I am SO sorry for the delayed chapter again! Today is my son's 14th birthday and I've been behind on EVERYTHING all week! I'm working really hard to make sure tomorrow's chapter is posted on time, and I hope you enjoy this chapter even though it's a bit late. - Anja <3
RIEKA My jaw almost hit the floor when I heard voices other than Aleksandr’s in my mind. ‘This is amazing! But how is it possible?’ ‘I’m not sure how it happened, but after resting for a short while, my head suddenly began to feel better,’ Aleksandr explained. ‘Not just from the headache going away, but my mind felt clearer and somehow bigger, more open, than it ever has before.’ ‘So, you created a group mind-link that includes me and the others?’ I questioned. ‘How did you know you could do it? Do you think you could have done it before, or do you think this is a new ability you’ve somehow acquired?’ ‘I don’t think I could have done it before but when my mind cleared, it was like I suddenly knew what to do and how to do it.’ I could hear the satisfaction in my mate’s tone. ‘However this became possible, it’s definitely going to make communication with the Luna much easier,’ Gina beamed as she winked at me. ‘Now that we can all communicate, and the alpha is feeling better,
EMMETT As Jacinda and I were escaping, several wolves tried to stop us. It was easy to overpower the warriors and keep moving, but when Dustin was waiting outside the holding facility, I knew we were in trouble. As beta of the pack, he’s strong than me, and there’s no way I could beat him one-on-one. Fortunately for me, Jacinda stepped in, and when she touched Dustin, he slumped lifelessly to the ground. I have no idea what exactly she did to him, and for a split second, I panicked that I was behaving treasonously towards my pack, but Jacinda assured me that he would be fine. After rejecting the pack, I told Jacinda that she would need to ride on my wolf so we could get to a safe location quickly. She agreed, but when I shifted into my red wolf, she stood there just staring at me for several long seconds. My wolf began to preen because his mate was staring at him. I’ve never seen him respond to anyone like this, and it’s hard to believe that just 24 hours ago I was prepared to
ALEKSANDR It was as if my eyes had been shrouded by darkness. I couldn’t see or feel anything, but my ears were picking up faint sounds. This was not a normal mind-link. It was as if I’d been transported somewhere else, but I could still feel the presence of Drea and my own mate, so I knew I hadn’t left the room. ‘Alpha, is that you?!’ It was such a relief to hear Dustin’s voice. ‘Yes, Beta, it’s me. What happened?’ ‘I was waiting outside when Emmett and Jacinda emerged from the holding facility, and Emmett looked a little crazed, like he was ready to fight me. I didn’t want to fight him, but I knew I could take him. Before either of us could do anything, Jacinda stepped forward and laid her hand on my arm. Everything just went dark, but I’ve been fighting to get out of this. Did you catch them? Please tell me you have them both in custody.’ ‘Sorry Dustin, they both escaped. We don’t know where they are at the moment.’ He growled his frustration, and I was right there
ALEKSANDR We had just walked away from Dustin and Drea less than 10 minutes ago when she mind linked me asking me to return. Initially, I was excited thinking maybe my efforts really did work, but then I realized that she didn’t say that he woke up, she said ‘Something is happening.’ She didn’t sound happy or excited. She actually sounded nervous. My mood quickly shifted as I turned to Rieka. “Love, something is happening with Dustin, we have to go back!” Her mouth dropped open as she gasped and lifted her hands to cover her shock. Without speaking another word, we both turned to head back down the hall where we’d just come from. ----- RIEKA I could feel Aleksandr’s emotions transition from excitement to worry before he told me we needed to go back. As we rushed down the hall, I could tell that Aleksandr was holding himself back so he wouldn’t just run off and leave me. We reached the door to the room where Dustin and Drea were, and I heard a commotion before the door was eve
ALEKSANDRRieka followed me as I left the room and linked Ivan, Jericho and Gina to report to me immediately.‘Alpha, so glad you’re back with us!’ Ivan was the first to respond. ‘We were all worried about you.’‘Meet me in my office now! I was a full report of the last 48 hours!’‘Yes, Alpha.’ All three of them responded.-----“There have been no signs of Emmett or his mate, Jacinda.” Jericho reported while the other two nodded their agreement.I was frustrated, but also a bit relieved.“Tell all patrols to stop searching for them—”“Are you serious?!” Gina interrupted “We’re just giving up the search?!”I growled at her, and she quickly submitted and apologized.“Make sure the whole pack knows that they are traitors and should be captured or killed if spotted, but we will not waste any more time, energy, or resources searching for them.”Rieka’s breath hitched, but she didn’t argue with me. While the others silently processed what I’d just told them, but no one responded.“Am I
