~Sebastian~ I watch Nickolai closely, trying to gauge his thoughts. After our tour with Alpha Alden, I think we are all a little on edge. The guy is clearly an asshole who has zero regards for the mate bond. Which bothers Nickolai more than me. I am more worldly than he is, having been a warrior before officially becoming his shadow. The mate bond is respected everywhere, and everywhere it isn’t respected. You can find chinks in the pack’s defense. That happens when you deny a blessing or betray it. The things you touch slowly crumble and fall apart, or they should. The Black Night pack, however, seems to thrive aside from their slums outside the outer wall. They seem to do well economically and everyone appears relatively happy. Alden refused to let us enter his massive packhouse after his beta Spencer pulled him away for a moment. When he came back, he was fuming and barely talked anymore. He introduced us to his newest gamma, Waylon, though he didn’t mention who he replaced or w
~Wren~ Nickolai presses me hard into the wall, his head slumping down my neck, sloppily kissing at anything he can find. He had way more to drink than he was expecting. That may have been my fault, considering him being blazing drunk works better in my favor. One thing the humans did right was brewing one hundred fifty proof alcohol, not that we get drunk on it as they do, but after about 16 tall glasses? Yep. It’s enough to make a werewolf loopy. “Nickolai,” I whisper, realizing he is breathing heavier into my neck, his arms going limp. I grab hold of his shoulders, giving him a little shake. “Shit.” He fucking fell asleep way sooner than I expected. He has me pressed into the wall right next to the door. I glance around and groan in annoyance when I realize how far away the bed really is. It will not be easy to get him over there. I gently press him back delicately, balancing him so he doesn’t fall backward and hit his head. He totters to the right towards the door, making me squ
I shove the treaty in the back of my waistband and pull my blouse down over it before adjusting my hair and fixing my makeup. Thanks to the water, I splashed on it. When I open the door, I find Nickolai standing outside of it. He looks exhausted and overly emotional. His eyes meet mine and I can see regret written all over his face as he refuses to come any closer to me. “I’m sorry,” He whispers, his gaze still locked with mine. “I didn’t mean for it to go this far.” I offer him a sad smile. I don’t know what to say. He is feeling guilty and I’m the one who compromised him to steal something beyond important to his pack and their way of life. But as much as I like Nickolai, I have to choose my family, my rebels who need me. We need the protection he is trying to guarantee for his pack. And this treaty is the first step in acquiring that. “You going to go then?” He asks. He drops his eyes to my feet where my shoes are on my feet. I can’t help myself, he looks so sad and puppy-like, s
~Sebastian~By the time the sun peeks through the curtains, I’m still lying awake on my bed, trying to understand the angry feeling in my chest. I feel like a freaking child angry about having to share his toy, but the thing is… She isn’t mine to share. And for some unknown fucking reason, that just makes the anger grow. She isn’t mine at all, and why does that even matter? I don’t want her to be mine. I just don’t fucking want her to be Nickolai’s — or anyone else’s.Because she is a liar and a thief. It’s not because she has a smile that is contagious or a laugh that makes me feel like even the darkest corners of the earth can still find the light. No, I just don’t want her to make a fool of my pack, or Nickolai. Or me. Fucking hell.I push off the bed and rub my hands over my face. I’m fucking tired, but I know Nickolai is going to wake up in a panic about not being able to find the treaty. Which means
“Ring the doorbell again?” Nickolai asks, his finger already reaching out to push the tiny button. One of the double doors swings open and a nice-looking woman answers the door. Her skin is so pale that I wonder if she has ever seen the sun, but her eyes, her hazel eyes, look so familiar. The moment she sees us, her eyes go wide, and she nervously wipes her hands on her apron. “Alpha.” She says, turning to Nickolai. “I wasn’t aware that we were expecting you.” I quirk a brow. Side eyeing Nickolai, who stands there staring at her, more like gaping at her. “We were told the meeting for the peace treaty was moved to right now,” I say, speaking for Nickolai, who clears his throat and straightens his back. “Uh… I see. Give me one moment to verify and see where I should take you.” And then the door shuts in our face and we turn to look at each other. After a few moments in silence, the door swings back open and a red-faced Spencer stands before us. “I am so sorry about Elara’s rudenes
~Wren~ The remaining disappointed rebels filter out of our makeshift headquarters. We have been waiting for the fallout all day, just hoping to hear the news that war has been declared. But nothing happened. Every pack member goes about their normal day. Milling about and laughing like life here isn’t as terrible for them as it is for the rest of us. “Why do you think they even wanted the treaty?” Avi asks once. It’s just us. He takes his sunglasses off and saunters over to me, opting to pluck the treaty from my hands and look over the contents. I shrug. “You’re the educated one of the two of us. I could barely make out half the stupid words.” I mumble angrily. Avi groans in annoyance. “Wren, for the last fucking time, you aren’t stupid because you aren’t an excellent reader. You are a genius with planning. You have more common sense than half the alphas…” I groan and rub my temple. “Ok, you can stop now.
