HIRAM’S POV:As I make my way down to East End Motors, I try to keep a clear mind. There is a lot to take care of, but I have to begin somewhere. Still, my mind keeps bugging me about what Juniper said earlier. It is obvious something is wrong, but I cannot quite place it. I begin to wonder if she is truly just human or if she is a werewolf with some kind of mystique power that enables her to hide her true identity.“No, you’re losing your mind, Hiram,” I mutter to myself, gripping the steering wheel tightly. I shake my head, forcing my focus back on the road. Right now, I need to deal with Larry, I tell myself, trying to ground my thoughts.East End Motors finally comes into view—a dingy lot surrounded by a chain-link fence. The sign above the gate is weathered and barely legible. I pull up a few yards away, then I step out of the car and make my way toward the gate.I spot Larry from afar. He’s standing at the gate, leaning against the frame with a cigarette in his hand. He’s talkin
HIRAM’S POV:“What?” I ask, hoping she will tell me she is joking, and she wants me back home because she misses me or something related to that, but her tone falters.“It’s so bad that the pack witch doesn’t think he will survive.”My heart races as she says this, but I try to ground myself. I am a twenty-nine-year-old man, and although I love my family, I should know that life is cruel, and no one is above death.“Hiram?” she calls out again.“I’ll be there soon. Just give me a moment,” I say to her, then I end the call.Taking a deep breath, I think of whom to call first. My mind races to Juniper, and I know she will not take this news lightly, but there is nothing I can do, so I put a call across to Winston.“Did you get a call from my mother?”“No, sir. She didn’t call, but is everything okay?” he asks, and I exhale deeply.“I just got a call from her and she says my father has been injured. The Lycan’s struck, and the witches do not think he will make it.”“That is bad,” he says
Hiram:A knock on my door awakens me in the morning. I stir from my sleep, not wanting to stand up, but the person opens the door, causing me to open my eyes.“Father wants to see you,” Hollis says, and I sit up at once to see he is dressed for the day. Mother really cloned Hollis because I cannot imagine being dressed for the day as early as seven.I expect him to leave, but then he walks in and shuts the door. Giving off a yawn, I stretch my hands before pushing myself out of bed.“Mother is stressed from the recent events, and I know she can be gritty, but please just put up with her.” I glance at him when he says this. “She’s been smoking again,” he says in a low tone, causing my heart to drop a little.I cannot imagine the amount of stress she has, and I wish I could stay in the pack, but she will keep trying to make me marry Vera.“That’s quite sad,” I mutter, and Hollis inhales deeply.“It’s good to have you around, little bro,” Hollis adds. Then he turns to leave, but I do not
HIRAM’S POV:Breakfast with my family and Alex’s parents does not go as I expect. Everywhere feels lively, and they chat away their lives as though we do not have impending doom about to consume the pack.“Are they genuinely happy, or is my humor box broken?” I whisper to Alex, who is sitting close to me.“I think they are just trying to get by. The Lycans haven’t made a request yet; they only tried to show their presence. To be honest, we are in the wrong, so you cannot really blame them. Other packs are refusing to form an alliance with ours to go to war with the Lycans, which is a smart move because the bloodshed will be crazy.”Politics. One reason I hate my position as an alpha prince. I will do anything to escape the politics and dynamics of the packs.“That’s enough werewolf politics for a day,” I say, flashing her a smile while I focus on my meal.“About my problems with June. She keeps having flashbacks of that incident in my house, and I do not know why,” I say to Alex, who
JUNIPER’S POV:I know I’m not crazy, but the Internet and ChatGPT seem determined to prove otherwise. For two hours now, I’ve been deep-diving into endless sites about werewolves, and now, on the twentieth page of search results, I’m halfway to losing my mind.The page takes its time loading. Frustrated, I scroll straight to the bottom, ready to abandon this futile quest. But then, something catches my eye: “The History of Werewolves in America.”This has to be clickbait, I tell myself, even as I click on it.Desperation has left me with no other choice. The site opens with an oddly specific narrative listing dates and events about when werewolves supposedly arrived in the United States.“A portal first opened in Las Vegas. The government called them aliens and tried to take them down, but the werewolves possessed far superior technology. They could teleport using their portals, making it almost impossible to capture them for experiments.”I scroll further until I come across a sectio
