Verena Elijah shoots an intense, frosty glare at Carlisle, “Let go of her hand.” Carlisle returns his gaze with a burning look in his eyes, “You are holding what belongs to me. Let go of her!” Both of them bare their canines at each other, and the air turns thick with tension as the two Alphas challenge each other. And I am the prize. How did it come to this? I am about to speak, but Carlisle beats me to it. “Why were you even rejecting her in the first place? Doesn’t that mean you don’t want her?” he says, and Elijah turns stiff, “I can see the tears in her eyes and feel her pain. As long as I am here, I won’t let you hurt her any further. She does not deserve to be with an asshole like you.” Elijah growls in anger and pounces on Carlisle. I stumble back, and Drake comes to hold me from behind. My eyes turn wide when I see Elijah shift, his blazer ripping to shreds and his body getting covered with black fur. His wolf Rolf stands like a giant before us, his black coat glistening

Verena Indistinct voices greet me as I open my eyes and find myself in bed. Drake and Dory seem to be engaged in an argument until they notice me stirring. Dory quickly rushes to the bedside table and hands me a glass of water, which I eagerly drink. Wiping my mouth, I look at them. They both wear crestfallen expressions. It's over now. He banished me, so I am left in a packhouse that no longer belongs to me. “Please don’t leave us,” Drake breaks the tense silence. He looks like a sad puppy, and it brings a smile to my face. “I don’t have a choice. How much time has passed?” “Half an hour. Since you fainted,” Dory answers. “That means I only have one and a half hours left before the effects of the banishment start to take place.” It takes two hours for the effects of the banishment to fully initiate, and once that happens, I will be forcibly thrown out of the pack by Elijah’s men. “I know that, but…” his jaw wobbles as he holds back tears. “Who will scold me when I sneak out o

ELIJAH Flashback “You can’t even make a simple cup of black coffee?!” I shout, tossing the cup aside as if it's worthless. She served me milk coffee, but I can't stand milk in my coffee. Rena flinches at my outburst, her features painted with terror. Instantly, my anger melts into guilt. It's not her fault; I haven't told her that I don’t like milk coffee. With a sigh, I say, “I don’t like milk in my coffee.” “I know,” she replies, prompting a frown from me. “I wanted to try making milk coffee that tastes like black coffee, so I experimented with it.” My brows shoot up at her explanation. She turns to me with a pout, saying, “But you just threw it away without tasting. You could have politely asked for black coffee. Why act so rudely?” She glares at me. I'm torn between the fact that she intentionally made me something I didn't want and how cute she looks at the moment. A part of me wants to kiss her plump lips. "Why didn't you just make me black coffee if you knew what I want

ELIJAHI enter the Ironwood academy building with Irene trailing behind me, and step inside one of the classrooms without any prior warning. Professor Hayes's eyes narrow as he sees me, and he asks, "Is there anything I can help you with, Alpha Donovan?" There is an edge of annoyance in his question. He doesn't appreciate me interrupting his Physics class."Yes, I’d like one of your students, Drake, to come with me," I respond, and turn towards the seats. I find the brown, curly-haired boy sitting at the last bench. I didn't expect a smart boy like him to be a backbencher.Hayes slides his glasses up the bridge of his nose. "I see," he acknowledges, then calls Drake, who gets up from his seat. The boy frowns when his eyes fall on me. His classmates whisper amongst each other, and I don’t miss the flirtatious glances the teenage girls throw my way.Drake walks towards me, slinging his bag over one shoulder, his face rigid with hatred towards me. We exit the classroom, and Drake immediat

ELIJAH “Please hurry. I think—I think I’m going to die. It's getting very hard to breathe. I can’t breathe, Elijah!” Nixie shouts, and breathes loudly. Nixie’s body has weakened significantly due to the amount of wolfsbane injected into her by the Sandmoon pack when she was held captive. The doctor strictly advised that she stay in bed rest and have emotional support because of the trauma she went through. “I will,” I close the mind-link, not letting her say another word, and also turn my phone on silent mode. She will keep calling me, but I don’t have the time to be her emotional support at the moment. I turn my attention to the lady who seems firm on not revealing the identity of the one behind this plan. “This is the last time I’ll ask you politely, Miss—” my eyes dip to the nametag on her blazer, “Miss Edna. If you don’t answer, there are other ways I can use, and trust me, you won’t like them.” The receptionist gulps, “P-please. Let me go. I–I don’t know anything. It's not