We don’t put up a fight.I am still weak from child birth so I can't even protest when they drag my roughly through a marbled mansion into a dimly lit dungeon which reeks of blood and other bodily fluids. My stomach threatens to churn.Wyatt looks pale and I feel bad for the gentle natured healer.We spent the whole of last night planning out this infiltration. Once again, Lucas hadn’t been part of the discussion. Sandy had expressed some concern over what to tell Lucas when he noticed I was missing but I had just shaken my head.“He won’t,” Had been my words, my tone carefully unbothered.Lucas has seemingly forgotten everything aside from Carmine. I still don't fully understand why a half witch would try to take Lucas away from me. I can only come to two different conclusions. Either the reason behind Carmine’s constant confidence when it came to obtaining Lucas had stemmed from the fact that she knew a half witch, or the Order is behind this, trying to put a divide be
A slow horror fills me, “Who are-?”“They come and go,” The man tells me and I can hear the weariness in his words. “Some give in. Some fight back. Some, like me, are used.”For a moment, he sounds almost lucid and then he begins humming that haunting tune under his breath.My mouth feels dry and I remember something important.My father.When I had once hovered between the land of life and death, the memory of that time and the words spoken to me have returned to me over the next few months. I know the Order has my father. I know he’s still alive.Is he here?My heart pounds wildly, “Ah, my - do you know if someone from the Clear Mountain Clan was brought in here?”I hear a sudden laugh.It screams of insanity and rage.I try to ask again but the man just keeps laughing.“Hello?!” I decide to take my chances and call out. Maybe someone else will hear me.“Don't bother with them,” The man suddenly says. “I've become used to the poison. They haven't.
I freeze at his words, “What?”He winks at me, grinning, “The Alpha, sweetheart. All you women are just the same. A few sweet words and you're so easily convinced. I worry about your pack. Having a leader like you? One who just walks into a dangerous situation so recklessly.”He crouches down in front of me, his face level with mine, “But then, I guess I should blame your reckless behavior on your mate. You know, the one who can barely stand to touch you?”My jaw tightens, “You’re working with the Hunters?”“The Hunters?” Wyatt lifts a brow. “That was just an excuse to bring you here.”“So, you killed -““If you're going to ask me if I killed Carmine’s father, no I didn’t. That was a sweet coincidence. But, I did manipulate the video feed to show one of those men dropping the weapon. We planted that ourselves. There are no Hunters. Hunters went extinct centuries ago. I had been planning to launch a full-scale attack against your pack using my men disguised as Hunters
I’m frozen in place, staring at her.Then she's swiping her sword at Kayla.I immediately jump into action but the weapon is like an extension of her and I see her cut the chains in half before she barks at me, “Take them off!”I hurry to do so, ignoring my own chains.As soon as I remove them, Kayla slumps to the ground, a heavy weight in my arms.The necromancer lets out a shriek of anger and then there are droves of men running into the marble hall, their faces rotting, their mouths covered with brown stains.“Take the girl!” Samantha shouts and suddenly I see another familiar face. It’s one of the Bores brothers. He scoops up Kayla from me and when he tries to take me, I shaky head, offering up my chains, “Break them please.”He lifts a brow and then uses his hands to break the chains in two. And just like that, I’m free.“Give her to me,” I say, getting to my feet but Samantha approaches me as I see men burst in through the front doors, men who seem to
I hear my grandfather's voice and then the mansion is overrun with silver wolves.As I hold my thin father in my arms, I stare at his face, uncaring of the fight that is waging on. “Nadiel, son!” My grandfather drops to his knees in front of my father, his hands shaking. “What have they done to you?”However, my father’s eyes slip shut.“He still has a pulse,” I babble, my heart racing. “He’s alive. He’s just-“Samantha rushes over, her eyes tight, “These your people?”My grandfather looks at her and his eyes go to the insignia on the sword and he hisses, “Hunter!”He raise a hand and I can see the killing intent in his eyes. I quickly grab his hand, “No, grandfather! She’s -“ I glance at Samantha, “on our side. I think.”Samantha doesn’t sheathe her sword behind her back. Instead, she crouches down and takes out a bottle from her pocket, tossing off the lid and forcing whatever liquid is inside into my father's mouth.“He’s dying,” She says, grimly, before
“We will take them and heal them,” Samantha tells me as the shifters are carried out one by one. They all look to be in terrible shape. “We have been doing this for a while now. The Order has strongholds everywhere. They have these prisons everywhere.”“I thought the Hunters worked for the Order,” I murmur.“No,” Samantha's voice is resolute. “The ones who fought in the Great War did. We don’t. The Order of Eternity is unnatural. It is an evil which needs to be eradicated. We have been reducing the humans the mayor was arresting. He has been working for the Order for a while now. So had his predecessor.”“Did you know who I was when you met me?” I ask, slowly.She smiles, “Yes. I didn't know whether I could trust you or not. But I knew.”I sigh, studying her, “can I ask you something?”When she gives me a questioning look, I asked, "your relationship with Anthony. Is any of it real?”Samantha closes her eyes for a heartbeat, “I did love him and while marrying him i
