I hear a sickening scream. It was not an ordinary scream, it was a shriek for help. A shriek for help when someone’s about to die.I lifted my head from the snowy ground just as the white wolf embedded its teeth into the screaming pregnant female’s neck and shoulder.“NO!” I roared and scrambled to my feet. She looks familiar. Her dark hair and blue eyes are the same as mine.My mother. That’s my mother.“MOTHER!”For once, I thought I never knew what she looked like. But I remember there was a painting of her in my father’s library, hidden and tucked away from sight. I looked exactly like her. I think that’s why my family hates me: we bear the same face but it’s only me who managed to survive.I rushed towards her. But I’m surrounded by at least a dozen wolves preventing me from getting from my pregnant mother. I halted. My eyes dart around as their presence suffocates me, circling me, blocking my path to save her.I’m in deep shit. They’re going to attack at once.And when I blink at
Everything could go wrong with this winter dinner with the dread I feel. It increases the closer I get to the Alpha King’s private dining room.“The Luna is here, Alpha King,” then Farra shut the door behind me. I remained standing in the foyer, internally screaming. It overlooks the entire Nightblood Pack on the highest floor of the castle. I don’t know why but when I think of the pack’s name, I think of bloody red and onyx night as their colors. But instead, it’s a varying shade of silver or white and blue. Even here. The interior looks as if it was made of ice—or glass, I cannot tell. On my right was an alight fireplace.The Alpha King’s back faces me, sitting on the same chair that looks between ice and glass. His personal dining throne.He turned to me. I only put my clenched two hands behind me. That dread silenced, but it remained.“Come. Sit across me.”I looked beyond him, and there, the balcony that looked half the room's size beckoned. I could already smell the food from her
When I was in the Moonflame Pack, my friends once told me to never mention another lover or past mate when dining with a current lover or present mate. I think I’ve made a mistake. My tongue slipped and made a fucking big mistake. “Who is your first mate, Evadne?” That was his fourth time asking me about Alpha Gregor. My fingers fidgeted, my breathing uneven. I cannot lie in front of an Alpha King if I don’t want to lose my tongue. “Uhm...” If I leaned forward, my lips would no doubt meet his. So I leaned back to my chair, making sure my face was as far from his. “He’s an Alpha.” That’s a truth, at least. I braced myself for his other questions. “From which pack?” Kallias purred, a lover’s gaze pierce my panicking eyes. I bit my lower lip. I looked closer at his eyes and there’s something like possessiveness that swirls on his irises. Well, I’m pinned to my chair and can’t move. And then there’s his warm breath, his breath wa
It is a curious thing, the scent of memory. It drifts you back to your childhood like the wind sweeping the snowflakes to your open window. Just by the scent of the flowers on my bedside table, I can still remember the last thing a childhood friend of mine gave me before he was forever gone in my life—and they have the same scent as the flowers that greeted my morning. I think he was seventeen and I was five when we met. But he looks younger, like how a twelve-year-old looks like. I remember him saying that I made him feel as if he was still ten years old. I make him feel seven years younger. I can’t remember his face nor his name. But I can still remember the feelings: the feelings I have when we play or roll in the grass and talk about silly things. The feelings of comfort he made me feel when I was kicked by Elodie or slapped by my father. It was to him and the cottage whom I run to every time my family treated me as a piece of shit. When he was
The sweet and tangy orange fruit helped me recover from Beta Elise. I swallowed each as I popped one in my mouth, each bite sending those hurtful words the Beta said, drifting away with the memories I badly wanted to forget. I know my breakfast will not end well. Nevertheless, I’m going to finish my breakfast. “Don’t mind her,” the bisexual Beta Caesar grunted beside Geneva. “She’s just bitter that she’s no longer the Alpha King’s bed warmer now that he has found you.” That was why there’s always a hint of envy on Beta Elise’s face... I straightened. I was about to reply to him when a group of Warriors passed behind me. Whether they knew I was there or just pretended I wasn’t was not their concern. The one in the middle spoke, “Did you hear what happened with the Alpha King and his mate last night? She shifted and leaped to the balcony, landed on the ground only to turn around to the western part of the Winter Castle where her chamber is
I immediately looked away, feigning injury on my foot so that I could get to the ground. I must not meet his eyes. He must not know I’m here. I didn’t turn away when his gaze lingered. I lurched into a sprint, finding my way through the Alpha’s icy garden of frost-crusted red roses and snow-covered sunflowers. I didn’t stop until I was sure I was far from my father’s sight. I don’t know why I’m hiding. He probably knew about me and the Alpha King already anyway. Well, nevertheless, I never want to see his face again. It brought painful scars and haunting memories every time I found his face staring at me.When the Winter Castle was just a magnificent view in the distance, I wandered into the Alpha’s vast garden, benches were in the place along with slightly frozen fountains with ice sculptures adorning it.I sat on a wooden bench that was almost white thanks to the weather. I sighed and slumped back. I closed my eyes for a moment, my heartbeat slowly
