Alessandro:

“You have been spending more and more time outside, you do realize that?” Daniella asked, wrapping her arms around me from the back. She gently kissed my back, letting her lips linger there as I fixed my tie. “I don’t even remember the last time the two of us actually slept and woke up on the same bed without you being up before I was or in bed, if you ever do get in anymore, long after I slept.”

I stayed quiet as I kept my eyes on the mirror, but knowing Daniella, I knew that she would not drop the subject. If anything, she was going to do her best to get me to talk about what was bothering me, and that wasn’t something that I wanted. She wouldn’t like my answer, and I knew that I didn’t keep the topic to myself for months only to voice it out now.

I turned around to face her and she shook her head in question. “Did I do something to piss you off without knowing? If so, please do let me rectify, Alpha.”

I didn’t respond for a few seconds before cupping her cheeks and kissing her forehead. The issue was not her, and that was something that I knew very well.

It has been months since I have rejected my mate, and though I knew that normally, it shouldn’t affect me for more than a day or two, a heavy feeling settled in my chest and I couldn’t find myself finding a way to put a name to it.

“I’m just a little busy lately, Daniella, I don’t want you overthinking something that did not happen.” I said softly. She looked down at my chest before nodding.

“You called me by my name, and that is something that has been going on for months now.” She said, noting it out. I took a deep breath and smiled before connecting my lips with hers. She kissed me back, and wrapping her arms around me, I knew that she wanted to deepen the kiss; however, I pulled away before she could.

“I will see you later tonight,” I said, and she took a deep breath before taking a step back.

“I believe that later tonight would be long after dawn, wouldn’t it?” She asked, and I turned to the mirror. She let out a silent laugh before nodding. “I am going out for the day, I have a few things to tend to. If there is anything that you need…”

“Keep me posted on where you are going and you have my card if there is anything that you want to buy.” I said, stopping her. She stayed quiet for a few seconds before nodding. She walked toward me once again and gently kissed my cheek.

“If there is anything bothering you, what you are doing is not going to take us anywhere. Just talk to me and the two of us will solve it.” She said, and I looked away from her before nodding. “But considering the fact that you just stated that you would be seeing me later tonight, I will be waiting for you.”

“It would depend on whether or not I had work. If you find yourself growing tired, then you can just fall asleep; there is no need to…”

“We shift tonight, Alessandro, I doubt that you would be working when you are in wolf form.” She said, stopping me. I cursed under my breath, and she raised her eyebrow. I looked her in the eye as she walked toward me, gently running her finger over my chest, her breathing somewhat heavier than normal as she clearly feared how I would be reacting. Nevertheless her heartbeat was calm, but I could tell that she was trying to catch my attention somehow. “I think that it is time for our wolves to connect like they used to.”

I smiled and put my hand on hers, stopping her from making it go lower down my abdomen and she sighed and took a step back. I didn’t respond, and instead, I chose to walk out of the room, heading downstairs where I knew that Leonardo would be waiting.

His eyes met mine and he raised an eyebrow when he caught sight of my expression.

“Rough morning?” He asked, smirking when I didn’t respond. I rolled my eyes and nodded at the door.

“I just need to get the hell out of here. Only then would my morning be easier…”

Valerie:

“Mum, you know that I am not a child,” I said through the phone as I put my hand on my swollen stomach.

“Val, I never did say that you are, but wolves shift tonight, and you know how your father feels about any of you being outside when that happens.” She said, and I sighed. It was something that was drilled into my head, and no matter how much I tried to forget about it, my family had the habit of reminding me.

“You know, mama, if the family stopped hunting the wolves down, maybe they wouldn’t be after us.” I suggested as I tended to one of the cats that was laying in her cage. Having been spayed, she was just waking up.

“It runs in the family’s blood, little huntress. Mind you, not everyone inherited my blood like you,” she said, and I laughed. “Just stay safe and inside. For your child’s sake at least,”

I ran my fingers over my stomach for a few seconds before nodding. It has been four months since that night, and my baby was a constant, daily, reminder of it.

“Don’t worry, mama, I will be staying in the infirmary a little later than normal. Work has been piling up…”

“Or you have been trying to avoid thinking about the baby’s father.” She said, and I looked down at the cage for a second before taking a deep breath. She didn’t know who he was, and I doubted that she would be accepting it if she found out anyway.

“I will call you tomorrow morning, okay, mama?” I asked, and she sighed.

“Alright, sweetheart, just stay safe and be sure to stay inside.” She said, and I hummed in response before she hung up. I put my phone down as I wrapped the lab coat around my body. I had to admit, over the four months, I did hope, for a second at least, that he would pop up at my door to know about his child. I didn’t have it in myself to go back to his hotel, but knowing that he was El Capi dei Capi, I knew that he could easily find me if he wanted to.

“You know, you have been playing with my mind a lot lately.” I said, putting my hand on my stomach as I spoke to my child. “I still have to find us a place to go a few years after you’re born. For your safety, at least, I can’t have them sensing your wolf blood.”

My heart throbbed and I walked toward my desk as the howls of wolves echoed around us. Normal people wouldn’t hear them, but as a huntress born, I did. I just often pretended that I didn’t because I didn’t want to think of harming anyone because of how they were born.

My stomach growled, and I rolled my eyes at it. “Really? This is like the sixth meal that I am going to be having today.”

I shook my head at myself, knowing that I was being ridiculous as I spoke to an unborn child, but then again, we did always learn that a baby could hear his mother talking when inside her.

“Fine,” I muttered as I got up from my chair. “Let’s go and find something to eat so we can feed you…” a loud thump stopped me from completing my sentence, and I couldn’t help but frown in confusion as I knew that the sound came from the front door.

