[--Esmarie Cruz--]I didn’t see Kaiser for a few days, and then out of nowhere, he arrived. I was pissed. Yes pissed. The twins have gotten used to his pheromones, and I think he forgot they needed that to grow safely. Alphas are so damn hard to raise. My anger stayed with me throughout the nights when they stayed up and I worked hard to try and get them to rest. I haven’t had much more than thirty minutes nap here and there. I am exhausted, too exhausted to yell. This time I can definitely blame Kaiser. He said he’d help me out with them, and here he is flaking on me only to pop up when he feels it’s right. He spotted me in the living room on his way to the stairs.“You’re awake?”“Oh yeah, it’s hard to sleep with alpha twins who need an alpha’s pheromones to be at ease. My omega can only do so much. I wonder why we’re designed this way. Didn’t the gods think that some alphas aren’t reliable enough?”He cursed. “fuck, I forgot.”“Of course you did. Kaiser, it’s one thing to let me d
[--Kaiser Volkov--]There was something that changed in Esmarie the next morning. She wasn’t happy, she was sad but she was keeping it to herself. She was keeping her eyes on me, but there was something in them. Something that made me feel uncomfortable. Like I was a failure. Esmarie didn’t voice her problems though, she acted as though everything was fine.It took three days after I returned for me to snap. I told her I’d be home late, and she hadn’t responded. It’s been like that for these past few days. I can’t figure out what I did wrong, but I know it had something to do with my absence.I stopped by doctor jacob's office today. He might be able to open my eyes to something I didn’t see. I know I did something wrong to her, but she refused to call me out on it. Which made me feel like she was giving up. Or that she had realized something about it.It made me anxious, it made me feel like I had failed at something.Doctor Jacobs was happy to see me. Too happy if you asked me. My d
[--Esmarie Cruz--]I was lying on my back in my bedroom, the twins had started crawling all of a sudden, and I was shocked. My book on alphas said they grew faster than normal babies. Naturally, a werewolf child grows faster than an average human child. I always assumed alphas were the same but it turns out there’s a reason they’re called alphas.You’d think I would know that but no one teaches this stuff or perhaps it’s more a sign that I grew up in a really small pack with a shitty education system. A shitty everything to be honest. I was busy reading, while they excitedly crawled over my body when someone knocked on my bedroom door. I was slightly weirded out.Because I know Kaiser isn’t at home, and I’m not expecting him to come back anytime soon. My heart beat picks up speed, and I reached for the children right away. Pulling them towards my chest, and making myself take on a protective stance.“It’s me.” oh, I huff out a sigh of relief and release the twins. Placing them back on
[--Esmarie Cruz--] Kaiser gave me a genuine look. “I’m conflicted, that’s the truth. I don’t know what I want. I’m afraid to court you and form a relationship because I know the default setting in my brain is to run when things get dire. But at the same time, I want to be better. For myself, and for you. Because I’ll admit, while I tried very very hard each day to enjoy life... when I wasn’t high, drunk, or lost in a sex haze, my mind would always go back to that night what I could have done differently. It stunned me when I realized I wasn’t running from my parents, but from you instead. You were the past I was trying to keep at bay.“I hate that my family hurt you, and I hate that everything I do ends up hurting you more. So I don’t know, esmarie. If I’m given a chance to redeem myself, I can’t promise I won’t run away. But I’ve been seeing Doctor Jacobs, and I’m trying to be a better man. I don’t like i
[--Esmarie Cruz--]Doctor Jacobs pulls Kaiser out of the house to talk while my brain spins on what the hell just happened. Kaiser told me to reject the mating bond, I did it, so why do I feel like I just made a huge fucking mistake? Kaiser drives me insane. The doctor left soon after, and I focused my energy on taking care of my twins not the confusion going on in my head. It’s hard to focus with Kaiser constantly confusing me.I sigh softly, and the rest of the night passes by quickly. I awoke in the middle of the night, stumbling out of my room to the kitchen to get some water. I found Kaiser there, a bottle of vodka and coke in front of him. He poured them into one cup and looked up when he heard my footsteps approaching.“What are you making?”“You don’t wanna know.”“Back to drinking?”I inquired, reaching into the fridge for a cold bottle of water, and I was searching for some aspirin. Thankfully, kaiser drinks alot so he keeps medicine in almost every cabinet in every room in
