Caspian’s POVMy vision was glazed with red and my mind was spinning fast so that one moment I was watching that bastard with his arm wrapped around my mate, the next I was ushered through The Colosseum, ready for blood.Alex was an idiot, an absolute, utter, fucking idiot. Ever since I saw Alyssa and her wolf Carys, I knew she was mine and not only did Alex chase her away, but now Kai had taken her as his own and there was nothing else I could do about it.The Colosseum was ancient and had been around as long as the kingdom itself. It was created as a way for Alphas to challenge one another or to resolve conflicts. It was still used for that, but it was also a way of entertainment now. Prisoners would be retrieved for competitions, sometimes allowing their freedom, other times for the royal family to vent their anger out on. Those ones would’ve stayed in the Red Maple Camp for the rest of their lives. This was a mercy.Members of the court had spotted me as I raced through the forest
Alyssa's POVIt was horrifying to see. I’d seen fights in the Red Maple camp before but this was different. This was brutal. Caspian was surrounded by prisoners and though lots of them had big builds and previous scars, they all looked tired and beaten down.They were like me, they hadn’t been fed properly during their time in the Red Maple Camp, and they would’ve been made to do so much labour that it would’ve hurt their joints. I pictured myself in that lineup with the rest of them. How many of them might have been innocent? How many had been in that camp for years, only to be released into a bloodbath?We’d just gotten to The Colosseum when I saw the scene. The sweet golden wolf who saved me and tried to look after me was now on a murderous rampage.“Caspian!” I called desperately, hoping he could hear me through the bloodlust.He looked up, noticing me but he was still on top of the prisoner, unaware of his claw digging into the man and drawing blood,“Caspian, please stop!” I did
Alexander's POVI hated seeing the two of them so close together. I hated the way my brother touched her in front of me and I hated him even more when I saw that she tried to move away and he pulled her back. I felt a growl erupt from my throat and Caspian was immediately at my side.“Get your hands off of her,” I ordered, taking a step towards Kai. Brother or not, I wouldn’t let him hurt her or force her to do anything.Kai smirked at my demand, almost laughing like a child trying to order his parents. But instead of doing what I told him, he pressed a kiss against her cheek, despite her obvious discomfort and the crowd wolf whistling at the display.Carter was standing in front of my brother and so close to Alyssa that she would be touching him if she took a step forward they would be touching. The only person that Carter was close to was Kai, he always kept a firm distance from anyone else and was only around people when necessary. Why was he so attached to Alyssa already?Carter a
Alyssa's POVI looked to the floor as my blood ran cold at the messenger's words. Of course I would be expected to see the Alpha King, not only was I ‘engaged’ to one son but I was rejected by the other. I felt so stupid that surprise had rocketed through me.What was I supposed to say? What was I supposed to do? I hadn't had any formal experience for the last five years considering where I'd been and the last time I had, I was a child. I would make a fool out of myself.Slowly, I lifted my head and saw Alexander looking back at me, worry coating his face and Caspian looked like he wanted to step forward and comfort me. But Kai’s arms were still wrapped around me and I doubted he would let go of me, especially with the announcement.“Wasn’t she in the Red Maple Prison?” Someone from the crowd called and both princes looked up to glare.“Ah, so she’s a whore and a criminal, wonder how many people she was with in prison?”I felt my cheeks burn and my eyes water at the insinuation. The R
Kai's POVShe was small. That was one of the things I noticed about Alyssa as we rode Carter to the royal palace. I didn’t mean small for her height, which was quite average, but small enough that it was clear she was practically starved at the Red Maple Camp.I avoided holding onto her for too long, opting to hold onto Carter’s fur. I wasn’t one for touch or affection, so the times I had touched her were either necessary or to piss Alex off. I preferred the latter, entitled prick. But I’d touched her enough to feel her bones poking through her skin and it made me wonder just how much she would’ve suffered in that camp.I knew of people being cruel and manipulative, I’d lived in the Royal Palace all my life, surrounded by vipers, so I believed Alyssa when rumours spread that she hadn’t hurt her stepmother. The girl couldn't have hurt someone even if she tried. It didn't seem her time at the Red Maple Camp had toughened her up either.Those rumours were quickly shut down by Alpha Henry
Alyssa's POVI stood at the foot of each throne, trembling as I watched the Alpha King and the Luna Queen briefly inspect me. The Luna Queen looked at me with obvious distaste, wondering how a wretch like me had caused trouble in the Royal Family. The Alpha King, however, looked indifferent, partially curious but it seemed like he hadn’t formed a particular opinion on me yet. Caspian and Carter now stood on either side of me as if they were ready to defend me. The Luna Queen’s glare deepened, but neither wolf backed down.“And may I ask, father, what is it my wife-to-be has done?” Kai asked, almost bored as gasps filled the throne room.I could’ve strangled him for that, revealing it at a time like this. Murmurs began between guards, maids and even between my own family as my father looked shocked and Vivian demanded to know what was going on.Freya looked as if she was ready to storm down the steps of the throne pedestal and grab me by the hair to demand what I thought I was doing,
