RykerI didn’t think or breathe, I just moved.Alpha Hunter, the piece of shit that had played a hand in destroying both mine and my brother’s heart shifted. Screams rang out as the giant sand-colored wolf barreled down the hall, charging at the doors that led out into the courtyard.Magic swirled around me, charged with my anger and hurt. I raised my hand and willed the doors to remain shut. Alpha Hunter slammed into the wall that was my magic and…and shattered it?How?Jude took off with a roar, tearing through his clothes as he shifted into his wolf. With each step moss began to grow along the floors, followed by threads of poison ivy that snaked around the students ankles.Kimberly reached out to grab me, but I tore myself away. Succumbing to the hollow feeling in my chest I shifted and charged after them.This time around, I wouldn’t stop my brother as he tore the foolish Alpha apart.Scalding heat burned the backs of my eyes as I raced into the forest, trailing after their scent
RykerA tracking spell led us to a yacht owned by Jameson’s family. It was kept at a private dock nearby. We traveled fast in our wolf forms, spurred on by rage and the lingering terror at having lost Ophelia.Never again. Never again would anything like this happen.It was now clear to me that Alpha Hunter had magic of his own. The way he had torn through the doors despite me holding them shut was proof enough. However, his magic was unrefined and clumsy. He clearly hadn’t the time nor dedication to honing his craft.That made it much too easy to ambush him.Jude erupted from the ground in a spray of sand and dirt, knocking Alpha Hunter off his feet. The two wrestled, but Jude was in no mood to play. His knuckles cracked across the man’s jaw again and again and again.I stood still and watched, my entire being trembling with the need to tear his throat out. As much as I wanted to be the one to end his life, Jude needed this. Without it, Jude would find someone else to hurt.“Jude, en
Jude“Jude.” My brother’s voice rattled my skull but was quickly drowned out by the snarl of my wolf demanding blood.I felt myself slip from my body, watching the spectacle from above.Sterling was pressed against the wall, my hand wrapped around his throat. Vines crawled up his body, prodding at his eyes as I toyed with the idea of plucking them from his skull.Ryker, my brother who had risked his life breaking the oath that kept me tethered to his side, was there trying to pry me off.She was gone. She was gone. She was gone.Dead and then not dead. Here and then not here.Sterling had brought her back, had used every ounce of his strength in doing so, but it wasn’t enough.Ryker’s voice bled into my ears as I sank back down into my body, “Jude, let him speak. This isn’t his fault, and you know it. Come on, man. Don’t make me force you.” I didn’t care. Couldn’t he tell I didn’t care?His magic wrapped around my body, slowly prying my fingers off Sterling. The vines I controlled like
OpheliaI followed my father out of the hospital, still struggling to wrap my head around everything that had happened.Choosing to leave with him was a decision I didn’t take lightly, but what was left for me here? Two mates who had failed me in every way. A best friend whose family I had all but destroyed. An aunt who wanted me dead, and a half-sister who was more than happy to help.As we stepped outside into the warm night, I glanced down at my wrist.I would never get over it. Seeing that smooth expanse of skin, even with the scar, stole my very breath away. It meant that Alpha Hunter was dead. As we walked, my father’s hand wrapped around my own as though I were a little girl, I found myself wondering how it had happened.Had he fallen off a cliff? Stepped in front of a bus? Had Jude finally followed through on his word and killed the bastard?In the end, it didn’t really matter.I forced my thoughts away from my mates, holding my breath until the agony rippling down the bond fa
OpheliaWe were sucked into a vortex of swirling darkness and shimmering stars only to be spat out in a clearing deep within a densely populated forest.The trees were utterly unlike those on Lunar Isle. They were massive, blotting out the night sky until only small glimpses of it remained. I ran my fingers over the nearest one, feeling the rough bark against my flesh as I willed the world to stop spinning.I took a step towards my father—towards Atticus—when I pitched sideways. His hand came down on my shoulder, steadying me before I ate dirt.“Easy, kid.” His eyes crinkled sympathetically, “It’s rough traveling via portal, isn’t it? Takes awhile to get your bearings. Breathe slowly. In through your nose and out through your mouth. The nausea should pass quickly.”I did as he instructed, trying hard not to think about the gaping silence in my mind. Leaving Lunar Isle severed the mind-link and my connection to the people. I was officially a rogue.Swallowing back the knot in my throat
OpheliaIn between bites of steak and chicken I told him everything that had happened since I arrived at Lunar Isle. Everything from Alpha Hunter’s dark bond mark to my suicide attempt.At his request, I included bits of my childhood with Lucille and Kimberly. It was easier talking about the things they’d put me through over recounting my time with Ryker and Jude.He had claimed invading a persons mind took a significant amount of concentration and energy, but I had no way of knowing that for certain, so I took care when it came to what details I gave up. I made sure not to lie, in case he could sense them, but twisted the truth to hide what I needed to hide.Namely, the situation with Coop.I told him about the ritual with Denver, and how it had been a massacre that I still had nightmares about, but I conveniently left out the part where Coop was possessed by the demon.Staying with my father was the best chance I had at finding a cure for him. The hidden library at Eclipse Universit
