As I calm down, I feel the women back away, still staying close by. I turn slightly in Cora's arms to see what is happening. The beautiful blonde hair woman is standing the closest, beaming at me. On the surface, the gesture seems genuine but everything else about her screams of false presences. "Hello Iokaste, I'm Katherine, your oldest sister, and Luna of the Manae. It's a pleasure to meet you again," she says to me. All I can think of is how odd of a way to introduce yourself to someone. I look at her carefully. She smiles slightly and reaches out to brush my bangs out of my face. It is meant to be a caring movement, but instinctively I feel myself flinch. She seems to ignore my tiny movement, but I can see a minute change in her eyes as she notices. I don’t know what to make of it. It almost feels like she was pleased to see me react that way, but she doesn’t want to let it show. "Please, call me Kas and it's nice to meet you too," I pull myself from Cora's arms and collect my
I watch as Katherine’s tongue slides across her front teeth with her mouth closed, considering how to answer. She never takes her eyes off of me, trying to gauge my temperament. The women sitting behind her whisper quietly to each other, looking nervous. “It was a mistake,” she finally clears her throat and says very matter-of-factly, “We have a lamp called the harbinger lamp. Mother lights it when there is an imbalance among the Manae that needs to be rectified. She lit the lamp purple, which means we needed to summon you to help with a problem with the Dark. I left this responsibility to Amari and Tessa. Tessa took things in her own hands and, based on past experience, took a forceful route instead of a peaceful one.” I watch as Amari looks at her hands, avoiding eye contact with me. “Cora, how were you involved?” I look at her confused, “You were in that room with Tessa.” “I was summoned as well. To help with you, Kas,” Cora looks at me as if she is asking for forgiveness. I ca
My fangs and claws extend and my eyes turn black as Lex yanks me back and pushes forward, taking control of my body. I struggle to pull her back, but she is too strong. I can’t stop her as she lunges forward and grabs Tessa by her neck. A vision comes to my mind as my skin contacts hers. We are on a battlefield. Tessa’s eyes are an endless black abyss as she swings a mace at my head, but I duck and avoid it, except for a small graze across my forehead from one of the spikes. The momentum turns her body and I catch her gripping her back against my chest. I watch myself slit Tessa’s throat, letting her body fall at my feet. Her expressionless green eyes stare up at me. The vision fades and another comes forward. She and I struggling against each other in a bell tower. She stabs a long silver blade into the side of my abdomen and stands back with a disgusting smile. Her wolf’s black eyes again at the surface. The pain is excruciating, making me drop to my knees. She chuckles dryly and w
Marco’s POV “Luna, you aren’t supposed to be back for an hour. Is everything alright?” Ashley runs up to us as we get back to the packhouse. Her blue eyes get wide when she gets close and she skids to a stop, holding her hands up, “Whoa! That’s a whole lot of angry coming off of you, Kas.” Kas seems like she ignores her but starts speaking to her anyway. She’s been so stressed out since we left the botanical gardens that she hasn’t been able to really control her emotions like she usually does. It’s a little crushing. I don’t know how she holds it all in all the time. “Ashley, can you please arrange for a couple of guards to escort my sisters for a run before dinner? Except for Katherine, Amari, Cora, and Tessa. Send them to my office when they get here. I have more to discuss with them,” Kas asks Gamma Ashley, “Oh also, could you please see if Musu and James are available. I’d like them to be part of this meeting. Sorry to load this on you, but I need help since Carly is off for th
From the time Tyree knocks on the door, to the time her sisters walk in, it feels like all that negative energy that was filling the room gets sucked back out. I look over and see Kas looking back to her normal self. Did she just pull all that bad energy back into herself? Katherine is gripping Tessa tightly by the upper arm. She leads her to a chair and sets her down. Tessa’s eyes are puffy and watery and her nose is red. I’m not sure she knows what's going on around her. It’s kinda sad. She lost her mate, got called out for knowing he’s a pervert, had a blowout with her sister, and her wolf is a little loco. A crazy wolf never ends well for the human side. I almost feel bad for her. Almost. Once everyone’s sitting, Kas stands at the head of the table. “Thank you for meeting us here,” she says to her sisters. Even those few words, she sounds more like herself than she has all day, “I want to apologize for my behavior earlier. I let Elexis get the best of me and it won’t happen agai
Bronx’s POV When I get back to pack house, there is a distinct negative energy in the air that feels like Kas. If I didn’t know better, it's almost like she lost her temper or something and it seems to influence everyone. Even Ashley seems grumpy. “Ashley, is Kas back? Have you seen her?” I ask when I see her walk by. “She’s in her office. Why?” Ashley snaps at me. Okay. That's weird. Ashley has never once in the twenty-five years I've known her, come close to raising her voice at me. Even when my mental health was at its worst and I almost killed Reggie. She was nothing but forgiving and worried about me. Maybe it's pregnancy hormones? “Ashley, watch yourself,” I step in front of her, blocking her path, “What’s gotten into you?” She looks at me like she is just realizing I’m there. Her face turns bright red with embarrassment, “Oh Alpha, I’m so sorry. What was I thinking? I didn’t mean-,” “It’s all right, Ashley. Where’s Kas?” I ask again. “In her office with the rest of her t
