SELENA’S POV "That looks better now," Zander muttered as he smeared some healing salve on my wounded foot. As we sat in front of the fire, the flames casting an orange glow on our faces, Calum's words hung in the air like a dark cloud. "For us to get out of this forest, we need to fight them all off," he said, his tone harsh and unforgiving. I could see the anger in his eyes as he glared at Zander, who was sitting beside me. He was clearly angry with Zander for holding them back.Zander, for his part, remained calm and collected. "I know that," he said evenly. "But I don't want the casualties to be like usual."I raised an eyebrow, curious. "What does 'usual' look like?""You don't want to know," Zander replied, his eyes flicking briefly to mine before returning to Calum.I could feel the tension in the air, and it was clear that Zander was holding back because of me. I knew I had to do something to change that. "I have a plan," I said, breaking the silence.All eyes turned to me, i
ZANDER’S POV "Ouch," I cried out, and Selena let out a laugh."You are just being overly dramatic now, there was nothing in that," She teased revealing an empty cloth piece. As Selena carefully tended to my wounds, I couldn't help but watch her in admiration. Her delicate touch was soothing, and her eyes sparkled with kindness and care. It was moments like these that made me grateful for having her in my life."You're amazing," I whispered, my voice barely above a whisper.Her smile widened as she looked up at me. "The way you took charge today, it was pretty badass," I said, commending her bravery."Well, maybe I'm growing from being that damsel in distress you met the other day to a badass," she joked, playfully punching me.I chuckled, admiring her spirit. "I don't know what I would do without you," I said, my eyes fixed on hers.Her cheeks turned a shade of pink as she looked away. The silence between us was palpable, and I could feel the tension building. I leaned in closer, o
SELENA’S POV "Home sweet freaking home," I groaned as we approached the poison fang territory.As I parted ways with Zander and the pack, I couldn't shake off the uneasiness that engulfed me. I was returning to the Poison Fang pack after a long absence, and I didn't know what to expect. I had left off a lot of unresolved drama, with Ana and Roy, and now I feel, I went on that camping trip with Zander as a way to escape from facing all that.I walked through the pack, and the familiar sights and sounds hit me. The howling of the wolves, the rustling of the leaves, and the pungent smell of the forest reminded me of my childhood. But my focus was on finding Ana.I went to her room and I couldn't find her, and that was strange to me, she is usually in her room or mine at this time of the day. As I walked, I spotted Lily and Sonia walking towards me, and I knew they would have some answers for me. I approached them, and as soon as they saw me, they stopped in their tracks."Selena, yo
SELENA’S POV "I have always hated the smell of prison and rats," I muttered, and they seem to be synonymous to each other. As I walked into the prison yard, the cold metal bars and the sterile smell of disinfectant hit me like a ton of bricks. The ground was concrete and the walls were made of reinforced steel, towering over me like a symbol of oppression. I could see the other prisoners in their cells, some pacing back and forth, others sitting on their bunks with a defeated look in their eyes. It was a depressing sight, but my focus was on Ana and her predicament.As I approached her cell, I could see the exhaustion in her face, and I knew this was taking a toll on her. The only thing I could do was offer her my support, and so I took a seat beside her.But as I sat down next to her, I knew that I had to put my emotions aside and be strong for my friend. "Ana," I began, "I understand why you did what you did, but running away was not the answer. We could have worked together and
SELENA’S POV Zander was the only one who could help us and I was determined to get him on board with my plans.As I walked into Zander's room, I couldn't help but notice the darkness that surrounded him. It was a comforting darkness, though, one that I had grown to appreciate over time. He sat on his bed, his eyes closed, deep in thought. I took a deep breath, feeling my body relax as I let out a sigh. "Zander, we need to talk," I said softly.I approached Zander cautiously, not wanting to startle him from his contemplation. His presence seemed almost ethereal, as if he existed in a realm beyond the physical. As I stood there, observing him in the silence, I couldn't help but wonder about the depths of his thoughts and the weight of his burdens."Zander," I called out softly, breaking the stillness of the room. His eyes fluttered open, and he turned his head to face me, a gentle smile playing upon his lips. "I've been waiting for you," he said, his voice carrying a soothing resonance
ZANDER’S POV I sighed heavily as I sat on the edge of my bed, staring blankly at the wall in front of me. My mind was racing with thoughts of Ana and the risky mission Selena and I had planned. I knew it was the only way to get her out of prison, but the weight of it all was heavy on my shoulders.The room felt suffocating, as if the walls were closing in on me. Doubt and worry gnawed at my insides, threatening to consume me. I closed my eyes, taking slow, deep breaths, attempting to find solace in the familiar darkness that surrounded me.Selena's unwavering determination and trust in me had brought us this far. Her belief in our mission and her relentless pursuit of justice for Ana had ignited a fire within me, pushing me beyond the confines of my comfort zone. But now, with the critical moment looming ahead, I couldn't help but question my own abilities and the potential consequences of our actions.The image of Ana's face, haunted by injustice and imprisonment, flashed before my
