ELLAI sat up in bed, confused if I was dreaming or if I had actually heard someone crying.For a moment, nothing made sense. Then I heard the sound again."Hey," I turned to see Tristan seated on one of the chairs in the room. He was smiling at me, his eyes soft and kind."Hi," I greeted shyly.“Sleep well?”“I believe I did.” I smiled back before adding, “Who is that?”“Huh?”“The person crying outside…” I said and pointed to the door."Oh. I have no idea who it is, but I’ll check.” Tristan said and got to his feet.He walked over to the door and opened it to check, but before he could, and to our surprise, someone walked in."Sara?" We both said in unison.She looked at me, her eyes full of tears. "Ella!" She cried and rushed over to my bedside. "You're okay! You are okay!”"Yes, I am," I said with a frown. What's the matter? Why are you crying?""I'm so sorry! It's all my fault. I made a mistake! And that nearly cost us dearly!""What are you even talking about?"Honestly, it was
ELLA"Do you want chocolate or vanilla?" Nathan asked, holding up two cones of melting ice cream.I looked up from the travel brochure I was leafing through and met his eyes. Then, with a deadpan expression, I said, "Cheese."Tristan burst out laughing. Nathan looked confused, but then he quickly caught on. "Here," he said, handing the vanilla cone over to me."Thank you," I took it from him and ate half. The chill from the sweet treat went straight to my teeth, and it hurt a bit, but I needed it after a long day."Where's mine?" Tristan asked.Nathan licked half of the chocolate ice cream and gave the rest to Tristan. Tristan gagged and turned away."That worked," Nathan said and laughed.I rolled my eyes playfully at their antics.Nathan looked at the brochure in my hands. “So, have you decided where you want to visit next?"All day, we'd been touring the streets of Seattle.The doctor in charge of my care wasn't pleased when I told him I was leaving, but with the twins by my side,
ELLAAfter I told the twins to turn into their wolf forms, their expressions changed."Now?" Tristan asked, repeating what I’d just said. He glanced at Nathan, who stood silently and said nothing."Yes," I said. "Now. There's no one around, and it's safe."They stared at me. I stared back, maintaining a solid gaze. They caved first.I took a step back, my skin tingling with excitement. They first took off their clothes and placed them neatly over a rock. Then, the transformation started.The sounds of cracking bones filled the air, initially subtle but then louder.I watched, unable to tear my eyes away from the magical spectacle unfolding before me.I watched as they dropped on all fours, their muscles rippling and shifting as their bones cracked and grew under their skin.I saw it, and it was so fascinating I wanted to touch their skin and feel the twisting muscles and bones.Goosebumps broke out over my skin, and a deep part of my brain, a very primal part of me that I refused to a
ELLAI returned to Alaska as a different girl than I had been when I left.The moment our plane touched down, I felt like my determination had been cemented over and over.My thoughts had narrowed into two laser-focused decisions. To be with the twins and do something for my pack and theirs.Everything had been going fine. We had a safe flight and were heading to claim our baggage when three police officers approached us.One of them said something into his transmitter, and I noticed how the other's hand went to his belt holster, hovering just above his gun.Alarm zapped through me and I took a step back. The twins moved closer to me.Police? Had I done something wrong?"Miss Ella Winter?" One of them stepped forward. He eyed the twins warily, but his gaze was on me otherwise."That's me," I said, tensed."My name is Officer Miles. Your parents reported you missing." He said."Hello, officer," I said, struggling to keep a straight face.Mom and Jack reported me missing.Officer Miles
ELLA"How is your father?" Mom asked suddenly, and her question made me think.What do I tell her now?That my father was an alpha of a pack of humans who could also shift into wolves?That I wasn't crazy all along and could potentially change into a wolf, too?Or that he was a normal man just living fine?I stared at her long and hard and decided it wasn't worth it.If I was right, Adonis didn't tell her anything of the werewolf world.And if I tried to bring her into it so harshly, things could severely backfire on me.Or worse, she could call me crazy, and I would have to deal with her madness again."He's fine," I said at last. "He is, um...he's a billionaire now. Maybe you know that or didn't know, but he is. And I met his family. He has a wife, a very loving wife, and a cute daughter who's about my age."She sneered and turned to face me. "Why am I not surprised?" she asked. She turned back to making the tea, and I noticed how her hand trembled as she tried to pour the hot water
ELLA"Call your father. I want to speak to him.""I don’t need your phone for that," I said dryly and returned it.Taking out mine, I scrolled through my contact list for Adonis' number.I dialed and waited, the phone pressed to my ear as it rang.However, just as he picked it up, Mom snatched it from me.I heard his voice on the other side of the line. "Ella?" He called."No, not Ella." Mom said she flashed a pointed look that screamed, ‘Behave.'"Marilyn," Adonis said, his tone dark."I'm surprised you still remember my name.""What are you doing with Ella's phone?""She’s my daughter, right? Why can’t I be with her phone?”Adonis hissed.“Besides, your darling daughter is right here. I assure you, no harm has or will come to her.""What do you want, Marilyn?""I've heard that your daughter wants to come back to you. Have a taste of the expensive life. Isn't that right, Ella?" She looked at me for confirmation.I kept my arms tightly under my chest and said nothing to her."Well, if
