Finding Shadow BOOK ONE
The hands of time

She still couldn't understand how it was possible to go to bed early one night and wake up the next morning to learn her brother got picked up by a tornado, challenged a Royal, demoted to an Omega, DIED, only to be revived by his TWO mates, given a blood transfusion in the middle of the forest, was MARKED before he was eighteen by both elemental Alpha's, SURVIVED IT, and was currently recovering in the Pack hospital, IN THE SPACE OF TWENTY FOUR HOURS!

Isabella's father was beside himself, her mother Maria wasn't much better, and Raeann rushed over to Mikhail's room as soon as she was given the news.

The Royal responsible for this madness had taken leave with Colette, the pack's Oracle in training. The only one of the four Royals participating in this years Howling to come away with a mate and everyone seemed to be running around like chooks with their heads cut off.

As usual, it was left to Isabella to shoulder the Beta family duties, and as she walked downstairs to grab a much-needed coffee, she was already mind linking with the Alpha to get briefed on today's duties.

There were the newly mated females from this pack requiring security as they traveled with their mates to new packs, this year that meant sending warriors to three local packs and the Howling Warrior pack, which was a good day's journey in wolf form.

Isabella ignored the pang of pain as she realized it would be the first time in seven years that a member from their pack had been mated to the Howling warriors, and as head of the Beta family and a pack trainer, it was highly likely that she would be one of the warriors traveling to her old pack, the place where Shadow died.

Resolutely pushing the grief down, Isabella told herself to stop being weak, emotions were a weakness that rotted the body from the inside out and if there was one thing Isabella Romano was well known for it was her unrelenting strength.

The Alpha had also seen fit to task her with assigning housing to the fifty newly mated couples, organize a swearing-in ceremony, and delegating the pack Omegas to clean out the rooms of the unmated werewolves, who would also be leaving today.

If that wasn't enough, she also had to break the news to Ethan's mother, and her own parents, that both males would be leaving with Elena as soon as Mikhail was stable.

Alpha Payne had explained via mind link that Elena was a very gifted Elemental Alpha, next in line to lead her father's pack, and when she had marked both men, some of her Alpha blood, mixed with elemental magic had transferred over to Ethan and Mikhail, infusing them both with a touch of the power she commanded.

As the mate bond grew between the Tri-bred so would their magic, so it made sense that they would go to a pack that could teach them to control their new gifts.

Which reminded her, she needed to congratulate Ethan on his rise in status and the mate bond before he left, it turned out her friend didn't need her help at all!

Today was promising to be a headache alright, and it had barely even started.

SHADOW

"The Howling was a success Alpha, and Shadow Moon will allocate guards to help the newly mated couples reach Howling Warrior lands late tomorrow evening, barring any complications."

Shadow nodded to let his Beta know that he'd heard her report, pausing before he asked, "Do we know who is heading the guard detail, Camille?" His trusted advisor paused, by the door, pursing her lips and rubbing her calloused hands across weary eyes.

"Alpha all I know is that her own men call her el despiadado-the ruthless one, no one could tell me any details on her, just that she is highly skilled at what she does."

'Hmm,' Shadow mused quietly, sending Camille on her way with a wave. It was uncommon in the wolf world to have no back story, Were's were notorious gossips and jumped at the chance to dish dirt on each other, so hearing that such a person existed in this day and age intrigued the young Alpha. With a small smile, he continued on with his paperwork, looking forward to meeting this warrior she-wolf and finding out what exactly her story was tomorrow.

ISABELLA

It had been a very long day, and Isabella was a little disgruntled as she packed her necessities for the nights travel to Howling warrior territory. She had made contact with the Beta of the pack, informing her of their ETA, and she trusted that Alpha Tarakona was made aware of their impending arrival.

But something in the other woman's tone over the phone had made her feel a little uneasy, and the tense silence when Isabella had asked after the Alpha family seemed a little off.

No matter, she was soon to find out what was bothering the other beta anyway, since it appeared she had no choice but to tag along to her former pack. All the other experienced warriors were either on forced rest, recovering from their border security during the Howling, newly mated, currently on border patrol, or delegated to details returning newly mated couples to the other territories, there was simply no one else suitably qualified to head the team to Howling warriors.

To be honest, Isabella was looking forward to a little time away, even if it brought up some sad memories.

Mum and Dad had blamed her for Mikhail's impending departure, declaring that Isabella didn't fight hard enough to convince Alpha Payne that Elena should stay at Shadow moon as was the custom for female mates; in reality, Mikhail seemed relieved to be going, confiding in his older sister that being part of a tri mate bond, with another male was hard for him to accept, and some of Mikhail's old friends suddenly seemed to be too busy to even visit the seventeen-year-old.

Isabella couldn't blame her brother for wanting a fresh start.

Huffing a little at the unfairness of it all, she placed her bag by the bedroom door and decided to catch a couple of hours' sleep before she had to leave.

SHADOW

She appeared to him in wolf form this time, a beautiful white creature with haunting violet eyes, and Shadows wolf ran to greet her, his beloved dream.

This time seemed different to the rest, the white wolf pranced in circles around his own black beast, nipping at his paws..urging him to follow her and they ran, through the pack forest and away from the village, using a track that was achingly familiar to him.

He tried to get her to stop, he didn't want to visit this place..but she darted ahead, bunching her muscles to cover the climb as quickly as possible as if the white wolf had been there before, and Shadow ran to catch up before she discovered the young Alpha's most painful secret.

But he was too late, as he raced up towards the ridgeline, and came to a halt in the small clearing, his beautiful flame-haired dream woman was already kneeling before it.

Isabella's grave.

Shadow had carried the stone up the mountain himself, on his twelve-year-old shoulders, in human form and worked on it there, alone and grief-stricken he had poured all of his love for his young friend into her gravestone, carving the obsidian using old tools, spilling his own blood countless times as the dark shards pierced his skin, often working long into the night.

When he was finally finished, and the sculpture stared out, watching over the village, Shadow had cried as he had never cried before, not even when his brother was sent away, or his mother was found murdered on their doorstep had he ever cried so hard.

The sculpture was of two wolves, curled around each other as they stared out from their hideout. Five words etched into the stone at their feet, 'I'm sorry I left you.'

Their secret hideaway was a mess of thistles, wildflowers, and overgrown grass..Isabella's little grave almost hidden amongst it all, yet there she knelt, his dream lady, her slender fingers tracing the two wolves, a soft smile gracing her delicate features, and Shadow padded over to her, deciding to remain in wolf form.

There they sat, the maiden and her beast overlooking the valley below, her amethyst eyes seeming almost sad this time, and as the beast looked at his beloved, he could have sworn the tears that tracked down her beautiful face, were for him.

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