SELENA'S POV:My room is a cell to say the least. Maybe not as bad as an actual cell but it is plain, tiny, nothing but an old, spindly looking bed in the corner and a cheap, pine desk.Tristan has never come to my quarters since he casted me out of his sight and into the worst wing in the house. I consider it a blessing really.The solitude of my room, though stark and austere, offered a respite from the poisonous atmosphere that lingered in Tristan's presence. Here, in the confines of these four walls, I found solace in the silence, allowing my thoughts to roam freely.My stomach growled and I pressed a hand to my abdomen. I was often underfed, surviving on meager scraps of food that I preferred to share with others but since Zander arrived, all that had changed. I ate with him in the grand dining room whenever he was at home and not off defending the pack's territory...Which is where he had been for the past few days.I missed him. But not just because of the protection and comfor
ZANDER’S POVRoy pissed me off more than the way Roy was staring at Selena. MY Selena. With a longing and profound admiration. I abhorred this Roy guy, he was always around Selana.The sight made me feel a twinge of jealousy in my chest, but I quickly pushed it. I couldn't show this level of weakness in front of my men, there were already rumors flying around that I had a soft spot for Selena, Calum had already called her my weakness. "Good day Alpha," Selena greeted me. I frowned at her, hating when she acts so formal with me like my tongue wasn't down her throat days ago. And do they all call me Alpha now? The simpleton bowed low at the waist, stuttering over himself and I almost wanted to put him out of his misery by knocking him out but Selena wouldn't appreciate that."Roy," I said curtly instead, acknowledging him with a nod. "I trust you are fulfilling your duties to the pack?"Roy straightened his posture, his voice laced with determination. "Yes, Alpha Zander. I've been o
Zander's POV. I'd planned several times how I'd kill my brother. It's a sick thing to think about one's own twin, but I'd hated Tristan from the very moment we'd come out of my mother's womb together. I'd planned a slow death for him, I wanted him to watch as I took over the pack, I wanted him to see me take down every single thing he'd put in place, I wanted him to watch me make him obsolete once more. But I'd brushed all that away the moment Selena's body fell limply against mine. I could feel the few borders I'd kept up collapse in one instant and before Tristan had the chance to move I was on him, my hand was at his neck and my teeth were buried onto the other side. He screams under me, scratching at me, hitting in the eye nose and trying to break my teeth, but that barely worked on a regular wolf talkless of me, so undaunted by his little attacks I buy down and before he can react even further I rip a huge chunk of flesh out of his neck. His screams increase as I tear into his
Zander's POV. If not for the fact that her scent was everywhere. It wouldn't be the first time I'd dreamt of her, gliding into my office like that, saying that she has decided to forgive me, then she kisses me and I touch her and she moans and then I wake up. Sometimes I just dream of her walking into my office to talk to me, to laugh with me again, to slip her hand into mine and smile at me that bright way only she knows how to, I felt happy once again at peace and then I'd wake up… back to my miserable reality where she couldn't even look me in the eye. I hate it, I hate it. I hate not having her around, I hate having her so mad at me, I hate knowing I'm the reason she cried so pitifully that day. I miss her so fucking much.But in the midst of all the chaos happening in my mind, in the midst of all that turmoil and pain I was still planning, searching for ways to finally bring my brother down once and for all. While I knew Selena's current grudge with me was all on me I knew tha
Selena's POV. I was never a particularly cruel person. My mother raised me to be many things, strong, uncompromising when need be, tactical when making decisions, kind and many many other things that she crafted to make me the next great leader. But cruelty, I was unused to turning eyes away from people if they needed help, I was uneasy when it came to making decisions about execution or anything that had to do with murder and now even with everything I knew about him, I was still hesitating to make the decision that would get me the revenge that my family and I rightfully deserved. I had no trust for Tristan. Just because he suddenly woke up and told me about Zander's secrets doesn't mean we were suddenly friends. I wasn't stupid, telling me was more for his benefit, even though I wasn't sure how it was possible for me to kill a whole ass cursed Prince, getting Zander out of his way would benefit him a lot more than it would me. Two sides of me were conflicting here, one part of m
