CASSANDRAIt had been five years since I’d been in my wolf form.It was strange, this feeling of pure, primal instinct, and yet it was still so familiar.I thought I would forget how to run and how to fight, but on the contrary, I remembered them quite well. The muscle memories, along with the fighting skills my father Darrin and my brother Ector had once taught me were still so clear in my mind.As my claws dug into the damp earth beneath me, a shiver ran down my spine. I could feel the power flowing through me, electric and tense. It was exhilarating but admittedly a little scary since I wasn’t used to this sensation.I lowered my head and growled, glaring at the wolves circling me. Kaleb’s guards, no doubt, each ready to take me on. I attempted to count them all but soon lost track. Of course, I didn’t care all that much about how many adversaries stood against me. My wolf instincts had kicked in and taken control of my very being.These wolves could try to fight against me all the
CASSANDRAAs we raced through the grounds in our wolf forms, I saw the buildings beyond us and noted with horror that they were all on fire now. The smoldering flames rose high, as did thick plumes of smoke.I had hoped to get some medicine from my room to treat Asher’s wound, but there was no chance of that happening now. Part of me felt a small amount of loss in knowing that many of my belongings were still within the chamber, but the other part knew that material items didn’t matter. I had my family with me, and for now, we were all safe and sound. The medicine would have been nice, but I would have to find other methods of dealing with our injuries.As I tried to suppress the pain in my back and the panic of escaping this place for good, my eyes scanned the grounds. Servants were running around desperately, their expressions horrified as they fled away from the burning buildings. They were so terrified that they hadn’t even noticed us.Finnick clenched himself against Asher tightl
CASSANDRAAsher approached us silently, and once Helene stepped away from me, I glanced at Rayden, who was rubbing his shoulder with an unpleasant expression on his face.“What happened?” I asked him directly. “Where are your people, Rayden?”Rayden rolled his eyes at Helene. “Ask her. She’s responsible for what happened.”I frowned. “What do you mean?”The Alpha of Wild Crawler gestured around the area. I peered over the bushes and noticed several people were lying on the ground, clearly unconscious. When I turned back to Helene, she simply shrugged nonchalantly.“I saw this man and the others sneaking around the grounds with a large wooden box,” she answered, her eyes watching Rayden suspiciously. “I supposed they were planning on taking something out of the castle, so I used some tricks.”“What tricks?” I asked as fear swelled within me. I could see the men’s chests rise and fall with their breathing, so it was obvious they were still alive, but that didn’t mean that Helene hadn’t
KALEB“What a pleasant surprise,” I laughed as I spat out a mouthful of blood.Asher Collins was here, and I hadn’t known it until now. Judging by the way he stood beside Cassandra, I surmised that he’d been under my nose for at least a day or so, and I was amazed by the absurdity of all this.On any other day, the self-righteous Alpha King of Wegalla would have been a worthy adversary. I would have engaged in a battle to the death with that cocky leader of my country’s enemy, yet as I watched him leave with Cassandra and her maid, I couldn’t stop laughing. This situation had escalated far beyond my expectations.My soldiers seemed ready to follow the black and white wolves, but I ordered them to stop at once.“There’s no need to chase after them,” I announced as they stared at me with expressions of confusion. “No one is able to leave the castle tonight, not even a fly. Besides, I have a more important rival to deal with now.”As if on cue, Ronald approached with a group of soldiers
KALEBFor the flash of a second, I thought I had died.The moment I’d closed my eyes, I’d asked the Moon Goddess to show me her mercy and allow me to enter her realm once I met my end.I heard the sound of skin being ripped apart as well as a painful groan. I assumed I was the source of such terrible noises, but when I felt warm liquid on my cheek, I wasn’t convinced. My eyes flew open just in time to realize that the one who died was Ronald.My cousin stood above me, holding his neck, which had been ripped open. Scarlet blood streamed down his chest like a powerful waterfall, and his blue eyes were as wide as a cornered deer’s. His mouth opened as if he wanted to say something, but no sounds other than groaning escaped him.Confusion swelled within me as I tried to make sense of what had happened, and mere seconds later, I realized who had slit his throat.Roxy held a bloodied knife aloft and as Ronald continued to groan, she swiftly kicked him down to the ground. The motion caused m
CASSANDRAThe fight was far more brutal than I’d expected.When we’d left Erika, Finnick, Lila, and Raven behind and headed toward the gate surrounding Vlokwell, I’d known that we were getting ourselves into a mess of trouble, but I didn’t know how bad it would be.The guards of the gate were far more difficult to defeat than anticipated, even with our numbers.We had all shifted into either our wolf forms or at least partial forms, and even as wolves, it was a struggle to win against Kaleb’s men.As Asher and I fought off one of the men, Rayden and his men took on another. It was a flurry of motion and movement, and it had taken all of my efforts to remain focused on the fight. Thankfully, Asher and I were a great team, and we managed to take our guard down after a little while.The others, though, weren’t as lucky.Rayden had nearly lost his left arm fighting with a large, burly wolf whose claws seemed as long as swords. Luckily, Helene reacted swiftly before those deadly nails coul
CASSANDRAOne thing was certain. The view outside of the country house was indeed beautiful.Once Asher and I pulled ourselves out of bed, we stepped outside and took a look at the wildlife surrounding us. Beyond the house, a great stretch of open field seemed endless. Green plants covered the field and colorful wildflowers grew everywhere. They dotted the field like confetti, and their perfume filled the air with a pleasant aroma.For a moment, I completely forgot our circumstances and simply enjoyed the gorgeous sight. We hadn’t had a moment of peace in so long. Life had been an endless string of battles, violence, and schemes, and it felt nice to breathe.Unfortunately, we couldn’t rest for too long or enjoy the scenery for more than a few minutes. We had to think about what to do next.A meeting was called soon after. We all gathered around the backyard, save for Erika, Helene, and the children.Once we were all gathered, the Alpha of Red Stone began to speak. He told us that this
KANERoxy had escaped.It happened sometime just after Kiara and I had spoken about her options for marriage. It was obvious that someone had aided the sorceress, and if my suspicions were correct, that someone was Darwin.I needed to gather the proper evidence to support my theory, but the hand of the Alpha couldn’t be trusted. He was there at every turn, interfering with Pack business. Though I wasn't definitively sure, I hadUpon learning of her escape, I sent a trio of soldiers after her in an attempt to bring her back to the castle, but there was no use. To add insult to injury, when the soldiers returned, they brought back terrible news about Yurene.They informed me that an inferno had engulfed the royal castle.My heart dropped and I nearly sank to my knees from pure shock. My mind nearly drowned in the sea of my thoughts but I managed to collect myself before I could sink completely.“Were Asher and Cassandra seen?” I asked them quietly.The soldiers glanced at one another an
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