[Mason's POV]I stood and stared into the glowing portal that Talon and the others had created. Despite telling myself everything would be okay, I couldn't stop the sense of dread that overcame me."You're wasting time." Talon snapped, stepping beside me. "I've already told you that your time is limited.""I got it." I sighed, bracing myself. Taking a deep breath, I dove forward into the portal. Immediately, bright balls of light began to swirl around me, growing closer and closer until they were encasing my body. It felt like my very flesh was being burned where they touched.Biting back the curses that wanted to escape, I endured until finally, the lights released me.When they cleared, I found myself standing on the all-too familiar training pitch of my packgrounds. It was scattered with bodies and feathers. It didn't take long for me to realize just when this was and spurring me into action.Up ahead, I could just make out Danica's light exploding from her wolf. Next to come wou
[Mason's POV]"Brother," Danica repeated, furrowing her brow. "Did you just say I have a brother?""That's right. He was the one that sent all the rogues after you. ""So that is who they meant." She murmured, a frown playing across her face."Who?" My younger self asked in confusion."That brother-sister duo that found me at Martha's." Danica explained. "They said their boss didn't want me dead."At her words, a wave of anger rolled through me. Why hadn't I bothered to ask more questions?"What's wrong?" Danica's worried voice asked, drawing me from my thoughts. "You look like you want to kill someone.""That's an understatement." I chuckled. "Anyway, did they happen to say where their boss was?"Frowning, Danica shook her head."Nothing." She admitted."Then we are back at square one with him." I muttered."Are you saying we will have to hunt down her brother and the harpies?""I know where the harpies went." I responded with a smirk. "They're on the Arcadian islands.""How do you k
[Mason’s POV]I gave Danica and my younger self one more look before turning and making my way out into the night. The sooner I found a way to locate the enemy, the better. Though I felt a stinging discomfort by having to leave Danica’s younger self, I have to do what needs to be done.Outside, the world around me was alive with members of the pack cleaning up the aftermath of the harpies' attack. I found that none of them paid me any mind as I moved, and I find myself wondering if that is a good thing or not.Deciding to not think too hard about it for now, I continue to move, exiting the packgrounds and making my way onto the road beyond. From what I remembered, the house Danica shared with Martha in the past wasn’t too far from my packgrounds, and I didn’t need a vehicle to get there. Hell, even if I did, I wouldn’t be able to use one since I didn’t have the keys to my old jeep anyway.As I made my way down the street, I took in the dark houses that I passed. A feeling of loss rus
[Danica’s POV]My heart raced as I waited for Amy and Heather to process what I had just told them. Would they believe me or would they think that I was insane? Hell, I felt like I was going insane when Mason first introduced me to this world too.As Mason popped into my head, I took a quick peek at the older version of him as he stood guard by the door. I had to admit, even though I thought my Mason was sexy as hell, his older self was just much more... mature.Seeming to realize I was watching him, Mason shot me an amused smirk, causing a fierce blush to begin to spread across my cheeks. Shit, could he hear my thoughts right now? Or worse, could my Mason hear them?"Let me get this straight." Amy said, saving me from falling into a deep hole of embarrassment. "You want us to believe that werewolves exist and that you actually are one." As she spoke, I didn’t miss the hint of disbelief behind her words. "I’m sorry, but you could have come up with a better excuse for your disappearanc
[Mason’s POV]When we arrived back at the pack grounds, my younger self was outside pacing. An aura of fear and worry radiating from him disappeared entirely the minute his eyes found Danica."About time!" He called, rushing forward. "I was about to send a search party out for all of you.""We ran into a…problem." I responded as Danica tensed."Problem?"Nodding, I waited as my younger self’s eyes came to find the woman that was hanging limply over my shoulder."Isn’t that Amy?" He gasped, rushing forward to get a better look. "What happened to her? What did you do?""Mason," Danica said quietly, stepping between him and me. "She attacked me."At her words, my younger self’s face fell and his eyes flashed a dangerous shade of gold. Good, at least we were on the same page with this."Repeat that." He said slowly, clearly trying to remain calm."Later." Danica sighed. "First, we should go inside. I think Heather isn’t feeling well."Letting out a string of profanities, my younger self n
[Mason’s POV]"I wouldn’t do that if I were you." A low voice that shook the earth beneath my feet called, stopping me mid-step. "Would hate to have to kill your entire pack.""What the hell?" I growled, looking around to try to locate the person who had spoken.When my eyes came to rest on what looked like a large mountain that seemed to be…breathing… I felt all the air rush out of my lungs."H-how?" I gasped, feeling my eyes grow wide."Are you impressed?" Danica’s brother asked, giving a broad smile. "He is magnificent, isn’t he?"As he spoke, the troll he was referring to began to move, standing up to his full size and towering well over the canopy above. How the fuck did something so massive get so close without being detected? Someone must have seen him, right?"Don’t worry," Danica’s brother chuckled as the troll lumbered up behind him protectively. "He didn’t come here on foot.""Not on foot?" I repeated, unable to take my gaze away from him. "Then how?""That’s my secret." He
