*** Matthew's POV ***
It can't be. Why was she here? Why now? Did the Moon Goddess listen to Susie? I look around the room to find her, but I don't see her. Maybe outside, I thought, but before I could walk out again, two massive growls erupt from the middle of the room, and the word "mate" soon follows.
I turned to see what was going on to see that Robert had found his mate. They both were hugging, burrowing their heads into each other's necks. What worried me was the older gentleman, obviously Rob's mate father. If looks could kill, the gentleman's son would be a dead werewolf. The look of disappointment was set on his face, and you could feel it from a mile away. He lets out a warning growl breaking the couple apart. I approach them to make sure a war doesn't start in my ballroom.
Rob's mate is no other than Gabriel Owens, the future Alpha of the Silverfalls Pack. From the pack's report, if I recall correctly, they are an ally of ours; their current Alpha is Sam Owens, and they have more or less 200 werewolves, a relatively small pack. But legend has it that they are direct descendants from the first werewolves blessed by the Moon Goddess, allowing them to possess extraordinary abilities.
- "Apologies, your majesty, my husband didn't mean to disturb the celebration."
Owens' Luna bows her head, and I give her a sympathetic look letting her know no offense was taken. She pulls her husband by his arm and escorts him to the corridor. Before I can address the new couple, Gabriel storms out of the room into the garden. Rob tries to follow, but I hold him by the upper arm.
-"I think you should give him space. Let him process the situation."
-"You don't understand, Matt. He is my mate. It hurts seeing him in distress. The bond makes us share our emotions. What I feel, he feels, and vice-versa. I want to be next to him. He needs to know that I am here for him and that he matters to me."
- "I understand where you are coming from." Once you find your mate, I know that there is this constant need to be around them, especially after you mark them. This wasn't the case, but I advise further, "Just follow him at a safe distance." I let go of his arm, and he nodded in agreement.
Susie mind-links me in panic and tells me off for not waking her up. Glancing down to my wristwatch, I and take notice of the time, 7:14 p.m. Dang! We had planned to give a speech at 7:00 p.m. I ping Susie back and make my way up to the master bedroom.
-"I think the Goddess has heard you." I say while I crack the door wide open and storm inside the room.
Susie was currently wearing a pink silk robe. Her hair was nicely done in a twisted and curled low chignon displaying her Swarovski Crescent Moon earrings.
I watched her go from one side of the room to the other, grabbing clothes, make-up, baby toiletries and laying them out on our king-sized bed where Carl was playing with his toys.
-"What are you talking about?"
-"My Mate... I mean, my true mate is here". Her frenzy motions come to a halt for a moment before she resumes.
-"Oh... that's nice." She says in a monotonous voice.
Wait, I must be out of my mind. Did I just chirp about my true mate to Susie? I shake my head in an attempt to organize my thoughts. What a jerk I am. I just told Susie her replacement job was over.
-"I am so sorry, Susie... I... didn't mean... I'm not going to leave you. It's my duty as husband and father to look after you." I wrap my arms around her burying my nose into the crook of her neck. The usual rose-scented perfume she wore and I enjoyed made me somehow nauseated now.
- "I am not upset. I did wish for that, remember? What's her name? Is she from one of our ally packs?"
- "I don't know. Alex and I can feel her presence and smell her scent, but we haven't seen her yet. I was too busy sorting out Robert's little situation."
-"Rob? My cousin? What happened?"
-"Can you believe his mate is Gabriel Owens? You should have seen the look on his father's face. I thought a war was going to start downstairs." Susie and I giggle.
-"Let's address the guests, and then we can both look for your true mate. We should let her know about my condition and that you won't reject her." Her statement surprises me.
-"Why would she think that I will reject her?"
-"Well, Mr. Stevens, did you forget you're married and have a son? How do you think she will react to that? She doesn't know our marriage is political."
But was my marriage just political this far into the game? I have grown accustomed to Susie's companionship, and we share a son. What am I going to do? I can't leave my son's mother, but I also can't reject my true mate that I longed to meet for so long.
