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Chapter 17 : A Trap Is Set
Last Updated:
2023-02-09 14:03:24
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Alpha's Secret Mate Chapter 18 : A Crowd of Suitors
Ayda's POV In Emerald Lake, we didn't have ballrooms in the traditional sense.We had open-air amphitheaters for the orchestra that opened into massive, elaborately mosaicked dance floors that glimmer like gems in dazzling garden mazes. All so we could sway with those we loved under the stars. In a sense, I was no stranger to the unimaginable beauty of a dance hall. That said, the ballroom took my breath away.Unlike the main foyer with its fantastic imitation of the night full of the stars, the ballroom had the advantage of owning a splendorous glass ceiling; the center opened to display the moon as she made her trek across the sky. Around the crescent skylight, were fantastic scenes of wolves leaping through clouds and darkened forests. The glass marble, in a way, gave each color a certain depth, a shimmering effect that made the wolves seem almost alive. Obsidian pillars shaped like naked trees with their branches acting as both frame and solder points led the eye
Last Updated : 2023-02-09Alpha's Secret Mate Chapter 19 : Taken by the Prince in the Shadows
Ayda's POV "We match," Sebastian whispered in my ear, once we were quite away from the party. Back near the courtyard again, I'd noticed, and my heart rate skyrocketed. "Did you know?""I hadn't," though it pleased me to no end that we did. His suit was a cool slate with a matching vest, tie a rich burgundy to match the—"Is that a red jasmine?"His smile widened, and he plucked the flower up to show me: "I heard they were rare, but I figured you'd appreciate the blossoms more than roses. I…I've overstepped some bounds, haven't I?""That's not—I just didn't think—" You cared enough? You'd remember enough to care? "—the gesture is fine. That's all." Ah, way to go Ayda; now he'd probably think you hated him!"I could–" Sebastian unfurled his arm, putting some distance between us. I mourned the loss. He was putting up his walls, shielding his heart from anything that would hurt it. "Return you to the party, if you would like, once you have your moment of solitude. I'
Last Updated : 2023-02-09Alpha's Secret Mate Chapter 20 : Death in the Castle
Ayda's POV When I awoke, it was still dark, and so too, were my thoughts.If things had been different…If things had been different, if things had worked like the stories, then I would have been with Sebastian that night in Twilight Tavern and not his brother. It would have been Sebastian I would have given my maidenhood to and not… not to his brother. Sullied. A moment of puddle deep lust and nothing more.If things had been different, perfect, Alex might have still lived to marry Narcissa, leaving Sebastian able to betroth me. No one would have cared so long as the Golden Prince was still alive.Sebastian yawned, head pillowed on his knuckles leaning over me on top of his sheets. Sheets, blood red like the vision that haunted my sleep, and I made a sound like a wounded lamb."I was wondering when you'd wake up." He scooped me up, kissing the crown of my head. "I'm afraid that the halls are still packed with dignitaries. Apparently, there's a scavenger hunt f
Last Updated : 2023-02-09Alpha's Secret Mate Chapter 21 : The Crown
Ayda's POV "Ayda!""Sebastian!"There wasn't much time before the guard took him away, and I was lost in the fray of panicking nobles. Alarmists were saying it was a planned attack, that someone matching the South Towers killer had been spotted; others claimed that it was likely old age and too much excitement. They reasoned that Kostas had Sebastian late in life and was almost to his seventy-fifth year before his passing. If it was not murder, then surely it was a stroke or cardiac arrest. Those too drunk to parse the grave news figured the king's demise to be an elaborate hoax. A jest, they sang, a wondrous trick to delight his audience during this time of revelry!I wondered then, getting shoved down the corridors, feeling faint, which tale was true. Could there be an assassin in our midst—I felt a pang, ice water replacing the blood in my veins as dread so thick I could scarcely breathe loomed over me. My son! Something was wrong with my son! August
Last Updated : 2023-02-09Alpha's Secret Mate Chapter 22 : Eye for an Eye
