Chapter 1
Chapter 1
HALIMA’S POV
“What?”
The door yanked open, and Mikel appeared. The scent of rage flooded my nose. Instead of spewing insults, he asked, “What the hell is wrong with you?”
“I just crawled out of the ground.”
“Why?”
“I’m starving right now. Do you have any food?”
“I…”
“Too slow.” I shoved past him. “Food, please.”
‘Rude, Halima!’ The annoying wolf in my head spoke up. I’d never get used to this.
I looked around to figure out which way to go in such a massive house. My gaze landed on the living room, which said a whole lot. For starters, the living room was an empty space stripped of furniture, with a giant tarp spread everywhere, even over the walls. In the middle of the tarp lay a gun, sitting quietly as proof that I’d just ruined something.
“Are you committing suicide?” I frowned, looking toward Mikel.
“None of your business. What do you need?” Mikel used his body to block my view.
“How about finding me something to line my stomach before you kill yourself?” I grinned.
“Why are you here?”
“Boring question. I’ll do it myself.” I found Mikel’s fridge, and the moment the door opened, I let out a heavy sigh. “Seriously, didn’t you think you’d meet a pretty girl covered in mud with a ravenous stomach today? Beers, and… milk? Alpha, what do you need milk for? There are even onions, garlic, and bell peppers. Couldn’t there at least be pizza?”
I pulled the milk out of the fridge. Rummaging through the freezer revealed a rock-hard, frozen leg of venison. It should’ve been cooked, but I didn’t care. I was a werewolf, and raw meat was normal.
Baring my teeth, I bit down, the rock-hard, freezing slab of meat slamming into my teeth with a sharp ache.
“Are you insane?” Mikel snatched the leg out of my hands.
“Try going two days without eating while lying deep underground,” I muttered, taking a gulp of milk. I opened the kitchen cabinet, pulling out instant noodles to eat raw. “At least there’s this…”
“Why were you underground?”
“You won’t need instant noodles and venison after you die,” I grumbled, my mouth stuffed with instant noodles.
Mikel placed the venison into a basin, flooded it with water, and tossed in a spoonful of salt and vinegar.
“What are you doing?” I asked.
“Defrosting the meat.”
“Why?” Smirking, I nudged his elbow. “Are you cooking for me?”
“You’re dirtying my floor.”
“Then can I take a shower?”
“Where do you live? I’ll take you back.”
“Can I eat before going back? I don’t think that place is safe for me anymore.”
“Do you have a reason?” He started peeling an onion.
I turned around, glancing all over the place. “Can I borrow your bathroom?”
“Sure.”
With Mikel’s permission, I wandered around searching for the bathroom. His place was surprisingly spacious and clean. I’d thought a man living alone would always be messy. Like Aman’s house. But what did I know? Mikel was an oddball, very likely different from every other man in the world.
Finding his bathroom, I finally let out a sigh of relief, sprawling out in a massive bathtub and letting the cool stream of water massage my body.
‘You have to stop Mikel from committing suicide,’ the wolf in my head reminded me. I deeply missed the days when I could shift into a wolf like everyone else without having a voice stuck in my head.
‘Leave me alone, Selene,’ I groaned, my toes poking out above the water’s surface, wiggling with delight. The scent of soap caressed my senses.
‘No, you have to help someone as desperate as him.’
‘God, whether he dies or not has nothing to do with me. He isn’t even that important. What matters here is Aman. I need revenge on that bastard.’
‘I didn’t keep you alive just for you to seek revenge, Halima.’
I closed my eyes and tilted my head back. ‘Hm, whatever you want. I won’t let my killer and my bastard fated mate rest easy. Maybe they’re the same person, why wouldn’t they be? If I’m dead, Aman won’t face any more trouble. He can stay with his Chosen Mate. Besides, that chick is pregnant anyway…’
Thinking of that, a surge of rage struck me. My arm slammed violently against the water, sending a massive splash everywhere. How dare that dog?
In the beginning, I was a rogue omega who’d just been accepted into the pack a few weeks prior, still shunned and trying to prove myself to everyone. Aman was a powerful, attractive alpha who would become the Alpha with a capital A for the entire Riverscout pack.
At nine o’clock in the evening many days ago, I felt my fated mate. The connection pulled us together. The doorbell chimed frantically. When I opened the door and saw Aman, my body shivered with deep satisfaction.