Alyssa's POV My words cut through the throne room like a knife as everyone looked at me with a shocked expression. They clearly hadn’t been expecting me to say anything against them let alone defend myself. My father seemed to look the angriest, even more than the Alpha King who I had openly opposed. Part of me wanted to take it back and apologise, but I didn’t want to. I hadn’t done anything wrong! I hadn’t been the one to attack Taylor so viciously. All I did was try to protect myself.But clearly, no one seemed to care about that.What had Taylor said about that day? Before I could react, my father strode down the steps that held the platform to the thrones and was in front of me, gripping me tightly by my shirt.“Alyssa, you have disgraced this family enough,” He spat, no love in his eyes for his daughter, “You will apologise, you will accept your punishment and then I will bring you home where I will deal with you myself.”I stared into my father’s eyes, the ones that were sup
Alyssa’s POVEveryone turned their attention from me to Caspian and I couldn’t help but feel a bit grateful. Behind me, Alexander came forward. I doubted he had any idea what his wolf had done, but it looked like he was going to take responsibility.“Alexander, what do you have to say about your wolf’s claim?” The Alpha King asked his son, clearly not amused. It seemed he thought this was going to be an easy case of sentencing me, but my relationship with his sons made things complicated.“I was not around at the time Caspian claims he did this.”That was right. Caspian told me that he was angry at Alexander and had run off on his own. I dreaded to think what would’ve happened if Caspian hadn’t come to save me. Why couldn’t my mate care for me as much as his wolf did?Alexander was careful with his words, letting his father know that these actions were his wolf's doing and his wolf's doing alone. Poor Caspian, even his prince was hesitant to defend him.“Interesting.”“Convenient,” Al
Alexander's POVBeta Nolan, despite his reservations, took us through the pack to meet Vivian’s old friend. Supposedly, she had not been in contact with her since Vivian left the pack, but it was still worth it to talk to her. I could practically hear the thoughts running through the Beta’s head: What would two princes want with a random older woman? He had no clue and Kai and I intended it to stay that way. The more people who knew about our intentions, the more danger we’d be putting Alyssa in.So we feigned ignorance and said that, with the new knowledge about the supposed abuse, if a crime had been committed it was something we needed to learn more about so we could avoid similar situations in the future.Beta Nolan didn’t argue, especially when he saw the annoyed tick in Kai’s jaw which meant my brother was only a few seconds away from punching something or someone.Goddess, how was I related to such a psychopath?It didn’t take us too long to reach the house with an older lady
Alyssa's POVAwkward was the only way I could describe the encounter.I was sitting in a big armchair in what looked like an office, silent as I observed everything around me. The colours of the room were brown and green themed, like nature. There was a big window behind the Alpha's desk that allowed the light in in beautiful rainbows. Opposite me, standing behind his desk and looking out of the window as he poured himself a glass of whiskey, was Alpha Evan. He hadn’t spoken a word to me since he’d invited me inside and that’s what made things both awkward and unnerving.He hadn't looked at me since either. It made me feel like I was doing something wrong. I wondered if I should’ve said something, it was obvious he hadn’t forgotten I was there, but I wasn’t entirely sure what the game he seemed to be playing was.So I waited patiently, hands folded on my lap, looking at him looking out the window. Maybe it was a test to see how long I could go without talking to him or demanding som
Kai's POVI was never one to enjoy the parades that came with being a prince. Being on show with everyone staring at me and thinking I was up for grabs wasn’t my idea of fun. It helped that as I had gotten older my people began to fear me as a General rather than love me as a prince, the scar on my face definitely helped, but Alexander was the opposite. He bathed in the warmth of the attention and lapped it up like a dog.He smiled and waved to our people like he had all the time in the world. He had people crowded around him and was smiling at every word they said and shook hands with everyone we passed. I almost worried that he’d lose track of why we were there. “This is a beautiful pack, Beta, a credit to yourself and your Alpha,” My brother praised, side-eyeing me as if to tell me to play along.I didn’t need his direction, I'd been in more strategy meetings and diplomatic situations than he could imagine.The Beta smiled with pride and bowed deeply, “It is an honour, Your Highne
