Selene continued, “You and your mate will be able to combine your powers to help your warriors defeat the witches.
“There are also a couple other packs who want to take Onyx and you for their own benefit.
“Depending on the alpha’s choices and your pack’s success in preventing his warriors from going back, you will only have up to one year to prepare for that war.
“It’s hard to tell with one of them. He’s not the brightest of my children and he is very unpredictable. I would give him a second chance mate, but he is a very cruel man too. He has been slowly turning feral since his mate was killed ten years ago. I’m afraid I’m going to have to take his wolf from him soon. His wolf does not deserve this.
“The other alpha is just a very greedy man and always has been. He rejected his mate in order to take a chosen mate for more power.
“He is also very cruel to the omegas in the pack. You may have less time to prepare for him. Alpha Kenny is doing the right thing by keeping warriors around your house and with you.”
I started biting the inside of my cheek as I started thinking about everything she was saying.
I finally sighed, “I will try to trust the mate bond, but I am putting more trust in you. I know you will not lead me down a wrong path. I’ve always known that. But sometimes, I need more than just subtle hints to guide me. Sometimes I need a slap upside the head. Can you just keep in touch with me and let me know if I’m starting to stray off course?”
She laughed, “If you just listen to Onyx, she will keep you on track. Until then, trust your gut. You have very good instincts. When you are in doubt, ask Alpha Kenny or Luna Kyra. They will help you.”
I smiled, “Thank you for coming back. How do I use the mind reading ability?”
She explained, “All you have to do is relax and concentrate on listening. You should practice during the interrogations tomorrow. It will help you and your Alpha.”
I nodded, “I’ll do that. Thank you.”
Selene smiled, “You should rest now. You will have an eventful day tomorrow as you learn your new ability.”
When I woke up at my normal time, it felt like I hadn’t slept at all.
I got out of bed and got ready for my run. I poured a cup of coffee and sat at my kitchen island.
When it was time to meet my friends, I walked out the door and locked it, then greeted the warriors outside as I waited for them to approach.
As they walked to my house, I noticed Isaac was with them. As they got close, I looked at Isaac, “I need to be at the interrogations today.”
Isaac’s eyes looked like his pupils blew out.
I laughed, “Chill. We got to finish our conversation. I can’t talk about it out here.”
Isaac nodded, “Good idea. Are we telling them?”
I answered, “Not right now, but we will.”
We finished stretching as I watched Isaac mind link his dad.
He asked, “Dad wants to know why.”
I answered, “Just tell him I will talk to him about it later.”
Isaac sighed, “He’s not happy to have to wait, but he’s going to.”
I nodded, “Thanks. There is a lot more to talk about too. A LOT more.”
He just shook his head, “Nothing is ever easy with you. Is it?”
I chuckled, “Welcome to my life.”
I noticed his face suddenly looked a little dazed, then it disappeared. I couldn’t help but wonder what that was about.
He then turned back and laughed, “Who is ready to start?”
Everyone raised their hands and I sighed, “We will be having company on our runs for a while. I had more intruders last night. They were looking for me. So, we will be accompanied by a couple guards for a while.”
Wendy asked, “Are you ever going to catch a break?”
I laughed, “Not in the foreseeable future. At least not that I can tell.”
Paula, the philosopher of our group, laughed, “Nothing that comes easy is ever appreciated.”
I shrugged, “I would really prefer to get a few things easily.”
Kari asked, “Do the warriors know about twenty-mile day?”
I shrugged, “Not sure. I should tell them about it.”
Chrystal giggled, “No! Don’t tell them!”
I laughed, “I have to. I wouldn’t want anyone pulling that on me. I’d be so pissed!”
Mandy agreed, “I think you’re right. Remember, ladies, we are training to be warriors as well. Would you want someone to do that to you?”
They all got quiet when Wendy clapped her hands, “Okay, everyone, let’s go!”
As we ran, I couldn’t help but notice a lot more activity around us than usual. But, then again, I may not have been paying attention before I became the focus of several attacks.
Even the small animals made me flinch, which really pissed me off and made Wendy laugh.
I also started feeling so happy that the friends I have are the best kind.
They were sticking with me and continuing to run knowing that I was the target of the attacks.
After a five-mile run, we all went to my house and I took a bunch of biscuit dough out of the freezer.
I arranged them on a baking sheet and took some sausage gravy that I had already mixed up and put it in the microwave to heat. That’s for all of my friends.
