ASHERThe capital city of Yurene was heavily guarded, even more so than I’d expected. While I’d been well aware that the place would be swarming with security, given the scale of the wedding, the sheer amount of guards that stood around was impressive.Our car joined the line of other vehicles waiting to approach the enormous gates, and when I rolled down the window, the guards began to speak. We were told once entered through the enormous gate that our identities needed to be triple-checked before we could enter the castle that stood in the distance. The castle was equally impressive, its walls soaring so high into the air that it looked like it was kissing the clouds. It was an amazing sight to behold, though I hated admitting that anything in Yurene was impressive.While I had been nervous to come here, I knew I had a low chance of getting caught, especially since I had disguised myself using Darwin’s identity.When I’d initially proposed the plan, the Sky Pride wolf had been agita
CASSANDRAWhen Ms. Benn arrived at my room to pick up Lila, she handed me a small, folded-up piece of paper.“It’s an updated list of guests,” she explained when I frowned at her in confusion. “Many of the guests originally listed didn’t come and some new names have been added.”When I nodded my head, she released a reluctant sigh.“I also did as you requested and arranged most of the Southern guests in this building,” she revealed, a pained expression in her voice.Though I wasn’t proud of my actions, I knew they’d been necessary. Just before Ms. Benn had left my chamber earlier that day, I’d demanded that she move the Southerners to the same building I resided in. She’d been reluctant to oblige my request, but I hadn’t taken no for an answer.I was pleased to know that at the very least, she’d followed through. I hadn’t liked my actions, but this was too important of an opportunity to waste.“Thank you, Ms. Benn,” I said.“I don’t need your thanks,” the head housekeeper sniffed and
CASSANDRAI stopped struggling and widened my eyes as my heart stopped in my chest.Asher’s voice sounded coarse and more tense than I’d ever heard it, but I knew at once that it was him.It was almost impossible to believe, but it was true.Asher was here in Yurene.My mate was here in this cold, terrible country.He turned around to face me, and though we couldn’t see each other in this darkness, the scent, the warmth of his body… everything was so familiar it couldn’t be ignored.After a moment of silence, I felt Asher’s finger brush across my cheeks. I hadn’t realized I was crying until I felt the wetness of my tears against my skin.When he pulled me into a tight hug, he whispered in my ear.“‘I’ve missed you so much, Cassandra,” he said, and then he pulled away and kissed my neck and then my lips. Then he reached for my hand and began to kiss each of my fingers devoutly.“I couldn’t bear not seeing you,” he whispered in between kisses. “I’ve missed you so much.”As his lips danc
CASSANDRAConfusion flooded my mind and my lips parted as I stared at Asher. I felt lost, and I kept waiting for the Alpha King to say something more for clarification, but instead, he simply stared at me.For a moment, he reminded me of Finnick. The two looked so much alike and this expression was no exception. Sometimes, Finnick would stare at me in the same way if I forgot something I had promised like he was a puppy who had been wronged by his owner. It was a vulnerable look I’d never expected to see on an adult man’s face, and the mere sight of it made my heart hurt.“What do you mean?” I asked him directly after another moment of silence.Asher’s dark eyebrows creased together and then he let out a soft sigh.“I heard that you are about to marry the king of Yurene,” he revealed. “That you two are engaged to one another. Is that true?”A lump formed in my throat and my eyes widened.How had Asher found out about this? Kaleb had promised to not let him know. It was one of the requ
CASSANDRAAfter what felt like an eternity of hearing about the event, Ronald and Helene’s wedding day came.Aside from the new guests who had arrived early in the morning, everyone was invited to visit Ronald’s residence and have lunch with the happy couple.Just as I had yesterday, I’d decided to take a walk around the castle grounds, and as I roamed about, I shivered. The weather wasn’t ideal for a wedding. It was incredibly dismal and cloudy, not to mention windy, with no sun shining through the thick layer of clouds. It looked like it could rain at any given moment. I doubted there would be a visible moon in the sky when the night came.In the South, werewolf couples had to make their vows beneath the moon, otherwise, it was believed the marriage would be doomed. It was a superstition, most likely, but still, it was an important thing to my people.But the Northerners didn’t seem to care about such traditions. I heard no mentions of the moon at all amongst the guests or anyone el
CASSANDRAThe moment I’d noticed Rayden, it seemed like the guards had done the same. As the tall, dark-haired man from Wild Crawler approached me with long strides, I noticed the guards all tense up in unison.I began to panic. What was about to happen? And what was Rayden doing here in Vlokwell?Before Rayden was about to greet me, one of the guards stopped him from getting any closer to me. I flashed Rayden a firm expression and silently let him know that it wasn’t wise to show that he knew me.I half-expected confusion, but Rayden understood immediately. Instead of acting like he was coming to speak with me, he turned his attention to the guards and wore an expression of confusion.“I’m so sorry,” he apologized to them with a convincing frown on his tanned face. “I think I’m lost. I had been led to my room by a nice maid before, but I came out here to tell my servants that they needed to be careful with our boxes. I know it might sound silly, but when I decided to go back to my ch
KANEThe day after the sudden attack in Sky Pride, Asher departed for Yurene to save Cassandra, and not soon after my stepbrother left, Alpha Arthur fell into a coma.It was a sudden occurrence, even more surprising than the attack on Silas, and though the healers of the remote Pack couldn’t identify the exact cause, they suggested the attack had caused excessive emotional fluctuation.Arthur’s daughter Kiara was utterly distraught by her father’s loss of consciousness, and just after the Alpha was escorted to a private wing of his castle to be observed, I had to pull her into another room and rub her back as she wept.I wasn’t sure how long we were there, but time ceased to matter as I rubbed the poor girl’s back and assured her that things would be fine. I wasn’t entirely sure that was true, but I had to keep the hope alive regardless. We needed Sky Pride’s assistance if things we were to go to war against Yurene, but even that aside, I didn’t want Arthur to pass away. He was a litt
