ELENA’s POV
The ride back from the outskirts of town is a stilted one. At Hunter’s orders, Liam remained behind to oversee Ezekiel’s former pack and Happy John will be there to him help out. Connor’s plea to stay back with his mother however was flat out rejected.
“This isn’t a country club where you can choose to come and go,” Hunter had told Connor. “Once you join the Storm Riders pack, you can only leave when I say yes.” He softened somewhat at the end and he ruffled Connor’s mop of hair. “You’ll get to visit your loved ones on weekends.”
Perhaps it is better this way. In Cecil’s mind, Connor is no longer her son but some boy who could perhaps give her money if she lets him touch her and have fun with her body. It is better for her to be in the comforting presence of my mother for the time being.
On the bright side, Freya will be joining us at the packhouse in
ELENA'S POV I am brought into a dressing room, no….the term ‘dressing room’ does not do justice to this enormous chamber. A hall chock full of floor to ceiling wardrobes can be seen, filled with rows upon rows of dresses and suits. You name it, they’ve got it. I inhale deeply and take a step forward, feeling the silken fabric of one of the dresses in my hand. A hiss escapes my lips, I have never felt anything as luxurious as this before. Freya would love this. This place is a girl’s dream come true! “Come, my dear,” Katelyn calls out. She is already many steps ahead of me and stops in the middle of the room where a velvet semi-circle plush sofa lays. Letting go of the silken fabric, I move towards her ever cautiously. She smiles warmly at me and places a hand on my shoulder when I finally reach her and spins me around. A little chuckle escapes her soft moist lips. “I can see why he is so fond of you.” Her words take me by surprise and I am mom
HUNTER’s POVI stare at my plate, I should be hungry but I am not. My mind keeps going back to what Ezekiel said; that Clyde is out there searching for the Xaél Crystal. Why would he look for something that is but a mere myth? No matter, I will find him first and ask questions later.Finding Clyde on my own would be like finding a needle in a haystack. I’ll need to form allies with other packs from across the borders to prevent Clyde from defecting to their packs and earn himself immunity from my manhunt.My brows furrow together and my fingers curl around the wine glass so tight the knuckles turn white. Damn that snake, I should have shot him in the abandoned building when I had the chance.But then again, if I had chosen to chase after Clyde then I would never have been able to save Elena. Do I regret sacrificing that one chance of getting the son of a bitch? I suck in a deep breath and slowly exhale
ELENA’s POVI open my eyes to the sound of birds chirping outside my window and my lips curl up into a smile. I stretch my arms as far out as my muscles and bones allow me only to wince slightly at the pain from the wound.Oops.I must remember not to overexert myself until the wound is completely healed. Pain aside, the smile remains plastered on my face. Hunter came to me….I cannot believe it. I cup my cheeks, feeling my skin heat up from a mixture of both embarrassment and excitement.We had stayed in each other’s arms throughout the night, him just stroking my hair while I held his hand and told him about my childhood. I wish he had told me more about his though, he rarely spoke but then again, Hunter is not a man of many words and I respect him for that. And the fact that he stayed with me to quell my fears already speaks volumes.I swing my feet to the wooden floorboards and walk towards the window, pushing it wide
HUNTER’s POV I do not like what I see. “Take it off. The dress does not belong to you,” I tell Elena’s sister. The blonde temptress looks up at me with her big blue eyes and she blinks in surprise. Sister or not, I do not like people who take possession of what clearly does not belong to them. “I’m sorry Alpha. I…I was only trying it on..” she stammers, trying to explain. Her head drops and she fidgets at her feet. “Do not make me repeat myself.” Her breath hitches and she bites her lips. “Yes, Alpha.” Her reply comes out in barely a whisper. “Tell Elena to meet me at the lobby when she is ready.” I walk away without waiting for her to reply. She has spoilt my mood, the girl is lucky I did not ask her to strip off the dress there and then. My feet take me back down to the lobby where Liam and Helios are gathered. Helios looks up as I reach the landing and he frowns. “Are you sure you’re b
FREYA’s POVWe wave goodbye to Hunter and his entourage. I watch as three cars, all sleek and black pull out of the mansion’s driveway and into the night, wishing that I had been in the car instead of Elena.My sister has been acting very strangely towards me ever since I told her of my intentions to become the Luna. She is probably laughing at me in the car right now, she looks down on me and I do not like that.It matters not that Hunter does not feel for me yet, I will make him want me more than anything in the world. I will become the very air that he breathes, the only sight he will see and the one being his heart will beat for. I will be his woman no matter what, I will be the Luna of the Storm Riders pack.ELENA’s POVHunter’s car pulls up in front of the biggest building I have ever seen. This place is huge! I rub my eyes, careful not to smudge the mascara tha
ELENA’s POV We turn around and come face to face with Kai Volok, the big bad of the north. The man smiles through his parched thin lips and I find myself taking a step back. I feel Hunter’s arms circle around my waist to stop me from retreating. “Kai, how have you been?” Hunter greets him. His voice is terse and I sense an undercurrent of uneasiness emanating from him. Hunter is tense and rightly so. I have heard of Alpha Kai’s name even as a child; this man is a legend but not in a good way. He kills for fun and dips his meals in the blood of his victims. “Never better,” Kai replies, his eyes graze my body and I grimace. I really should not have come. Behind him, a beautiful woman with an eye patch comes up and takes her place next to Kai. She wears a dress the colour of midnight that hugs her womanly curves and has two long blades tied to her back in the shape of an ‘X’. “You have news of Clyde?” Hunter asks. Around u
ELENA’s POV “Kai!” someone from the crowd shouts. Aiden runs back to the middle of the ballroom to check for a pulse, he shakes his head, there is none. The big bad of the north is dead, it should not have happened but it did and all eyes fall on Hunter. He gently lays Kai back onto the floor before making eye contact with Aiden. “He’s dead,” he states the obvious. Aiden nods his head silently and raises his hand, signalling for help. One of the attendees or waiter, I can’t tell the difference, they’re all dressed the same quickly exits the ballroom. I run towards Hunter, fall on my knees and cup his chin with both my hands. Tears line my eyes and blur my vision. I hate crying, but seeing him wounded like this breaks my heart. He palms my hand with his bloodied ones and shoots me a weak smile. “I’m fine,” he says. Fine my ass, his lips have gone blue and his face the colour of snow. My eyes trail to his blood-bo
ELENA’s POV The kiss….our kiss is neither earth-shattering nor is it one filled with throes of passion and moans. It is none of that. Instead, it is like the waking up of one’s soul on a fine spring morning, allowing me to taste and feel every colour of the rainbow in their own sensual way. It is like tasting cotton candy as it melts in your mouth, coating every one of your senses with its softness and sweetness. Everything around me fades to nothingness, it is as if nothing else exists except the two of us. It is my first kiss and it is one I will remember for the rest of my life. “You should rest,” I whisper when our lips finally part. He massages my earlobe and offers a smile. “You should change.” We both look down at my bloodied dress and laugh a little. Or at least I do. Hunter grimaces right after a laugh escapes his lips, his wound must hurt him more than he lets on. I run my hand through his hair and give him a