I clutched the chain around my neck as I gazed out over my pack. How did we get to this point? I was the luna of this pack. It was my job to protect them, yet all I was able to do was spare their lives. I watched as they lined the pack members up to be counted and labeled. I was the only one in chains, a cruel symbol that they had control over their leader.
“My luna, you did what you had to do,” Bastian whispered next to me. Bastian was my mate’s beta. He had remained loyally by my side, even after my mate abandoned us. My mate Alfred was the leader of the Stone Heart Pack. Everything was great until just a couple of months ago. Up until Ivy showed up. I closed my eyes, not wanting to drift to those unwanted memories.
“I’m not your luna anymore, Bastian. Please, just call me Allissa.” I winced as I felt the silver chain burning at my skin.
I could see Bastian tense up, balling his hands into fists. “I wish I could remove it from you.”
“I agreed to this for a peaceful turnover. None of the pack members would be harmed as long as I complied with their terms. If I hadn’t been poisoned, I wouldn’t be in such a weakened state and could have protected the pack.” I bit back the bitter tears that welled in my eyes. That damn bitch Ivy made sure I was completely incapacitated by the time the Lycan King’s army arrived. I looked down at the ground and cursed for not killing Ivy earlier.
It was two months ago when Alfred brought Ivy to the pack. She was his stepsister and had run out of money. From what I had been told, Ivy was very materialistic, and she was sent away by the previous alpha for draining their accounts. At least that’s what I was told. Who knows what the real reason was now.
Within those two months, Alfred began to act strangely, and I noticed that money was being freely given to Ivy in large sums. Last week, he took her to a lavish party at the Lycan Kingdom, which was where the problem happened. Alfred, who was drunk, attacked an officer who was flirting with Ivy. The Lycan King, Darren Weston, ordered Alfred to turn himself in for punishment.
I found out about it today through a messenger, who said they would come by force and destroy our pack unless Alfred turned himself over. I went running to look for him, well running the best I could with the pain I was having. And my jaw dropped, I found him in bed with Ivy! This whole time he had been hooking up with his stepsister. All the pain I had been feeling wasn’t from the miscarriage I suffered when Ivy first arrived. It had all been caused by his infidelity with Ivy.
I went hysterical. I began yelling at Alfred, and I demanded he take responsibility for his actions. In my anger, I didn’t notice Ivy had moved behind me. I had seen her get up, but I thought she was getting changed. Instead, something sharp and painful landed in my back. Paralyzed, I fell to the ground. I tried to call for someone through my mental link but it was blocked.
“Quickly, Al. Get the cards and money. We have to leave,” Ivy said urgently as Alfred knelt in front of me.
“Ivy, what did you do to her?” There was a small growl in his voice, as if he really cared.
“She’ll be fine. She is paralyzed. This is perfect. She will have to take responsibility for your actions as your luna. We have to leave, or who knows what they will do to you.”
“Lissa, I am so sorry. I didn’t mean for any of this to happen. Please forgive me.”
I could hear his voice tremble, and at first, I thought he wasn’t going to leave. But then Ivy grabbed his arm and he looked up at her. A moment later, he was gone.
It wasn’t until Bastian came in to report the invasion that he found me on the floor. They administered medicine to help reduce the effects, but I was still too weak to fight. We had been betrayed, and now they were going to destroy our pack.
I did what any good leader should do. I sent out a messenger to tell them that I would bear the responsibility and comply with whatever they needed in return so that no harm would come to my pack members. I couldn’t fight and I could barely stand.
With a heavy heart, I prayed that the Lycan King would be open to hearing my explanation, but rumors swirled that he was not a man of reason. The cold, hard weight of the silver chain around my neck served as proof of his cruel nature. Despite my innocence, I became a symbol of subjugation. A silver collar made of cold metal links that burned the skin, adorned with a leash that clearly marked me as submissive to his authority. It is a humiliating position to be in, stripped of any sense of control.
