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Part Fifty-Four
Last Updated:
2024-12-03 18:37:44Related chapters
Fire Prologue
Regret. It always comes too late, right? In my case, my regret was something I felt immensely guilty about, but I also felt shame. I’ve made so many mistakes over the years. The road I’ve walked hasn’t been an easy one. Some days I wondered if this was it. Was this how I would finally come to meet the gods?Choices. What would you choose if you were me? How do you choose between two children? The first, Kai, he’s taken over my whole world. I love him more than I love myself. The second, a daughter, one I knew nothing about. I love her though, because she’s a part of me, my child as well. How do you ultimately choose between life and death?Obligation. It’s the one thing that’s been instilled in me from birth. We all have our obligations to fulfill and as a wolf, you never shirk from your responsibilities. No matter what. As an Alpha, that responsibility was even worse for me. I had to be the example, the leader, the protector, the shoulder everyone leaned on. I had to be everything.F
Last Updated : 2024-10-29Fire Part One
“Kai…” I managed out a whisper. Death touched my soul and I blinked.Three women sat beside a well. I didn’t recognize this place, but it was breathtakingly beautiful. The women had no faces, yet I felt like I knew them. I had to prove myself for them to reveal their faces to me.“These are the Norns, they can either bless you or curse you. To change Kai’s fate, you have to honor each of them and perhaps they will reveal to you what you seek most.” Death’s voice was low.“Where are we?” I asked him, looking around.“We’re beneath Yggdrasil in Asgard. You have a choice to make, give them what they ask, and they will reveal the past, the present and the future to you. Refuse them and be cursed.”I walked up to the three women and I bowed before them. In this place, I had no standing, Alpha or not, and to offend them would have consequences. Urdr, Verdandi and Skuld each placed a hand on my head, and I was taken back to the past. I saw Karani, I could feel her, hear her and the pain tore
Last Updated : 2024-10-29Fire Part Two
“Death visited me earlier. He took me to a place where I saw three old women, they’re known as the Norns. They see the past, the present and the future. If you’re worthy, they will show you and give you a chance to change your fate.”“Who’s fate? Yours?”“I have a daughter.” Her eyes were wide with anger, but she controlled her voice.“How old?” I knew this was the make-or-break moment.“She was born the day after Kai.”Adara slapped me harder than I thought she could and stood up. She grabbed the first thing she could find on my desk and threw it at my head. The solid steel wolf statuette connected and cut my cheek open. She wasn’t looking at me, she was crying as she grabbed whatever she could find, and I had to turn my back to her.“Adara! Enough!” I yelled at her as she slumped to the floor and sobbed. I bent down in front of her and just held her.“Let me just tell the story. This is as big a shock to me as it is to you. I never cheated.” She didn’t lift her head and I continued
Last Updated : 2024-10-29Fire Part Three
I emptied half a bottle of Scotch in the time it took James to arrive at the house. I was exhausted and I was scared. I wouldn’t admit that to anyone, but I was. I had no idea what awaited me because I hadn’t even known witches existed.James and I finished the bottle as I told him my story. His eyes held disbelief and the expression on his face was one of utter shock. I left nothing out, I told him everything. He didn’t interrupt me once and for that I was glad. It was hard enough to tell the story twice in one day.I hadn’t slept yet and I knew my eyes were red-rimmed from lack of sleep. I had spent the night looking at Christian and Kai as they slept in our bed next to Adara. Christian saw it as having a sleepover and he loved it.“I don’t know what to say. Witches…shit”“Tell me about it.” I rubbed a hand over my face and sighed.“And Jessica and Malachi? I didn’t see that one coming.” I smiled at the way he said it, the slight frown making it more comical than it was. “What are y
Last Updated : 2024-10-29Fire Part Four
I gave the pack a moment to settle down, to digest everything I’d told them and let them come to terms with what they’d seen from Jessica. It was a lot to take in and a lot to understand. Once I did that spell, there was no going back, I’d be a half breed.“Dezrael will be coming for Kai because he is my first-born.” I had yet to tell them that I was a half breed.“Why is she coming after Kai?” Frank asked.“Okay, guys, now I’m going to tell you another secret that I only recently found out and then if it’s your choice, I’ll step down as Alpha if that’s what you want.” They all looked at me and I could see the confusion in their eyes.“This sounds worse than a witch coming after your son.”“Karani was a half witch and that makes me a half witch too. She chose her wolf life over that of a witch. Dezrael’s fear is that Kai will draw on Karani’s power one day. She wants Karani’s power for herself and she will try to claim it through my daughter which she thinks is my first-born.”There w
Last Updated : 2024-10-29Fire Part Five
Malachi glanced at Jessica every so often as he drove towards her house. It had been a long day and the time was creeping closer to midnight. She’d been quiet ever since they left the house and he wished she’d say something.“Jess.”Jessica knew exactly what he wanted to say. Malachi was loyal to a fault, always pushing and putting everyone else first. “No, I’m not going to do it.”“Why not?” The tension in the car was thick and Malachi exhaled slowly as he felt the familiar rise of irritation that could and would turn to anger in the blink of an eye.“You have no idea what you’re doing, he has no idea. That spell I mentioned, I’ve never done it and I don’t know of any witch that has successfully completed the spell.”Malachi remained quiet as he pulled into the garage and Jessica climbed out of the car and pulled the side door open. Malachi gritted his teeth when he noticed that she had yet again failed to lock her doors.“Jess…don’t walk away from me.” Malachi put his keys down on t
