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Chapter 78
Last Updated:
2024-12-10 00:28:31
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In Service of the Alpha Chapter 79
Mara I can’t sleep. The heat is stifling, even with the windows open, and I’ve grown used to being outside at night, training with Kahn. I'm wide awake and deeply frustrated. After a while, I get out of bed, dress in a tank top and pair of shorts, and go down to the pool. The dark water is inviting tonight, and without thinking much about it, I slide into the luke-warm pool. There’s something peaceful about floating on the water, staring up at the magnificent night sky. I feel like I’m ensconced in the womb. Warm. Safe. In a place where no one can reach me and harm me. There’s no pollution out here. I thought the heavens at Red Ridge were beautiful, but no matter how much my father tried to run a clean facility, it still polluted our air and the stars were never as bright as they are here. I wouldn't mind floating here until the moon sets and the sun rises. “Luna!” Chad calls out. Disturbed and annoyed by the butler's intrusion, I drop my feet and lower them to the bottom of the
Last Updated : 2024-12-11In Service of the Alpha Chapter 80
MaraPreston stares at the glowing flowers, his mouth slightly agape. “I have never seen this.”“Yeah. If it helps you at all, Johnathan grew up here, and he didn’t see it until he came back.”“Right, right,” the Beta mumbles. “So you want me to do what?”“There’s this hole.” I crouch next to the entrance. “You have to go through it. Grab the pyramid stone on the other side, it will suck you in.”“Suck me in?” he asks, still dumbfounded.The moon is starting to dip below the horizon and the night sky is slowly turning from black to a light bluish-pink. “Yes. Just hurry up and do it.”“What… what will happen to me?”I don’t know. Johnathan spoke about horrible punishments if the unchosen tried to go through. And am I supposed to follow Preston? Does it only work if another Lycan takes him into the temple? Kahn took Johnathan, and Johnathan took me.“Mara!” Preston snaps. “What will happen to me?”“You’ll be turned.”“Into what?” he asks, his voice rising in panic.“A Lycan. Just do it.
Last Updated : 2024-12-12In Service of the Alpha Chapter 81
Johnathan I didn't have to work too hard to convince Felicity to take Rose off my hands. She gave the girl a quick once over and declared. “You will stay in the night caves with us. We need a good day servant.” I cringed. That was not how I treated children, but I had very little choice left. Rose forced my hand. She hadn’t even been here two days yet, and she already started to wreak havoc. I gave it another week before my town resembled a war zone as the Alphas started to go to war over her. “How will you keep her contained?” I ask. “During the day.” Felicity winked at me. “Our familiars have all the power of vampires and none of our weaknesses. They can walk during the day and don’t crave blood.” “I kill them,” Rose said and jutted out her chin. "My magic strong." I expected Felicity to discipline the girl in some way, but the vampire only smiled indulgently. “You’re not the first of your kind that have crossed my path. Our familiars are under our control. You can't seduce the
Last Updated : 2024-12-13In Service of the Alpha Chapter 82
JohnathanI wake to the sound of an unearthly howl. One I’ve heard many times in the past.Someone lost their fated mate.Preston.Wide awake, my heart pounding in my skull, I fall out of bed and search around for some trousers. Mara’s already up, pulling one of my t-shirts over her head. Under normal circumstances, I wouldn’t allow her to leave the room in just a shirt, but mine fits her like a dress, and I don't have the time to stop her anyway.She’s out of the room before I can even find my shorts.Gregory comes running into my room, his eyes wide, bottom lip quivering. “Susawah,” he says. “She’s cwying. I don’t know what to do, Daddy. Help me.”My son looks like the five-year-old he is. Small. Terrified. “It’s okay, buddy,” I say and pick him up. “Don’t be scared.”“Someone died,” he says. “I know, kiddo,” I answer as I run from the room with him in my arms.Susarah comes around the corner, her eyes red and swollen. “Who is it?” I ask, breathless with concern.“Chad.”“What? Ch
Last Updated : 2024-12-14In Service of the Alpha Chapter 83
