~ARYA~“It will help you keep up the facade, at least for the next months. If you were still pregnant, you would be showing already. Hunter is an Alpha, and as you said, he might soon find out about the absence of a second heartbeat.”“And what will that in your hand do?”“Make believe. You’ll smell like an expecting mother, and your stomach will grow to a believable size. Simply put, once it is inside your body, it will take on the likeness of a growing fetus,” he explained, and I nodded.“Great. Get on with it. How do you get it inside me?”“I must warn you, though.”I sighed heavily. “What is it again?”“If things go sideways, I do not have a hand in this. I still think it is wrong to deceive the Alpha; what you’re doing is risky, and if he finds out,"I stared at him for a few minutes, shaking my head and I burst out in laughter. “If he finds out, you’re going down with me. There is no backing out of this now, Jace. You are in this with me, and if you don’t want this to blow up in
~REIGN~ The pack doctor stood in the living room waiting for me as I walked in, back from grabbing food in the main kitchen. “I was just on my way out.” With the tray of food in my hand, I walked up to him. “How is she? Is there anything else I need to be mindful of while she’s in recovery?” I asked. “If she doesn’t do anything strenuous for now, she’ll feel more like herself in a few days. I left some herbal medications on the nightstand; it will help her eat better to replenish her strength and boost her system to heal faster.” He explained while I nodded. “Good, how many times does she need to take the herbs in a day? Do I brew it, mash it, or is it something she can chew?” I asked, just to be sure I got everything right. “The herbs have already been crushed into powder form; you can add two spoonfuls to warm water daily. It is better if she takes it in the morning before eating.” He explained as he instructed. “Okay, good. You know better than to breathe a word of this to any
~JADE~ Tears streamed down my face as I accepted every spoonful of porridge he offered me. Try hard as I may, I couldn’t shake off the guilt weighing down on me. Even if my pup wasn’t dead yet, it didn’t negate the fact that he was still out there with a stranger who wouldn’t know how to care for him. The wound on his hip hasn’t closed up yet because it’s still healing, and without proper care, it would take longer than usual for it to heal. Already, I didn’t have the means to care for the wound properly, but I still made sure to clean it every day and wrap it, hoping that his wolf blood would at least help him heal faster, even though he was just as malnourished as his mother. And I was eating when I didn’t even know if he had anything to eat yet. He is only a month old, and he needs breast milk; he needs me; he needs his mother. I broke down in a sob, unable to accept more of the porridge. My heart just couldn’t take it anymore, and I wished I had just died that evening. At least
~REIGN~“What do you mean you lost the trail?” I asked Lamonte, dragging him farther away from the door.Casting his head down, he began apologizing. “I’m sorry, Alpha, but I think they figured we were hot on their trail and someone we lost them.”“I don’t need you to think. I need you to know, to be specific, and don’t stand there telling me you think they did this or did that. What the fuck happened and how the fuck did they know?” I growled at him.“Since the trail of his scent went dead at the motel in the human town, we had to ask around if anyone saw anything or someone who looked suspicious. The trackers also did a general sweep of the area and we were able to pick up the faint trail of his scent, which we followed. They knew we were close and then there was nothing.” He explained with his head lowered and his neck slightly barred in a submissive position.I dismissed his explanation with a shake of my head, as it lacked any logical sense. “There is no way they could’ve known t
~JADE~A whimper caught in my throat, and I quickly covered my mouth with both hands to stifle any noise. I pressed myself against the wall, hoping the length of the refrigerator would hide me from his view if he chose to come in.It hadn't planned to eavesdrop on the conversation or go after him. I knew how to mind my business when necessary. Hunter often had pack-related meetings in the house with his father and I never made it a habit to eavesdrop or interfere unless I was called upon.So, I had no reason to go after him or interfere, even though the way he was acting after accidentally nicking my skin was suspicious. I had the mind to turn over and lay on the bed because what else would I do? But I was uncomfortable seeing the bowl of unfinished porridge on the bed. He was too distracted when he sprinted out of the room to take the bowl with him, and I didn’t have the appetite for more food. I could choose to sit on the bed aimlessly for his return. However, I was never one to abu
~REIGN~My blood simmered to a boil as I listened to Father and Alpha Jete’s discussions like I wasn’t present. The stupid daughter of Alpha Jete sat close to her father, leaning slightly on him with a smile on her face as she listened to their conversation. What the fuck was she smiling about? Did she even know that her father brought her here to be slaughtered?I pushed down the growl, threatening to break free, clenching my fist as I cleared my throat to grab their attention. “I have better things to do; did you call me here to waste my time?” I ground out.Father placed the glass of wine in his hand on the table, turning to me with a frown. “There is nothing more important for you today than this; take a seat and get to know your father-in-law more,” he demanded, pointing at the chair before his desk.“He is not my father-in-law, and I already know enough about Alpha Jete and his cunning ways.” I tried not to snap as I replied.“Will you ever learn manners, boy?” Alpha Jete eyed m
~LEVENA~‘You can’t just up and leave Jade. You need to calm down and think this through.’ I tried to reason with her as she started peeling off the shirt.‘There’s nothing to think through, Lev. I thought I blocked you out already.’ ‘You can block me out when you barely have any control over yourself. Leaving is a bad idea if there’s any chance that our pup is still out there.'‘He is fucking dead. He's gone.’ Jade yelled, cutting me off. I stayed quiet, watching as another sob wracked through her body. ‘Stop trying to make me have hope, Lev; he is gone,’ she whispered in between sobs.‘And what if he isn’t? If there’s a chance that he’s still out there, you’ll cost us our one chance at ever finding him. We won’t survive out there, Jade, not this time. Reign can keep us safe; he can help us find him, and we can’t keep running. We won’t survive another week out there,’ I reasoned with her but she shrugged like it didn’t matter.‘That’s the point, Lev; I know we won’t survive out ther
~REIGN~I noticed the shift in the air as soon as I walked into the suite, but I couldn’t put my finger on it. Then I walked into the bedroom and saw her. For some reason, Emerald had changed from the previous polo shirt she wore, and she was now wearing my shirt. I had hoped I’d find her asleep when I returned because dealing with Father had ruined my mood.There was something different about her, and I stopped at the doorway, scanning her entire frame. Nervousness rolled off her in waves as she toyed with the button of the shirt. The sound of a heartbeat rang loud in my ear, and her scent seemed stronger than usual yet strange. The usual hint of lavender in her scent had faded and her pheromones carried the scent of sandalwood, which was also strange.I remained rooted in the doorway while her eyes ran all over my body. It was confusing because this was unlike her; she’d barely looked at me for more than two minutes in the past hour, and now she couldn’t take her eyes off me. Everyt