KANEEven as a child, I had been well aware of the fact that my new stepfather didn’t love my mother. Though the King of Wegalla had always treated us well, and Margaret never complained about his lack of attention or kindness, it wasn’t difficult to tell that he didn’t share any affection toward her. Truthfully, Asher’s father had only married Margaret because she had been his late wife’s maid. After Selene Collins’ death, the king was desperate to learn any and all information he could about the queen, and he saw his union with my mother as an opportunity.He asked Margaret to tell him everything about the late queen: how she had laughed, how she would smile, the things that brought her happiness. Every single detail about her. Selene was the only subject of their conversations, and while my mother didn’t outwardly protest or refuse him, it bothered her greatly.She had told me once that she believed the king was just trapped in his regret. He regretted that he had neglected his bea
CASSANDRAIt was a sunny day, the first one in a long time.After the long winter and cold spring, summer eventually came, and it was hotter than it had been in forever.Sunlight streamed in through the clinic window, and I was a little distracted as I stared out at the window at the kids in the yard.Finnick, Lila, Marley’s boys Eric and Adrian, and Dominic were all chasing each other, playing a game of tag with one another. Marco was out there with them too, but he was sitting on a bench alone, meters away from the rest of the kids. He looked lonely and didn’t move as the others played around him.It had been a month since the chaos in Merliscire and Adalyn’s death. I supposed it was still hard for Marco to accept the fact that his mother was gone. She had killed herself right in front of him after holding him hostage and threatening to hurt him. The poor little boy had endured so much trauma in such a short amount of time.He wasn’t a bad kid. He had a mean disposition at times, bu
ASHERIt had been a while since Cassandra entered the building, and with every passing minute, my nervousness and anxiety grew stronger. While I knew she was capable of handling herself, I didn’t like the idea of her being in the House of Moses without me.I began to feel restless. It was a mistake to let her leave with Adalyn alone.I pondered my options for a minute and then decided I couldn’t wait out on the grounds any longer, not when my mate could be in danger. I started to walk toward the building, but before I could get too far, the soldiers guarding us stopped me.At first, they were polite but quickly, they became rude. They shouted and told me to back up. I wasn’t allowed in, not until Lady Adalyn said so.I considered pushing past them but didn’t want to escalate the situation, so I nodded and retreated ever so slightly. All around me, the councilors grew restless. They too, wanted to leave, only they desired to go back to Merliscire. However, when a group of them tried to
BECKYAfter our conversation with Oliver Moses, Dickson and I had been seized by the Moses guards and taken into a room that appeared to be used for interrogation. The door was crafted from iron and there were no windows, so the room was dim and quiet. There were only a pair of chairs, each a little rickety and old-looking. It was a pathetic, desolate sort of place, which was surely on purpose.Time didn’t make much sense in there and I soon couldn’t figure out how long we’d been locked in. My body ached and my mind was spinning out with a million thoughts as I absorbed all of the information I’d heard in the past couple of days.I had thought Oliver Moses would quickly find out the truth or ask me to confront Adalyn again, but Dickson thought the opposite when I presented the idea to him.“Look at this place, Becky,” he said, his voice gloomy and negative. “No one is going to visit us any time soon.”Sadly, he appeared to be correct, and his point was only proven as time went on. Tho
ADALYN Ada. How long had it been since I’d heard that name? My parents had never referred to me as Ada. They had never given me a single nickname or pet name. Mother had always said it was improper to call a child by anything other than their name and Father had never given me enough affection to bother. There were only two people in this world who had ever called me Ada. Asher. And Cora. I tensed as I tried to understand how Cassandra knew this. Had Asher told her about our close friendships when we were young? No, there was no way. Suddenly, I was hit with a realization, one I couldn’t ignore. I stared at Cassandra and studied her carefully. I searched her features, scrutinizing her nose, her mouth, the shape of her eyes. None were familiar, but as I stared at her deep emerald green irises and recognized the hue of them, it all began to make sense. I’d never understood how Asher could fall in love with a common healer. Cassandra wasn’t ugly by any means but to care so deepl
CASSANDRAAdalyn’s golden eyes narrowed and then locked on mine.“Why would that wicked woman come with us?” she demanded as she continued to shoot daggers in my direction.“Those are my terms,” Asher insisted. “You want an audience with me? Those are my requirements.”It was a bold assertation on his behalf. As long as Adalyn had Prince Marco in her grasp, she had the upper hand, but she was far too weak to realize her power. Asher was still the Alpha King, after all, so I supposed that subconsciously, she felt compelled to obey.Silence hung heavily in the air and then finally she sighed.“Fine,” she huffed and then she flashed me a sneer. “Let her come. Perhaps we’ll have some fun with your little plaything once we’re there.”“You won’t harm her,” Asher growled.“We’ll see,” Adalyn said with a shrug. “Come. It’s time we left this musty room.”Her big eyes scanned the room and then she addressed the councilors. “The rest of you shall come as well. Might as well make an event of it.”