[Danica’s POV] "Danica, you really shouldn’t be involved in this!" Bella huffed. After making sure that Heather was okay and being treated with the utmost respect, I took my leave to join the Mason’s in their questioning of Amy and her brothers. Despite being told to stay out of it, I just couldn’t shake the feeling of unease that was slowly clawing at me. "Yes, I do." I responded, slowing my pace as voices began to drift towards me. "Something feels..off." Amy had been one of my closest friends for as long as I could remember. We had been through so much heartache and pain together, there was no way that all those emotions and good times were faked. "Then why work for him?" I heard Mason suddenly ask, "If you knew he'd abandon you in the blink of an eye when trouble arose, why have you been assisting him in stalking Danica?" "Because he promised to tell us where our parents are." Amy responded. "Otherwise, we would have killed him long ago." Feeling my heart sink, I turned to m
[Mason’s POV]I held my breath as Amy and her brothers considered Danica’s offer. Either they would accept and we would have a way of finding Seth without the help of the sorcerers, or we would be back at square one."You don’t have to answer me right away." Danica said. "We can give you a few days to decide. How does that sound?""Will we have to stay in this damn cell during that time?" Chase asked, narrowing his gaze."Yes.""No."Shooting Danica a look, I took in her narrowed gaze as she held her hand out once again to my younger self."Mason," she huffed, opening and closing her palm. "Give me that key.""What are you planning?" He asked, seeming unsure. "What are you going to do if you let them go free and they disappear?""Can’t they at least stay in one of the guest rooms under supervision?" Danica sighed, rolling her eyes. "Why would they want to help us when we are treating them like animals?""You mean how they have been treating us?" He countered.I had to admit, this was
[Bryllie’s POV]"I don’t want to hear that." I whispered, trying to contain the emotions that were rolling through me. "From you or from Armond.""Armond?" Desmond repeated, frowning. "Are you saying…""That’s right." I snapped, not caring if I drew attention to us anymore. "He said the same exact thing. It seems that I’m magically mated to both of you! I don't know if this is some kind of game between the two of you, but it isn't funny, and I'm not interested in being your target."Unable to control my emotions any longer, I stormed forward, shoving my way past Desmond and towards where my parents stood chatting with Grandpa and Uncle Killian, who must have just arrived."There she is!" Mom announced, motioning for me to come forward. "Come greet your uncle Killian."Nodding, I began to move but stopped as a hand wrapped around my wrist.Whirling around, I took in Desmond’s desperate expression."What?" I demanded, pulling myself free. "I don’t want to hear anything else you may have
[Bryllie’s POV]"Warned." I repeated, clenching and unclenching my fists. "Did you just say you warned me?"Nodding, Desmond let a smile spread across his ill-at-ease face, and I had to admit, that pissed me off even more."That’s correct." He responded easily.Nodding, I moved, slamming my fist into his cheek."You piece of shit!"Pulling back, I prepared for another attack as Desmond gave me a look of both shock and appreciation. Yuck. Did he actually enjoy getting hit or something?"I guess I deserved that." He chuckled, rubbing the spot I punched. "But it doesn’t change anything I said."Letting out a growl of warning, I reached for the door and pulled."Then you should just stay away from me." I sighed, yanking my bag from him and hefting it over my shoulder. "Consider our years of friendship the only reason I didn’t beat you black and blue."Giving Desmond one more look, I stormed out, this time not bothering to look back at all.I tried to avoid Desmond for the next few months,
[Bryllie’s POV]"Now boarding Flight 166."Frowning, I looked to where Armond sat sipping on his coffee."That’s your flight." I murmured, feeling my heart tug. "Shouldn’t you be getting up?"Nodding, he slowly got to his feet and then slung his bag over his shoulder."I guess this is see ya later." He announced, a sad smile on his face."Yeah," I agreed.Moving forward, I allowed myself to be wrapped in Armond’s strong arms and pressed against his chest. Letting out a sigh, I took in his warmth and smell while he plastered a kiss on the top of my hair."Don’t you dare forget me." He warned, pulling away. "And don’t you dare find someone new.""Don’t joke." I huffed, beginning to bristle. "Do I seem like that type of woman?""You never know."Letting out an indignant growl, I untangled myself and punched his shoulder while trying to stop the tears that were beginning to prick at my eyes.This was it. This was goodbye for at least two years.From what I knew about basic training for my