OpheliaMeanwhile Regina and Matteo snarled at everyone to continue, holding strong in their belief that the demons would soon be under their control. Before anyone could blink a dozen arms began pulling their way through the rift, clawing and scraping their way into the world.“Control them Morningstar!” Lucille spat; her face strained.Sterling’s father, Abraham, shouted. “They’re trying to break free of the circle!”Screaming ensued along with pleas for my father to do something—anything to stop what was unfolding—but my father was gone.“Atticus, do something.” My mother cried, her hair whipping around her shoulders. “Atticus?”Lucille shouted, “He left, you stupid girl! He left us to the slaughter!”My mother’s eyes began to glow, flaring with power that tinted the room in shades of emerald and gold. Rooted in place at her spot along the circle, she spread her hands out, palms facing upwards.“Hold strong,” She shouted, past the hissing. “We can do this. Together we can force the
OpheliaHesitation had him opening his mouth, his lips parting on an exhale. Within half a second he worked through it. Perhaps it was my expression, the need for truth burning within my gaze that caused him to answer. Maybe it was something else entirely.“Our family has always had a talent for dark magic, but there are limits to its capabilities. It can do many things. It can bring life back into a corpse, though that life will be altered, but it cannot create life on its own.” he explained, gauging my every reaction with those unnerving eyes of his. “Your fourth great grandmother needed a child to further the Morningstar line. She had no siblings, leaving the responsibility to her. No matter the spell, no matter the ritual, she could not carry to term.”“What did she do?” I asked, my voice hoarse.The corners of his lips lifted ever so slightly, “She summoned a demon, of course, but it’s sacrifice was too steep. Her pleas reached another though, something more powerful than a demon
NovaKaelith stepped back. I hadn’t noticed, but during our conversation the shadows had stretched behind him, forming a backdrop of darkness that reached out almost lovingly towards him. They coiled around his wrists, his ankles, his throat, like hungry serpents.His last look lingered on me like a bruise.And then he took another step into the darkness, melting into it like he’d never been there at all.The memory shattered like glass before my eyes.I blinked, my lungs dragging in air that tasted of chemicals and bitter loneliness. I was back outside Coop’s room, the linoleum floor spotless beneath my sandals. The corridor was quiet, but that was to be expected. The asylum had to be minutes away from closing, but that’s what I got for visiting so late in the day.Pressing my fingers to my lips, I held them against Coop’s door, silently scoffing at my own stupidity for this silly ritual of mine.I pushed away from the wall, my mind torn between thoughts of my brother and thoughts of
NovaSometimes the only way to draw a monster—although a beautiful monster—out of hiding was to pretend like you weren’t scared of it.That was the logic, anyway.Ophelia and I figured if we acted normally, went about our lives like nothing had changed, Kaelith would emerge on his own. And I would be lying if I said I didn’t want him to.That, in itself, was a problem. A massive, soul-staining problem.Because the demon haunting me wasn’t some wrinkled, gnarled horror crawling out from a crypt. Instead it wore shadows like skin, had lips that made me forget how to breathe, and eyes like polished rubies dipped in sin.So, we played the game.Each afternoon, once my classes let out, we went to the beach, burying our toes in the hot sand, our hair sticky with salt and dry from the sun. I brought homework I never worked on. Ophelia brought books she never opened. We talked about stupid things—pack gossip, Sterling’s weird fixation on this witch that had just moved to the island a month pr
OpheliaSucking his lower lip into his mouth, Jude set me on my feet and tangled his hand in my hair, drawing my lips to his while his other hand worked on my pants. I tried to swat his hands away, but his magic came out, yanking them both behind my back. I could have broken his hold, but my pussy was throbbing, begging for a taste of the mate who had fucked us first.Jude spun me around and kicked my pants to the side. Cold air licked up my pussy and I shuddered as his voice cracked with command.“Hands on the wall and spread your legs wide. I want to see my pretty cunt.” Not a second later I heard him drop to his knees and cried out as he buried his face in my pussy, his lips sucking and tongue tasting. His groan was a broken thing, low and deep and so very desperate it had me bending forward to give him access to all of me. “Nnnmm, you said I could eat your pussy, baby. I’m just being a good mate and doing what I’m told.”Fuck, he was right. I did say that.My restraint was a fickl