Sebastian clears his throat, his eyes staying locked on mine like a true gentleman, not trying to take a peek. I’m not sure if I’m impressed or offended by his lack of perusal of my naked body, but either way, I drop to the ground and grab my towel, clutching it to my chest. I try to swallow down my embarrassment with the reminder that he didn’t see any of me, but again, the thought crosses my mind that maybe I want him to be attracted to me. “Get dressed. We have some things to discuss.” He grumbles as he turns his back to me, affording me a small semblance of privacy to change. Unfortunately, my room is tiny and Sebastian is the size of a monument erected to praise someone in a park which means that he is, of course, directly next to where all my clothing lies, not by choice mind you, merely because there is literally nowhere else for his massive body to be. I stomp my way to his side and yank my drawers open, grabbing the first items I can get my hands up before slamming it clos
~Sebastian~“What do you mean by that?” She breathes, snapping her head at me.She is always guarded, shut off, or trying to keep emotions from her face, from her voice. Except for right now. Her voice is sturdy and full of questions, but her eyes tell me she is full of fear and dread. I have an inkling why she wants this war to take place. What I don’t get is the urgency.“Your alpha never showed up for the meeting, so they rescheduled it.” I watch her closely, trying to read between the line and the coolness she is trying to emit.“So he doesn’t know that the treaty is missing.” She says more to herself than to me, but I nod, anyway.“Birdie, if there is a reason big enough for us not to go into an alliance with this pack, I need to know.”She chuckles dryly.“Why would you care? You guys want a treaty
Thank you for taking the time to read Wren and Sebastian's story! The plan is to further in the future write Nickolai's story, but only time will tell if people actually want to read his. Please leave your review of the overall book and rate it accordingly to your thoughts! I stepped way out of my comfort zone with this book and I'm dying to hear if you guys enjoyed it or not! Reviews also help me get put up for promotion, so if you think it's worthy of other reading please drop me a review to help me get my books out there! If you have read my Guardian series (all standalone books!) please Know that The Alpha's Redeemer is NOW live on the app and ready to read! You guys are the best and I so appreciate you reading my little stories! Miri Googag
“Leo,” I breathe. “Where are–”“Addy and Grandma are safe. I can’t leave you, I’m sorry. Don’t be mad, but I can’t let anyone hurt you, Mom.” I’m sobbing as I want to reach out and try to grab and shelter my poor sweet boy who has grown into such a sweet little man. At freshly twelve he has been training for the past two years so he can be strong enough to protect himself. We should have known he was doing it to protect us. One day, he will make the best alpha of this pack.A lanky man steps into the doorway and Leo shifts his weight to his back foot, preparing for battle. My heart is in my throat as I watch the man lunge with a growl toward my son. I fell off the bed, trying to protect him. Leo is so graceful in his movements as he glides out of the way and drags a dagger along the man’s back. As long as the man doesn’t shift into a wolf, Leo might be able to hold his own. His cut isn’t deep, but it’s a strike that makes the man bleed. He growls in annoyance and then chuckles as he
*** THREE AND A HALF YEARS LATER***~Wren~“You really should sit down,” Jade says, following me as I pace the carpet, my dress flowing around behind me. Seb has been gone for three days, and those three days have been atrocious. He is further than the mate bond can extend, so my mind has been hollow and lonely. It also doesn’t help that my hormones are raging and my mate is fighting in a battle on the other side of Nickolai’s pack.“No” I shake my head. “No,” I repeat, more sternly, tears welling in my eyes. I groan in frustration at the stupid tears that seem to come unbidden all the damn time lately. “Luna, you will walk yourself into labor before Alpha can get his ass back here,” Jade says, rubbing my back and giving me a sympathetic look.I want to slap the sympathy off her face. The person who should rub my back is my mate. He should be here next to me as I try to make this baby come. But no. He has to be a hands-on alpha and lead his troops himself. I used to think it was sex
The musty, cool air of the dungeons clings to me as we come up to the prisoners we captured weeks ago. Half the men are anxiously waiting at the bars while the rest lean on the walls or stare out the bar window. Most of the men are on the younger side, a few even looking closer to Nickolai’s young age of eighteen. When they notice me coming in with Tank, they all straighten up and glance at each other nervously. These ten men are not the only prisoners we collected that night. In fact, they are only a small portion of the number of warriors we were able to round up. I don’t think killing the others would be wise, but letting them go is not an option, so instead, we house them here providing the essentials to survive without having an entertaining life. “Alpha,” they greet me in unison, as though they have been rehearsing for days. I shoot a look at Tank, who is trying not to laugh. “I hear you all wished to speak with me. Spit it out so I can move along to other important matters.”