Fated mate scents pushed our lust to its absolute peak. Without a second thought, we tangled together all night. The next morning, Aman kissed my cheek, whispering that I had to keep this a secret so he could announce it to his father.
How could I have known that just a few days later, Aman would get engaged to his Chosen Mate, Serena? To make it even more special, she was already pregnant. A DAMN BABY!
It was a good thing I’d been taking birth control for a while. Otherwise, my child would’ve shared blood with the bastard who almost ruined my life.
That day, I asked Aman to meet me at the edge of the forest to clear everything up. On my way there, someone struck my head, then buried me alive. Technically, I was dead. Until I met Selene, who let me know she’d help me live if I let her dwell inside me to ‘fix’ everything I’d done wrong. I bargained to gain the right to investigate whoever killed me, even though the only clue was a heavy scent of pine leaves and cinnamon right before I died.
I didn’t have a damn choice because she was already inside me, helping me come back to life. She gave me enough strength to claw through a thick layer of earth that seemed like it’d never move so I could crawl up.
I figured out where I was first. It was in the forest. The area least visited by anyone because it fell under the jurisdiction of Mikel, the second son of the Alpha, younger brother to Aman.
Instinct drove me to run toward Mikel’s house since it was the closest safe spot. As for why I ruled him out as a suspect, Selene kept urging me to go there. I guessed she also knew something about Mikel’s suicide attempt and wanted me to stop him. For my own good, or at least that’s probably how she’d argue it!
I’d never even spoken to him. He was a quiet alpha who lived in his own hole. Always brooding, somber, devoid of life. Aman had threatened every single member that if anyone dared set foot here, he’d chop their legs off.
Here I am, the person who still has legs!
It felt pretty entertaining to disobey Aman. I wondered how he’d feel when his fated mate disobeyed him even more?
I smiled, amusement rising in my chest. ‘Selene, I have a pretty neat idea. Maybe it’ll help me get revenge on Aman and keep Mikel alive at the same time.’
‘I don’t like that idea—’
‘I’m going to sleep with Mikel!’
Even though I couldn’t actually hear it, I felt the wolf in my head let out a thoroughly frustrated sigh. Whatever, I’d do what I needed to do.
Leaving the bathtub, I wrapped Mikel’s robe around myself and stepped outside. Outside, the aroma of food made my stomach churn.
My feet hurried to the kitchen. A piece of meat was sizzling in the pan.
“I think it’s edible now!”
“No, it isn’t,” Mikel asserted.
“I don’t need it well-done.”
“I do.” Mikel glanced at me. His brows knitted tight. “Why aren’t you wearing clothes?”
“My clothes got dirty, so I put them in a plastic bag. I’ll wash them later. For now, can I borrow this robe?”
Mikel rubbed his face, letting out a sigh. “Watch the pan. I’ll go get you some clothes. Remember, don’t sneak any food.”
I didn’t reply, flipping the piece of meat so it cooked evenly. Saliva filled my mouth. Smelling the delicious aroma of food while starving was absolute torture. Grabbing a handful of instant noodles, I shoved them into my mouth, chewing noisily.
Mikel was actually kind-hearted. At least he wasn’t heartless enough to kick me out. He was too faint in my memory, so much so that I didn’t really know why Aman forbade everyone from coming here. I’d thought Mikel must be the difficult, nagging, nasty type like me. Turns out I was the only nasty one in this life.
‘I agree,’ Selene spoke in my head. ‘Which is why you have a responsibility to keep him alive.’
‘What did I say about not reading my private thoughts? I’m going to sleep with him.’ I giggled.
“What is it?” Mikel’s voice sounded behind me. “What are you laughing at?”
“Nothing. Are those your clothes?” I frowned, my eyes glued to the pile of fabric in Mikel’s hands.
“Wear them or go naked.” Mikel replied coldly, shoving the clothes against me as his hand snatched the tongs from my grip.
“Why are you being so nice to me?” Clutching his clothes against my chest, I asked.
“It’s basic moral etiquette for an alpha and pack member. You said you were in danger.”
“But… you could’ve just kicked me out to avoid getting into trouble.”
“I figure if you were me, you’d do that.”
I shrugged, offering no response.
Mikel let out another sigh. Why did everyone sigh when talking to me?
“Go change, Halima. I’ve heard a few things about you. Trust me, you wouldn’t want me treating you the way you treat everyone else.”
