CASSANDRA As the shopkeeper stared at us expectantly, a pit formed in my stomach. I wanted to turn down the man’s offer and was about to open my mouth to do just that, but before the words could leave my mouth, Finnick jumped excitedly. “Yes!” he declared, and then he whipped back around to look at me. “Just one look, Mommy, pleaaaaaase?” My son’s storm-gray eyes were as wide as the puppies’ in the window. He wasn’t normally one to beg so I was a little taken aback by his demeanor, but I was struggling to refuse his request. It wasn’t very often we were able to do something like this. “You don’t have to take one home with you today, kind lady,” the shopkeeper addressed me gently. “You’re more than welcome to join the boy and look.” I considered the idea for a moment and then nodded. “Thank you for your kindness.” I took Finnick’s hand in mine and the two of us followed the man into his shop. As we crossed the threshold, I couldn’t help but remember being here when I was young. T
CASSANDRA Finnick cried in my arms and I wanted to soothe him, but we had to get as far away from this situation as possible. The back door of the shop out into a small alley. There was little room between the buildings at all, but I could spy a way out in the distance. I just needed to get us back out to the main street, and then we could disappear into the crowd of people and leave the crazed man and woman behind. “Hang tight, baby,” I urged Finnick as I braced him against me. He sobbed quietly in my arms but kept his grip around me obediently. “M-Mommy, who are those people?” he whimpered as he buried his head into my neck. “Why are we running?” “I don’t know, honey,” I said. “Just stay quiet and close your eyes.” The young woman suddenly rushed out into the alley with us. I continued to walk backward slowly. “Please,” I begged her. “We don’t have to do this. We could forget about this entire thing-” “I don’t think so,” the young woman retorted, her eyes full of venom as th
CASSANDRAAs much as I wanted to return to the palace on my own, I couldn’t deny Kaleb’s offer to escort Finnick and me. The tall man was kind and besides, he was flanked by a group of muscular men who could defend us against any further threats. I couldn’t allow myself to risk Finnick’s safety again.As we walked, I couldn’t help but wonder who Kaleb was. The foreign man had to be someone important if he had all of those guards to attend and protect him. Everything about him was poised and proper, and I admired the strong way he held himself as he strode. Normally, those with a stature that tall tended to slouch to make themselves smaller. But Kaleb held himself regally and proud.Kaleb chattered on as we moved through the thrall of the market. He was making many observations about our surroundings and about Anemond in general, which told me he was new to our lands. Every person we passed by stared at him with curiosity. I couldn’t blame them. Their height, hair, and attire made them
ASHER I’d just laid my head down on the desk in my study when I heard a series of knocks on my door. For a moment, I considered ignoring them entirely, but a voice in the back of my mind told me that I had a duty to fulfill. I was just so tired these days. But the Alpha King couldn’t take a break. “Enter,” I groaned, and I pulled myself back up. As the door began to open, I ran a hand through my hair and took a long, deep breath. Luckily, it was just Lancel. My most trusted guard entered the room quietly and as he approached my desk, his full eyebrows creased together in concern. “Alpha?” he asked, his tone drenched in worry. “Alpha, are you alright?” “Yes,” I answered quickly, though I didn’t exactly mean it. “Why ever do you ask?” “Your skin is quite pale, Alpha,” Lancel replied worriedly. “You’ve got dark circles under your eyes and you look quite tired.” “You sure know how to flatter me, Lancel,” I murmured, and I stifled a yawn. “You haven’t seemed quite yourself lately
ASHER “You’re very late, Alpha Asher. Is it customary of your Pack to keep your guests waiting?” The moment I stepped into the first-floor meeting room, a heavily accented voice reached my ears, and I raised my eyebrows in surprise. Though I knew the voice belonged to the King of Yurene, I was shocked by how callously I was being spoken to. The king stood from the couch very slowly and then extended his hand toward mine. “I jest, of course, though you do appear to be quite busy.” I stared at his hand for a moment before I accepted it in mine. “I suppose I am quite busy. I’m sorry to keep you waiting-” “Are you ill?” Kaleb blurted out. “You look tired-” Lancel took a step forward in warning, but I raised a hand to stop him. “It’s fine,” I murmured. Kaleb studied us with a curious expression and then chuckled. “It seems the people of the South are more tense than us Northerners.” The king of Yurene was one of the tallest men I’d ever seen. I wasn’t short by any means, but compa
CASSANDRA The king of Yurene had saved my life. I couldn’t help but let the phrase repeat through my head as I sat at the small dining table in our chambers. Today had been tough on my nerves, and it was taking all of my efforts to keep from exploding from confusion. An attempted kidnapping… only to be saved by a foreigner from a land I’d never even heard of until today. Finnick was fast asleep in his bed. After he’d washed up, he’d decided he was too tired to play and crawled right under the covers without me saying a word. I’d dutifully tucked him in and minutes later, he was out. I was a little relieved. My son had been so brave today. I couldn’t blame him for feeling worn out. Erika had served me some fragrant jasmine tea in an attempt to soothe my nerves. The warm drink was doing a little, but I needed so much more. As much as I didn’t want to admit it, I was scared. The man in the shop had said he knew who I was. What had he meant by that? Did he know I was truly Cora? Or
CASSANDRA I’d been apprehensive at the idea of attending the banquet that evening, but the king of Yurene had been insistent upon me joining them. I’d provided excuse after excuse, but they did me no good. The man was simply not taking no for an answer. So, I thanked him for the invitation and immediately headed back to my room to figure out what I would wear to such an occasion. Back in Wild Crawler, I’d never attended banquets or fine events. Our lifestyle there was much more rugged and simple, so I didn’t have much in the way of fancy clothing. Erika seemed surprised when I returned to my chambers and explained the situation to her. “That’s wonderful that you were invited, Cassandra,” she said, and then her eyebrows creased together. “Hmm. I wonder what you will wear…” “That’s my problem,” I replied, and a lump formed in my throat. “I don’t own anything acceptable enough to attend a banquet.” Suddenly, the maid’s eyes glimmered and she flashed me an excited smile. “Hold on,
CASSANDRA Oliver Moses smiled warmly as he asked the question, and for a moment, I thought he appeared kind. But I knew the truth. The Beta knew nothing of kindness. It was all an act, a game of pretend, and he was quite good at it. But I was better. “Yes, sir,” I replied politely, and I returned his smile. Adalyn’s father shared the same amber eyes as his daughter, and they stared into mine with curiosity. “My wife and I once visited Wild Crawler,” he mused. “It was a nice small village, but it had the most gorgeous scenery. Don’t you remember, honey?” He turned to Linda and the pair exchanged a sweet smile. Though their family was conniving, it was clear that the love between them was very real. For a moment, I nearly forgot who they really were. “Ew, Father,” Adalyn sighed in irritation. “Please, contain yourself. You’re being embarrassing.” She then turned to Kaleb and offered him a sickly sweet smile. “So sorry for them, Your Majesty.” “There’s no need to apologize,” the
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