When she came to the edge of the city gates and paused a moment, looking into the surrounding darkness. When no guards or casual passersby were in view, she entered into the darkened tunnel just outside the city gates. The passageway was narrow and dark. She reached under her cloak and pulled out a torch, striking it against the stone walls until a small flame flickered to life. Shortly after, it had brightened to a steady light, and now the tunnel was dimly lit. She went further down, deeper into the shadows.The flame danced, casting strange shadows on the walls of the tunnel, but Alison forged on, her steps were sure and steady. She came to the end of the tunnel and stopped. The time had come.She took a deep breath and whistled low and sharp. The sound reverberated off the walls of the tunnel, echoing back in the eerie silence following. For a few tense moments, there was nothing—only the sound of her breathing and the flicker of the torch in her hand.Then, a soft rustling.The
The morning sunlight came in through the curtains, giving a warm glow in my room. I sat at the window, staring out aimlessly, my eyes were fixed on the soft rays of light that reflected on the floor. It felt like I had been lost in my thoughts for what felt like hours.I wanted to feel different. lighter. I wanted to see those places that I never had a chance to visit in this kingdom.Besides, Alexander was out on some important business, and I was left alone.A gentle knock at the door brought me back into my present. My loyal maid, Catherine, entered my room, carrying food on a tray."Good morning, my lady," she greeted with a soft smile while placing the tray on the table beside me. "I've brought your breakfast."I smiled back, though it didn't quite reach my eyes. "Thank you, Catherine." I wasn't hungry, but I knew I needed to eat something. I pushed the thoughts aside and took a small, mechanical bite of the bre
The wheels of the carriage rattled beneath us, but even that was drowned out by my own sobs. I could see the events of the marketplace replay themselves in my mind, and cruel words about me jingled out to and fro in my ears. Beside me, Catherine sat in silence. She was a young girl but she was wise and kind. She laid a gentle hand on my back, her voice soft as she spoke: "My lady, please don't cry. They don't know the truth. They don't know you." I shook my head, attempting to calm the storm inside me. "How could they say those things, Catherine? I have done nothing wrong. I wanted to see the kingdom, be part of it, but they hate me." "They don't hate you," Catherine responded as her hand rubbed my back soothingly. "They don't know you. They're just. afraid of what they don't understand." I wiped my face with the back of my hand, my chest tight with sadness. "But what if they n
Alexander’s POVMy soldiers and I rode in silence. Just as we turned the bend leading to the castle gates, one of the soldiers beside me nudged my arm."Look, sire," he said, pointing to the roadside.There, just beyond the low brush, was Allison, stumbling and hobbling along with a noticeable limp. Her face contorted in pain, she clutched her leg as though it hurt with every step. I frowned, pulling my horse to a halt."Stop here," I commanded, signalling for the others to stay back as I dismounted.The soldiers exchanged puzzled looks, then did as I said. In a few long strides, I was beside her. "Allison? What happened?" I asked in a low voice so as not to excite her, though I was already taking stock of her injuries.Allison looked up, and as her eyes met mine, they sparkled with an oddly forced cheeriness. "Oh, Lord Alexander! I didn't expect to find you here."She was breathing hard, her face flushed as though from exertion, and yet there was something in her expression that didn
As I stepped through the entrance of the castle, I was immediately bombarded by riotous colour and scent: flowers everywhere, artfully arranged in vases and garlands and decked out on every corner and niche in the hall. I laughed and drank it all in; only Elora could turn such a cold stone fortress so bright and beautiful."Alexander!" Elora's voice rang out from above, honey dripping from the welcome tone.I turned and she stood in the middle of it all, her face aglow with excitement. She was much more beautiful than usual, her tresses cascading in waves, and her eyes sparkling as they met mine. In an instant, I crossed the room and pulled her into my arms."You did all this?" I whispered, my voice full of appreciation.She nodded, her smile growing wider. "Welcome home, my love. I wanted to do something special for you."I felt my chest fill with warmth. "It's perfect. Thank you."Elora motioned to the dining hall, where a great feast had been spread: tables of food, from roasted me
Elora's POVI watched Catherine closely as she worked her way around the dining hall, the weight of her expression palpably distinct from her meek and calm one. Something tensed in her gaze, a shadow that fluttered whenever her eyes caught the dancing candlelight. She looked distracted, her movements rigid compared to her usual fluidity as she poured wine for the soldiers and servants who dotted the big table.I looked at her again with concern. Catherine was my closest friend in the castle, one with whom all sorrows may be shared, and nothing ever ruffled her feathers. Tonight, though, she was a million miles away, lost in some private turmoil. A feeling that something was wrong wouldn't go away. "Catherine?" I called softly, my voice just loud enough for her to hear.She startled, blinking as she turned to face me. Her expression gentled, a forced smile tugging onto her lips, though it didn't quite reach her eyes. "Yes, my lady?""You seem distant tonight," I said softly, cocking m