After finishing eating, I took a deep, calming breath and cringed, “I have something to tell you all and you are going to freak out. Please don’t act all weird after I tell you. Okay?”
Everyone furrowed their brows and agreed and I continued, “This cannot leave this house. I swear. If it gets out, I will be kidnapped by another pack.”
Everyone gasped and Isaac’s head whipped around to face me.
I took a deep breath and started, “The goddess gave me an ability last night. I can read minds.”
Everyone gasped again and I continued, “I would not read your thoughts without your permission. I trust you all. I wouldn’t have told you this if I hadn’t. Trust me.”
Then I turned to Isaac, “The Goddess wants me to use it during the interrogations.”
Isaac laughed, “We will definitely need you there.”
Suddenly, Chrystal asked, “Are you going to practice?”
I smiled, “Actually, the one that I will want to practice will be after I shift. I will have elemental magic and the ability to control minds.”
Chrystal smiled, “That would be helpful. I wonder if you could get good enough to control an army?”
I shrugged, “I might. I just need to start small and keep expanding it.”
Paula added, “But we can’t let this get out of the pack. Do you all know how valuable that ability would be to any alpha? Especially the tyrants! Zariah could be in real danger.”
Isaac corrected, “She was in danger before we knew about her abilities. She has had her house broken into twice now by men who were looking for her with orders to bring her back alive.”
I held up my hands, “Let’s just stay calm and take this one day at a time.
“I appreciate your concern for me, but Alpha and Luna are working with me on all of this. I don’t want to put any of you in danger.”
Wendy scowled, “You are not getting rid of me. That’s a fact, lady. You better just get used to that. I’m here for you, no matter what.”
The rest of the ladies agreed and they all finished eating.
I just smiled as I thought, “This group of friends is all I will ever need in my life. They’ve always been by my side no matter what I’ve gone through.”
When they all left, I took my shower and dressed in a pair of cutoffs and a tank top, then put on some ankle socks and tennis shoes.
I brushed out my hair and decided to let Mother Nature dry it.
I walked to the pack house and found all the people I needed to speak with in Alpha’s office.
I knocked on the open door and peaked in.
Alpha Kenny motioned for me to come in and he asked, “Do you have more information for us?”
I nodded, “Please don’t start acting weird when I tell you all this.”
I explained to them that the goddess gifted me with the ability to read minds and, after my first shift, I will have the ability to control minds.
Alpha Kenny’s and Cade’s eyes widened, “Can you do it on a large scale?” I laughed, “With practice.”
Luna Kyra nudged Gabi, “You saw how excited our mates got. How do you think a tyrant of an alpha would react if this news got out?”
Gabi worried, “Oh dear Goddess! Kenny you better hide her abilities with everything you have!”
Abby gasped, “Alpha Dakari would lock her up in a room and only let her out to use her abilities. He would use her to take over packs.”
Alpha Kenny added, “I know two alphas in our area who would do that or worse to her.”
Gamma Axel agreed, “She’s not going to be able to take care of this on her own, no matter how good she is.”
Before I could reply, I was suddenly slammed with an overwhelming evil aura and everything went black.
Isaac POVI have been watching over Zariah since she came to our pack. She was so badly injured; I was scared to death that she would die. I have always been drawn to her. I wanted nothing more than to stay next to her in the hospital until she was better.When she got out of the hospital, I spent all day, every day, at her side, taking care of her. I would help her to any room she wanted to go to and her grandma would giggle at the sight of us.I think I was just looking for a reason to hold her hand. I’m sure her grandma knew we were mates even when we were that little.I spent all of my time in school keeping all the guys away from her. I just didn’t even want them looking at her. My parents got called to school a few times because I knocked another boy out. I got in trouble for hitting them. Not for watching over Zariah.In junior high, I backed off from hanging around her because there was a group of guys who, I heard through the grapevine, were trying to find a way to get in her
Isaac POVDad was smiling widely. I think that was when they both started offering to help her with more stuff. Dad offered to teach her to drive and mom asked her to help her plan a couple parties.I had to make mom back off because I wanted her to realize I’m her mate on her own. Although, I know it will be so hard to keep my hands off of her.Zariah. Even her name sounded like an angel’s name to me. She always looked like perfection to me. She is very fit, even though she can beat me on the amount of junk food she eats.She looks like an angel with her long, light brown hair. It has a natural wave to it that always draws my eye.Her emerald, green eyes have always captivated me. It’s so hard to act as a friend when those eyes make me want to hold on to her forever and her long legs make me want them around my waist as I lower her to my bed.My mate is so smart. She is going to be such a great luna. She is about to become our pack’s first female financial advisor and the youngest on