Ayda's POV It was surprisingly easy slipping out of the castle through the stable hand's entrance in the undercroft. Likely, it was due to the door being ripped right off its hinges. Nicolette and I looked at each other, another sign of sabotage. This one, in particular, made four.There had been evidence of tampering with the lock on the male servants' side (a deadbolt of pure silver was fastening their double doors together, locking the men within their hall), scent dampeners placed in strategic locations, and the deaths of several stable hands.Nicolette had been quiet ever since we'd discovered the bodies. More friends left to the slaughter.The scent led us through the woods and ancient temple where I'd first transformed, over the ravine where I'd nearly fallen, and towards the river that bisected the king's hunting grounds from those of the rest of the village. I almost overlooked the wagon on the road, eyes so focused on a scrap of red or the scent of
Last Updated : 2023-02-09Alpha's Secret Mate Chapter 23 : Rats in the Larder
Sebastian's POV "No, I will not be making—if you would all just—"It was too loud, too much color and sound and light. Like I'd had too much to drink, or not enough of it. Where was Ayda? I could have sworn she was right behind me—where did she go? How could she leave me when I needed her most? My mind was spinning, and all I could see were my father's eyes as he clutched my shirt front, foaming blood. He was so scared at the end. He'd been so scared—"Bastian," Andreas was at my shoulder, crouched low to share my pain and offer his support.I could feel the pressure of his gloved hand on my back, a reassuring anchor as I spun, lost in the void of my own grief. I was the last, the last of my family, the last of the Lykaios. "Bastian, you…you have to let him go. We have to make arrangements. We have to—""I know," my voice was rust, the decay of steady iron against waves of loss. First Mother, then Alex, now Father. Alone, always alone. "Th
Last Updated : 2023-02-09Alpha's Secret Mate Chapter 24 : Revelation
Ayda's POV We couldn't go back to the castle; it was clear Narcissa knew, not just about August and his true parentage but about my feelings for Sebastian as well. She had to have seen the way I held his hand, the way we'd both walked into the throne room together. She knew Sebastian didn't love her, and the feeling was hostilely mutual; I'm sure she expected him to stray just like her previous fiancé had.For now, the castle was off limits, though my heart ached to have Sebastian so far from me, trapped in the belly of the beast. I did not think Narcissa would slay him until after the wedding if being the sole ruler was indeed her game and had been from the start. Pelham had suggested, after we buried his brother and fellow soldiers in shallow graves, that the coup was only just the beginning of Narcissa's plan.If the lad was to be believed, there was an entire cult at work over in the Northern territories that had slowly been gaining support ever since the War
Last Updated : 2023-02-09Alpha's Secret Mate Chapter 25 : Captured
Ayda's POV "Now hear me out, as a friend—as a very concerned and worried friend who has just seen a whole bunch of people get killed in various horrifying ways—maybe it isn't the best idea in the world to go back to the place that has all the people who want to kill you in it. Just a thought."Nicolette had her two index fingers pressed together, the point resting under her thick bottom lip. Pelham eyed us wearily, awkwardly holding the yoke in his hands, shifting his focus from the grazing cattle to our standoff. We were still about half a day's journey to the nearest settlement, but to go any further would risk the cattle to a tragic death by exhaustion.Pelham had felt that we'd covered enough ground that should anyone learn of Nicolette's and my departure from the castle, they'd be pressed to figure out which path we choose. Even if it was common knowledge that we both could shift, we still needed to rest, which meant there would be long stretches of time wher
Last Updated : 2023-02-09
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Alpha's Secret Mate Chapter 50 : To Paint A Portrait of the End
