ATTICUS POV Rupert slows down when we get about a hundred yards from the Thurman's packhouse. Rage is still rolling off of him in waves, but there is a smirk on his face that tells me he is up to something. When I get right beside him he shoots me a look that reads as pure hatred though. "If you ever grab my arm like that again Boy you will lose your hand," Rupert growls and I nod once. I don't know what came over me back there for me to even touch him, but I did. "Yes, Father," I mumble to appease him. "Chances are we won't be leaving these lands, which is fine by me. I just admitted to plotting with their ex Luna so that dumb Beta should have me arrested at any moment. If they do throw me in a cell it's up to you to provide the distraction. I have to coordinate the attack so I can't be in a cell. Remember who owns you and your sister. Adeline will be safe as long as you play along. She will be off to become a Luna as soon as the battle is over," Rupert states under
ATTICUS POV "Fucking wake up," I faintly hear as my eyes begin to flutter open. I feel like I slept for a whole week. My body is heavy and my brain is groggy, but I feel refreshed. "Fucking piece of shit," Father suddenly snarls and I sit up quickly. For a second I forgot I was out of his reach. I thought he was cer me. I slowly wipe the sleep from my eyes and clear my throat. "Yes," I croak and he growls. "Finally! I been trying to wake you for an hour. The guards should be coming around soon and I need you to pay attention," Father snaps, and I roll my eyes. I wish he wasn't here. If he wasn't imprisoned with me this would be my ideal situation. I could still be asleep enjoying the covers and solid bed. "Yes, Alpha," I reply before forcing my body to stand. I stretch my back and yawn loudly. Having a pillow to sleep on was a different kind of experience. It may have been the flattest pillow ever made, but it was like sleeping on a cloud. "The female said t
ATTICUS POV Waking up from a hard sleep is something I don't think I could ever get used to. My mind is foggy and my body is sore even though it hasn't done anything for hours.I can tell it is early from the chill in the air so I test the prison with my nose before calling out to Rupert. "Father," I call calmly and he grunts. "About time. Snoring away over there as if the silver has absolutely zero effect on you. I was beginning to think you would sleep until the trial," Rupert growls weakly and I realize with smug satisfaction that the silver is affecting him. I don't reply to his comment instead I wait. He will have orders for me and that is the only reason I am speaking with him at all. "Once you leave she will slip in and let me out. She has also agreed to help with the fight. You don't need to do anything else," Father finally says, and I grab the bars of my cell. "What about Adeline? She is still too young to mate," I say and he laughs a little. "I would worr
ATTICUS POV I can't help but feel guilty as the guards shut the cell door behind me. I know I didn't have much of a choice, but this pack deserves justice. They have an excellent Alpha and their Alpha treats their enemies fairly. My Father wronged them and their Luna betrayed them. They deserve to have my Father's head on a stick. But I had no choice. I sit down on my bed and let the hours slip past me without a single thought until I hear the prison door open. My ears and nose immediately know who it is. "I wish to say something to Atticus Kincaid. He is from my old pack," Karina says softly and Roman whines in my mind. I stand to my feet as I hear them tell her it is okay. I brush my hands over my still relatively fresh shirt and move close to the bars. "We will be beside you the entire time. Partially for your safety, and partially for the pack's safety," a guard says and I bite my lip in anticipation. But I only have to wait a few more milliseconds before my beau
ATTICUS POV The Alphas seem concerned and caring as they circle around the hospital bed I am sitting on, which is strange. I don't like feeling weak and vulnerable. Father made sure I feared being seen as such, but their faces all say one thing,... Poor Atticus. He is needy and we have to help him. It makes me hate myself more. "I will begin first. It's a long process. Since we are on the Committee your body should recognize our commands as higher than your Father's," Alpha Jacobs says as if he is speaking to a lamb instead of a man who has killed. I shrug and the older Alpha crosses his arms. "We might be able to issue simple commands. Rupert is no longer an Alpha. We stripped him of that, which is probably why Atticus was able to speak so freely in the field. I am betting Atticus has been tortured for so long his Alpha spirit has been broken, which makes him easier to control with basic commands. Basically his body believes it is still under commands, but it actually isn't.