I glanced back out over the pack that was lined up to witness my judgment. I could see their sorrow, and some tear-filled eyes. By now, most of them knew of their Alpha’s betrayal and that I was taking the fall to protect them. I didn’t know what would happen. None of us did. Would he order me to be killed without allowing me to speak? Would I be sentenced to work in the underground mines?
“You! Get in line, away from the prisoner!” a large lycan guard yelled, who was adorned in a gold breastplate, showing he was a royal officer. He was yelling at Bastian, who was staying protectively near my side.
“Go, Bastian. Take care of our pack. With the alpha gone and ... no heir ...” I took in a shaky breath as I thought about the painful loss of my pup. “You will need to lead our pack. Don’t let me down.” I gave him a forced smile that didn’t reach my eyes.
Bastian's eyes were filled with a mix of determination and sadness as he reluctantly moved away from my side, joining the rest of our pack in the line. His loyalty was unwavering, and I knew he would do his best to lead them in my absence.
I stood there, head held high, despite the weight of the silver collar pressing down on me; I braced myself for the arrival of the Lycan King. I felt his presence before I saw him. A commanding aura pressed against my weakened body, but I refused to fall. With every ounce of strength I had left, I kept myself upright and chin up. I had done nothing wrong.
The warm, sweet fragrance of cinnamon wafers wafted through the air, awakening my lycan inside. My senses sparked as I recognized the scent of my mate. My heart raced as I frantically searched among the royal guards, trying to pinpoint the source. The tantalizing aroma grew stronger. It was a scent I had never encountered before, but it felt strangely familiar. Almost like my soul knew it.
Then, my eyes landed on the source, his green eyes locking onto mine as he walked directly toward me. His face was taut, and there was an unforgiving look in his eyes. His lips curled up angrily as my lips parted slightly in shock. Oh no, the Lycan King was my mate, and he did not look happy.
I could hear him growling as his eyes glazed over. Two men stood in front of him, one of them shot me a quick side glance. The other was the guy who had yelled at Bastian. From the look of it, they were the beta and gamma, but I had no idea who was who. The Lycan King let out another ferocious roar, but I felt no fear of him. It was almost terrifying how arousing this display was to me, even in my current vulnerable state. And what was even more mortifying, was that he seemed to notice my physical response. I watched as he took small breaths in the air, as if savoring my scent before his dark eyes turned towards me. “Pwease don’t hurt our Wuna she didn’t do anyting!” A small child sobbed from within the pack. I looked up to see the mother trying to console and quiet her child. It warmed my heart, but I didn’t want them to suffer any repercussions from it. I watched as the king turned to look at the child, and for a moment, I swear his face softened. But it was only for a second,
Darren When I first arrived at the Stone Heart Pack, I was furious that the alpha had escaped. They told me his luna had stayed behind to take responsibility for him. What kind of a luna would defend a man like that? I was so angry. But then as I walked down the path and looked at the pack members, I smelled an intoxicating butterscotch scent. It was heaven. I became anxious as I tried to find the source of the scent, and then my eyes landed on the most beautiful blue eyes I had ever seen. She had caramel colored hair that matched her butterscotch scent to perfection. I then noticed the chain around her neck and lost it. I yelled at my Beta Lyle and my Gamma Tim and demanded to know who put the control collar on her. How dare they put that collar on my mate! But they argued with me that it was for safety. We didn’t know anything about her, and her pupils were dilated. She could have a potion in her, making me feel the mate bond. I roared in agitation, knowing they could be right. B
Allissa I could feel the tingles against my skin and slowly opened my eyes. I stared up at the knotty pine ceiling as I tried to remember what had happened. Slowly, it came back to me, and the tiny tingles on my face made me remember about my mate. I turned my head slightly, to the green eyes of the Lycan King, whose thumb was softly caressing my cheek. “You should be feeling better, but let me know if you aren’t and I will call my healers back.” His voice was calm, gentle, and soothing. It wasn’t what I was expecting. “I’m sorry,” I muttered and moved to sit up. His arm caught mine as he slowly guided me to a sitting position. “You don’t have anything to say sorry for.” “For becoming a burden.” I looked down at my hands, because I was practically eye fucking him. I could see just how defined his strong, muscular arms were, and how I could imagine him carrying me in them. Damn, it sucked that I fainted during the best part. Maybe I should fake it so I can relish being in his arms
