Chapter 20: Ghosts of the PastThe air feels heavy, suffused with an intensity that makes every nerve in my body stand on edge. Luis steps in front of me, his shoulders squared, his Alpha aura rolling off him in waves as he faces the eight rogue wolves standing in the middle of the quad. Their presence feels like a scar torn open, bleeding memories I’ve buried so deep I almost convinced myself they weren’t real.But now, the edges of those memories are fraying, unraveling in my mind like threads I can’t grasp.Caroline growls softly in my head, her voice sharp and protective. “Stay alert. Something’s not right here, Agatha. I don’t trust them.”Neither do I.I watch them carefully, trying to process everything about them. The woman with snow-white hair stands out first, her long, straight locks gleaming like moonlight. Her blue eyes are cold, distant, as though she’s weighing the cost of standing here. Next to her is a woman with copper-colored hair that cascades over her shoulders, he
The words from the note echo in my mind: You’re not who you think you are.My hands tremble, the envelope slipping from my grip and floating to the floor like a feather, though it feels as heavy as a boulder in my chest. My breathing becomes uneven, a shallow rhythm that does nothing to quell the rising storm within me.“What does that even mean?” I whisper, my voice barely audible over the pounding of my heart.A chill creeps down my spine, and my thoughts scatter in every direction. Who sent this? One of the rogues? But why? What do they know about me that I don’t?I begin pacing, the four walls of the dorm room shrinking, closing in. My chest tightens, and it feels as if I’m suffocating. My fingers claw at my neck instinctively, but no invisible rope is choking me—it’s just panic taking hold.“Agatha, calm down,” Caroline’s voice cuts through the chaos in my head. It’s firm, but there’s a sharp edge to it. “Your emotions are all over the place, and it’s making it harder for me to t
LUISThe night air feels colder than usual, biting against my skin as I pace the balcony outside my office. Agatha.Her name echoes in my mind, unbidden, followed by flashes of her face—those fiery eyes that now burn with an intensity that wasn’t there before, the way she stood her ground against me the day she challenged my authority. And worst of all, that moment on her birthday when I caught her scent. It struck me like a thunderbolt.Mate.Mark growls in my mind, his voice heavy with frustration. You knew from the first time you kissed her.“I didn’t know,” I hissed aloud, gripping the balcony rail until my knuckles turned white.You’re lying to yourself. I felt it. You felt it. His growl deepens, filled with disappointment. And yet, you chose to ignore it. Look where that’s gotten us.I squeeze my eyes shut, trying to block him out, but he’s relentless.Agatha is suffering because of you, and so is Lilly. This isn’t right, Luis.I slam my fist against the railing, the sound ech
LUISThe morning air crackles with anticipation. Even before the whispers reach my ears, I can feel the energy shift in the packhouse. Something monumental is happening. By the time I step out of my room, the halls are already buzzing with pack members. Nervous glances are exchanged, whispers hissed under breaths."Alpha Conrad is back."The words hit me like a thunderclap. My father, the former Alpha of the Vanderwilson pack, the one who started a war and left us to fight it, has returned after years of absence. For a moment, I’m frozen. My heart pounds, and Mark stirs uneasily in my mind.Why now?Heavy, deliberate footsteps echo down the grand hall before I see him. The crowd parts like the Red Sea, and there he is—Alpha Conrad Vanderwilson. He’s even more imposing than I remember, his sheer presence dominating the room. His jet-black hair, streaked with gray, is slicked back, and his piercing gold eyes sweep over everyone like a predator surveying his prey. His aura is suffocating
The golden rays of the setting sun seep through the campus trees as I sit with Sarah, Ruth, Tyler, Leo, and Matt in the university’s open garden. The day has been filled with laughter and teasing, my friends ensuring I don’t slip back into the somber mood that has clung to me since the rogue attack on my birthday.I find myself smiling more than I expected, enjoying the warmth of their company despite the lingering anxiety in the back of my mind. Since that night, every shadow feels sharper, every sound more threatening. My Lycan, Caroline, has been restless too, pacing in my mind and reminding me that the world isn’t as safe as it seems right now.But for now, I’m choosing to enjoy this. Tyler is telling a story about his disastrous attempt at cooking dinner last week, complete with dramatic hand gestures and exaggerated voices for ever
It’s been a few days since the Matt-kiss disaster, and the memory still burns brighter than a solar flare. Caroline hasn’t let me forget it either, gleefully replaying Luis’s scowl every chance she gets.“Do you think he was mad because he wanted to kiss us? Or because Matt actually did?”“Shut up, Caroline,” I mutter, brushing past a low branch as I stalk through the woods near the Vanderwilson estate.My wolf huffs, the sound full of amusement. “You’re no fun. You know, it’s been three days, and Luis is nowhere to be found. Maybe he’s stewing. Brooding. Imagining all the ways he could—”“Caroline!”“—ruin his brother's existence,” she finishes with a snicker.I roll my eyes and focus on the task at hand. The woods are unusually quiet today, the kind of silence that sets my teeth on edge. Luis may be ignoring me completely, but I’ve thrown myself into something much bigger to keep my mind busy: the rogue problem.They’ve been getting bolder, striking closer and closer to Vanderwilson