OpheliaPaintball. Of course it had to be paintball.I shouldn’t have been surprised. It was Jude, after all. This wasn’t the wildest thing he’d done by any means. However, it wasn’t the location that got me. It was the guest list.“You invited Ryker, Sterling, and Nova?” I stared at him like he’d grown a second head. “Since when do you voluntarily share me on our dates?”Jude just grinned, one sharp canine pressing down into his lip. He leaned lazily against the back of the Jeep, black hair tousled from the wind, scar catching in the light. The sun highlighted the swatches of ink along his arms. I itched to peel his shirt back and see the newest addition to his collection—the dove tattooed right over his heart. My dove.“Coven bonding,” he replied.I supposed it was better to shoot at one another over the alternative: wait for my father’s summon. My anxiety was growing with each passing day, and as if that weren’t bad enough, Edward hadn’t been seen all week. Apparently his father wa
JudePsychopath. Sociopath. That’s what they called me. They weren’t wrong wither. I’d gotten the fancy diagnosis years ago. Funny thing about labels, everyone used them like they were some kind of weakness. A vulnerability to exploit.The only vulnerabilities I’d ever known were currently gathered around Ryker’s obnoxiously large dining room table.Nova was mated to a fucking demon.The air felt thick, charged with tension as Nova quietly recounted exactly how she’d ended up entangled with that creature. Sterling watched silently, sitting rigid in his chair, hands clasped under his chin and eyes unreadable. He was protective over Nova. Often the very thing that kept me from wringing her skinny neck. Ours was a tolerate-hate relationship. Meanwhile, Ryker glared at a spot on the wall as if he planned on burning a hole through it.My gaze, as always, lingered shamelessly on Ophelia. My beautiful, perfect Ophelia. She leaned forward slightly, her pouty lips parting just a sliver. Her ha
NovaMy fingers itched to touch my hair. Kaelith’s eyes flicked up to my hands as if he saw the temptation.I managed a hoarse whisper. “He lost it. Trashed the house. Didn’t speak for m-m-months. My fault. It was my fault.”“No.” That one word was spoken with such absolution that my tears dried up, and my sobs quieted. I couldn’t look away, not while his eyes burned crimson, his tattoos dark against smooth skin. “You were a child whose innocence had not been beaten from them. Your actions did not warrant his response. It was not your fault.”I choked back the slew of responses that bubbled up. You need to learn how to think before you react, Nova, my old therapist had said. The world isn’t responsible for your emotional instability. Kaelith’s gaze searched mine, and I felt utterly naked—no, worse than naked—I felt fucking flayed beneath him. Quiet frustration simmered beneath his angelic face as he saw my denial.His expression darkened further, understanding shifting into something
NovaIf the Goddess hadn’t punished me enough by taking away my family, she had apparently decided to double down by giving me a suicidal demon for a mate.I stared at the incubus sprawled shamelessly across the foot of my bed, an inky stain against the lace and floral perfection. A smirk was etched onto his face as if he owned the entire world—as if he weren’t magically trapped to my bedroom. Then again, he could be smirking at what went down between Jude and Edward.Talking to Kaelith … it surprisingly wasn’t terrible. He was witty and sharp tongued, but his emotions were entirely unpredictable.“Are all demons allergic to boundaries, or is it just you?” I asked dryly, hoping my voice didn’t betray how my body responded to his presence.His crimson eyes danced with amusement. “Boundaries are a human invention. In my realm, we take what we desire.”“Yeah, well, we’re not in your realm,” I said lightly, adjusting the lace hem of my skirt. The way his gaze followed my fingers made my s
OpheliaI think I made a sound, something involuntary and small, because Jude went rigid. Slowly, he rose to stand his head tilting slightly as he turned to face us. His eyes found me, clear and bright, and so very blank. There was a knife in his hand. It dripped blood onto the floor in a steady rhythm.This was the real him, I told myself. The part he kept tucked beneath the charming smiles and clever words. It was the truth laid bare. Cold, hollow, and beautiful in the way a tsunami was before it devastated an entire island.Bile stung the back of my throat as I looked down at Edward, who lay curled into a ball at Jude’s feet. Thorned vines, thick and thin, were wrapped around his body so tightly that they cut into him in some areas. His right eye was nothing more than a fleshy cavern. Blood trickled from the wound, running down his nose and mouth. If that wasn’t bad enough, there was a gouge running across his forehead that nearly made me flinch.Goddess, I thought to myself, was h
OpheliaThe first thing we did was mind link the others to let them know we were alive, and to promise them we’d explain what happened to Ryker. After that we decided to spend the night—or at least, the next few hours—recuperating in this nice family’s home.We recuperated in the marble, clawfoot bathtub, and in the recliners in the lounge while some old action movie played in the background. Currently, we were recuperating in the master bedroom, which had a lovely view of the forest.Ryker’s hand slid around to grasp my throat. His hand, large enough to cradle half my face, pulled my head back until I was forced to look into his eyes. They were hooded, dark with lust, as they had been for hours now.“Enjoying the view?” He asked, his other hand traveling down, to toy with my clit. “Lo so, lo sono, amore.”He snapped his hips, driving the thick length of his cock deeper. I held onto the vanity, glancing at my own red-cheeked reflection in the mirror. Ryker’s eyes were dark as he watch