Noah and Rhys had a standing joke, since Desmond hated cats, Noah always sent a cat diplomat to deal with him. It was a brazen provocation, meant to rile both- the cats to an uprising, and Desmond's vote bank to show how performative he was. Maybe he'd be dethroned when both bayed for blood. It was cruel, but his people were trapped, no outside force can bring them their freedom. Heart singing in his chest, he sucked in a great lungfuls of air. Woods flew by in a shadowed blur. Paws landing solidly, whiskers fluttering in the breeze. Brain switched off as he ran. Only an impossible tick to maintain-Nora Desmond. His cat should hate her on principle.Nora killed the engine of her old sedan, rusted window halfway open so the air conditioner's thrumming was useless. Just like her attempts at normalcy. Her father had revoked "car privileges" because she had forgotten to send it for its regular priming sessions. Walter Desmond lived like a tyrant and expected everyone to fall into line at
"Yes," habitual politeness slid into gaps in her faces, "I was here for car repair, thought I should make a detour. Would've waited but you are already here." His full lips tainted in a smile that didn't crease his cheeks. He knew she was lying but let it go."I informed Titius we'd be moving our reinforcement from Rudiger's territory. He doesn't need them anymore and we are short on the resources at the moment. Besides, your father and Rudiger have worked out the tributaries, haven't they? The trespassing won't stop until Rudiger tightens his fist." He was including her in conversation of importance, or was he throwing her crumbs of his table? She couldn't decide. She definitely can't trust. She had to indulge right back."The better part of the decision lies in the reinforcement of the decision made. We'll see." There. She had graduated suma cum laude in diplomacy from Brown University after attending the regal academy all high-born wolves did. Rhys felt his claws slice out at th
Rhys fully grinned. The range rover had been to smooth the bumpy ride back to his woodshed on the terrains laid out miles long. His animal prefered hearing and seeing their visitor before making contact. If she didn't like his masculinity, which was practical as opposed to her pointy impractical heels, then he'd drive roughly. Let her know how pragmatism had to be coupled with skill. Nora sucked in her teeth, the damn cat was enjoying her pain. To be fair, it wasn't painful, just irksome. Her head near about the hit the window for the third time when she braced herself, growled at him. The thrumming engine, rattled car, every sound opaqued by his sudden bark of laugh. It was vibrant. She huffed and turned to the window, at least now he drove smoothly, like he knew what he was doing. "What did you want to talk abou that couldn't wait?" Talking to him, no, begging for his help when she could just as easily ask Noah was like chewing glasses. She was under no illusions of what Rhys th
"I suppose there is a leader in this gang of yours they'll listen to?" She swallowed back the barb- he knew she wasn't that leader. She was just conveniently present in the food chain to help them out of a sticky situation, nothing else. "Yes. What do I tell him?" She could sit here and make this not about her. "Tell him we'll get them to a safe place." Her face flushed, relief, horror, doubt, then relief again- Rhys didn't know which one to study in depth- they flicked fast."Really? You'd do that? I didn't think you'd be this forthcoming." Her slight smile was worth saying an immediate yes. But he has meant what he said. They won't just help the cats run, they'll help them settle someplace new. Away from Desmond and his pack to properly heal."You do think highly of yourself to assume this is about you, don't you? They are us. We are them." Everything shut off. The light immediately sauntered out of her eyes, the smile frozen. His cat sighed at internal guilt. He could see her o
Someone had outthought him, Desmond realized. Calvin was on the top of his list, one of Calvin's people had defected. His couldn't. They'd know the punishment was worse than death- it was unmaking. Effervescent. Erasure of the soul. Oh, the others thought Desmond knew very little about magic but he did not. The reason he had kept Calvin close, had Oma captured a long time ago, long before Calvin had worked up his plan to take over, was because Desmond knew about brimstones. He never would've if not for the accident. The accident of his marriage, the accident of his wife. The latter was his doing but only because she never told him the truth, not all of it. Hanging onto the freyed ends of her life. It had been a turning point, an impassive stone between today and tomorrow. Between the known and the unknown. If Calvin found out Oma was just like Ian, Oma would become the perfect sacrificial lamb. Then Desmond would get what he always wanted, a carnage the size of New York territorie
"Any movement?" Vanessa had kept a psychic eye on them. With practise, she could follow a thought nearly 500 miles away. It weakened her at times but she was strong. She even felt strong. "They are shifting the weapons to the hangar. Twelve hours from now." She faced Evan, tapping on his shoulder. Noah let her, content she was in his lap."I'll be with Jodie." Vanessa wanted to hug Evan, stopped the thought before it spun into a worry. He won't appreciate it. But he needed to know that Jodie would be safe. She might be more at physical disadvantage but she was no less a killer than Evan was. Vanessa had the bruises from their training to prove it. Three hours later, Evan had run with novice soldiers, helped trainees set up the gears. Their communication was unparalleled and the networks so infused inside the city, Desmond would have to raze the streets apart to break off their connection. And that he won't do. He wanted to kill that waste of oxygen, his animal surfacing unbidden. It