The deafening wail of the school alarm shatters the silence, yanking my attention away from Luis and toward the door. My pulse quickens as I hear faint but distinct police sirens approaching in the distance.“What the hell?” I whisper, my voice drowned out by the relentless blaring.Luis’s jaw tightens, his gaze darting to the window. “Humans must’ve seen the rogues,” he mutters, his tone laced with irritation. “We can’t deal with this here. If the police show up, we’ll have an entirely different mess to clean up.”“Fantastic,” I say, throwing up my hands. “Just what we need—rogues and cops.”Luis shoots me a sharp look. “Agatha, focus.”“Focusing,” I reply quickly, though my sarcasm doesn’t completely disappear.“Come on,” he says, grabbing my wrist and pulling me toward the door. His hand is warm, firm, and entirely too distracting.Caroline, my wolf, huffs in my head. “I wouldn’t mind if he held onto us forever.”“Not helping, Caroline,” I snapped internally.We slip out of the lib
Standing at the doorstep of the Vanderwilson mansion, I grip the handles of my suitcases as though they’re the only things anchoring me to the ground. The cold air wraps around me, biting at my skin, but I barely feel it. My eyes are fixed on the sprawling mansion before me, its towering arches and intricate stone carvings practically dripping with opulence.“I would have never thought there’d be a day where I’d resent this place,” I mutter internally to Caroline, my wolf. “Is it too late to go back to campus?”Caroline snorts. “Oh, sure. Let’s run back to the campus crawling with rogues. Fantastic idea. You want me to call the ambulance now, or should we wait for the rogue to chew through your leg first?”“I’m just saying,” I grumble. &ld
Lilly crouched on the thick branch of the old oak tree, her fingers gripping the rough bark as she steadied herself. The Winterfall mansion loomed before her, its darkened windows staring back like hollow eyes. A cold breeze rustled through the night, sending a chill down her spine, but she ignored it.She hadn’t been here in years.Not since the night she left.The memory was fresh, like an old wound reopened. The cold corridors, the heavy silence, the unbearable weight of her father’s death pressing down on her. She had escaped that night, vowing never to return.Yet here she was.With a heavy sigh, she reached for the familiar window on the east wing, pressing her fingers against the frame. It was still loose—just as it had always been. With a careful push, she eased it open and slid inside, landing on the wooden floor with a soft thud.The air inside was stale, thick with dust and memories. The east wing had been off-limits for years—her father’s private space, filled with history
Amelia stared at the sun through the window, barely registering the monotonous drone of the lecture in the background. It had been three days since Agatha and Luis had vanished without a trace. This morning, whispers spread that Lilly—the soon-to-be Luna—was also missing from Vanderwilson. Their mother was worried. Even their usually unshakable father seemed tense.But Amelia? She couldn’t care less.The only thing consuming her thoughts was the most efficient and agonizing way to kill Agatha.Nick had given her the order, but she hadn’t needed much convincing. Hurting people, watching them writhe, seeing the light flicker from their eyes—it was a high unlike anything else. And Agatha? She was the perfect prey. The odd lycan child, the winter fall princess who came to Vanderwilson as nothing but now has everything, walking around like she wasn’t the biggest threat to everything Amelia held dear.A smirk curled Amelia’s lips as she scribbled absentmindedly in her notebook. Beside her,
Lilly double-checked her duffle bag one last time, ensuring she had everything she might need for her journey. Clothes, makeup, pads, skincare, a brush, lots of bullets, a knife, a flashlight, snacks, water, and her most important tool—a silenced handgun. She wasn’t taking any chances, especially not when she had a hunch that her little sister, Agatha, was tangled up in something dangerous.For the past few days, Lilly had been riddled with anxiety. First, there was Alexander and Nick’s cryptic conversation that she overheard, a conversation that seemed to hint at trouble for Agatha. Then, there was Agatha herself, mysteriously vanishing with Luis. If there was one thing Lilly hated, it was being left out of the loop, especially when it involved family.She adjusted the strap of her duffle bag and glanced at the clock on her phone.1:14 a.m.Perfect. Everyone in the mansion would be fast asleep by now. Luis’s family, the nosy pack members, even the night patrols—no one would suspect h
