'What in moon goddess' name, is this true?', Lucy asked, covering her open mouth with her hands in shock.
'Yes, well that could be the only plausible explanation', Jo replied. 'I try my best to cover my scents in all of my clothes and everything well. But when I handed you my spare clothes earlier, I forgot to hide the scent and I did not know you were going to come out so fast to the kitchen'. Jo rubbed her temples in an attempt to ease the throbbing headache.
'But if you really are Alpha Jayden's mate, why not just tell him! Even if we are all omegas, a mate bond is sacred and above all werewolf laws', Lucy chirped happily, her blue eyes shining bright for the first time Jo had ever seen. This made Jo smile weakly.
'Lucy, this is much more complicated than you think and its better if you don't know my circumstances in depth. All I am asking for right now is that you play along and pretend to be Alpha Jayden's mate now. I will give you all of my scented clothes and you can drag this act for some time. And in a matter of few months, both you and I can leave this pack and seek our own freedom', Jo concluded, observing Lucy's reaction. 'And I can give you some of my savings as well'.
Lucy quickly shook her head sidesway,' Don't be ridiculous. If you are seeking freedom, then you need to have your own savings. I am just scared that this act might be dangerous for me and I don't play dangerous games. I like to lie low'.
'Well, I can guarantee your safety if you agree to do this. I am not going to force you, but just so you know, even if you don't agree to pretend now, Gina and her minions probably will make your life more miserable for the next two years. Turning 21 is very very VERY far for you right now. But if you agree to go along with it, you and I will be out of this pack in a few months', Jo added in a few more notes to persuade her.
'I agree with your plan', Lucy replied with no hesitation in her voice this time. 'How do we make this work?'.
A broad grin appeared across Jo's face as she started tapping her fingers on her wooden table, 'Well for starters, you will move in to this room. Its already a bit tight spaced with Polly and me but we can fit another bed in here. We need to be close to communicate'.
'Well, I don't mind sleeping here, this is better than my basement room. But will we not rouse suspicion? What if we just mind linked each other to be on the safer side?', Lucy suggested, tilting her head slightly to the right side.
'NO', Jo immediately screamed. She quickly regained her composure from her sudden outburst. 'Excuse me, I did not mean for my reply to come out that way. I...I...oh yes, being an omega, my wolf is very weak and I cannot talk to her. So my mind link is quite weak, whereas you have Beta's blood and it must be quite easy for you'.
'Oh, I dearly apologise Jo', Lucy started but paused instantly. 'I mean Jolene'.
Jo laughed heartily at the innocent girl, 'You can call me Jo, that's fine'.
A wave of relief spread across Lucy's body as she relaxed slightly. Ever since the murder and accusations, she had never called another person in an endearing nickname, in fact no one even wanted their names to come out of her mouth. She was called the cursed she-wolf for a reason.
Lucy got a little excited as she weighed Jo's words, leave this hell place in a few months? YES PLEASE!
'So are you ready to move in?', Jo asked Lucy again who looked visibly excited.
'Yes, I will move in straight away! I need to grab my items from the basement. I will be back soon', Lucy skipped happily out the door.
'Wait, Lucy!', she heard Jo's voice. 'Can you close your eyes for a quick second?'.
'Sure but why?', Lucy questioned, all confused.
'I need to rub my scent on you. Remember Alpha Jayden has to be convinced you are his mate for this plan to work', Jo reminded her. And with that, Jo motioned her hands as she rubbed a little bit of her scent on Lucy. 'All done, be quick now'.
.
.
.
Lucy could not remember the last time she felt this happy, probably when her mother was still alive. When she gets out of this hell hole, her first goal would be to find her own place, maybe she could settle in the human town and find a small job. As she walked along the pebbly path, she felt the cool breeze on her skin. It felt so great to have someone to talk to. Even though technically Jo never said they were friends, they were still working together to get out of the pack and so, in a way, she felt like a friend. Lucy paused in her tracks when she heard a conversation.
