KADEN’S P.O.V

I should have known that Amelia didn’t take to instructions well, I just didn’t expect for her to run headfirst into a frenzy that she knew nothing about. The border patrol had caught the man trying to sneak in. He looked like a rogue, he was dirty and his hair was matted but there was something off about him especially since he was asking about the Vibrius wolves.


As Amelia rushed in, I tried to grab her but she brushed past me. I noticed that her eyes were darker than usual and that was when it hit me- her wolf was in control, not her. She made her way over to the man and analyzed him with watchful and intelligent eyes. The guards looked at me in confusion and I gestured for them to take a step back.

The man was bound, he couldn’t harm her, and I didn’t want them overhearing anything they shouldn’t. Once they were out of earshot, I turned to Amelia’s wolf.

“You better have a good reason for putting her in danger,” I whispered and Tara scoffed.


“Amelia isn’t in danger and neither are you. He can get out of those bindings if he wants to, he is choosing not to because he doesn’t want to hurt anyone.”

I turned to the man in question with a raised brow and with a sigh, he nodded. I still didn’t believe him and he moved, it was so fast I couldn’t track it, one second, his hands were tied in front of him and the next, his hands were free. I started to pull Amelia behind me and I saw Tara roll her eyes.


“Give control back to Amelia, please.”

I could tell Tara wasn’t happy about my request but she nodded and did as I had asked. Once Amelia was back in control, it was clear whose idea it was. Amelia moved behind me so that she was shielded by my body. She clearly didn’t enjoy being in front of the man but I could see the curiosity in her eyes.

“Who are you?” I asked facing the unknown man. “You are trespassing.”

“I came for Amelia,” he said simply and my brows rose but he wasn’t looking at me, he was looking at my mate. “I was there when your mother gave you that name. You weren’t born yet, it was our mother’s name.”

“Our?” Amelia asked and he nodded. “You’re saying that you are my mother’s brother?” He nodded again. “You can’t be, you are dead. They told me that you were slaughtered.”

“That is what I would have liked them to believe. I was badly injured and left for dead but a rogue female found me. She nursed me back to health and took care of me. It was a few months before I was able to go out on my own again. By then, my sister was already dead and you were in his arms. He wouldn’t let go of you, he wouldn’t keep you out of his sight. I tried everything to get to you but I couldn’t.”

“Wait a minute,” I cut him off. “How are we supposed to believe you? You are a stranger. How is it that you could sneak onto here and not sneak onto that pack?”

“Gregory would have killed me without hesitation. I needed to save Amelia but I could only do it while alive so I waited. I waited until she left the pack and I tried to follow her then but you found her. I had to watch and wait again, I saw that you were treating her right and I thought that maybe she would be safe, but then earlier today, I felt something- or rather, my wolf did. It was awareness, it meant that she knew the truth and it meant that she wasn’t safe. I had to risk it, I had to come.”

His story sounded like a carefully woven tale. It wasn’t that it was unbelievable- there was nothing I couldn’t believe- I just didn’t trust him. There was nothing about him that said I could trust him or believe him. I turned to Amelia remembering what she had said about knowing if someone was lying but I noticed she was no longer behind me. She had stepped out and was now standing in front of the stranger.

“You’re either saying the truth or you believe that lie enough to think it is the truth,” she mumbled. She held out her hand to him. “My name is Amelia and the only reason I am doing this is because I want to know more about my people.”

He ignored her hand and pulled her into a hug. You would have thought she would be happy to see whatever family she had left but Amelia was not interested. She stiffened in his hold and carefully pulled him off her. Once he managed to pull away, she took a step back to create some distance between them.

“I don’t want you to think I am doing this out of a lost sense of family. I already have a family here and you cannot take it from me or replace them.”

His face fell but he nodded. “I understand. I just- I have seen you from afar and I have never had a chance to meet you. You look so much like your mother. She was the kindest woman I knew.”

Amelia’s eyes watered but she looked away so no one would notice. I wanted to reach out to comfort her but I knew it wouldn’t be what she would want so I forced myself to look away from her and at the stranger instead.

“What is your name?” I asked. “We will be letting you into our pack but not without heavy supervision. We don’t trust you.”

“Understandably so, my name is Aaron.”

“Welcome to the pack Aaron.”

I was about to call the guards back to take him to the pack house when Amelia stopped us both.

“You said I was in danger. Who am I in danger from?”

He smiled sadly. “Everyone.”