CHAPTER ONE ANNALISE With shaky hands, I gingerly lifted off the silver-coloured shawl that covered my face, revealing a charred skin. My reflection stared back at me as I lifted my eyes to look at the expansive looking glass in front of me, darkened and mangled. One eye peered back at me as the other eye was blind. My fingers traced the contours of my burnt face that had been the object of revulsion until I'd learned to cover her face each time I went out. For a moment, I imagined myself the pretty girl I had always been. The girl who had always been at the receiving end of affection. The radiant girl who had no one turning away in revulsion from seeing her face. The beautiful girl, daughter of the Alpha of Black Blood Pack with the silver-colored hair and emerald green eyes mirroring the resplendent foliage of a blooming rose, and lips that were to die for. Now, only one of those dark green eyes stared back at me. And those beautiful lips? They were
CHAPTER TWO I brought my hands to rub my stomach that was still quite flat. "My baby, my precious baby" I whispered, massaging the stomach. I was nothing now and I had nothing. I didn't even know the gender of the child. No one would accept a revolting woman like myself, let alone mate her. What could I do? There was only one thing to do to save myself. The test reports I had kept as a surprise for Edwin lay there on the floor. I only had to give it to him. Maybe he would take me back, he had loved me so much. He had said several times how his love for me could never die. There was no way his feelings for me would be gone so suddenly. With a renewed hope, I crawled to where the results lay and I picked it up. My hands traced the part where it said pregnant. Yes, I was truly pregnant. I had a chance after all. Deciding to leave the shawl and the mask on the floor since everyone had already seen me, I crawled to the door. My wheelchair had been taken from
CHAPTER THREE. The door pushed open and I looked up. To see the new Luna, Constance Avery and Edwin Lane outside the door, their lips locked together in a kiss, their hands groping each other. My hands shook. "Gosh... You're so, so sweet!" Edwin said in-between their kiss. I sat frozen. My mind couldn't wrap around what I was seeing at all. I was shocked. I was shocked with the enthusiasm Edwin showed. In the five years I was married to him, he had never shown this much eagerness in bed. I clutched the paper in my hand tightly as the couple stopped to glance at me. Then, like I was no one at all, they turned back to each other to resume their deed. My insides twisted in raw agony and my wolf howled in anguish for the umpteenth time today as I watched them. "Yes, right there..." Constance moaned as he began kissing her neck, and Edwin moaned in return. Constance turned her face in my direction and then, she smirked at me. "Let's do it here, baby..." She told him and E
Chapter Four: Five Years Later - Rebirth I awoke in a room bathed in soft, golden light. The luxurious bed beneath me felt plush, and my body felt strangely whole. I blinked, trying to process the unfamiliar surroundings. Then it hit me - I looked different. My once disfigured face was now flawless, and when I sat up, I discovered that my legs were fully functional. Rising from the bed, I cautiously approached a full-length mirror. Staring back at me was the Annalise of my dreams, unmarred and beautiful. Confusion mingled with disbelief as I touched my smooth skin and ran my fingers through my silver-colored hair. I was the same Annalise, just with a very slight difference. "How did this happen?" I questioned, still in disbelief. After saying the word, I was glued to the spot for a while. "Did I just speak?" I finally found my voice. "I just did! I spoke! I just did!" I screamed excitedly as I jumped around the house. I rushed back to the mirror and stood there, admiring
CHAPTER FIVEELARAI realised that River was in love with me. And even though I didn't love him back, I decided to use his love to my own advantage. I called River that morning to inform him that I wanted to see him. I lay in bed thinking about the possibilities of getting my revenge as soon as possible when I heard a soft knock on the door. I knew at once that it was River. He was the only one I was expecting. I stood up from my bed and walked towards the door. I grabbed the key, turned it in the hole, and pulled the handle backwards."Good morning, Annalise," he greeted me. "Elara," I corrected him. "Good morning, Elara," he took correction. I opened the door widely and let him come in. "I can see you have changed a lot in your room," he said as he sat on the couch. "That shows that we both have different tastes," I responded. I sat down on the bed facing him. We stared at each other awkwardly for some time without saying a word to each other. I cleared my throat and began."I could b
CHAPTER SIXELARARiver held my hand and took me around the seats of the pack elders. I had to bow in front of them and receive their blessings. After greeting the elders, we began to walk towards other pack officials. The beta, gamma, and others. As we greeted them, and River introduced them to me officially. I could see in their eyes that they had a lot going on in their heads. They had their doubts about me being their Luna. They also had questions I could see clearly in their eyes. Like, where did she come from? They were shocked and perturbed about the fact that their alpha had brought a mate out of the blues. In all of these, I ignored everyone and greeted them politely. I couldn't tell if it was just me or River saw it too. I decided to play cool, still. "She's... she's pretty," one of them said. "Like a ghost that she appears to be."I swallowed hard and continued walking. "Are you sure you know what a Luna is?" Another one teased me. "This is not a model house for fashion par
CHAPTER SEVEN ELARAThe ceremony was over. River and I walked together to his room. Everyone else in the hall had also begun to disperse, so we weren't left behind. He led me to his room, and I sat on the couch when we got there."I'll have a shower first," River told me. "The stress in there was something else.""I know, right?" I replied with a forced smile.River walked towards his wardrobe, undressed behind it, and soon came into view with a towel tied around his waist. I looked away, not wanting to see his bare chest."It won't take too long, I promise," he told me. "Just take care until I return."I was getting impatient, wanting to tell him to just get into the bath already. I rolled my eyes and shook my head. I heard his footsteps towards the bathroom and only raised my head when I heard the door close."Urgh!" I groaned, standing up. I took off my shoes and wore one of River's unisex slippers. I sneaked out of the room, heading to the guards' quarters. Although River knew ab
.CHAPTER EIGHTELARAI was back on that horrible day. I could see the day my previous mate announced my best friend as his Luna. The smiles on their faces and the rejoicing from the pack members. I felt the heartbreaking moment once again. I folded my fist in a blow as I watched the scene, and instead of the sorrowful aftermath, I felt a super of revenge instead. I felt two hands grip me and release me in the lake. Immediately, I landed in the water. I gasped and sprang awake. It was all a nightmare, after all. I was breathing heavily and sweating profusely. Even though the AC in the room was on, I was still sweating all over, and my hands were holding the sheets firmly. I heard sounds of shuffling nearby and looked up to see River wearing his clothes in a haste. I was surprised as I moved my eyes straight to the wall clock. It was only a few minutes after 1 am. I wondered where River planned on going at the time of the night. Why was he dressing up? Well, the only way to find out was b