Dedicated to fireflies1716 who made the beautiful cover on the side. I'm extremely grateful for all your support. Thank you.

A huge shoutout to crzais for your constant support towards this story. It means the world to me. Thanks a lot!

IMPORTANT NOTE: IF ANY OF YOU FIND ANYONE COPYING OR PLAGIARIZING MY WORK, PLEASE DO LET ME KNOW IMMEDIATELY. THANK YOU!

This chapter is unedited so kindly excuse the grammatical errors.
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Suzzanah's POV

"W-who...W-WHOOHOO....WHOOO....TOLD YOU?!" Mr. Talon wheeze-screeched between coughing fits while I stood behind him patting his back frantically.

I bit my lip worriedly, thrown by his over the top reaction. The worst I had expected from him was a dramatic gasp, not a near death experience!

"WHO SUZZANAH?" he gasped out turning to face me, his face a few shades paler than before, "WHO TOLD YOU?!"

I cringed, "Why Mr. Talon? Is it that bad that I know?"

"Judging by your reaction, I doubt you actually know child", he said massaging his forehead worriedly.

"Then tell me"

"NOOO!" he squealed shooting off his chair in shock, "Its classified information"

I frowned, "I thought I had access to all the classified information now that I know about you guys", I said, "You said it yourself, I would have all the answers I wanted"

"Oh this child will be the death of me", he wailed to himself before quickly sitting down and whispering, "Suzzanah, the matter you have brought up is a taboo. Forbidden. No one must ever speak of it"

This isn't good

"So it's bad"

"Bad is a colossal understatement!" he said agitatedly, "I must know who told you of it. If Alpha Zuerien finds out- OH MY GOD! What if the Alpha finds out?! He'll blow a hole right to the earth's core!"

He was freaking out, and internally, so was I.

Karina, what have you gotten yourself into?

"Who child? Please tell me", he begged and I could see the extreme desperation in his eyes.

I gulped and my lips parted hesitantly to reply to him, but he beat me to it, his eyes going wide, "Wait...you didn't'" he paled even more, so much that he started blending into the sunlight coming through the windows, "You didn't-didn't-you didn't see them did you?" he shouted horrified.

I was about to shake my head when he grabbed onto my shoulders, his wide eyes roaming my entire face anxiously, "Where did you see them?! When?!" he gasped hysterically, "Did they try to get to you? Did they try to hurt you?!"

They...the shadows?

I shook my head feeling extremely confused.

"Did they come for you?!"

"No..."

"Did they see you?!"

My brow furrowed, "Uh...no?"

"Did they do anything they shouldn't have?!"

"No Mr. Talon, no" I told him trying to calm him down. I couldn't even really understand who or what he was talking about.

"Did-!"

He had been about to ask me something else, but his voice suddenly caught in his throat and his eyes went wide in shock before his head whipped towards the entrance.

A sharp horrified screech escaped his lips before his head shot back towards me, all color draining from his face as he whispered, "They're here!"

My brow furrowed. They? Did he mean the shadows again?

My question was answered the very next second when I felt three- no four, very powerful and very familiar presences outside the library and my eyes widened.

The guys were back!

Mr. Talon's hand immediately shot out and grabbed mine making me look back into his perplexed eyes, "Child, no matter what, don't bring them up in front of the King, do you understand?" he said frantically, and I knew he was talking about the shadows.

"But wh-"

"Please Suzzanah", he said desperately, "I promise you, I personally will tell you all that I can about them later, but please don't say anything to Alpha Zuerien alright?"

I nodded, still feeling utterly confused and he sighed, looking a little bit relieved, before standing up, "Come, let's go meet them outside"

As we walked towards the entrance, my mind replayed Mr. Talon's horrified reaction over and over again. It was quite obvious that my very innocent question, had a far more disturbing answer than I had imagined.

As we reached the door, my eyes briefly drifted to the sleeping form of the Luna of Time. She was a witch, or so I had been told. That meant she probably knew how to use magic. Did that mean she could help me communicate with Karina without the use of any electronics or technology?

Even if it was just one time, it'd be enough. The number of questions I had just kept growing each day, and with them, so did my anxiety concerning Karina. I just wanted to make sure for myself that my sister was alright. I needed to know, I was desperate.

We walked out of the library and down the three stairs outside and I was still deeply disturbed about Karina and the shadows, when my eyes suddenly fell on three humongous animals standing by a tree and all my thoughts and my striding came to an abrupt halt.

Three colossal wolves stood tall and strong under a large tree a few meters away, all staring up into the sky. I immediately picked up their familiar auras, which I had realized I had been getting better at quite fast, and my eyes immediately zeroed in on the largest dark wolf in the center, with the majestic golden streak running down his strong body.

My face broke into a huge smile, "KAI!"

Immediately his head whipped around towards me and I grinned from ear to ear before rushing up to him happily. He too, eagerly strode forward, meeting me halfway.

"Kai!" I said throwing my arms around the humongous wolf's neck, "It's good to see you"

Kai pressed his large head onto my shoulder, his soft velvety fur grazing the skin of my neck, making familiar electric tingles rush through my body.

Mine

Kai's deep, husky voice filled my mind and I smiled hugging him tighter. Somehow, it was much easier for me to show my affection towards Kai publicly, than it was with Zuerien.

Maybe that has something to do with the fact that hugging an animal can't lead to anything even half as explicit as hugging a man, a very fine man.

Feeling a blush creep onto my cheeks, I quickly pulled away, before looking into familiar pitch black eyes. Kai was so big that he was almost my height and his enormous body was nearly three times my size.

I smiled warmly at him before looking up to find two more massive wolves facing me and Kai. I grinned looking from one to the other. Both wolves were shades of blonde, one a little darker than the other.

"Let's see", I said trying to focus on their distinctive auras. I pointed to the light blonde wolf, "Alpha Marco-" then at the dark blonde wolf, "-and Master Cole"

That's right!

I clapped my hands together happily at my small achievement while the three wolves looked at me wide eyed.

How can you tell? Kai asked.