Goddess' POV |Two Weeks Later|"August!"Ayda rose from her bed, chest heaving, cold sweat racing down her body like field horses during harvest season.Another dream, a nightmare of the night of the Blood Moon, when she'd thought all hope was lost. It had been so real this time, but they'd always felt real when she was caught in them. It was only when she looked out her window and saw the castle grounds that she knew she was safe.That they had won.Bested Narcissa, somehow…"Ayda?"Sebastian was on high alert the moment he heard his fiancée scream. He went to her at once, wrapping his arm around her, still difficult with how deep his arm wound had been. His nightmares were quieter but no less real. He worried not about the Fenrirwulf or how close he had come to meeting death, only that he was almost faced with his greatest fear again: losing a loved one."Ayda, it was just a dream," adjusting to life after such trauma took time; he knew t
Alpha's Secret Mate Chapter 49 : Blood Moon
Ayda's POV "Mom, we just can't let this crazy bitch do what she likes!" Miranda paced the room. Narcissa had locked us in the lower level of the ziggurat while she went to the top t with my son in one hand and a black dagger in the other. "She's going to use what's left of the townsfolk to make a sacrifice to open up the veil enough to see the Gates of Tartarus! She's going to destroy the world, kill all of us, and herself with it. Why are you just sitting there!?""Your mother needs that herb more than life itself," Kathrine flexed her fingers, and more chains snaked around Nicolette and me. I was starting to grow worried. Nicolette hadn't woken up yet, and her wounds were still bleeding. "Would you have me watch another mate die? Do you think I could survive it a second time?""You won't need to survive it if the world ends." I thrashed harder against my bonds, my body shifting to that of a half-wolf. Bolstered by the pull of the full moon, I knew I wouldn't have near
Alpha's Secret Mate Chapter 48 : Rivals
Ayda's POV "—Better not have died—""—hadn't hit her so—""—my fault—""—what do you thi—""—being—child—"Water, colder than the ice that sometimes capped the mountains to the north of Emerald Lake, splashed me in the face, shocking me to wakefulness."Oh, good," Narcissa purred, sitting on a throne. "The simpleton is awake."We were somewhere in the temple; I could tell from the cold stone and glowing sigils that now seemed to pulse an agitated scarlet. This was different than the room with the effigies of the Goddess. To my left, I saw a flash of flamingo pink ruffles. Callia looked apologetic, holding the bucket she'd upturned on me.I could see her youngest sister Lilia near where the door was. It looked like Dahlia was holding her back, keeping her away from myself and—"Ni-Nicolette!" My throat was a sandpapery hush ripping at my vocal cords. "Ni-Ni-Nicolette!""For the Goddess's sake, WILL YOU PLEASE SHUT UP!?"I quieted
Alpha's Secret Mate Chapter 47 : Betrayal
Ayda's POV "Was there something the matter?"Nicolette had gone to the kitchens to talk to Liv after Maud's funeral. I'd been there in the beginning, offering what condolences I could until it came time to make a trek to the shrine in the woods where Kostas was having a private ceremony. At least, I had hoped it was private; other than the priestess and Sebastian, no one else had shown up for the old king. Not even his Beta."Not quite…" Nicolette glanced back, looking woefully unsure of herself. "I'm sure it's nothing but travel jitters. Don't pay me any mind…"She wasn't the only one who had strange feelings about our impending journey to Opal Moon. It was almost as if something dreadful was going to happen. Which was why, even though she objected rather loudly, I'd decided to keep Zoe at the castle. Sebastian assured me that he would keep an eye on my little sister, to which she petulantly declared she was not a child.It was hard not to ruffle her hair whe
Alpha's Secret Mate Chapter 46 : The Help
Liv's POV They laughed too much for me to forgive them truly, all of them blue-bloods mulling about as if nothing has happened when everything has happened.Everything has changed.They scheduled Ma's funeral on the same day as the king's, and somehow that seemed fitting. Fitting that the true queen of Obsidian Moon got her just deserts with the man who had done so much to destroy her. Before Luna Alexandra, before Luna Arianna, before he'd tried his hand at touching my sister—there had been my mother.Oh, the mad codger had claimed he loved her in the beginning when they were both young and dumb, and you could fall for false words if they were sugar-coated enough. With his strawberry blond hair and golden eyes, Kostas looked like that classic fairytale prince. You would have never thought Kostas to be the spitting image of his father Philemon, wife-beater and war bringer.He'd hit Ma so hard he'd knocked out three of her teeth.But times were different,
