Bound by Moon & Blood (Book 1)

Liv walked through the packhouse, following her familiar instincts once more to the office of King. She knew that she was going to be asked questions if she was caught, so she went into her mercenary mode and blended in with everything around her. She focused on her hearing and directed it to the closed door not far from her as she stood in a secluded alcove, not to be seen quickly.

“It wasn’t random, Alpha. The wolf probably wasn’t the only one.” Dwight.

“We don’t know that.” Edward. “The wolf was the only one who was tracking us and we all saw how he reacted when the girl killed him. He couldn’t have known.”

“That doesn’t mean that he didn’t have a hunch.” Luke. “Finnegan has been keeping taps on us for a long time now and we never truly figured out why. The attack happened when they knew that we were close by and they never touched her. She even ran past them.”

Seriously? That’s what has been keeping King busy? The attack on them by Finnegan on the road?! Why?! Because they think it wasn’t random? No shit it wasn’t random! Of course, it was planned, but why are they treating it like it’s something that shouldn’t have happened?

“We had taken every precaution and even hid our scent. Finnegan couldn’t have found us that easily if he hadn’t had someone else tracking us, or her.” Dwight said.

Wait they think she was being tracked by Finnegan?

“Why would he have been tracking her? He didn’t even know her.” Ben.

There was no answer, only silence.

“Did he?” Ben asked surprised. She heard a chair scrape over the floor. “He didn’t know her in person, but he did know about her.” King answered.

“How?” Luke asked with caution layering his voice. A sigh filled her ears, before King’s voice replaced it. “Finnegan knows more than he should. He always has and that has always been thanks to one person.”

Lycaon.

“What do you mean? Why would Lycaon know about her? She’s nothing more than a Moonblood.” Edward asked.

“I don’t know how, what I do know is that if I hadn’t overheard a conversation between him and the fucking prince, I wouldn’t have known that she and her mother were living in Greenland, ready for the taking.”

A shocked breath left her as she bumped with her back against the wall.

“Lycaon knew where they were and he had ordered his son and Finnegan to bring them to him. Finnegan already knew about her, but how he found out who she is, is something I don’t know. If he had a wolf tracking her it would explain the attack, but that also means that Lycaon still wants her and that’s not going to happen.” King added.

A tear rolled down her cheek, before she cut off her hearing. Her heart was beating rapidly in her chest as she tried to wrap her mind around the conversation she just overheard. Lycaon knew about her and her mother. Not only that, he wanted them... But why?

She moved out of the alcove and walked as fast and softly as she could to the stairs and left the hallway. Going down she didn’t notice anyone; she only noticed her own thoughts and heartbeat that refused to slow down. She took the hallway to her room and practically ran to her door to get in and lock herself off from everyone around her. She barged into her room and closed the door behind her with a slam before she leaned with her forehead and hands against it.

What the hell does any of this mean? Why does Lycaon want her? Does it have something to do with the curse?

Her head was starting to hurt. There were so many questions and she still couldn’t answer any of them. She didn’t even know where she fits inside this whole thing anymore!

“That’s the thing with eavesdropping on a conversation not meant for your ears.” She yelped a little as she turned and met the gaze of Caden who was sitting on the windowsill with his arms crossed and looking out of the window. How the hell hadn’t she noticed his scent?! Oh, right she was too consumed with herself. She mentally kicked herself right now. “You will not like what you hear.” He said as he finally moved his head and met her gaze. Liv immediately recollected herself as best as she could and straightened her spine. “How would you know? You weren’t there.” He hummed in acknowledgement. “No, I wasn’t, because I was busy making sure that my beta didn’t die from blood loss thanks to the fact that someone drained him almost completely.” He said with a hard voice, that would surely scare anyone else in front of him and make them submit, but she wasn’t anyone else. She gave him a crooked grin as she crossed her arms over her chest and leaned against the door.

