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051 | WINTER
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2024-10-29 19:42:56Related chapters
Alpha Ares 052 | THE HAND THAT REACHES
“Max,” I hissed, grabbing his wrist and yanking him into step beside me. I pointed with my other hand, proud to see that my finger did not tremble.“Shit,” he breathed. “Okay. Oh–”“Hello?” I called, cutting him off. “Can you hear us?”The fingers twitched, but there was no change.“They can’t be alive, Haile. That snow… It could have been on top of them for hours.”I ignored him. “Click your fingers if you can hear us.”Slowly, shaking violently, the fingers clicked.Max’s eyes went wide. “Okay. Okay. Okay.”“It will be,” I said, dropping his wrist, “if we get them out of there. Come on.”I grabbed the hand sticking out of the snow. It was frozen, and the fingers were stiff as I bent them around my palm. Max shifted into his roan wolf form and started to dig, flinging sheets of ice and compacted snow up into the grey sky. I tightened my hold on the frozen hand, willing my fragile warmth to pool into their skin. “We’ll get you out,” I said, with more confidence than I felt. “You’ll b
Alpha Ares 053 | THE FIRST WARRIOR WOLF
“Me?” I arched an eyebrow at her, forcing my face to remain otherwise cool and expressionless. Her bared teeth were making me uneasy, but I held her cold stare nonetheless. I would bow to no-one – least of all a woman who would be dead if not for me.She sat up straighter, a grunt of effort straining from her throat. The grimace on her lips faded, her mouth drooping down slowly as she searched my eyes for – something. I narrowed them back at her, and a tiny, hardened part of me wondered if I should’ve left her in the snow.Things had been okay. For months, I’d had only to deal with the problems that Winterpaw had always faced. There had been no attacks, no murderous plots, no nothing. I had the horrible feeling that that was all about to change with whatever came out of her mouth next.She pushed back thin, blonde hair that had stuck to the sides of her pallid face. “Yes. I am here for you.”“How convenient,” drawled Ares. I could feel the tension radiating from his frame from where I
Alpha Ares 054 | BLIZZARD
“It’s too dangerous, Haile. You can’t go.”“I have to, Ares. It’s my pack. My family.” I ran my hands through my hair, helpless in the face of what Aliana had told us. I leant hard against the windowsill, digging my palms into the cold rock and focusing on the dull spike of pain the rough surface caused. Outside, the blizzard was so thick I could barely see the mountains beyond. Six Warrior Wolves. Six.And I only knew the identity of one of them.“If the cold doesn’t kill you, then one of Greyhide’s wolves will.”“They can’t be out there. Not in this snow storm.”“They’re used to the harsh winters here. You aren’t.” His tone left no room for argument. He sighed as he crossed the room, winding his arms around my waist and pressing a soft kiss to my temple. “You know I would go with you if it were possible. But to make the journey to Blue Moon now… It’s suicide.”My throat worked on a swallow. And then, slowly, I nodded. I didn’t like it, but Ares was telling the truth. But… “But wha
Alpha Ares 055 | HAILE AND ARES
“No,” Ares said flatly. He crossed his arms over his chest, and I was sure he did it just to distract me with his muscles. It wouldn’t work this time, though.“But why not?” I jutted my chin out, aware that I looked – and sounded – like a child, but unable to stop the petulance wheedling into my tone. “It makes sense, Ares.” I fixed my gaze on the fireplace behind him, letting the embers of it fuel my own fire.“Do you have no sense of self preservation?” He laughed, but it was cold and unamused. “Aliana has literally said that Greyhide Canyon are out to kill you. Whether we can trust her or not, that is too much of a risk to take. So no, Haile – you can’t run home to Blue Moon and gather up an army.”I huffed, annoyed at being spoken down to. “I understand the risk.”“I can’t lose you!” he roared, crowding into my space, but his touch was gentle, so gentle, as he cupped my cheeks with his large, warm hands. His bottom lip quivered and his chin dimpled, and he swallowed hard before sp
Alpha Ares 056 | A PIT OF VIPERS