[Bryllie’s POV]I remained silent as my mind felt like it was shutting down due to my inability to process what just happened.Did Armond really just do what I thought he did, or did I imagine the whole thing?"You’re going to swallow a bug if your mouth continues to hang open like that." Armond sighed, brushing his fingertips from my cheek to my jaw before gently pushing my chin up. "And honestly, I’m feeling offended by your reaction to my kiss."Snapping back to my senses, I scurried backward before quickly looking around to see if anyone else had noticed. When I found that we weren’t being watched, I turned my gaze back to Armond."Why did you do that?" I rasped, trying to keep my voice low. "What if someone saw?""Let them see." Armond shrugged, "And if they didn’t see the first time I could always do it again."Gasping, I held up my hand and pressed it against Armond’s mouth as he attempted to kiss me a second time. What was this guy actually thinking? He had to be out of his mi
Three Years Later[Bryllie’s POV]I stood in front of the large full body mirror of my room staring at the woman in front of me. After hours of being dolled up, I barely recognized myself.Today was my sixteenth birthday, and my parents insisted on making it a grand event despite my insisting that it wasn’t necessary.However, in the end here we were. I looked like a damn debutante making her grand debut into high society while all my guests waited for me to appear.Letting out a huff, I took one last look at my reflection, taking in the light blue prom dress my mother insisted that I wear and my blonde hair that fell in ringlets down my chest and back.Turning, I made my way across the room just in time to sense my mother and auntie Bella just outside."Bryllie?" Mom called, slowly opening the door that separated us. "Are you…"No other words escaped my mother’s lips as she took me in with wide eyes that were quickly beginning to tear up."You look beautiful." She managed as Auntie B
[Mason’s POV]For the next few days, I spent my time going through physical therapy and then visiting Danica in the medical wing. Although she had healed up nicely, she had to stay for observation to make sure that there wasn’t any permanent damage.At first she fought tooth and nail to not have to do it, but in the end she caved and listened. Not without making sure everyone knew just how annoyed she was about it, of course.When I wasn’t training or with Danica, I was with Chris and Killian going over the list of prisoners from the battle between us and the harpies.Out of the many that attacked, only a few remained thanks to the valiant efforts of my pack, the hunters, and Black Forest. I had to admit that, despite my distrust of each group in the beginning, I now knew that if there ever came a time when we were in trouble again, they would be there for us. Likewise, we would be there for them too.After three days, our dead had been buried, and the remaining elders had managed to
[Mason’s POV]The last remnants of fighting drifted towards me, rousing me from the darkness that I am currently trapped in. ‘You need to get up.’ Grendal urged, attempting to help me wake. ‘Our mate needs us.’"Dan…" I manage as my eyelids slowly begin to lift. "What?"Prying my eyes open, I look around at the grounds, but I couldn’t see Danica or Bryllie anywhere in sight.‘Get up.’ Grendal growled. ‘In the packhouse.’Nodding, I began to sit up despite my body feeling like it weighed a ton. Once on my feet, I began to move."Just wait for me." I murmured, reaching the packhouse entrance.Bracing myself, I shoved open the door and gasped as the overpowering smell of blood reached my nose. "Alpha!" Bella yelped, drawing my attention to where she sat on the ground with Danica cradled in her arms.Immediately, my blood turned cold in my veins.The scene was too familiar, too similar. The only difference this time was that there were no signs of poisoning."No," I rasped, dropping dow
[Danica’s POV]I continued to exert strength as the harpie beneath me attempted to break free. By this point, over seventy percent of her body was burned by Bryllie’s white light, and her neck was dangerously close to snapping. Just a bit more and…Gasping, I jerked as pain shot through my abdomen."If I’m dying." Marie growled, a broad smile spreading across her face. "You’re going to die along with me."Confusion whirled as the pain I was feeling intensified and the smell of blood began to attack my senses.Slowly, I let my eyes trail down towards where the pain was coming from and found the hilt of a dagger sticking out of me."You…"Letting out a triumphant cackle, Marie twisted the blade in me and then pulled it free while I clutched at my now open wound in an attempt to staunch the bleeding."MOM!" Bryllie gasped, reminding me that she was still here."Run!" I yelled, attempting to hold Marie in place. "NOW!""No, I won’t leave you!" Bryllie argued, letting her inner light radia
[Mason’s POV]I stared up into Rebecca’s blazing eyes as a wicked smile spread across her face. "Do you know how long I’ve waited for this moment?"Did I? No, I didn't, and I truly didn’t give a damn."Sorry to disappoint." I huffed, "But you won’t be succeeding in whatever fucked-up plan you have in mind."At my words, a bark of laughter escaped Rebecca’s lips as she took in my current condition."Are you planning on stopping me?" She asked, pressing her foot against my chest. "How do you intend to do anything the way you are right now?"To prove her point, she began to press down harder until I could feel my bones beginning to give under her weight.Hissing, I reached up and dug my claws into her ankle, causing a yelp of shock to escape. Taking advantage of her distraction, I quickly scuttled from under her and scrambled to my feet. If I wanted to stand a chance, I needed to not be on the ground."You!" Rebecca growled, slashing a wing at me.Gasping, I braced myself as I flew back