Annabelle used magic to throw Demetrius across the room; his head hit the wall, and the power holding him mid-air released him. He fell on the table, breaking it in two. The shock wore off from Demetrius immediately; he knew Annabelle was not planning on going easy on him. So, he charged at her, but she used her powers to immobilize him, rendering him unable to move.Demetrius focused on his inner strength; it had never been said in history that a Lycan king or queen was defeated by a mere witch, and it would not start with him. He felt his toes move, unbeknownst to Annabelle."Do you think you can defeat me?" Annabelle asked, not paying attention to his legs. She started pacing. "You can’t handle me. I am stronger than you think.""But it is killing you," Demetrius said, determined to keep her talking until he was sure he could move his whole body."What do you know?" she snapped. "You know nothing about me. I am not the Annabelle you used to know," she told him."Of course, I know t
Demetrius was in his room, going over the report Lucas brought to him about the operation of other packs when he heard a knock on the door. Knowing it was his kids, he stood up and went to the door, opening it a little to talk to the boys. However, the sneaky children made their way into the room, rushing to his chair and bed.“Mama?” Laish was the first to notice Layla before Demetrius could cover her up. The other two ran to him and helped each other up, joy in their eyes as they recognized their mama. Shamir turned to Demetrius, asking for confirmation.Demetrius nodded, “Yes, Mama.”“Mama is sleeping,” Laish said.“Mama, wake up,” Shamir said, touching her cheeks.“Kids, don’t wake Mama, let her sleep,” Demetrius told them as he carried Tristan down from the bed and then Laish. When Shamir saw he was next, he started crying, holding Layla's clothes.“Come on, Shamir, don’t wake Mama with your cries,” Demetrius said, trying to peel his hands off Layla’s clothes. Layla groaned and op
Layla POV.I found it hard to believe that I was still alive, considering what I had endured - the anguish that had taken a toll on me, both physically and emotionally. I looked up through my raven-black hair to glance briefly at my abuser, Jarod. As much as I wanted to hate him with every ounce of my being, I couldn’t bring myself to do it, and I wondered how cruel the moon goddess was to me.I was still in denial of the fact that my abuser, the very person that killed my whole family, was my mate! Having discovered this fact on my 21st birthday, that was just months ago, I’d cried my eyes out, both in shame and anger.I was taken as a slave after the attack on my family when I was just 17 years old. Jarod shattered my dreams, he cared not about all these. He forced his way with me as I cried and screamed for the help that never came. I was introduced to abuse at my young age, all I wanted was to end my pathetic life but I was caught every time by Jarod and I was punished severally
I knew what he was going to do to me, and I felt repulsive. He was not gentle at all as he pushed me into his room and locked the door. He then started pacing; he was angry, I could feel it. But who gave him the right to be angry? If anyone should be angry now, it's me. He just rejected me, and yet he is angry... why? He stopped in front of me, bent down, and grabbed my hair. My scalp was on fire from all the grabbing he had done to my poor hair. He lifted my face to his and sneered at me."You deserved that," he told me.I said nothing, knowing that if I spoke right now, hell would break loose. "How dare you? The moon goddess is out of her mind if she thinks I will accept the pairing – over your dead body."I whimpered in pain, my hands clenched into fists on the floor, enduring the pain. My body was exhausted, and I felt like I might pass out anytime. As if he read my mind, Jarod slapped me across the face, jolting me wide awake. "You deserve no sleep, no rest. From today, you will
My heart thundered as the room fell silent. Or was it my heart that stopped beating? I looked up just in time to see Jarod approaching, but not fast enough to back away from him. His blow met my face straight on, and I felt my nose crack. My hands flew to my nose, and I felt the blood flowing from my broken nose."When I tell you to do something, that is what you should do, bitch," Jarod yelled in my face.I blinked several times to stop myself from crying. It wouldn't help in this case. Behind Jarod, I saw Freya laughing silently, covering her mouth. It must all be so entertaining to her. I looked back up at Jarod, and he glared down at me."Now, you will watch as I fuck another," he told me and walked back to the bed. I just registered the fact that he had been naked all along, and he went right back to what he was doing with Freya. She was moaning loudly and putting on a great show for me, even winking when our eyes happened to lock.I managed to keep watching, holding my nose to s
Freya gave me a bittersweet smile. She still looked beautiful with it. Everything about her was beautiful. Why won’t the male population be drawn to her? I held back myself from saying what would put me into trouble. I have to continue the pretense that I heard nothing of her conversation with Viktor. She was at an advantage with me because of her height, so I have to step back a little bit from her to look her in the face.“You knew you never belonged here, Layla. Your respectful place is in the ditch, on the street,” Freya said with a shake of her head. “How can you be so dense as to think otherwise?”I had to stay focused here. Not shedding tears is a show of me being strong. “I thought you were my friend.”“Friend?” She laughed as if it was funny, and I must be out of my mind. Well, she is close to the truth with that. I am out of my reasonable mind. How could she be friends with me, a nobody? “Grow up, Layla, and you are interrupting us. Off you go now, for I don’t feel like putt