'Welcome to our pack, we are delighted to be graced by the royal guards and commanders', she heard the former Alpha's flattering voice. Oh shit, she suddenly remembered about the important guest that were visiting tonight! She quickly hid behind the small bush to make way for them to pass first. The former Alpha was talking to a huge regal looking man who had heavy silver armours adorned. He had several followers who were wearing the same armour and of the same physical stature.
From the corner of her eyes, she saw Alpha Jayden looking poised and serious besides his father. He glanced her way for a second, making her heart stop. Did he see her? She hoped not, he was already so mad at her earlier.
Once she heard the conversations and voices fading away, she quietly stepped outside of the bush and bent a little to make as little noise as possible. But before she could sneak any further, someone caught her arms and yanked her back.
'Hi there mate, trying to be sneaky now?', her eyes met Alpha's mysterious emerald eyes and she swore she saw something besides hate this time.
'Um', It was getting harder for Lucy to breathe, because of the close proximity she was to the Alpha. His dominating aura was making her submit and, because she was not really his true mate, the aura affected her and she could not stop averting his gaze. He cupped her face to bring her attention back to him and now his eyes looked like they were almost pleading for something. As every second kept getting hotter, she observed Alpha Jayden's dark brown hair falling in front of his face and his sharp jaw lines clenching. He was without a doubt one of the most handsome and attractive male wolf in the pack and every she wolf swooned to get into his bed.
'You like what you see?', Jayden teased her as this made Lucy blush and puzzled at the same time. Just a few hours ago, he was full of anger and hate when he thought she was his mate, but suddenly, what was wrong with him now?
Alpha Jayden took a lungful of Lucy's scent as he kissed her marking spot lightly. 'See you around, little mate'. And with that, the Alpha abruptly turned and left, leaving Lucy dazed in the middle of the pathway.
As Lucy finally reached her basement room, she looked around at the dusty environment. There were insects crawling all over the place and sometimes they would even crawl on her body. She was terrified at first but soon got used to them. As she collected a couple of her clothes, she sat down on the edge of the bed. Her life was changing so suddenly in such a short span of time. Just a few more months and she would have the freedom she had been craving for years. She needed some savings first to break even and she quickly remembered her little pouch. She had hidden the small pouch inside the old dusty vase. As she reached her hands to fish the pouch out, she heard a couple of footsteps closing in. ''Well well, looks like the dumb b**ch is packing to go somewhere', Gina's evil voice echoed in the dark basement room as her minions laughed. Lucy was sure all of Gina's friends were sticking with her because she was the beta's daughter. Otherwise, Gina was not good at anything besides wh*ri
'What an annoying guest!', Jo thought to herself as she walked back to the kitchen. Not only does he wander off in a foreign pack alone but also insulted her cooking skills. Royal guards and generals were bursting with ego and pride as always. It's a no-brainer that she hated them with a passion. Jo finally walked back into the kitchen and saw her frustrated friend running around barking orders. 'Polly, you need to slow down a little or else you are going to make all the omegas cry with your tone', Jo calmed her friend. Polly took a deep breath as she massaged her temples with her right hand, ''I have just been told that the royal visit has been extended for a week. They were only supposed to be staying one night and now this. I have to get all the rooms ready and assign more omegas. Its total chaos. I know you wanted Lucy to rest but I really need more hands on deck'. 'Alright fine. But as long as you assign Lucy with me, we should be fine', Jo replied to her friend who was watchi
'Caleb, any updates?', Dante mindlinked his friend who he knew was probably in bed with another she-wolf.'Nah man, I was busy dealing with a rather important issue that required my attention immediately', Caleb chose his words carefully.Dante gave a huge sigh. They were only supposed to stay here for one night but ever since he had that encounter with Jolene, he extended the stay for a week. He knew they were wasting important time but now that he knew he had a mate in this pack, he wanted to at least find out who it was. His heart knew it was Jolene so why did the other girl also had the same scent? Was he mistaken perhaps?'Just make sure you speak to the witnesses by this evening' and with that Dante closed the mindlink. This was only supposed to be a regular mission but he could not stop thinking about Jolene and her gorgeous vibrant hair. He wanted to see more of her. No, he NEEDED to see her and know if she really was his mate....