~Sebastian~“How is she?” Nickolai asks through the receiver. I pinch the bridge of my nose, remembering Wren’s beautiful speech and the tears that wet her cheeks. There is no way to erase the hurt in her eyes and the ache that she feels so keenly at her father’s death, but she had been perfect, stunning, so perfectly Wren. “As good as can be expected.” I sigh.“Good. I’m sorry I missed it.” I can hear the disappointment in his voice, but we all understand that he has duties to tend to. “When is your ceremony?” I ask him.“Two days.”We sit in silence for a minute, each of us waiting for the other to speak first. I know Nickolai hates I can’t be there for his Alpha ceremony. And it’s not that we don’t want to be there, it’s just that the timing simply doesn’t work for me and Wren. Or anyone in the werewolf community, since there is a war that is resulting in higher death tolls daily. Especially in our allies’ packs lately. “Look, I know you wanted us to be there…”“I get it, Seb.
“Things have been tense for the past few weeks. Your lives have been turned upside down, you have a new Alpha and Luna and we are in a war to defend what we know is right. But today isn’t about any of that. Today, we are all the same. We are a pack mourning our losses and the people we loved.” He looks down at me and I know he wants me to take over. “For as long as I can remember, life in this pack was full of tension and fear. It always felt like we were living half a life. The men and women on this memorial fought and died for what they believed in. They fought for their loved ones and for you and me. I’m not sure how many of you remember my dad, who he was, and what happened to him after they took my mother from his side, from me.” My eyes look over at my mother, who is watching me closely. “He died saving me,” I say, taking a deep breath. “Like so many others, he was sick most of my life. Constantly trying to be the only parent and provider while being denied the ability to work
~Wren~The marble slabs glitter as the sun beams down as if a beacon on the dead. Highlighting their loss and what it means to us, our pack. I hate that we have two empty slabs. Two enormous gray and shiny hunks of empty rock are ready for the next names to be etched. It’s a sobering reminder that the dead are gone and the living will always follow. How we go and when we go isn’t up to us. Life is fragile and fleeting. All the living can do once the ones we love have left, is keep them alive in our minds and heart. Originally, the entire area was going to be a meadow of wildflowers, something we give back to the earth, and in return, she would bring us beauty to console our aching hearts. But growing such things takes time–time we didn’t really have. So Sebastian and Tank suggested we plant some annual flowers and then next year we will prepare the ground for the wildflowers. Tank even said we should add some benches and stone walkways so people can come and reminisce with the people
~Sebastian~I stand from my desk, checking the clock and groaning when I realize it's two in the morning. It’s been a week since Nickolai left and today is Wren’s fathers memorial. She has done a great job of avoiding the thought by occupying her time with planning and Leo. Today could go one of many ways and I’m going to need as much sleep as I can muster if I have to hold her while she cries. It’s my least favorite feeling in the world, knowing I can’t do anything to ease her pain. But at least this is a pain I can try to comfort. The very thought of her curling into my body as I settle in the bed spurs me to move faster as I hustle out of my office. I make my way up the stairs leading to our room and push the door open, Inhaling deeply. I used to foolishly think the best smell in the world was Wren’s. Now I know it’s our combined scent. The perfect balance of the two of us that is both calming and inviting. I close the door gently behind me, grimacing as the door latches. I move
I give Nickolai a tight hug, clinging to him tightly as he squeezes me back. When I pull away, his hands run down my arms, stopping at my wrist where he looks for a moment and shakes his head. “Does it weird you out?” I ask him, my lips twitching into a soft smile as he flounders with how to respond without hurting my feelings. I know it creeps him out. When he first saw it, it was all he could look at.“It shouldn’t.” He admits, “But It is definitely a little weird.”“Try having it be your hand,” I say with a chuckle.“They couldn’t… like… put it back on or something?” His question isn’t malicious or ill-willed, more of a curiosity. The werewolf's body is strange and amazing with its healing properties, but even healers struggle to keep up with what the body is capable of.“I know in the human world they would have sewn it back on if the cut was clean.” I shrug. “But it was chewed off and after the fight, as I’m sure you remember, my hand wasn’t the only appendage littering the grou