My scalp was in so much pain, my heart pounding inside my tight chest. I struggled to be free, but it was impossible and increased the pain on my scalp. I cried and begged Jarod to let me go, but it fell on deaf ears.If I thought he would stop when we got to the stairs, I was kidding myself. He did not stop, nor did he slow down. Down the stairs I went, my whole body started hurting with the pain of being dragged down the stairs."Jarod!" Clyde called, following us. He caught up with us before Jarod could drag me all the way down to the dungeon. He held the hands holding my hair. "Stop for a minute and think about this, Jarod. She might be right," Clyde said."I knew you believed her when you have also gotten to taste what she has to offer," Jarod snapped at Clyde."What do you mean?" Clyde asked, his anger at the surface."Tell me, you two are not having sex behind my back!" Jarod said."That is cheap. I would never touch your woman," Clyde said bitterly."She is not my woman!"Ignor
ANNABELLE'S POVI was taking my daily walk on the beach at the back of the pack house. I loved how the waves clashed with the sky, almost making them one. I often swam in the river beside it every night. My life was close to being perfect, with the only missing piece being my love life. If only I were a hundred percent sure that the one I loved felt the same way about me. Nevertheless, I was content with the way things were. He cared deeply for me.Growing up with my first love, I had received a lot of love from my parents before the attack that took most of the elders in the pack, including the then-king. Weeks after the attack, the queen passed away and was buried beside the king in the royal cemetery.Since then, the new king had been incredibly concerned about my welfare. I smiled as I tied up my hair in a tight bun on top of my head. Instead of a gown, I wore my training attire. It was easy to move around in, and there was no point in wearing a beautiful dress when there was no
Demetrius was in his room, going over the report Lucas brought to him about the operation of other packs when he heard a knock on the door. Knowing it was his kids, he stood up and went to the door, opening it a little to talk to the boys. However, the sneaky children made their way into the room, rushing to his chair and bed.“Mama?” Laish was the first to notice Layla before Demetrius could cover her up. The other two ran to him and helped each other up, joy in their eyes as they recognized their mama. Shamir turned to Demetrius, asking for confirmation.Demetrius nodded, “Yes, Mama.”“Mama is sleeping,” Laish said.“Mama, wake up,” Shamir said, touching her cheeks.“Kids, don’t wake Mama, let her sleep,” Demetrius told them as he carried Tristan down from the bed and then Laish. When Shamir saw he was next, he started crying, holding Layla's clothes.“Come on, Shamir, don’t wake Mama with your cries,” Demetrius said, trying to peel his hands off Layla’s clothes. Layla groaned and op
Annabelle used magic to throw Demetrius across the room; his head hit the wall, and the power holding him mid-air released him. He fell on the table, breaking it in two. The shock wore off from Demetrius immediately; he knew Annabelle was not planning on going easy on him. So, he charged at her, but she used her powers to immobilize him, rendering him unable to move.Demetrius focused on his inner strength; it had never been said in history that a Lycan king or queen was defeated by a mere witch, and it would not start with him. He felt his toes move, unbeknownst to Annabelle."Do you think you can defeat me?" Annabelle asked, not paying attention to his legs. She started pacing. "You can’t handle me. I am stronger than you think.""But it is killing you," Demetrius said, determined to keep her talking until he was sure he could move his whole body."What do you know?" she snapped. "You know nothing about me. I am not the Annabelle you used to know," she told him."Of course, I know t
Jarod and Annabelle heard the growls from afar and knew that battle was upon them. Annabelle went outside and directed her men on what to do. Jarod pulled her aside as the men got ready, some shifting while others remained in their wolf form, armed with weapons mixed with wolfsbane, weakening the enemy easily.“You should stay with Layla,” Jarod told her.“But she is dead,” Annabelle said.“We are not sure of that, hell, you are not even sure. Four men will watch you, in case you want to change your mind about killing her again,” Jarod said. Annabelle sneered at him, but he waved her away. “We need you to be safe.”“I want to fight!” Annabelle said stubbornly.“No, you are our secret weapon; you should stay safe first,” Jarod told her. “Watch her,” he told four men who escorted Annabelle back to the house.Jarod changed into his wolf to blend in with the men. He knew his strong scent could give him away, but he aimed to take down many enemy warriors.The wolves from the woods charged