Agatha was in a mood.Not a full-blown, ready-to-bite-someone’s-head-off kind of mood—though she had been known to channel that energy—but a simmering, slow-burn kind of irritation that made her mutter to herself in ways that made people question her sanity.Matthew, their self-appointed guide, was the primary cause of her irritation. All they’d managed to drag out of him was a first name. No last name. No backstory. Just “Matthew.”“Who introduces themselves with just a first name in the middle of a forest while claiming they might know something? Suspicious people, that’s who,” Agatha grumbled mentally to Caroline, her wolf.“Very suspicious,” Caroline replied with an exaggerated sigh. “Probably something embarrassing like Matthew Butterbean.”Agatha snorted. Out loud.Luis, walking a few paces ahead of her, glanced back briefly, his brow furrowed. She waved him off like she’d just sneezed.Luis was another problem altogether. Or, more accurately, the problem was the way her heart f
The air in the classroom feels heavy, a mix of fear and anticipation thick enough to choke on. Every pair of eyes is glued to Amelia and her friends, Mei and Lee, as they stop in their tracks. The professor, oblivious to the storm he’s summoned, busies himself gathering the shattered remains of his glasses from the floor.“Insolent brats,” he mutters again, this time louder. The words hang in the air, daring anyone to challenge them.Amelia’s sharp green eyes narrow, her lips twitching as if suppressing a smile. Mei and Lee exchange a quick glance, their expressions darkening with anticipation. The temperature in the room seems to plummet as the tension crackles like static in the air.From the back of the
Amelia stared blankly out of the large windows of Vanderwilson University, her thoughts spiraling into a confusing mix of suspicion and irritation. Sure, she didn’t like Agatha—never had, probably never would—but the girl did save her from those rogue werewolves on campus a few weeks ago. That had to count for something, right?But then there was Nick, her stepfather, a man who seemed to thrive on paranoia and bad vibes. According to him, Agatha wasn’t just annoying; she was dangerous. And maybe Nick had a point. Agatha did spend an offensive amount of time with Luis. Amelia’s lips pressed into a thin line at the thought. Luis was her brother, and she loved him, but she’d learned long ago that men could be clueless about scheming women. Agatha? Scheming. Definitely scheming. Even their dad couldn’t stand her and had been on edge since Luis brought her back.“Miss Amelia,” a voice boomed from the front of the hall, yanking her out of her spiraling thoughts, “if my class is that boring,
Nick strolled down the marble corridor of the Vanderwilson mansion, his polished shoes clicking against the floor. He had just finished an intense meeting with Alexander, the former Alpha of the pack and Luis’s father. While the conversation had left him rattled—Alexander always had that effect—Nick’s confidence quickly returned. He had a plan. A ridiculous, morally bankrupt plan, but a plan nonetheless.Stopping in front of a familiar door, Nick smirked. Amelia’s room. The youngest daughter of Alexander and Luis’s half-sister. Nick had always known how to pick his marks, and Amelia was perfect: young, impressionable, and desperate for attention.With a swift glance down the hallway to ensure no one was watching, Nick turned the knob and slipped inside.The room was a riot of pastel colors, fluffy pillows, and an overwhelming number of stuffed animals. Nick wrinkled his nose. It was like walking into a sugar-coated fever dream.Amelia looked up from her desk, her face lighting up the
Lilly paced the length of her lavish bedroom, her steps brisk and uneven. The grand space, adorned with gold accents and rich, dark wood furniture, suddenly felt suffocating. She had barely slept the night before, her mind gnawed by insecurities and half-formed suspicions.Her Lycan's voice slithered into her thoughts, smooth yet insistent. “It could be someone you know.”She froze mid-step, her hands gripping the silk sash of her robe. “No,” she whispered, shaking her head as if to ward off the idea. “Luis wouldn’t—he couldn’t.”“Men can be foolish,” her Lycan continued, a bitter edge creeping into its tone. “Even the strongest can stray. And haven’t you noticed how distracted he’s been lately?”Lilly’s jaw clenched. She had noticed. How could she not? Luis, once the epitome of attentiveness, had grown distant. His eyes often seemed far away, his thoughts tethered to something—or someone—else.Her fingers itched to confront him, to demand answers, but she wasn’t ready for what those
The moment we step into Winter Fall, it feels like we’ve walked into a horror movie. The trees are taller, their twisted branches reaching for the sky like they’re trying to grab the moon. The air is cold, but not the kind that makes you shiver—it’s the kind that sinks into your bones and whispers, Turn back while you still can.“This place gives me the creeps,” I mutter, my eyes darting around the shadows that seem to move even when the wind isn’t blowing.Luis, as usual, is completely unfazed, his smirk as irritating as ever. “You just don’t appreciate the thrill of adventure.”“Adventure?” I snort. “I’ve had plenty of adventures. Like that time your sister and I were running for our lives on campus because of rogue wolves. Or have you forgotten that little detail?”Luis shrugs, clearly unimpressed. “That was different. This is a controlled adventure.”“Controlled?” I roll my eyes. “This is a suicide mission with extra steps, Luis.”We press on, the glowing symbols on Luis’s map cas