Joana's POVI stood in front of Dire, my heart racing. This wasn’t just strange, it was straight-up abduction. But the way he acted, the smile he gave, and the casual gestures, it was as if he didn’t think anything was wrong. Or worse, he knew something I didn’t. His authority was unquestionable, yet he masked it under a layer of disturbing niceness. It was unsettling. I had to get out. “I want to leave.” I said, forcing a smile. I tried to keep my voice steady, trying not to let him see how terrified I really was. Dire raised an eyebrow, his lips curling into a smile as if I had just made an amusing request. “Of course, wife. You may leave whenever you want.” He said smoothly. “But do make sure you’re back by nine. You wouldn’t want to miss our evening together, now, would you?” The way he said "wife" sent a shiver down my spine. His tone was too casual, too calm, and it only made the fear inside me grow. I wanted to snap at him, to lash out, but I couldn’t. Not yet. The fea
Joana’s POV Immediately we left the building, Dire took my hand gently but firmly, leading me to the car. His grip was light, but the power and intention behind it was obvious.My mind was racing. How had he found out about the meeting? Was there someone on the inside feeding him information?We walked in silence, my heart pounding louder with each step. When we reached the car, Dire opened the door for me like a gentleman, that same coy smile plastered on his face.I entered, thanking him briefly as a I sat down. Both of us inside the car now, Dire didn’t say a word, he just looked out the window like nothing was wrong.Meanwhile, I was suffocating under the weight of everything. I stared at him, my mind racing. He had this strange calmness about him, a huge confidence that put me on edge.As we drove, I discreetly checked my phone, keeping the screen away from Dire. Sasha hadn’t replied to my earlier message. I needed her now more than ever.My fingers hovered over the keyboard, bu
Joana's POV “Going somewhere?” He asked with a straight face. I looked to the front and the driver was his beta Theo. He knew I was about to leave and I didn't tell.anyone except the text I sent. I quietly walked into.the car and sat beside him, shivering in.fear. “I wanted to get something,” I replied, terrified out of my mind. “Follow me,” He said with a deep and clear voice. He stepped out of the car and walked back into the mansion. Without hesitation, I followed along and I noticed he was heading the opposite direction of my room. “Where are we heading?” I asked buy he was quiet. He neither responded nor turned around to look at me. I began thinking of a way out because I had no idea what he planned to do with me. We stopped at the front of a giant door with a big star drawn at the front. The star was the symbol of the Armstrongs, so I guessed that the room was the Alpha bedroom. He pushed open the door and beckoned on me to go in. I walked into the big room su
Joana's POVI woke up with a headache pounding like a hammer inside my skull. The room was too familiar, but I couldn’t figure out where I was. This was definitely not my own room. As I sat up, I groaned, realising where I was. Dire's room. My stomach churned. It wasn’t just the headache or the fact that my body felt like it had been through a wringer. It was the sick feeling of having actually enjoyed last night. Last night when Dire ran his hands all over my skin and dared to place his lips on my body. Disgusting. I sat up, the sheets sliding off my body, and took a deep breath. Nope. Not thinking about that. Not now. I had other things to do. I forced myself out of bed and stumbled toward the bathroom. A cold shower was the only thing that would help my case now, I thought, turning on the shower. The water hit me like tiny icicles, and I shivered, but it was enough to snap me out of my daze. I hated how I had let him get to me. Dire wasn’t just trouble, he was the kind of t
Dire's POVThe voices in the room were like distant murmurs, blending into a meaningless hum. That was mostly what a lot of things felt like to me anyway. I sat at the head of the table, fingers drumming against the cool surface, my eyes fixed on the reports in front of me. But I wasn’t reading. Couldn’t focus. All I could see, all I could feel, was her. Joana. Damn it, that woman is making me crack! I prided myself on having control, of my emotions, of my actions, of everything around me. I operated with precision, never letting distractions get in the way. But she… she was making me reconsider all of that. The previous night, I could have crossed a line I swore I wouldn’t. And yet, here I was, stuck on the memory of her skin beneath my fingers, the taste of her lips still lingering. She wasn’t like the others. She didn’t submit easily, and she was supposed to be the easy one. The sound of someone clearing their throat brought me back to the present. One of the executives, lo