MaraI close the office door behind us and lead Preston to a chair. He’s in a complete daze. He withdrew into himself, going to a place deep inside where no one and nothing can hurt him. I know the look. I’ve seen it in the mirror many times.I sit on the armrest next to the Beta and take his hand in mine. “I’m sorry, Preston,” I say. "I didn't want her to... I didn't think she'd..." my words trail off. I don't know what the hell I'm supposed to say to make him feel better.He pulls his hand out of mine and leans forward, dropping his head in his palms. I can hear him sniffle, but he barely moves. “You warned me of the risks. This one is on me. I knew when she shifted that she was... I should have killed her, but I couldn't bring myself... and now Chad is dead. I deserve to die.”"No you don't," I say softly, and rub his back. "You didn't kill Chad.""I might as well have."I have nothing for him. Anything I say now will only make it worse. There are no words that can ease his pain an
Last Updated : 2024-12-15In Service of the Alpha Chapter 84
JohnathanThe procession into the woods is quiet, reserved, and somewhat thoughtful. Rhoda offered to witness for the Omegas, as did Ingrid, the kitchen maid, and the Omega who wanted Preston dead. I made him come. If he’s so eager for death, he can experience it firsthand.I wish I left the shithead at home. He hasn't stopped talking since we left, condeming Ally the whole way. He's working my last nerve.I steer the rabid she-wolf deep into the woods, far away from my favourite places. I don’t want the memory of this day to haunt me forever, and if the Lycan scrolls I've read are to be believed, my forever is going to be a long, long time.Halfway to her place of execution, Ally starts to talk, shocking all of us into a standstill. “Who are you?” she asks in a small, terrified voice. “Where am I?”“Oh, the poor wee thing,” Ingrid exlaims softly and grasps her chest.“She is a murderer,” the only other male says. “She deserves-”“Shut the fuck up, Barry,” the kitchen maid says. “This
Last Updated : 2024-12-16In Service of the Alpha Chapter 85
MaraPreston struggles free of my grasp, but Kahn manages to hold on to him. He pulls the Beta tightly against him, wrapping his arms and legs around the battling Lycan. And even then, the vampire still has to fight tooth and nail to hold on.The Beta is no longer just a wolf. His new strength is unbelievable and terrifying to behold.Preston is as white as the summer clouds that always float lazily along the blue sky. He’s covered in sweat, and biting so hard into his own lip that I’m afraid he’ll tear it clear off.He arches his back, nearly slipping from Kahn's grasp, and roars, “Let me go!”I try to take Preston’s hands again, but he twists free and continues to fight against Kahn. “My mate!” he screams, and his eyes flash dangerous. “I need to save my mate.”He is going to shift. Any moment now, he's going to shift and kill us. “Do the thing,” I say to Kahn.“What thing?” the vampire asks. His voice is remarkably calm and even.“The thing you did for Yarrick. When you touched him,
Last Updated : 2024-12-17In Service of the Alpha Chapter 86
MaraTime slowly ticks by. I can’t seem to distract Gregory, and more than once he has a meltdown that leads to a lot of crying, screaming, kicking, and biting. The third time it happens, I sternly stop him, and hold on to him the same way Kahn held Preston. “I know you are very scared, but you can’t hurt other people because of how you feel.”“I want my daddy!” he screams at me and tries to wiggle free of my grasp“I know, big boy,” I say. “So do I, but do you see me kicking and screaming about it?”He tries to bit and scratch his way out of my arms, but I refuse to let him go. “Stop!” I say and remarkable feel the warmth of my aura slipping out. Gregory calms down and goes almost limp in my embrace. “I know you are feeling some big things right now. Scary things. Use your words. Tell me what scares you.”“What if Daddy’s dead?”“He’s not dead, sweetie,” I say. I put my head on his brow and start to hum a lullaby I remember from my childhood while I gently rock back and forth with hi
Last Updated : 2024-12-18
Latest chapter
In Service of the Alpha Chapter 119
