Cathania ended up spending the night with me and we mated two more times before morning. She was insatiable and I imagined it was Millicent I was mating, that made the experience more body quaking.

Very early, though, I woke her and asked her to leave. 'Do not come back here again. You asked me to fuck you one last time and I obliged you. Let us part as friends', I said. 'Whatever you need, I shall give to you but leave Millicent out of it. It might seem otherwise, but she really has done you no wrong!'

Cathania smiled, but said nothing and very soon was ready to leave. She kissed me. 'Enjoy your life!' she said simply.

After Cathania left, I felt guilty, that I had betrayed Millicent. But she is the one who keeps betraying me with my own brother! I thought, trying to rationalize my actions and assuage my guilt.

I put on my jumpsuit, wanting to go jogging. I had never gone jogging this late before but for the fact that I hated missing it, I would have stayed back. I had been battling with my guilt and trying to dodge Millicent. I hadn't wanted to see her before my jog, so that she would not read the guilt in my eyes or sense it from my countenance. I was begining to realise that little escaped her prying eyes.

I had just stepped out into the reception hall when Christopher came in looking sad.

'Sylvester, what did you say to Millicent?' he asked.

'What do you mean, what did I say to Millicent?' I asked. I had been about to ask the reason for his moody countenance.

'She ran away for goodness sake! She is not supposed to, not after.... what did you say to her? You must have threatened her with something.

'Ran away? Why would she run away?' I asked not comprehending.

'I should be asking you that. She just up and left and I tried running after her but could not catch up with her. Can you imagine that?' he asked, sounding incredulous. 'It was almost as though she disappeared into thin air', he added.

'Oh, she is fast, believe me. I have experienced it first hand', I said. 'But how did you know she ran away, was there a quarrel between you two?'

'Sylvester! Tell me truthfully, is there something I should know?' he asked. 'Was there a reason, any reason, Millicent would have, to run away? Apart from your act yesterday of course', he added.

I sniffed. I could have sworn that I smelt Millicent on him but it was not possible, he was complaining of a flight.

'Maybe, you should be telling me something I should know', I said, my eyes yellow and my beast very close to the surface. 'What should I know about you and Millicent? Why do I smell her on you?'

'Are you really interested in knowing that or finding out where she has gone to and helping me bring her back?' he queried.

I felt that he had a point. What was the point fighting over someone who was missing, when we could be combing the perimeter and bringing her back home. Then and only then would I unlease my anger on the both of them for this betrayal.

'What are you waiting for?', I asked, already calling the fastest men I had. 'Time is of the essence!'

'Something you have to know, Sylvester', Christopher said. 'She has the ability to mask her scent. So, we have a hell of a search before us!'

'I found her before, I'll find her now and I will make her mine, this time with or without her consent!' I said.

'She is already mine. And when she returns, she will be crowned my Luna!' Christopher howled. 'So keep off! She's off limits to you and all others!' I felt jealous of his confidence. Millicent must really care deeply for him to have given herself to him without second thoughts and run off to save his life. A murderous rage filled me. I had spent the night with a female but all the while thinking, imagining she was Millicent. Not fair to Cathania but that was how bad my obsession for Millicent was. But Christopher had had her without any preamble. I faced Christopher growling in rage at him, he got ready his claws, returning my growl for growl. Our growls grew fiercer. It was as though we were getting ready to pounce on each other.

'Let's find her first and then, we shall deal with this whatever way you like!' he said, and I had to agree with him grudgingly.

One of us had to stay home of course, to look after the pack, the pack had two Alphas, afterall. The search began in earnest as soon as all that was resolved, with Christopher, leading the search party and I was giving them my input through mind - link. We searched and searched for days but found no result.

It occured to Christopher to ask Samantha. Samantha had gone back to her pack after Millicent fully recovered, to get her things, on Millicent's behest, to stay with her permanently since she had nothing and virtually no one to return to in her late husband's pack.

'I do not know where she can be', was Samantha's response. 'Did you have a row? A fight?' She asked, puzzled. 'She never told me she was planning on leaving. She was very happy being here, or so she led me to believe and that was why she asked me to come back and stay with her', she sounded as though she was trying to convince herself. 'If she had planned to leave permanently, would she have asked me back here?'

I was haunted by Christopher's question. He had asked if I had said anything to make Millicent decide to leave the pack. I realised, I was the one who had actually driven her from The Moon Ville Pack, with my threats.

She had been with Christopher and had run away scared. Coward!

'Have you searched for her in the Moonlight Pack where you found her the first time?' Samantha asked.

'Apart from this territory, that was the first place we searched but she was not there', Christopher supplied, disheartened.

'We asked the family she stayed with but they had not seen her since she left the last time', I said.

I had threatened the family, searched through their things and chambers over and over but there was no Millicent hiding amongst their possessions.

It is already two months now and Millicent was still not back and no one seemed to know where she had gone, nothing has been heard of her. Like Christopher once said, It was almost as though she had disappeared totally from the face of the earth.