Susie finishes dressing up, and forty-five minutes later, we make our way down the ballroom's staircase. She wore a navy-blue ballgown matching my tunic, and our baby boy was in a tiny white navy seal uniform. As usual, those two are giggling, smiling, and cuddling. We stop halfway through the staircase and take notice of the fully packed room. The fruity scent was still faintly in the air; I inhaled it deeply, giving me a boost of energy. Alex purrs in contentment. With confidence, I address the crowd,
-"Respectful guests and family. I, Alpha King Matthew Stevens and Queen Luna Susie Stevens, are happy to share our son and future Alpha of Crescent Moon Pack's first birthday with you. We..."
A possessive growl comes from the outside--its owner unknown. My heart becomes erratic, making me breathe faster. My chest tightens, and I pause my speech. I can't even remember what I was trying to say. All I want to do is chase that fruity scent and inhale it right from the source.
-"We hope you enjoy the celebration we prepared in his honor." I manage to spill out.
Susie attempted to grab my arm, but it was in vain. I storm out to the garden. She must have mind-linked Morris because he appeared behind me accompanied by two warriors as I made my way to the greenhouse, following my mate's scent. The botanical building insides are completely frozen. The blast's epicenter seemed to have been somewhere by crossroads, right in the middle of the building. There, I find Sam Owens on the floor with blood dripping from the corner of his mouth. His Luna, his Beta Benson, and Beta's wife attempt to get him off the frozen plants, but the floor is so slippery that they struggle to do so. On the opposite side stands Rob, hugging Gabriel, who has his canines out and hands in a firm fist. The fruity aroma is so strong that Alex takes over my human form.
- "What's going on? Where is she?" Alex growled. Everyone remains quiet; confusion evident on my men's faces.
-"I asked you a question. ANSWER. ME. NOW". The greenhouse's glass walls shake to Alex's demand.
Before anyone could speak, I felt a sharp pain right above my chest, as someone was stabbing my heart with a knife. No, I don't even know who she is, yet she is rejecting me. I lose my balance, falling onto my left knee from the pain.
Everyone remained in silence, perplexed by the situation. Alex sniffed out our mate's scent. It's coming from the back exit. The smell begins has a hint of mint mixed with it that wasn't there before. I follow it into the rear driveway, where Susie stands by the road's edge. As soon as she sees us, she comes closer.
- "Alex, you need to calm down and give control back to Matt. I need to speak with him." My eyes are black instead of my normal blue ones, so she knows Alex is in control. She tries to place her delicate left hand on my right arm. Alex grabs her wrist tightly, twisting it to the side, and Susie winces a bit.
-"No, I don't! And don't touch us. You are not our mate!" He jerked her wrist with such force that she fell to the floor.
The ache in my chest makes it difficult to breathe. If only I could bask in our mate's scent, I would be able to ease the pain. The need to hold her was unbearable. We shift into our wolf form, with Alex still in control; he is so powerful. A painful howl escapes our body, and we take off into the woods.
*** Matthew's POV ***Alex and I ran for what seemed like an eternity, with no destination in mind. A mixture of despair and anger filled our chest. The pain was now bearable but not gone. She had been so close, and now she was gone.- "It's all your fault! I knew our true mate was still out there. We shouldn't have married Susie." Alex is full of sorrow and regret.-"How can you say that? We have been through so much with her. She gave us a pupthe cost of her health! How can you be like this?"Alex closes the link between us, allowing me to regain control. I run back to the mansion, still in my wolf form but shifting back to human as I approach the mansion's fr
<One year and half later> *** Naomi's POV *** I had attempted to reject him, my mate Alpha King Matthew Stevens, but my body had betrayed me, and I fainted just before I could reject him. The magnetic pull is still there, and I can feel the achy need to see him, to be in his arms. I can't bring myself to try to reject him again. The first time I tried, it was so painful that I don't want to experience that type of pain ever again; it's too much. After the first year of finding him, I was submerged in dark thoughts. Depression seemed to be my only companion, and to make matters worse, Gabriel had rejected his 'Alpha-to-be' position, leaving our pack to be with his mate. Saying our father was furious was an understatement. He never acce
<One year and half later> *** Matthew's POV *** "Matt... Matt, wake up. Carl is crying."Susie's mind-links, waking me up from my slumber. In my boxers, I get up from our bed and drag my feet toward Carl's room, just across from ours. There is also a room next to ours for our guests, should any decide to stay over. It used to be my room before we had Carl. "Hey, bud, I am here," I reassure him as I open his bedroom door. He steadies himself on the crib's rail with one hand while the other opens and closes towards me, letting me know he wants to be picked up, which I do, as he cries non-stop. -"Shh, I am here, baby."