I shrugged, "I just can. I can feel them"

Immediately the awe in his large wolf eyes was replaced by irritation and he looked at the other two wolves with steely eyes.

Don't feel them too much, he grit out making my jaw drop as I exhaled a shocked laugh.

"Really Kai?", I said grinning incredulously at him, "I didn't mean it like that"

I didn't like how it sounded

The King is jealous

A new voice filled my head and I immediately recognized it as Alpha Marco's.

My head shot towards the light blonde wolf which surprising had a smug look on its face. Kai let out a low growl directed at Alpha Marco's wolf making him jerk a little but not back away.

You can hear me, can't you Queen?

Still gaping in awe, I nodded at Alpha Marco.

Wow, John was right. She can use the mind-link without being marked!

Marked?

I looked at Kai questioningly and he replied, I'll tell you about that later today

I nodded before looking at the darker blonde wolf, "So...does that mean that you can hear this conversation too Master Cole?"

Instead of answering like Alpha Marco had done, his large wolf simply nodded his head once at me. I smiled, "What's your wolf's name?" I asked.

Wade, he replied and I nodded before looking at Alpha Marco's wolf.

The wolf immediately puffed its chest out and held its head high, sticking his nose in the air, Benjamin, at your service, my Queen, he said before bowing his wolf head at me making me chuckle.

Stop being so dramatic, Kai grit out.

The ladies love a little drama in their lives King, Alpha Marco replied, its part and parcel of the female satisfying process.

Master Cole's wolf snorted while Kai plain scowled. Being with these three grown wolf men was always amusing. As they continued to argue through mind-link, my eyes drifted from one wolf to the other.

Cole Wade Knightly and Marco Benjamin Ronaldo

My gaze shifted finally to the large dark wolf next to me and I smiled.

And Zuerien Kai Royale

Being here amongst these excessively large wolves who were technically not even supposed to exist, I felt a warm sense of belonging well up inside me.

This was probably what it felt like to have a family.

My eyes drifted to Mr. Talon who stood quietly a little further away from us.

I immediately walked up to him and smiled, "So what's your wolf's name?" I asked and immediately his face fell.

The noisy chattering of the Alphas in my head stopped instantly and I suddenly wondered if I had said something wrong.

Mr. Talon gave me a small strained smile before looking at his feet, "I don't have one", he said softly and immediately my brow furrowed in worry.

He didn't have a wolf? But why...

As though he had read my mind he answered, "I'm a dormant wolf Suzzanah. A werewolf who is too weak to be able to transform into an actual wolf. We are basically humans, who happen to have some werewolf blood in us which enables us to exhibit some of the fundamental heightened werewolf traits", he looked at me with sad eyes, "I don't have a dominant wolf. So I can't shift"

His face didn't give much away but I could feel his pain and immense sense of loss as it seared through my veins like my very own.

Immediately I reached out and grabbed his hand making him look at me.

"So in other words", I said smiling warmly at him, "you're a werewolf who is most similar to a human like me!" I exclaimed with happily immediately replacing the sadness in his eyes with surprise, "am I right?"

He blinked at me before nodding uncertainly.

"That's wonderful!" I cried out, "That means you're the person who can relate most with me and therefore understand me best! We're a lot alike, you and I! This just makes me like you more Mr. Talon", I told him genuinely making his eyes fill with awe.

"Dominant wolf or not, I know for a fact that you're one of the most amazing werewolves I'll ever meet", I told him wholeheartedly, "You're my best friend!"

A slow smile stretched across his lips and I smiled back widely before adding, "You'll always be special to me Mr. Talon, and we'll always be a team"

A strangled cry escaped his lips and he sniffed before looking away, "Oh my...I'm...just, I'm so...I'm so overwhelmed, I don't know what to say", he coughed out and I smiled at him before giving him a sideways hug.

As I pulled away, an overwhelming feeling of respect, warmth and affection flooded my body and I immediately recognized the source to be the three wolves behind me.

I turned around to find all three wolves watching us with soft, admiring eyes. Even Master Cole, who had seemed quite out of it lately looked towards us with a gentle gaze, his eyes lingering on me as they brimmed with reverence.

You make the perfect Luna, Kai's voice echoed in my mind as he watched me with pride in his eyes.

I smiled at him gratefully before looking back at Mr. Talon. He was patting the left side of his bright yellow sweater, probably looking for his handkerchief. Had he forgotten-

"Oh dear!" he suddenly breathed out, "I forgot, this eyesore doesn't have a breast pocket!"

I chuckled shaking my head, "It's okay. Just use your dazzling sleeve for once. It's a good thing you don't have your glasses on"

He exhaled a laugh, "I didn't want a clearer look at this sweater or I was afraid I'd go blind, so I didn't wear them"

"Oh yeah, what happened to your sweaters?" I asked looking at the three wolves who immediately exchanged glances.

We took them off before shifting, Kai replied, they're by the shrubs over there, he said motioning towards the right side of the library with a jerk of his head.

"You hid them?"

Had no other choice

What do we tell Prophecy? Master Cole asked.

We could always say they got ripped when we shifted in a hurry, Alpha Marco replied.

They were a gift! We can't just pretend we didn't care and let them be torn to shreds, Master Cole replied.

Let's just settle with telling her they got sweaty when we went out looking for her and that they're in the wash now, Kai suggested.

Brilliant thinking King! Alpha Marco's wolf's eyes lit up, now if we can only think of a way to keep them in the wash for the next one week

We'll figure that out later, Kai replied, for now get Rino off that damned tree, we need to get going

Tree??

All our heads shot upwards towards the humongous tree in front of us and my eyes went wide.

"Master Rino is up there?" I cried out alarmed, pointing at the branches at the top of the tree.

Kai nodded making my jaw drop. So that's why they had all been looking up when we had walked out of the library!

"What is he doing in the tree?" I asked puzzled.

Looking for some sort of wild weed, Alpha Marco replied.

Herb, Master Cole corrected him.

"Up there?" I asked bewildered.

Apparently

Kai added, He said it's some kind of medicinal weed

Herb, Master Cole corrected again.

He should have been done by now... Alpha Marco said when suddenly four shocked gasps filled my head, coming from the four were-men standing around me.

