VICTORIA“Impala,” I breathe in horror. “What the hell are you doing here?”I stagger back in shock and fear and Jacklyn smiles, “I brought him here. I mean he was your mate first. So technically you can’t be mated to Max.”“Max is my true mate!” I shout at her. “Impala tried to force himself on me! My mating to Max is valid!”Jacklyn sneers, “Doesn’t matter now, does it? Impala has decided that he wants you back or kill you, depending on how much you resist.”Max is in front of me, his shoulder bleeding but his stance is protective, “She’s not going anywhere with you, you bastard! She’s my mate!”“She was never yours,” Impala spits out. “That bitch was mine and I don’t like mates who run away so she will have to be taught a lesson. You, however, you belong to this big mouthed woman.”“That’s the deal,” Jacklyn smiles. “You take her, I take him.”“Have you gone crazy, Jacklyn?” Max growls.“Crazy?” Jacklyn looks offended. “I love you! I’m doing this for us!”“Victoria is my
VICTORIAI stare at Ajax who is grinning, looking healthier than ever.“How are you alive?”I can barely speak but I manage to garble the words out.He rushes towards me, helping me up, “I never died. When you ran away, Brian’s people gave chase. You gave me those few precious moments to heal and I took over the pack.”I can barely see anymore.I can see him mouthing something.“…ust me?”I don’t know what it is but I nod.Then he’s forcing a bitter liquid into my mouth. I’m too weak to throw it out but as he feeds me the potion, he yanks out the broke piece of spear within me. I scream silently as the agony overtakes me but then I feel the wound healing almost instantly.I go limp in his arms, struggling to breathe as he pats my back, reassuringly, “Just breathe through it. It’ll be over in minutes.”I follow his instructions and sure enough my visions grows clearer.However, the first words out of my mouth are a cry for my mate, “Max!”I yank myself out of Ajax’s hold,
I stagger toward the plume of smoke rising above the trees.I have been in this forest for days, ever since my pack was wiped out.I was destined to be a luna.Now I'm just lucky to be alive."Someone's approaching!" a voice calls.I look up. Guards.They stalk down the hill toward me."Who are you?" they ask."My name is Victoria," I say."Where did you come from?""The mountains."They look skeptical."Wolves don't travel alone," the guard says."And it's a long way to travel for such a small woman," the seconds adds."My pack was killed," I say."Killed? All of them?"A lump rises in my throat.I do not want to think of the carnage I left behind.My mother."Yes," I say."How do we know you are not a spy?" he says."A spy?""We have just been attacked by other wolves.""Then you know how I feel," I tell them.They eye me warily.They are trying to decide what to do.I hope they choose to let me live.They turn to face each other and murmur.One of them no
The den I am led to is basic.Small and dark.Fit for an omega.I sink into the bed.Fatigue overcomes me.How is this my life?I have lost everything.I have lost my pack.I have lost my mate.I am too tired to cry.I close my eyes and fall asleep.A gentle paw shakes me awake."Time to get up. Time to hunt."I open my eyes.It is dawn.For a moment, I think I am back in my old pack.Then I realize where I am.The guard from yesterday peers at me.My stomach drops."What time is it?""Day break.""You hunt so early?""You have to hunt," the guard says. "You have to prove your worth as a hunter."I drag myself out of bed.Then I follow the guard outside.He makes his way towards the hunting grounds."What is your name?" I ask.He shakes his head. "I don't have one yet.""Your real name," I say. "Not your hunt name.""My real name does not matter."He is infuriating."I'm Victoria," I tell him."Not for long," he replies.I notice how his blonde fur
I do not return to the same den I slept in last night.Instead, I follow Impala to his den.My new home.With my new mate.It is a mess inside."Impala," I say. "You're untidy."He chuckles. "That is why I need a mate.""If you think I am tidying up after you, you are sorely mistaken. Lunas do not tidy.""You're not a luna anymore," he reminds me."Make yourself comfortable," he says. "I'm going hunting.""And me? What will I do while you're out?"He shrugs. "You could tidyI am appalled. "You're a pig.""you'll learn to love me, Oryx.""That is not my name," I say. "I am Victoria.""whatever you say, Oryx!"He leaves the den.I sit down in the corner.I am angry. Angry at him.I do not want to accept this.We are opposites.No matter how I look at it, we are opposites.We will never be a good match.I am supposed to lead not clean!Not sit around waiting for my lower ranked mate to come home.I am supposed to lead.I am supposed to outrank him.This is
I run through the camp and to the alpha's den.I walk up to him."What do you want?" he asks."My match is not what I wanted," I say. "I want out.""It's too late for that," he says."What?""Your match is final.""No!""It's final," he says. "You will be with Impala. Go back to your mate."I turn away from him.But he grabs me by the scruff of my neck and turns me back towards him."What are you doing?" I say, fearfully."When you go back to your mate, you will be submissive.""But-""Go back to your mate."He pushes me away.I return to the den.Cloud is waiting for me."Go away," I say."I can't let you leave," he says. “It’s not that simple.""I'm leaving," I say."I will hurt you if you leave."I look at him.He looks so scary. I feel terrified.It's not just him that I'm scared of.I'm scared of being alone.I'm scared of being in this new place with the foreign pack.I'm scared of my small, pathetic match.I study Cloud. His eyes are narrowed, and his
I can tell that he is right behind me.I can hear his footsteps as he runs towards me.He is much faster than I am. I keep running, but he is catching up. I look around, trying to find a place to hide.My eyes fall on a hollow log.I try to remember if there are any dangerous animals in it. I hope that it is empty.Impala is right behind me, so I run to it and dive into the log.I curl up at the bottom and cover my head.I hold my breath and wait.I can hear him sniffing me.I am shaking.I don't want him to find me.I don't want to be his match.I feel the log shifting.I peek out from my hiding place.Impala is staring down at me.He growls.I feel trapped."I don't want to fight you," I whisper. "But I will.""Is that supposed to scare me?" he taunts.I have never felt so angry. My anger makes me brave.And against my better judgement, I attack.Impala is surprised by my sudden burst of energy.We tussle at the bottom of the log.I feel his teeth on my n
I wake up on the floor of a cave. My vision is still blurry, and my head is spinning, but I think I can make out the shape of bars around me.I am confused. Why am I in a cave? And why are there bars on the door? I try to stand up, but the room starts to spin, and I fall back down. I am dizzy. I try to crawl away from the bars, but I slip, and I feel my body hit the floor.I don't know what is happening. When I try to get up again, I start to lose my balance. My vision is getting even blurrier. I feel weak. So weak. I look down and realize I am covered in blood-- matted in it, even.It's on my legs, my belly, my paws. It's even on my back, which I can't see.I touch it, and the pain stings.I try to stop the bleeding, but I can't.My sight is fading.I'm so cold, and I'm struggling to breathe.My lungs are burning, but I force myself to inhale anyway. I know that if I stop breathing, I will die.My vision is still blurry, but I can see the bars.I can't rememb