A heavy feeling settled in my chest, and I knew that the thump came from a wolf. I could sense him outside, and it was an Alpha blood, even worse at this point.

I opened my drawer and pulled my gun out, loading it with a few bullets. The last thing that I was going to allow right now was for a fuss to be happening here. And considering the fact that I knew not to call mom right now, I knew that disabling the cameras would be a better option. Otherwise, the family’s security team could watch, and God forbid that my father finds out that an Alpha has been walking on my grounds.

I walked toward the door and couldn’t help but frown when I saw that the shadow of the wolf was still. The wolf wasn’t moving at all, and no footsteps could be heard, not his at least.

I looked out the window to see him and couldn’t help but frown at the sight of the black wolf that lay with a pool of blood under him. My heart raced and I couldn’t help but find my breath getting caught in my throat as the footsteps of hunters made my heart drop.

I opened the door and the wolf, who was leaning against the wall, fell inside almost immediately, taking me off guard as I saw his left shoulder and chest. Both were shot by bullets, and I could tell by the trail of blood that followed him here that he’s been injured for a while now.

“Fuck,” I muttered, pulling the creature, or more specifically, trying to, inside. My heart raced and I couldn’t help but frown at the sparks that coursed through my veins as I touched the wolf, and that was all it took before his body shifted back to human.

I frowned at the sight of the man’s blonde hair. His chest rose and fell with each heavy breath that he took, and his eyes were closed as he lost consciousness, clearly drained from the loss of blood. But that wasn’t what made my heart drop. It was me taking sight of his dirty and injured face, processing who he was as he lay in front of me.

“Alessandro?”

Alessandro:

“Are you sure that you don’t want to go back to the pack, Alessandro?” Leonardo asked, shaking his head in question. I sighed and shook my head. The last thing that I wanted was to be dealing with Daniella right now.

“I have to be alone for a bit. Don’t worry, I will be back in the morning.” I said, and he nodded in understanding. He walked toward the car, and I watched as he drove away before I turned to the forest.

I roamed around for a few minutes as I looked at the rising moon. A small smile formed on my lips as I knew that I would be shifting. My eyes turned into a deep shade of golden, as my wolf made himself known, and it was seconds later before I howled.

The wolves around started howling back, responding, letting me know that I wasn’t the only one here. The territory was mine, but I never did mind sharing it with others as long as we agreed to keep a certain peace between us.

I shifted, my black coat blending with the forest’s darkness. The trees were high where I was, and it gave me a chance to maneuver around without worrying about encountering a human. I ran, and a low growl echoed through the air as three other wolves ran with me. They weren’t from my pack, but they were asking permission to join me, one which I granted with the same manner.

The four of us raced around for a few hours, but it wasn’t until midnight that the air around us shifted and our peace seemed to perish as bullets were fired. Neither one of them hit us, but we were well aware of their presence within the forest.

The hunters.

I growled in warning, but instead of taking the warning, another bullet was shot. His eyes met mine through the darkness, and I growled at the three other wolves to run. They were new shifters, and I knew that they would not be able to fight off the hunters. I didn’t even know which packs they belonged to or why they chose to be this far from their families, but I knew better than to ask questions that did not concern me.

“It seems to me that we meet again, Alpha.” He said, glaring daggers at me. The feud between us was one that I didn’t even understand; however, I grew up knowing that the hunters were ruthless killers who knew no mercy. They didn’t look at them as children, women, or elderly. As long as they carried wolf blood, they were to die on sight, and that was something that I knew to be concerned about.

A low growl of warning rumbled from my chest, echoing the cold night, and catching sight of Vadim, my eyes darkened. The man could have died at my hands, but I chose to be merciful. It seems to me that this family was going to be the end of themselves indeed.

“Remember me, Alpha?” He asked. He didn’t wait for me to react as both he and his father shot their bullets. “I am going to be sure that you fucking regret letting me leave your club the other day.”

His father looked at him for a second, clearly surprised by what his son said, before shaking his head, snapping himself out of whatever he was thinking as he turned to face us. His heart raced, and I could tell by the sweat that dripped from his forehead that he was both concerned and worried. This was the first time that I have seen him with his son to begin with, and I could tell that it was the reason for his state right now.

The three wolves lunged at Vadim while I took his father. His daughter popped in my head, and a heavy feeling settled in my chest, forcing my wolf to stumble back. The man wasted no time in my flinch as a knife was stabbed in my shoulder.

I growled in response before grabbing him by his side, biting him. His eyes widened, and he tried pushing me away only for a bullet to hit my chest before I could retreat. It was his son’s bullet that forced me down, and I couldn’t help the whimper that escaped me as I saw the three wolves laying in their blood.

Run…

Was the only instinct that I had as I saw Vadim rushing toward his father. I couldn’t care less where things led me, but I knew that I had to get as far away from here as I could.

My wolf’s feet moved on their own as an instinct of survival kicked in, and it wasn’t until I reached a door, one where her scent filled my nostrils, that I lost the ability to move any further as I stumbled on it with a loud thump.

My blood left a trail behind me, and I knew that it was only a matter of time before they found me. But I didn’t know how much time I had nor did I know whether or not I would even be able to reach my pack to begin with.

Daniella’s face appeared in front of mea as my eyes grew heavy. My chest rose and fell with each deep breath that I took, and I couldn’t help but find myself resenting my girlfriend even more than I did as a strong scent, hers, filled my nostrils.

My heart raced at the loss of blood as my wolf fought to stay strong, and it wasn’t until she opened the door that my body gave out on me, forcing me to shift back.

Her next words sounded like both music and poison to my ears as my chest burned with so many feelings that I couldn’t understand.

“Alessandro?”