~Alerion~I was in the wrong place at the right time. That was the only explanation. I wasn’t following her. I wasn’t looking for her. I was just... there. Walking. Thinking. Telling myself I didn’t care where she was or who she was with. And then I heard it. A struggle for life. A sharp gasp. My body reacted before my brain did. My wolf grew reckless, muscles tensing, instincts screaming one thing.Protect her. The moment I saw her, my stomach twisted. She was fighting, but she was losing. For the first time in my life, I felt something I never wanted to feel. Panic. A sick, helpless kind of fear that turned my blood to ice. I hated it. I fucking hated it. And I was going to make them pay for it. The fight was over before it even began. I moved through them like a blade through flesh. Quick. Brutal. Relentless. By the time the last one fell, my breathing was steady, my heart still hammering but I wasn’t afraid anymore. I was angry. Valeria was staring at me, wide-eyed,
~Valeria~The guilt was eating me alive.I wasn’t the one who called Landon. I wasn’t the one who embarrassed him. But I was the reason it happened.Maybe that’s why Alerion’s words wouldn’t stop echoing in my head.I exhaled sharply and pulled out my phone.I hesitated for a second, my thumb hovering over the call button. Then, before I could talk myself out of it, I pressed it.He answered almost immediately.“Val?” His voice was deep, groggy, like he had just woken up. And damn, it was the kind of voice that could make any girl weak in the knees.I swallowed. “Hey… are you busy?”There was a pause. Then a lazy chuckle. “Well, I am now.”Despite everything, a small smile tugged at my lips.“I..uh, I’m sorry for disturbing you.”“I can never see you as a burden, Val.” His voice was soft, sincere.And just like that, my heart did a stupid little flip.His words made me even more guilty because he was the sweetest guy ever and I just had to make him look bad with my selfish actions.Cl
~Valeria~The thing with rumors? They never really die. You can suppress them with facts but some people would never accept the truth. They would rather eat me up with their eyes and mutter insults in disgust. And right now? I just wanted the ground to swallow me from this walk of disgrace.I knew appearing in school would be the biggest mistake but I didn’t expect the silence. I thought they would throw crumpled papers at my head, laugh in my face or mutter curses but they didn’t.Not even a single whisper as I passed, just eyes, so many damn eyes watching me like I had their favorite soap opera on my face.Honestly, it was worse than the gossip. At least when people talked, I could pretend I didn’t care but not now.“Just keep walking.” Lysander muttered beside me, jolting me back to the reality that he was here.I did keep walking, head high, spine straight like a model like I hadn’t read half the school calling me every single name under the sun on social media last night.Slut.
~Valeria~If there was a world record for how fast someone’s life could go to hell thrice in a row, I was pretty sure I’d just broken it.I thought everyone went back to paying attention at Amanda but she doubled her game and it made it even worst with the scandals.School had become a torture ground and I dreaded the weekdays badly.Even teachers looked at me with disgust and made snide comments about my grades dropping low.“If you focused more on school than boys, you wouldn’t have an F on your maths test.” Mr. Collins said as I approached him in his office about my scores.Right there, my breathing went shallow and I was close to passing out from the drum of insults loaded on me.I expected them to know better. I wasn’t skipping classes to make out under the bleachers. I was suffocating under the pressure of deadlines, assignments and soul crushing comments and drags on my social media.But it didn’t matter to them to stop and think for a second that I was the victim here.Swallow
~Valeria~“You need a break from that shithole they call an academy,” Landon said the moment I answered the FaceTime call. His face filled my screen, seeming more upset over the stories he had heard of my suffering. I sighed, shifting against my pillows. “Unless you have a magic wand to make everyone shut up, I don’t see how that’s possible.”Landon leaned back against what looked like an expensive leather chair. “Actually,” he drawled, “I’ve got something even better.”I raised a brow. “And that is?”“There’s a gala this weekend—high-end, exclusive, the kind of event that could actually do you some good.”I hesitated. The idea of walking into a room full of powerful strangers, pretending I belonged, made my stomach twist.“I don’t know, Lan…”He tilted his head. “Come on, Val. Think of it as a chance to network. Expand your circle. Show people you’re more than the rumors.”I bit my lip, still unconvinced. “I’d rather stay home and study with Caius.”“Study? Come on, Val.”“There wil
~Valeria~You know that moment when you're stuck between the Devil and the deep blue sea, and neither option looks pretty? Yeah, that was me.Zane was heading straight for me, eyes dark with anger, jaw tight, walking trouble disguised as charmfor naive little girls. My instinct pinched me to take the nearest exit, but that would only make things worse.So I stood gracefully, glancing around to see if anyone else had noticed the raging tornado that had just entered the room.Caius must have noticed but he didn’t budge and I didn’t expect him to.“Zane, what a surprise.” My lips curled into something resembling a smile, but my teeth were clenched. “Didn’t expect to see you here.”If his eyes could shoot fire, I’d be ashes by now. He didn’t say a word but his eyes howled a thousand things I could understand. A few people were already staring and my heart raced from being the center of attraction in a bad way.Without caring at all for his image or mine, Zane grabbed me by the arm and dr