JohnathanWe wake up at the foot of the mountain. My mountain, as everyone here calls it.Thank God Dante didn't get it in his skull to climb up there with Aria. She would have fallen to her death.The rain pitter-patters through the leaves, the steady drizzle already soaking us through to the bone. Shit. What happened?I look around and find Mara lying a few feet from me, curled up like a baby, hand clasps between her knees, wet hair clinging to her face. My stomach tightens, the muscles going tight as a drum. “Dante,” I ask. “What did you do?”He’s sulking. Refusing to talk to me.“Okay,” I try a different tact. “What did Aria do?”Nothing. Dead silence from my wolf.Sighing, I get to my feet and walk over to Mara. I lean over and gently touch her shoulder to wake her. She jerks and botls upright. Without any hit of shame or fear, she yawns, and stretches, giving me a good eyeful of her delectable body. “Are you all right?” I ask before she’s even fully awake. “What did Dante do
In Service of the Alpha Chapter 118
JohnathanMara and I are both wide awake now, though she’s restless and paces around the bedroom, flitting back and forth like a gnat on meth. It makes me deeply uncomfortable watching her like that. She's filled with a kind of nervous energy that she needs to discharge before she explodes.When she comes around the bed for the fourth time, I grab her wrist. “Let's go outside. You look like you could use a run.”“Can we shift?” she asks, a hopeful tone in her voice.I pull her onto my lap and kiss her. “Of course we,” I say when we’re both breathless. “Or,” she suggests and swings herself around to straddle me. “We can just stay here and get rid of our pent up frustrations that way.”I laugh and drop my brow on her head. “Sorry, babe,” I say with real regret. “You’re still smelling a bit… heaty to me.”“Heaty?” she splutters with a laugh. “Is that even a word?”“I don’t know. Come on. We can get rid of our frustrations the wolf way.”"Shouldn't we stay away from each other? If I'm s
In Service of the Alpha Chapter 117
Mara“Why are you here?” I ask Kahn. “Can you please just get me a drink first… before you start interrogating me? Cooking sherry will do, I don’t care, just give me something.”Snorting softly, I get up and go to the parlour, hoping and praying that the two Betas have left. To my great relief, I find the door open and the lights off. Without bothering to switch on the overhead, I walk over to the drinks cabinet and get a fresh bottle of whiskey for Kahn.He’s agitated and out of patience by the time I return. “Took you long enough,” he says and tears open the seal.“Well, I move at the speed of a wolf, not a vampire. What’s wrong?”“Apart from the fact that Felicity had me drawn and quartered, mourning my head on a spike to witness by dangling torso, not much.”“Yu- you were aware of it?”“Yes.”“Last time-”He slams his head on the table. “I know what happened last night. Blissful memory loss. No such luck this time.” He pulls the cork out of the whiskey and starts to chug it. “Th
In Service of the Alpha Chapter 116
MaraThe mansion feels quiet and dead. A gloom has settled over our home, and I just want it gone. I don't like feeling this unsettled in a place I love so much.The Omegas aren’t here, lighting up the space with their laughter. The kitchen, always filled with warmth and light, is cold and dark. Gregory isn’t here, asking me to ‘come play dinosaurs with me, Mara.’“Where are Preston and Donovan?” I ask, hoping that their presence will lift the despair that settled like a suffocating blanket over everything.“Gathering the dead,” Johnathan answers. His face is passive, but his eyes speak volumes.“Should we go to the funerals?”My mate shakes his head. “It’s not a funeral. They will cremate the fallen together. It's how we honour warriors.”I’m relieved that we don’t have to go, but I feel guilty at the same time. I want to support our wolves - they need to know they’re not alone. That their King and Queen didn’t abandon them.But after even a day in the infirmary, I’m still weak. Even
In Service of the Alpha Chapter 115
MaraI slowly come awake. I'm warm, dry, and comfortable. The last thing I remember was running down that mountain, the rage burning through me like a wildfire.Rain pitter-patters overhead, but the room is light and airy.Confused, I sit up and look around. I’m all alone, in a room that looks very much like a hospital. The bed is slightly inclined, allowing me to sit half upright.I'm in Haven's Crest infirmary.What happened to my my mate? My friends? My pack? Where are they?Panic courses through my veins. I have to get Johnathan. Is he dead?No.I grasp my heart, as if touching my chest will bring my mate closer to me. I’d know if he was dead. I’d feel it.I mind link with Johnathan. He's there, alive, keeping the connection open, but not responding to my endless stream of questions, asking him where is, what happened, who died, who lived...I couldn't stand it. Watching them die. Our warriors. Ilse. The vampires. Even the nymphs. Every time I saw one of them fall, it was li
