Chapter 1
TAJ
“Have you heard?” A man in front of me spoke to another. I melted into the shadows, listening in on the conversation. The best news came directly from the pack and these men were as pack men as they could get.
“What about?”
“Petrov’s daughter officially renounced her Royal status today. She is no longer in line to be Queen.”
“Did she really?”
“She’s a fighter.”
“Heard that rebellious girl knocked out a dozen men all by herself… without using her hands.”
“Exactly like her father then. That Petrov. Our Alpha.”
“Worse.”
“She’s an animal. That whole family is.”
“An animal she may be, she’s hell of a beauty though.”
“Damn sexy.”
“Taj Voss is a goddamn maniac. With the Alpha finally coming home and having his full attention on the pack, it’ll be the end for him.”
“Completely.”
“Doesn’t matter if no one knows what he looks like, if the Alpha is really here permanently, he'd catch Voss in a day.”
I tune their conversation out and look above. The moon hanging over me is milky tonight, framed by clouds that move along the dark sky. Despite the calm of the night, my erratically beating heart was not. Hearing about Joseph Petrov permanently returning to these lands can do that to the most wanted criminal.
There’s a hundred things to think about. I wasn’t an idiot. The only reason I had gotten this far is because of the Alpha’s absence… which apparently isn't for much longer.
After everything I’ve done, there’s no stopping him anymore.
My time was up.
I let out a shaky breath, smoke coming out of my lips.
For tonight… and only for tonight, I’ll forget about Petrov, his men, his family and enjoy my last day of freedom.
My feet bring me to a club where the music is high and the booze is overflowing. Goddess knows I need this. I absentmindedly walk past a bouncer, shooting him a deathly glare before pressing forward and getting lost in the sea of sweaty bodies.
It was loud enough here that I couldn’t hear my thoughts… or my worries.
I wave at the bartender, shoving at a couple of girls that press themselves at me drunkenly. In another time I’d be interested but they were the last thing I needed tonight.
A glass full of strong alcohol is given to me and I finish the entire thing without so much as a flinch. The bartender fills it right back up.
I sit down in a booth, scaring away its current occupants and take a very long drink from my glass, feeling the heat of the liquor go down my throat.
Joseph Petrov coming back to these lands… I’ve thought about it but I didn’t think it would be this soon. I’ve been a thorn in his side for quite some time and only managed to survive because his attention was elsewhere.
But apparently, that will be changing soon.
He’d kill me… heck the man would torture me first, make an example out of me for any of his enemies. He’d have my body on a pole in the middle of his town until I slowly bleed to death.
Swallowing the last of my drink, I take another deep breath to calm myself. The alcohol was starting to do me a favor, helping my body ease into the loud music.
It’s when I saw her. A woman… the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen was looking at me through the throngs of people. She has the darkest black hair and the brightest blue eyes. She was a walking temptation… a seductress and by the way her red dress hugged her… utterly irresistible. The girl smirked before turning around to dance, her lithe body moving like it was made for ensnaring men.
Maybe a woman’s warm body is what I needed tonight.
And when she looks like that? Definitely what I need. She’ll help me forget all about Petrov and my future death.
Like a predator finding his prey, I stalked towards her and just as I had my hands on her, she turned, flashing me a smile that had my insides twist. The woman… she had thick shiny black hair that framed her small face beautifully. The blues of her eyes seemed to melt into each other and the red of her lips called something inside of me to raise and to harden.
Women, they were all the same. And while I had my fair share of them, enjoying every aspect of them, there was something about this specific woman that had my insides twisting, my mind utterly consumed.
She was ethereal… more intoxicating than the best liquor.
I kept my hands to myself, moving to the music like she was as I continued to stare. I lose myself in her scent… gentle and heavenly. It was the kind of smell that hypnotizes you.
She leaned forward, close enough that I could smell her better until my mind went buzzing.
“Hello, Taj Voss.” Suddenly, she had me in a headlock, squeezing my throat painfully until I was gasping for breath. “The Alpha is expecting you.”
My eyes widened and I tried to pull back but she already had me in an iron grip. “No!”
She laughed, the sound both melodic and wicked. The feeling was strange. Terror and mesmerizing. “No?”
“I…” My mind raced, thinking quickly on what I’ve heard for the past couple of weeks. “The Alpha is stepping down. I’m joining the tournament. All participants are given immunity. All crimes are forgiven.”
“Temporarily.” She cursed in our native language. A foul old curse that not even sailors and warriors could say. And by the look of her, she was neither.
“Not unless I win.” I grumbled, wrestling out of her hold. “And become the new Alpha.”
She let me go and I pulled back, watching the sparkle of challenge in her eyes. “Oh, you’re not winning.”
I scoffed, looking her over. “And why not?”
The same smirk that drove me towards her earlier returns and I fight myself from falling to her allure. “Because I’m joining.”
“And you’re so sure you’re going to win?” I questioned, straightening myself. “Why?”
The beautiful woman that can only ever exist in dreams put her chin up and grinned devilishly. At that moment, I should have known that grin… the grin that only the devil could give. It was the same smile that the infamous Alpha had. “I’m the first born of Joseph Petrov. Of course I’m winning.”
Damn.
She's the devil in disguise.
Princess Josephine Petrov herself has come for me.