Hi.... Emmysquads We are one day to the end of the month and I have to say this month was wonderful. With almost a hundred gems gotten this month this book made it back to the rankings. I did read some of the comments I could find and for the beautiful angel wondering if this book is being updated daily: Yes it is and from next month there would be even more chapters. Thank you all for the reviews, gems, comment and reward I am grateful. Also cheers on 13.5k views on this book!. I still remember those who started this book with me from the very start, you know I love you. xxxx
The instruction was that I remained here to make sure the soldiers had a safe passage, but I couldn't wait here; some might have heard the sound, while my gun had a silencer, theirs didn't.I walked into the pack. Everything seemed familiar; I hated being back here; I hated how this felt so much like home.Soldiers paraded nearby, their footsteps and loud chatter drowning out the sound of my own. I moved swiftly, darting between trees until I reached a more secluded spot, where I finally stopped.Now all I had to do was wait for the soldiers to return.Zed did trust his soldiers, and so I had to have some faith in them too.Gabriel should be arriving anytime soon with the vehicles to pick us up, this way we wouldn't be easily traced. I pulled open the map. He would wait some distance away, so as not to be spotted by the Nightshade pack patrollers. But the problem was that he may have to trespass on another pack's land.One hour turned to two.I didn't know how long I would have to wa
"Get up" I ordered "I can't," the man says, I could see it in his eyes, he had already given up."Help me lift him," I said. We managed to lift him, he groaned in pain as his injured leg scraped against the bare ground. Together, we carried the man away, heading for the pack borders. I doubted we'd be as lucky walking past undetected, or escape as easily as we had entered.Damn he was heavy, we managed to travel only a short distance before the gun shot stopped us. The man I had been carrying slumped. The bullet had gotten him in the side.It was one of the Nightshade soldiers, he fired another shot and it got the other man in the arm, he cried out. I let go of the man, but before I could reach for my gun, there was yet another shot. This one had been fired from another direction. Not at me, but at the Nightshade soldiers. Gabriel was back.He rushed to us, quickly checking on the man who laid on the floor."He would survive," he said to me and I nodded."I need to get you out of here
I had taken every precaution: fully clothed, hood mask in place, scent completely neutralized, and lenses worn. Yet, he still called me by my name. I stood there, silent, unwilling to give a response; maybe he had only made a wild guess. Thane walked forward; he was so close to me I could perceive his scent; this was a wicked reminder of what we had once, but now, now it was all over. "Would you take the hood off or do you prefer I do that?" he questioned. That intense look he gave me forced me into taking a step back. "Don't come any closer," I warned. My voice shook, and I hated it. I wouldn't cry, not in front of him, but the pain I felt was so unbearable. "Is that a threat? , didn't sound much like it." I took off the mask, dumping the material to the ground. Then I met his gaze. We shared a long look, and there was something different in the way he stared at me. I could swear I saw the longing in his eyes, but I didn't forget how good an actor he was. "Riley, y
"The last time I was here, you seemed to be in such a hurry to do just that.""I thought I was keeping you safe; if only I knew you were like a problem magnet.""So let me guess, you would give me a whole crap talk about how you were willing to hurt me, humiliate me, just to ‘protect’ me."That silenced him, and then his gaze found something I had left on, my engagement ring. For some reason, I felt the need to hide it.He grasped my hand, staring at it."What is this?""What does it look like?""You're engaged?" He said the words like it didn't make sense."Yes, and keeping me here isn't really helping me in any way."His eyes were once again those cold orbs that sent chills down my spine."I guess I deserve this," he says more to himself than to me. "I should be happy you've moved on, but I can't be happy for you, Riley," he says, looking away from me as if it hurts to stare.Bullshit. I pulled my hands away from his hold, taking some steps backwards."I never wanted this Thane. I l
**THANE**I had no right to hold her captive, not after everything I had done to her and yet I couldn't bring myself to let her go. Maybe it was because I knew that this was my last chance and if I did screw it then that was it.Still her words pierced deep.I knew she didn't mean it. I knew a part of her still loved me even if she resented that part, but hearing her say those words straight to my face… hearing her compare me with my father who I thought was the monster made me realized how bad I had screwed up.More than once I had given up on staying away from her, but Axel was always there to stop me. He never really forgave me for what I did, even though he knew I had every reason to. He thought I deserved the punishment I got. "You cannot go to her" he would always say, "If she had managed to move on, seeing you would only cause her more pain and she don't need that".Finally I had gotten a grip of the beast I had become, If only Riley knew that she had fueled up the need in me
A healer tended to my wounds in the dungeons; Thane had offered that I stay in the available guests room since we both knew I wouldn't be agreeing on returning back to the room we once shared, but I didn’t need his generosity; if he thought I couldn’t handle the cold floors of the dungeons, then he was indeed mistaken.I didn’t like how the healer kept staring at me. I am sure Thane had informed her not to tell anyone about this, but still her gaze was unnerving.“I think that would be all,” she said after the last stitch. “Is there anything else you need?”“No, you may leave,” I said to her, and she rose to her feet and offered a bow before walking away.A few hours passed, and Thane entered with a tray of food. He set it before me, but my gaze remained fixed on the wall, ignoring him entirely.“You’ve lost a lot of blood; you need to eat Riley, please,” he says softly.My eyes never left the wall, and finally he left, giving me some space to think about my escape. Yes, I needed stre