“Question, can you just disappear for a while?” She asked as Rev followed her around the village like a puppy on crack. She turned towards him and stopped walking exactly where she wanted him. Of course, he wouldn’t disappear for a while. So, she needs to make him disappear for a while. “What do you think?” He asked as he gave her an incredulous look. She nodded in understanding. “Didn’t think so.” She immediately called her power forward and directed it towards him. Before he could even scream, she had taken over his body. His eyes became a blood red color and his veins immediately started to become the same dark red color that kept intensifying. She used her power to make his blood fight against his veins and ultimately break them. It had been the second thing King had taught her to do and she had always hated it because it was too messy, but now it worked in her favor. Soon bruises started to form on his skin and she knew that his veins were breaking. She walked towards him and retrieved the knife he had worn in his boots the whole time. She knew that he could see her, but he couldn’t do anything. “This is nothing too personal, Rev.” She held the knife in her hands. It was scary how much she just wanted to plant the knife in his chest and kill him, but she wouldn’t. Even though he probably was an evil fucker, something inside of her told her not to kill him just yet. She moved the knife to his arm and slashed it open. No sound came from him, though, she made sure that he would keep quiet for now. Blood immediately poured out of the wound, faster and more than should. She did the same thing with his other arm and dropped the knife in front of him. “I just need you out of my way right now.” She said as she got up and ran past him to the packhouse. As she entered, she dropped the hold on Rev and an excruciating scream filled the air. He would have lost too much blood for him to even stay awake and say anything, but it won’t kill him, not when his body is already healing him now that her hold is gone. She rushed into the Packhouse and to the office of King.

“A little blood loss won’t kill anyone.” She said with a shrug. “As I knew it wouldn’t kill him.” Caden got up from the windowsill and took a few steps towards her. “The loss of blood, especially that amount, could be lethal if he hadn’t been a beta.” Okay, maybe she had let him bleed a little too long... She didn’t find it in herself to feel sorry for him though. He still survived so nothing went wrong. “He survived, didn’t he?” She spoke. A muscle ticked in his jaw. “Yes, no thanks to you.” He stepped a little closer to her and the curling feeling appeared in her lower abdomen once more. If there was one thing she didn’t need right now, it was this! With all her willpower she pushed the feeling out of her mind and focused on anything else. “Next time you want to go eavesdropping on a conversation you weren’t meant to hear, leave Rev unharmed or I’ll make sure that you will feel what it’s like to lose that much blood.” Her eyes snapped back to his and saw that he had gotten closer again. She tilted her head a little up so she looked straight in his eyes. “I already know what it’s like.” The moment of King slashing her throat and her mother sacrificing her own life to save Liv flashed through her mind. Brief confusion came over Caden’s features before they disappeared. She didn’t know if he knew, but she didn’t care. If he didn’t, she wasn’t going to tell him either way. Caden got closer again until their bodies were inches away from each other. He leaned his hands on either side of her head against the door as he leaned a little in. She swallowed as the curling feeling in her lower stomach briefly intensified. His eyes briefly flicked to her lips before he met her gaze again. The tension between them grew and she was almost sure that he could smell the lust that started to coat every inch of her body.

“Good, at least then you’ll be remembered what it feels like.” He said, but didn’t move away.

“King won’t let you.” She said with a smirk. “I’m too precious, remember?” Caden chuckled darkly. “If you really think I give a shit about what King wants, you are sadly mistaken.”

“You are still his dog, right?” Liv countered. A larger muscle ticked in his jaw and she could swear she briefly saw the amber color in his eyes come forward before it disappeared. “I’m not the only one here who wears a collar with a leash. At least mine is physical.” She added. His eyes briefly went to the collar around her neck. “I’m not his.” He said with a dark voice. “I’m my own and so is my pack.” Liv gave him a brief confused look. “If you are, why are you obeying King?” His eyes flicked back to hers. “Because I have my own reasons.”

“That still makes you his obedient dog.”

“And you are his slave, so what is your point?” He said with a hard voice. “He will use you just like he uses everyone in this pack. So, don’t think you are any better than me.” Her gaze turned hard towards him. “I am not the one who is obeying him out of my own free will!” She pushed him backwards with her hands. Caden took a few steps back, but clearly wasn’t impressed by her strength. “You can say that you have your reasons, but that doesn’t change a thing. You are no better than anyone here!”