Valeria POVI am now Alpha Cassian’s stepdaughter not just that, I also have four hot, dangerously sexy step-brothers – the kind of hotness that will make your pulse race just by standing in the same room with name and leave a wet patch in between your legs. Me… a girl who has been an only child all my life. It has just been me and my mommy and I loved the arrangement. I loved that I could not share her with someone else but my mother fell in love and although I know I have no say in her choices, I just wished she had chosen another species... maybe a human and not a werewolf.So, here I am, standing on the Private tarmac of the Red Ridge Pack Airport, waiting for a crew to hand us our luggage. Well, my step-father was not only a powerful Alpha, but he was also wealthy and had sent a private jet to pick up me and Mom.“Thank you!” my mother murmured gratefully to the Porter who finished loading all of our luggage as we turned and followed behind him.My mother glanced at her phone. “
Valeria POVThe pale morning light filtered through my curtains, casting a soft glow across my room. I lay in bed, motionless. The events of the previous night playing on repeat in my mind like a nightmare.The lingering scent of blood, Alerion’s icy gaze and the way his hand had wrapped around my throat – teased into my mind afresh hanging like a heavy cloud. I had barely slept, every creak kept me on the edge, as if something or someone could be lurking at the corner of my room, waiting for the perfect moment to strangle me in my sleep.I had to tell my mother – at least. Whatever Alerion and his family were doing it had to be illegal right?My hands hovered over my phone, fingers trembling as I considered calling my mother, after a moment’s hesitation. I dialed her number and had almost given up that she wouldn’t pick up when she answered.“Hey, sweetheart, good morning.” She said breezily.“Mom!” I started without a preamble “There’s something I want to tell you. Last night…”“Hol
~Valeria~You know that moment when you're stuck between the Devil and the deep blue sea, and neither option looks pretty? Yeah, that was me.Zane was heading straight for me, eyes dark with anger, jaw tight, walking trouble disguised as charmfor naive little girls. My instinct pinched me to take the nearest exit, but that would only make things worse.So I stood gracefully, glancing around to see if anyone else had noticed the raging tornado that had just entered the room.Caius must have noticed but he didn’t budge and I didn’t expect him to.“Zane, what a surprise.” My lips curled into something resembling a smile, but my teeth were clenched. “Didn’t expect to see you here.”If his eyes could shoot fire, I’d be ashes by now. He didn’t say a word but his eyes howled a thousand things I could understand. A few people were already staring and my heart raced from being the center of attraction in a bad way.Without caring at all for his image or mine, Zane grabbed me by the arm and dr
~Valeria~“You need a break from that shithole they call an academy,” Landon said the moment I answered the FaceTime call. His face filled my screen, seeming more upset over the stories he had heard of my suffering. I sighed, shifting against my pillows. “Unless you have a magic wand to make everyone shut up, I don’t see how that’s possible.”Landon leaned back against what looked like an expensive leather chair. “Actually,” he drawled, “I’ve got something even better.”I raised a brow. “And that is?”“There’s a gala this weekend—high-end, exclusive, the kind of event that could actually do you some good.”I hesitated. The idea of walking into a room full of powerful strangers, pretending I belonged, made my stomach twist.“I don’t know, Lan…”He tilted his head. “Come on, Val. Think of it as a chance to network. Expand your circle. Show people you’re more than the rumors.”I bit my lip, still unconvinced. “I’d rather stay home and study with Caius.”“Study? Come on, Val.”“There wil
~Valeria~If there was a world record for how fast someone’s life could go to hell thrice in a row, I was pretty sure I’d just broken it.I thought everyone went back to paying attention at Amanda but she doubled her game and it made it even worst with the scandals.School had become a torture ground and I dreaded the weekdays badly.Even teachers looked at me with disgust and made snide comments about my grades dropping low.“If you focused more on school than boys, you wouldn’t have an F on your maths test.” Mr. Collins said as I approached him in his office about my scores.Right there, my breathing went shallow and I was close to passing out from the drum of insults loaded on me.I expected them to know better. I wasn’t skipping classes to make out under the bleachers. I was suffocating under the pressure of deadlines, assignments and soul crushing comments and drags on my social media.But it didn’t matter to them to stop and think for a second that I was the victim here.Swallow
~Valeria~The thing with rumors? They never really die. You can suppress them with facts but some people would never accept the truth. They would rather eat me up with their eyes and mutter insults in disgust. And right now? I just wanted the ground to swallow me from this walk of disgrace.I knew appearing in school would be the biggest mistake but I didn’t expect the silence. I thought they would throw crumpled papers at my head, laugh in my face or mutter curses but they didn’t.Not even a single whisper as I passed, just eyes, so many damn eyes watching me like I had their favorite soap opera on my face.Honestly, it was worse than the gossip. At least when people talked, I could pretend I didn’t care but not now.“Just keep walking.” Lysander muttered beside me, jolting me back to the reality that he was here.I did keep walking, head high, spine straight like a model like I hadn’t read half the school calling me every single name under the sun on social media last night.Slut.