Alpha's Secret Mate Chapter 45 : To The Heart
Ayda's POV The morning came, and, to her disappointment, Nicolette wasn't cleared until tomorrow to travel by carriage per the good doctor's orders. Without someone to accompany me who was a little more trustworthy than Zoe (who was far too eager to travel about with a killer still at large), I was stuck until the next cock crow to venture again. Sebastian would have accompanied me to get our son, but he was too busy wrapped up in kingly duties to risk a few days from the castle.So, to not have the entire day wasted, I decided to keep working on my fencing lessons with Sebastian.Though I was much more careful to keep any sexiness out of it after we'd been caught the last time.Nicolette, not wanting to be trapped in her room for longer than was strictly necessary, decided that she'd join us in training. Granted, from the safe confines of the bench, hurling little throwing knives at a bull's eyes–looking miserable.I would have dispatched Zoe upon the poor wo
Alpha's Secret Mate Chapter 44 : Friendly Competition
Ayda's POV "You are," I said, huffing, the rawhide chest protector chafing my skin horrifically even with the shirt he'd loaned me, "a terrible man. Have I told you that?""You may have," Sebastian passed me his waterskin looking unbothered in his casual clothes, olive skin aglow from the exhilaration. His hair was completely devoid of any product, left wild and free to curl around the masculine richness of his face. His Adam's apple bobbed, not clownishly large, but enough to let me know—with the broadness of his shoulders, the bit of chest hair peeking through his tunic, the svelte thickness of his thighs which led to the tight laces girding his manhood—that he was all male.And, upon girlish realization, entirely mine.Fencing was even harder than I'd imagined; the weight of even the smallest of his swords—a rapier—still commanded more stamina in me than I was used to. I wasn't necessarily weak, but given the lack of proper nutrition—skipping meals to
Alpha's Secret Mate Chapter 43 : Is the Princess the Murderer?
Ayda's POV The morning after my fight with Sebastian was far more domestic than I thought it would be. We had breakfast in the tea room rather than the dining hall as I'd expected.The informality of the seating arrangement was just what I needed.One thing I liked about my life as a commoner was how everyday practices—like meal times, reading, or even hobbies—were all done in a communal setting. A practice only those who'd endured long generational friendships based on mutual goodwill and training, or for the formality of being related to each other, were allowed the privy of in an aristocrats' home. In a commoner's home, there was no stiffy nature of formality because of decorum; one could relax and truly be as they were amongst the common people! It made all the above practices even more enjoyable in a sense and staved off the inherent loneliness that seemed to plague the castle and manors inhabited by the upper echelons of Lycan society.I suspected S
Alpha's Secret Mate Chapter 42 : The White Queen
Narcissa's POV "Narcissa, please." Callia hung on me like one of those parasitic vines that choked the mighty redwoods near the Ruby Plateau in the Westerlies. "Just stay! You're not well, we don't have to go home. We could stay here, start anew!""GET OFF ME!"I bit her hard enough to break the skin, and the other two pulled her back, fearful of me. Good, they should be. For too long had I endured their endless sniveling, weighing me down with their uselessness. I didn't need ANY of them.I adjusted the hem of my new dress—white like the frozen lands of my home, lace flowers elegantly kissing my frame, and the pureness of the fetching A-line silhouette with matching cape—walked barefoot out of Opal Hill. I didn't require shoes; they would only slow me down; my legs—hidden beneath the long tulle skirt—had reverted to their true shape. Lupine and powerful, the white fur matching my look, a true werewolf queen.Had anyone seen a more beautiful woman?Someho