What happened next went so fast she didn’t know what was happening until she was pinned against the wall with his forearm on her throat, pushing in the pins of the collar even more into her body. A whimper left her as two small streams of blood ran down her the side of her throat from where the pins were located. She held his silver gaze as a tear rolled down her cheek. The pain from the pins in her throat even drowned out the lust that was growing the longer her was closer to her.

“Try something like you did to Rev again and I won’t hesitate to kill you. Damn what King wants.” He removed his arm as he took a few steps back. Liv immediately sagged against the wall as she took a few deep breaths. The skin around the pins immediately tried to heal itself, making the pain worse.

Caden’s eyes flicked to the two streams of blood that was starting to color the front her white long sleeve red. He had to hold back the disgusted growl, before he turned and walked out of the room, slamming the door behind him.

Liv ran her fingers along her throat. Blood coated her fingers. She clenched her fist as her eyes snapped to the door. She pushed herself off the wall and bolted to the door. She opened it and strode after Caden who had taken the stairs upward. He was just about to go into a room when she reached him and kicked him hard against his back. A grunt left him as he fell into the room. Liv followed him in, slammed the door shut and never took her eyes from him. Caden got up from the ground, murder in his eyes.

“You may think I am nothing and weak, but I will not be threatened by a fucking Alpha who thinks he has some moral compass because he has reasons.” Her voice was dangerous as she spoke to him and stalked forward. “You are nothing more than an asshole who is helping an evil motherfucker to kill a person so he can fail at killing the fucking Lycanthrope King all for petty revenge and power!” She yelled at him. “My entire life was taken from me when I was a child. I got it back after going through hell and back, and now I lost it again all because of my fucking blood and abilities! Moonbloods have done nothing wrong to any of you and yet you all treat us like we are nothing more than a thing you can own!” She was breathing fast while Caden had become still and just held her gaze. “And now that we are dying, you self-righteous pricks don’t even try to find out why, but hunt one Moonblood down, who is still alive and not affected, so you can use, and abuse, her to make a fucking army and as many heirs you want!” She yelled as she got closer to him again. “You may have your reasons to be here, but that doesn’t make you any better than King. So, threaten me again and I’ll show how lethal I can be. Because thing or living being, I can still kill, and I won’t lose sleep over it.”

Silence fell over them. All anyone could hear was the sound of her rapid breath.

Caden did nothing but hold her gaze and she never left his either, until slowly took a few steps forward. “Get. Out.” A little taken aback surprise washed over her like a cold wave. Breaking her anger. “What?”

“Get out.” Caden said again. His gaze still held the same promise of death as before, but something else, something more like anger and rage, something like a struggle to hold back his wolf shone through as well.

Being the stupid female she has always been, she took a challenging step towards him and looked him dead in his eyes. “No.” A low growl answered her.

“Rev was a means to an end and I won’t hesitate to use him again if I have to, so if you want to stop me you are going to have to make true on your promise and kill me.” He clenched his jaw, it was like he was trying to break his teeth. “So, kill me, because I am not intimidated by you and I will not stop getting what I want.”

“Don’t.” Caden said as he balled his fists.

“Don’t what?”

“Don’t challenge me or I won’t have control over what my wolf will do.” She scoffed as a small smile appeared on her face. “You don’t have much control for an Alpha then.” She slowly ran a finger along his arm to push him even more to the edge. She didn’t know why, but she relished in this feeling. This feeling of challenging him and pushing his buttons. Caden’s other hand snapped out and grabbed her wrist harshly before he pulled her closer to him. Their bodies collided with only their arms in between them. Her gaze was snared by his. The silver in his eyes sifted to amber and she could have sworn she saw them turn green, before they didn’t.

“I don’t when another Alpha challenges me.” Caden said with a husky voice.

Spell broken, she looked at him with a shocked expression. “What?” Her clearer voice appeared to break the spell for him as well. “What are you talking about? I’m no Alpha.”

“Go check your facts, Moonblood, because if what you told Rev and Devon is true, you are.”