The operatives began to appear along the perimeter at three a.m. pouring out from craft that landed just outside of the firing range of the Selene territory. Humans ready for combat, lethal, illegal mercenaries-wolves, Changelings, some humans baying for the blood of those inside the territory line. They were primed with enough weapons, Noah had to effectively brace himself. Had they been relying on their physical strength alone, the war would've been over even before it began. It just so happened, Evan, Rhys were trained in a unit they relies on, a unit of sharpshooters. Salazar's contacts were ex-army, ex-snipers all assisted by new trainees primed in a position to take out Desmond's assassins, the latent power, before they even got into position.The enemy learned quickly as their numbers decreased, that there was no way a sneak attack was going to work. All movement stilled for a fraction of second that felt too stretched. Wolves knew the place like the back of their hands, the o
Drawing his claws out, Noah climbed the mountain from underside of the rock, his body horizontal, but the animal maintained the challenging grip, sharp talons digging like hooks in the rock. It might slow him down but the attacker won't see him coming. He would expect a wolf. The attacker was another wolf who had smelled him too. A shooter. Propelling himself with the force of his whole body, he dry heaved himself from front, exactly a millisecond before the shooter pulled the trigger. But he was already past the shooting range, covering the negative space between edge and his prey. Black stalwart eyes staring in assailants face, then a gargling sound later, Noah felt the organ- his larynx, voice box-between his teeth. Disinfectiously, he spit it out. On the video feed, Selene tried to keep straight face, when Noah informed her the south border was breached. They had a fail-safe in place, to evacuate any living being from where the territory had been breached. But they won't have to
'Love does find a way afterall. No matter what obstacles are laid before us, if our love is pure, it will win at the end, no matter what.' Vanessa thought as a smile lit her face up. She was sitting comfortably on a couch, in a large sweatshirt that belonged to Noah, now her husband.She thought back to their wedding ceremony, it was a wonderful affair filled with laughter, love and hope. All their friends had come, looking clean in their dresses and suits. Noah had left last night, in wolf form, hollering and calling loudly to the moon. A makeshift bachelor party- a wild run in the forest and then some chilled beer at a cliff with a nice view. That left Vanessa to sit back at home, thumbing through her favorite book and smiling now and then. It was midnight when she decided to call it a night and go to bed- her last night as a single lady. Just then, she caught sight of a rustling figure outside the window. It was Noah, his hair windswept and his cheeks red from being drunk. He was
She watched his face, less shy about its location on the map of her body. He was smiling to himself, mischievous, his eyes on his work. Small pool of sweat gathered at her lower back, at the dimples he liked so much. He was finger painting.She gasped, trying to twist away as he wrote more. But he didn't have to. "Noah...." Was she going to weep? She didn't want to weep. "Is that a yes or a no?" The wolf was relaxed this time around. Like it had gotten what it wanted for the time being, she knew the decision was equally human. "Yes! Yes, I'll marry you." "If you can stop snotting, maybe then..." She hit his shoulder. When he kissed her, on the psychic plane, his wolf appeared. Battered, strong, feral. And with him- a bond. It was a great shining thing, like a falling moon. An orb born of love tumbling in the creeks, in the meadows. She had only to catch it. And she did. With it came a smaller bond-Ian. Unafraid, she linked herself to it. The distance between them felt like sph
The last thing she remembered was his claws digging in her ass, and their pleasure sated bodies a tangle of limbs. Where was he now? Not next to her. But he had slept, the bed held his impressions. Coming to herself, she blushed. His smell was so strong on her, hers had nearly vanished. She had an inkling that these were the signs of mating bond completing itself. Even he would smell more like Vanessa than himself. The animal was playing for keeps, and it wanted to be kept as an equal. She found him sitting on the porch stairs. She grabbed his shirt, shivered at how sensitized her skin felt, trying desperately to keep herself from looking at the spot of blood on lavender sheets. Thankfully, they weren't white. His marks, teeth, hand, claws pulsed in her body. Her body held his secrets more tenderly than it did anything else. He sensed her approach, straightening his legs, making space for her between them. She went, hiding behind her hair. His content was contagious. Bare chested
The satisfaction coursing through him was so arrogant, so unfaltering in its ownership, her wolf quivered a little in fear. If he consumed her, would she live to see another day? Intrigued, he rubbed his jaw against the inside of her legs, her scent decadent, strong. He fumbled with his jeans before pulling them down. His wolf wanted to take. To turn her around on hands and knees, mount her, and when she'd arch her neck in pleasure, take a bite. It'll hurt but he'd share the pain. "Noah?" She was still here. Legs spread, waiting for him. He smiled. His mind was playing tricks on him, he won't take her like an animal. That'll have to wait. He suddenly dipped his head and she shoved a discarded pillow to her face. Which was a good thing. Because the scream that tore out of her was no human. Her eyes shifted, her wolf begging to have her equal measure of the sensations. His eyes still on her face, he licked her between her thighs. The tender bud begged for his attention, which in h
When he threw up his shields, she was back in front of him. Tonight, there was no leash. She wanted to play, he'll abide. The wolf bared its teeth.... She shot out with a grin. Adrenaline shot through her, she was nowhere near as fast as him. But she could read his thought clear as a bright sunny day. Apart from the high of the chase, she was humbled by the trust. He lowered his shields to nil and let her in. She had yet to do that.He was getting closer, the wolf didn't try to hide the heavy breathing, his massive lungs resounding in warning because he wanted her to know when he was near. Claws out, canines protruding, Noah was no longer human. Not a single part of him. Heart raising hard and fast, she sharpened her run into the direction of lower range, a steep one her much smaller body could maintain running at. Noah's much larger frame would tumble at this speed, so he pulled out an old trick. He laid down and rolled like a barrel. Laughter bubbled inside of her. 'Nice trick.'
