Chapter 4

Alpha Kane's POV

Oxygen went through my lungs smoother and not a single joint in my bones ached as I stretched and got out of bed.

Things ended hectic last night. I was betrayed and double-crossed by that woman and her pack and I'd gone to bed in a sour mood thinking about the loss but also the gain.

I could get with the beta's daughter and be in charge without a fear of my position getting usurped by someone with alpha blood.

So why did I feel so revitalized?

There could only be one answer to this.

"Silus!" I called my wolf out in my head but his reply was sluggish.

This shouldn't be, but I had a secret. One I'd kept with me for 26 years, since I discovered at age four that my wolf and I were not one.

Unlike everyone else who lived with their wolves as their other half, Silus was a separate half who often raised conflict and to avoid losing my position as crown prince and eventually alpha of the pack, we came to an agreement.

I take the day, he takes the night. He has the memories from the day but he shuts me out at night.

As much as I hate to admit it, Silus is more powerful than I am.

Mischievous too.

"Silus, what did you do last night?" I called out again.

It was important that he gave me a rundown before I stepped outside. That way, I could handle any unforeseen circumstances.

He knew how important that was for our secret to remain hidden, yet he isn't responding.

That leaves me only one choice, to force him out.

It seemed to have happened in the blink of an eye, but when I opened them again, my chambers were in disarray.

An absolute mess that made me wonder if I had been attacked. However the blood on the walls negated it.

Only Silus could cause me such harm.

There was a gaping wound in my biceps which I didn't hurry to treat.

Not when he'd used some of it to write on the walls "bring her home."

The words were scraped with his claws and dripping with blood on all sides.

Cracked bleeding mirrors that he must have used to make the cut. I sighed as I looked around for any other messages he must have dropped.

On my bedstand, was a note that read "we will regret it if we lose her," but what could we possibly regret.

What's so special about 'her'?

She was nothing but used goods, and Silus was heavy on loyalty. So what had she done to drive him so mad for her?

I needed answers. Answers my wolf either wouldn't give or didn't know. Which left me with one option.

I needed to find Violet. She was the key.

But before that, there was a council to attend to.

Inside the council room.

"Congratulations on consummating the union. Shall we proceed to prepare for the official ceremony?"

"I'm afraid we will have to postpone that indefinitely," I announced as I sat on the throne.

The room chilled for a moment that all I could hear was the silence. A countdown from three later and it erupted in noise.

"What?"

"Why?"

"Was she not worth it?"

"Will there be a war?" Several questions based on curiosity all trying to make a selfish gain out of this.

"There won't be a war because my Luna ran off." It felt off describing her as the Luna when I'd clearly rejected her last night, but they didn't need to know that.

This however brought some peace to Silus and for now, that was all that mattered.

"That's betrayal, we should send guards to find them. I will immediately alert the border guards!" The Chief guard swore as he jumped to his feet.

"Make sure she is brought back unharmed." I said.

"But...," he paused, "but she broke your trust. She should be punished."

I sucked in a deep breath as my grip on the throne became stronger. "Let me," I exhaled, "be the judge of that!"

"Yes Alpha Kane," he bowed before leaving.

"Now that's too bad, but we can always see it as a sign from the heavens. Maybe the moon goddess wanted you to find someone from the Pack as your Luna?" My father's beta tutted and the members of the council on his side nodded and murmured in support.

Those members being more than half of them.

A few hours into the meeting, having pacified the elders, my ears pricked and my heart skipped a beat.

Thudding with unattended rhythm.

"Any news from the borders?" I asked aloud, knowing fully well that we were at peace with all neighboring packs.

They stilled in a moment of silence before I was given a briefing from the head of the border guards.

In conclusion, all was well and there were no signs of suspicious activities.

Yet the hair on my skin stood on end, chilled and reacted to every little breeze that came in through the window.

My sensitivity stretched for hours as the meeting dragged on into the night. Then Silus' restlessness took over.

The fangs slipping out and constantly finding myself staring at the door after spacing out.

Trouble.

This level of alertness was reserved for troubling situations but there had been no reports from the border so far.

What could it be?

As soon as the meeting ended with an adjournment, I sprinted through the halls and out of the palace.

The sense of emergency urging me to go was so strong I let Silus take full form.

The foreboding sense of danger didn't wane for once. If anything it got deeper.

Although the border guards had reported no casualties or anything to be worried about, I couldn't be sure until I found out for myself.

This feeling of being in danger... my guts never lied.

The closer I got to the border, the thicker the stench of blood. So thick it made me heady and dizzy.

"Guards?" I called out first but was rewarded by silence. Not even the cicadas cried.

"Violet?" I called out again, expecting the same silence, however I paused for a response. In the woods, the echoes of a scream reached my ears.

"Let go!" That distant voice belonged to none other than the insufferable woman I bedded last night.

My blood roared as I sprinted in her direction. "I gave my instructions to bring her back unharmed. Who dared to hurt what's mine?!"

Chapter 5

Violet's POV

I refused to go down like this.

6 down but another set had joined to make them 16, so there were still 10 trying to get to me.

My wolf was exhausted, but I kept on pushing off the use of my magic. It was volatile and for that reason had seals on it.