ELLA"Do you have anything to say for yourself, young lady?"Wendy stood in front of the door to her house, her hands planted firmly on her hips.I stared at her, a guilty look in my eyes. "Wendy,""Don't even Wendy me," she said, shaking her head. Her scattered curls caught the morning sun and shone like fine gold. "Answer my question," she said."Why don't you watch your tone, Carter?" Tristan spat. He suddenly appeared beside me and threw a glare at Wendy. "You're talking to the future Luna of the Blackwood pack. Show some damned respect.""I know that, Blackwood." Wendy spat at him. "Why don't you control your tongue too and put your mouth where your fucking money is?""Say that again, I dare you."Wendy took a step forward, but I stood in front of her."It's fine," I said to Tristan. I turned to Wendy and grabbed her arm. "We can talk about this in private.""I sure hope you have a good explanation." She grumbled as I dragged her inside her house.I had slept peacefully all night
ELLA"Nope! Wrong again!" Tristan barked, slamming the wooden ruler he held down on the table.I screamed and jolted in surprise.I don't know which twisted part of me thought he would slam the ruler on my hand, but that part of me felt it.I looked at him with wide eyes."You need to remember!" he said, his face stern."The Darkfall pack?" I tried, wracking my brain for the information I had fed it just two hours ago."You can do better than that, Ella," Tristan said, and he sounded like a scolding principal. “The Darkfall pack went to war with us over two hundred years ago. I asked about fifty years ago."I pouted. "I don't know the answer," I admitted defeatedly, leaning back into my chair, my arms folded over my chest.My brain felt like a radio on static, and I couldn’t recall any information."Well, my dear student," Tristan said, his tone dropped by an octave. He leaned in front of me and grasped my chin gently. His eyes burned into mine, a cruel smirk on his face. "If you don'
ELLATEN YEARS LATER“Welcome, Luna.” The small, bespectacled woman bowed with a smile. “The kids have been waiting. They can hardly sit still at the moment.”I favored her a warm smile. “That is to be expected of kids. You know how they are, young and full of so much energy.”Today, I was to spend some time with kindergarteners at the pack’s new daycare center.Little ones who had no idea at the moment that they weren’t humans, babies, in the sense of the word.She adjusted her horn-rimmed glasses and laughed softly. “Ah, yes. Right this way, please. Would you like anything to drink? Tea or coffee, perhaps?” She gestured to the hallway ahead, where the walls were painted a soft baby pink with motifs of flowers, rainbows, and stick figures playing in green fields.We walked down the hall side by side.“Water is good.”“I shall arrange for that.”We paused in front of a door.From the glass screen, I could see the kindergartens running about, smiling brightly as they chased one another
ELLA“At this point, I think you have a laughing disease or something.""She's just high, we all are.""I'm not fucking high.""Yes. Like you didn't drink an entire winery barely thirty minutes ago.""Can you two quit your incessant rambling and take this gown off me? Hello? I'm trying to get dicked down right now!”Nathan and Tristan turned to me, eyes shiny with mirth.It had been a long day.The wedding after-party stretched into the night, long and packed with fun.And right now, I have a beautiful wedding ring on my finger, which matches my mates' rings, too.We had a joint shower and settled down to drain the Blackwood family cellar."You want to get dicked down?" Nathan asked, his brows wiggling suggestively as he approached me. He pulled me into his arms, and I shuddered just at that touch alone. "Mrs. Blackwood,""Oh, shut up," I laughed to myself. It started small and soon blew out into a wild laugh. "I think Wendy spiked our drinks,""With what?" Tristan hugged me from behi
ELLAA WEEK LATER."We look amazing, don't you think?" Sara said, her head tilted back and forth. "These gowns are the best, don't you think?""Um...yeah. I..." I tried to say something, but my nerves wouldn't let me form a coherent sentence.My hands balked into fists at my sides.My cheeks were tinged rogue, and it wasn't from blushing. I felt a million butterflies released in my belly.I was so fucking nervous! And I wanted to pee too."Hey, hey," Sara said softly. She grabbed both sides of my face and turned me to face her. "What's the matter?""I’m nervous?" I said with an uneasy laugh, and Sara laughed, too."Tell me about it; I am terrified." She put her hands over my shoulders and gently steered me to meet our reflection in the giant mirror in front of us. "But think about it this way: We are about to get married to the loves of our lives. Don't you think that's amazing?"We looked stunning.I had always imagined myself in a wedding gown, but none of my imagination topped the
