Edeline"That person!" I pulled at my hair, feeling frustration surge through me like a caustic acid."Hey, Edeline, just take it easy!"I stopped in my tracks and shot Mirabelle a glare. "I can’t believe it, Mirabelle. I just can’t calm down when Tatiana went running to her 'daddy' to spill our secrets and beg him to take her back. It is just too much! Conor even suggested marking Percival, which is completely insane! They all need to leave, no doubt about it. They have to go." I crossed my arms and bobbed my head from side to side, my eyebrows raised in disbelief.Mirabelle plopped onto her bed, letting out a weary sigh. She had been released from Doc's just as our meeting—what I like to call the skeleton exhibit—was wrapping up. Now we were hanging out in her cabin, free from the healer who had been staying next to us since Anita had been sent down to the cellar.I glanced up quickly. "Oops.""What’s up?" Mirabelle asked, propping herself up on her elbows, a frown tugging at her li
EdelineHe mentioned that he would be willing to give Tatiana another chance. The mere thought of it made my skin crawl. I could hardly stand the idea of her ‘problem in her belly.’ Ugh. And William—he was really furious about that comment. Despite his personal feelings towards Tatiana, his wolf still saw her as the vessel for his Alpha grandpup.Nixx was on the verge of losing his cool with Conor, though it was clear he was deep in thought. His wolf seemed to be wrestling with the idea of his mate.Tatiana was certainly one of the most disappointing people I had ever met, second only to Anita. It was shocking to learn that she had gone to Conor, begging him for another chance after everything he had said to her. I couldn’t believe it. If someone I considered family spoke to me like that, I don’t think I could ever forgive them. I suppose it’s for the best that she’s leaving.Despite everything, I couldn’t entirely shake off a sliver of sympathy for her.It was close, but not quite. F
Edeline“Hey, let’s go have a chat,” I said, gently taking his hand and leading him into the forest. We walked until we found a nice spot with a sturdy stone to sit on. My dad settled himself on the stone across from me.His face was a mask of neutrality, but his deep green eyes revealed a flood of emotions. “Hey Dad, you should really talk to Mom. I’ve got all the details. She filled me in just before the meeting, and it’s important for you to hear her side. I understand you’re really angry with her, but—”“Hey pumpkin, I’m not actually angry at your mom,” he interrupted softly. “I still remember how badly I treated her back then. I’ve been trying to make up for it all these years, but it hurts that she never told me the truth. I’m upset with William for keeping this secret from me. It stings knowing they had a child together, a child I raised as my own. My wolf is feeling incredibly jealous right now. I don’t hate your mom; I actually understand what she was going through. I found h
Edeline“You’re way ahead of your time, comforting your old man like this. It’s humbling to have my seventeen-year-old daughter open my eyes, but thank you, baby. You’re incredibly smart, understanding how things impact everyone, and you have such a big heart. I think you’re destined for something amazing, Edeline.” He smiled through his tears and pressed a soft kiss to my forehead.It would be nice to see the other sides of the people who have wronged me. Tatiana, Anita, and Percival are the ones I just cannot seem to forgive. I even forgave the person who attacked me. I just cannot seem to follow my own advice.“Thanks, Dad,” they said, a small smile playing on their lips. “I love you. Now go find your mate and your son.” I smiled back at him, feeling warmth spread across my face as he gave a nod.“Anything for you,” he replied. He ruffled my hair affectionately before strolling out of the woods and sprinting down the dirt road towards our family home.I grinned and shook my head, f
EdelineA surge of anger mixed with concern rose within me. "How did you manage to escape?!" I demanded, my voice sharp and filled with frustration.Anita gave me an exasperated look. "Could you please lower your voice?" she said, her tone calm but with a hint of reproach. "The guards might hear you, and you could get into trouble," she added casually, pushing off from the wall and taking a few cautious steps toward me.I was on high alert, my wolf instincts kicking in. My claws and teeth were ready for action. I warned her in a low, rumbling growl, "Stay back, witch!" The sound of my warning caught Anita's attention. She paused, her expression puzzled at first, then a wide smile slowly spread across her face. She took a deep breath, sensing something in the air.“Take it easy,” she said, her voice taking on a teasing edge. “I’m up for a chat. Your buddy over there... Darius! He’s really suffering. Getting rid of poison like red lockheed is brutal. It can be deadly.” Her expression wa
EdelineShe paused, her gaze dropping to the floor, as if the weight of her confession was too heavy to bear. “She was aware of my betrayal. I owe her so much. When Tatiana turned one month old, Cilla’s depression had worsened significantly. She believed Conor would be a terrible father, but he adored Tatiana. Conor was absolutely thrilled. But Cilla wasn’t. She couldn’t handle the situation or the thought of being apart from Ben any longer. So she resorted to self-harm.”Anita’s voice wavered as she continued. “I stumbled upon Cilla just moments before she was about to... you know, end things. She asked me to be there for Tatiana. It was like a lightbulb moment for me. I suddenly realized everything that had happened was completely my fault. I promised Cilla I’d keep Conor from discovering her secret. I told him I’d give him space and focus on taking care of Tatiana. I wanted to say I was sorry. I got pretty emotional that day and ended up crying. Then, Ben was slaughtered...” Anita’
