KADEN’S P.O.V

The assumption proved to be correct. We waited for over half an hour before we got the first glimpse of the rogues. It was one rogue at first and he came to scout the area. Thankfully, we were well hidden and he couldn’t see us. We waited until the rest of the rogues had arrived before we exposed ourselves and attacked them.


Some of them were smart enough to run away while the others were frozen in place from shock. I gestured to Caleb to follow the ones who ran and he wasted no time before leaving with half the guards. There were more rogues than we counted on but I kinew we still had the advantage of numbers.

This team wasn’t filled with children, the youngest looked to be in his mid-thirties. They were experienced fighters and they put on one hell of a fight. I had no plans of taking any hostages because I knew that torturing these rogues would prove fruitless. There were countless scars on the skin of most of them and I knew that they wouldn’t be as forthcoming with information as the others.

I killed a rogue who rushed meby snapping his neck. I was so focused on that rogue that I didn’t notice another one sneak up to me from behind until he stabbed me in the shoulder with a dagger. I let out a roar and I reached over my shoulder and flipped him. The action made my arm burn but I didn’t care. I was furious that I allowed a rogue get the better of me.


Against my better judgement, I pulled the knife out of my shoulder and used it to slit the neck of the rogue. The fight carried on for a few more minutes and due to the wound on my shoulder that wasn’t healing, I ended up slow and sustaining a few more injuries from the rogues. I was pissed off and I wanted nothing more than to return home into the arms of my mate.

As I returned to our hideout, I saw Calebapproaching. “Did you get them all?”


“Every last one, I kept one alive for interrogation. Where do you want me to keep him?”

“I don’t care, I don’t think he is going to talk but you can try. Kill him once you’re done,” I started to leave but he stopped me and I knew from the expression on his face that I wasn’t going to like what he had to say. “Spit it out.”

“I got some news today from my source,” he began slowly. “I got it before we attacked the rogues but I didn’t want you distracted so I thought it would be better to tell you here first.”

“What is it, Caleb?” I hated the suspense he was putting me through.

“Blake is planning to attack and take the throne from Gregory. This isn’t a future thing, it is only a matter of time.”

“Why does he want it so badly?” I asked but even Caleb couldn’t answer. “I need to leave.”

I tried to convince myself that it was nothing to be worried about.Whatever happened between Blake and Gregory didn’t matter to me. It was their pack. The more I told myself that, the less I believed it. There was no reason why Blake would want the title except one- Amelia- and I would be darned if I let him get to her. The only way he was getting his hands on my mate was over my dead body.

AMELIA’S P.O.V

I searched for what felt like hours. The library was so confusing because nothing was labelled. Just when I thought I found the books on mating, I would see another one in a totally different shelf. It took me over an hour to realize that the books were arranged by the year they were written. The older texts were further into the library while the newer ones were closer to the entrance.

I found a book on mating that looked to be very old so I settled in a chair and began to flip through the pages. The beginning was most of what I already knew but I saw something that caught my eye. It wasn’t what I was looking for but it was something about bond manipulation where you could use your mate bond into manipulating your partner. It sounded evil and dangerous so I quickly flipped past it.

I didn’t see anything about bonds that were not completely broken and I couldn’t help but get frustrated.I slammed the book harder than I should have and buried my head in my hands. My wolf had been quiet for a while so I went probing for her.

“Do you have any idea on where I should look?” I asked and I felt her shake her head.

“I wish I knew exactly what was wrong then maybe I would know how to fix it. Just keep searching, you might find something.”

“What if we don’t? Would I have to spend the rest of my life with a bond connecting me to Blake? How do you think Kaden would react when he finds out? He might think I left it because I still had feelings for Blake.”

“You should just tell him and explain that you don’t know how it happened.”

“I can’t, especially not now. He is on edge whenever Blake is mentioned. I will not deliberately make it worse.”

“I don’t know what to say anymore, Amelia, I,” she trailed off immediately. “There is someone here. I don’t know where but someone is watching you.”

I broke off the mind link with her immediately and started looking around. I couldn’t see anyone but the hair at the base of my neck stood on end and I couldn’t brush off that feeling that I was being watched. I carefully returned the book to the shelf because I didn’t want whoever it was to know what book I was reading.

“Is anyone here?” I asked but I got no response. “Hello, I mean you no harm, I swear. It is creepy to watch people.”