ELLADr Celia was dead.We found her body and that of the witch who was controlling her outside of the altar, badly burned up.The altar itself was on fire, but the fire was going down as if being suppressed by an invisible hand.Magic was probably at play, we guessed so.Some of the saved werewolves offered to bury the dead.Even as I stared at the dead body of the witch who controlled and killed my mentor, I didn't feel any feeling of satisfaction that she was dead.I would have felt a million times better if I were the one to tear her apart bit by bit and leave her body parts for the vultures and crows to pick her bones clean."There's someone inside there," Tristan said as I watched the wolves dig a grave for Dr Celia.I turned to him. He and Tristan had gone to check the altar, but they didn't get as far as the door."There's a witch inside." Nathan said. "Just how many of them are they?""It's a coven." I said and turned to the altar. "There's a lot of them. And we're going to k
THIRD PERSON POVBeing under a witch's control was like being trapped in your head.Dr Celia didn't know exactly when she fell under the witch's control.All she remembered was waking up one morning and finding that her body wasn't in her control.She had woken up in the lab with no memories of getting there.She still had her consciousness, and the witch would sometimes let her take control for a few minutes or hours at a time, depending on what was needed.Celia did try to break free, or run, or alert someone of what was going on.But before she opened her mouth to speak, she would find herself slipped back to the darkest corner of her mind, and a strange presence would take control of her body.She hated it. Absolutely hated it.It went on for long months. An unspoken rule. "Keep your mouth shut at all times."The witch searched her brain, all her memories, the treasure robe of medieval knowledge and experience that she had. And the witch used them all to her advantage.Not only di
ELLA“What the fuck is that thing?" Tristan asked, his voice carrying the awe and surprise we all felt.The large circle was the size of a small football field. The land strips around it looked like they had been lynched of all life. The circle glowed a pulsing red, dark and ominous, like something from a horror movie."A circle," Wendy said, her voice shaky.I couldn't even speak."I can see that it's a fucking circle, Carter. But what exactly is it?!""We don't know," Nathan replied. "We don't fucking know."We had been able to save most of the werewolves who had been mind-controlled and injured.I couldn't shake off the feeling of something being wrong.Then we noticed a light in the distance, not far from the altar, and traced it to this weird circle."You've got to be fucking with me," Tristan said, his voice cold and angry."Oh my goodness." I gasped, my eyes going wide.Out of the circle werewolves, many of them coming out in their numbers. Their eyes glowed red, signifying tha
WENDY’S POVMy entire body screamed out in protest.The ache had settled deep in my bones, and each step I took worsened the pain.I felt lightheaded and on the verge of passing out.Vomit rose in my throat, and everything felt too bright and too loud.I was bleeding. Those idiot vines had thorns that cut into my skin. The cuts hissed in pain as my contaminated blood flowed out of it.My heart hurt like a banger.I was literally about to pass out on the cold forest floor.But seeing Ella's face above mine, her brows tight with concern, her lower lip between her teeth in a way she did when she was stressed, the smoke and burns all over her body when she had pulled me out of that fire — how could I pass out when my friend needed my help?"Wendy?” She tapped my chin. "Hey! Can you see me? Wendy!""I can," I groaned. “Thank you; I feel better now."I felt like shit.But at least I didn’t feel the burning of that disgusting wolfsbane in my body."Here," Ella extended her hand and helped me
ELLAI burst into the altar first.Inside, the weirdly circular place was dark, even with the numerous candles lit everywhere.I looked around frantically, my heart beating so loud in my ears.My eyes were drawn to an inverted cross in the center of the room, raised on a flat stone altar.There was a girl bound to the cross with tight, thorny vines that slithered and moved across her skin.My eyes widened as I saw the girl, her face bloody and dirty but familiar."Wendy!" I screamed out, my voice laced with horror. I rushed to her side.Wendy's head rolled to the side, and she looked at me.Her eyes were blood red, similar to the wolves who had been under the witch's mind control. She bared her fangs at me, growling in anger."I'll get you out of here!" I cried out. I grabbed the vines and pulled them. "Argh!" I stumbled back, my hand cradled in my lap.The vines cut into my palm, and blood dripped steadily down the cuts onto the floor. Those vines looked alive, moved, and sounded lik
ELLAMy flashlight shot through the dark forest, a flurry of bats scurrying to safety overhead.The twins and I walked through the thick forest, and with each step, the feeling of foreboding over me grew.The forest was too silent.It was too dark.And I could swear I saw things moving at the corner of my vision.Every sense I possessed tingled, and all my instincts warned me to run away—to turn and run.I pressed forward, my grip on the flashlight tight, even though I was trembling.Tristan walked in front of me, Nathan behind me. I felt safe between them, but I was still worried.Perhaps we should have waited till morning.But I didn't want to see what would happen if we waited.Each time I blinked, I saw the map with the red-marked location glaring at me."There's someone here," Tristan said and paused.I looked around, but the shadows in the forest moved and slithered. The beam of his flashlight moved from left to right, too."I feel it, too," Nathan said.A low growling sound rea