Samuel howled with anguish as he looked around at his pack members all lying on the ground. He closed his eyes as he mourned for his fallen pack mates; when he opened them again his eyes burned with anger and vengeance. He would find out who did this and put an end to them.
“Alpha!” another warrior called out.
“What is it?”
“The prisoner is no longer here,” he informed his Alpha.
Samuel growled as he picked up a piece of furniture and threw it across the room. He stormed into the room that was used to hold the hostage and he sniffed. He paled when he caught the scent of a Lycan.
“Get me Persephone, now!” Samuel commanded.
His warrior bowed and quickly turned away.
He didn’t want to get involved with Lycans. He tried to steer clear of the last Lycan King and keep his pack under the radar. But if there was a Lycan here who’d rescued the witch, then they were dealing with something far worse than just a hybrid. He needed answers and he needed them now.
******
Deak shook his head as he sat next to his mate in the car, making their way back to the campus. Deak had thought that he was done with that campus; it was just one more reminder of his uncle. Deak could feel his anxiety build as his wolf, Malakai, was getting uneasy. He pulled Vita closer to him, inhaling her scent as a calming remedy for his nerves.
Vita shook her head but giggled as Deak continued to sniff her. She noticed that she felt better the closer Deak was to her. She was happy to be on the mend, but she was nowhere near ready to be somebody’s mate—or worse, their property. That’s how Tristan treated her, like a piece of his collection. She didn’t want to ever feel like that again. She knew almost nothing about being mated to a wolf or Lycan. She had only heard rumors of them being moody and possessive, and she didn’t want any of that. As soon as she was feeling better and knew things were good with her friends, she was going to pack up and leave.
Deak could sense Vita’s anxiety. He didn’t want to seem overbearing; he needed to be patient with her and show her that he was going to be a good mate. He didn’t want to scare her away, but it was hard for him because he had waited for so long to find her. He just wanted to hold her in his arms and protect her from the world.
But was that the right thing for Vita?
“We’re almost there,” Zachary told them as they got close to the campus.
Vita pulled out a small spell book and started to flip through it, looking for something particular. She started to chant as they got closer to the campus.
Zachary looked at her through the rearview mirror as the words she chanted became familiar to him. He turned to look back at her. “You think it’s a hex?”
Vita closed her eyes as she continued to chant, and then her eyes widened as she quickly said, “Slow the car down.”
Zachary took his foot off the gas.
“Stop!” she yelled.
Vita pulled herself away from Deak, pushed the car door open, and got out. She walked over to a spot in the dirt and put her hands out to get a sense of it. Deak came up behind her and held her gently to keep her steady so that she wouldn’t fall over.
She pointed. “Over there.”
Zachary got out of the car and went to the spot that Vita was pointing to, where he began to dig. He was surprised when he pulled out a small pouch bag that had been buried in the dirt.
Vita smiled. “We need to find all of them.”
*****
Amanda walked downstairs and headed into the kitchen to make herself something. It had been a long night. Hudosn had pounded on the door begging to come in to explain himself, but she refused to let him in. he even got up to the bedroom window and tapped on it, but she made sure that it was locked and the curtains were closed so that he couldn’t see in. that didn’t stop her from sensing that he was there. She cried for most of the night, leaving her with a horrible morning headache and puffy eyes.
She adjusted the big frames around her eyes as she waited for the coffee maker to finish. She turned her head a little as she heard Tabitha making her way downstairs herself. Amanda knew that Tabitha was going to be grumpy; she wasn’t a morning person at all.
“Morning,” Tabitha grumbled as she made her way to the island bar and plopped herself onto a stool.
Amanda mumbled back, “Morning.” She took the cup that had finished brewing and replaced it with another, then walked the first cup over to Tabitha.
“Thank you,” Tabitha hummed.
Amanda gave her a small smile, then went to the fridge to grab the creamer. “Have you talked with Marco?” she asked softly.
Tabitha grunted as she took a sip of her hot drink. “Yes, but I’m not believing his excuse.”
Amanda nodded. She couldn’t offer her friend any good advice because she didn’t even know what to do about her problems with her mate.
Amanda tensed when she heard a knock on the door.
“Relax, it’s Luna Cynthia,” Tabitha said as she made her way to the door to leave the Luna in.
“I just came to check on you girls this morning,” Luna Cynthia said as she entered.
Amanda pressed her fingers to the plastic frames that covered her eyes. She didn’t want to show her pain to Luna.
“We’ve been better,” Tabitha answered for the both of them.
Amanda walked over to the living room to hug Luna. “Thank you for being there for me last night. I’m sorry that I was not able to complete the shift.”
Luna Cynthia pulled back from Amanda and lifted her chin with her finger. “It doesn’t matter when you and your wolf decide to shift. You are family and the future Luna of this pack no matter what,” she replied in a soothing tone.
Amanda sighed. “What if Hudson no longer wants me as his mate?”
Luna Cynthia sat down on the couch. “My son is many things, but he would be a fool and anger the pack if he rejected the bond now.”
Amanda shrugged. “We haven’t fully mated and cemented or bonded to each other.”
“That doesn’t matter. My son loves you and you love him. In time, you both will work things out.”
“I hope so.”
Luna Cynthia smiled as she got up from her seat. “I’ll let Stan know that you are about ready to head back to campus. The boys can find their way back,” she said with a wink.
Fighting for my Mate
Mated to my Bully