CHAPTER TWENTY FOUR
+25 Bonus
CHAPTER TWENTY FOUR
Nolan’s POV
Fangvale wasn’t normally my kind of place. It was too loud, too many wolves. But Marco insisted. He said I needed a break from being the Alpha, that I had been cooped up too long,
He wasn’t wrong.
I had become short-tempered. Even the smallest irritation sent me into a rage. My wolf seemed to be restless and always pacing, further annoying me. My pack was nervous around me, and I was one step away from tearing someone’s throat out just for breathing wrong.
So, I came to Fangvale. I sat in the VIP room above the main courtyard, letting the noise drift up to me. Music pounded, water splashed, and laughter echoed off the stone walls. I hated to admit that it was calming me down a bit until a sudden breeze carried a scent through the open archway.
Roses.
A floral scent of sweet, wild roses. My wolf finally stopped pacing after months. Then he surged forward, howling in excitement: MATE!
I stood and went to the window. I scanned the pool below and found her instantly. She was, arguing with a man, an Alpha from the looks of his posture, and she was seconds away from shifting. Her power was curling at the edges of her skin, and that man was too stupid to back down.
‘How dare he anger our mate!’ my wolf snarled within me, and I growled unconsciously. The sound cracked through the air like a thunderclap. Everything stopped. Wolves stopped moving. The music was turned off.
Before I could mind link him, Marco reached out first. ‘I’ll handle it, Alpha.’
Marco was already on the lower level, intercepting the fight as the idiot Alpha seemed like he wanted to continue the argument. I watched the she-wolf carefully. She held herself with authority and didn’t back down from the Alpha which meant she was someone important.
Later, Marco returned to the VIP lounge as I watched my mate be led away by another she-wolf. My chest tightened as my wolf whined within me. He wanted me to bring her back.
“The woman with the violet eyes. Who is she?” I asked Marco without turning to look at him.
“I did some digging,” Marco replied. “She’s Princess Talia. The other is-”
“Not interested,” I remarked, “I didn’t expect there to be such low classed drama here.”
“Normally, there isn’t,” Marco said with a shrug. “There is bad blood between the two she-wolves I think. If things continue the way they are going, blood will be spilt.”
“Which pack does this Talia belong to?” I asked.
“Silverfang.”
That got my attention. I turned to look at Marco and before I could ask for her last name, Marco continued.
“Talia Carson, the daughter of the Alpha King,” Marco continued. “She returned not too long ago to rule with her brother, Prince Solon.”
I stared at him for a long second.
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CHAPTER TWENTY FOUR
Talia Carson.
+25 Bonus
That explained the power I’d felt from her. The calm authority in her voice. The fire in her eyes. I’d heard of the Alpha King’s daughter, of course–who hadn’t? The missing princess who’d come back from the shadows.
And now, she was my mate.
I turned away from Marco, walking to the table to pour myself another glass of wine. My wolf stirred restlessly under my skin, snarling at me for not going after her.
I let out a bitter laugh. “Of all the wolves the Moon Goddess chose, why her?”
Marco gave me a questioning look. I downed the glass of wine before slamming it down onto the table. “That woman, Talia, she’s my mate,” I admitted.
Marco’s eyes widened in surprise. “You’re kidding!”
“Do I look like I’m kidding, Marco?” I growled.
Marco quickly composed himself and then suggested, “You should reject her, Alpha.”
The mention of rejecting her made my wolf push forward in rage. I held him back and glared at Marco. “Be careful of your words, Marco,” I warned.
“My apologies, Alpha. All that I mean is that she would complicate your plan,” Marco clarified.
“I’m not rejecting her,” I responded. “This bond could work in our favor.”
I had waited years for the moment I could challenge the Alpha King. That man took everything from me. I trained, fought, and killed to claw back to power so I could one day return the favor. Then, the Moon Goddess binds me to her. It was the perfect opportunity to get close to the Alpha King and destroy Silverfang from the inside out.
‘We have a mate now. We need to claim her,’ my wolf snarled in protest. He didn’t care about politics, legacy, or vengeance now that he knew we had a mate, but I wasn’t a fool.
“I’m not claiming her,” I said.
“Alpha, then, what…”
“Have the witches make a pendant,” I said. “Something strong enough to suppress the bond. I need to think clearly.”
Marco’s brow furrowed. “But, you just said you weren’t going to claim her.”
“I know what I said,” I snapped. “I will not be manipulated by fate or blood, not when I’ve waited this long for my revenge.”
Marco nodded. “Understood. I’ll get it done tonight.”
I poured myself more wine and drank down the bitter liquid.
‘You’re a coward for doing this,’ my wolf scolded me, ‘You should know better to play games with the Moon Goddess’ blessing.’
It was not cowardice to not acknowledge the bond. It was a strategy. I wouldn’t let some joke blind me to the truth: she was the Alpha King’s daughter. My enemy’s blood.
“Tomorrow,” I said coldly. “We will go to Silverfang.”
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