ELENA WOLFEMy heart thumped wildly as I stood before the full-length mirror of my room, staring blankly at my wide-eyed reflection in the glass.There had to have been about a hundred handmaidens in my room, busting themselves with the round poof of my dress and the laced black and red trail that extended all the way to the door.“Hurry Emilia! The guests are arriving!” One of the squeamish maids hissed, throwing down the long white curtains after she had gone to take a peek at what was happening outside.Emily’s soft hands flew across my face and hair, molding the dark tresses into exquisite curls, embedded with pearls and crystals that sparkled under the yellow light of the room.I eyed the silk and lace materials scattered around the floor and the maids who were dressed nicely in their flowery ball gowns, with their powdered faces gleaming under the light.Music had already begun to drift through the castle and the chatter of guests just outside made me squirm uneasily before the
ELENA WOLFEThe Alphas stiffened beside me, but I kept my eyes firmly on the intruder.“Shit.” Michael hissed and my stomach dropped when I caught the guilty look on their faces that was quickly replaced by anger.Why weren't they sending her away? Fucking hell…at least she was late. There was nothing she could do now that I was the rightful Luna of Gotham!“What the fuck do you think you're doing here Carla Winehouse?” I called loudly, jutting my chin proudly when her eyes widened on the crown I knew was glowing on my head.I wanted her to look long and hard at the crown that would never be hers, and a smirk drew at the corner of my lips when the sharp lines of her face darkened.“It's hardly proper not to invite a noble princess to the royal wedding, don't you think, Elena? I wonder what the court will think of your attempts to keep me away.” The red-haired woman growled and I was suddenly afraid. My lips formed a tight shaky line as she swung her hips and strutted through the red c
ANTHONY GOTHAMPanic raked through my chest like jagged claws and I caught my brother curling his hands into fists by my side as I watched the two women.“Alpha Anthony, is what the maiden speaks true? Is Miss Carla Winehouse, the reagent of this palace carrying your child?” Roderigo Stone boomed, and I watched the large beast elder stagger forward, his frog-like eyes shining with rage.“Fucking hell,” Michael hissed so that only I could hear and his damning words only confirmed what I had known the second that Cassandra burst through the double doors of the castle.There was no way out of this. Pain formed a gridlock around my heart when I turned to Elena, noting the hateful expression on her porcelain face.Rivulets of tears rolled down her cheeks, the silver of it catching the large overhead chandeliers the same way her diamond crown did.“Elena…please, I...I wanted to tell you, okay? I never wanted it to be like this-” My words were a jumble of emotions as horror and pain washed o
ALPHA MICHAEL GOTHAMMy claws connected with the large trunk of the Bonsai tree before I could stop myself, sending the brown wood flying across the foyer with a thundering crack.“Would you calm down Michael? You’re causing a scene!” My brother’s voice was hard when he spoke up beside me and I whirled around in time to see the displeased scowl on his face.Was he taking the piss? “Are you fucking joking Anthony?” I hissed angrily, stabbing my claws into the hard plate of his chest and not caring when I felt the eyes of the castle's elite surrounding us.“We lose our fucking mate because of YOUR mistake and you're worried that I'm causing a bloody scene?” I spat, and my brother reared back like I had just plunged a knife between his ribs.It had only been hours since the fatal disaster that was our mate's wedding with Elena, and yet it felt to me like it had been years already.I had seen the broken look on her face back in the hall, the way her rounded shoulders seemed to collapse i
ALPHA MICHAEL GOTHAM“There! That's their leader! Get him!” I roared when my eyes caught on the large beast with deep white scars etched into his fur.The beast’s glowing red eyes caught on my face before he let out a drawn out shriek.“What the fuck is that?!” My brother’s enraged roar filled my ears as he appeared beside me in a instant, the hulking frame of his wolf making a surge of pride swell in my chest.“Dead, fucking, meat. Let's go-” I snarled, feeling my bones snap and shift into place as I bounded after the huge wolf.How the hell was he so fast? Adrenaline shot through my body like lightning, and it was all I could do not to let my beast cloud my mind as I shot forward.Was Elena okay?I watched the beast’s large, slinking bodies disappear over the walls, across the heap of the gutted corpses of our archers. I paused, sickened by the scene.They had died protecting Gotham, and the pain in my chest mixed with rage at their brutal deaths.I roared, my thoughts collided into
ELENA WOLFEMy entire body was trembling as I paced back and forth in my new room, wrapping my hands tightly around my sides as the chill of the night’s air blew in through the big windows.I could feel the maid’s uneasiness as she watched me pace the luxurious room with dark eyes.“You need to calm down Your Grace, the child-” She hedged, moving to meet me before I signaled her to stop.I didn’t trust myself to be around anyone yet. I could still feel the rage and pain biting in my belly and heart at the Alphas betrayal. “You know what I find amusing, Emilia?” I started, turning to face the slender girl and watching her eyes widen when she realized I had used her full name.“How is it, that you were the royal maid, Emilia, YOU were in and out of the royal apartments like a bloody rat, and yet you had no idea that Carla Winehouse was pregnant with my husband’s child?” I snarled, my tone cold as I watched shock freeze the girl’s pale face before she keeled over like she was going to b
My fists unclenched and clenched back into rocks at my sides before I realized that I was angry…no. Fuming.How dare Michael talk to me like I was some fucking idiot? I hated it! I hated the cold look in his eyes, the same one I had seen in Elena’s cold grey ones before she swept away from our wedding hall with tears streaking down her porcelain cheeks.“Y-Your Highness! Sir Markov isn't in right now-” One of the guards in red uniforms stuttered when I stopped before the oak wood of the rogue’s private chambers.I glared at him like he was stupid, biting back the remark that rose to the tip of my tongue, “Then I'll just wait inside, is that alright with you sir?” I asked sarcastically, harsher than I had intended, and felt a stab of guilt in my chest when the guard. “O-of course, Your Highness…certainly!” He stammered, red-faced, and I watched as he bowed low enough that I was sure he was kissing his knees.The air was cold and stale when I threw open the door to the rogue’s chambers
Carla WinehouseAnthony Gotham’s hazel-green eyes burned through my body like fire. The first Alpha was in his usual all-black ensemble, black dress shirt and baggy leather pants that still somehow emphasized the hard body underneath.His hair was longer, curling at the base of his neck and falling messily around the sides of his face as he glared up at me silently, his golden shoulder pads glinting in the moonlight.“Goddess help me,” I muttered, shivering and stumbling away from the windows when he strode inside the overhang of the balcony. I could feel trepidation wind tight coils through my belly as his footsteps echoed loudly on the stairs, and then in the hallway.Oh god, Anthony was going to be here any second! What do I do? What do I do? My heart raced wildly inside me eyes bulged from their sockets as I froze with indecision before the doors flew open and he stood before me.Power and rage crackled around his stout frame like lightning and the King glided to me like a cat.