THANE.I watched Riley; gods, she was in pain, she blamed herself for Jake's death. "Just… Get it out of me," she repeated."Riley, you didn't do this; it's the fault of the thing inside of you.""Is what I am. A ‘turned one’, I did this, Thane, and... what if it doesn't stop?""What do you mean?""What if the lust never seizes, even with the demon out?""He did say you would be able to control it.""What if he lied? Or what if I am different? I just can't… I can't hurt any other person. I have to be controlled, Thane.""You will be alright, Riley.""No. No, I won't be alright. Thane I can't…""You can't what?""I can't... stay in this pack; I can't hurt these innocent people. Nelly, Jake's sister, had died because of me, and now... I killed him too. Oh gods, what have I done? What would I tell his parents?" she muttered on, visibly shaking."You don't have to worry about anything; I have this under control.""No. You can't fix everything. I thought I could have a life with you; that
"I want to kiss you, Thane," she says."No, you don't.""But I do; you are just so... Charming and handsome; I should hate you for leaving me, and yet all I want to do is... kiss you."She was still in a haze. It would take a few minutes to pass."Oh, you do?" I asked with a smile."Yes, and I... want to do more things," she whispered, matching my tone."Things like what?""I like it when you touch me... and I also like Axel's touch too... I want to do things with the both of you."I couldn't help but chuckle at that."That's enough mind manipulation for one day." I said, rising to my feet.I could hear the footsteps approaching. Axel. I should prepare myself for a long, long lecture from him, one I did deserve.Just then Axel walked in.His eyes went to the body on the floor."Jake," he called as if we all didn't know that, and then his eyes met Riley. It didn't take him a while to figure it all out."She...did this?" He whispered as if in an attempt to keep Riley out of the conversa
RILEYI woke up to this strange sadness. I couldn't even remember why exactly I was sad, but then it might be the news about Jake's death. That must be it. Thinking about Jake made things worse; he was a good person; not everyone could forgive their own sibling's murderer, but he did, and now he is dead.I just didn't get it.Why did he have to leave the pack boundaries at that time of the night?I had finally made a decision, one I should have made a long time ago. Whatever was growing in me, I can't bring it into this world. Thane was right; it was no child, and many would die if the creature lives; that's if it actually survives in the end, by the rate things were going, I knew I wouldn't last long and usually the child dies when the mother does; I wonder if things would be different with a demon. Deep down, I was scared—what if it doesn't work?—what if I... die in the process?"The sorceress would be here anytime soon." Thane said to me, and I nodded."Thane, I want to ask you a
The thought of living for centuries was as dreadful as it was… appealing. What would it feel like to live as long as the elders?But the dreadful part was the loneliness that comes with eternal life; when you become too afraid to make bonds, because in the end they would all die. My gaze met Thane. He doesn't exactly age fast, and so I still have a lot of time to worry about that.I nodded to the sorceress. "Fine, I would go alone with your code or whatever it is.""Good. Now let's get to work.” She placed her bag on the table, taking out an empty glass container and then a smaller bottle, the bottle was the size of my pinky; it contained a thick black substance, and next, she brought forth a knife so sharp I was sure if I moved closer I could see my own reflection on it, and finally she brought out an ancient book."Is that... the book of spells?" Axel asked."Yes, it is," she answered with a small smile that states she didn't expect Axel to know anything about that.She poured some
His blood was different. I noticed it the first time I drank from him. Maybe it had to do with the fact that he was a Lycan; that explains the richness to the taste of his blood. I pulled away. "Well, that didn't go very bad." Axel commented with a smile. I wiped my lips. "Nick was right, I do have some control over the bloodlust." “At least that counts as the single truth he told.” Thane agreed, flexing his wrist, I watched as the puncture marks disappeared. “I need to go; you've got her?" Axel questioned, referring to me, and Thane gave a nod. Axel left, leaving the both of us alone. "Thank you." "For what?" Thane asked. "I had behaved so foolishly; I wonder why in the world I thought to protect that 'thing'." "It is not exactly your fault; you seem to really want a child," he says, as if he had just noticed that. "Thane, I think we should... forget everything that happened in the past and move on. I just don't want to waste the time I have with you, because I k
"What?" I questioned. "Where is she?""She had been waiting for a while, but you needed your rest."I knew exactly why she was here, and I wasn't ready for that yet. I wasn't ready to speak to her, yet I knew she had come all this way..."You could send her in.""Are you sure?" Axel asked, and I nodded."But could you do me a favour? Don't leave me alone with her.""Sure."I wasn't afraid of my mother, but I already knew how disappointed she would be. I just needed someone by my side..My mother walked into our room, a tight smile on her face. Axel followed next."Mom!" I called, walking towards her. I embraced her. I couldn't help but feel like the excitement was a little… forced. I was happy to see her, but her arrival made me feel a bit nervous, and now more than ever, she had every right to be disappointed in me."I've been so worried about you," she said, her eyes trailing down my body — maybe in search of injuries. "But I can see you are completely fine."Of course I was, the