[--Esmarie Cruz--]“Okay, I can understand that. But what about the Darkwood? How did that come to be?” I asked, leaning in with curiosity as he ran a weary hand over his hair, pushing it away from his face. Kaiser looked even more exhausted, shadows deepening under his eyes. If only he would just get some rest, but I knew better than to bring it up right now. I had more pressing questions, and the Darkwood situation topped that list. I needed to know what it meant for us—if I could finally breathe a sigh of relief, maybe even celebrate.“Elias owns the region where the Darkwood pack is located,” he began, his voice tinged with frustration. “Technically, I’m here illegally. You can’t just cross over into a new region on a whim. There’s a mountain of paperwork involved. You’re supposed to inform the regional leader, declare where you’re coming from, and state your intentions—it’s a process designed to keep everyone in check. I wrote down that I was coming from beyond the four regions e
[--Kaiser Volkov--]Esmarie’s face lit up when I told her about the Darkwood pack’s shutdown. The relief was mutual, like a weight we’d both carried was finally lifted. To be fair, I’m starting to learn that besides my past I have other things to worry about. I’m looking into the mole who told Elias about my deal with the vampires. But I’m trying to celebrate the little wins. The Darkwood pack will be gone. Right now Elias is having the people kicked out.That place held the worst memories for us both—memories I tried not to think about, memories that often haunted my nights. Knowing it would soon be no more brought a strange sense of closure, a flicker of happiness. But it was only a flicker, dimmed by the exhaustion that clung to me like a second skin.I hadn’t slept properly in days. I’d tried to make up for it by working late in my office, but even there, I was restless. Sleeplessness wore at my nerves, fraying them, and I knew I was reaching my limit. Today, I’d made the decision
[--Kaiser Volkov--]/Dear Kaiser Volkov, I can't pretend this is a letter of kindness or warm rewards. we've been keeping close tabs on you since the day we discovered you'd run away. and I know we treated you wrong but now is the time to make amends. Dad, Mom, and I are currently homeless. I’m not sure if you heard but the Darkwood pack is officially no more. You know we never worked much and we've used every last bit of our money, we're also in debt since.... I know this must be hard for you to hear, but Esmarie passed away. she took her life a year after you left. we had spent that year taking care of her so we accumulated alot of debt. we need you now. we know you're a big shot alpha, a famous one who wants nothing to do with his family. but we just need a place to stay until we can get back on our feet. please respond soon, or we might find ourselves living under a bridge. Please help. Your older brother, barry./The letter crinkled in my grip as I re-read Barry’s words, each
[--Kaiser Volkov--]The website was set up as a front to buy cupcakes, but they didn’t hide anything. The moment you scroll through the first page, you can immediately find a tag asking if you want information about me. There’s a place to leave reviews. I didn’t leave one; I know a good hacker. Unfortunately, that person happens to be Sam. I was hoping I wouldn’t have to talk to her again.I chucked that conversation up to tomorrow and brought my attention back to Elias. I rubbed my face, my head pounded. What else can I say to him? I want to hit him, over and over again, until there’s nothing left of him but a pile of pulp on the floor.“Get comfortable, boys. You’ll be sleeping here throughout the night.” I gave them my best smile before waving goodbye and leaving the room. They were still tied to the chairs, so this would be an uncomfortable night for them.With nothing else to do, I went up the stairs to my office. As expected, esmarie was wide awake. I should have asked her some
[--Kaiser Volkov--]I was pissed, I don’t think I can even explain what being pissed means. Someone is dying tonight. No, no, that is the wrong mentality. I pulled on the spare clothes Will had brought on and told him to go with Jackson to the hospital. That man did a good job defending the pack, so it is me... and some of the wolves who drove Elias and his men here.I had to count to sixteen to remind myself that violence is never the first option. Yup, that’s as far as my mind can go. I headed into the room where they were being held. I know Will is not happy with how bruised Jackson was but he looks alot better than these fuckers. I actually felt like I was about to laugh.“Give us some alone time, boys. Go back to your wives. Enjoy the rest of the precious festival. Then vet the whole place and everyone. I’m gonna find out how they got in here even if it means I murder a Domeros.”Elias cut me a glare but I wasn’t fazed by that stupid attempt to threaten me. The alphas didn’t argu