~Valeria~The guilt was eating me alive.I wasn’t the one who called Landon. I wasn’t the one who embarrassed him. But I was the reason it happened.Maybe that’s why Alerion’s words wouldn’t stop echoing in my head.I exhaled sharply and pulled out my phone.I hesitated for a second, my thumb hovering over the call button. Then, before I could talk myself out of it, I pressed it.He answered almost immediately.“Val?” His voice was deep, groggy, like he had just woken up. And damn, it was the kind of voice that could make any girl weak in the knees.I swallowed. “Hey… are you busy?”There was a pause. Then a lazy chuckle. “Well, I am now.”Despite everything, a small smile tugged at my lips.“I..uh, I’m sorry for disturbing you.”“I can never see you as a burden, Val.” His voice was soft, sincere.And just like that, my heart did a stupid little flip.His words made me even more guilty because he was the sweetest guy ever and I just had to make him look bad with my selfish actions.Cl
~Alerion~I was in the wrong place at the right time. That was the only explanation. I wasn’t following her. I wasn’t looking for her. I was just... there. Walking. Thinking. Telling myself I didn’t care where she was or who she was with. And then I heard it. A struggle for life. A sharp gasp. My body reacted before my brain did. My wolf grew reckless, muscles tensing, instincts screaming one thing.Protect her. The moment I saw her, my stomach twisted. She was fighting, but she was losing. For the first time in my life, I felt something I never wanted to feel. Panic. A sick, helpless kind of fear that turned my blood to ice. I hated it. I fucking hated it. And I was going to make them pay for it. The fight was over before it even began. I moved through them like a blade through flesh. Quick. Brutal. Relentless. By the time the last one fell, my breathing was steady, my heart still hammering but I wasn’t afraid anymore. I was angry. Valeria was staring at me, wide-eyed,
~Valeria~I thought I was about to die.It wasn’t even dramatic or some slow-motion, life-flashing-before-my-eyes kind of moment. One second, I was fighting, throwing every last bit of strength into getting away, and the next, I was outnumbered, overpowered, and completely screwed.And then he showed up.Alerion.It happened so fast, I barely had time to register it. One second, the rogue in front of me was lunging, fangs bared, hands ready to grab me, and the next… Snap. A sickening crunch echoed through the alley as the rogue’s body crumpled to the ground.For a second, everything went still. Then the others turned to him, instinctively backing up, their fight-or-flight instincts kicking in too late.Because Alerion was already moving.And he didn’t just fight them;; he slaughtered them.I’d seen him covered in blood before. That first night when I saw him walk into the house, his shirt torn, hands stained with crimson red. I thought maybe it was from some typical Alpha bullshit,
~Valeria~I wasn’t sure if I could call it a date. Landon and I had already finalized that we wouldn’t be doing any of that, but that didn’t mean we couldn’t still hang out.And honestly? It was kind of nice having someone to talk to without all the baggage that came with my usual life.I didn’t have to walk on eggshells around him and that was my favorite part.I took a sip of my drink, swirling the straw slowly as I glanced at him. “You know, I think this is the longest I’ve ever willingly spent time with someone from your pack or any other pack to be honest.”Landon chuckled, his eyes twinkling with delight as he leaned against the booth. “I’ll take that as a compliment.”“You most definitely should…” I said, smirking. “I don’t really…do people.”“Oh, trust me, I noticed.”“And I was starting to feel proud that I got to be one of the chosen ones.” He winked at me.I playfully rolled my eyes but I didn’t deny it. He was t wrong at all. Most people were either a nightmare or a leech
~Caius~Valeria sat across from me, her brows creased in frustration as she tapped the eraser of her pencil against her notebook. My eyes couldn’t help but stay glued to the way she bit her lower lip, deep in concentration. For a moment, I forgot why I was even here, wondering what she would think when she noticed how closely I was watching her. “Focus,” she muttered to herself, her eyes scanning the page.I smirked. “You know, talking to yourself won’t magically provide a solution to the equation.”She fired me a glare before huffing and leaning back in her chair. “I’m really trying, you know, but this is just boring.”“Math has never been fun; you just have to get used to it.” “That’s how you put your head in the game and pass.” I advised.She rolled her eyes, but before she could give a response, the door opened. “Valeria,” Evelyn’s voice interrupted, her eyes roving between us.Valeria tensed, straightening in her chair. “Yes?”That was strange. She always addressed her with