“You are fucking dying; you need to let go of your pride and eat something.”I had the words in mind to respond, yet my throat was so sore, I couldn’t utter a single word. There was a slight fear in his eyes; he was scared I would go through with this.I didn’t think Thane loved me, but I don’t think he wanted me dead either.He attempted spoon-feeding me; I wouldn’t eat a single thing; I wouldn’t let him win. “You either eat or I will make you." I had been about to ask how exactly would he ‘make me’, “There are these pipes that can be used to pass food directly into your body, and I would do that if I had to.”“You have no right,” I say. My voice sounded so tiny.“I am trying to keep you alive.”“And I don’t care. You either let me go, or I’ll die here. I bet you would love to see that.”“What do you want, Riley? I am ready to do any other thing, and I don’t care what it is; say it and it’s done; all you have to do is eat the damn food.”“Anything?” I asked"Anything,” he repeated, a
**THANE’S POV“She is engaged Thane, she was moving on quite well, you need to let her go” Axel says and he was right, but we both knew I wouldn’t do that. I wasn’t going to screw things up the second time. She couldn’t even bear to look me in th eyes anymore, damn she was starving herself just to get back at me and it was working, I couldn't eat either, not with the knowledge that she is down there, cold and starving. I should let her go, that was the easiest way, but it had taken everything in me to make that decision the last time and now, seeing her after two months, I knew I could never let her go, not ever again.“She is mine, my mate” I say, knowing well how stupid that sounded and already knowing what Axel would say next.“You did send her away, I hate to break it to you, but she doesn’t belong to you anymore, she is betrothed to another” he reminds me and I hated that reminder.If only he understood that I couldn’t imagine Riley with any other person, it took everything in me
The knock on the door cut our moment short.Normally, when a door’s locked, it’s a clear sign that the person inside doesn’t want visitors. But I guess the heads outside couldn’t take the hint.Kaida got back in her dress, and I helped adjust her hair.“How do I look?”“Beautiful.”“Thanks, but not that. Do I look like someone who just had sex?” She asked, and I shook my head.“No, you look fine.”Well, sometimes a little lie was necessary. Her hair, smudged lipstick, and rumpled clothes would surely give her out, but she didn’t need to know that.I pulled the door open to find two teenage girls with wide smiles—smiles that dropped the moment they saw us.Their eyes quickly raked over both of us, immediately figuring out what we'd been up to, and their cheeks flushed deep red."Sorry, we didn’t mean to interrupt. We came to pick up our rented dresses, but we can — just come back… later," one of them stammered, and they both hurried off without waiting for a reply."Hey?" Kaida called,
I found her jealousy amusing.“You’re jealous, aren’t you?”“Why wouldn’t I be? Sure, she might be a good person, but let’s not forget that you two used to have sex. I have every right to feel insecure, especially with the way she kept looking at you…” Kaida trailed off.I watched her, feeling unworthy. She had been faithful to me, even when we had broken things up, but I was stupid enough to think being with other women could take my mind off her.“I was apologizing for what I did to her earlier, and then she found her mate—she hesitated to go to him at first, but changed her mind in the end. That’s about it.”Kaida ran her hands through her thick black hair. “I feel like an insecure fool. I’m really sorry.”“You have nothing to apologize for.”She was staring at something, and I followed her gaze to Lara, who was kissing a dark-skinned guy. I figured that had to be her mate.“Wow. This mate ball turned out to be far more fun than I anticipated.” She said, I lingered on her expressi
I couldn’t take my eyes off her."Care for a dance?” I asked her and she nodded. It didn't seem like she enjoyed parties much.I took her hand and led her to the dance floor, aware of how people kept their distance. Seriously, what did they think? That I’d take their heads off just for bumping into me on the dance floor?This was getting ridiculous. But I couldn’t dwell on that thought any longer—Kaida was staring.“We match,” she said, motioning to my black tuxedo with its dark blue vest and tie. Maybe that wasn’t entirely a coincidence. “And you look really hot in that tuxedo, but then again, when do you not?” Her cheeks reddened. Kaida could be a badass fighter, but she wasn’t always as confident when it came to... well, other things.I stepped closer, letting her feel the subtle shift of my arousal. “Giving me compliments like that in public is dangerous.”She let out a breathy laugh, her cheeks still flushed. I saw the need flash in her eyes. I had been contemplating leaving wit