Zariah POVI woke up on the couch with everyone standing over me.Abby got close to my ear and asked, “What did you feel, Zariah?”I answered, “Pure evil.”I furrowed my brow, “Didn’t anyone else feel that aura?”As I looked around the room, everyone was shaking their heads.I asked, “I wonder if the dark witches found me?”Alpha Kenny answered, “Don’t worry, sweetie. We got you. Let’s finish talking about what The Goddess told you.”I sighed, “We need to be ready for the first war in around a year.”Alpha Kenny’s eyes went wide, “The first war?”I nodded, “Yep. That will be one alpha who is trying to take me. The second one will be in around three years.“That one will be with the witches.”Alpha Kenny asked, “What do they want with you?”I answered, “They want to drain my wolf’s power for themselves. If I find my mate and mark him, they will want him too.”Luna Kyra scowled, “Don’t you dare use that to deny the mate bond!”I shook my head, “I promised The Goddess that I would stay o
After listening to his thoughts some more, I told Luna Kyra what I heard. She linked Alpha Kenny. I heard Alpha Kenny growl, “What is Alpha Tolvar’s niece’s name? Why is she here?” The guys asked, “What’s the deal with you? Are you able to read minds?” Alpha smiled, “You have no need to know. What is her name?” The guy hung his head and sighed in surrender, “Okay. I don’t know anything about her but she’s been trying to get closer to her for the past couple years, but she graduated school early.” I listened carefully to his thoughts and found that to be true. I told Luna my findings and Alpha turned to the door after telling the man, “You are hereby sentenced to death. In return for your cooperation, we will make it fast.” The man replied, “That’s all I can hope for.” Alpha Kenny walked out and Luna Kyra forced us out of the observation room before one of the guards pulled his head off his shoulders. As we walked past each of the cells, I started hearing some thoughts that did n
Isaac continued, “Luckily, you have stayed within a group of us, so they wouldn’t be able to point directly at you, but a white witch can place a spell on you to make you undetectable to dark witches when you use your powers.”I sighed, “So how do we find one of them?”Alpha Kenny asked, “Can you ask the Goddess how to find one? I don’t have a clue.“We have spent so many generations avoiding other species that we forgot that cooperation can be beneficial for all of us.”I closed my eyes and spoke in my mind, “Selene, can you help us?” She asked, “What can I do for you, child?”I asked, “We just learned that every time I have used my mind reading ability, I have been detectable to the dark witches. Is there a white witch who can help shield me from that?”She answered, “I will contact my friend, Queen Winnie. She is queen of the white witch coven. She will just pop in, so don’t be afraid.” I laughed, “Thank you for the warning.”I opened my eyes to find Alpha and Isaac staring at me.
Onyx yelled, “Mate! Remember. You promised to give the bond a chance.” I sighed, “I know. I’m just scared of it. I know Isaac is a good man. He’s not a man whore like a lot of wolves.” Isaac picked up his pace and was in front of me before I could blink. His eyes were black as he growled, “Mate.” I stepped forward to him, “Mine.” Isaac wrapped his arms around me and I felt sparks all over. He kissed the top of my head and sighed, “I’ve been waiting for this for a year. The goddess told me to look after you but not to tell you. “She said you would need to discover this on your own. We got our childhood wish.” I laughed slightly, “We did.” I stepped out of his embrace and shook off the strange feelings I was having and clapped my hands, using my best commander voice, “Alright. Enough of the mushy stuff. Let’s finish stretching so we can run.” Everyone finished stretching while Luna Kyra hugged me tightly, “I can’t believe my prayers were answered. I prayed for you to be Isaac’s m
She laughed, “Onyx was your great-grandmother’s wolf. I am so happy that I get to spend some time with her again. Your great-grandmother was a beautiful and caring woman.” I smiled, “I’m looking forward to learning more about her.” Luna Kyra asked, “What was her great-grandmother’s name?” Queen Winnie replied, “Her name was Celeste Collins before she married. “She was a beautiful woman. You look a lot like her, Zariah. She would give her life to help anyone. That’s the way all of the women in your family were. “She and I became close friends when she was your age. I taught her how to use Onyx’s powers. Have you found your mate yet?” I nodded, “Alpha heir Isaac.” She smiled, “You’ve been blessed to have your mate so close. Your great-grandmother didn’t find your great-grandfather until she was twenty-two.” I smiled, “It is going to be so much fun having you stay with me. I have so many questions.” She giggled, “Well, we should see if there is anything we can do to help the guys