Millicent's POV

I ran with the speed of a whirlwind, knowing that if Christopher caught up with me this time, I would be totally undone and would not have the courage to resist him nor go away again. The thought of the consequence of such an action pumped adrenalin into my bloodstream and I ran even faster, masking my scent all the way.

I heard his anguished howl and it broke my heart. It was the hardest thing I had ever done - running away from love and happiness. It took all I had not to turn back and run into his arms and soothe his pain. I understood how he felt. It was like finding everything you ever wanted and then all that you ever desired slips through your fingers or is taken from you and you are left with nothing. The only difference is that I could go back if I really wanted to and if I was ready to bear the consequences, which I was not but he did not have that choice. If he did, he would come after me and damn the consequences.

I knew the first place Sylvester would ask them to look was where he found me the first time, so I went beyond that pack to another, with the intention of coming back to the Moonlight pack when things settled.

I found myself in the Blood Moon Pack.

The security there was awesome. Hardly had I stepped foot in the territory,than I was accosted, surrounded by warriors with sophisticated weapons.

'Who goes there?' I heard a harsh voice shout. I stopped, praying that I'll be safe.

I raised both hands in surrender.

'Who are you?'

'I am Millicent'.

'What is your mission here?'

'I have been exiled from my Pack by my Alpha and I have no place to go. I decided to live among you. I mean no harm', I answered.

'You are a spy come to spy on us!' the voice said, coming out into view and that was when I saw that he was not the only one but that they were many.

'You will have to present yourself to our Alpha', the speaker said. 'That is the standard procedure!' he said. 'He will decide if you are telling the truth. And if you are not, the goddess help you!'

I nodded, accepting their conditions. It was not too far different from my encounter at the Moonlight Pack, just that it was Raph who found me and because of his instant likeness for me, he took me home to his aunt first before presenting me to the Alpha Blake.

They matched me to the palace of their Alpha but I had to wait at the reception be ause their Alpha whose name I later learnt to be Martins, was in conference with another Alpha.

I had come this far and I was prepared to wait.

After about an hour, I was already dozing, from fatigue. The run had been draining. Also, I hadn't really slept well due to the incredible night I spent with Christopher and had had virtually nothing to eat. So I was dozing when one of the guards nudged me.

'Stand!' he ordered, 'the Alpha is entering the reception hall!'

I rubbed my fingers over my eyes hoping to rub off the sleep in them.

'Alpha!' all in the reception hall, greeted the Alpha, standing, with their heads bowed.

He lifted his hands in acknowledgement of their greetings and continued laughing and discussing with the Alpha who had come to see him.

As they passed by me, I heard the voice of the Alpha who was with him and was shocked. Was this not...

'Millicent!' he called.

'Alpha Blake!' I greeted with my head bowed in respect.

'What are you doing here?' Alpha Blake asked.

I considered lying but decided against it because lying would give birth to more lies, since one would keep lying to cover the previous lies or risk getting exposed.

'I have come here to seek shelter, Alpha Blake', I said. 'I had to run away again from my pack!' I said and he narrowed his eyes at me, then whispered something to the host Alpha, who nodded.

'Follow me', he ordered and I obeyed.

'Raph told me after much persuasion that an Alpha came for you, claiming you were his Luna, while you were in my pack, is that true?' he asked as soon as we entered a room and the door was safely shut behind us.

'He is right, Alpha', I affirmed.

'Was it the same Alpha that had exiled you?' he asked.

'Yes, Alpha!' I answered a little uneasy but knowing that if I wanted his support and that of the Alpha of this Blood Moon pack, then I'd have to be as truthful as was possible.

'Who is this Alpha and what pack is that?' he asked.

'The Moon Ville Pack', I started. 'Headed by...'

'Alphas Christopher and Sylvester!' he completed the sentence for me.

'You seem to know them very well', I said astonished because I had seen a lot of Alphas visit Sylvester before my exile but never saw Alpha Blake among them.

'Oh, I do. But Christopher is a better Alpha than his younger twin', he said. He knew them well indeed, I thought.

'I do not want them to find me!' I said,thinking that now that he knew I was from the pack, he might want to tell them about my presence here.

'Of course! Your secret is safe with me!' he said, deep in thought.

'Thank you, Alpha Blake!' I said sincerely grateful.

'But what I do not understand is what you are running from', he said. 'We need to have an idea so that we don't bring a war down on ourselves. I'd like to protect my friend's interest. So if you are going to stay here, you have to be more forthcoming!'

'What would you like to know, Alpha Blake?' I asked, knowing that he spoke the truth.

'Whose Luna are you, Christopher's or Sylvester's?'

That was a billion dollar question. But I knew I had to answer him.

'Alpha Blake, it is a long story', I said. He opened the door to a large room, and entered. I followed suit.

'Go right ahead and speak, I have the time!' he said, sitting and resting his back on a chair, indicating that I sit as well, in a chair facing him. I wondered, because I knew he had been on his way back to his pack when he saw me at the reception. Why so much interest in my story?