Joana's POV “Joana!” I was back in the car and just when I was about to hit the tree, I saw someone next to me and it wasn't Chris. It was someone I had begun to lose in memory, my mother. Her voice echoed in my head and with pain in my heart, I shrieked and jolted awake. The people around me were startled in shock. My gaze moving from one to another as I panted heavily. “Cuz?” Lucien who had been sitting beside called out. “Lucien? What's going on?” I asked. My head felt heavy and filled with fog. “You were in an accident and you pulled through,”He replied softly. “It's a relief to see you awake, Luna!” The doctor exclaimed with joy. “How are you feeling?”“Dizzy, I feel weak. Where's Chris?” “You mean the guy riding with you. That dude?” Lucien asked. “Yes Lucien, where is he?”“Oh, he is dead.” He replied with a voice as cold as ice. It seemed his words began to trigger my memories and I remembered how the bullet went through my windshield into his head. The smell of bl
Joana's POVCarefully, I lowered myself out of the vents and I stood before him like a guilty child who had committed an offense. “What do you think my subordinates will say when they see my wife crawling in the vent like a rodent!” He growled fiercely with his gaze cutting deep into me like a knife. “I needed answers and you were in my way,” I muttered softly while trying to maintain the eye contact. Angrily, he yelled at me,“I told you I will handle it!”“And I don't want a man taking over things I am supposed to be doing! I have the right to look for my own clues!” I lashed back at him causing a shocked expression on his face. “You reflect me and in return, my reflection covers you,” He spoke softly but clearly. “So, for the last time Joana. Back off!”“When are you going to get that I am not your puppet? You can't control me Dire, I am not some street girl that you can place how you like,”“Street girl?!” He growled angrily. “You were in the vents. If none of my men noticed,
Dire's POV“I need a name, Gordon,” I demanded calmly. I was pissed but I couldn't let it get the better of me. I knew I had to remain calm. “I can't. Not even the alpha status can make me disclose such information. Privacy is what we pride ourselves in,” She responded with a soft voice. She was terrified, I could smell it on her but she was perfect in concealing it. “They already saw us walk in here. It's just a matter of time before they start asking questions. And just one word from my mouth will bring your entire family crumbling down to dust. Now let me know the name,” The threat startled her, sweat dripped down her forehead like rain. She looked at me fiercely but with fear. “I can't Alpha Dire,”I could see pushing Freya any further would be futile. The one thing they held above all was loyalty. So I turned to Joana, “Go home now. It's almost nightfall,”“What did I say about giving me orders,” Joana responded with a voice almost like a whisper. Angrily, I grabbed her h
Joana's POV At that moment, everything seemed slow. My entire flashed before my eyes in a second and just when I thought that was the end of me, I heard a swoosh sound. It came past me like a gust of wind and the next thing I felt was the hot scorching burn from the wolf's blood. I looked up at it and there was an ax sticking on to its head. My heart skipped a beat as I glared at the image. Out of fear, perhaps. “Joana! Get out of the way,” Theo yelled out to me. His voice startled me into turning to his direction and beside him was Dire, whose hand was still stretched out from throwing the ax. “Are you going to sit on the floor all day?” Dire asked with a smirk. With a fast reflex, I hurried behind them as they conered the wolf to the edge of the woods. “I don't know who you are or what you think you are going to achieve from causing this much turmoil,” Dire spoke with a deep and steady voice that echoed over the lake. “But you made a mistake, you screwed over the wrong man,”
Joana's POV “What are we going to do?” Sasha asked as I stared at the vast space. My head was spinning with plans but none of them ended well for me or my company. “We are linked directly to this bombing, Lucien,” I said softly. “How is this possible?”“It's not. This particular bomb is not out on the market. The military had not yet signed it off,” Lucien replied. “Then what the hell is going on?” I growled angrily, punching the wall with frustration. “Nice hook,” Dire muttered from the doorway, causing us to react in shock. “Can you excuse us?” I gave a nod sign and they left the room leaving me alone with Dire who was looking healthier. He wasn't wearing a shirt, flexing his biceps and abs in my face. “Your company's bomb did this?” He asked in a subtle tone, his gaze was cold as I fidgeted in shock. “No…yes, I don't know for sure,” I responded, looking away from him. “Joana, it's a simple question. Is your company responsible for the bomb?” He asked, this time fiercer.