I stared at my mother, surprised by her words. She knew about my split up with Nick and she thought it was ‘fine’?"So you aren't going to say anything... at all?" I questioned with a furrowed brow."Riley, what do you want me to say? It's your choice, and you've made it; nothing I say would change that.""Okay then." I said, rising to my feet; I couldn't shake this feeling of disappointment I felt at her response. "I'll escort you." "There won't be any need for that. I know my way around.""I know that, mother, wasn't it clear that I just needed to spend a few more minutes with you?""Like you care." She said bitterly. "I know what you want to hear; you want me to get angry at you for breaking off the marriage—the one good thing life has ever offered you; you want me to scream at you for going back to ‘him’ after everything, but I won't do that, and you know why?—because I am tired." Tears that she seemed to have held back streamed down her face. "I am so sick and tired of you, and
Axel had left after taking off my stitches. "You are healing up really nice," he commented with a smile. "Thank you, and I already feel perfectly fine."It was late in the night; Axel had already informed me that Thane would be back a bit late. There had been another attack, and many still believed the attacks were from this pack.I rose, putting on a robe, and headed to the balcony, enjoying the fresh air.My mother was the only family I had left. I wish I could tell her about Nick; he wasn't exactly a villain, but my mother had referred to him as the only 'good thing life offered me,' and she was wrong; if she knew the truth about him, she wouldn't think that. I wish I could open up and tell her everything; I wish I didn't have to lie, but now more than ever she didn't need to know the truth; she wanted to make a life for herself, and I was happy for her, but a part of me wasn't ready for all these. I needed someone there to shout at me when I was making the wrong step, and she wa
It had taken every ounce of willpower in me to return here.But if I was going to be his Luna, then the rules would have to change; I didn’t care who the hell he was.The soldiers escorted me to his chambers. He wasn’t alone. There were about a dozen men seated there, many of whom were middle-aged; they should be the ones people refer to as the king's 'advisors.’Alpha Ethan’s eyes settled on me.The scent was even stronger now, but I was going to rein in my wolf; I was in control, not her, and it's time she knew that. I had expected to see a smirk on his face; after all, he won. I was here because I had no other options, but his face remained unreadable, and maybe that’s one of the many things I found unsettling about him. I couldn’t read his emotions, and I was very good at that. I didn’t like surprises, but the man seated before me had a bottle filled with surprises, waiting and ready for me.“Leave, every one of you.” He ordered, and all the men rose and walked away, leaving me a
My father had told me countless times the story of when I was just a child, and he thought he was going to lose me, he had done everything in his power but it all failed and then he discovered the ‘healer’s lilies’, it healed me. Words could never fully capture what it feels like to stand on the edge of losing a loved one.I didn’t miss my mother much—I never had the chance to know her. She died giving birth to me. All that was left of her were only her pictures. Alpha Trent was a strong man; not many Alphas carry on after the loss of their mates, and yet he did.Now, the very same man I once believed was invincible, laid on his deathbed. I held in the tears because they were of no use. Crying never changes anything.“Kaida, I want you to know that I love you so very much. I know you will take care of this pack, even in my absence.”“I will.” I promised.“You met with the Alpha… I know he might seem…”I cut him off. “He is my mate.”“That… is very convenient.” He said with a small smi
That was it.I was done.Aric had been waiting for me, and as soon as he saw me, he quickly took off his suit and wrapped it around me. I felt like a fool.The moment we were both in the room and alone, he finally spoke up.“What happened?”"There’s not much to explain; it’s all right here," I say, gesturing to my torn clothes.“If he laid a finger on you, I’ll—”“You will what? He is the Alpha King; he is also very strong, and so there isn’t much any of us could do to him.”“Where are you going?”“Packing my stuff and leaving.” “What are you going to say to your father?” he asked.“I wanted to do this—for him, for the pack, but I can’t. The man is a monster; I cannot imagine sharing the same bed with him and his many… whores.I stuffed my things into the bag. I hadn’t brought a lot of things, and so in a few minutes I was packed.“Kaida, I don’t think you should leave now.” Aric says.“Why shouldn’t I?”“At least wait till the feast is over.”“Well, to hell with the etiquette and mo
Despite all the warning bells ringing in my head, I walked in and took a seat, just as he had requested of me. I didn’t know many things about this man, but one thing I knew for sure was that he was used to having his command being obeyed.“A drink?” he offered. Pouring me a glass of whiskey.“From where I come from, a girl does not drink.”“This is your home now; soon the Dawn pack will be no more, so get used to it.” He says, passing me the glass, I took it, but I didn’t drink.“You know, it is wrong to refuse a drink from the King.”“I do not drink, and if I will, it won’t be because you told me to.” I said, placing the glass down on the table.Those ruthless eyes pinned me down once more; I felt for my dagger once more.“I’ve heard a thing or two about you. The girl who aspired for greatness, you fought your way into that; you’ve gone to battles and never failed a mission. I admire that, but in this pack, you are just another girl; all you’ve built, everything dies with your pack.