Selena's POV. Not even Ana's arms around me can comfort me at this point. I'm beyond distraught. The only thing going through my mind is an image of Zander standing over my mother, covered in blood smiling that same unhinged smile that was on his face when he came to rescue me that day in the woods. He was a monster, a violent bastard. He'd not only killed everyone I'd cared about he had the guts to fuck me afterwards and touch me with the very same hands he'd used to tear into my pack mates. These are the types of thoughts that are constantly making rounds about my brain. The majority of them were curses thrown in Zander's direction, others were shards of glass piercing into me as punishment for sleeping with the man that had killed my family. I was stupid, very stupid I'd let lust and infatuation drive me into the arms of a monster. Why? All because he'd shown me a little bit of kindness while I suffered in this pack. A nagging part of my brain feeds me with the thought that may
Laleh's POV. I could only laugh. Watching Selena in a state of clear turmoil might be one of the funniest things I've ever seen in my life. Prompting Tristan to tell her about what really happened to her family was the right choice after all.I can't say I was surprised to find out Zander was behind it, though we'd chosen to rule their death as suicide it was obviously not. Their bodies were ripped about brutally and purposely and savagely enough that even I was disgusted. Digging into their deaths though was more for curiously reasons than anything else, a creature that could easily murder a whole pack of healers like needed to be assessed, I needed to know if I had a friend or a foe on my hands and guess what, the fee sources that I'd had all painted back to Zander, a little while before he made his return known he'd slaughtered every last person in that pack.Of course the information was secret and extremely hard to gather, but there was nothing a couple of charms and a good han
Zander's POV. Fucking Tristan. I shift back and tug on a pair of trousers as fast as possible, ignoring the pointed stares that are tossed my way as I run up the stairs in search of my mate. I can't even imagine the state Selena is in and only the goddess knows what he told her. I burst into her room to see her on the floor, her hair is a mess, one side of her face is swollen and very bruised, and her eyes are distant. Horror rushes through me as I remember her last encounter with Tristan, the way she'd pushed me away and shut me out for weeks, she'd barely eaten and was just a teary mess, all because he'd spoken to her, I wonder what he'd said now.I kneel in front of her trying to get her eyes to follow me. But it remains fixed on something very far away, cold and closed off to me. Second only to the time she was kidnapped I've never been so scared in my life. "Selena, Selena please talk to me," I say stroking her face and trying to get her eyes to settle on me.She blinks and
Selena's POV. The first few days since I woke up were odd, I spent them walking about the mansion in a haze and trying to regain my bearings, obviously that took a lot of time and Zander was there through it all, holding my hand and muttering encouraging words to me as I sweated out the last of the drugs. But even with my torturously slow recovery I wasn't blind or dumb or weak, I still noticed everything, for example the clear absence of Naz and Callum, Zander's distracted nature and the tension radiating from everyone in the pack I'm guessing it's because the time for the coup was drawing nearer but I don't understand Zander's sudden tension with his friends, not that he'd answer me if I'd asked him about it, rather he'd dodge the question and disappear for hours to 'work', I wasn't buying it I knew something was wrong but I was much too tired to even fight him on this. Instead I bent to his prodding and his gentle touches, I basked in the feelings and sparks that danced about us
Zander's POV. I've never felt such a deep sense of relief before. Watching Selena's eyes flutter open must have been the most comforting thing I've ever seen, because I could have melted at the sight of those lovely brown yes meeting mine again, yes they were hazy, but I'll settle for that after watching her just drop to the floor in a dead faint in that forest and after haring Naz say that she was drugged heavily and make might not wake up for weeks. That was five days ago and she was awake now. I could feel the relief in my bones, even Aziel was calm for the first time in weeks, he was the main reason I wasn't able to fall asleep really. When Naz would pry me away from her bedside and forcee to get some rest all I could har was Aziel's voice in my ear screaming at me to do something or he would himself, and honestly I was much too tired to control him so for once I bent to his will and actually do something. I went to the dungeons and hit that rogue as many times as I could, I tor
Selena's POV. This time I woke up in my room to the sound of people speaking in hused tones about something that sounded extremely important, in the sleepy haze I was in recognized Zander's voice, tight and commanding as he spoke to who I assumed was Callum, my limbs feel heavy and my tongue is limp in my mouth, but at last this time I woke up on a soft bed instead of the cold hard floor.I struggle to open my eyes and when I do it's barely a crack. I squint at the brightness of the room around me, used to opening my eyes to a piercing darkness for the past few days. My head isn't pounding this time but the glare of the light is working up a headache low-key. The voices around me come into more of a focus now and I can hear the distress in Zander's tone. I hold my breath for a minute to enjoy the smooth, easy baritone of his voice. I never thought I'd miss the sound of someone's voice this much, I shift and try to lift myself up but my limbs are too weak and my head is much too heav