I didn’t know I could feel this way. I never knew my body was capable of responding like this. It would have been embarrassing even if I wasn’t in such an animalistic frenzy. My hands were roaming all over him, and I couldn’t get enough. His tongue was attacking mine, and it wasn’t enough. I wanted more, and I could tell he did as well. Finally, he lifted away from me, panting, but his eyes looked angry. I listened to his growl and then he snapped his head toward the door.“Get the fuck out of here, Lyle!”“Yeah, I can’t do that.” Lyle chuckled and I watched as Darren lifted himself completely off of me to turn and glare at him.“You alright there, angel?” Lyle asked me. I could feel the heat radiating off my face as I nodded. I sat up, not making eye contact with either of the men. I could hear Darren’s low growl and it seemed they were mentally communicating. I didn’t know what was going on, but I felt like it had something to do with me.As their mental argument continued, I felt th
This is what happens when you allow yourself to be consumed by the mate bond too early. It immediately made him think that I was easy, when it had nothing to do with that. The tingles and the pull were everything I had ever craved. I allowed myself to be swept away because I thought it was alright, since he was my fated mate. Apparently this put the label on me that I was afraid of.“Darren!” I heard Lyle snap. I noticed the way his eyes were looking at me with concern. Was he worrying for my safety? “He didn’t mean that,” he whispered. I glanced at him and noticed the pain in his eyes. That look was for me. I guess my poker face wasn’t on today.“I’m sorry,” Darren said, and went to reach for me. I jerked back and glared at him.“I wouldn’t want you to think I’m easy. After all, I must have a relationship with all the men in the pack, right? That’s why I’m protective of them. It has nothing to do with being their leader.” I clicked my tongue and turned away. I looked back at Bastian,
I gripped the different pieces of yarn and held them up to my nose. I felt my eyes begin to well and, as stupid as this sounds, it felt like losing them all over again. My father, who vanished while leading my old pack, had taken them to investigate strangers who had crossed into our borders and never returned. After that, the pack disintegrated. They fled in fear, leaving mother and I alone. We had to move around often after that. She gave everything to make sure that I never went hungry. It was as if they were ripped from me all over again. I know they were just stuffed animals, but to me they were so much more. They were precious gifts my mother made for me. My parents’ scents sewn inside. They were all that I had left.I felt the lump form in my throat as my nose and eyes burned from the threat of tears.“Allissa, I am so sorry.” I felt Lyle’s presence as he kneeled down next to me. I didn’t know what to do now. I just stared at the sh
As soon as we stepped outside, I felt Darren change. He walked straighter, his powerful aura rising to make everyone aware of his presence. I saw Lyle and Tim barking orders in front of us as big vehicles began to pull up. I was being corralled gently by Darren’s hand, but I stopped abruptly, glancing over at my pack. They were all standing there watching from a distance. They looked apprehensive and a bit lost. It was painful to see them like this. Bastian was standing slightly in front of them, trying to put on a brave face.“What’s wrong?” Darren asked as he followed my gaze.“They’re worried.”“They’ll be taken care of. I have top advisors staying behind and someone to help the new alpha learn his role.” He didn’t seem concerned at all. As if packs lost their leaders all the time and they were fine. I know for a fact this wasn’t true. My pack fell apart without my father, even though my mother was still there. Without strong leadership, the pack can become unsettled. It can cause c
