AIDENOakley was dubious, but much to my dismay, I had no choice but to listen to him.I wanted nothing more than to abandon him and continue on this mission alone, but unfortunately, he knew more about this place than I did, and I genuinely needed his help if I was going to help the Caddels and the miners.The guard provided useful information, and led me through the castle, detailing its weak points, the number of guards at each post, which ones were the most challenging to deal with, and so on. His intel was insightful, but I couldn’t yet relax around him. I still didn’t quite understand his role in the matter or why he would help the miners when he himself was a guard.Still, he had brought me to see the Caddels, which was more than I’d expected from him. I couldn’t fault him completely when he’d been the one to escort me personally.So, I listened carefully and made personal mental notes of the exits, hiding places, layouts of the rooms, and any other information I could gather f
AIDENIt was a sleepless night.The vault smelled damp and filthy, and as whiffs of mold and other unpleasant odors invaded my nose and twisted my stomach, a grim feeling seized me.Sleeping here reminded me of my past—of the times I had slept in the sewer to escape the biting winter winds. It had been cruel on the streets. Finding shelter, finding a place where none could hurt or bother me was difficult, so often, I had to hide in unpleasant places that others wouldn’t dare to come to. But that was before I met Steven Caddel.Steven and his family had given me a home, a place to live and sleep that didn’t require me to keep one eye open. When they’d taken me in, I’d been a small, scrawny thing. I had dreams of one day being a fighter and protector but I could see all of my ribs through my shirt. My cheeks and eyes had been so hollow then.Charlotte had fed me and nursed me back to health and from there, Steven helped me with my mental and physical strength. Had it not been for their
AIDENI glanced between Oakley and Frederick’s lifeless body in shock. I was temporarily frozen as I beheld the ruddy man’s corpse but my paralysis gave way to anger as I glared at the guard.“You killed Frederick,” I snarled. “That wasn’t a part of the plan.”There was no love lost between me and the man who presided over this island in Marcel Fox’s name, but he should not have died, especially not at Oakley’s clawed hands. Frederick could have provided key information about House Fox’s crimes, evidence that would have helped the Alpha King’s mission.I had planned to silence him and bind him to a chair while the rebellion took place. Killing had never been a part of this plan.Unfazed by my growl, Oakley wiped the blood from his hands using Frederick’s clothes.“I don’t follow plans, Sir,” he remarked casually. The scarred guard squatted down, studying Frederick’s face as if enjoying the sight of his horrified expression. “Frederick had to die, I’m afraid.”Oakley then stood and loo
EVELYNI woke up to a gentle knock on the door. My vision was blurred but I sat up quickly and ran my hand through my hair to smooth it down.I didn’t remember falling asleep.Another knock rang out, and after I managed a soft reply of “Come in!”, the door opened to reveal a servant holding a silver tray.Max held the door open and the servant approached the nightstand with the food.Breakfast food.I frowned.“What time is it?” I asked him as I stifled a yawn. I was still so unbelievably tired and my entire body ached with it.“It’s well past dawn, my lady,” the servant replied politely as he placed the tray down. My eyes glanced at the window to the left of me. The curtains were only half-drawn, so I could see the sun burning brightly in the colorful sky.Morning.It was strange that I had slept so late. I wasn’t normally allowed to sleep so long and I was surprised that I hadn’t been awoken by Cole or anyone else. We were here on business, after all.I noticed the servant was loo
EVELYNI hadn’t run for a long time.My wolf body was ecstatic as I ran through the forest, following Cole closely.House Fox was separated from the nearest city by a small forest, so it wasn’t a long run, but it was still exhilarating.I caught sight of our reflections in a passing stream as we rushed past. Much smaller than Cole, my fur was a rich, chocolate brown with streaks of black, though my eyes were still the same shade. My limbs were long, just like my human ones, and though I was slender, my muscles were still as powerful as ever.Unsurprisingly, Cole was just as beautiful in this form as he was in his human one. His fur was the color of burnished gold and he was tall, sleek, and fast. His dark eyes were mischievous as he panted at me from the other side of the stream.“You’re slow,” he barked at me in wolf speak. “Pick up the pace. Unless you can’t-”I didn’t let him finish. I lunged forward and leaped over the stream in an easy bound. Though my muscles strained a little
EVELYNThe house Cole and I were escorted into was quite lovely, far nicer than I’d expected.It wasn’t exactly big, but it seemed cozy. It was full of tall windows that let in a ton of light, and all of the furnishings were comfortable and homey. A meek servant, a tiny dark-haired woman, led us through the house. Silently, she guided us to the second floor and stopped in front of a wooden door. She knocked politely, pausing for a moment until a voice within answered.“Come in!”The servant straightened her posture before opening the door for us. She stood aside and gestured for us to enter.It appeared to be a lounging room. There was a sofa, an oversized chair, and a blazing fireplace that filled the room with warmth. A huge, plush rug spanned the reddish brown floors and the walls were a nice shade of soft ivory.Inside the room, four people were present. A tall man with slicked-back chestnut hair stood in front of the couch where a woman with thick curly black hair sat with a nap
EVELYNIt was no secret that werewolves worshipped power.Hescor was believed to be a mostly peaceful place with a variety of different people but there was no use denying the truth. Those without significant strength or a noble lineage would find it nearly impossible to achieve a respectable status in this country.Wolves without significant status were known as Omegas.In the past, some Omegas were forced into slavery. Those slaves’ sole purpose was to serve high-born families and nothing more. They were treated as if they weren’t wolves at all.Like filth.King Theodore had abolished slavery entirely upon ascending the throne, so I had only heard of it in old stories.In these stories, Omega slaves were branded with cross marks by tools made of silver. The location of the brand indicated their "usage."If I remembered correctly, those with marks behind their ears were sex slaves.They were marked in such a hidden location because those who purchased sex slaves preferred not to be
COLEI stood by the window, looking down at Evelyn sitting on the lawn.Her hands were folded in her lap and a gentle breeze kissed her cheeks and blew her long dark hair softly. Even from here, I could see a glimmer of happiness in her large hazel eyes.Samuel’s son and daughter were running around her, and she watched them with a soft smile. There was a faint flush of color in her cheeks and it made my heart ache to see her look so… content. Envious, almost.Not too long ago, I had envisioned this very scene, planned for it. When I had planned to elope with her, I had imagined a peaceful small town where we could live away from the crowds and chaos. A place where no one could find us. We would have a couple of pups, and we would sit together, watching them laugh and run freely.I could picture the children so easily- one with Evelyn’s eyes and my gold hair. Perhaps even the opposite- a pup with night-dark eyes to match the black of her hair.Regardless of the combination of features,