LOGINMarabella POVI slept with Brax all night, his even breathing making me feel better, like he wasn’t about to die from a stupid poison arrow.But my mind was a mess. It seemed so insignificant to be worrying about who my alphas had loved before me when we had humans declaring war, but I couldn’t help it.They were my alphas. I didn’t want females coming out of the woodwork this late into our relationship.Brax should have told me about her. Even if he didn’t love her the same, even if it was nothing now, I should have known that he had something that deep.I didn’t care about past flings or fucks, but potential heirs and marriages? That seemed like a lie. Or at least it felt like one in my heart.I swallowed and looked up at the ceiling and the woodwork, the wooden beams connecting the A-frame that led into the stone walls.All so intricately connected, just like I was with my alphas, and yet one thing had made me feel like our foundations weren’t as strong as I thought they were.Like
Marabella POV“Hi, Corben,” I said, and he showed me to a little bathroom, opening the cupboard and handing me a cloth and a bowl. I filled it with water, then followed him back to Brax.“Sorry, I missed your epic border magic thing. We were watching through the link and felt it all, but damn, I wish I’d been there.” He grinned, his tall, lean body walking casually next to me.I smiled and shrugged. “I think I have to keep feeding it, so maybe you can come next time,” I offered, and he grinned.“Maybe. Some of us are more connected to the water, it’s hard to be away from it.But seeing that all happen for real might be worth it,” he said, and I smiled as he opened the door for me.I went inside, stilling as I saw the girl with the long hair leaning over Brax. She hadn’t seen me yet, but I heard everything she was saying, surprised that she was crying.“Brax, this is not fair.” She sniffled. “You promised. We were to marry, and I’ve kept it quiet like you asked, but how am I meant to k
Marabella POV We were the only ones in the room who knew where Brax’s mind had gone. To that night he had been made to turn.I swallowed and grabbed his hand. “Brax. You’re safe, you’re okay,” I breathed, and his wild eyes turned to mine.I leaned in and kissed him, the poison slowly retreating as I fought it back with my shield and Cain used his own magic on it.The pack members held Brax down but loosened their hold a little so he could touch me. His fingers stroked down my cheek, down to my stomach, and he held his palm there, keeping it there as his head fell back.“Spitfire,” he breathed, and I nodded, eyeing Cain’s movements. He was wobbling a little on top of Brax, the glow in his hands dulling before his eyes fluttered dangerously.“Cain?” I asked, and he turned to me, his eyes drooping, his nose starting to bleed.“I can’t heal all of him today. Your potion takes a lot of my magic quota for the day, but I’ll do more tomorrow once I’ve had some rest,” he breathed, getting off
Marabella POVThe space was filled with angry clashes of teeth and violent screams, but I didn’t want to see the humans get torn apart. I hated them in that moment, but I didn’t want to see what was happening to them.They had wanted a massacre, and I had every faith in my pack providing that.Especially with Jayden on the hunt.“I have to go help. Your father is retreating like a coward, and we can’t lose him. He has attacked us,” Jordan snarled, checking over his shoulder, the clearing dark as the wolves chased the humans farther away.It was weird: thinking of them told me exactly where they were. Not a picture, but a feeling. Some ached, some were cut, but they were mostly okay, they were alive.Brax, not so much. He coughed again, and I nodded toward the forest.“Go, I’ll take Brax home,” I said, and as I said it, a carriage rolled up.Jordan looked like he wanted to say no, but I knew he was only doing that to stay with me.“Go, Jordan. I have my shield. I can’t fight yet, but I
Marabella POVThe cold air of the night broke through the desperate heat within me, and I shivered, wrapping my arms around myself, my eyes darting around the clearing.The torch lamps were lit but each one began going out, and my heart raced.“What’s going on?” I whispered.“Stay there. We’re not alone,” Brax whispered, his hand reaching behind him to grab mine. I clutched it tightly.A darkness fell over the clearing, and everything stilled as the pack snarled and howled.Jayden sniffed the air, a savage roar ripping through him as Jordan frowned, stepping forward, his eyes searching through the forest.“Humans,” he spat, and I swallowed hard.Were they here to talk or to fight? I had no idea, and apparently neither did my alphas, because they were still sensing things that I couldn’t.I peered between Jayden and Jordan at the pack all swarming the alphas, spreading out into the trees, moving in sync.I wondered if Jordan was ordering them into position, if Jayden was barking their
Marabella POVI was grateful for their protection, but I wasn’t sure I needed it, not with Taylor and Garrett keeping quiet.They flinched when I grabbed their hands but they didn’t yank them away, their eyes meeting Jayden’s before going back to me.I let the magic guide me, let it tell me what to do, because without it, I had no idea.And even then, I was kind of winging it, hoping that what I had to say was going to be enough to make them see the future I saw.It was pure happiness, everything we all wanted for the pack and everything I wanted for our future.“We’re weaker when we fight each other. I can promise you, the alphas only want what is best for all of us. When they look after the pack’s best interests, I’m included in that, and so are you. We are all together.“I know it sounds like bullshit, but what I just saw at the border was not. Look, maybe I don’t know what I’m talking about, maybe I’m just the alphas’ toy, as you so eloquently put it, but I do know that the entire