ATTICUS I feel as if every cell in my body has a mind of its own. It's not as nice as I thought it would be it is actually very overwhelming.Roman and I have shifted four times back and forth just because we can, but now that he isn't distracting my brain. My imagination is running wild. Thoughts about how everything can become utterly perfect and thoughts about how I can mess everything up are tormenting me. The harsh reality of what I have lived through paired with my crimes are like a crippling weight that yearns to suffocate me. Before the orders were removed I was at peace inside my head. I had no choices to make. My father controlled my days. Now I am in charge of myself and I am terrified. I want to hide. I don't want the responsibility of life thrust at me. The times Father gave me a choice I chose violence. I chose to kill or hurt others. Now I am free to decide things all the time. What if I become a killing machine? I mean Rupert is my father. I could become him. I c
ATTICUSKarina whimpers again weakly, and we move. We are in front of Rupert within half a second and the pits of his dark eyes go cold with fear. Gone is the male who terrified me and killed my mother. Gone is the laughing man covered in his child's blood. In his place stands a hollow coward with fear written in every line of his face. "I said let her go," we growl out, and Rupert releases Karina. Karina falls to the ground in a heap and weakly crawls behind our legs. As soon as she is safely behind us, Roman and I grab Rupert's head. We pull his head from his body easily and his spine snaps. Blood squirts all over the other Alpha's shocked face, and the world around us goes silent as Rupert's head flies through the air behind us. "If you do not release my sister right now, I will kill you," we say as Ruperts head rolls to a stop in the middle of the field between the two armies behind us. The Alpha looks terrified for only a moment before he smirks and throws Adeline over his s
KARINA POV I watch Logan's bloody back as he hugs my best friend with mixed feelings. I know he has just suffered a great ordeal, but his actions mere seconds ago were the opposite of the calm he is exhibiting now. "You're hurt," a gently voice says from beside me and I slightly flinch in surprise. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to startle you. We are all without our senses," the other voice says sweetly as I turn my attention to a kind looking female who looks ready to catch me. "I, umm, I was given silver by Alpha Kincaid," I explain as I see another female just behind her moving towards us with the same look of concern on her face. "Oh honey, sit down. I will look you over. I am a trained healer of this pack," the female says just as the other reaches us and offers me a kind smile. "As am I. Let us take care of you," the new female says, and I give them a small nod. I feel slightly overwhelmed, but I know I need the assistance. My body is weak. I wish I was strong
KARINA POV"Twins. I mean animals have twins. I have seen the sheep have them," Chloe says as she looks down at the two miracles.I smile and nod. It's been three days and I still can't believe it. When I told Chloe I had given birth I didn't tell her I brought two lives into the world. She wasn't expecting the tiny female wrapped in pink lying next to her brother."She is so tiny," Chloe says as she gently strokes the dark hair on Klaire's small head.I nod and wrap my arms around myself. I still get overwhelmed when I look at them. I can't seem to handle how much love I have for them and the thought of the day they will leave me forever is already weighing on me."You okay," Chloe asks as she looks up from my pups to see me hugging myself.I nod and give her a forced smile.She cocks her head and gives me a cut the bull shit glare. I sigh. She knows me too well to fall for that."I am so happy and so lucky. I mean I made history. I gave birth to not one but two Alpha pups. Klarc is h
ATTICUS POV Pain rips up our spine and we hold back our scream just before Karina's tears through the air. "That's it. You are doing great," the healer says as she stares at our mate's exposed privates. Karina's water broke ten hours ago and we have been anxious ever since. Our pup is over a month early. He isn't supposed to be coming and we are terrified something is wrong with him. Karina's pregnancy has been easy. We haven't had a single worry until today. "Ahhhhhh," Karina screams as she squeezes our hand again and we try to focus on her instead of the pain. From our time in the dungeon watching other females give birth we know she seems to be doing okay. She is having regular contractions and she isn't bleeding abnormally. "I can see the top of his head. Push, my Queen. He is almost here," the healer says and Karina releases our hand so she can grab her knees. She bares down harder than before and his head emerges in between her thighs. We gasp but no one focuses
KARINA POV I smile as little Pat flies up into the air and Logan catches him again. He giggles every time his brown hair lifts off his forehead and it couldn't be more adorable.Our little Klarc pushes against my hand as if to say he wants to play with Logan too and I look down at my stomach with my smile still on my face.I know Atticus wasn't a fan of my favorite name for our little Alpha, but I decided he would come around to it so Klarc it is. "So everyone has settled in nicely," Atticus asks as he focuses in on the main Alpha that he trusts.I look up from my protruding stomach to see Logan settle Pat in his lap. He looks at Atticus and gives him his full attention. I do the same.This is why Atticus invited them to our new pack house. He wants to find out how the others are adjusting. I study my mate's features intently. He has been strained the past few days and I have grown concerned. He wants everything to be perfect for everyone. Even though that isn't possible. What is