“Are you sure about this?” I asked, picking at a flap of skin beneath my cuticle. Ares stood in the doorway, his figure shadowed by the darkness of the cavernous hallway beyond.The arrangements had been made. Ares was to go to the Greyhide Canyon Pack to discuss their alliance – alone. He nodded tightly, a muscle feathering in his temple. “I am. You know why you can’t come, don’t you?”I rolled my eyes at him and crossed my arms. The bulk of my multiple jumpers made it less sassy than I would have liked. “Because you can’t take me if you want their Alpha to believe you’re working on a way to break the truce,” I said, my voice flat as I repeated his words verbatim. “But, in truth,” I added, arching an eyebrow at him, “it’s because you don’t want me to risk going out in the snow. Even though the storm stopped over a week ago.”He shrugged, a small smirk pushing at his lips. “Yeah, you’re right on both counts.” Then he sighed, the air puffing out of him. “I don’t want to go without you
Alpha Ares 057 | MOUNTAINTOP
It was hard to keep my voice from shaking as I asked, “How are you, Nazte?”He smiled, and the slow stretch of the skin around his mouth made me shudder. I stepped inside, and every inch of me ached to step right back out again. There was nothing wrong with his room – in fact, it looked almost identical to Ares’s room, with its distant window, gnarled wooden dining table, and its crooked double bed – though its sheets were neat, primly tucked and pristine, whereas Ares’s were rumpled more often than not. Maybe that was it – the neatness of the space was putting me on edge. Even though I now knew he shared this room with Cendres, who was one of the messiest people I’d ever met, everything was organised. Yeah, that was what it was. It absolutely had nothing to do with the six-foot-four man stood in front of me, his bright blue eyes gleaming in the pale light of the cavernous room, his smile set in such a way that it looked forced. I tensed my muscles, holding back a shudder.Nazte bru
Alpha Ares 058 | AS IT WAS
I knew what he meant. I knew, and yet I still asked, “What do you mean?” Because I didn’t want to believe it. I’d started to hope that Nazte and I could one day be friends. If I believed this, if I let it sink in, then that hope was not merely gone – it was dead, ripped to shreds by the conniving Beta wolf wearing the same smirk he had when we’d first met. When he’d first tried to kill me.I refused to shudder. I refused to look weak. I refused to do anything but eye him warily, holding my ground, holding his gaze. His smirk became a lolling, wolfish grin. “You aren’t stupid, Haile. I’ve seen you play at it – pretending to be lost, pretending not to understand. But then you say things that no idiot ever could. No Young Luna is dense, and you certainly aren’t. You know what I mean; do not belittle yourself by pretending otherwise.”Ouch. I jutted out my chin, determined not to let him fell me. “What do you want with me?” I asked instead. He huffed out a humourless laugh, his upper
Alpha Ares 059 | GRAVEL AND HONEY
Blind panic consumed me. I barely felt the bite of the cold as I ran, my body nothing more than muscle and sinew and tendon, each working with the next as I coiled and sprung, coiled and sprung, slipped and skidded across the Winterpaw Warrior Pack’s frozen territory.My wounds closed up as I ran, but there was a rush of dizziness from the blood loss that slowed my pace every few hundred yards or so. I did not dare look back for fear that Nazte would be at my tail, his teeth gleaming with my blood.There was one thought, one name, at the heart of my pounding blood and straining muscles. Thinking it made the panic flare brighter, so I tried to think of nothing as I ran. I pictured him instead, the wolf I had first seen in my dream, all those long months ago. Black, with a white crescent on his forehead. The smell of cedar and woodsmoke, earthy and warm amidst the barren landscape of snow and ice and rock. His voice – that low, warm growl, the one that made my insides heat and squirm. G
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Alpha Ares 141 | EPILOGUE