HIRAM’S POV:I glance at Juniper and the frustration written on her face. It doesn’t make me happy that she is frustrated, but I am happy I get to preserve my secret. Her thoughts scare me, and I know I should tell her, but not now. It is too much for me to think about.“Is there a problem, love?” I question, and she looks up at me, forcing a smile onto her lips.“No. Not at all.” She tries to uphold the smile, and I flash her back a smile.“I think the network here is terrible,” she lies through her teeth, but I do not care, as long as she has no information about my family.Then I text Alex.“Please help me with whatever you have before she loses her mind.”I shut my phone off, then I walk over to June, planting a kiss on her forehead.“I will go freshen up,” I say to her, then I walk to the closet to grab a towel, draping it around my waist. I try to keep my mind open, allowing her frustrations to flow through me while I hit the shower.If I continue this way, Hiram is going to thin
JUNIPER’S POV:The café hums with energy, with a lot of chatter in the air. Its open windows let out a soft ocean breeze, which makes my body feel cool in contrast to the hot, crisp croissant in my hand.“Hot!” I exclaim as I take a bite of the piece, then I catch Hiram staring at me with intent. “I am fine,” I say to him at once, then he reaches for my lips, wiping away the crumb stuck on them.“Thank you,” I mutter, and he nods before going back to staring at his coffee directionless.I think there is something wrong with him. I know he is having a hard time with his dad being sick, but he almost won’t open up to me.“You’re scaring it,” I say, trying to start off light.He looks up with his brows slightly drawn down. “What?”“Your coffee. That’s the face you make when something is bothering you.”When I say this, he lets go of the spoon, and I watch his lips twitch into a smile.“I am fine, and there is nothing wrong, love.” He goes ahead to grab my hand to solidify this lie, but I
HIRAM’S POV:It is that time of the year again when humans dress up to make fun of supernaturals—yes; it is Halloween, my least favorite time of the year. I have to watch children wear hideous costumes of wolves and witches, then hand them candy like seeing them mock us makes me happy. One of these days, I really hope they encounter an actual wolf or maybe a vampire; then we’ll see who’s laughing.“How do I look?” Juniper asks, walking out of the room in a towel. At first, I think she is joking because all I can see underneath the towel is thick leggings that look yellowish.“Is this a joke?” I ask, and she frowns slightly. “You’re going out in a towel?” I question, and she chuckles, then opens up the towel to reveal a glittering black bodysuit. The sides of the towel are glittery, too.“And what’s that supposed to be?” I ask, trying not to sound controlling at the fact that my girlfriend is about to go to a party filled with boys in a bodysuit covered by a towel.“Sabrina Carpenter,”
Hiram’s POVI shift into my human form the moment Cillian’s lifeless body hits the ground. I am in pain from the bullets that hit me, but I push it aside as my body heals slowly.My heart lurches at the sight of Juniper clutching her belly with her face twisted in pain.“June!” I rush to her side, dropping to my knees. My hands hover over her, unsure of where to touch first. She’s trembling, her breaths shallow and uneven.Her wide, tear-filled eyes meet mine.“Hiram,” she gasps. “The baby... the baby’s coming. He made me take pills. Too many...” Panic grips me, but I shove it down.This isn’t the time to lose contr
JUNIPER’S POV:I’m crammed between two burly men in the backseat of the SUV. The air inside the car reeks of cigarettes and sweat, making it hard to breathe. My heart pounds in my chest as I struggle hard against the man who has his hand covering my mouth, but he doesn’t let up. I bite his palm, causing him to yelp in pain and pull away from me.“You little—!” He grabs my hand, twisting it behind me, and the other man glares at me.“You’re going to regret this. My husband—he’s going to find you. And when he does, you’ll be sorry.” I try to sound confident, but the four of them let out a heart-draining chuckle.The man holding me snorts, his beady eyes narrowing as he glares at me.
