I woke up in a dark, unfamiliar room. The first thing I noticed was that I had been tied to a bed. The place smelled familiar, but I couldn’t place it all. I tried clearing off my foggy mind and remembering all that had happened and why I was here, the harsh memories flooded in—the blood, the brutality, the danger. It all flooded back in.Where was I?There was a figure in the darkness; I could tell. The room was dark, but there was a dim light illuminating the wide space.“Who is there?” I questioned, and the figure walked closer, close enough that I could see all his features and every single detail of his body. The blood wasn’t there anymore, but that didn’t make him any less scary. Thane stood before me, his eyes still those dark orbs they had been in the judgment room. Was he going to harm me? There was another figure seated on the couch, one I didn’t notice earlier. Axel.“Where am I?”“Where do you think?”“Let me go.”"No,” Thane responded.“How could you do that to them?”“Th
I was fifty shades of freaking red.Axel was gentle; the movement of his hands around my clit was just as gentle. I didn’t want to think about what was happening, how close he was, or what he was doing to me.And he watched me squirm beneath his gentle touch. I let out a silent gasp when his lips circled around my aching nipple.A moan left my lips. Axel: I had cried out his name; how could this feel all wrong and yet so right?Two fingers dipped into me, and I moaned louder, struggling against the bind, riding my hips against his fingers, chasing his thrust. Axel watched my body; he watched the effect of what he did to me and how my heat pooled around his fingers, taking him in, and then he was out of me.I couldn’t imagine how lost I had been. My gaze travelled back to Thane, who watched me greedily. The lust darkened his eyes. What type of bond did Thane share with Axel? Axel held something in his hands: two dark-coloured balls, with a string connecting both of them.“Look at him,
I must have blacked out at some point, because I was back in our room and I didn’t recall walking my way here.I felt numb down there; I was sore too, and I wasn’t alone. Axel sat there, staring at me. I looked away almost immediately. I was finally clear of the high I felt and now I was totally red, and my mind wouldn’t stop replaying all that had happened—how he had touched me everywhere.“How are you feeling?” he asked, his eyes never leaving mine.“I’m fine—well, not fine considering I can’t walk—but...” I rambled on.His chuckle gave me a pause, and I swallowed nervously. Could the earth just swallow me already?“I guess you are still surprised.” he questioned. Surprise was not quite the word.“It did feel surreal,” I admitted. “Please don’t tell me to look you in the eyes; I can’t handle that now,” I admitted, knowing he was about to say that. Axel loved seeing me embarrassed.“It was a surreal moment for me too,” Axel says.“Is this normal? I mean you two...” I couldn’t say th
“Thane is on his way here; I should leave,” Axel said to me. I wasn’t expecting Thane; it was nowhere close to the time of his usual return. But just as Axel had said, Thane walked in.“How is she?” he asked Axel, shrugging off his suit as if I were not in the room.“She just needs more rest,” Axel said, and I felt like there was some hidden message he was trying to pass on to Thane that I wasn’t getting.“I don’t need any more rest; I've been sleeping for hours,” I piped in, and Thane smirked at that.Axel stood, leaving us alone. It was strange that being alone with Thane was just scarier.“You let Axel have sex with me?” It was more of a statement than a question.“Yes, does it bother you?” He asked, watching me. “You seem close to him, and he would never hurt you,” Thane said, joining me on the bed.Does it bother me? The weirdness of it all bothers me, but apart from that, did it really bother me? , No, not really."Is just... some Alpha wolves get possessive, and others...”“Der
The dress Thane had picked out for me wasn’t that bad. Though it revealed my back and threatened to go lower, the front was decent enough, exposing a little of my cleavage. The green dress had two slender straps and a deep slit. It was beautiful.Thane walked in, already fully dressed; of course, he didn’t need much to look as spectacular as he did now."Sit,” he says, pointing at the chair, and I take my seat, knowing if I don't, there will be consequences.He selected a large diamond necklace with matching earrings, and he put them on me. I didn’t miss his hands lingering on my neck longer than supposed. But he hadn’t stopped there; he had proceeded with my hair. It was indeed a surprise; one would never expect a man like Thane to have the patience required to learn hair styling.“How did you learn how to do this?” I asked, staring at the mirror. My hair was in an updo, and I was sure I had never looked this beautiful.“I did this for my mother a few times,” he admitted, but there w
Alpha Slade and his mate’s seats remained empty.“I need to go to the restroom” I said to Thane.“Axel can go with you.”“I can go on my own,” I say, my cheeks reddening. I didn’t think he should worry about any attack, not after the example he had set for the others. I noticed how the other pack members seemed to keep a good distance from me; they were all afraid of coming too close and I couldn’t blame them.Thane wasn’t happy about my choice, and I was very sure he would come looking for me if I took more than a few minutes. But I wasn’t planning on returning; after all that happened today, I just needed to go back to the room and shut everyone else out.It was only going to be six months. I reminded myself.I knew the way back to our room, and I had made sure to study the routes we had followed when coming here, I wasn’t about to get lost again.I exited the hall, very aware of the stares boring into me."Luna,” a female who had been leaning against the wall, called; of course, it
