“Kas? Can you hear me?” I take her hands and squeeze them. “It’s Beta Lenora.”She peeks out from the green and gray quilt, but her purple eyes aren’t vibrant like they were before the Silver Moon doctor sedated her. There is a dullness there. It reminds me of Milo when he first came home from the war. She hasn’t spoken a word yet. Her eyes dart around the room at all unfamiliar faces. I can hear her heartbeat growing faster.“She may be in shock, Lu…uh, Beta.” Doctor Nolan stands behind me. “Let’s ease into this with a few basic questions about her medical history.”“Kas, this is Doctor Nolan. He’s our pack doctor.” I sit on a chair in front of her. “He just wants to ask you some questions. Is that okay?”A drawer shutting practically makes her jump out of her skin. The lights in the room flicker the way they did in the dungeon, but they don’t break. The nurses gasp and duck at the unnerving phenomenon.“You’re certain she isn’t a hybrid?” Doctor Nolan watches the lights overhead.“
“Here.” I hand Bronx the green and gray quilt.“What is this?” He takes it with a confused look.“The quilt we brought Kas home in. I had housekeeping wash it.” I’m not sure what to do with my hands, so I put them in my pockets. Why do I feel so self conscious? “Now that it’s clean, I figured we could let her sleep with it. You know? I… I mean, everything is so different here for her. Maybe when she’s awake, she’ll say she doesn’t want it, but she literally has nothing else. She brought nothing with her. Imagine not having anything, Bronx. No good memories to look back on. Nothing to go back to. That blanket is all she has left.”Bronx holds the blanket to his chest and gives me a complicated look.“Um, sorry. Maybe it’s a bad idea. I’ll just have facilities put it in storage. If… If she asks for it, I’ll have them get it.”“I think it’s a great idea. It just reminded me-”His voice trails off. I wait to see if he’ll pick up again, but he looks lost for words.“Reminds you of what?”
“Kas? Are you okay?” I lay flat on the floor and look under the bed.Her fear washes over me. It’s potent. I hadn’t been so used to controlling my own emotions for so long it could overtake me. I take a controlled breath and let Justice use her wolf vision to look under the bed. Kas’s eyes are glowing purple so brightly in the small space that the glow practically encompasses her body. I still don’t understand how she isn’t a hybrid, but it doesn’t matter now.“I won’t let him kill me.” Her little growl would be menacing if it wasn’t so damn adorable.“No one is trying to kill you, Kas. Look, I have a couple of guys here who are friends of mine. They are pack warriors and I asked them to help me. They’re going to lift the bed up so we can get you out from under there.” I speak in a calm, controlled tone. “When you’re out, I’ll kick them out of here. There’s a nurse here too. She’s going to make sure you’re not hurt and then we’ll get you back in bed… instead of under it. I’ll stay wit
Milo’s POVLeni never needs to ask twice. As soon as she walks in the door, I’m waiting for her. I close the door behind her and pull her down to the carpet, rolling on top of her. She wraps her arms around my waist, pulling my shorts down, then lets her razor-sharp claws graze over my back. I fight the shiver when I feel the trickles of blood on my skin before Ghost quickly heals me.It took a while for Leni and I to figure out how intense we want to get when we’re messing around. It changes from day to day, but I’ve learned to take her lead. She always tells me what she wants.“That was more than two minutes.” I lean forward, caging her below me, and tug on her ear with my teeth.She giggles with a happy hum when I nip a little harder. I apply pressure until I hear that little gasp that drives Ghost wild before I let her earlobe slide out of my mouth. He moves forward in my mind, happy that she’s up for his kind of good time.“Sorry, Babe. I had to speak to the nurses on duty. That
Lenora’s POVThe sun rising shines bright in my eyes, forcing me awake with a groan. I’m sore between my legs and my back aches from being twisted into uncomfortable positions, but I don’t care. Some sleepless nights are worth it. Milo’s leg is heavy on my waist. It makes having to pee worse. I carefully slide it off without waking him and tiptoe to the bathroom. Even after all these years, it’s not a good idea to wake Milo up suddenly. He doesn’t freak out like he used to, it just leaves him unsettled for most of the day. He’s able to hide it from people pretty well, but I see it and I hate seeing him like that.I think about Ghost’s reaction to Kas’s scent while I freshen up. He’s never used a tone like that with me. Why did he get so mad so quickly?“You should ask, child.” Justice yawns, slowly waking up. “Why are you awake? Aren’t you exhausted?”“Yeah, I’m tired. The sun was trying to burn a hole in my face.” Her yawn makes me yawn. “I’ll go back to bed when I’m done here. Do y
The look of awe on Kas’s face when we get inside the mall is priceless. Ashley nudges me and nods her head for me to watch her. Her moves are a bit like a scared rabbit. She holds her hands near her chest and leans close to clothing racks as if she sees things she likes, but doesn’t touch anything. We were hoping she would point out some things she liked so we could get an idea of her style, but she only seems overwhelmed at how much is going on with the hustle and bustle of back to school shoppers.“Dark cloaks.” Justice watches Kas with curiosity.“Dark cloaks?” I turn inward while Ashley points out a pair of ballet flats to Kas.“That’s all I’ve ever known her spirit to wear. Dark cloaks.”“Okay, well, I’m pretty sure the dark cloak store went out of business like… two hundred years ago.” I roll my eyes at her. “You said you want things to be different for her spirit now. So, let’s help her instead of pigeonholing her into how she’s always been.”“You’re right.” Justice concedes. “
I hit the ground hard letting my claws dig into Ryan’s arm. He uses his weight to roll himself on top of me, pinning me to the ground. He raises an arm to punch, which gives me space to jam my blade into his ribs. I hear the crack of the bones giving way, but his punch connects with my jaw, anyway. I let go of his arm and chop his throat with a quick strike to slow his momentum. He grunts and falls to the side in pain. Hot metallic blood fills my mouth. My two front teeth instantly ache from being knocked loose. Oh, this son of a BITCH! He’s done for.“Lenora, he’s an Alpha wolf.” Justice pushes forward. “Don’t underestimate him!”“A little late for the reminder, Justice!” I twist my legs around his, to stop him from chasing Kas and Ashly who are running away. He elbows me in the sternum, but I stab him in the biceps before he’s able to pull his arm away. Blood flows openly onto the floor and our clothes. Onlookers squeal and run away from the altercation. Others pull their phones o
“Okay, I enlisted a couple of Omegas and we rearranged Bronx’s closet.” Ashley comes to Milo’s office. “How are things going here?”“Randall has a legitimate alibi. I can’t speak for Graham or Caroline Connors because no one has seen them since the Council banished them, but what if Randall is still buddy buddy with Ryan? If he has been near Ryan lately, it could be why Lenora caught his scent.” Milo sits back in his chair and laces his fingers on top of his head. “The kid could be Randall’s connection to the parents. If that’s the case, he could have given Ryan immunity with his pack or he’s letting him stay in Silver Moon while he’s trying to find a new Alpha. No one would know any different.”“Wait, why would he do that?” Ashley sits next to Reggie.“If Randall was that deep in business with them, it could be several things. Connors could blackmail him, although he doesn’t seem smart enough for that. So, maybe their relationship was close enough that Randall just wants to do them a