“You look like you’ve been through shit.” I was on her threshold and she was holding what seemed to be a cup of jasmine tea when I knocked. I brushed my snowy shoes on her rags as Beta Geneva swiped the door open. “I was. In fact, I—” But then I shook my head. I cannot tell Beta Geneva about Greg. If I did, she’d probably hunt him down and tear him to pieces. I can’t afford the Fireheart Pack came knocking in the Winter Castle and demanded for my head. It’s too risky to tell her, too much trouble. “I was just being clumsy. This is nothing.” Beta Geneva’s house is as simple and yet welcoming as she looks. The soft wood tone and the sunset colors of the walls and ceilings definitely match her personality. It’s like her house is a living flame in the heart of eternal winter. She arched a curious brow. Geneva has a talent for smelling lies. “Is it?” “Yes,” I looked away, refraining from her assessing eyes. “I was, uh, being careless as I’ve s
“If you do that one more time, you’ll just break your leg rather than incapacitate your enemy.”I dared to glare at Beta Caesar, but he just laughed at me like a child who never learned from her mistakes.“Do this,” he added, punching an invisible enemy through the air.“But I have a weak punch,” I told him, “Besides, the enemy is gripping my other arm.”The Beta’s eyes smiled, “Your other arm is free so there’s that.”I grunted at him. I have spent the whole week learning and training with Beta Caesar. Mara couldn’t agree more and she loves to be able to show her white fur to the rest of the Nightblood Pack. I didn’t like it at first, however.But Beta Caesar’s enthusiasm and Beta Geneva’s excitement were what changed my perspective. Every breakfast, I sometimes stretch my arm or leg subtly before digging into my food. I learned to ignore the whispers of the other packmembers. That group of Warriors that once gossiped about me quieted, or maybe it’s because I was always present when
Eating dessert was at least not a burden for my stomach. The rest of the meal hadn’t been that bad. Thankfully, I somehow warmed towards my mate—if his secret glances in my direction weren’t warming enough. I cleared my throat. “Beta Geneva told me of the upcoming Alpha Winter Ball. Am I required to be there as your Lu—I mean as your mate?” I looked away briefly before sighing, “Look. It’s fine for me if you want me there out of courtesy but it’s also okay for me if you just want me to stay here. After all, my father hasn’t yet known of my fate.” The last world felt like ash in my tongue. True, what Kallias and I had was fate. Destiny. But I don’t know if my father and sister know of those words when it comes to me. Kallias just listened as I stuttered. But then, his gaze softened afterward. “Evadne... it’s not even a month after you arrived here. I’m not forcing you. If you want to come, come. If you don’t...” he sighed and dragged his gaze to the
'The Alpha King seemed to devour any storm passing by just to show me his effort for us to dine together for the second time,’ I was telling myself. Begging myself. ‘Please don’t run to the toilet yet.’ I swallowed. Perhaps I should fart in my room first before meeting the Alpha King. My watery bowels turned even more watery. Mara howled at my thoughts, even the beads of sweat now forming on my forehead despite the cold. My wolf’s laughter continued, making my cheeks red. I hope Kallias doesn’t smell it, or at least scent it in me. Mara laughed even more. “What are you blushing at?” Kallias gently let go of me and helped me stand straight. “Can’t I just blush at my mate?” That foolish attempt to flirt in front of a cold Alpha is, well, foolish. But the Alpha King smiled, even if it didn’t reach his eyes. “Ladies first?” He waved a hand to the round table adorned with a sapphire blue tablecl
Evening finally came and I found myself reading a book. I don’t usually read books because the last time I held one, Elodie grabbed it from my hand and smacked it on my face, resulting in my nose bleeding. Now, sitting for dinner before a roaring fireplace, snow relentlessly falling outside, I never felt more relaxed. I’m reading a love story, not sure how this came to the Alpha King’s possession and gathering dust in this little library. It was about an Alpha who fell in love with one of the daughters of the Moon Goddess, cursed to forget him every single day when the dawn breaks. Right. Another reason to cry tonight. But the smell of oranges that Farra included in my dinner along with the snowdrops she added to the vase on my vanity mirror rippled something in my heart. One that I have tried to tell my heart to forget and bury it where I cannot find it lurking as one of my feelings. But those feelings lingered. Summoned, it