Edeline“So...” Anita’s heels clicked against the stone floor, the sound reverberating through the cavern as she approached me. “I just wanted to clarify that there is no intention of posing any threat.” She came to a stop right in front of me, her eyes gleaming with a rich hazel-golden hue. “There are just a couple of things that need to happen. Tatiana has to part ways with Percival and—”I took a slow step back, my hands instinctively rising in a gesture of surrender. “I want nothing to do with that,” I said, my voice tinged with disbelief. The situation was spiraling out of control, and I was taken aback by Anita’s sudden shift in demeanor.A sly smirk tugged at her lips. “Hey, I just need you to do one thing for me. Spend some time with Percival. Go to him right away.”Confusion knitted my brows together. “What the heck—”Before I could finish my question, Anita moved swiftly. She grabbed me and spun me around, forcing me to face away from her. I felt the cold bite of silver as s
EdelineAs I ventured further, the temperature dropped, and the cave grew darker. It was pitch black, making it nearly impossible to see. I stumbled and fell, hitting the ground with a thud. My heart raced as I lay there, catching my breath. When I finally got up, I found myself in another cavernous room, even darker than the last.How had Anita found this place? It made no sense.I crawled on my hands and knees, brushing dirt off my hands onto my pants. The distant sound of a waterfall hinted that it might be close. With a mix of hope and dread, I continued forward, extending my hands to feel my way in the dark. I needed to find anything that could guide me.The darkness was suffocating. I felt claustrophobic and lost, unsure of which direction to take. My anxiety spiked, and I struggled to calm myself.After what felt like an eternity, the cave began to lighten slightly. The overwhelming fear eased a bit. I looked up and saw moonlight filtering through a crack in the ceiling. Relief
Percival Edeline’s eyes were locked on me as she marched over, grabbing my forearm and pulling me along with her. The contact felt like fire igniting on my skin. She was fired up—angry, for sure.She dragged me into the equipment shed, out of sight, and then—wham!—she whacked me right in the eye.I let out a low growl and slowly turned my face back to hers. Anger radiated off her as she raised her other hand, ready to swing at me again. I managed to grab her wrist before she could land another hit, squeezing gently around her slim wrist. “What the heck, Edeline?!” I exclaimed, my lip curling to reveal my fang. Low warning growls rumbled from my chest. The wolf inside me was not thrilled, but at least she appreciated that this wasn’t happening in front of the pack. Don’t mess with my authority.“Hey! Did you give that girl false hope or what? I know you have not hooked up with her because I would have sensed it!” Her nose wrinkled, eyes blazing with fury. Then, I caught a scent from
Percival Promoting her to lead female warrior might not have been the best decision after all. She was my top fighter, having trained hard before I stepped in, but now I was left questioning my judgment. We didn’t have an expert on board yet, and Jazz’s ambition made me wary.She tucked a loose, curly strand behind her ear, looking up at me with her big green eyes, her skin a lovely shade of creamed coffee. She was undeniably pretty, but just not my type. “Hey, Percival... what if we tried something different with the ladies?” She edged closer, taking a deep breath as if to check out my scent.It might sound wild, but the night before last, after showering and snuggling up in bed with Edeline, I had rubbed against her, soaking in her scent. Waking up without her made me skip a shower yesterday—or maybe even today. I just wanted to hold onto that connection a little longer. Jazz caught a whiff of Edeline’s scent, and her eyebrows shot up.“Hey, is Edeline back?” she asked, her voice
Edeline“I totally get it, Nixx. It is something else. Really special. I see what you mean.” My gaze drifted to his cuffs, curiosity piquing as I furrowed my brow. “Have you been a bit risky? What does your world do to people?” I tilted my head, observing the way he passed the bracelet back to me, unable to take his eyes off it.“My wolf is stronger, you know? Sometimes I just cannot control him and end up lashing out at people who get on my nerves. Percival dealt with the same stuff. He wants to help me train like Gaspar did for him, but all I can think about is Tatiana and the pup I lost. It is tough.” A wave of sadness washed over him, dimming the light in his eyes.“Nixx,” I sighed, “why are you still hung up on losing the pup? Mirabelle was only a few months along, right? You never even met him, and you can have pups with your real mate. You could not have had both. Tatiana would have been jealous of you and him. Trust me, I get it. Tatiana is a beta, and her wolf would have want