“I’ll see if there’s any residue on the wall and ask Delilah if she can identify it,” James says after we’ve watched the video three times. I still can't believe it. A shadowy outline of a person came out of the wall. A glass materialized in its hands and handed it to Kas. She didn’t even look to see who it was. She just took the glass and kept on talking. No one around her reacted until I saw Marco look at her questioningly. Sure, the mood of the meeting was strained, but whatever she was drinking intensified the anger coming from her a hundred times over and spilled out into the rest of the pack. “Yeah, and what would have made the cup keep changing form?” Marco points to the screen. The glass vibrates from a regular juice glass to a heavy-bottomed hand blown glass. Every time she picks it up, the cup vibrates, changes shape, and the color of the contents changes. When I walk into the room, it just keeps changing in her hands when no one is focusing on it. The more she drinks out
Kas’s POV I watch Bronx for a minute as he looks at himself in disbelief in the mirror. Then I quietly slip away to give him time to himself so he can process his new appearance. I sit on the upholstered bench in our closet room and take a few deep breaths. In the moment, creating a new eye for Bronx seemed like nothing. Our connection was stronger than ever and it helped me make his healing come to fruition, but now I feel completely spent, like the tank is empty. I can’t let him know how much it drained me or he may want me to stay in the apartment instead of going downstairs for dinner. I take a deep breath and look around at my clothing options. Lex tries to convince me to wear a low cut dress. She always wants me to wear a low cut dress. Much to her disappointment, I decide on a dark gray sweater dress and black leggings with ballet flats. Bronx comes into the closet when I’m sitting on the bench to put my shoes on. I smile at the way his confidence seems to have skyrocketed i
I sit on the edge of the bed in the silent room. So this is what twenty-five feels like. I wonder if a hundred and twenty-five will feel just as good. What about two hundred and twenty-five? I laugh to myself at the thought as I head into the bathroom. I look in the mirror and run a brush through my white hair. None of the sparkly gray came back when it grew in four and a half years ago. I examine the mirror closer. It looks like there are some more violet flecks in the light gray of my irises, but maybe that’s just me being hopeful. I still don’t have any abilities other than being able to shift and mind linking other pack members. I splash water on my face and brush my teeth. There will be time to shower later before the pack Summer Solstice party and pack run. I pick up some toys that made their way into the closet room and find a dark blue sundress to wear. Once I am changed, I look at myself in the full-length mirror and smile. When I get into the living room, Marco comes up an
The smell of pine needles and lavender fills the room. I keep my eyes closed and hide my smile as the giggles get closer. “Mommy? Are you awake?” Maya’s little voice whispers loudly. I can feel her weight climbing onto the bed. “Shhh, Maya, Mommy gets to sleep, because it’s her birfday,” Andreas giggles at her while he climbs onto the bed as well. I roll over and pretend to yawn with a big growl and stretch my arms out wide, grabbing them both and bringing them toward me. Their happy squeals fill my heart with joy. “Hello, darlings,” I squeeze them tightly in my arms. “Mommy, happy birfday!” Andreas says happily and gives me a wet kiss on the cheek. “Mommy, Auntie Delilah said she’s made a cake for you,” Maya says with big gray eyes. She lays in my arms and plays with my white hair. She gives a sly little smile, “I think she made chocolate.” “Oh, she did, did she?” I smile back. The twins talk excitedly at the same time, telling me about all the things they want to do with me to
Kas’s POV I sit in front of him, even though he doesn’t know I’m there. I’m afraid if I look away, I may never see him again. Elexis’s black snout pushes under my elbow so I will put my arm around her while she sits next to me. I let myself lean heavily against her while we watch our mate realize that my spirit has left my body. “He broke the mate bond, Kas. Our spirits’ journeys are finished,” Lex says quietly, “There are no more lifetimes for us.” “I understand,” I nod slowly as I run my fingers through her silky onyx fur, “Lex, through everything, I forgive him. I’m sure it seems foolish, but I don’t have the desire to hold on to hate or malice when I move on. So, I forgive him.” “Of course you do. You have a good heart, Kas. I know how much you loved him over the centuries.” “I’ve made my peace, and I died knowing I did everything I could do to save my sisters and keep my pups alive. There is nothing else I need to fulfill me.” “It has been a pleasure being your wolf, Kas. I