Trying to break the seal would put a target on my back because of its explosive nature.

"Arghhhh!" I screamed as I charged again.

There was no use running into the night with the injuries.

I could easily get caught in traps that'd leave me more vulnerable so all I could do was fight.

I had a detached arm of one of the rogues and an axe in my other hand to fight but they were gaining on me.

Of course they were, we've been at this since they managed to break through the barrier 5 hours ago.

"You bitch, just give up and let us have what we came for!" They clawed at my skin.

It stung, I bled, I healed but I never stopped fighting.

"That's unfair, I get nothing out of it," I did a round kick at the speaker's face and stuck my axe in the middle of his skull.

The crack splattered blood all over my face but that was the least of my concerns.

The robe I managed to wear was already battered, and stuck to my body with blood.

Both mine and my victims.

7 down. 9 to go.

"I can do this." I cheered to encourage Sister as I staggered forward to pick out the axe when I felt a breath on the back of my neck.

It was too late by the time I turned around as I got struck in the side of my face with a harsh elbow.

I fell back to the ground. That hit had landed on my temple, leaving me no choice.

"That's what you get, bitch," the attacker mocked as he wiped blood off his forehead and crouched over my figure.

I tried to crawl backwards but my whole body felt heavy like lead and too limp to move.

"Please don't come close. Please," I pleaded as my vision blurred.

"Too late to beg now," his breath fanned my face alongside the others.

All I'd struck but they remained standing. "Finally. I'd never met a female this stubborn," they said as they peered at me like a feast to be devoured.

They weren't going to do it respectfully, but I'd die before I let myself be defiled this way.

However death wasn't an option for me. Not when fate smiled on me for the first time last night.

I would be damned before I leave this world without my happy ending.

"Arghhhh!" With a scream from the depth of my soul, I squeezed my eyes and entered my subconscious, ignoring the slimy feeling of their hands on my body, searching and pinching.

Then a light flickered like a star in the void of my mind.

Found it! I smiled and let myself get wrapped around it until a buzzing sound enveloped me followed by that snap of the seal breaking.

"I said leave me alone!" I screamed till my throat hurt and when I opened my eyes again, it was all bright like day time.

I heard groaning from all around me and when the light finally died down, the bloody mess I'd created surrounded me.

Their insides were spread all over like they were torn apart by wild animals.

"She's a witch. A dark witch!" The last surviving one cried from the distance as he tried to crawl away.

A smile filled my face as I appeared behind him in a flash.

His lower torso was gone and his intestine dragged behind him, a bloody mess.

His face wasn't any better.

"There's no use letting you live," I muttered to myself and with the overwhelming power flowing through my veins, I raised my left leg and stomped my foot on his face, bashing what was left of his skull.

The squishy sound of his brains popping echoed into the night, followed by darkness then the realization of the situation I was in.

"What have I done?" I muttered to myself as I dropped to my knees on the gravel mixed with bloody rogue flesh on the ground.

From a distance, I heard footsteps then the scent of another wolf.

This one was familiar. But rather than running towards him, I was overwhelmed with the urge to run. To get away from him for two reasons.

One, I was scared I would hurt him. Two, I was scared he wouldn't want me anymore.

I was an abomination from the moment my mom conceived me.

But the love my father had for the dark witch kept me alive until she died giving birth to me.

I took away his beloved and came into the world cursed. His hate switched to love and I wasn't ready to see my mate give me the same look I was raised with.

Contempt. Hate. Disgust and the one that made me wish I wasn't born, Fear.

"Violet! Violet please answer me if you can hear me." Silus growled as his scent drew closer.

His voice shook as he tore through the woods, "Was I too late?"

I choked a sob and made the move to leave, however my feet felt stuck to the ground and a piercing pain wrecked my veins, made me cry out loud.

Had I forgotten the consequences of breaking the seal?

"Arghhh!" I cried out loud in a scream that broke the silence of the night, causing the birds to flutter and run in the other direction.

"Violet!" Silus screamed. "I'm sorry, sorry," his voice shook and I could hear his tears from the way he sniffled.

No matter how much I willed myself to move, nothing happened.

Nothing except the pain from having the curse wreak through my veins.

I was losing consciousness and at an extremely fast rate.

But I felt him when he cradled me in his arms, felt the tears as they dripped to my face. I heard his cries as they reached the skies, and his voice when he said "Bite me," before everything faded into darkness.

And as I got swallowed up in that darkness, I felt his human skin against mine.

Chapter 6

Kane's POV

It's one thing to have a wolf you're always at odds with, that I have accepted, I've come to terms with the fact that Silus has more strength, has greater advantage, he has the memories, gets to keep them, knows what I'm doing while I am locked out as soon as he comes to display and I've also accepted all the deranged things he's done.

He's wilder, he's crazier, more adventurous, doesn't realize the stakes involved in everything, but this? This? Getting us marked twice by a woman I considered a threat from start? That's evil, betrayal and something I can't reverse.

Not when I'm laying naked under the fucking covers with nothing on and a fucking hard erection. I recognize the rooms because I had this cottage personally built for Silus and he brought her in here, got me marked and my sickness acting up.

