch and learn. As we sit around the table, I see lots of people linked to my little girl and I feel the love in the room. She deserves to be happy, they both do. They have a 7am start in the morning, and I want so
Lottie’s POV “You will be okay.” Maddox says as we pull out of the driveway. The tears streamed down my face as we left them there on the porch, leaving her. My mommy. I call Caren on the phone to check how she is doing. She is sobbing too. At least I am not the only emotional one. It’s a good 6 hours of solid driving to get Silver Mountain Pack, which is why we had to set off so early. We all agreed we should visit, as we have no information about our elemental gifts, or how dangerous they can be. I must have dozed off, as when I woke up, we were pulling into a roadside diner. It makes me smile because the diner chain is the one mom worked for. I really like the burgers when they cook them right. We got out and I feel a little less emotional than I was earlier in the day. I felt thirsty, though. I guess all that crying has made me dehydrated. We walk in and there is a huge birthday celebration going ahead. I don’t even know the boy and I already know that it’s Tho
Parker’s POV I don’t want to leave the diner. Dani is there. She’s so pretty. I'm experiencing a fluttery feeling inside my stomach. Watching her is a delight and she smells like a freshly made cake. I am certain she is my mate. I am under no illusion of that. I am guessing she doesn’t have her wolf yet, otherwise she would know I was her mate, too. I just want to look at her over and over again. Saxon appreciates the view just as much as I do and I am having a hard time controlling him, but he knows Dani is wolf less right now, so he keeps howling in my mind. Like he has lost something, but really, his mate has not yet appeared. Meaning she is not lost, she is just not here yet. I don’t understand the note from the girl in blue, nor do I understand why I dreamed about her last night. Maddox doesn’t want to go to the Mountain Creek Pack. He wants to get home as fast as he can. But he has to visit the Silver Mountain Pack along the way, for Lottie’s benefit. I hope he has al
Parker’s POV Nix jumps into a car and drives off. A dozen wolves followed the car. I assume the Alpha of the pack is leading the hunting party and Nix is leading the search party. It makes sense, but what makes little sense is that he didn’t shift with the other wolves and an older man in the car with him. I say older, I mean in his forties. Maddox tells us to drive as well. We are strangers in this pack and we don’t want any wolves thinking we are the rogues they are hunting! We followed Nix’s car for a while and when he stopped, we climbed out. We are at the bottom of a cliff where there is a wild river running along it. Maddox is acting really anxious and saying something to Lottie. I looked around. Nix was running towards something on the ground, at the edge of the river. But I can’t see anything from where we are. We all walked over to see what it was they were looking at. Wolves are sniffing at what looks like a smashed up wheelchair. I guess it has fallen from th
Lottie’s POV I can’t believe I left my mom and dad this morning. Now I have to leave my sister. I know it’s only for a few days, but still. But she is adamant that she needs to stay. I have never seen her more certain. I know Maddox needs to get home to Spring Valley Pack, but he is doing nothing but rush me to Silver Mountain Pack along the way. I am sure I will appreciate it in the long run, but it doesn’t feel that way right now. “I could do with a distraction. If you have time on the way out,” Caren asks me as we are leaving Mountain Creek Pack. I can organize that easily. While Maddox is driving, I see a few hay bales, “Perfect, pull over.” I told him. Other than that, fatal first time, I have never really used my gift on purpose. Ember is not happy when I use a memory that makes me mad to spark my gift. But I have not yet got the grasp on how to manifest the fire at will. Overall, it does the desired job and as the hay bales go up in flames, we drive off. Madd