“She’s pregnant?” I ask out loud, no one in particular. “Twins,” Reggie says dully. “Based on how big she is and comparing her to when Musu was pregnant, we think she’s due any day. Since she hasn’t eaten, her babies are basically using her body for nutrition. For lack of a better term, they’re eating her alive,” Milo says, as he brushes his hand against her cheek. He sits back on his heels and looks at her with tears in his eyes, “We don’t know what happened to Lex. She hasn’t been able to heal her for over three weeks now.” “What did the doctor say?” I gulp hard. I plant my feet to the ground, afraid to move. “You said no fucking doctors,” Reggie hisses at me through gritted teeth, “or have you forgotten?” “LOOK WHAT YOU DID TO HER YOU SON OF A BITCH!” Saint’s first words in weeks are pure rage against me. He tries to claw his way forward to take control and get to Kas, still protective of her. I take a step forward. A small piece of me, a deep down part that has been hidden awa
Bronx’s POV “Come on, man. It’s been a month. We’re sick of this shit. If this is your order, if this is truly what you want, then man the fuck up and come to the dungeon so you can see your damn handy work,” Milo’s steel-gray eyes bore into me, “Like you said, you don’t give a fuck anymore, so prove it. Come see what you’re doing.” “Watch your tone, Milo,” I stand up, growling at him. “Look, Bronx, you can come with us right now or you can find Blood River another Beta. I have plenty of packs who have already said they would give me asylum. Fuck being a Beta. I’ll take a job as a front gate guard and call it a fucking day. I’ll pack my shit, take Codi, and leave today if that’s how you really want this to go down. Your choice,” he crosses his arms and stares me down. Behind him, Reggie has his hands on his hips, looking at the floor. “What about you, Reggie? You're awfully quiet. Are you part of this ultimatum, too?” I lean forward against the desk, giving him a chance to speak u
Milo’s POV Marco had told us to find her binder before Bronx ordered us to lock him in solitary confinement. He said Kas kept note cards and binders for everything. We just had to find the correct binder to figure out what she was up to. He couldn’t tell us anymore because of some sort of potion he had swallowed. He was right. We rifled through dozens of binders in her office until we found one in her desk drawer that had a sticker labeled ‘Manae Notes’. It detailed everything, complete with cute pictures of rooms and furniture she wanted to use magic to create so her sisters would be comfortable in the home she was building for them. Some of the note cards were actually thin sheets of parchment that looked like they were hundreds of years old. Others were thick handmade papers that were crumbling on the edges. There were at least six different languages among the cards. Musu helped us translate most of them, but a few she said were in dead languages she wasn’t familiar with. Regardl
Kas’s POV I wake up in the morning feeling stiff and sore. I slide out of bed with a groan and look in the mirror. Even more than yesterday, I don’t recognize the reflection I see. Pale skin with dark bags below my eyes. All the violet from my irises is gone, replaced by a gray so light, it could be mistaken for white. I gently run a brush through my brittle, thinning hair. It is no longer gray and glittery. It’s turned into a dull shade of white that matches my eyes. I put on a loose dress and a heavy long cardigan to hide the joints protruding from all my angles before I go out to address my sisters for one last time before escorting them to Kardiá tou Manae. When I first met Lenora, bruises from my nose being broken upset her. What she would think now at my self-imposed deterioration. I turn to the side and admire my growing belly. I let myself smile when I feel the impatient little kicks coming from inside. I spend time with each team of sisters and make sure they are still on
Bronx’s POV Halloween comes and goes. Thanksgiving comes and goes. Winter Solstice is only a couple of weeks away. The frigid Montana winter trudges on. The world keeps turning as if Kas never existed. Last week, I heard Katherine Santoro’s abandoned estate in Greece burned down to the ground. No fatalities and no signs of the other residents and staff who lived there several days prior. A few days later, hunters found Katherine’s naked body, along with an unidentified woman, both mauled by wild animals in a wooded area of Mongolia. The artist's sketch of the other woman is clearly Cora. As soon as they confirmed Katherine was dead, I had my people get to work on acquiring Santoro Enterprises. Within several months, I will be the CEO, absorb the company into MasonCo and create a logistics division. If there are any Manae hiding among Santoro Enterprises staff, I will flush them out and throw them into the dungeon to rot. It’s what they deserve. If Kas ever dares show her face aga
Katherine’s POV The estate is unusually quiet when I get home from work. I don’t notice the usual hustle and bustle, but I chalk it up to coming home later than I normally do. I push open the door to my darkened office, pour myself a glass of scotch, and make my way over to the desk. I turn on the desk lamp and sit down, taking a deep sip of my drink. “Hello, Iokaste,” I lean back in my chair, addressing the woman in the tall wingback seat across the desk, “You look like shit.” “Hello, Katherine. Thank you for the compliment,” she snarks at me and leans forward from the shadow, letting me see her pale skin and sunken eyes be more clearly. Her spindly hand supports her chin. The longer I look at her, the more I realize she is way too thin. “K-Kas. Are-are you alright?” I stammer when I see her true condition. “Don’t worry about me, darling. You never have before. I’m here because I need you to do something for me. I’m going to give you a choice on how you do it,” she says, steepl