In Service of the Alpha Chapter 114
JohnathanI send a prayer up to all the gods and goddesses who are supposed to be looking after us, asking them to look over us as we attempt the impossible here tonight.The Lunae will go in first, joining their magic to disorientate and scare the enemy. I would never have thought of it, but Rose and Pia told me that it’s what they’re best at. Altering someone’s mind.That will hopefully get most of the soldiers out of their armored vehicles. We will use our rocket launchers to blow up the first, middle, and last vehicle, making it impossible for them to drive back down.I picked out a few wolves that are excellent snipers, they will take out as many people as they can from the ridges. The rain makes it difficult, but not impossible - not for a wolf, at any rate.The vampires will literally rain fire down from above with the petrol bombs. It’s not ideal, but it’s the best we can manage. When that fails, Ilse told me she’ll simply start to drop some boulders on them.I did ask the Lun
In Service of the Alpha Chapter 113
JohnathanMara isn’t entirely wrong. We could, perhaps, get the upper hand if we attack from the side, taking the vehicles out one by one, sowing chaos and capitalising on it.There is a better way though. A slow grin spread across my face.I know what to do. With the help of the vampires attacking from above, our small stash of explosives, a little bit of magic, nature, and whole lot of dumb luck… we may just pull it off.I still want the Omegas out of the way though. Just in case we don’t make it. We are faster than they are, and can disappear into the mountains when it looks like we’re losing.Both of the bickering Alphas made excellent points. Hiding is not going to help, and neither will a head-on attack. So we have be sneaky.I put my thumb and forefinger between my lips and whistle loudly, silencing the ongoing screaming match. “Okay. Here’s what we’re going to do…”I lay my plan out to the Alphas. I’m barely done talking, when Donovan grabs a handful of warriors and sets off
In Service of the Alpha Chapter 112
MaraThe alarm slowly comes to life, the off-key wee-wah, wee-wah, echoing across the town growing louder and louder, until I can feel it vibrating in my bones. It's so loud that I have to hold my ears shut, in case the loud alarm burst my eardrums.Felicity grimaces and takes off, quickly disappearing behind the curtain of rain. “Do you think she’ll bring Kahn back?” I ask Johnathan, screaming to make myself heard above the alarms.Johnathan taps his head and switches over to the mind link, though the alarm, fear, and roar of the rain makes it difficult to concentrate. “Yes. She will. She might be angry and hurt, but she’s not stupid.”I nod, and stare at the lights coming ever closer. They definitely belong to big vehicles - trucks or buses or maybe even tanks.Wolves, humans, witches, and other creatures I’ve never seen out and about, start to spill from their homes, joining us in the street. I see Joshua first and run to him. Johnathan makes a grab for me, but when he sees what I
In Service of the Alpha Chapter 111
MaraIt feels like something is crawling under my skin. An itch I can’t scratch. Something is coming. It's not just the heat that's setting my nerves alight tonight.I can taste it in the air.Death.**For such gentle people, the fae sure has one hell of a violent fertility goddess. When Johnathan and I mated, the Goddess descended from the heavens to bless us. Her presence was warm and welcoming. I found comfort in her embrace.Vesta’s presence was like getting hit over the head with an aphrodisiac. If Johnathan wasn’t there, I don’t know what I would have done. Probably humped a tree. But it was much more than that. She made me see something I'd never seen before.It was as if I stood outside of my own body, looking at myself and my behaviour. For just a second, I saw myself as Johnathan must have seen me all these weeks. Cold, detached, distant. Then he took my hand, and I crashed back into my body.And all I could think while we ran through the forest was that I’ve hurt him. I