RIEKA“Jacinda?!” I whispered excitedly.She stood there staring at me, not speaking. I quickly glance around to make sure no one was nearby.“Where have you been?” quickly stepping closer to her, “What’s going on?”She continued to stare without answering my questions and I suddenly felt nervous under her crimson gaze.“Jacinda?” my voice sounded more timid this time.A slow smile inched across her face, and I could see her fangs elongated for the first time.“Your blood smells so appetizing,” her smile widened as she took a step towards me, “It makes my mouth water every time I’m near you.”I began walking backwards as I kept my eyes on her. She followed me at a steady pace that matched my own.“I thought we were allies.”I almost tripped over my own feet, but I caught myself before I went all the way down. She was close enough to reach out and grab me now, and I scrambled to put a little more distance between us, but it was useless.Jacinda was faster than me, and I knew that i
ALEKSANDR Thank the goddess that Sebastian and Mason arrived when they did. They said that as soon as they saw her with her fangs in my mate, she pulled back and vanished. They immediately rushed Rieka to the pack hospital, linking me and the pack doctor to let us know what happened. The doctor said that if she had lost another pint of blood, she probably would have died, but we were able to give her blood and stabilize her before I brought her back home to rest and recover comfortably in our bed. I was just going to ignore the fact that Emmett and Jacinda left. As long as they weren’t causing problems, I’d let them leave and never return. However, when Jacinda attacked my mate, she put a target on her own back, and unfortunately, on Emmett’s back as well. Guilty by association. He is the one who broke her out and ran off with her, so even if he doesn’t support her actions, he will be held responsible for what she’s done. The trick was to figure out how to catch her. Jacind
ALEKSANDR When Ace asked to be assigned patrols, my first instinct was to panic and fight back against the idea. Rieka had already been attacked, and we’d increased security around her children. Why on earth would I risk putting him out on patrol?! Then he argued his point, and quite well I might add. Rieka linked me to let me know that she would defer to my judgement on this, and I had to make myself stop and really think it over. Logically, if he was my biological son and had been through all these trainings, I would have already put him on a patrol shift by now. But would it be the same in these circumstances, with threats lingering? “I’m sorry, Ace, but I’m going to need some time to think it over.” He looked disappointed, and I knew it was a bit of a copout on my part, to stall for time, but he also didn’t argue. I mean, I didn’t say no, so he still had hope. Ace turned to leave, and although he was disappointed, he held his head high, like a true alpha. The door click
ALEKSANDRAs eager as I was to see Rieka, my mother had already made it clear that she was stable, and Dustin, my best friend and my Beta, was awake!I turned down the hall towards the room where Drea and little Link had been staying with him.It was a joy to hear his voice as I approached the room.Although I am the alpha and this is my pack house, I didn’t want to walk in and interrupt the moment this family was reunited.I slowed in the hallway as I approached the door, and as I raised my hand to knock, Dustin’s voice broke through my mind.‘You don’t need to knock Alpha!’Laughing, I lowered my hand to grab the handle and open the door.I’m not usually an emotional male, but when I saw Dustin sitting up in bed with Drea beside him and Link in his arms, my vision blurred from the tears welling up in my eyes.“It’s good to see you up!” I smiled“It’s good to be up!” He answered with a twinkle in his eye.“What happened? How did you get out of that?”“Jacinda released me.” Dustin
EMMETT A game? I turned to look at the alpha and, on the surface, he looked bored, but there was something in his eye that felt like a warning. He’s planning something. If I want to figure out what it is, I need to play along. Who knows, maybe I do have some special abilities that this crazy little she-wolf can help me unlock. “Okay,” I smiled cockily, “How do we play?” “Oh, yay! This will be fun!” Devan jumped up and down excitedly. There was something very child-like about her. It seemed odd, but then again, she was working with an interesting pack, so who was I to judge her behavior. “We can’t play here. There isn’t enough space,” she grinned, “Follow me.” Without waiting for a response, she turned and disappeared between the curtains. Slowly, I stepped forward, attempting to appear confident but unbothered to rush. I still couldn’t get a good read on this alpha and I was unsure if he expected me to listen to Devan and do as she said or wait for his instructions. Whe
EMMETTStartled by the sound, I spun around to see a petite female with wild, curly red hair standing next to the curtain that framed the shadows beyond.She was wearing a bright, cherry-red pantsuit with a white blouse and black heels. Her clothes looked much too clean and professional to be in a place like this, however, her wild, unkempt hair and pale, almost translucent, skin fit perfectly with the vibe of this underground labyrinth.She was pretty enough, albeit very small for a wolf. The things that unnerved me though, were her eyes. Framed with dark makeup, they were such a light grey that they almost looked like they had been drained of life itself. There was a vacancy in her gaze that made me feel like she wasn’t fully here.I realized I was staring, and a slow, devious smirk made its way across her red lips.“It’s been a long time since I saw another red wolf,” her voice was higher than I expected, but not childlike.“This is Devan,” the alpha gestured towards the female