The dark blue dress would look beautiful on Kaida. That was the first thought on my mind when I saw it in the store. I knew I had to get it for her..Kaida was on the training field, she’d taken up Aric’s position. I believed it was another way to honor his memory. She trained the soldiers just as he had done… before everything went downhill. I had to admit, she was very good at it. Even the soldiers seemed to be enjoying the session with her."Your weight on this leg," she instructed, adjusting the soldier’s stance. I didn’t miss the way his gaze flickered to her ass for a split second before he quickly looked away, likely fearing he’d be caught staring. The possessive part of me wanted to pry out his eyes for even looking, then drag her into our room and fuck her all day long for looking so damn sexy.The longer I watched, the more something dark stirred inside me. She was too damn close to that guy, and those leathers—hell, they were so tight, her ass was practically on display. I
The Rogue leaders had waited. When the two days were over, I invited them into the meeting room.A maid brought over bottles of beer, and Edna was the first to take a deep gulp, the others following soon after. The maid excused herself.“Edna, Skale, Kev, Gal, and of course, Timothy. Welcome to the Nightshade Pack.”“I didn’t remember keeping you waiting this long when you paid us a visit.” Edna said to me."I’d hoped you’d get impatient enough to leave."Edna chuckled; it was silent and humorless. “Unfortunately, we’ve come to speak on an important matter.”“I assumed as much.”"We allowed a peace treaty with you once, and now we’ve come to discuss the terms.""I made you a promise, Edna. I told you that if you couldn’t keep the rogues under control, there would be war. This time, something tells me you were the brains behind the earlier attack.""Yes. I was. Like the rest, we believed you were gone, and we did what anyone would do—we attacked.""But I guess you were wrong.""Sorely.
ALEXANDER’S POVIt was almost unnerving how similar she had looked to Kaida. Her voice sounded so much like hers—I had hesitated, and in that moment of weakness, Cynthia escaped.It all made sense now. I could recall that incident. When Kaida had walked into the room, looking all seductive, I had given in so easily. And then—she ‘d lifted the dagger to my chest. I hadn’t realized it wasn’t her. For a fleeting moment, I had even thought the weapon was just another tease.But then she’d stabbed me, and too late I realized something different about her—something I hadn’t picked up on earlier. Her eyes. They were different, not because they weren’t the same grey I knew, but because it felt like they belonged to a stranger, not the woman I had known and fallen for.Kaida had taken the blame, but of course, she could never have done such a thing. She’d never have gone through with it, and I couldn’t believe I was just realizing that now."It’s not your fault. Cynthia excels at those kinds o
"I know the truth," I said to Julia, finally speaking up.“What truth? Don’t tell me you still fall for his falsehoods—you should have learned your lessons by now.”"He tried to protect me. He kept me safe. That’s more than you’ve ever done?"“Protect you—you really think you are safe here with him?”“Safer than I ever was back in the castle.”“I taught you better than this, Aliya. I taught you about bad people who would want to taint you, but you were always the curious type; I should have known.” She said, I didn’t miss the fact that she addressed me by my name."I remember everything you taught me, Julia. Thanks to you, I know more languages than I’ll ever have the chance to use in my lifetime. You spoke endlessly about good and evil—you painted yourselves as saints, but you all are far from that. I know the truth now. Your plan was to sacrifice me. That encounter—all of it—was a lie. I was nothing but a vessel to you.""And do you think you mean anything to him?" she asked, her g
My thoughts drifted to Ash. Could he have been stupid enough to come back here with Daemon present?Something told me Daemon wouldn’t be pleased about me seeing him behind his back.A small sense of relief washed over me when I realized the footsteps approaching weren’t from a man. There was something feminine, something familiar about them.It was Empress Julia.Of course, I would recognize the sound of her footsteps; I had spent over a decade of my life listening to them.Daemon seemed genuinely surprised. “How did you find this place?” he asked."I can't say. You see, it's a small secret, Trian—I guess that's the name you stole."Daemon’s eyes drifted from her face to the object she held in her hand: the Nexus Amulet. She had somehow gotten it out of the transparent glass container—perhaps that explained the noise that had alerted us we weren’t alone."Give it to me," Daemon all but growled."Tsk, tsk. Not so fast."Daemon looked like he was about to lunge for her."You won’t get t
I shouldn’t be thinking about Ash’s words, but I was. No matter how many times I tried to shove them out of my mind, they always found their way back."Dinner is served. Come eat," Daemon announced. Staring at him, I could almost forget that he was a demon; he just seemed so… human. But when you looked deeper into those dark blue eyes, that’s when you noticed something off—something that screamed predator.“I’m not hungry.”“That’s a lie. Come with me,” he said. I might be hungry, but I was in no mood to eat, yet I followed him. He had already dished out the food for me and, as usual, none for himself.“Thank you.” I muttered, taking a seat. The smoky scent of spiced grilled meat filled the air. On any other day, it would be enough to make my mouth water and my stomach rumble, but this time, I could barely force myself to eat more than a few small pieces.“Aliyah,” Daemon called, and I looked up at him. “I can make something else if you don’t like this.”“It’s not that. I’m just not h