One year later I smoothed my hands down over my thick cloak. Nerves swarmed in my belly: not the dizzying kind that made me feel faint, but the sort that cast a hazy glow over everything as I walked along the winding woodland pathway. Torches flickered every few feet; orange roses of light bloomed across the mossy, dew-damp earth beneath my boots. “Nervous?” asked Dad. “A little.” I worried my bottom lip between my teeth. “It’s silly, I know. There’s nothing to be nervous about. I’ve been his Luna for the last year – longer, really – but this feels…” I trailed off, unsure how to word exactly how it felt. Official? Real? “It’s been such a long time coming, sweetheart.” “Yeah. Part of me wishes we’d done this straight after the battle, but it made sense to wait until the pack was remade.” Unable to help myself, a grin pushed hard at my cheeks. Everything looked beautiful today, I thought, the pine trees bottle-green beneath the golden setting sun. Everything was glazed with the
Alpha Ares 140 | COME TOGETHER
As everyone took their seats, Ares and I remained standing. I clutched at his hand: it was a physical reminder to everyone there that we were joined, that Winterpaw Warrior and Blue Moon were enemies no longer.I glanced at Ares, letting him take the lead. He swallowed, straightened his shoulders, and then smiled hesitantly around at everyone. The expression looked strange, uncertain, and it took me a moment to realise why. Ares never smiled at people when he addressed them. He led through fear and control. Not anymore, it seemed. My heart swelled.“Thank you all for coming,” he said, projecting his voice clearly and confidently across the room. “Luna Sienna and Alpha Rodriguez, of the Firepaw Pack.” He inclined his head at the dark-skinned woman my dad had been talking to before, and the bald-headed, well-muscled man sat beside her. They were both older than us by about fifteen years.The Alpha and Luna of the Storm Guardian Pack were older still, well into their fifties, their face
Alpha Ares 139 | KNIGHTS OF THE ROUND TABLE
Ares had given Dad the nicest of the Warrior Wolves’ cabins to stay in. When we arrived, Ares’s arm still latched securely around my waist as it had been every single step of the way, I saw two other familiar faces peering out at us through the window, their creased faces crinkling with smiles so wide I half feared their tissue paper skin might tear.The wind whipped between the cabins, making my eyes and cheeks sting. Dawn had long since settled across the horizon, pale pink fading into the usual white-grey cloud cover. Everything looked strange out here, unreal in a way I couldn’t quite process. I clutched at Ares, suddenly apprehensive as dad moved to let us in.My nerves dissolved as soon as set foot inside. We were both pulled into an embrace on all sides, many arms winding around us and holding us close.“You did it,” Nana Baspy whispered.I scoffed and, after another long moment, I pulled away. “I don’t think I can take any of the credit, Nana. I wasn’t even conscious for half
Alpha Ares 138 | SURRENDER AND SACRIFICE
The world shattered. For a time, it was nothing more than a series of fragmented images and distant, distorted sounds. I heard screaming, felt the tell-tale burning in my throat, but I couldn’t connect the noise to me. I was weightless, without a body, and then there was nothing but silent darkness.Words I couldn’t understand split apart the quiet. “It’s the other packs,” someone said excitedly. I recognised the voice, familiar enough but not someone I was close to. A hazy, half-formed image of a missing hand and foot beneath determined eyes and wispy blonde hair floated just out of reach, and I gave up trying to identify the mystery voice as they spoke. “Firepaw and Storm Guardian. They made it just in time. We did it! We survived.”No, we didn’t, I thought bitterly. Not all of us.“It’s not over yet.” That growl, gravel and honey – that was Ares. Something in me settled. But why had he shifted into his human body? That thought, along with all my others, drifted away, becoming nothi
Alpha Ares 137 | BATTLE OF THE MOUNTAIN
We were all so focused on Aliana that none of us heard the quiet tap-tap-tap of claws pacing the stone hallways of the Pack House behind us.And then Scillian smiled. Behind him, the Sable Stalker Alpha and Luna smirked, too, a cruel hook of their lips that made my blood boil; off to the side slightly, Bloodpelt Prowler’s Alpha grinned toothily. They were all so smug, so sure of themselves. So sure that they’d won.“What is this?” Dad asked flatly.“Oh, this?” Scillian brightened impossibly further as he gestured to Aliana. “A game.”“You wouldn’t hurt your own daughter.” Dad sounded less convinced about that than he had a minute ago. “Let her go, and let the battle recommence.”“My daughter is a traitor. And, worse than that: she was running from a fight.” Scillian scoffed. I watched his face closely as he walked, every stride slow and purposeful, towards Aliana. He caressed her cheek, but I looked beyond that. I searched out his eyes through the snowfall, and I found only adoration
