"You're mine, Rhiannon," He growled fiercely, his tone raw with possession.

The look in his eyes was always feral, changing to a golden brown so deep Rhiannon was forced to take a step back. She was shocked. Why didn't he just accept the rejection when it's Eleanor he actually wants? What sort of messed-up game is he playing at?

"I belong to no one!" Rhiannon fired back, stepping forward again confidently, "I rejected you, so take it like a man and move the hell on!" As she finished, she turned around to leave but Ethan's arm reached out and grabbed her firmly, roughly whirling her back to face him.

"This isn't funny, Rhia," He said, eyeing her with a death glare.

She scoffed, "Does this seem like a Joke to you? But then again, you've always taken everything I've done for you to be a joke so I understand why your brain cells are still contemplating this," She rolled her eyes

"What?" His grip tightened till Rhia almost winced.

"Do I have to repeat myself?" She forcefully yanked her arm away from his grip, seething in pain as the sharp claws on his fingers cut into her skin, "I reject you, Ethan Shaw! And there's nothing you can do about it!" She spat out

Proudly, Rhiannon turned around and walked away from him. Everyone stared and mumbled to themselves, but that didn't bother her at all. She searched the crowd for Layla and soon found her.

"I don't feel like staying here much longer, I'm leaving. Enjoy the evening," Rhia said to Layla on getting to where she stood.

Layla's expression was that of shock and excitement, "Are you kidding me? I'm leaving with you. And that was the coolest thing you've ever done. I did not believe a day would come when Rhiannon Blackwood, the girl who swoons and licks her mate's feet, would actually turn him down! I mean, that was so insane! But why the sudden change of heart?"

"Yeah," Eleanor quipped in, stepping out of the crowd too with her hands crossed over her chest, "Why the sudden change of heart, sis? I thought you loved and would do anything for Ethan,"

Rhiannon faced her, keeping a neutral mask on, "Oh, Eleanor, you really have to ask? He's quite a handful, isn't he? I'm just not in the mood anymore for that kind of 'excitement'."

"You were the one throwing yourself all over him, remember?"

"I guess so," Rhiannon shrugged indifferently, "Now it's just exhausting, honestly. You should go back and enjoy your evening, I'll be heading home now," Rhiannon smiled at her.

Eleanor didn't look very convinced, but she returned the smile and watched as her sister and friend walked away. Her head was calculating, and she never expected, in a million years, for her sister to reject Ethan. Why? What could it be? She needed to know.

.

.

.

"Was that true?" Layla inquired as they walked home once they were out of earshot, "What you told Eleanor. The reason why you rejected Ethan,"

Rhia looked at Layla, a thought in her mind. Since yesterday, she's been having this argument in her head about whether to tell Layla the truth, or just keep moving like this.

If Layla knew, she would most definitely help her.

But if she knew, wouldn't that put her in danger?

"Something's bothering you," Layla's voice broke into her thoughts, and Rhia blinked back to reality, "What is it? Is it the pain from the rejection? Don't tell me you're regretting it...,"

"No, it's not that," She answered with a deep sigh, "And don't worry about it, I'm fine,"

"When you tell me not to worry, I find myself worrying even harder," Layla pronounced, "And I want to help with whatever it is. Honestly, I noticed you've been acting a little bit differently since yesterday. You kind of seem more...aware of everything happening around you, and you've had this alarmed look on your face like someone's after your life or something. And let's not forget that hug you gave me like you hadn't seen me for months!"

Rhiannon squeezed her eyes shut. What could go wrong if she told Layla? Wasn't she given a Second chance so she could change her fate? And she's already accepted that to do that, she would need all the help she can get.

But then again, could she even trust Layla? She trusted her sister and mate blindly and they killed her at the end.

"I guess I'm just a little confused. I feel like the Timberfang Pack are suddenly gonna jump out on us and attack anytime since they escaped before we could get them," Rhia said, mentally bracing herself for the guilt that swept her after lying to her only friend.

"They would be subjecting themselves to a death sentence if they did that," Layla replied.

"You never know,"

Rhia felt a gentle squeeze as Layla draped her arms over her shoulders, her touch a familiar comfort. Her voice was soft as she said, "I know there's something else bothering you, and I'm not going to push you to tell me what it is, but I want you to know that I'm always here for you, and I've got your back no matter what!"

Their eyes met, and Layla's gaze was warm and unwavering, and Rhia could see the genuine concern in her eyes, "Yeah, I know," She replied tightly.

"Good," She pulled her even closer.

A large knot of guilt formed in Rhia's stomach, and she abruptly stopped walking.

"What's wrong?" Layla asked.

"You go ahead," Rhia nudged her softly, "I wanna get some air before I come," She paused, "And you're right. Something is bothering me, and it's a little complicated,"

Layla's brows creased and she simply stared at her friend, before an understanding look came across her beautiful features, "I give you an hour, max! If you're not back before then, I'll march right up to that hilltop and I will not give you space anymore, and you'll have to tell me what's bothering you because it's bothering me and you're driving me a little crazy here!"

Rhiannon chuckled softly, "Fine, fine. An hour," She nodded.

The hilltop, as Rhia and Layla called it was a short mountain hike around the territory of the True North. At the very top, it gave a beautiful view of the town and it was where Rhiannon usually went to clear her head whenever it was getting a little too much for her.

In a few minutes, she was seated on the rocky surface with her legs dangling over the edge. Her thoughts drifted from her meeting with the Alpha of the Timberfang Pack, how she was going to acquire this Pack's Grimoire and of course, if she could tell Layla about this.

Layla has been nothing like Eleanor or Ethan or anyone else. She's never looked down on her, and always had her back. Rhia trusted Layla wholeheartedly, but the fear of what happened in her past life kept pulling her back.

As for what happened earlier tonight, Rhia had a feeling Ethan wasn't going to take the rejection easily. Ethan was the kind of person who would make a lot of fuss about this, but she already thought ahead of it and was fully ready for him.

As for Eleanor, she was the sneaky one. She and Ethan might decide to keep an eye on her from now on if they've picked up on her behavioural changes.

Rhiannon needed to be more careful.

Nevertheless, she was so proud of herself for what she did tonight. The look on Ethan's face had brought her pure joy, and she couldn't wait to enact her full revenge on them.

"You really have no wolf," A raspy voice said from behind her, and Rhia was instantly on her feet and had turned around to see who it was.

The darkness of the night shrouded him perfectly as he stood behind one of the trees growing on the mountain about twenty feet away, and a weird sensation crashed over her.

The voice...sounded somewhat familiar.

"Who's there?" She called out, "Step out of the shadows, now!" She added.

She heard a low, deep chuckle from the person, right before he walked out from behind the tree. She squinted her eyes, trying to see his face in the darkness. These were times when she wished she had a wolf so she would have no issue seeing in the dark.

"Come into the light," She instructed again, "Why are you hiding?"

"I'm not hiding," He replied, "I'm simply observing," He took a step closer.

"Observing what?" She asked, carefully moving closer too.

The voice was only getting more and more familiar, and curiosity was getting the best of her. She was so close to pinpointing who it was!

Then, the person stepped into the light, where the silver beam of the Crescent moon touched, "You," He told her, his dark eyes holding hers.

It was the Alpha of the Timberfang Pack.

Rhia froze, her heart racing. Something within her stirred because of his presence, and she felt a strange pull between them. A strange, but peculiar pull that she felt toward Ethan before.

No....

Rhia's mind argued as to whether to run or stay.

Would he even let her escape?

No, the bigger question was, What was he doing here in the enemy's territory?