Joana's POV “What happened?” Sasha asked, noticing the confused expression on my face. I felt a chill run up my spine as my shaking hand clenched to my phone. “Something is wrong,” I muttered softly, almost like a whisper. “What did he say?” Lucien asked curiously. “Joana, what did he say?” “Something is going on!” I panicked and hurried out of the news house. I had no intention on going on live television, just intended on testing out his bluff. Lucien and Sasha followed behind me and without asking questions, they hopped in the car with me. I was driving towards his company when I got an incoming phone call. “Sasha,” “On it,” Sasha answered the call and placed it on speaker. “This is Joana, who is this?” “Luna Joana, this is Doctor Tim from your General Hospital on West,” The subtle voice responded. “What can I do for you Doctor Tim?” “If you can, please come down to the hospital. The alpha had just been admitted,” With brute force, I stepped on
Dire's POV“What are you going on about?” I asked, crossing my hands and staring at the furious expression on her face. “You know exactly what I am talking about, Dire. You announced me as your Luna to shut me up,” She answered spitefully. Seeing her angry and frustrated caused a smile on my face.“You saw lines where there aren't any Joana. And it's becoming very funny,” “Funny?” She asked with an angry stare. She reached into her bag and pulled out a brown envelope. “What's that?” I asked. “Open it,” I grabbed it from her and tore it open. It was a photograph of Oregon and a black SUV. “What is this?”She chuckled hysterically before lashing out, “Don't pretend like you don't know what that is. That's you collecting the same sniper used to kill Chris from Elder Oregon.” “Joana, why will I kill a worker I didn't know?” I asked with a smile, trying to hide the rage burning up within me. “I don't know but I have evidence that you cohorted with Oregon and then killed him before
Joana's POV My life had become a chess piece where all the pieces were moved with precaution and I had just lost an important piece. “Are you okay?” His icy voice asked from behind, causing me startle in shock. “Fine. Is something wrong?” “There is a news conference today and I will like you to be there,” He said calmly with his hands folded behind him. His expression was as clear as day. “I have a meeting,” “Cancel, I want you there,” He pressed on, turned around to leave. His attitude, his countenance just fueled an anger within me. “You won. You played me,” “What?” He asked with a smile. “Don't play mouse with me. You knew and you played me into your hand,” A smile beamed on his face, chuckling maniacally while facing me, “I did nothing. You are the one seeing me like a villain,” “You orchestrated it, made me fall for it.” “Joana, I did nothing,” He commented warmly. He was unphased as he spoke. “I need you at the conference,” He added before tu
Joana's POV“How is he doing this?” I asked myself but voiced out loud. Lucien and Sasha both looked confused, sitting in my office with their faces buried in files and documents. “He orchestrated it, he wanted you to push Curly and her associates out.” Lucien concluded with a tired expression. “But why? Why go through all those troubles to pull them out?” Sasha asked softly, staring at the documents for any clue she could find. Suddenly her face beamed with satisfaction as she slammed her hands on the desk“If you have something, say it. No need to be crazy,” Lucien remarked. “Fuck you Lucien!”“Been there, done that,” Lucien replied her with a smirk. “Sasha, ignore him,” I said to her, noticing that her face had began turning red with anger. “He is trying to reduce your networth,” Sasha said as she handed me a bill poster. “Your company is number one in the entire Western hemisphere. But you are currently the richest in the pack,”“Yeah, my family had always taken the number
Joana's POV “Let's go!” I said to Sasha as I grabbed my handbag and keys. We stormed out of the room in hurry and on our way out the door, there was someone standing there, obviously waiting for me. “Theo, can I help you with something?” I asked with a fake smile on my face. “You should infirm the alpha of your move before making it,” He replied while gripping onto the sword sheathed by his side. “Wow! You healed nicely,” I remarked, staring at where he was stabbed. “You shouldn't strain your body, Theo. So get out of my way,” He gazed at me with a smirk, pissed but there was nothing he could do. “Let her go, Theo,” Dire voiced from the upstairs hallway. I turned to him, his eyes stared at me with curiosity and lust. “Be back by the curfew wife,” He added with a smile before walking away. I was dumbfounded, I just stood there gazing at the void space. “Joana,” Sasha grabbed on to me, snapping me back to reality. “Let's go,” Normally, I would use a
Joana's POVIt's been twenty four hours since i got discharged from the hospital. Heaven knew I needed a break from the antiseptic smell and beeping. But something entirely was on my mind, the whole story didn't add up. I got my eyes peeled on financial records, bank details, Pack origins to find out why he is playing the game. I knew something was off about Dire from the start, I could feel it but there was no lead. I was still examining the files when I heard a knock on the door. I was shocked to hear it but judging from the scent, it was him. “I'm coming!” I yelled out to him as I hid the files underneath my sheets. I hurried to open the door but made sure everything was composed before I did. “Hi,” He said with a smile when I opened the door. “Brought you breakfast,” I received the tray from him with a slight smile. On the tray were pancakes, bacon and orange juice. My eyes widened in shock because that was my favorite breakfast and only Sasha knew about it. “Are you going
Joana's POV“Back off!” I growled angrily as I stared into his eyes. “You know I didn't kill.your sister, this isn't revenge, it's murder,”With a psychopathic smile, he said ,“Call it whatever you want Thorson. All of y'all never believed in my family in the first place. You see us as bunch of crooks that you can manipulate,” “You were supposed to be dead,” Theo voiced softly. “So what? You hid somewhere these past years?”He took his time, allowed smile to grow on his face before he responded, “I am a hired gun, not my choice of work but a boy has to eat and fuck. So years back, someone contacted me for a job. Crazy pay but the weird part was that I was the target,”“So they hired you to kill.yourself? Didn't they know it was you?” Lucien asked. “Oh they knew that it was me and I wasn't paid to kill myself. I was paid to fake my own death,” He answered with a sinister smile as his response hit us with a crazy suspense. “Wait, that's not possible. Why will someone hire you to g