KELEIGH’S POV My father’s claws gleamed in the light of the overhead lamp of the room as he raised his hand in the air, preparing to swipe. My breath caught in my throat as I pressed against the wall he had roughly pushed me into in a rage after he had caught I and Jake in the act of canoodling. He roared in fury as he bore down on Jake. I could understand why he was so enraged. Jake was the Alpha of the Moonlight pack, and my father was the Alpha of our pack, the Wesselton Pack. Both our packs have been in a bloody feud for so long that no one even remembered how it started in the first place. Countless wolves from both packs had died for generations over this feud. And Jake was about to be the next person. “My daughter!” My father growled at him. "How dare you!" My heart galloped with panic as I stared at the scene in front of me. My father in a state of half-shift, his clothes already partly torn from it. Jake, pinned below him, his eyes filled with so much fear and shock as he
Arielle’s POVMy world was shattered that day, and the joy I imagined I would feel when I met him was nothing but a dream.His voice was not raised at me, yet I could feel the intent to wound me in his words. And, oh, did they hurt. Leon was nothing if not effective, and it showed now more than ever.“I never loved you, Arielle,” he said, not for the first time. He was trying to convince me to let go, but I could not. My tears streamed down my cheeks like twin rivers. I could not breathe, and my knees felt weak.I reached for him, clinging to his arm and begging him, with everything I had, not to say those words again. It was far too much for me to bear. It was a nightmare.He shook his arm from mine, and I
Arielle’s POVI enjoyed the warmth as the sun streamed in through the car window. It was barely 10am, yet the sun was high up in the sky already. I loved it – this part of the country really suited me. I enjoyed the sun, and summer all year-round.The driver made a turn onto a smaller road, and I could see the gate of the pack compound right in front of us. My lips turned up in a smile, despite my anxiety. This was a new place after all.We passed through the gates after a few moments. One of the guards had asked for my name and I gave it, “Arielle Grey,” and only seconds passed before we were finally let through.Another minute or so passed before the car stopped in front of a large house.As I exited
Richard’s POVThe work never ends.I sat in my study having a quick rest, having drawn the curtains. It seemed that I never had enough time in the day to complete my work, and it had led me to staying up all night dealing with paperwork, again.I sighed, rubbing my eyes, which were sensitive at this moment. Being Alpha was definitely not for the faint of heart.Unfortunately, it seemed that rest was evading me. Thankfully, I still had a bit more time to fit in a power nap, before I met with the council that afternoon.My nose twitched as I recognised my Beta’s distinct scent. A second later, I heard his knock on the door, and I shut my eyes, pretending to be asleep. Hopefully, Darren would see that and walk away q
Richard’s POV:“What do you want?” was the first thing I could think to ask. Being sleep-deprived was not a good feeling, and the hot shower I had helped to loosen my stiff muscles, thus worsening my drowsiness.I could see Elise flinch as I practically snapped the question at her, whilst moving to my closet to pick out and wear something suitable for bed. I removed the towel from my waist unceremoniously, and I could feel her eyes rake over my naked bottom half like she had never seen it before. I felt a tinge of frustration and anger right then; she had not answered my question.“Elise,” I ground out, “if you have nothing worthwhile to say, then please get out. I don’t have time for you or your antics today.” I finished putting on the cotton pyjama pants, turning to
Arielle’s POV:I had finally finished unpacking.Sighing with a feeling of triumph filling me, I looked around my new room. There was a sense of belonging that I had begun to have now, and me fully unpacking was a sign of settling down, finally.Ever since I left my precious pack for medical school, I had become a nomad of sorts. I never unpacked my things fully, always ready to move at the last second. I did not do this consciously, but it now dawned on me that I was avoiding settling down before.Now, I was ready – ready to settle into my life in this new pack, and for all the possibilities that lay before me.A hope bloomed inside my chest, making me feel warm on the inside and grin like an idiot on the outside
Richard’s POV:It was a new day, and I had finally awoken after forcing myself to get some rest the previous day. I had managed to also finalise my plans to send Elise to the Everneal pack as the main delegate on my behalf. She had not been pleased when she had heard it from me the previous evening, when I had called her into my study just a little while after I had forced her out of my room.Now, as I was pacing the length of the large study, my mind was focused on other important pack matters I had to deal with, specifically those to do with our growing relationship with the neighbouring packs.Before, when my father was Alpha, the Redding pack was not as powerful as we are now. We were a small pack, and our territories were just the same as well. However, now that we were expanding our territories and our influence, the neighbouring packs have now looked to us as a threat, and that has been a big problem we have been dealing with.As Alpha, it was the top priority to work on.I was
Arielle’s POV:I sighed, shaking my head as I continued to check through the patient file, before opening to a new page to update the records of today’s visit. When I had finished updating the file, I then placed the file in the compartment for my assistant-slash-receptionist, Daisy, to return to their proper place. Then, I continued with another patient file, which sat atop a pile of paperwork that I had to sigh again at, before turning away.Suddenly I heard loud noises outside the door of the medic room I was currently in. My brows furrowed as I heard what sounded like Beta Darren’s voice. Was everything alright.My questions were answered promptly when the door banged open which made me stand up in alert, wolf instincts prepared to defend. The familiar scent of a pack member calmed me down as Darren was the one who stumbled in. My relief didn’t last for long as the scent of panic reached me and to my surprise by his side was a man I had not seen before, who he was struggling to ho