"You are glowing, Elora," he whispered, almost inaudibly.My cheeks were burning as I looked down, unable to bear his fiery stare for very long. "It's the necklace… you always know exactly what to bring.""It is not the necklace," he repressed, his voice soft and gentle as he leaned in, his hand reaching for my chin to lift it so that our eyes could meet once again. "It is you."Before I could answer, a sudden din was raised outside the dining hall. The heavy clattering of armoured footsteps echoed from off the stone walls, and Alexander's hand fell as we both turned to the door with sudden alertness.One of Alexander's men burst in, red-faced and out of breath, hastening to bow. "My lord, there's an attack in the marketplace. Rogues. They're raiding the stalls, stealing supplies, and terrorizing the people.Alexander's jaw clamped shut, the softness in his face gone, replaced by a steely will. He shot to his feet, one hand instinctively reaching for the sword always within arm's reac
"Alison," he greeted her coolly, his voice brisk and scornful. "Didn't think you'd show up after our little display at the market."Alison strode towards him, her eyes narrowed, her gaze ignoring the onlookers who watched with interest. "That was careless, Malek," she spat, her voice low but keen as a razor with restrained anger. "You almost blew everything by attacking the marketplace while Alexander was in the kingdom.The look crossing Malek's face darkened, and he pushed off the log, straightening to full height. He towered over her, his eyes gleaming with anger. "Who are you to tell me what's 'reckless'?" he growled out, a dangerous rumble. "We're not here to cater to your plans, Alison. You may be working with us, but don't forget who you're talking to.Alison bit her nails into her fists as the anger grew inside her. "I am telling you what's logical, Malek. Alexander is not stupid, and he suspects every move at this very moment, especially after the attack today. You really thi
CAYDENI gave them a puzzled look as the all stares at me. "What?" I asked. "How do you expect me to lure him out? The guy hates my guts. He's basically starting this whole war simply to ruin me.""That's exactly the reason why you are the best person to lure him out," Marcy replied. "He seems to be holding a deep and terrible grudge for you. All you have to do is tug on that grudge.""What?" I asked, confused. "I don't understand.""I'll be straightforward with it then," she said. "We can't win against that guy when his brain and mind are functioning properly. He is incredibly smart, cunning and overly cautious. He might make a mistake in battle but not one that we can exploit. He might also have a vast army by now considering all of the deaths he's caused. He's even had time to turn them into his minions. There's no telling the amount of abominations he can unleash on us.""I still don't understand what any of that has to do with me and how it helps me anger him," I replied, lookin
CAYDENI stared at Marcy, at her beautiful eyes as they stare back at me."You're right," I nodded. "He must going around and talking to anyone he believes would be strong enough to be a threat to him.""He won't be simply convincing them either," Rafael added. "He threated me with death when I refused. I believe the others would be getting the same offer I got, both the good and bad aspects of it. He gave up on killing me for reasons I wouldn't disclose but I don't think the others will get that luxury."We pondered it for a bit and Marcy started to speak."What do yo-""Switch," Raphael suddenly said, looking beside him. It took me a while to figure out that he was talking to one of the women he was sleeping with. "Oh, and pass the gag as well. I'm still having a meeting.""Oh, so you remember you are in a meeting," I hissed. "Couldn't you do this at a more convenient time?""You know me, Cayden," Rafael smiled. "I'm actually showing a bit of decorum here. At least give me some cred
MARCYFor goddess' sake, these two would never stop bickering. I couldn't help but sigh at Cayden's blatant response to her name, obviously angering Beatrice who stared back at him with resolute indignation."And I couldn't be bothered that this bastard is an Alpha," she retorted."Okay, that's it," I said. "Beatrice, you would have to excuse us for this conversation.""The Beta too," he added as Alex silently perused the documents, choosing not to involve himself in their conflict.Ever since Cayden accepted Bella back for the sake of my children, Alex had developed a form of respect for him. He still hates him with a passion but just like me, he has learned to tolerate him as well."I don't think it would be a good idea for Alex to not be present," I replied. "If this is about nobody, that is. He's been doing a lot of research on him and the kind of creature he is. I believe he would have some important information to share."Cayden seemed... displeased?It might just be my imagina