Two years after the silver chains ***Naomi's POV*** It has been two long torturous years, and a lot has changed. Firstly, I was forced to train with our elite warriors. And when I say forced, I mean it. I would just sit by the training ring and wait until it ended the first few times. But my father decided to join the training, and if I refused to participate, the warriors were ordered to beat me up until I was unconscious. In the end, I had no other choice but to experience and learn how to defend myself. Although my parent's room was on the fifth floor, soon-to-be Lee's floor, I could hear them argue about my situation every night. Mother had become extremely upset with my father's behavior towards me. She even threatened to leave the pack if he didn't stop.
*** Morgan POV *** Naomi told me she wanted my help. We are still at the bar, and I have to be extra careful not to alert the two giant werewolves sitting behind us at the far left corner. I don't know what it is about her, but the moment she walked into the bar, something compelled me to help. It wasn't just me. My wolf Lily was too unsettled, especially after we realized the men she walked in with were watching her like hawks. It didn't feel right. Let's not forget all of her scars. It felt as if she was a prisoner. I pondered for a second, maybe they were rogues, and she was their victim, but they didn't smell like rogues. They didn't smell of burn and decay flesh. Naomi walks to the guys and tells them she's tired and wants to go back to her motel room.
*** Mathew's POV *** My pact is a mess. The loss of their Luna two years ago had left them demotivated and disorganized. In part, it was my fault. After Susie's death, the void she left inside me was constant torture. I had become a disgrace, drinking my sorrows away bottle after bottle. Without her companionship, I felt lonely again. I sit on the floor, enclosed in my room while holding one of Susie's pieces of clothing close to me and drowning my pain in whiskey. This room isn't the one that Susie and I shared. That one has been closed since she passed away. Standing up, I steady myself against the dresser. The movement causes the mirror to shake. I lean in closer and observe the man reflected in it. I can't recognize myself with the long messy blac
***Matthew's POV*** Carl and I spent the afternoon together after picking him up from the packhouse Daycare, which isn't too far from the mansion. Just a 20 minutes walk down the road, five by car. I decide to take him out into the children's park. I watch him as he plays with the other kids. Boy, he had so much energy. He sure resembles Susie. They share the same blond hair and emerald green eyes. I watch as he leads his group of friends and makes sure everyone is included. He treats girls with extra care and makes sure they are safe. I can already tell, by the way, he plays with the other children. He will be a good alpha. Charlotte had done a great job of educating him while I was absent. -"Daddy, wanna come to play with us?" He shouts across the playgro
***Morgan's POV ***-"Morgan?"Alpha Matthew's mind links as we approach my motel room. I had forgotten to fill him in on the details. I guess I wasn't used to having him back yet.-"She said yes. We are gathering some basic stuff. After that, I plan on taking her to our closest ally, Grayfang Pack. Susie used to take me through these woods. I remember seeing a cabin not too far out from where we are. We will take shelter there for the night and leave towards Barkmer Forest at the first light. We should reach Grayfang's territory by mid-morning." I squinted and brought my palm to my forehead in a facepalm motion. I mentioned Susie's name, and I shouldn't have.-"I will be going to Grayfang's territory tomorrow anyways. So I will meet