“How dare you disrespect me?” Slade roars, “I put a roof over your head and food in your fucking mouth. I bought you all you need, and this is how you repay me, bitch! You disrespect me!”Slade lifted the whip again, but this time I dove before Freya. He had seen me; he knew I walked in; he could have stopped the whip from hitting me, but there was a curve on his lips as the whip landed against my waist, circling itself up my ribs, very close to my cleavage. The pain was unlike any I had ever seen, and I fell to the ground, letting out a loud cry, my hands wrapping around my abdomen.Just then, he walked in.I could tell it was Thane even before the deep ear-splitting roar escaped his lips.I looked up just in time to see Thane collide against his father. Slade hadn’t been expecting the attack. Thane’s claw slashed into his father’s neck.He was vibrating, almost like he couldn’t stand on his feet, and then he switched into his wolf form. Slade was quick to switch, too. But I could te
“What do you mean?” I cried out.“Slade is not just his father; he is the Alpha King. Thane had just done the forbidden, all for you. He would have to suffer the consequences.”My breath came out fast. I shouldn’t have stepped in. Why did I always make matters worse?"Riley,” Freya called, and I looked at her with teary eyes. “Thank you,” she said, and for a moment her features softened. “But sometimes doing the right thing is not always right. Being naive would only bring you to an end.”“I couldn’t just close my ears to that; what kind of person would that make me?”“A person that survives and stays alive. Do you think a few others hadn’t at some point witnessed my punishment?” She questioned me, and I had no answer to that. If she had people who really loved her, then why did they do nothing? How could they allow this? But again, I had to remind myself that Thane never did step in.“I’m sorry, I...” I sobbed silently. I had made a very big mistake, and I knew it. I didn’t miss the f
ALIYA’S POVThe man standing before me was all I could think about. Sometimes he stares at me, as if trying to figure something out, then looks away. I thought about how it felt like being completely naked with Trian, alone, free.“May I ask a question?”“Of course!” I said a little too quickly. “Sorry. Yes, you may.”“Was it your first kiss?” Trian asked.I stared up at him and gave a nod. “You should have already guessed that; it’s no secret that I have never been with a man.”“Being with a man and kissing a man are two different things, Aliya.”“I liked it,” I said, shielding my face with my hair to hide the blush on my cheeks.“I can’t possibly imagine how you feel, with all your daily activities arranged out for you, so many fucking rules.”“I hate it. The more I think about it, the more I hate it, so I stopped thinking about it. I made myself believe this was home, and then it felt better, bearable even. But then I went out there, and I was reminded of all the things I’ve been m
“This is unacceptable!” Austin says. “Even though rogues are not familiar with customs and traditions, it is common sense not to attack on burial grounds.”“One of our commanders was killed.” Aric said. “It’s clear the rogues want a war.”We were all seated with the council of advisors; Alexander hadn’t said a word since the meeting began.The Dawn pack members would be devastated to hear about Gadiel’s death.“I say we give them what they want; I say we go to war.” Stark says, and some nodded in approval.“War? The rogues have the numbers, and we all know that many will die.” Seth, another of the advisors said.“They asked for it,” Austin says.“They hadn’t come into our lands, Alpha. The attack was at the Dawn’s Pack.” Seth said, he gave me a quick glance before looking away.“The Dawn Pack is now part of our pack, and the attack was aimed at my Luna, my Commander, and me. But I don’t think it’s wise to go to war. I doubt the rogue leaders are aware of this attack; perhaps those rog
I stared at my father’s lifeless body from the casket he had been placed in. He looked very much the same as he always had—the worry lines on his face were gone, and he seemed to be at peace. Alexander tightened his grip on my hands, comfortingly.All the members of the Dawn Pack were present, and even some from the Nightshade Pack.“We gather to mourn the loss of a great man—a father to us all, an Alpha. Death truly is vile; it renders even the greatest helpless. He was taken from us too soon; only the goddess knows the reason. Though he is dead, his legacy lives on. Dawn will never forget him; I will never forget him.” Gadiel finished. He was once Chief Commander of the Dawn Pack’s soldiers, I didn’t know the position he held in the Nightshade pack. It was my turn to speak before the pack; it was my turn to comfort them; I didn’t think I could do it. There was a moment of complete silence. I looked up at Alexander, and he nodded at me; somehow that was motivation enough.“My father