"I am sorry I made you feel unwelcome. Consider this an apology." He kissed her knuckles, a small key pressed to her palm, the soft crinkle of paper-a note. She couldn't read his thoughts anymore. But he walked away with a purpose. Dusk clambered in the Nebraska, the summer of dragging afternoons fast learning to evade the gossamery warmth for autumn seeping in sycamore trees, yellow golden leaves ready to replace the greens. Beyond the moonbeam dancing stream, stood two peaks, protecting the land from the unknowns, so many unknowns. The peaks, they are not exultant, and they no longer believe themselves to be the instrument of some great intention. They are, but a shadow of those living beings looking up at them, creatures grasping at life with stained hands. Waiting. Hoping. Vanessa hid her gasp, swallowing the thick ball of emotion in her throat. A heavy weight ruffled the decidous low hanging branches in the trees but she didn't have to turn around to know who it was. Her soul
Home.The black villa doors opened to reveal the place she had thought would save her from the mountain of debt she had buried herself under. The debt was the answer she had been waiting for, and apparently so was Silas. Greggory Flynn, she had kept his ashes in a thurible, had never given her complete answers. They arrived, to find Mikhail, Beatrice and Rourke waiting for them in the foyer. Vanessa was searching for Mrs.Kemp and her cupcake smelling apron. Beatrice looked healthier but the awkward distance between her and Mikhail didn't go unnoticed by anyone. "This here, little heathen, has more body count than me, brother. What do you say to that?" Evan dragged Vanessa from under Noah's arm to his side, strangling her in a side hug. Vanessa was beyond grateful. She didn't know how to break ice with Mikhail. The last time he had her tied to a chair in the basement, he had his reasons but that didn't make it okay. She didn't know where to go with him from here. She loved Noah but
Vanessa shuffled inside her closet, her claustrophobia all but gone. She was done packing but not ready to head back home. Things felt so incomplete. In past two days, she had tried to access Calvin's mind but had failed. When all of them, Selene, Falkner, Silas, Noah, Evan and Jodie convene for finalizing border control policies she had to tell them. She wanted everyone to know there were others like her, the Communion will want a hard proof. "Come in." She knew it was Evan. "Hii. I am resigning. Consider this official." He had been in a jolly good mood, he always was when he worked on secret plans but this time, Vanessa knew it was about Jodie. His mind was a back to back movie night on weekends, filled with lewd imagery of things he'd like to do to her.The powers did have it's shortcomings. "Resigning?" His shields were up. "Yes." Evan folded his legs, sat on the newly purchased futon, which Noah had gifted Vanessa because she liked to sleep on the floor. Bed after thirty six
He begrudgingly admitted nudity was her last preserve right now. She shifted but did a very poor job of hiding herself, the swell of her ass, small and pert with tan lines- he groaned- held his attention. Until he moved it to her shoulder. Stripes, more stripes of red, white, yellow, blue. What the fuck was it? How did she get bruises this bad? Before he could ask, she begged for a clothing. Anything he might have. He stripped off his shirt and threw it to her. She scrambled into it like she was on fire. No more inadvertent strip show, his cat saddened by the perspectiveShe knew what he was going to ask. It was always there, in the manner people stood, slightly skewed, uncomfortable of her reaction even before she had reacted. Scars. He had seen them. And she knew he won't let it go. "You aren't going anywhere until you answer me." Lonely, she wanted to be with her own kind after being denied association for so long. Walter Desmond's death made her breath for the first time, free