“I need you safe,” Darren said softly.“Safe. What does that word even mean?” I looked away from him and down at my hands. “My dad wanted my mom safe. He left to investigate trespassers and told my mom to stay and look after the pack and me. None of them returned. The pack fell … crumbled and fled in fear. They left us alone. We waited and kept searching, but it was as if they vanished. Not even their scent remained. There was no sign of them. My mother fell apart while trying her best to take care of me. She aged years in a matter of months. It took its toll on her, and a couple years ago, her body gave up. She was so sick.” I balled my hands into fists. “We didn’t have anything. I had no way to take care of her.” I closed my eyes. “We wandered from pack to pack looking for help. That’s when I met Alpha Alfred, and he offered to pay for the care to keep my mother comfortable if I agreed to be his mate.”“Besides you being beautiful, why would he want you as a mate just like that?” Lyl
I stared at the desk, looking at the blizzard of papers that needed my attention. The past week had been a blur of ‘Your Majesty’ and ‘My Queen’ and ‘These require your attention.’ Demanding and exhausting.“Your Majesty.” Damnit, here comes another one. I look up from the evil papers to the messenger coming in. “These require your review and royal seal.”“Thank you.” Those were the flat tones words that came out of my mouth, but my mind was saying, ‘Fuck you.’Lyle walked in just as the messenger left, carrying two cups of steaming goodness. Hot chocolate!“I have our fuel. Let’s dive into the sea of paperwork before we drown in it.” He smirked, setting my cup in front of me before he pulled up a chair.I scooted over, making room for him. “Where do we start?” I asked, motioning over the stack of papers.“We start at the top and work our way through to the bottom.” He made a spot in front of us. “I’ll read and you stamp? Or do you want to read and I’ll stamp?”“You read. I’ll stamp.”
“The watch is hot, but it was cold when it was first given to me. The heat from the watch is a type of energy, but what does it mean?!” Fury was trying to help me. She was giving me tiny hints the best way she could. I needed to think about everything she had told me. Every word could be a tip.“Gujin is a messenger. Was that his way of telling you the watch is a message?”It made sense. Maybe even Gujin was trying to leave me a clue. I guess neither one was able to tell me anything, which was frustrating, especially when they may have been involved. That would mean that Gujin knew what happened to my father. I know I’m meant to figure it out on my own, because it seems like this is the type of game the gods enjoy.“You know what? One mystery at a time.” I sighed and brushed my hair behind my ear. “So the guards have found some evidence of brainwashing?”“Evidence of ... manipulation. Mind games. Enough that it has convinced my father. He’s with mom now. He decided to talk with her an
AllissaI thought that becoming the queen would make me feel different. But I was still just me. Lyle followed me everywhere and was always helping me. There were a lot of boring things I had to read and sign. I wonder how Darren managed to stay awake. I honestly felt myself dozing several times. Luckily for me, I could blame the pregnancy.“Issy, look, this just arrived from Darren!” Lyle ran to me with childlike excitement.My fingers moved so fast as I dove into the letter. It had been days since I’d heard from him. I felt my eyes watering up. His words reflected exactly how I felt. I wish I could see him … I wish I could hold him. I wonder if he knew I was the queen now? At least I knew he was okay, but it did little to heal the aching pain in my chest.“He’s okay.” I smiled, glancing up at Lyle’s relieved eyes. “Sounds like the battles have been steady. I’ve been so worried—” The tears welled up in my eyes as I held his letter to my chest. I had barely been hanging on. My mate was
DarrenI dragged another fallen enemy across the blood-soaked earth, my body screaming in protest.“Another one,” I grunted to myself, tossing the limp form atop the pile with a dull thud. I wiped the sweat from my brow as I looked over the battlefield. It had been a non-stop onslaught for days. I haven’t even had time to send a message to Ally. I can imagine her blue eyes as she sits in our bedroom. She was probably worried and each day without contact would make it worse. I have been fighting to the brink of exhaustion. Collapsing for an hour or two of sleep and then right back at it.There were so many vampires … many were new. When they took over these towns, those who lived there either became food or new vampires. They were building their army. If that wasn’t enough, the demons who have joined them were also well prepared.I was barely able to catch my breath and another battle would arrive. I surveyed the chaos around me, that had become a frequent sight. In all honesty, we nee