Alpha Ares 136 | THE END OF US
I knew, deep down, that this was my last hurrah. I knew, deep down, that if it were not, I would’ve let the pain and the shock hold me back from fighting one last time. My body was weak, but I would not succumb to its needs. This was no ordinary battle, and I had never been one to give up.I felt the pain and let it make me stronger. Adrenaline surged through my veins. I would fight by my mate’s side, and I would try to make it mean something. That was all I could do, now.We neared the Pack House. The tension surrounding it was thick with foreboding; the stillness of the battlefield was somehow worse than when the air had been metallic with spilled blood and the snow melting from the heat of the felled bodies upon it. Now, fresh snow dusted the blood soaked fur of the dead, masking the worst of the atrocities that had been marked upon the land in stark pools of red.Everything was calm. Everything was quiet. Some dark premonition made the back of my neck crawl with the sense that, at
Alpha Ares 135 | BE AMONGST THE STARS
I was numb, inside and out, as I watched. My mind struggled to break free of the overwhelming melancholy, the agony so strong that the only way I could deal with it was to feel nothing at all.The cold helped. A bitter wind whipped between the boulders, sending snowflakes into a flurry. They turned my vision blurry: everything was black and white and grey again, as it had been in the time before Ares. Everything, that was, except for the blood.And there was so much blood.It was start against the pale backdrop of the mist and snow. A physical mark of violence, marring the purity of the white beneath. And, atop its own puddle of red, sat my ear. I shuddered every time my gaze drifted over it; it was the sort of thing I didn’t want to look at but also couldn’t look away from. It was grotesque, torn at a ragged angle, the flesh pink within – My lip curled. It looked so alien to me now, that missing piece of me. I couldn’t imagine how I looked, bloodied and battered, one ear gone. A sn
Alpha Ares 134 | HAUNTED
Claws ripped into me on both sides. I flung Elena off easily enough; she was so small that, even exhausted as I was from hours of adrenaline-fuelled fighting, it didn’t take much effort on my part to dislodge her. Distantly, I heard her pull herself to her paws again. But in this fight, both physically and in the heart of it, she didn’t matter. This was between Etta and I.I winced as Etta’s claws ripped free of my fur and flesh. Blood spat from the wound, hitting the snow and melting the ice surrounding it. I wrenched myself backwards, darting behind the nearest boulder and peering out around it. ‘Why are you doing this?’ I asked – no, I begged.‘I promised myself.’ Her mental voice was nothing like the one I remembered. Etta was often sarcastic and teasing, but there had been a warmth beneath even her cruellest of jokes that had dissipated after Damon’s death. ‘After you left, and after the attacks began. I had to do something for him.’‘Damon and I were friends.’ I edged backwards
Alpha Ares 133 | ON THE WINGS OF FATE
I’d made my choice when Ares mindlinked me. He sounded weak and weary, but very much alive. My heart leapt at the familiar sound of his voice, of gravel and honey, loosening the knot that had been pulling my chest taut ever since the battle had begun.‘I had to run, beautiful. There were too many of them, but I managed to get away.’That was all I needed to hear. I turned and shifted into my wolf form, preparing to race across the empty stretch of battlefield that had been left behind the attacking armies as they approached.‘Are you okay?’ I asked. There was one other thing I needed to hear, it turned out.‘I’m fine.’ I was pretty sure he was lying, but if he was well enough to lie then I didn’t have to worry about my mate too much. ‘Are you? What happened with Nazte?’‘Nothing. It was weird.’ I fell forwards, landing on paws and snapping my jaws. ‘He wanted to know how Cendres was. We just… Talked.’The cabin’s front door banged open behind me. I twisted around, catching sight of Na