Alex raised his hands in surrender as he laughed, “Easy, alpha, I have no intention of taking your mate. I’m just honored that it will be Zariah that I will be responsible for guarding.” Isaac smiled, “Good answer, gamma.” I shook my head as I chuckled, “We will let you know when it’s time to start setting something up. I will accept it when it’s time.” I felt Isaac’s hold on me tighten and he started sniffing my neck again, to chill out. I looked at the guys, “Okay, would you please let us know what you discovered on your scouting mission?” Stone started, “We did find the mole. She isn’t even a member of the pack. She’s been masking her scent, so we wouldn’t have known. I did put her in the cells in silver cuffs.” Isaac kissed the top of my head while I traced circles on his hands that were locked around my waist. He asked, “Who is she?” Stone answered, “She is Alpha Tolvar’s niece, from Big Creek Pack. Her name is Misty. We caught her hanging around the front of her house this
I shook my head, “There is absolutely no way that could happen, son. You guys are just as much my real children as the unborn ones are. I have never had a favorite child and I will never start. The pack knows this too. That means, Blaine, no matter what sex our future children are, you will still be the Alpha heir. You are the one the Goddess wants leading this pack.”Blaine shrugged, “Then I guess I’m all in.” I smiled, “Thank you, son.” Isaac smiled, “I’m really proud of you both. Your mom was super worried about hurting your feelings. We even agreed that if you were not okay with us having a baby, we wouldn’t even try.”Heather furrowed her brow, “Mom, why would you do that?” I shrugged, “Because I want you two to feel like you are part of our family, even if it means not doing something I want. But that’s what parents do all the time.”Blaine gave me one of the most serious looks that I have ever seen and I even felt a little alpha aura come out, “Mom, don’t ever sacrifice your ha
I gasped, “Are you serious?” Doctor Spink answered, “I’m very serious. There is a lot of scar tissue, but it hasn’t started affecting your uterus or ovaries. We may need to have you take some hormones to be able wake up your ovaries. Are you still having your periods regularly?” I nodded, “Yes.”She smiled, “This may not be so hard on you. The recovery from your surgery can be painful, but I can give you medicine for that.” I suddenly heard Onyx in my head, “If she can get rid of all that scar tissue, I can prepare our uterus and ovaries. No hormones necessary. They will just make both of us moody.”I asked, “How soon can we do the surgery?” She asked, “Have you eaten or drank anything other than water this morning?” I answered, “No. I figured you would need fasting blood work.” She smiled, “Good. I would like to have your pre-operative blood work today and schedule your surgery for ten days from now. Does that sound good to you?” I nodded, “That will give me time to prepare for it.”
Three months LaterAfter three months of going to Iced Moon Pack to see our grandbabies and to help Lena and Lucas settle into their new roles as parents, we finally had a little more free time. It’s hard enough to adjust to the new life with one child. I couldn’t imagine how it would be with three. They have already started sleeping through the night, so I felt better about less frequent visits.Once we were able to stop going up there so often, Isaac took me to see a special OB/GYN surgeon in Saint Louis. He led me to the office and he checked me in. The receptionist gave me a clipboard with a questionnaire to complete and we went to the waiting room. I finished completing the form just in time for the nurse to walk out and call my name.Isaac pushed my wheelchair as we followed the nurse to an exam room. She shut the door and turned to us, “I’m Julie. I am Doctor Spink’s nurse. I just need to go over some information with you and I need to take your vital signs.” I nodded, “Okay.”A
We got a big surprise. Well, Heather wasn’t surprised, but she kept it a secret. We have three new grandbabies! Triplets! Lena had two boys and one girl. Blaine was so excited to have two nephews and a niece to spoil. Isaac and I were over the moon.The first baby born was a boy, Joshua Douglas, weighed just five pounds, six ounces. For a triplet, that’s a big boy. The next baby was a girl, Isabel Zariah, weighed just three pounds, ten ounces, and was in an incubator for a few days. They wanted her to gain at least one pound before she left the hospital. Finally, Kenneth Isaac weighed four pounds, twelve ounces and also spent a little time in an incubator to get him to gain a little weight.Isabel and Kenneth got to go home four days after Joshua. We were so excited to spend time cuddling with each of them before we had to go home. As I held each of them, I started wishing I had been able to have a child of our own. I started to get depressed but talked myself into putting that energy