HIRAM’S POV:My driver pulls up to the convention center in Boulder City, parking near a tree stripped bare by winter. The air bites a little—just cold enough to remind me it’s December. The streets are quiet except for a couple of locals strolling past. “Hang around, or you can come in with me,” I say to him as I look at the building in front of us.Above the entrance, a banner hangs: BOULDER CITY ART FESTIVAL 2024.I step out of my car, making my way towards the entrance. The moment I step inside, the chill fades, replaced by the hum of life and creativity. The place is packed with people, which makes it warm. There are conversations in the air, and the bright colors catch my attention.There are paintings, sculptures, and displays explodi
JUNIPER’S POV:“Will you at least drop me off at school before you go to your art, whatever?” I ask Hiram as I put on my jacket, staring at myself in the mirror.“Sure,” he says, leaning in to kiss my cheek.“I am so glad we’re in winter, and I get to wear these large jackets. I can slowly feel the baby fat creeping in.” He grabs my hand, pulling me away from the mirror.“That’s enough for today.” He wraps his arms around my waist. “You look more beautiful than ever, and there is no baby fat,” he says, then plants a brief kiss on my lips.I adjust his tie, patting his shoulder briefly.“You look so
HIRAM’S POV:“I have an art exhibition I would love to attend on Monday.” Juniper puts down her phone and glances up at me as I say this. “It’s just in Boulder City.”Her brows crease, and she focuses on her phone without saying a thing.“You won’t make a comment?” I ask, and she glares at me.“Yeah, my husband is going to abandon me for an art exhibition while I go to school pregnant and in pain.” The sarcasm in her tone makes me chuckle slightly, then I walk up to her, sitting on the bed.“It is just one day, and I will be back in the evening or the next morning. It will be as though I didn’t leave. Plus, Rhea is here to take care of you, and&hell
HIRAM’S POV:After dinner, June and I settle in her room while Rhea stays in the guest room. I expect her to follow the usual routine of staying up almost the entire night, keeping me awake too, but before I can tell, she is sleeping peacefully in my arms.I remain like that, watching the rise and fall of her chest with a gentle snore accompanying it. While she sleeps, I try to sleep too. I shut my eyes, patting her hair gently, but even as I close my eyes, I find it difficult to drift off to sleep.After a while, I push her head away gently, then I place it on the pillow, planting a kiss on her head before I stand up. My steps are quiet in order not to wake her. I leave the room, heading for the front door to get some fresh air, but the moment I step out of the hallway, I spot Milo sitting in the living room
Hiram:After minutes of driving, we get to Juniper’s mother’s house. It is a small house in town, which looks comfy. There is a compact car parked in front of it, and June’s mother is standing in front of the house. When we pull up, she rushes toward the car.Before I can open the door, Juniper gets it, rushing toward her mother.“Mum!” she exclaims, throwing her arms around her. Her mother pats her back slightly. Then I get out of the car, and Rhea follows. I grab our joint luggage while Rhea takes her bag.She looks almost the same as June, but her hair is black. They pull away, facing Rhea and me.“You already know Rhea,” June says, and Rhea waves at her.
HIRAM’S POV:“Hiram, the food’s too cold!”“Hiram, the food’s too hot!”“Hiram, it’s too sweet!”“Hiram, it’s too salty!”This has been June’s anthem this past week. I know mood swings are part of the pregnancy package, but I didn’t expect it to be this way. It’s like I can hardly breathe, and nothing is good enough for her. Sometimes I wish I could rip that baby out of her.Right now, she is fast asleep, and it is the best time for me with her. Watching her sleep peacefully like a baby and admiring her beauty, because once that eye opens, I’ll be running around the clock.
Hiram’s POV:Last night, June didn’t spend the night in my room. She came back home with Rhea, and they hung out the entire evening.“You know I’m beginning to think you love Rhea more than you love me,” I say to her as she sits in front of the mirror doing her hair.She looks at me through the mirror with a frown on her face.“Why would you say that?” she asks, and I walk up to her, bending slightly.“Maybe because you spent the entire evening with her, and slept in the guest room too,” I say, and she chuckles slightly.“So, you’re jealous of a woman?” she asks, then tilts her head slightly to face me. “You know what? Maybe I do love her better and we might have…”