Chapter 1

Italy, present time

Placing my right foot in the crack on the wall, I pushed myself up and placed my left one in another steady crack I could reach.

Slowly I managed to reach the top and pulling myself up using my arms, I leaned over the edge, and two sets of hands grabbed at my arms to help me up.

“Thank you.” I said to the men who went back to their work and soon enough I heard a familiar voice calling my name, “John!”

Turning towards the sound of the voice, I waved up towards my best friend Michael, helping him to easier find me in this huge mess of people around me.

We were in the ancient ruins in Italy, looking for a relic that I was assigned for to find. A spear of Destiny that was said by all the traces and clues given in many ancient fragments I have found, to be last seen in this place where we are now.

“John, it’s your father calling for you on the phone.” Michael rushed towards me, handing me the satellite phone.

I reached out and took the phone from him to answer my father, “Yes?”

“Son, when are you returning back home?” my father asked me.

I looked over at Michael who was looking silently at me, waiting for me to finish my conversation.

“Soon dad. Is there anything you needed me for?” I asked him.

"Yes, Sir Thomas asked me about you as he said there is some urgent matter he would like to discuss with you." My father said.

I took a deep breath, "Tell him I should be heading back tomorrow, and soon as I get back I will contact him, ok?"

"Of course son. Anyway, are you ok? Did you found what you were looking for?" I couldn't help to hide my laughter at my father's enthusiasm.

He loved treasure hunting ever since he was a kid, so every new adventure as he would call my expeditions and search for relics, he would sit me down and ask me to tell him everything I was doing.

“I am fine dad, just got out of the ground.” I didn’t explain further as I knew his interest was spiked.

“Ground? O you have to tell me everything! Don’t leave your old dad hanging in the air here son.” The clear interest could be heard from his voice as he spoke.

Laughing once again, I said, “I’ll tell you everything about is soon as I get back home dad.”

“Does that means that you have found what you were looking for?” he was fast to ask me the next question.

"Yes dad, I found it, and a few more other things. I have to go now. I will call you later." I said and we said our goodbyes and soon enough I hang up the phone call.

Placing the phone in my pocket, I heard Michael say, “You found it?”

I looked back at him, with a huge grin on my face, winking at him as I said, “Did you ever doubt at me?”

“Of course not! Don’t be silly.” He said happily.

"Good, then let's get back to the campsite. We need to start packing." I told him, walking ahead to my tent.

Soon as I reached my tent, I got inside and found Lilly waiting for me in my tent.

The moment her eyes seem me, they lighten up and a huge smile graces her gentle features.

She was beautiful for a human, I haven’t got to that part yet to explain my nature. I am a shifter, a werewolf. My father is the current Alpha of the Silvercrest pack, one of the largest and strongest werewolf packs in North America. I am 26 years old, and I haven’t yet found my mate or in another term, my soulmate, my other half.

When I turned 18 years old, I searched everywhere to find her, but as the years passed by, I decided to give up and leave it all up to faith. So I focused on my work and was successful as a businessman, leading my own company, but I loved most this part, my secret life I have divided from my other.

The other side of me is more business deals, parties, and women. I have a younger brother who is currently helping my father with our pack. I am supposed to take over the title but thankfully my father is giving me time till I am ready or I decide to give it over to my brother.

Since I am meatless, he is a better option if he finds his mate before me, because Alpha is stronger with his Luna, which makes the pack strong as well.

That is why I decided to leave it all to destiny and faith and until then just enjoy my time searching around the world for artifacts and relics or any kind of mystery there is to be discovered yet.

I looked at Lilly, she is a professor of history at one of the private Colleges in the States that asked me to cooperate with them in this search.

“What are you doing here?” I asked her with a smile on my face.

She got up from my bed that she was recently sitting on and walked towards me, slowly caressing with her hands, my chest, “I was waiting for you.”

I would have had to be a fool not to be able to guess that in the first place but I decided to play along with her.

I grinned at her pulling her closer to me, slowly leaning my head down I whispered into her ear, "And why is that?"

I could feel her shiver from my touch and my voice, as her breath hitched in her throat, “Because I heard that our expedition is soon over because you found what we came here looking for, and I wanted to spend some alone time with you.”

I chuckled when I saw her cheeks slightly tint read, I placed my fingers under her chin, slowly pushing her head up to look at me, “You wanted to spend some alone time with me, hmm. And how did you imagine it to be?” I couldn’t help myself, it was so easy to tease her, but I could smell her arousal and hear her heart beating faster with every word I said to her.

“I-I want you.” She said slowly, looking down at my lips.

I lean down and slowly captured her lips with my own, and at that moment I felt her wrapping her arms around my neck.

I slowly licked the semen off her lower lip, asking for entrance, and she allowed me without second-guessing.

Deepening the kiss, I heard her moan and press into me, making me take her up into my arms and carry her to bed.

The next morning, I woke up and saw Lilly was still soundly asleep next to me, which wasn’t so surprising as we were up the whole night.

I got up from the bed and dressed, looking at her one last time, I walked outside the tent.

So much for my packing, I thought to myself, but thankfully am used to it so I wasn’t worried at all.

I saw a few men already gathered at our fireplace where we would all sit and eat together, I took a plate and filled it up with some food, and went to take a seat.

As I started to eat, a hand clasped on my back and I saw Michael, grinning devilishly at me, wiggling his eyebrows, “Another active night?”

I scoffed at him as he took a seat next to me, “Jealous maybe?”

He scoffed back at me, “Only that you got the only female in the expedition but thank to Goddess we are going back home, finally.” He said making me laugh at him.

“The way you are talking makes me believe as you didn’t enjoy this expedition.” I teased him, nudging him with my shoulder.

“Yeah, yeah, easy for you as you had you fair of shear of fun, while we others had to suffer and hear her scream your name," he said nudging me back with his shoulder.

“Next time stop listening and everything will be fine, plus you are the only one here complaining. Sometimes I wonder why the heck do I even take you with me.” I joked.

"Because I am your best friend and you can't be without me as I would be missed and you would be calling me nonstop every day, so to spare the expenses I go with you and save us all the trouble." He tried to sound serious, but soon enough we both burst out laughing.

We continued to eat and joke for a while longer and after sometime later, I went back to my tent and started to pack as Lilly left to hers to do the same.

We drove to the airport and were finally flying back home.