I didn't even have the time to blink when out of the branches, a body fell swiftly downwards, hurtling towards the ground.

A horrified shout escaped my lips and my heart stopped beating when I realized that it was Master Rino. But before I knew it, his body rotated in the air and a long vine suddenly materialized in his hands.

I watched gobsmacked as his hands grabbed onto the vine and his body swung along with it at high speed, as he went shooting through the air and cutting through the wind, like a clothed version of Tarzan.

All of us ducked in shock as he sailed over our heads and then gawked in horrified disbelief as he flew through the door of the library.

I was busy picking up my jaw while still wondering how the heck he had gotten a hold of a vine that long, when a thundering crash sounded from inside the library and all our recently replaced jaws fell back to the ground once again.

HE CRASHED!!

The very next minute we were all hurtling towards the library and bursting through the doors, jumping inside. Surprisingly, I and Mr. Talon were the first ones to reach and we stood at the head of our company with the others behind us.

My wide eyed gaze searched the large room hurriedly for any signs of destroyed property, hoping the property was not a certain wizard with a very random wild streak that gave everyone around him heart attacks.

"Where is he?!" I asked horrified as my gaze shot around the room.

"Did he collide with a table?" Master Cole asked from behind me.

"Maybe he crashed into a shelf", Zuerien said.

"Tell me he didn't fall on Prophecy!"

A cacophony of gasps sounded at Alpha Marco's statement as all our heads whipped towards the comatose Luna. Much to our relief, we found her still sleeping soundly on the couch.

We all heaved sighs of relief when we heard a groan sound from the back of the room. Mr. Talon and I gasped and our heads shot to the side to find a dazed looking Master Rino walking out from one of the middle aisles, rubbing the back of his head.

The minute his gaze landed on us, his eyes widened and he grinned from ear to ear, "Luna! Dalton!"

A chorus of exasperated groans echoed throughout the large room. I face palmed loudly while Mr. Talon slumped onto the chair next to him, not bothering to correct him.

"Rino what the hell?" I heard Zuerien grit out in frustration.

"Too right Wolfa", he replied nodding wide eyed, "I really need to work on my landing. I crashed into that wall over there"

"WHAT?!!"

Master Rino blinked at the gaping lot of us blankly before grinning, "Don't worry you guys. I'm fine!" he lifted his hands and turned in a circle, "See"

"Rino..." I heard Master Cole sigh in defeat.

"And to think I actually thought a stunt like that could kill him", Alpha Marco added.

"Aw, thank for the concern Cargo"

My head shot up from my hands, CARGO?!

"WHO THE HELL IS CARGO?" Alpha Marco shouted in aggravation making Master Rino cock his head to the side.

"Wait, you mean that's not your name?"

Mr. Talon emitted an incredulous distorted neigh while I laughed to myself softly, shaking my head in disbelief.

"Whoa! You look beautiful Luna!" Master Rino said hurrying up to me.

I was about to reply when a thick, muscular arm came around my waist and I was pulled back into a hard familiar chest that made tingles shoot through my body.

"Rino, what did I tell you earlier?" Zuerien growled out and Master Rino stopped mid-stride.

"Uh...Oh yeah!" Master Rino exclaimed, "The underwe-"

"THE OTHER THING!" Zuerien shouted, hurriedly cutting him off.

Underwe-?

Master Rino blinked before his eyes widened, "Ooh! Five-foot distance!"

"Exactly!" Zuerien replied, "Go back"

While Master Rino obediently took a few steps back, I mentally gawked in disbelief at the rule Zuerien had imposed on him while also wondering what that extremely disturbing feeling was against my butt.

Zuerien's chest was to my back, and for some reason he felt very...bare. Unnervingly...BARE???

In a moment of thoughtlessness, I turned my head to face Zuerien only to scream in shock like a banshee in labor and jump halfway across the room away from Zuerien.

"GAAAAH!" I shouted squashing my eyes with my palms, "OH MY GOD ZUERIEN, WHY ARE YOU NAKED?!!"

Blood rushed to my face and set my skin on fire at the recollection of all the unnecessary anatomy I had accidentally witnessed.

Why was he NAKED?!

Why were all three of them NAKED?!

"Oh", came Zuerien's nonchalant reply, "I forgot"

WHAAAATTT?!?!

"How exactly does one forget to wear clothes?!" I shouted burying my face in one of the book shelves next to me.

I heard Alpha Marco, Master Rino and Master Cole chuckle before Zuerien replied, "It's not that hard when you have a wolf who doesn't understand the need for coverings"

A shrill squeal escaped my lips and Zuerien sighed, "When we shift from our wolves into our human forms, we don't have any clothes on Suzzanah", he told me and my eyes went wide in shock.

"So what, you guys just prance around butt naked?"

"It's not so uncommon among werewolves"

"YOU'RE KIDDING!" I shouted in horror, "WHAT IF THERE ARE WOMEN AMONG YOU?!"

"Then we get lucky"

A smack followed by a pained groan sounded from Alpha Marco and I knew it had to be Zuerien who had whacked him.

"Women don't usually go on a run with males other than their mates", Zuerien replied, "But if they do, they are given privacy to shift and change into their clothes"

"Privacy where exactly?"

"Behind trees and shrubs"

What is this the 15th century?!

I squealed into my hands in aggravation, unable to shake the feeling of Zuerien's ahem pressed against me.

Get used to it Suzzanah, Zuerien's voice sounded in my head making me gasp, You'll be seeing a lot more in the days to come

My mouth grew so wide in shock that I almost swallowed the book in front of me.

Oh my God, this man-animal is killing meeee!

"Put something on!" I shouted, shaking my head trying to clear the explicit images of my mate in his birthday suit.

I heard the sound of some feet shuffling and I waited till Zuerien said, "Okay, we're done"

"Are you decent?" I asked.

Not when it comes to you

My face nearly exploded from the blood overload at the sound of Zuerien's seductive husky voice in my head.

"ZUERIEN!" I shouted, nearly hitting my head against the top rack of the shelf.