CAYDEN"What was I thinking?" I chastised myself under my breath, mentally facepalming at my impulsiveness. "This is all Jace's fault. That bastard."Jace's words had plagued me after he said them. He wasn't wrong. All I needed to do hear from Marcy was call her. It was as easy as that.But that was incredibly tough for me. I don't think I've spoken to Marcy since we started walking together. In fact, we've never talked on the phone from the day I knew her. Calling her now would not only put of character, but it'll be awkward as well.I couldn't bring myself to do it.I also couldn't deny the fact that I missed her presence in the pack. Hateful as she may be of me, she brightened up my mood when I saw her. This only increased after our imprisonment in the Bloodless Pack. She had grown to tolerate me and at least give me a chance to talk to her without it divulging into an argument about my horribly stupid past mistakes. She even allowed me interact with her children who strangely ca
MARCYHectic.That's the only word that best describes my return to the pack.It turns out having a competent Beta cam only make your work harder when you leave for a long time. Alex handled everything and being the man that he is, decided that there are some decisions that require my exclusive input and they were too sensitive to be discussed while I was in the Blue Heart Pack because of the possibility that we were being watched.That has only served to complicate my life more now that I'm back as I had a plethora of meetings, hours of perusing documents and even more hours of signing such that my wrists hurt.Knowing I would be going back, Alex was making sure I did all that could be done before leaving.I groaned audibly as I read through yet another document. Alex is in the chair opposite me as he silently read and sorted out other documents. We've been at this for five hours now and I am both exhausted and bored.A knock on the door attracts our attention and I hope against all
CAYDEN"Jace!" I yelled as I rummaged through my office in search of a particular document. "Jace!"Jace calmly walked in on my second call with his usual expressionless face. "You know, you could easily call me through the mind link. You didn't have to yell.""I do what I want," I retorted as I continued to rummage through my shelves while Jace stood there calmly, watching me.After a few minutes of fruitless effort, I turned to look at him. "Well?" I said with annoyance in my eyes. "Help me out, will you?!""You still haven't told me what you are searching for, Alpha?" He replied calmly. "I can't find it if I don't know it.""The contract we drew up with the Nightwalker Pack. I want that contract," I replied as I continued to check through numerous files and documents."May I ask why?" I looked up at him again, this time my annoyance turning into anger."No, you may not! Just fucking find it!""That's why I said you could have just asked me through the mind link instead of going
CAYDENJace's words bit deep. All I could do was stare at my Beta as he quite calmly admonished me for my foolish mistakes. I had no words for him as I stared at my table, unable to even look at his face."Well, who am I to chastise you," he shrugged. "I don't know what it's like to be Alpha and I've never ruled a pack. You probably were desperate at the time and I can understand that desperate times call for desperate solutions.""Jace," I sighed after a few seconds of silence between us. "What do I do to get out of this mess?"He didn't reply for a few minutes before taking a deep breath."Solve it."I finally got the courage to look up at him."What?" "First of all, get that weird sorry look off your face," he said. "An Alpha must never falter. You know that better than I do."I continued to stare at him, puzzled."I've never been in your situation before because I've never had to kill a woman I impregnated, so I don't have a set path I could advise you to follow," he continued. "
yCAYDENI tapped my fingers restlessly on my table as I sat at on my office. The atmosphere is quite relaxing with rays of sunlight illuminating the office through the window and a tranquil silence that would easily put anyone to sleep.Yet, I was restless.The door opened and Alex walked in distractedly as he eyes were glued to a few papers in his hand."Good day, Alpha," he greeted, still distracted. "You called for me.""Yeah," I nodded. "Take a seat."He promptly obeyed but still didn't look up from his papers. They seem to have him entranced."Eyes up ahead, Jace," I said as I tapped louder on the table to get his attention.He finally looked up at me with a question in his eyes, obviously displeased for having to look up from whatever he is reading."What do you have there?" I asked out of curiosity."Documents of our expenditure and a few other observations the scouts and administrators reported about the pack. Apparently, we might have neglected quite a bit in the past year."
MARCYThe atmosphere was tense in my office. I was on high alert and I scanned my surroundings carefully for any sign of his invisible minions. He knew they couldn't escape my eye so he brought none. Even still, I wasn't exactly at peace around him.There was something inherently wrong about his entire presence. Except for the obvious scent of death surrounding him, I can feel there was something else but can't quite place my hand on it.I don't want to admit it but he gives me the chills."A warning, huh?" I asked coldly as I tapped my fingers on my desk. "Are you gonna threaten me in my own pack?""I wouldn't be dumb enough to do that, would I?" He chuckled. "I'm hoping not," I replied."So, if I do warn or threaten you," he said as he leaned forward. "It's because I am confident that I can."I stared at him for a few minutes and leaned forward as well."Then you must be the most foolish being on earth, whatever you are."He chuckled for a bit and then leaned back."I like you, Al