Christopher's POV

I watched the days turn into weeks and then into months and my Luna, my mate, my life, my Millicent did not come back. How could she bear to be away from me when I was languishing and agonizing over her?

I had lost appetite for food, had Samantha not used her female tricks to get me to start eating again.

'Millicent, come back to me, I have so much I want to tell you!' I cried silently in anguish.

During the day, I smiled and went about my duties but in the night, Oh, how I dread the night, these days. That is when all the feelings came to the fore. I can't stop remembering our night together. If I had magic, I'd use it to conjure Millicent. Some nights were far worse than others. My wolf would wriggle and wriggle in anguish and frustration. I have never felt Zara distressed this way before. It seemed we were never going to recover from Millicent's flight.

I occupied myself with my duties during the day, trying not to think because my thoughts were always of her. I was slowly going insane. How could I have got all I have ever truly wanted and then it slips from my fingers without any notice?

The day, Millicent went away without a backward glance, the day, we organized a search party for her, a group of people visited me.

'Alpha Christopher', the leader said. 'We are sorry, we brought you this news late, but we have been able to uncover the mystery behind your parents' deaths'.

I was in no mood for that right now. It had been one of the things I had wanted to give to Millicent, the vindication and clearing of her father's name, It was supposed to be a sign of my love and care for her, but she was no where to be found and the interest for that was gone. Since the messengers were here to give the result of their investigation, it was only right that I listened to them.

'I'm listening', I said, disinterestedly. 'Who is responsible?' I asked.

'We found out from a reliable source that a group of rogues were responsible for the deaths of the late Alpha Merryweather and his Luna'.

'Rogues? I should have known!' I said, my interest was piqued. 'But they couldn't have known about the treaty, or that it was about banning them, could they?' I asked.

'They were not working alone, my Alpha', Spade said. 'They had the backing of one prominent Alpha!'

'Who is this Alpha?' I asked.

' It's Alpha...',

'What?' I asked, shocked at the name they mentioned. How could that Alpha do that to my father. I thought they were friends and had similar interests?

'Are you sure of this information?' I asked, feeling happier, because I knew Millicent would be happy to hear that her faith in her father had not been misplaced. Then I recalled that she was gone and my face fell.

'We were attacked by a pack of rogues, and we fought them to within an inch of their lives and they ran, but there was one of them who was too weak to run with them', Spade narrated. 'Before he died, he confessed that they were responsible for killing the late Alpha and his wife. To quote his words:

'We were hired to kill him so that he would not sign the treaty, barning us from from certain territories! When we found out you were investigating the case, we panicked and came to kill you all as well but you caught us unawares. And it was Alpha... who paid us handsomely for the job. We had to kill the Luna because she had seen our faces but the old man's Beta really gave us a tough time before he breathed his last'.

'Are you sure of the Alpha who hired you?' we asked him and he countered by way of response, 'Would you forget someone who fought the battle which you would have been unable to fight yourself?'

We asked him why he was telling us so much without being coaxed.

'My gang is not supposed to leave me here, no matter how injured I am', he said regretfully. ' It is against the rogue rules. Now that they have left me for dead, it is only right I pay them back in kind!'

'So you see, Alpha Christopher that we are sure of our source!'

'What happened to the rogue?' I asked.

'He died after confessing to their crimes. We didn't need to do anything to him! We would have given him a mercy death if he had not!'

'Had not, what?' Sylvester who had just come in asked.

I quickly dismissed them.

'Thanks for your help. I shall call you for another assignment soon enough! And as for the payment, your balance will be deposited into your account soonest, with a generous extra for your hard work!'

The bowed and left, after expressing their gratitude.

'What was all that about?' Sylvester asked.

'I told you to always put a lid on your temper so that you can have a clearer judgement of situations but you allow your anger to proceed your judgement always!' I said angrily.

'We have been waiting for you so you can lead the search and you are here lecturing me on Anger Control and Right Judgement. Are you no longer interested in searching for Millicent?' he asked.

'Of course I am. I shall lead the search as I said I would but these men are the people I contracted to investigate the death of our parents and they found out that rogues murdered our parents. The one they captured confessed to it all before he died due to the injuries he sustained during their fight!'

'That is in the past! Why bring it up now? What will it do, bring Merryweather and his wife back to life?' Sylvester asked carelessly.

'No, it won't but if you had carried out a thorough investigation, an innocent man and his pregnant wife would not have been killed and their pack destroyed!'

I saw the import of my words as the implications dawned on Sylvester.

'I have been torturing Millicent for so long, for no just cause after depriving her of her parents presence and love', he said regretfully. 'This is the more reason we have to find her, and tell her father's name's been cleared!'

I shook my head. It was not as easy as all that, did Sylvester not know that? But there was going to be time for all that later.

Also, I had withheld mentioning that an Alpha had mobilized the rogues to take such an action, if I had, he would have stopped all else and waged a war against the him and we still needed to search for Millicent.

That Alpha who had acted behind the scenes, the Alpha who was the real back stabber and betrayer of friendship, was unbelievably none other than Alpha Blake!