★JAROD'S POV★It was fortunate that I overheard Annabelle's and Layla's conversation. She was falling into Layla’s influence again, just like three years ago when our entire plan went downhill. I quickly made my way over to them.“What are you doing?” I demanded, and Annabelle jerked like she was in a trance while Layla gave me an angry look, as if I had burst her favorite bubble. That's exactly what I did, I thought to myself.“Are you letting her sway you with rubbish words again?” I asked Annabelle.Annabelle looked annoyed. “I am not.”“But you looked smitten just now. Why is that?” I questioned her.“It is none of your business,” Annabelle retorted.It was a waste of time to argue with Annabelle once she had denied everything, so I turned to Layla. “Don’t try to sweet talk yourself out of this. We are ending this once and for all,” I told her. To Annabelle, I said, “We need to send the message now.”Annabelle nodded. “But the potion is not ready now.”“No more delays. Are you try
DEMETRIUS' POVAfter leaving my office, I went to the nursery where the kids were playing under the watchful eyes of Elena. She looked so tensed up, and I knew that the other ladies must have set her up to babysit the boys. And the three of them together are capital trouble. When the boys saw me, they ran towards me with super speed; their growth was so fast that they were comfortable on their own feet."Papa," they shouted as they got to me and surrounded me. Elena stood up right and bowed to me. "I will watch them for some time," I told Elena."Yes, Alpha," she said, sounding relieved. She bowed and left the room. "Play with us," Tristan demanded."Carry me," Shamir said, lifting his hands up to me. I knew if I carried one of them, all of them would want to be carried, so I dodged that request. I walked over to their playing mat and sat down; immediately, Shamir placed himself on my laps, occupying his space and claiming ownership. It would be trouble if any other person wants to si
★ANNABELLE’S POV★I was in so much pain; my whole body was burning. I knew I was cursed with the witch power running through my veins. The fact that Layla escaped my camp, a place I thought no one could penetrate, was a big shame to me. It made me more furious at everything I had built. I should be untouchable by now, but a weak girl, three children, and a weak male still escaped and went free. I wished Layla was conscious when they brought her back; she might be dead by now. I busied myself in preparing my weapon. If she doesn't want to die easily, then I will give her options to choose for herself. Then she won’t be able to escape death again.I picked up the potion bottle; it was a death poison. Instead of wasting energy to kill her, seeing how she had not turned up dead, escaped from Jarod, didn’t die when I stabbed her, I had to release her when I captured her, and Jarod tried to kidnap her but failed miserably, and now she is in my hands again. I am so done with her shit. I sh
Nancy gave the boys a bath, fed them, and watched them play in the garden. The children had asked her for their mama; she told them their mama was out, as the Alpha had instructed them to say if the kids asked for their mama. Nancy wished she had her own child. She was the one who told her mate that they should wait. She wanted to enjoy their time alone, but then the Luna came into the picture, and her mate had to attend to the Luna's needs, and everything happened so fast. Maybe now was the right time to have her own child, but the Luna's situation was a concern. Their Alpha did not believe his mate was dead, but Foster said she was dead.Foster was still asleep; he must be regaining his strength while on bed rest. Elena joined Nancy in the garden, and they sat together.“How are they doing?” Elena asked.“Well, they are fine. They have been constantly asking for the Luna,” Nancy said.“What do you think?”“What do you mean?”“Do you think the Luna is dead?” Elena asked. “I don’t wa
Demetrius was summoned to the north border. He hurried over to the place, running in his wolf form, which was faster than in his human form. He had to persuade his wolf, who had been angry with him for days since Layla left on her own to save their kids.He could vividly remember his last conversation with Demon echoing in his head.“You are a fool for staying here when it is likely our mate has been attacked.”“She does not want our help.”“Your help, you mean?” Demon retorted hotly. “We are one person, are we not?”“You should have gone after her no matter what. But what did you do? Stayed back, and for two days now, she has been out of reach. You are so comfortable with yourself.”“I have a pack to worry about.”“So, Foster or your kids are not part of your pack? Or talk about your mate. You don’t need her?” Demon asked him.“Of course, I need her. She is the one that does not need me!”“You sent her kids away from her; she hates you for that. And you won’t even allow her to visit
When Layla saw that everything was quiet, she went over to the barred gate and started working on the lock. She moved quickly because, from that moment, their cover could easily be blown. She heard the click sound, signaling that she had successfully unlocked the gate."It's open," Layla told Foster. She listened for any sounds, hearing none, she opened the door and motioned for Foster to follow her.They both stepped out of the cell and made their way cautiously, not moving too fast as they were still weak. Out in the open, they hid from the guards patrolling outside. When no one was looking, they changed their position and concealed themselves among the bushes."Can you tell where exactly they are?" Layla asked Foster, knowing it would be easier for him to pick up the kids' scent.Foster sniffed the air, attempting to pick out the kids' scent, but it was challenging, mixed with that of the rogues. "Let’s move away from here and try again.""We need to hurry up; they will soon notice