''I am only joking, Miss Jo'', Dante voiced with a smirk playing on his handsome face. Jo was not convinced he was joking. He definitely knew something and could see past her tricks. She needed to go back to her room later and mask her scent more. Also, she had to give some to Lucy but still needed to cover the rest of her scent. This was getting riskier by the clock. Nothing was coming in between her future plans and her, she has been on the run forever and she was getting tired of it. Sometimes, she even had to sleep with one eye open because of the dangers that were always lurking in the dark for her. Jo would get through this as she always did. Now she even had a stronger reason to fight for, which was to get Lucy out of this hellhole. 'Ha-ha. Do all the werewolves from the royal kingdom have such an impeccable taste in humor because, if so, I would need to strike the royal kingdom off my places to visit'', Jo snickered her nasty comment to his amused face. She quickly clappe
As Jo led Dante to the hunting ground, the bustling noise of crowd gathering got louder and louder. Much to Jo’s dismay, Dark Slayer pack had annual traditions of hunting and killing of demon slaves. These slaves were usually caught wondering the no-man’s border. Jo knew some of these slaves were not just exiled demons but a mix of also wondering elves, half fairies, and more creatures. Alpha Jayden took great interest in killing them every year in this so called ‘traditional hunt’. And Jo had a doubt the royal King and Queen were not even aware of this hunt. The hunting ground was filled with various looking slaves in shackles, all looking defeated and tired, signs of abuse apparent with the bruises on their skin. Jo flinched a little at the sight but quickly maintained her posture.All the higher ranked officials were seated in a tent above the hunting ground, looking comfortable and enjoying the parade. Jo knew all this hunting was really a validation they needed for their strength
Jo looked around as all the participants were getting riled up for the hunt. Big built commanders, warriors and officials were stretching and looked at ease with their chosen maidens by their side. Caleb chose Gina's sister, Evelyn. She was a shy she-wolf with the similar signature blonde hair except she was smart unlike her air head mother and big sister. Jo had spoken to Evelyn on some occasions before and she was impressed at how well articulate and kind she was compared to her family. Gina was still clinging on to Alpha Jayden and it seemed like she was going to be his chosen maiden for this hunt which was not a surprise. Gina was always by Jayden's side no matter where it was, Jo wondered if she was that desperate to be the next Luna of the Dark Slayer pack. Dante obviously was still holding Jo's hand tightly and she was getting more annoyed at this dark haired general who had the audacity to assume she was willing to be his partner. If she was not hiding in this pack, she would
Jo looked at the tall and dark general who was watching her very closely and for some unsettling reason, he appeared happy to have spotted her instead of being angry for the trick that was pulled on him earlier. ‘General, these two slaves are my old friends and not demons. I will be in your debt if you talk to our Alpha and release them after this hunt is over’, Jo worded herself carefully so as to not rouse any suspicion. Dante gave her a small smirk and decided to play along a little. ‘Are they werewolves too then? How did they end up in this hunting ground?’.‘Umm, yes General! They are werewolves who have been wrongfully captured in the hunting ground. Merely low ranked omegas as myself, hence we cannot shift like the other strong pack members’, Jo tried to sound as pitiful as possible, as a dazed Dante continued to watch her. ‘Why was she lying?’, he questioned himself inside his mind. He still could not figure out Jo’s true scent, but he wanted to believe that the mate scent e
Jo walked ahead of the two fairies who were gossiping nonstop behind her. If she knew fairies were such chatterboxes, she would have never made the deal!Dante won the hunt and there was a feast tonight in his name. But unfortunately for Jo, that meant she had to accompany Dante as his chosen maiden. Keeping his words, Dante talked to the former Alpha and freed Mina and Daya from the hunt. However, the two fairies decided to spend a week with Jo while a messenger was being sent to the fairy kingdom to have them picked up. Now she had to squeeze them into the shared accommodation. There were already three people in a single room, with the two fairies, it was going to be even more crowded.'Polly is going to kill me. And also, where the heck will I get a dress for the feast later, damn it', Jo wondered in frustration.As she neared the shared accommodation, she heard someone crying. Immediately she rushed inside to see Lucy bawling her eyes out.'What's wrong Lucy? Are you okay? Did som