"We're dressed", Zuerien replied and I could hear amusement in his voice, "You can turn around Suzzanah"

Hesitantly, I turned to face them, my face still buried in my hands. I peeked from in between my fingers and when I saw that they all had pants on I removed my hands only to choke on air at the sight of three very muscular, very sculpted and very bare chests.

"I thought you said you were dressed!" I said, fanning my face furiously while staring at my feet.

"We are"

"You forgot your shirts"

"Purposely"

"WHY?"

"Because I'd rather kiss my brother-in-law than have to wear that belly button flaunting pink monstrosity of a sweater again!" Alpha Marco replied.

"Belly button!" Master Rino laughed as he sat on the table next to him, "I'd like to see that"

"Shut up!" Alpha Marco growled, "How come she didn't make you anything?"

"She did", Master Rino beamed, "I'm saving it for when we go see the kids", he turned to look at me, "You really do look beautiful in the Wolfa's shopping Joanna"

Joanna?

"Suzzanah", all the men corrected in unison and his eyes widened before he smiled sheepishly, "Oh! Oops. Man! I really need to get the Luna's name right!"

"Hey", I smiled, "You don't seem to have any trouble remembering Luna, then-"

"That's cause its four letters", Master Rino beamed at me, "Four is like my maximum. Anything more and I make all sorts of mess with my letters"

"So that's why you pronounce Master Cole and Alpha John's names right!"

He nodded.

"But then why not my name", Alpha Marco asked, "It has like one extra letter"

"And mine!" Mr. Talon added.

Master Rino scratched his head, "I have no clue. I don't do it consciously. It just...happens! It's like some kind of inbuilt defect when it comes to proper nouns", he said before his eyes widened and he pulled a leaflet out of his hair, "Oh! I didn't realize this was in my hair", he said before shaking his head vigorously, probably to get any other twigs and leaves to also fall off.

"What were you doing in the tree earlier?" I asked.

"I was looking for these", he said pulling something out of his jeans pocket and holding them out to me.

They looked like some kind of herbs. The I remembered Zuerien saying that he was looking for some medicinal herb.

"Whom are these for?" I asked as he stopped shaking his head.

"For the Delta Del"

From the corner of my eye, I saw Zuerien tense and Master Cole wince slightly. I cringed too, not out of fear or disapproval, but out of guilt. The poor guy got in trouble because of me, even though he was only doing his job.

"He's fine Luna, I visited him in the infirmary this morning", Master Rino told me as though he had sensed my regret.

"So that's where you were in the morning!" Master Cole said and Master Rino nodded, "He's recovering very well. The Wolfa must have gone easy on him. Honestly, I'm surprised he's alive!"

Why does everyone keep saying that?!

"Only because I knew that if I killed him, Suzzanah would blamed herself for it", Zuerien growled out making my eyes widen even more.

Why did these were-folks talk about killing people as casually as one talks about discarding an old pair of socks?

"Well, she doesn't have to worry or feel guilty any more", Master Rino said, "He'll be fine by the end of the day"

I sighed in relief. Thank goodness!

"If only the same could be said about his conscience"

My head shot up again when he added that sentence, "What do mean?"

"It's funny that you should feel guilty about his condition", Master Rino said getting off the table, "Del was literally banging his head against his bed-side table in aggravation saying that he couldn't believe that he had attacked his Queen"

"He didn't know-"

"Yeah, but that isn't making him feel better", Master Rino replied, "Plus the Wolfa is mad at him"

"Damn right I am"

I immediately gave him a look of disapproval and he raised an eyebrow at me, not backing down.

"Zuerien..."

"I don't care whether he knew or not", Zuerien replied adamantly, "He dared to attack you!" Zuerien's voice grew louder and angrier, "I really should have killed him. Just the thought of it makes my blood boil!"

His fists clenched in rage and immediately the room temperature shot up by a few degrees, literally.

"Whoa there!" Master Cole said putting a hand on Zuerien's shoulder, "Calm down Alpha"

"Yeah, we can't afford any more fire accidents after yesterday's firework fiasco", Alpha Marco said referring to the story they had told the humans about Zuerien's little freak out.

"A cool glass of water might help", Master Rino said picking up the empty glass next to him and getting off the table.

I wondered if there was a cooler anywhere around but to my utter bafflement the glass started to fill with water right before my very eyes as Master Rino walked up to Zuerien. By the time he handed it to him, it was filled to the brim.

HOW???

Zuerien took the glass, angrily gulping down its contents while I was still gaping in disbelief. What just happened?

Master Rino saw me staring and smiled, "Would you like a glass too Hannah?"

"Suzzanah", Master Cole corrected him while Zuerien glared at him in irritation.

"Oh yeah!"

"Uh...no", I said, my brow furrowing in confusion, "How did you...how did that glass..."

I pointed to the now empty glass in Zuerien's hand making all the men look down at it before realization washed over their features.

"Did the King tell you not Queen?" Alpha Marco asked, "Rino is an Elemental Wizard"

My eyes widened as my gaze shot to Master Rino who grinned at me and held up two fingers in a 'Victory' sign.

Elemental...like Zuerien?!

"Not exactly", Zuerien replied to the question I had asked myself in my head, "He isn't a fire elemental like me"

Master Rino walked up to me, cupping his hands together, "Can you guess what my element is Luna?" he asked smiling before holding out his cupped hands towards me.

I could. I could guess almost immediately. And the minute I looked into his cupped palms, I knew my guess was right!

"Water!" I breathed out in awe as I stared at the clear liquid glistening in his hands.

He grinned at me, "Exactly", he said, "50 points for the Luna!" he cried out.

50, not 100...

I didn't get time to dwell on that thought because he suddenly flung his hands upwards, throwing the water up into the air.

I gasped as the droplets flew everywhere before disappearing completely. I breathed out astounded, looking up wide eyed before my head shot towards Master Rino and a huge grin painted my face.

"That was so COOL!" I exclaimed and he beamed, "I know right!"

"So that's why you were able to do that really cool water ball thing with your fingers yesterday!" I said recalling the what he had done just before Master Cole and Zuerien's match had started.