Last Updated : 2024-10-29Fire Part Six
Malachi halted in the doorway as Jessica lay motionless on the bed, the cups falling from his hands as his breath hitched in his throat. She wasn’t breathing and she had no beating heart. Malachi swore under his breath as he looked at her, wanting to touch her but not being able to.It reminded him too much of Karani’s lifeless body and it physically hurt, deep in his soul because he had no idea what to do. He hated feeling powerless and clueless and it didn’t happen often that he did.Malachi could feel his emotions tumbling about, his heart rate slowing, his skin growing cold as fear gripped him. He couldn’t lose her, not like this, not for something he asked her to do, something she hadn’t wanted to do.Malachi stood rooted to the spot, a low buzzing sound in his ears. Jessica was his second chance at life. He’d realized it soon after that first night he’d spent at her house, even with no imprinting bond keeping him to her, he loved her completely.Jessica gasped and her eyes snapp
Last Updated : 2024-10-29Fire Part Seven
James had begrudgingly taken over for me both with the pack and at the hotel. We still had a manager that reported to him while James took over command. It freed up my time to do what I had to do to keep Kai safe.I spent my days in the den going through every single lupiary that we possessed, but not one of them mentioned witches. I wanted to know everything I could. Knowledge was power but my knowledge at that stage was extremely limited and that’s when I phoned Jessica to join me.“What?” I smiled at the way Jessica answered her phone. Diplomacy was obviously not her forte.“I need help.”“Of course you do, Superstar. Where are you?”“At the den. Our lupiaries have nothing about witches.”“Duh. Give me ten.” She ended the call as abruptly as she had answered it and I sat back on the sofa.Jessica arrived exactly ten minutes later, a frown on her forehead and not looking happy at all. She fell down on the sofa and emptied my glass of Scotch before looking at me.“Help with what exac
Last Updated : 2024-10-29
Latest chapter
Fire Part Fifty-Four
Malachi took the file from Vaughn’s desk and followed Chief Johnson outside to the parking lot. Ten minutes later, Malachi walked inside the police station and was shown to the interrogation room where Kiran was being held.Malachi watched from the other side of the two-way mirror for a few minutes as they questioned Kiran relentlessly before opening the door and walking into the interrogation room. The relief in Kiran’s eyes almost had him break his resolve and he had a deep urge to hug his son and assure him that everything would be alright.“Who the hell are you?” One detective asked Malachi as he placed his briefcase on the table.“Good evening, detectives. My name is Malachi Sinclair, legal representation for and on behalf of Kiran Sinclair. My client has cooperated fully during your interview and I call it an interview since you’ve failed to present him with a warrant of arrest or a complaint form and even though you haven’t arrested him legally yet, you’ve already processed him
Fire Part Fifty-Three
Malachi wallowed in his self-pity that whole day, drinking and drowning in his own misery. He kept replaying everything over in his head, every conversation he’d ever had with Jessica, every interaction between her and Kiran.He punished himself with memories of every touch and kiss between them. He replayed every conversation between Kiran and Jessica too. She’d warned him before the time. She’d told him she’d slept with Kiran, and he’d foolishly believed her story about him being like a brother to her.He was driving himself to the brink of madness but he couldn’t help it. He needed to know how and when it had happened. He needed to know how he’d missed it. Betrayal was the worst thing anyone could ever do to him.Betrayal was his downfall, as was his anger and temper. It was the balance Karani had spoken about, but there was no balance to this. How did he keep his anger and resentment at bay? He didn’t think he’d ever get over this.The next day Malachi was driving to the liquor st
Fire Part Fifty-Two
I had been in a similar room in Seward when I gave my statement after Sarah’s suicide but this time it was quite different. They took the handcuffs off and asked me if I wanted anything to drink. I declined the offer. I had no idea how long I’d be there but I knew they were going to question me extensively.I hoped I wouldn’t be there for long. James would be on his way to the Sterling Police Station and hopefully Malachi would be with him. I had no idea where he was or if he even listened to his messages. Would he even come back to help me after everything that he believed happened?“I’m going to put the camera on and record our interview. We will also now read you your Miranda rights. Do you understand?” Kyle asked me and I nodded.“You have the right to remain silent, anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law, you have the right to an attorney, if you cannot afford an attorney, one will be appointed for you. Do you understand that you have the right to hav
Fire Part Fifty-One