I got no response and I realized how crazy I looked yelling in an otherwise empty library. Even if someone was watching me, there was a very slim chance that they were going to reveal themselves simply because I asked. I returned to the bookshelf to continue searching for books when I heard a subtle noise like someone tapping wood. I turned around and I wasn’t expecting to see someone so close to me that I screamed.

A hand came down to muffle my scream and I stared into the amused eyes of Aiden. “So much for the element of surprise. Hello, Amelia. I am going to need you to stay quiet. Can you do that?”

I nodded and he released my mouth.

“It’s been a while since I was able to talk to you alone. You’re either in the arms of your friends who hate me or surrounded by your new fans.”

“I didn’t expect to see you here,” were the first words out of my mouth and the corner of his lips tilted up.

“I could say the same to you Last time I checked, this place was closed to the general public, so how are you in here?” I showed him the card and he made an ‘ah’ sound. “I forgot that fucking the Alpha came with some perks.’

My cheeks heated at his crude words. “We are mates.”

“Of course, my bad,” his voice sounded very sarcastic. “Although, I suppose that means I should start referring to you as Luna,” he made a show of bowing extravagantly at the waist. “Luna, what are you doing here?”

“I wanted to learn more about the pack and Kaden’s ancestry,” I fed him the same lie I gave Kaden and he hummed in disbelief.A strong wind blew and I got a whiff of his scent- it was different. “Are you using a new cologne?”

“Yes,I am,” he beamed with pride. “How nice of you to notice.”

He delved into a speech about his new cologne but I didn’t care. There was something familiar about his scent but I couldn’t put my finger on it. I knew I couldn’t just lean in and sniff him because that would be awkward so I settled for reaching around him like I wanted to take something from the table and I took a discreet sniff. I was able to get a proper smell and it hit me like a truck.

“Lucy,” I mumbled and he stopped talking.

“Did you say something?” I shook my head and he continued his monologue.

He smelled like Lucy. I took another discreet sniff to be sure and it was as clear as day. There was no way he was supposed to smell like Lucy unless theyhad sex recently. I couldn’t help but wonder if they were now together. I didn’t know why that thought had shivers running down my spine.

I took a step back. “I should be leaving. It is getting late.”

I started to move but he reached out and grabbed my wrist. “I lied earlier about not knowing you were here. I saw your car and I followed you here. I wanted to talk to you.”

I gently pulled my hand out of his grip. “You could have ust come to me in school instead of following me. I can come find you tomorrow.”

“There’s something troubling you,” he reached out to touch me but I pulled away from him. “I know you don’t trust me but I have your best interests at heart.”

Every fiber of my being was telling me to run.Even my wolf who was usually silent unless I spoke to her urged me to leave. I looked around to make sure I hadn’t forgotten anything and tried to side step Aiden but he blocked me. He had a look on his face that was supposed to seem sympathetic but underneath it was something far more dangerous that I couldn’t quite put my finger on.

“Let me take you to the man you love,” he coaxed as if that were supposed to convince me. He grasped my hand and despite me trying to pull it out of his grip, he wouldn’t let me. “I know where he is and if you come with me then this will be over soon.”

“I can find Kaden on my own,” I said with a small smile but Aiden only stared as if he knew something I did not.

He started to pull me in the opposite direction from the door and it didn’t matter how much I tried to fight him, he was a lot stronger.

“I know who your heart beats for, I will reunite you both.”

I couldn’t help but feel like he was talking about Blake but there was no way because no one except Kaden, Clara’s family and me knew about Blake. Kaden wouldn’t have told him and I know I didn’t.

“Who are you talking about?” I asked and he was about to respond when another voice cut through the air.

“What is going on?” Aiden froze and I used the moment of distraction to pull my hand out of his. “Is there a problem here?”

“No,” he sounded irritated as he reached out for me. “Amelia and I were just leaving, right, Amelia?”

I took a step away from. “I think I will explore a little more.”

He grittedhis teeth and I saw anger fill his eyes. He looked like he was about to reach forward and snatch me when the voice spoke up again.

“You should leave, Aiden.”

I didn’t expect him to oblige but to my shock, he stormed out of the library using a hidden door in front of him. My heart was pounding loudly in my chest and I turned around to thank the person who saved me but my voice caught in my throat.

“You.”