He blinked at me in confusion, "Water ball thing?" he wondered, trying to recollect what I had mentioned.

I grinned in excitement. This was all so fascinating!

"You guys are so awesome!" I said, "Werewolves, Extraordinaire titles, Elemental beings, Wizards and Witches, it's all so fascinating!"

Alpha Marco smiled, "Glad that you're enjoying being part of the Supernatural World Queen", he told me, "You fit right in!"

I smiled sheepishly, "Well, I do malfunction a lot, if that's what you mean", I said thinking of all the ghost sighting I had been doing lately.

"It's all called malfunctioning until you learn how to control it", Zuerien told me, "I think John would say something like that"

Everyone nodded including myself.

"Speaking of John, where is he?" Master Cole asked.

"He rushed out a few minutes ago saying something urgent had come up", I replied, wincing a little at how shocked he had been on seeing that crystal.

"Hmm he didn't mention anything to us", Alpha Marco replied, "I'll ask him"

His eyes glazed over and I stared in awe at his glassy orbs. This mind-link thing was another seriously awesome facility. I couldn't wait to learn how to use it properly.

She can use the mind-link without being marked!

Alpha Marco's words from earlier resounded in my head and I wondered what being Marked meant. Did it mean I had to get some sort of tattoo? I hoped it wouldn't be painful.

I looked at Master Rino who was flipping through the pages of a children's rhymes book.

"Can you mind-link too Master Rino?" I asked making him look up at me.

He shook his head, "No", he replied, "Which is a real bummer. It seems really cool", he put the book down and smiled, "Oh and call me Rino. No need for formalities. We're all friends here Luna"

I smiled at him, "In that case, please call me by my name too"

"Don't encourage that", Zuerien told me, "According to him, we have different names every hour"

"Hey! Not everyone Wolfa. I can remember your name just fine!" Master Rino objected.

Zuerien's eyes widened, "Don't try to-!"

"Kirian!"

The room fell silent as we all stared at him in shock.

Kiri...Kirian??

Alpha Marco was the first to burst out laughing followed by me and Master Cole who laughed into his hand silently. Zuerien pinched the bridge of his nose in aggravation, "KIRIAN?" he growled out making Rino's eyes widen, "Don't tell me, it's not?"

"OF COURSE ITS NOT! Its Zuerien!"

Rino gaped at Zuerien, "Damn! I could have sworn you had a K in you name"

"I do have a K in my name, my middle name"

"Zuerien Kiri?"

"KAI!"

"OH!" Rino's face lit up, "Kai! That's right! Hey its three letters, I can remember that!"

I smiled, "So if my name was four letters, you'd remember it right?" I asked Rino and he nodded.

"Anna", I told him, "I'm Anna!"

Immediately he beamed at me, "GREAT! Anna! I can totally remember that!" he said happily before throwing his hands out and to give me a hug.

Immediately I was pulled behind the huge bare torso of my mate, who ended up being hugged by Rino instead.

"FIVE FOOT DISTANCE RINO!" Zuerien growled trying to get Rino off him.

Master Rino just laughed pulling away, "Shucks Wolfa, you're so possessive!"

Zuerien narrowed his eyes at Master Rino while he grinned back.

"Alright, who's gonna help me carry this cow back to her room?" Alpha Marco asked cutting in, as he walked to Luna Prophecy's chair, "Cause I sure as hell ain't carrying her back on my own"

"Have some shame", Zuerien told him, "you're an Alpha for crying out loud, not a teenage boy in puberty. Stop complaining about Prophecy's weight"

"The poor thing is actually quite light", Master Cole replied.

Alpha Marco gawked at him in pure horror, "Don't ever call this wee devil a poor thing!" he exclaimed making both Zuerien and Master Cole exchange looks.

While they were still arguing, I looked around to find one person missing.

Where did Mr. Talon go?

"He went upstairs", Rino replied making my head shoot towards him.

"Did you just read my mind?"

He blinked at me and shook his head, "No Anna, you spoke out loud...didn't you?"

Did I? I didn't realize

Just then Mr. Talon came downstairs holding a large book in his hands. The minute he saw the Alphas, he hid the book behind him, immediately making my eyes narrow in suspicion.

Master Cole had volunteered to carry Luna Prophecy back to her cottage, much to Alpha Marco's delight. But regardless, he said he'd go with them, and I smiled. He made it seem like it was a hassle to go with Luna Prophecy, but it was quite obvious that he cared deeply for his cousin. It was always refreshing to see sibling love, no matter how subtle it was.

The thought of siblings immediately had me thinking of Karina again, making my eyes drift back towards Mr. Talon. I really needed to find out about those shadows.

"Alright, let's all go for breakfast", Zuerien said, "I've told Warrior Black to meet us there. After that we need to assemble all the female warriors who participated in the combat event and figure out if one of them could be one of the lost Lunas", he said looking at Rino who nodded happily.

"If not, we'll need Annabelle to recall all the women she made contact with in the last 48 to 72 hours and add them to the list of women we need to consider as well", Master Cole said picking Luna Prophecy up on his back.

Everyone nodded or hummed in agreement, "Let's hope it doesn't come to that", Alpha Marco replied.

We all started to make our way out of the library and I quickly grabbed my clutch from the table, fishing out my phone.

No calls.

Sighing in disappointment, I stuffed my phone back in and looked up only to find Zuerien staring down at me.

"Expecting a call?" he asked and I bit my lip.

"Uh...yeah", I replied, "From my sister"

Master Cole immediately stopped walking and his head whipped around to look at me.

"Why don't you call her instead?" Zuerien asked me.

Because I can't

"Why not?"

My eyes widened in shock. I had forgotten he could read my thoughts.

"Uh-umm...because I don't know when she could be free", I told him quickly, "So she said she'd call me when she is"

"I see"

I gulped feeling bad for hiding things from him. I'd tell him everything as soon as I found out who and what these shadows were.

And from now I needed to be careful what I thought too, in case Zuerien read my mind.

Zuerien led me out of the library and Master Cole who had been standing at the door, listening all this time quickly walked towards where Alpha Marco was waiting outside.