“My mate, he is here.”“What?” Aric questioned. “How is that even possible?” “I don’t know, but he is here, I can feel it.”Just then, complete silence fell; all chatter ceased as The Alpha King rose to his feet. He was huge, clearly above six feet; he had sea blue eyes and brown hair, which he cut short into a buzz cut. His features were sharp, and maybe my father was right about one thing—the man before me didn’t look twenty-two years of age; he was no child; he was an Alpha in every sense of the word. The scent I had been perceiving, the one that made my heart pound, it was him.Fear was not something I had felt in years; I always liked to think of myself as fearless, but for the first time in a very long while, I was afraid. I was afraid of a man, the very man standing right before me.“He is my mate.” I whispered.“Who?” Aric asked.“The Alpha King.” I whispered back.As if he heard me, the Alpha King's eyes met mine. I wonder if he was feeling the same thing I felt; that was h
The room was just as elegant as everything in the Nightshade pack; it was bigger than my room back in the Dawn Pack. I spotted the dress on the bed. A flimsy thing. If it had been any other day, I would've been attending the Grand Feast in my leather pants and jacket—I hated parties and public gatherings, but that didn’t mean I wasn’t invited to a few back at my pack. I was the Alpha’s daughter; it was required of me. My father tried to force me into dresses more than once, but of course, I never did wear them. It was different now; this was not my pack, and here I was a stranger. Wearing my ‘usual’ clothing would only make me stick out in the crowd.I didn’t want that, but that didn’t mean I would wear the dress he had picked out for me. “It will be amusing to see you in a dress.” Aric said, a smirk playing on his lips.“I’ll be in a dress alright, but just not this one.”“Rebellious as always, let’s hope the Alpha King doesn’t notice.” He said with a smile.“I really don’t give a d
It was time, I would have to pay a visit to the Nightshade pack. Beta Aric was nowhere to be found.I stopped in the courtroom to inform my father that I was leaving, but I noticed he wasn’t alone, Aric was there too. I stopped by the entrance, they hadn’t noticed me and so I hid away from view.“You are marrying her to the Alpha King?” Aric asked, this was indeed the first time I had heard him question the Alpha.“Yes, my daughter will marry the Alpha King.”“You know that’s not where she belongs.”“I will be having no discussion over this matter, it is already settled and done.”“You know who he is…”My father cut Aric off. “He is ruthless, every powerful Alpha is, fear is sometimes power.”“The Blackwood lineage is a powerful one, but it’s cursed – that’s what I think. How else would you explain the mysterious deaths? Slade had been killed by his own son, Thane who wanted the throne – there had been other rumours too, that Freya, his mate, had actually been the one behind his deat
Kaida’s POVWith each passing day, I couldn't help but wonder if I'd made a mistake, if I'd doomed myself with my own words—but it was too late to turn back now. I had never met Alpha Ethan before. Though we were neighboring packs, my father and the beta had always been the one going for the meetings, I didn’t do well with meetings and parties and maybe my father was right. Being an Alpha was about more than just being a warrior.I got dressed in my usual clothing, leather pants matched with a black leather jacket and a glove to cover my missing pinkie finger. Had I forgotten to mention that some little 'accident' had cost me a finger? As if that flaw wasn't enough, my body was also marked with a number of scars, so while I had always despised wearing fancy gowns and pretty little dresses, it did make sense why I had to cover up.The men carried their scars with pride, like it was some kind of proof of how fierce they were; scars on a woman had a completely different representation;
PROLOGUE.Kaida’s POVI was not like the other girls; I knew that even as a little child. My father had found it strange that a girl of my age was more interested in watching the pack warriors train rather than playing with toys like the other kids her age did at the pack.I had one dream, and though it may sound impossible, I held onto it. I believed that I could one day become an… Alpha. The first Female Alpha.My father had no male child to inherit his title and take his place, and so each day, I trained to be the best at everything. I was twenty and five years of age and yet to find my mate. To be honest, I hadn’t even been searching for him—whoever he was; on the contrary, I dreaded finding my mate, because that would only bring an end to my dream of becoming an Alpha. I believed it was all fate pointing me in the right direction; this was my destiny.That had been what I thought until everything changed right before my eyes..My father, Alpha Trent, of the Dawn pack, summoned