ATTICUS POV We grunt with effort as we push down the last wall to another member's old house. All belongings have already been removed from most of the old houses so the pack's move has transitioned to stage two, demolition. "Move to the next group of homes," we call out to the other males helping us break apart the homes. The cleanup crew will follow behind us and dispose of the rubbish. They will also pile the wood and burn it. We don't want to leave a mess behind us for nature to deal with. We want the land to return to normal after we leave. We also told all of the other packs to do the same. We begin to head toward the next group of homes while wiping the sweat from our brow.The new territory is now ready for all of us to move in, but we have decided to move in one pack at a time starting in the center, and since that is Pack Kincaid's we are moving first. "Ready," we call out as we surround the midsized home. We receive a varied response of yes and yeahs from the o
KARINA POV rated R I knock on Atticus's office door lightly as I open it and he smiles as he sees me. "How was your visit," Atticus asks as he puts down the paper he is scanning. I smile and close the door behind me. "Perfect. Thank you for calling her. I didn't realize I needed to talk to her so badly," I reply as I sit down in the chair across from him. He gives me a knowing smile and I get lost for a second as I look him over. His dark eyes and hair make him so sultry. Not to mention the shirt he has on is a little on the tighter side. All his muscles are on clear display. His broad shoulders and hard pecks make me want to drool. "She always knows how to get you to talk... and I know some things you aren't comfortable sharing with me," Atticus says as he lifts the piece of paper back up. Something in his tone draws me out of my ogling and I look back at his face. He seems almost sad like his feelings are hurt because I spoke with Chloe instead of him. I need to smooth
KARINA POV My eyes flutter open for a brief second before they snap closed again. The light from the window paired with the grainy feeling already in my eyes hurts as I roll onto my back. I want to groan and go back to sleep, but I know I freaked my mate out last night. He will need to be reassured that I am alright. I sniffle a little and my eyes snap open once more, but this time in alarm. A familiar but out-of-place scent has filled my nostrils and sleep has completely left my mind. "Chloe what are you doing here," I question as I sit up and focus on my best friend sitting in my reading chair. She smiles at me but doesn't answer. Instead, she moves to my bed and sits down. "How are you feeling," she asks and I shake my head. She is skipping past my question because she knows I don't like causing problems. Pulling Chloe away from her son and her mate is definitely a problem. "I am fine. You should be at home with your son and your mate," I say voicing my thoughts a
KARINA POV As the last of the Alphas board the train to return to their packs, I glance up at my mate. He has seemed withdrawn and pensive ever since Alpha Johnson overstepped. Even Logan couldn't draw out any more direct answers from him. "What's wrong," I ask as we begin to walk back. He glances down at me for only a second before looking away and I grow anxious. Maybe he is mad at me for suggesting the meeting. Now there is tension with an Alpha who leads the biggest pack. He probably caused the other Alphas to have an issue with Atticus's authority too. I am such a bad mate. I made this harder for him."Alpha Johnson has a large pack. His father and Grandfather eliminated a few Alpha families. They took over their lands and gained control of their packs. He is going to be a problem. I am wondering what the ex-agents know about him. We should look into how he treats his pack before the move," Atticus says and I bite my bottom lip.This meeting was supposed to smooth out our
ATTICUS POV Light beams off the surface of the fresh snow and we squint as we try to look out over the miles of simple buildings. In a few more months everything will be complete. Werewolves will finally be able to move to their safe new homes. New schools and new businesses will hopefully thrive and thousands of bonds will be strengthened. "What do you think," Karina asks as she looks out at the progress. "I like it. The homes are closer together than what we are used to but between each pack, I put a few miles of cleared land. That way we have places to roam. Plus outside of all the packs is plenty of wilderness for all of us to use together " we reply and she nods. She seems worried as she bites her bottom lip and looks down at her hands. Her baby bump is more pronounced now and I know she stares at it when she is deep in thought about things. Something about this move is upsetting her and we don't like it. "Do you think we can all get along this close to one another," Kar
ATTICUS POV Unease fills our gut as we sit with the exhausted-looking father and our attention drifts toward the open office door. Karina's scent is still strong. We can faintly hear Chloe as she talks to her, but still, the feeling in our gut worries us. "I have told him he needs to take a break," Gavin says and our eyes flick back toward Logan. His worn face does nothing to hide his annoyance with his beta. "I am fine. Chloe deserves rest. I am okay," Logan snaps and we glance toward the wall behind him. A picture of Patrick with his beta Hank from their teenage years smiles back at us. Curiosity and sympathy for the young Alpha joins our inner turmoil. "You named your son after your father," we say quietly and the two males go silent as they follow our line of sight to the picture."Yeah. He was a great... male," Logan says stumbling a little."He was. He wasn't perfect. But he was a great leader and a good Father," we reply and the room goes quiet as we all look at the