Watching my biological father die is another shard in my heart.“I’ll take him home,” My grandfather murmurs, tears in his voice, even as he struggles to hide them. “When all this is done-“I smile at him, wearily, “You got my message, didn’t you?”“I did.”“You’re not going to ask me to reconsider?” I give him a heavy look.He puts a warm hand around my nape, pulling me into his wide chest for a hug which is filled with love, “I can feel your pain, child of my child. I can feel it so deep that it is like a visible wound on your person. I just want you to be happy.”I’ve already told him about everything and he ignores both Lucas and Carmine who are entwined around each other. However, when he leaves, I can feel his fury, which I attempt to calm down.“I’m not so weak anymore, grandfather,” I assure him, taking his huge hand in mine. “I will fight till the bitter end.”“And what of you and him?” He asks me, almost sadly, as I see him off in the forest.I don’
“What did you put in that?” I grab Livie’s wrist, uncaring of her howl of pain, my eyes narrowed in fury.“Nothing!” She shrieks, trying to pull away from me but I don’t let her, dragging her down the steps and throwing her plump figure into the courtyard.She lets out a scream and scrambles back, “You crazy bitch! How dar-“I can feel the doors opening and feet rushing out towards the courtyard. But I ignore them.“What,” I begin dangerously, “did you put in my child’s milk?”I see a panicked look on her face, “N-Nothing! W-Why would I put anything-““I saw you!” I roar. “What is going on?” Lucas storms over, his hand around Carmine’s, and for once, I don’t even feel a stab of pain at the sight. Nothing comes before my child.“Get out of here, Lucas,” I say, coldly. “This has nothing to do with you.”He grabs my wrist, hissing, “Considering you’re standing here making a scene, I think it is.”“Oh, just let her, Lucas,” Carmine winds her arm around his ne
SarahThe days that follow are sad ones. We all have to come together as a pack to work through the loss of so many loved ones. “I really thought we were finding peace,” Dustin says, as we gather together three days later. “I hoped it would stay.”“We’ll find that now,” I tell him. “There are always going to be times of peace and times of conflict. I’ve learned we have to accept that as a way of life. That’s the downside of being in a wolf pack.“But the good days outnumber the bad. And we’re strong, we’re fierce. We’ll get through this and defeat any enemies that might come up next. We just have to trust in each other and have faith in the pack.”The words resonate with me as I say them. Despite all the hardships, I’m more devoted to this pack than I ever have been. I’ve learned to accept the ups and downs which are easier to manage now that things between Lucas and I don’t feel quite as fragile.“That’s why you’re a great leader,” Dustin says. “You inspire us all to do just
LucasAs I watch my baby in Sarah’s arms, I’m happier than I ever thought I’d be. A son and a daughter. It feels like now our family is complete. Though I’m open to more children in the future. Right now, I’m just content.Sarah and I tend to be rough sleepers though. So, as Sarah dozes off, I take Evelyn from her arms and place her in the bassinet. Then, I join Sarah on the bed.“She’s beautiful,” I say, cuddling my sleepy mate. “You’re beautiful. I’m so grateful to you for bringing our children into our life like you have. “I know it’s never easy. I won’t even pretend to understand what you go through. But you give up so much for our family. I appreciate that more than I can express.”“And I appreciate you,” she says. “You’re a wonderful father and a fantastic husband. I’m so glad to share all of this with you. I’m so grateful to be building a family with you.”I kiss her and the warmth of having my true mate in my life envelopes me. It just feels so natural and right when y
Sarah“That is an incredible offer,” I say, my eyes staring right into Azar’s. “You’ve promised so much, and I know we’d both prosper within a formed alliance. However, we can’t promise our daughter’s hand in marriage.”My words prompt a hearty response. Some are mere whispers while others are outright defiant. Many can’t believe that we would turn away from this. But we have to do what’s right for our daughter.“Now, I’m not shutting down the idea of a future marriage completely,” I clarify. “Maybe our daughter will end up with your son. Maybe they will be mates.“But we’ll have to wait and see once she’s old enough to decide. Since we’ll be allies regardless, they’ll know each other. They can spend time together.“If our daughter decides that your son is her mate and they both love each other, then they can get married. We’re going to leave that up to her though. We don’t want to make such a big decision for her before she can even consent to it.”Azar’s demeanor falls. It re
