*Kieran* King Cole and I lock eyes, and for a moment, I see his fire. Despite his physical weakness from the harsh beatings he’s recently received, he’s ready to fight. “A little help here,” I mind-link with my friends. The dungeon doors swing open, and Taner, Whyte, and Lucian storm into the spac
“What’s the meaning of this?” he snarls, indicating our clothing. “It was awful, King Gavin,” Taner interjects, his tone bordering on weepy. Of the two of us, he’s the better actor, so I agreed to let him take the lead. “I was reading a book in the library when I heard the soldiers heading down to
*Raven* I watch Mother as she paces back and forth among the line of troops. No one would call this an army. It’s more like a rag-tag team of poorly trained teenagers. They aren’t all so young, but they are scrawny, pale, and a little gaunt. It’s evident that many of them have not seen the sun in a
*Kieran*There’s little time to prepare for the journey. Father wants us to leave the castle as soon as possible so we don’t delay in hunting down King Cole. He makes me bring Anwen along because, in his words, “Anwen needs some toughening up.” More like, Anwen is getting under foot, and Father wan
My heart races in my chest, but I maintain my facade. “That’s ridiculous,” I say as nonchalantly as I can. “Where would you even have heard such a malicious rumor?” “It’s not a rumor,” he answers evenly, sure of himself. “One of the guards sent a mind-link before you killed him. And if I heard it,
*Raven*Mother wakes me early, her excitement and anxiety evident in her face and posture. “He’ll be here tonight,” she breathes out, standing over my bed. “We must prepare. The soldiers will be close behind him.” I sit up quickly, trying to process her words. “Were you able to mind-link with him
Night falls around us, and we settle in, ready to pounce at the earliest sign of trouble. It’s past midnight when one of our scouts signals to Mother that they see something coming across the river. Mother runs out of her hiding space and stands at the river’s edge, straining her eyes against the da
*Kieran* “That was quite a speech,” Father says coldly, coming to stand within inches of my face. “You’ve certainly spun quite a tale.” He’s saying this for the benefit of those around us, I know. The fury blazing in my eyes is a sharp reminder of the truth of my words. When he deems someone a thr
She groans. “I really think that might count as two parties.”With a laugh, I let them lead me out of my new bedroom in my new home and down to the temple to start the rest of my life. Ingrid, Estrella, and Raven leave to join the crowd, but Eva stays with me. According to Snowcrest tradition, she w
CandaceI drag a comb through my thin hair and stare at myself in the mirror on my vanity. More accurately, the new mirror on my new vanity. Hollis and I had to exchange one more goodbye because I had to return to Dun’s Crossing long enough to pack up my life. Some things weren’t worth the trouble o
I press my mouth to hers, mapping the curve of her smile with my tongue. She laughs up into me, breathless with relief. I trace the fullness of her cheek, the slope of her neck. She nips my lower lip. I climb into the bed with her, careful of her many injuries. Someday, we’ll talk about her mother,
Hollis‘Got some more over here,’ Zain calls through the mind-link.I drag the heavy cart across the red-mottled snow toward my Beta. My muscles burn with exertion, but I’m not stopping until this whole battlefield is clear. I won’t let a wolf suffer longer than they have to.Zain nudges ice off a h
“No!” Nessa shrieks. “I warned you about this, about her. She’s twisting your mind.”Eva laughs in her face. “She’s twisting things?”Nessa darts to Soren’s side and grabs his arm. “We can’t stop. Rowena said there would be hell to pay if—”Hollis gestures sharply with the arm I’m not holding onto.
CandaceMy heart hammers in my throat. Our weapons shine dully in the snow, Hollis’s sword dwarfing my dagger. Eva drags her gaze from them up to our clasped hands. My other arm throbs, a reminder that I don’t think I could fight her off if I wanted to.She adjusts her grasp on her knife to a stabbi
Eva scoffs and smashes the hilt of her knife into my fingers around her arm. “When have we ever had trouble talking to each other?”“Exactly.” My fingers throb as I wrap them around my sword. “That’s why it was so hard.”“Bullshit!” Her voice cracks. “Just tell me. Four little words. I found my mate
HollisAt the same moment as I reach the wide ring of defenders and ranged fighters encircling the heart of the battle, Candace limps to a stop at my side. Blood stains her gray coat in a dozen places, and my heart leaps into my throat. I meet her huge, dark eyes. She melts into a human before me. H
There. The break I need. ‘Gavin wouldn’t let you lead, would he?’The shield flickers for a moment, and I crash through it. Sweet air courses into my lungs. I can’t waste the moment, so I charge at her blindly.‘I kept him as my figurehead,’ she howls. ‘I did not need his permission to act. I needed