We were followed by Mr. Talon who fell into step with us. I looked up at him and he gave me a small smile before patting the large book in his hand which he had covered in white paper.

My eyes shot up from the book to his and I immediately knew that whatever that book contained would help me understand more about...them.

"Marco, what did John say?" Zuerien asked Alpha Marco who was walking in front of us.

Alpha Marco turned his head, "It's funny actually. I don't know why he had to rush out for this. He always brings his phone with him after all"

"What do you mean?"

"He said he needed to make a call"

____

We met Annabelle at the breakfast table. Thankfully, Alpha Marco, Master Cole and Zuerien put shirts on before we went to the restaurant to eat.

I sat between Mr. Talon and Rino, two chairs away from Zuerien, much to his annoyance. It couldn't be helped. Annabelle was not to know about us being mates.

Throughout breakfast she kept throwing glances my way, which I knew meant that she wanted to speak to me, no doubt about how I came to know of their true identities. I still didn't know what I'd tell her.

Alpha Penson didn't join us for breakfast. Nor did he come when we started to make our way towards the Game grounds where Zuerien had told all the female participants of the combat event to assemble. I was really starting to worry about him

He said that he needed to make a call

A call

Those words were strikingly familiar to me, and apparently, also to Zuerien because for some reason his eyes had widened in recognition at Alpha Marco's words.

If my guess was right, Alpha Penson's sudden hurried exit had something to do with his daughter, Emily. But then, did that mean that the crystal had something to do with Emily?

And if it does, then does that mean that Megan has something to do with Emily?

Knowing Alpha Penson, he wouldn't tell me straight up even if I asked him, but that didn't stop me from worrying about him as we walked into the Game grounds.

All the men were extremely excited, especially Master Rino who had literally run to the Game grounds, making all of us run after him.

Mr. Talon had not joined us. He had stayed with Luna Prophecy so that she wouldn't be alone if she woke up and also to inform us as soon as she did.

Before we had left, he had told me that we had a lot to discuss and that whenever I had free time, I needed to give him a call. God knows I was desperate for answers, and apparently, so was he.

But I needed to make sure no one else came along when we discussed the matter, seeing as Zuerien apparently didn't want me to find out anything about these shadows.

"Hey!"

My head shot to the side to find Annabelle walking beside me.

"Oh hey", I said, "How you doing?"

"Skip the formalities", she said immediately jumping to the point, "and spill"

I bit my lip and cringed, "What can I say...I mean...I just sort of...found out!"

"Bullshit!"

"Yeah, but true nonetheless", I told her.

"Don't think I'm letting you get away with giving me scraps Suzzanah", she said narrowing her eyes at me, "I'm all for details and I'm not letting you go till I have them"

"Warrior Black"

Both our backs immediately went stiff at the sound of Zuerien's authoritative voice.

"Y-Yes Alpha!"

"Ms. Winters found out by accident", he told her, "She stumbled upon one of the wolves shifting. So she had to be told"

"O-oh! I see", she said, "But that was rather careless of the wolf"

"Yes, but it's too late to worry about that now", he replied, "Do you have a problem with her knowing?"

My eyes subtly shifted towards Annabelle wondering what she would say but I was surprised when she smiled and shook her head.

"No", she replied, "I'm actually...kind of glad"

My eyes widened as she gave me a small smile before hurrying up to the rest of the participants, where Master Rino was already invading quite a few personal spaces, while Alpha Marco was flirting with the prettiest of the lot.

I smiled at Annabelle's words, feeling joy well up inside of me. The feeling of being accepted really was a sweet one.

As I walked to where the others were standing, Zuerien extended his hand towards me. In a flash my eyes went wide and I jumped away from him immediately, making him frown.

I quickly jerked my head towards all the participants standing on the grounds, making disapproval flash across his face.

"Suzzan-"

"Yes Sir! I'm going Sir!" I said before quickly rushing towards the others.

Irritation surged through my body and I knew Zuerien was annoyed. But what did he want me to do? It's not like I was keeping my distance on purpose. After all, he was the one who said that no one must find out about the two of us.

Too busy rushing away from him, I didn't notice Master Cole standing in front of me and I crashed him violently. He immediately steadied me making me cringe in embarrassment.

"S-Sorry Master Cole", I told him and he shook his head, "Its fine. Are you alright?"

"Yeah", I replied before asking hesitantly, "Are you?"

His eyes widened in surprise before his jaw clenched and he nodded, "Fine", he replied, almost in a whisper.

I knew he wouldn't tell me anymore so I started to walk away when he stopped me, "Ms. Winters"

I turned to find him looking at Zuerien who was talking with Alpha Marco and Rino.

"No matter what happens", he said, "Please, don't-" he swallowed hard as though the next words were difficult for him to say, "Please don't leave the Alpha"

His words took me by surprise, immediately making my brow furrow. He looked me in the eye, his gaze stern and still soft.

"Please......Luna" he said softly before turning and walking away, leaving me baffled.

Why? Why did he say that all of a sudden? Why would I...

"Ms. Winters!"

My head shot up on hearing Zuerien's voice. He was beckoning me towards the rest of the group and I nodded before quickly glancing the way Master Cole had gone. He had already disappeared. Still perturbed about his words, I quickly hurried over to Zuerien and the others.

Hopefully, we'd find the Luna soon.

Find the Luna soon

The Luna soon

Luna...soon

"Please......Luna"

____

"Argh", Alpha Marco cried out in annoyance as he slumped onto the couch in Luna Prophecy's cottage, "Well that was a colossal waste of time"

"Ah don't say that", Rino told him, "At least we know now that none of those girls is the lost Luna whose presence I sensed inside Anna-jingle"

"Annabelle", we all corrected him in unison making him cringe and smile at a glaring Annabelle.

"Okay, let's start to jot down the list of women Warrior black has had contact with in the last 3 days", Zuerien said and Alpha Marco groaned again while Master Cole sighed and nodded.