“If you do that one more time, you’ll just break your leg rather than incapacitate your enemy.”I dared to glare at Beta Caesar, but he just laughed at me like a child who never learned from her mistakes.“Do this,” he added, punching an invisible enemy through the air.“But I have a weak punch,” I told him, “Besides, the enemy is gripping my other arm.”The Beta’s eyes smiled, “Your other arm is free so there’s that.”I grunted at him. I have spent the whole week learning and training with Beta Caesar. Mara couldn’t agree more and she loves to be able to show her white fur to the rest of the Nightblood Pack. I didn’t like it at first, however.But Beta Caesar’s enthusiasm and Beta Geneva’s excitement were what changed my perspective. Every breakfast, I sometimes stretch my arm or leg subtly before digging into my food. I learned to ignore the whispers of the other packmembers. That group of Warriors that once gossiped about me quieted, or maybe it’s because I was always present when
“You look like you’ve been through shit.” I was on her threshold and she was holding what seemed to be a cup of jasmine tea when I knocked. I brushed my snowy shoes on her rags as Beta Geneva swiped the door open. “I was. In fact, I—” But then I shook my head. I cannot tell Beta Geneva about Greg. If I did, she’d probably hunt him down and tear him to pieces. I can’t afford the Fireheart Pack came knocking in the Winter Castle and demanded for my head. It’s too risky to tell her, too much trouble. “I was just being clumsy. This is nothing.” Beta Geneva’s house is as simple and yet welcoming as she looks. The soft wood tone and the sunset colors of the walls and ceilings definitely match her personality. It’s like her house is a living flame in the heart of eternal winter. She arched a curious brow. Geneva has a talent for smelling lies. “Is it?” “Yes,” I looked away, refraining from her assessing eyes. “I was, uh, being careless as I’ve s
I immediately looked away, feigning injury on my foot so that I could get to the ground. I must not meet his eyes. He must not know I’m here. I didn’t turn away when his gaze lingered. I lurched into a sprint, finding my way through the Alpha’s icy garden of frost-crusted red roses and snow-covered sunflowers. I didn’t stop until I was sure I was far from my father’s sight. I don’t know why I’m hiding. He probably knew about me and the Alpha King already anyway. Well, nevertheless, I never want to see his face again. It brought painful scars and haunting memories every time I found his face staring at me.When the Winter Castle was just a magnificent view in the distance, I wandered into the Alpha’s vast garden, benches were in the place along with slightly frozen fountains with ice sculptures adorning it.I sat on a wooden bench that was almost white thanks to the weather. I sighed and slumped back. I closed my eyes for a moment, my heartbeat slowly
The sweet and tangy orange fruit helped me recover from Beta Elise. I swallowed each as I popped one in my mouth, each bite sending those hurtful words the Beta said, drifting away with the memories I badly wanted to forget. I know my breakfast will not end well. Nevertheless, I’m going to finish my breakfast. “Don’t mind her,” the bisexual Beta Caesar grunted beside Geneva. “She’s just bitter that she’s no longer the Alpha King’s bed warmer now that he has found you.” That was why there’s always a hint of envy on Beta Elise’s face... I straightened. I was about to reply to him when a group of Warriors passed behind me. Whether they knew I was there or just pretended I wasn’t was not their concern. The one in the middle spoke, “Did you hear what happened with the Alpha King and his mate last night? She shifted and leaped to the balcony, landed on the ground only to turn around to the western part of the Winter Castle where her chamber is
It is a curious thing, the scent of memory. It drifts you back to your childhood like the wind sweeping the snowflakes to your open window. Just by the scent of the flowers on my bedside table, I can still remember the last thing a childhood friend of mine gave me before he was forever gone in my life—and they have the same scent as the flowers that greeted my morning. I think he was seventeen and I was five when we met. But he looks younger, like how a twelve-year-old looks like. I remember him saying that I made him feel as if he was still ten years old. I make him feel seven years younger. I can’t remember his face nor his name. But I can still remember the feelings: the feelings I have when we play or roll in the grass and talk about silly things. The feelings of comfort he made me feel when I was kicked by Elodie or slapped by my father. It was to him and the cottage whom I run to every time my family treated me as a piece of shit. When he was
When I was in the Moonflame Pack, my friends once told me to never mention another lover or past mate when dining with a current lover or present mate. I think I’ve made a mistake. My tongue slipped and made a fucking big mistake. “Who is your first mate, Evadne?” That was his fourth time asking me about Alpha Gregor. My fingers fidgeted, my breathing uneven. I cannot lie in front of an Alpha King if I don’t want to lose my tongue. “Uhm...” If I leaned forward, my lips would no doubt meet his. So I leaned back to my chair, making sure my face was as far from his. “He’s an Alpha.” That’s a truth, at least. I braced myself for his other questions. “From which pack?” Kallias purred, a lover’s gaze pierce my panicking eyes. I bit my lower lip. I looked closer at his eyes and there’s something like possessiveness that swirls on his irises. Well, I’m pinned to my chair and can’t move. And then there’s his warm breath, his breath wa