James arrived at the hotel at 9 a.m. By that time, I had already had most of the employees in my office to catch up on any problems that they might have. They were all happy with James and I was glad to hear that. He stepped into my office and sat down on the chair in front of my desk. I looked up and he was worried.His aura seemed stifled and concerned. He looked agitated and his eyes looked weary, like he hadn’t gotten any sleep. I knew he was worried about the situation with Adara and Malachi, I was too.“What’s on your mind?” I was reading through the budget forecast for the next six months.“Adara’s talking about divorce.” The pen slipped from my hand onto my desk.“What?” The phone on my desk rang and I picked it up. “What?” I asked irritably.“I’m sorry to disturb you, Sir, there are two police officers downstairs to see you,” Sylvie said.“Bring them up, please, Sylvie. Thank you.” I put the receiver down and looked at James.“Cops? What for?” James asked. Mention of Adara an
Fire Part Fifty
I changed Saga’s diaper, took them downstairs and placed them in their carry cots. I got their playmats and put them on the floor so they could entertain themselves for a bit. I looked around. Adara hadn’t bothered to clean the mess Malachi and I had made.I carried the broken chairs to the garage and cleaned the kitchen and dining area, washing the blood from the wall and floor. I washed the dishes and sat down at the counter looking down as they watched the animals dangling above them.“I’m so glad you two are still small enough not to also fight with me,” I said to them and Kai turned his head to look at me.He rolled over onto his stomach and lifted his head to look at me. I hid my face behind my hands and played peek-a-boo with him. He laughed at me and Saga started to laugh as Kai laughed.It was the most beautiful sound I had heard all day, perhaps even all week, and I laughed with them. I quickly ran upstairs and put my shoes on and grabbed the twin carrier bag from their roo
Fire Part Forty-Nine
The frustration I felt barely compared to the anger surging inside me. I couldn’t comprehend how they’d believe these lies. My jaw clenched tightly as I drove away from Malachi’s office. I couldn’t lose my father and he couldn’t lose Jessica.I drove home and saw James’ car in the driveway. He opened the front door as I walked towards it. He looked at me and shook his head. Disappointment radiated from him and it pissed me off.“Not you too.” His expression changed and he chuckled.“She’s going to kill me for letting you in, she had the locks changed. What the hell, man?” I wasn’t even shocked to learn that Adara had the locks changed but it felt extreme to me, everything did.“You really think I’m that stupid? It’s Vincent messing with me because I refused to send Malika back.”“I know you didn’t do this, you like that crazy person in there too much,” James said as I walked into the kitchen. I could almost taste the hostility in the air as Shoran and Adara both glared at me.“What ar
Fire Part Forty-Eight
Malachi went for Kiran and in his mind he could still hear him laughing. Malachi was on top of him as they fell to the floor, hitting him wildly as Kiran brought his arms up to protect his face. He could still smell Jessica's scent on himself but in his mind it was Kiran that smelled like her.“Malachi!” Kiran’s scream didn’t penetrate.He could hear Kiran’s heart slow down as he choked the life out of him and suddenly he was on the floor holding his head and screaming in pain. Malachi registered Kiran’s coughing next to him as he tried to breath and then the pain was just gone.Malachi stood up from the floor and he couldn’t believe that he had just done that. It was like all the fight had left him in an instant. He stalked up the stairs as he blinked the tears away, tears of anger and regret at having almost killed his own son.Malachi washed the blood from his hands and face and threw clothes into a duffel bag. He couldn’t be in that house anymore as more memories flooded him, memo
Fire Part Forty-Seven
Malachi drove away from the den and glanced in his rearview mirror and looked at Kiran one last time before the road curved and he settled his eyes on the road in front of him. It was still early and he smiled as he thought about sliding into bed next to Jessica.Malachi parked his Navigator in the garage and closed the doors. The side door was open as usual and he briefly closed his eyes as he locked it behind him. Her scent beckoned to him as he took the stairs two at a time.He grinned as he undressed. Jessica was on her stomach, splayed out over the whole bed with his pillow tucked under one arm. He wasn’t a small man but even he didn’t take up half the space on a bed that Jessica did and she was small compared to him.“Jess,” he whispered as he slid in behind her.Her legs curled up and Malachi shifted her to her side of the bed and tucked himself around her. Her hand gripped his and he smiled as he closed his eyes. This was home. That thought had his eyes snap open and thinking
Fire Part Forty-Six
Jessica closed her eyes as I showed her the photo. Somebody was deliberately trying to cause havoc in our lives. Kudos to them because it was working. My wife and my father both hated me and it was the one time that I was actually innocent.“Somehow we just have to get Malachi to listen. If he can just read both our minds, he’ll see that we’ve never slept together,” I said to Jessica and she bit her lower lip.“That’s not technically true,” she said to me and now I was confused.“What do you mean technically? Either we did or we didn’t, and we didn’t!” I said to her as I ran my hands over my face and sat back.“We did. It was right after you dumped Sarah, when we first became friends. You came over one night, already half drunk, we got really wasted and not just alcohol. We smoked something too and the next minute we were naked in my room and it was awful,” she said to me.I felt the world spinning around me and the force of her words slammed into me. Had I been that lost that I could