Alyssa's POVWe had a plan, even though Alexander begrugingly agreed to it, I wasn't taking no for an answer. We began heading towards the Sirius Pack to get some questions. It wasn't too far as the princes rode their golden wolves and Carys took over. We ran fast before stopping just outside of the pack.Carys allowed me to take over again but the golden wolves stayed still at their prince's side."Go through the plan, one more time," I stated, just wanting to be sure we all knew what was going on.Kai rolled his eyes but Alexander nodded, "We enter under the idea that we are on an 'engagement' tour," He started."It's not too suspicious as the Lunas aren't typically formally intodruced to the pack until after the marriage," Kai added."You two distract the pack and try to find some extra information and I'll go straight to Alpha Evan." I stated, feeling more confident with the plan. The boys had both volunteered to talk to Alpha Evan, but it was something I knew I had to do.I was
Alyssa’s POVWas it cruel to tell him that I didn’t know? Because it was the truth. I know it would’ve been easier to say “Yes, without a doubt, absolutely, I understand,” but those would’ve been lies.Even now I didn’t understand how he could discard me, his mate chosen by the Moon Goddess for his crown. I was tired of lies. Lies from other people and even my own to try to keep some semblance of peace in the farce my father called a family.Adding to that, Alexander hadn’t spared my feelings the day he rejected me, the day he used his powers on me to bend me to his will. Unfortunately, those wounds were still too open for me to forgive him, even with his apology and confession.But Alyssa, he loves us now, Carys tried to plead in my thoughts and I knew she was thinking of Caspian, the wolf who had protected us from the beginning. If Carys was an extension of me like Caspian was for Alexander I would be more than happy for her to accept her mate, but that wasn’t the case, was it?He
Alexander's POVI could see the way Kai was looking at Alyssa, my mate. Caspian growled inside of me as Kai lifted her off the ground and carried her body, but I wasn’t going to wrestle my brother to carry her, not when she was already injured. I could smell the burning from her body, the blood and hear the whimpers she made every time her arm moved too much.If we had arrived any later she might’ve been dead.I tried not to think about that. Because we hadn’t been late. I resented the fact that it was because of Kai we’d gotten there on time. Caleb might have never opened up to me about where she was, but Kai knew how to handle the kid. Kai had gotten ahold of her scent quicker than I had. Kai had raced off, hearing Taylor’s threats before I did.Why was Kai always first?Why was he always so much better than me?Why was I always one step behind him?But Kai had surprised me when he listened and hadn’t killed Taylor despite how much we’d both wanted to, but it was only a matter of ti
Alyssa's POVTaylor stood with a blaze behind him, grinning like a devil and I knew exactly what he wanted to do with me. I’d embarrassed him not only in public but also in front of the Royal Family and in a very public setting where he was expecting to win. Where everyone was expecting him to win.This was revenge.But how did he know I was here?As if reading my thoughts, Taylor purred sinisterly, “If you didn’t want me to find you, Alyssa, you shouldn’t have come so close to the Pack House. Your scent is one I wouldn’t forget for a long time.”I shivered at the thought. I had been careless, hadn’t I? I’d gone straight for the centre of the pack instead of using my head and asking around first. I should’ve known better, especially with how angry Taylor and his father had been. Of course they would kill me and try to cover it up in their own territory.Surprisingly, Evelyn stood in front of me, arms wide as if to defend me. This woman who hardly knew me, who was in danger because of
Kai's POVI managed to get to the Ice Heart Pack quite quickly and Carter had done his hardest to carry us both here. He was panting with shaking legs by the time we got to the territory so I let him rest inside of me as I continued on foot.I didn’t want to draw too much attention to myself because I didn’t know who was to be trusted in this pack or, worse, who was after Elise.I had a hood over my head to cover my blond hair and travelled as inconspicuously as I could throughout the pack. Gradually, I finally found the Pack House where I knew Alyssa lived. The place smelled of her even though she’d only been back here a short while. However, as I reached a backdoor which looked like it led to a kitchen, I felt a presence behind me.With one sudden and swift move I grabbed the knife attached to my belt and spun on the presence, the sharpened edge of my blade against his throat.“Why are you following me?” I growled, pressing hard enough that I drew the slightest droplets of blood to
Alyssa's POVShe had no tongue. The woman, Evelyn, who served my stepmother with such loyalty, had no tongue. I couldn’t stop myself from staring at her before she looked around hastily and dragged me inside the house.As quickly as she pulled me in, she locked her door and dragged me to a small living room with only two chairs and a small table. There were some knitting supplies on it and a piece of half-eaten toast on the side. Evelyn lived in squalor as if she didn’t even exist in the pack. It made me wonder if anyone even knew she was here.“What’s going on?” I asked gruffly, feeling uncomfortable being locked in the house with a stranger.She placed a finger in front of me to tell me to wait and shuffled around the room until she found a notebook and pen before gesturing me to sit down.Cautiously, I did as instructed and waited as she scribbled down something in the notebook.Sorry I can’t offer you any food or drink, I wasn’t prepared for visitors.I hadn’t expected that. As Ev