EdelineHe really needed his not-so-little sister. I would hit him up first, and then maybe I would finally have the guts to talk to Percival about everything. After some tough training, of course. It had been a few days since I had a solid training session. Muscle disappears faster than it builds up, and I really hoped that did not happen. If I wanted to keep being the warrior I had turned into, I had to stay on top of my stamina. But I was not sure my buddy would let me train, especially since my heat was just around the corner, and my scent was driving everyone wild. I had to remember to grab my tea after I hopped out of the shower. As I walked in the front door of my parents’ place, the cozy scent of clove hit me, pulling me back into sweet memories. I could not help but think about what might happen during this heat. The last one just did not do it for me. Did I even want him to help me out this time? Or would I just prefer to be out of it for that? I figured the latter was
EdelineI stared down at our hands, chewing on his words. He might have a point. When I left and went to Conrad’s place, I told myself I was moving on. I threw myself into letting it all go—this life, these people, everything. But once I got some space, the wolves around me nudged me toward the truth. They made me confront my feelings about Percival, especially after I caught myself feeling jealous over him. He was just my friend, nothing more, but still... I had to deal with that. But Darius? I buried that pain deep and left it to rot. Never talked about him, never thought about him for too long. I got stronger, yeah. But I didn’t heal. Not really. And that’s why I’m still stuck. I turned my head toward William, blinking back the sting in my eyes. “How am I supposed to feel about him?” My voice cracked, and I felt my throat tighten again. “Look at what he did.” I swallowed hard, trying to keep it together, but the words dragged me down, making my chest feel heavy. “How am I s
EdelineI never really hated Percival before that. He had done some stuff, sure—but it never made me hate him. Not until that night. That night, I hated him more than anything. My wolf hated him too. My skin side—yeah, she wanted revenge just as bad. But then the truth hit me. Darius was the monster. Not Percival. I spent all of yesterday lying around, trying to make sense of everything. Today, I thought maybe a walk would help me clear my head, so I came here. To the waterfall—the spot I loved the most. And now, here I am. Staring at his grave. Why here? Why did they bury him here of all places? Not in the pack’s graveyard, where the rest of them are. No—right here, beneath the tree that used to be ours. Our spot. My throat tightened, and the tears started before I could stop them. My heart felt like someone had tied a rope around it and was pulling it tighter and tighter. I reached out, tracing his name on the headstone with shaky fingers, as if touching the letters wo
PercivalI hoped I didn’t annoy her. I understood she was strong, but my Alpha side just wanted to look out for my mate. I was trying to communicate my feelings through the mate bond, to reassure her I was here for her.The corner of her mouth lifted in a quick smile. "It's all good."Shaking my head, I did what I felt compelled to do. I walked over, scooping her up in my arms. She gasped in surprise as I carried her across the room to the salvaged bed. Her eyes widened, taking in the effort I had made to clean up for her."I’ll grab you something to wear. Your clothes are wrecked." I stifled a laugh as I laid her down on the bed. I missed the feel of her skin against mine, even from that brief moment before I had to let her go to find her a t-shirt and some clean boxers.I had both boxers and boxer briefs, but lately, I definitely preferred the briefs. Guess it was just part of growing up!As I returned to her, Edeline’s gaze was fixed on my bare torso. She looked up at me with that
EdelineI would not run anymore.“Hey, let me wash your back, my little warrior.” His breath brushed against my warm skin, and a rush of desire coursed through me as his deep voice stirred something inside. My breath caught in my throat as I locked eyes with him.“I got this.” I really could not let him get close. It would only make the cramps worse, and the desire was already doing a number on me.He nodded, totally understanding what I was thinking through our connection.As he stood up, I could not help but let my eyes wander over him, pausing at his chiseled abs and then down to his pelvis. Right there in the middle was a thick, four-inch tattoo of an infinity symbol.Mated wolves have this thing where they let anyone who catches a glimpse of their skin below the waist know they have a mate. This tattoo meant a lot. A lump formed in my throat as my eyes began to water. How long had he been dealing with this?It was like he could read my mind—probably because he could. He looked
EdelineHis eyes were no longer filled with wonder; they carried pain and knowledge. Yet, despite it all, those piercing blue eyes had remained the same, shining even brighter against his sun-kissed skin. His hair was longer on top and shorter on the sides, giving him a more polished look.He looked even more handsome now, completely in charge of himself. The way he moved, the way he held himself—it all made me wonder about the changes in him and what had shaped him during our time apart.“You hungry?” His deep voice pulled me back to reality, his eyes locking onto mine.I was still feeling shy, and I wondered why that was.“I’m fine,” I whispered, trying to keep my voice steady.He nodded and made his way to the door. “I’ll give you some space. I can tell you’re not really feeling it with me around. Just hit me up when you’re ready, and I’ll help you get to bed since you’re not feeling great.” He flashed a sad smile and reached for the doorknob.My heart raced a bit. I really did not