"I'll tell John to come here", Zuerien added, "he should be here for when Prophecy wakes up. Hopefully it'll be soon now"

All the men nodded, but I could sense that they were all slightly worried, even Rino. Luna Prophecy was still in a comatose state in the bedroom, upstairs. This was the longest she had been 'asleep' while her spirit was not in her body. I too really hoped that she would wake up soon.

While the men got to work with Annabelle, I quickly excused myself. I wanted to go upstairs to where Mr. Talon was with Luna Prophecy so that I could talk to him about them.

As I started to walk away, I could feel Zuerien's gaze on me. I turned around to find him watching me, with a strange longing in his eyes. I smiled at him, hoping he wasn't upset about me staying away from him. But immediately after, his eyes glazed over and I knew he was mind-linking, probably Alpha Penson.

Sighing, I rushed up the stairs before walking to the bedroom. My heart rate sped up at the thought of finally finding out what was up with these shadows I was supposed to stay away from.

Even before I knocked on the door, it flew open to reveal an agitated Mr. Talon.

"Suzzanah! Good, you're here", he said quickly, "Come in child"

He hurriedly ushered me inside before closing the door behind him softly.

"It's a good thing that these rooms are soundproof", he said, "But if someone does get too close to the door, I'll hear them before they come in"

I noticed Luna Prophecy sleeping soundly on the King sized bed. On her bedside table, there was a jar of water, an empty glass and some untouched snacks for when she woke up.

Next to her bed, there was a chair on which Mr. Talon had probably been sitting and fretting all this time. On the chair, there was a large book, that I recognized as the one Mr. Talon had taken from the library and wrapped in white paper.

I wonder why...

"Come child", Mr. Talon said lifting the book from the chair and motioning for me to take a seat.

"Where will you si-" I stopped mid-question when Mr. Talon pulled up a large blue bean bag chair from next to the table.

"Uh...Mr. Talon-"

"Don't worry Suzzanah, I'll sit on this", he said, "You take the CHAAAAIR", he shouted horrified as the bean bag sunk to floor underneath his weight as was expected of it.

Quickly gathering himself, he pushed his glasses up his nose and stared around looking disoriented, "Good heavens!" he cried out wiggling on the bean bag chair, "What kind of chair is this?!"

I bit back a laugh and helped him out of the bean bag, "I'll take the bean bag Mr. Talon, you take the chair", I said shaking my head in amusement.

He nodded, still blinking wide-eyed before slowly lowering himself onto the chair while I sunk into the comfortable bean bag.

Once settled, Mr. Talon immediately jumped to the topic.

"I've been so worried all morning I haven't been able to think of anything else", he told me agitatedly, "You are alright, aren't you?"

The fact that he was asking so many times, immediately brought back the nervousness I had felt while talking about them this morning.

I nodded, "Yes Mr. Talon, I'm fine", I told him and he sighed before bending closer to me.

"Alright child, first I need you to tell me, did you see them?" he whispered anxiously, even though he had said the rooms were sound proof, "did you see the shadows?"

My gaze immediately drifted to our shadows splayed dully across the floorboards.

My eyebrows knit together in confusion, "Well...I mean..." I shrugged pointing to our shadows, mine mimicking my shrug while his imitated his head turn.

He blinked at our shadows before looking back at me, "Not these shadows Suzzanah", he said and my eyes widened slightly as Karina's words suddenly resounded in my mind.

"Anna there are people here who...who aren't human!"

"No", I said softly making the tension in his face quell slightly, "Then I haven't seen them"

"Thank goodness!" he breathed out, "What a relief!" he turned to me, "I was so scared that they might have found out about you", he said softly, "that they might have come to hurt you"

"I don't have enough time to tell you. If they find out I'm calling you, I may not be able to contact you again"

He reached out and placed his large hand over my head and smiled gently at me, "I'm so glad that you're safe Suzzanah"

"Anna no matter what you do, don't go anywhere near the shadows!"

I removed Mr. Talon's hand from over my head and held it in both of mine, "Why Mr. Talon?" I asked him, a sinking feeling settling in my heart, "Why would they come for me? Why would they hurt me? I don't know anything about them. Why would they-"

"Because you're his", he said emphasizing the word, "Because you're the Alpha's mate"

"Anna, Magnifis Incorporated and Royale Industries...they-....riv-....

"And what if I am", I asked, panic slowly seeping into my veins, "Why is that significant?"

He closed his eyes and sighed heavily, his features scrunching up in pain, "Because Suzzanah..."

"Anna-"

Both my sister's and Mr. Talon's voices merged and sounded together.

"they're en-..."

"-they're enemies"

My heart stopped and my breath caught in my throat as I the weight of those words sank into me, and Karina's last words echoed in my mind.

"Stay away from the shadows!"

My sister...

I placed a shaky hand over my chest, feeling my throat go dry.

My sister was with them...with the enemy...

"Suzzanah?"

Enemies of the Werewolves...enemies who would hurt me just because I belonged to Zuerien...

"Suzzanah!"

I belonged to Zuerien...to the Werewolf King...and Karina was my sister...

The sister of a Luna...of the King's Luna...if they find out...then...

"CHILD!"

My gaze zeroed in on Mr. Talon who was looking at me with wide anxious eyes, "Suzzanah are you alright?"

Karina...

"Suzzanah? What's wrong child?"

Karina...

"Child, who told you?" he asked placing both his hands over my shoulders firmly, "Who told you about them?"

My sister...

"Suzzanah-"

"Karina", I breathed out and his brow furrowed in confusion as he gazed into my scared eyes, "Karina", I repeated and recognition painted itself across his features.

"Your..."

I nodded, "my sister"

His eyes slowly widened as realization sunk into him.

My lip trembled as I breathed out, "She's...she's with-"

A strangled shout sounded making both our heads whip towards the bed as Luna Prophecy's body shot upwards and she sat up gasping.

Both our eyes went wide and we immediately rushed to her side.

She gasped for breath, clutching her chest while Mr. Talon gently rubbed her back trying to calm her down. I quickly rushed to the bed side table and poured her a glass of water.

"Shhh Luna calm down", Mr. Talon said, "It's okay", he said, "Everything is okay. You're back"

Luna Prophecy nodded, burying her face in her hands as she continued to breath heavily. I hurried to her other side with the glass of water, desperately hoping that she and the other Lunas were alright.