I managed to force down a few spoonfuls of food; I couldn’t take more than that. After a quick bath, I joined Alexander on the bed.Two hours passed, and I still couldn’t sleep. I lay there, staring at the ceiling.“I could get you a sleeping pill from the healers, it should help you sleep.” Alexander suggested.“I don’t think a pill would work this time,” I said. “Every time I close my eyes, I see this woman—the same one I saw in my nightmare, the one who killed my father.”“Your father died from an illness.”“Do you believe that? Don’t you find it all strange?”“I do. I find it very strange. I sent Aric to search the pack house for anything he could find, but the one person who might have a clue about this is your father.”“And he is dead.” I completed his sentence. “Maybe you are right; maybe it was just an illness, and I am overthinking.”“It’s never a bad thing to be suspicious,” Alexander said. “Now, try to get some sleep.”After a few minutes of trying, I finally fell into a dr
KAIDA POVAlexander had never once talked about his parents. I had always wanted to know, but seeing the pain in his eyes, I could understand why he kept it all to himself.“You don’t have to talk about it if you are not ready.”“You deserve to know.I’ve heard so many good stories about Luna Riley, my mother, and even more about the last Lycan, Alpha Thane. But I never saw it. My father loved my mother so dearly, even when she was turned. She would have died if not for a sorceress who brought her back—as a demon. I could still remember her cold skin; she always wanted me close to her; she always wanted to carry me around like a mother would her child, but she couldn’t.Demons get weakened by the sun, so she had to be locked away in her room, but that wasn’t the only reason she was being locked away. Demons have a strong thirst for blood; sometimes the pack members go missing. Every time she ‘mistakenly’ kills a person, she cries day and night. She knew that having her child with her
ALEXANDER’S POVKaida was never one to admit her feelings—especially not when they made her look weak. But back at the bar, she did. She admitted her jealousy; she admitted what she felt for me. And right then and there, I swore to myself to be loyal to her. I wanted her happy; I loved seeing her smile, but everything changed too soon when the news of her father's death reached us.She wouldn’t speak. She wouldn’t eat. She wouldn’t even sleep. And for the first time, I saw her cry. She mourned for her father, and all I wanted to do was take away her pain.Aric sat with me in my office. “The healer who had been present when he died said he had fallen into a strange coma some days before he passed. The only sign of life had been his beating heart,” Aric said.“Alpha Trent knew he was going to die; that’s why he made all the necessary arrangements. Still, I believe his illness is indeed very strange; all illnesses have their cause, but Alpha Trent’s didn’t.”“Maybe it was more than just
Trian led me away from the old creepy woman. “I did tell you that fortune tellers are liars.”“But she seemed to know a lot about me.”"From your skin tone, anyone could tell you aren’t an Aureonna by birth. The majority of the population here comes from all over the world, bound by the 'Purifying Ritual.' She’s a good guesser, but there’s nothing special about that, and you don’t have to worry about anything she says. She is a hungry woman, looking for her daily bread."“She would be rich with all those gold coins—where did you get them?”“I was an orphan, but not a poor one. I found my way around things and also built myself some good fortune.”“Then why are you here?”“Money is not the answer to everything. I am here because I want to be, not because I need the money.”“Where are we going?” I asked, realizing they were fewer people the further we went."Wait and see," he said with a smile that made my stomach flutter. We stopped before a lake.“I never knew there was a Lake in this
I looked around, taking in the crowd—more people than I had ever seen. A smile spread across my lips, the incident with the soldiers at the exit already long forgotten.Trian took my hands again; his were huge and rough—just as I imagined a warrior's hands to be. He led me into the thick of Aureonna’s city; people stared—especially women, but the stares weren’t directed at me, but at Trian."What is that?" I asked, pointing to a group of people gathered nearby. They seemed to be laughing at something."It's a play, a drama.""I want to see it."“Of course.”We weaved through the crowd of excited people, until we reached the front row.A woman with a silver wig sat on a make-shift throne; her skin seemed to have been painted white. The other woman by her side had a blonde wig on. It took me a moment to realize this was a drama about me—the woman in the silver wig was meant to be me, while the one in the blonde wig was portraying Empress Julia."Soon, you will lead us to victory. The fa
About five minutes passed, and there was still no sign of her.“Empress!” I called out. “Empress…”Just then, she broke through the surface. Her face looked different—youthful. She had entered the pool looking to be in her forties, but when she emerged, she appeared to be in her late twenties.“Empress, you look…”“Beautiful, magnificent… I know.”“How?”“The water, many believe the god of light once bathed in these waters; it’s called the Lake of Youth—It was once bigger than this, but, well, this is all that remains of it.”She put on her clothes..“It was like time had reversed, and she was given her youth again.” I said to Trian when we were back in my room.“It seems to me that you would like to take a dip in the Lake of Youth one day.”“Of course, not… the Empress would never let me.”“You fear the Empress like she is a god.”“She is a powerful woman.”“I agree, not many men alive could build a community as big as this one. But have you ever thought about how exciting it would