I had no clue who or what I was looking at. A small, delicate person? Or something more like a fairy? The figure was small, no taller than a child, but it radiated an otherworldly power that made the hairs on the back of my neck stand on end. Delicate, translucent wings fluttered behind her, her skin as white as ivory. She wore a white, shimmering gown that flowed around her. Her face was impossibly beautiful, with high cheekbones and almond-shaped eyes that seemed to glow with an inner fire. But it was her expression that truly captivated me. A fierce determination and cold detachment that sent a shiver down my spine.The way she was staring at me almost looked aggressive, which made me defensive.“Who are you? What do you want with me?” I demanded, injecting as much authority into my voice as I could muster.“I haven’t decided yet.” Her voice was cold as her eyes fixated on mine.“You haven’t decided who you are, or you haven’t decided what you want with me? I asked you two questions
“Is this really necessary?” I pouted as I felt the heavy robe draped over my shoulders. It was not only heavy, but I felt like I was in a sauna.“It’s traditional. All of the crowned royals wore this robe.” Lyle’s blue eyes sparkled in amusement as I grumbled. “The weight represents the burden of leadership. Besides, you look rather fetching in it. Like a true queen.”“A sweaty, irritable queen,” I muttered, but then a realization came over me. “It’s never been washed … has it?”Lyle boomed out a loud laugh. “No, it’s not washed. It’s only worn for a few hours for the ceremony, and—”“I’m caked in a stranger’s sweat.”“Darren wore it last.” Lyle smirked at me.“It doesn’t have his scent.” I sighed, staring at the mirror. There was still no message from Darren. He knew I would be worried, and I knew he would reach out to me as soon as he could. I knew he was alive, but that was the extent of it. How bad were things for them right now? “It feels weird to be doing this without him here.”
My first night away from Darren was torture. I tossed and turned,missing his warmth next to me. I was so dependent on him. Every day away from him was going to be hard. I knew that, but I guess I wasn’t fully prepared for the loneliness. I was missing a piece of me, and I couldn’t be whole without him.Lyle stayed with me until the early morning hours, trying to keep my mind off Darren. He put on movies and told me stories. But as soon as he left, Darren was all I could think about. How was the battle? Was he resting? Did he get hurt? So many questions, and there was no way to get answers. I had to wait for him to contact me.I looked at myself in the mirror as I finished applying my lip gloss. Today, I was going to be crowned queen. I didn’t look like a queen … I didn’t feel like a queen. I was just me. I wonder if all leaders felt like this?“This is as good as I get,” I said to myself with a shrug, looking at my reflection. I opened the door to my bedroom and there was Lyle, leaning
I was surprised as we walked through the tower. The place was beautiful. It was well decorated and had every luxury. I mean … lock me up with Darren in here and I could stay forever. The punishment of being here was two things: shame and freedom. Other than that, Winifred could easily live a comfortable life here. And maybe that was an option. But if she had been brainwashed, then there was a chance to reunite their family.As we entered the grand room, my eyes landed on a group of maids meticulously cleaning every nook and cranny. The sunlight peeking through the windows was dimmed by the richly colored tapestries that adorned them, casting an eerie glow over the space. The only source of light came from the flickering flames of the fireplace, where Milo sat in a lush red armchair, his gaze fixated on the dancing embers.“Dad, have you eaten anything?” Lyle asked as he approached him. Milo didn’t respond and simply kept staring at the orange glow.I grabbed a chair and pulled it up be
“It’s my father. He’s depressed, and I don’t know what to do. He isn’t eating. Issy. He is taking this thing with mom so hard. I’ve never seen him like this.” I could see the pain in Lyle’s eyes. He also looked tired. I was sure it had been a heavy burden on him, running the kingdom in a time of war.“I’m here to help. I’m not going anywhere. As you can see, the little pup is growing quickly. I think I’m a bit farther along. This happened before I went into heat, even though Darren used precaution. Unless, because we are both powerful lycans, things have sped up?”“All lycan pregnancies are different, but royal pregnancies have always been unpredictable. And you are the true royal … I’m guessing that has a lot to do with this.” I listened as he sighed. “How is Darren?”“Getting ready to head into Catata as we speak.” I pursed my lips together. “I want to be by his side.”“I do, too,” Lyle admitted. “I’m glad you’re here. I can use your help. There is also one more thing … and I hate t