Suddenly the Luna's body started to sway and Mr. Talon immediately steadied her. I remembered the Alphas telling me that after her teleportations, Luna Prophecy was often extremely tired and fell asleep for a while to recuperate. But this was the usual slumber, her spirit did not leave her body when she slept.

Mr. Talon slowly lowered her body back onto the bed as her eyelids closed and she started to fall asleep.

"Child, go tell the Alphas that the Luna Prophecy's spirit has returned", Mr. Talon told me and I nodded quickly, placing the glass of water on the table again.

As I was turning towards the door, I heard Mr. Talon mumble to himself, "Oh where did you teleport to that you were so out of breath Luna?"

And just when I was about to rush out the door, my body froze in shock when I heard Luna Prophecy's last reply.

"Canada..."

____

Zuerien's POV

"Sorry about the delay Alpha", John said as he walked into the living room.

We had just finished taking down the list of approximately all the women Warrior Black had come in contact with and sent her away. There were a total of 23 women whom she could remember, some from my pack, some from other packs and some who were apparently human.

"John, good to have you here at last", Marco said, "Did you make your call?"

My eyes immediately shot towards John who also exchanged glances with me before smiling, "Yes, thank you, I did"

"Who was it John?" Rino asked, "It was such a long call"

John smiled and replied, "A loved one"

Before anyone could ask anymore he asked, "Where is Suzzanah?"

"Upstairs", I replied, "she went to keep Talon company"

"I see", he replied, "And Prophecy hasn't woken up yet?"

We all shook our heads, worry creasing our foreheads. We were all concerned about her, especially Marco. He couldn't stop pacing the room like a madman.

"Don't worry Marco", John told him, "It's not uncommon for the Luna of Time to be gone for long periods of time"

"Who is worried? I'm not worried", Marco replied but he didn't stop pacing while agitatedly running his hands through his hair.

We all exchanged knowing glances before John added, "Back when I was younger, the Luna of Time was once comatose for 48 hours"

"WHAT?!" we all cried out in shock and I saw Marco pale considerably.

"48 hours", he breathed out looking horrified.

"Calm down Marco", John said, "It's not necessary Prophecy will be gone that long. It's hardly been 5 hours since Prophecy's spirit teleported. I'm sure she'll be back soon"

"But she has never been gone this long", he replied softly, his brow beaded with perspiration.

Prophecy wasn't very good at controlling her powers. As a result, we were constantly worrying about her when she teleported. After being gone for long periods, when she teleported back, her body would usually shut down and she'd sleep for a while because she'd be drained after using her powers for so long. Time travel was extremely exhausting.

"At least she didn't teleport physically but only in spirit this time right", Rino said optimistically, "So we know that no one can physically hurt her. Besides, its Pro-fussy we're talking about, she'll be fine!"

Despite our worried dispositions, everyone, including myself, broke small smiles at Rino's comment. Unlike all our names, Prophecy wasn't exactly a proper noun so Rino didn't have trouble remembering it.

'Pro-fussy' was a name Rino had come up with for Prophecy because she could often be, as the name suggested, very fussy.

Once we had all agreed that Pro-fussy, would indeed be alright, the tension in the room quelled considerably, except of course, the tension of Cole's face, which had been there unchanging, since last night.

Earlier, I had seen him talking to Suzzanah at the Game Grounds and I had wondered what he could have been telling her. I had noticed that his behavior towards her, although not harsh in any way, had been a little stiff.

Cole was a huge supporter of Suzzanah. He didn't need to say it for me to know that he adored his Luna. So seeing his somewhat grave attitude towards her was disturbing for me.

I could tell that he still cared deeply for her, because his eyes always softened when he spoke to her, much like they did when he spoke to his sisters or Prophecy, but there was something bothering him, something that I needed to know.

"Cole", I called out making his tense gaze turn to mine, "I think its high time you tell us what's wrong"

His eyes widened slightly and he swallowed hard, not meeting my gaze.

"Cole", John said softly, "Whatever the problem is, I'm sure we can figure a way out of it. Please tell us"

Both Rino and Marco nodded in agreement and he took a deep breath before nodding himself. His eyes met mine and he exhaled heavily before standing and walking up to me.

"Alpha, just please", he struggled to get the words out, "keep an open mind alright", he told me, his voice tense and hesitant.

I frowned not comprehending what any of this had to do with me.

"I'm sure there is a perfectly good explanation behind this, so...please just...don't get mad", he said, "I'm sure it isn't her fault"

My frown deepened and everyone exchanged glances. If he was talking about a woman who was relevant to me, it could only mean one person.

Cole breathed deeply again before saying, "The call that was made to Canada that day, specifically to a receiver who was in Magnifis Incorporated, has been traced"

My eyes widened slowly and a dread started to settle into me.

No...

"It was found that the caller, who had called using the landline at the women's staff quarters, had received multiple calls from different numbers on her cell phone lately, all from Canada", he continued cautiously and the dread slowly intensified.

"The last call she received from Canada on her cell phone was last night, and when traced, it was found to have been from someone who had been in the Magnifis Incorporated main branch"

No...please no...

"The caller who called from the women's staff quarters that day, we know who it was"

By now, my fists were clenched, my body was tense and I was breathing heavily. By the look in my eyes, I knew that Cole had understood that I had figured it out.

He nodded slowly confirming my most dreaded suspicion, "It was Suzzanah"

****

A/N

Hello my darlings,

Long time right. Sorry for the late update, but I made sure its extra-long for you guys :D

Please don't kill me for where I stopped it. This was a necessary evil. As most of you might have guessed, I have a thing for cliffhangers lol *hides behind table*

As mentioned earlier, please do inform me if you find anyone plagiarizing my work so that I can report them immediately.

I really hope you liked this chapter. If you did, please do VOTE and COMMENT to let me know what you think.

Unfortunately, I'm super busy and the coming week is swarmed with tests so there mostly won't be an update next week.

But I'll try and update again as soon as I can.

Until next time,

All my love,

Angel