LucasSarah looks at me with an expectant look on her face, and I’m just not sure what I should say. The kiss still bothers me. It hurts me. As her mate, I have reason to be upset.The guilt still haunts me though. It reminds me of how I hurt her. It whispers that I deserve this. I know that I deserve this.“It’s nothing,” I insist.“Lucas, please open up to me,” she says. She takes my hand in hers and looks at me with those eyes I never can resist. “I saw you and Azar last night,” I confess. “I saw the kiss.”Sarah looks at me with shock and guilt written upon her face. I hate that. It’s proof that what I saw was true. They did kiss. She betrayed me.“I know I betrayed you horribly,” I continue. “So, I understand that I deserve that. But it still hurts, Sarah. “I thought we had moved past all of that. I thought we were solid. I thought we weren’t ever going to let anyone get between us again. But I guess I was wrong.”Jealous tears through me as the kiss replays in my min
LucasI’m surprised then when I wake, Sarah isn’t beside me. I panic. After everything that’s happened, I simply can’t help it. There are too many ways things can go wrong.I need her near me. I need to always know that she’s okay.After a deep breath, I realize that something feels wrong. Something seems off. I walk to Fergus’ room and see him sleeping peacefully. I tuck the baby monitor in my pocket and step outside. I won’t go far, I can’t go far without Fergus, so hopefully she’s close by.It doesn’t seem like she is at first. I look all around our home and don’t see her. Then, I go towards the back yard and I stop.Sarah is there, but the tree line, but she’s not alone. He’s with her. The anger from earlier boils within me again.I know I shouldn’t be jealous, especially not after what I did to Sarah. I have no right to worry about that after all I put her through. And nothing truly awful has happened between them. I don’t have a solid reason to be upset.Besides, I tru
Lucas“You don’t have to give an answer right now,” he rushes in to say. “I’m not expecting you to be sure of anything right now. It’s just something to think about.”I’m so taken off guard by this that I don’t know a single word to say in response. I have tried to push aside my fears that he wants to seduce Sarah and getting to know them all a little better has helped me to do so.My daughter though… I never thought he’d be after my daughter. Arranged marriage? “That’s a big topic,” Sarah says slowly. “We’d definitely need time to think about it further. We’d have to talk through this amongst ourselves.”“Of course,” Azar replies with a pleasant smile. “I’m not trying to force your hand or anything. Take as much time as you need. It is a big decision but I think it’s the right one.”We don’t stay out much longer than that. We circle back to the gathering for a little while. But everyone is tired, so we all head back home soon after.It’s only once we’re back home that every
SarahI take a moment to give Lucas a hug and another kiss before we step into the area where the feast is being hosted. I can sense that he’s still a little insecure about things, but he had no reason to worry. I’m going to be true to him always.I’ll admit though, I am intrigued by this new pack. I wonder about the kinds of magic they can do. I’m curious about all they have to offer.As we walk towards their Alpha, the pack starts to congregate together, which is a little strange. Before this, they were mingling with everyone else. There seems to be a shift though as we approach them.“We’re so grateful you’ve accepted us,” Azar says, flashing that friendly smile. Is there anything flirtatious about it? I don’t really think so.“To show our gratitude, we would like to show you something,” he continues. “A little show before dinner.”I hesitate. What if this is something malicious? I don’t know anything about this pack. Is it a trap?They’re already here though. They could tr
LucasAfter everything else that’s happened, I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t worried about this new pack joining us. It’s not like it’s uncommon for packs to approach each other, especially if they think a mutually beneficial alliance can be formed.The fact that packs are now approaching us like this shows our growth. I’m proud of Sarah for bringing this pack to greatness like this. I’m happy to welcome newcomers in.It’s just that there’s been a lot going on lately. And it still seems like a risk to allow anyone new to come into this peaceful place we created.Then, I realize that I’m sounding a bit like how Liza sounded when we brought Brandon in. It gives me more empathy towards her but also makes me realize that maybe I’m being a bit paranoid.It will be good to have another alliance. This could ultimately be beneficial to us. So, I help answer questions as the pack follows us. I remain as engaging as possible as I get to know them.“You’ve truly created something impres
SarahChills run down my spine as I listen to this prophecy about our daughter. I always knew our children would be great. But I never expected something like this.Could it be true?I assume it is considering the way this prophecy has been delivered. What does it mean though? How do we deal with something like this?Before we can ask any questions, the bubble floats off into the sky which grows lighter again. The lights turn back on. The candles are re-lit.Lucas and I look to each other as everyone looks to us for answers. Yet I’m stumped. Usually I know what to say, but not this time.“I have no idea where that came from,” I admit. I’ve found that when it comes to being Alpha, the best way to approach these sorts of things is from a place of honesty. “However, I can say that I feel blessed.“It’s clear our daughter will be special. I don’t know exactly what that means yet, but we will take care of her to the best of our ability. We’ll cherish her just as we do Fergus. We’ll