ALEKSANDR As I rushed towards the house that I’d been told was where the mother of the pup lived, my natural instinct was to scent the air. I knew that Jacinda didn’t have a detectable scent, but that didn’t stop my wolf from searching for her with every sense he possessed. Glancing through a window as I approached the house, I thought I saw two women standing inside. I rushed to the door and thought about shifting, but Jacinda had already had me in compromising situations too many times before, so I remined in my wolf form to avoid being naked in front of her. My weight slammed the door open with such a force that it hit the wall and I heard a loud crack. I would apologize later and make sure the door was properly repaired. Turning in the room, eyes searching, I saw a she-wolf standing there in shock with her mouth open, but there was no one else with her. I opened my mind through the pack link to the she-wolf before me. ‘Where is she?’ I demanded. ‘I know I saw her through
ALEKSANDRPanic, anger, and fear flowed through my body like I’d never felt it before. Why does the moon goddess taunt me. All the strength and power I possess as an alpha, and it’s all worthless. I hated that my mate was once again in danger, and there was literally NOTHING I could do to save her.Here I am, one of the most powerful alphas in the world, and I’m powerless to save and protect my own mate.Leaving my mother with Rieka, I had to move. I had to do something, to take action.Flinging the door to the pack house open, and smelling the forest outside, I immediately shift into my wolf and took off towards the homes of the pack members. I only had one idea left for who could help, and as much as I didn’t want to go there, I was desperate.The challenge was how to find her. Jacinda has a skill for staying hidden when she doesn’t want to be bothered, but she had to know what was going on.With only one idea of how to find her, I went to the only place I thought she would be
ALEKSANDR After several minutes of trying to rouse Rieka without success, I began to panic. My natural instinct was to shake her harder to wake her, but I knew that wouldn’t help. I would be extremely frustrated with myself if I ever hurt her, but even more so at a time like this when she was unconscious. ‘Mom, something is wrong with Rieka!’ I linked, ‘Please come to our room immediately!’ ‘I’ll be there in three minutes,’ she responded promptly. ----- I was pacing the room growling to myself when the door opened, and my mother flicked the lights on before rushing over to the bed. Lightly placing the back of her hand over Rieka’s forehead she asks, “How long has she been like this?” “I just came in and found her like this about 10 minutes ago. What is going on?” My mother remained silent as she examined my mate. Then she clasped both of Rieka’s hands together, closed her eyes, and bowed her head until her forehead touched Rieka’s. I watched in awe as my mother began to ra
I'm so sorry that I didn't post this sooner to keep you all updated, but my mental load is streched beyond capactity right now and I am forced to take a short break for both my mental and physical health. I will do my best to keep writing over the holidays and will continue publishing in January as we come to an end for this novel. You all have been so patient, understanding, and supportive of me over the last year as my family has faced some MAJOR changes and challenges, I promise you will not be disapointed with the ending to this story. I'm just sorry that it's being delayed. Check back by Wednesday January 3rd for more updates! Much Love,Anja
JACINDA I couldn’t believe how much Maeve was opening up to me and sharing with me. The more I learned about this alpha, the more I wanted to end him, but I didn’t dare interrupt her story. “I was doing everything I could to be cooperative, to make him and the guards trust me. My pregnancy was easy and even though I knew the alpha didn’t care about me, he was very interested in the pup I carried, and he visited me regularly. He had the pack doctor monitor my pregnancy very closely to see how strong the pup was.” “Before I gave birth, I started having recurring dreams of me and a baby girl. I would be holding her, and she would smile and giggle, but then the alpha would show up, and she would begin crying. The alpha always wanted to hold her, but she would just cry louder, so he would get frustrated and hand her back to me.” “A few weeks later, the alpha left the territory. I didn’t know where he was going but I knew he’d be gone for at least a week. He left the doctor with s
RIEKA The moment I stepped into the space between the curtains, I was enveloped in cold darkness. I couldn’t see a thing, and besides the cold I could only feel the ground beneath my feet. Slowly shuffling my feet forward, feeling for a drop or a wall, I pushed myself to keep going. After moving straight ahead a few feet, my toes felt something warm and I knew I must have found the other side. I reached my hands forward and my fingers felt the warmth as well. One bold step and I found myself in a small warm room that looked vaguely similar to my mate’s office. There was a desk where the alpha was sitting comfortably; his chair reclined, and his feet propped up on the desk. There were two chairs in front of the desk, but Emmett was standing beside them rather than sitting. This space was darker than the large room we’d just come from, so I stayed close to curtain hoping I would not be noticed by Emmett. “Tell me, red wolf, what is it that you’re hoping to gain by coming here?