Seven Months LaterI pushed my wheelchair as fast as I could from our bedroom to the living room and yelled throughout the house on the way, “Is everyone ready to go? We need to get to Lena!” Isaac, jogging behind me, started chuckling, “Slow down, love. The babies will come whether we are there on time or not.” I sighed, “But I want to be there as soon as they are born. We need to go.”Blaine’s tires squealed as he came to a stop in the living room, “I’m ready to go. We’re just waiting for Heather and Aadi.” Aadi joined us, “Franco will join us outside. He already got someone to cover his patrols for the next couple days.”I smiled, “He has been a real advantage for our warriors. We need more bird shifters.” Aadi laughed, “I got really lucky. He’s a very good mate. He loves all of you because you are my family.” I gushed, “Aw. He’s already part of our family too.”Heather rushed to the living room and yelled, “Okay! I’m ready! I even remembered my presents for the babies!” I asked, “W
Six weeks laterThe past six weeks have been an adjustment period for all of us. Blaine and Elizabeth have been looking for reasons to see each other, driving us all crazy. We have finally resorted to letting them take turns, every other weekend, taking our packs’ private jets to the other pack. We told each of our pilots they were not allowed to go anywhere else.We felt Lena’s absence each time we sat at the table to eat dinner and each time we loaded up in the truck. Blaine and Heather loved having the extra room in the back seat. Heather was very vocal about her opinion on Lena’s absence the first couple weeks. Thankfully, she has let up on that. Now my heart can heal and let my daughter live her best life.Isaac and I have felt her absence a lot. She always had such a different way of thinking about solutions to problems that we looked forward to getting her input. Heather, however, has another way of finding solutions. Her oracle abilities allow her to see the best solutions or t
We were almost done eating breakfast when Heather walked into the kitchen and grabbed a bottle of juice from the refrigerator and a banana from the fruit basket. She started to walk out of the kitchen, but turned around and smiled, “I’m going for my run. It’s a ten-mile day. The girls are on their way. Also, I do not want to talk about the stuff I heard last night.”We all laughed as she ran out of the house to meet her friends. I smiled, “She is so much like me. I did the same thing. My friends and I got up to twenty-mile days. She’s doing very well at seven years old. She will get done with her run, attend warrior training, allow four hours for Luna training, then two more hours for Beta mate training.“Then she goes to our home gym and meets her Uncle Axle for Gamma training and more fighting style training. She wants to be prepared for everything. She doesn’t stop. She has asked to be homeschooled so she can do it on her schedule. She is staying caught up and getting straight A’s.
The next morning, I woke up a little later than usual, but still earlier than everyone else, aside from Aadi. She is always on top of everything. After I finished my morning routine, I went to the kitchen and found Aadi finishing up breakfast.Aadi smiled, “Good morning, Zariah. How did the run go?” I sighed, “Lucas recognized Lena as his mate and accepted her.” Aadi asked, “So does that mean she will be leaving us today?” I nodded, “I think they are planning to leave today, after she packs her things.”Aadi sighed, “I’m not ready for her to go.” She sat my coffee in front of me on the table and continued, “I’m going to miss the hell out of her. She helps me a lot.” I nodded, “I know. She is a big help to the pack, but that means she will be an amazing Luna for Lucas. That’s what I’ve been training her for. It’s all I can ask of her; to be the best Luna she can be. I’m so proud of her.”That was when Alpha Doug and Luna Kathryn walked into the kitchen. Alpha Doug asked, “Are you talkin
For the last two years, Blaine had known that Elizabeth was his mate and it had been making him crazy. He still had another two years before her first shift. Instead of making himself crazy over that, he had buried himself in school and Alpha training.He had also been working on training his wolf. The warriors were shocked and amazed at his solid black wolf with amber eyes that glowed. They were also shocked that his wolf could run and fight when his human form couldn’t move from the waist down. They were also jealous that his clothes stayed intact when he shifted.He and Lena had been looking forward to seeing their mates every two weeks. We had been taking turns with Alpha Doug and Luna Kathryn on travelling to one another’s packs. I was just happy our packs had private jets to use, which greatly reduced travel time.Lena had been spending the past two years in Luna training with me. It gave her a big distraction from the mate bond and she was happy to bury herself in it. She had be