"You're up, are you doing good?" Soft feminine voice distracted me from my thoughts, smooth like velvet, sweet like honey.

"Get out of my head," I groaned and shook my head only to be rewarded with the pain of a banging headache and the warm feel of her soft palm on my forehead. I opened my eyes with a start and turned to see her. Naked as well, not self-aware like I was, no shyness like the first time she was in my room. But the sexiness of her body, I couldn't miss, couldn't deny and to be very honest, I couldn't stop myself from reacting to it.

My hard straight dick was pointed in her direction like a fucking sunflower reaching for the sun. And despite my strong need to blame someone else, this was all me. I haven't been able to reach Silus since I awoke and this only happened once, six years ago. A flashback to having this same thing happen back then, but when I raised my eyes to look in her eyes, I couldn't place it.

Once again, I shook my head. It can't be. She can't be the one from back then. Not when I was told she didn't survive. Not after all the horrors I had to go through thanks to Silus' misadventure from back then.

"I'll get you a towel, you're burning up," she said as she took her hands off then pressed it against her forehead.

"No, wait..." I croaked, realizing how dry my throat was. "Are you good, do you need something?"

"Water," I muttered, "just water." Because regardless of how desperate I was getting to think with my dick, I needed some time to myself to think.

How long have I been out for? I remember I was desperately chasing after something, getting into the woods, there was the smell of blood, then Silus took over. Of course he did. Nothing was broken, yet I felt weak, weak and horny. Not just for anyone but the woman returning with a tray, a jug and a glass of water.

"Did I mark you back yesterday?" I asked after taking a sip to heal my throat since Silus wasn't doing anything.

"Yes," her voice sounded softer, "Thank you so much. I thought..." her voice broke and I realized she was crying.

I shouldn't care. I shouldn't give a fucking damn, yet my hand reached out to wipe the tears before a thought could form in my head.

"Fuck!" I cussed and withdrew my hand. Is my body under the control of some fucking magic? Why am I feeling sympathy for a woman who has been with other men? For a woman I personally rejected yesterday.

But she'd leaned in to my touch, like she felt safe despite everything that I did, throwing her to the borders, knowing fully well that it was ridden with rogues and those bastards must have done something yesterday. That had to be the source of the blood. But when my eyes raked her body in a full scan, there was no scratch. Not a single one on any part of her milky skin.

My dick throbbed and I clenched my fist.

"What the fuck is this about? What's going on?" I asked as I propped myself up in a sitting position, resting my head on the pillow. I never used pillows. I looked at her and saw her eyes were stuck on my chest. Pervert, I spat, like I was any better.

I was simply better at hiding my thoughts. Even then, my lower region wasn't getting the memo, straining under the covers and screaming for attention, her attention.

"You saved my life, again," her eyes widened with question as she explained. I furrowed my brows, clenching my fist and waging wars in my head with my body.

"You don't remember?" she asked as her hand reached for me, but I flinched away from her touch.

"I remember clearly that I threw you out and told you not to appear in my line of sight again or there would be consequences," I stated.

"But..."

"But you must have used your charms or whatever to get me to bring you back in my wolf form. What magic did you use? You're nothing but a slut. A desperate slut who knows only how to seduce men and use them to her advantage. I don't know what you did, but I would investigate and have you punished accordingly."

"What? What did you just call me?" She rose to her feet, her voice rising with her.

"You heard me," I said, hating the slight tremble in my voice like I had nothing better to do, almost like I was saying all this just to get her to talk to me.

No. I was doing this to put her in her place, so she knows who is king, I reminded myself.

"You are a harl-" The sentence completed itself with the sound of flesh slapping flesh.

My stinging face was evidence of the abomination that just happened.

"Did... did you just slap me?" With gritted teeth and trembling lips, I raised my hand up to my cheek and felt the sore spot of her assault. I was starting to heal, but there was evidence.

This bitch just slapped me.

"Yes! And I will do it again. You might be the alpha, but that doesn't give you the right to play with my emotions. Just what am I to you? Are you going to deny everything that happened to us was nothing? You reject me one minute, confess your love to me the next. Is it really impossible to see me as someone you can respect?" she turned her back to me, her ample bottom in my line of sight.

While that might have distracted me, it wasn't enough.

"I confessed my love to you? That's nonsense!" I gripped the bed sheet in my hand, forcing my claws out. I needed Silus to come out and take back anything he might have said to give this woman hope.

Love? That was ridiculous even for Silus.

"You gave me consent, your word, you promised me. So how could you?" she turned around with tears streaming down her face.

"Why are you crying when I'm the one who got hit?" I asked, but once again, she'd frozen, her eyes stuck on another part of my body and when I traced her line of sight, I realized just how fucked I was.

My dick throbbed, jutted and leaked precum. Long gone was the cover sheet hiding my nakedness and lust.

"Hmm," she scoffed.

"If you needed help, you could have just said," she said as she brought herself down to her knees, putting the cup and the jug away before holding the base of my bulge.

"I didn't give you permission to do that. Get off me," I said, but remained frozen in place, anticipating her next move. Lips or tongue?