CASSANDRAAdalyn’s face twisted again at Karsh’s cold and daring question, only this time, she didn’t recover and lost any sense of calm within her.“How dare you demean the future king’s mother?” she roared, her golden eyes flashing with anger as she bared her teeth.Despite her outrage and fierce expression, the councilor remained as cool as ever and didn’t even flinch. It was an impressive sight to behold and it made me respect Karsh even more. Adalyn had always been a brat but I had the sense that her ferocity wasn’t something to take lightly, at least not today.“I’m just stating the truth, Lady Adalyn,” Karsh said with a slightly raised chin, his eyes locked on hers. “The king is alive, I can assure you-”Before he could finish his statement, Adalyn motioned with her hand and gave a signal to the soldiers behind her.“Seize that traitor!” she ordered, and her men launched into action at once.My heart raced in my chest as I saw the soldiers approach Karsh, but before they could
CASSANDRAThankfully, Adalyn’s proposal wasn’t as convincing to the councilors as she’d expected. It was clear from the glint in her golden eyes and the proud expression on her beautiful face that she assumed all would accept the idea of Marco’s ascension without complaint, but that couldn’t have been further from the truth. The room dissolved into whispers and gasps at once.One of the councilors I didn’t know the name of cleared his throat and all fell quiet.“Pardon me for my bluntness, Lady Adalyn, but it’s absurd to announce a new Alpha King when there is no evidence showing that the king is dead,” he pointed out, his thick dark eyebrows furrowed at her. “We have nothing of the sort before us-”“The forensic report will explain everything-” Adalyn began to say but the councilor waved her off with his hand.“A report means nothing,” he stated boldly, and then he glanced around the room to garner attention from the other councilors. “If the Alpha King is dead, we need to see his co
CASSANDRAOne thing was absolutely certain amongst Asher, the councilors he trusted, and I.Whatever Oliver Moses wanted to do at the council meeting, we needed to stop him. We were in complete agreement but knew we needed others to agree to our cause. We needed the support of other Packs in order to bring him down, and knew we wouldn’t get far without it.“Oliver Moses has quite a number of soldiers stationed in Anemond, especially around Merlisicre,” Karsh revealed solemnly. “If we want to confront the Moseses, we will need a troop of good soldiers of our own.”Though I didn’t want to admit it, the councilor was correct in his assessment. Despite having support from Alpha Gareth, Wild Crawler on its own couldn’t provide enough soldiers. If we wanted to gather real numbers to stand against the Moses soldiers, we needed to contact other Packs and ask for their support.“Your Majesty, it would be best for you to remain in the darkness before the meeting,” Jacoby advised after a moment
ADALYNThis girl was stupid and annoying, to say the least.Yet, despite these facts, I regretted that I had underestimated her. I should have dealt with the tiny redhead girl right after Cassandra Keller had disappeared. Now, she had become a big problem, one I wasn’t sure how to handle.“I was hiding in the room next to yours when you spoke,” Becky chimed in.Father’s face changed when she mentioned the meeting. His complexion paled and his hazel eyes widened, but when he ran his hands through his graying hair, it was clear that he seemed convinced by her words.I had to hand it to her.Placing herself at the scene of the crime was a bold move, one I wasn’t sure how to work around. This was damning to be certain but I had to remain collected if I wanted to make it out of this and continue my plans without interruption.Silas’ little kitten was a true thorn in my side.Father studied the girl’s expression like a fox studying its prey. “I hope you acknowledge that you will be punished