[--Esmarie Cruz--]I kept myself firmly between the two massive wolves, feeling the weight of their power pressing against the air. The energy crackled, sharp and threatening, like the moments before a storm unleashes.“Elias,” I said, my voice steady despite the adrenaline racing through me, “you’re breaking the rules. You don’t step into another alpha’s territory without permission. So, here’s the deal—I need you to tell your men to stand down, right now, before Kaiser humiliates you by making you the newest bitch on the block.”Elias’s wolf froze, his molten gaze locked on me, calculating. The sharpness of his fangs glinted in the moonlight as his lips twitched into something between a snarl and a grin. It was clear he was considering my words, and weighing his options, but he was taking too long.The sound of approaching paws thundered through the clearing as more wolves arrived, their growls low and steady. The festival, after all, had drawn in more wolves than this territory had
[--Esmarie Cruz--]I made a split-second decision since none of the options in my head sounded right. I pulled out my cellphone, and quickly took a video of the Elias lookalike while he was still distracted before ducking into the nearest booth. Which turned out to be a photo booth, with a long curtain so thank goodness.I texted Kaiser the picture then I waited for him to call me. After five minutes I peeked out between the curtains. The Elias guy was still there. Looking at everyone. I took a photo before he could turn his head, then I ducked back in. This time I dialed kaiser.He’s a busy guy, I can’t expect him to look at every notification he gets.“I just saw your message. What the fuck is Elias doing in my fucking pack?”“I... don’t know,” I whispered.“I texted Jackson, he’s nearby. He will handle it. Where are you?”“I’m at a photo booth.”“Jackson will get you once Elias has been brought to me. Stay where you are. Don’t move an inch.”“Okay.”Kaiser hung up, leaving me in th
[--Esmarie Cruz--]The next few days of the festival went by quicker than I expected. The end of the first week was exciting, and I even won one of their games. I won two unicorn teddy bears for my children, the amount of freedom I felt being here was enough to silence the the nightmares that normally plagued my mind.And Kaiser, he was different. It was kind of scary how nice and charming he acted towards me. Today was like most days at the festival: lively. In fact, I think the number of people here has tripled. The second week was kicking off with a banger.Martha’s booth was closed today as she wanted to mingle and chat as much as she could with people. I walked around, tried some new food, and finally came across a booth I’d seen on the flyer: Ralph’s fortune-telling booth.I don’t believe in fortune tellers, but this could be fun. I bought a ticket and went in. The aura inside was .... strange if I had to be honest. It felt like I was walking into a whole new world. Someplace th
[--Esmarie Cruz--]After the speech, Kaiser stepped down from the stage, and the crowd around him buzzed with energy. The sun had set hours ago before he arrived, and the festival grounds were lit by warm, glowing lanterns that cast a golden hue over everything. It was the kind of night that felt endless, with laughter still ringing out in the distance and people lingering as if they didn’t want the magic of the evening to end. Kaiser moved through the crowd with ease, stopping to talk with some of the elders who had waited patiently for a moment of his time.I stayed back, watching him from afar. He had a way of commanding attention without demanding it. People naturally gravitated toward him, and he gave each person his undivided attention as if their words were the most important thing in the world. It was...endearing. And maybe a little infuriating. Why did he have to be so him? Ugh.I couldn’t help myself; my eyes followed his every move, like a moth drawn to a flame. The twins s
[--Esmarie Cruz--]The festival today was everything I hoped it would be—fine, entertaining, and so full of life that it made it hard not to feel swept up in the joy of it all. It was a day to forget everything else, to just breathe and soak in the energy of the pack as they celebrated. The music was loud and cheerful, drums beating in sync with the laughter and chatter that echoed through the clearing. The scent of roasted meats, freshly baked bread, and spiced cider hung heavy in the air, mingling with the floral undertones from the petals scattered all over the ground.At one point, someone pulled me into the center of a circle forming on the dance floor, and before I could protest, I found myself swept up in the rhythm of the music. The twins, who were strapped to me in their carriers, giggled and waved their tiny hands in delight. Their laughter was infectious, and soon I was spinning and twirling, letting the music dictate my movements. People cheered and clapped, their voices a
[--Kaiser Volkov--]I laid down on my couch, fully intending to just rest my eyes for a few minutes, but the exhaustion pulled me under faster than I could resist. It wasn’t a restful sleep—more like thirty minutes of uneasy drifting, filled with fleeting images and vague sensations that I couldn’t quite piece together when I stirred awake. My body felt heavy, as if the weight of the day, the festival I needed to make an appearance at later today, the note on my door, and my sleepless night were pressing down on me all at once. For a moment, I just lay there, staring up at the ceiling, listening to the faint hum of the air conditioner and the muffled sounds of people moving around outside.Then my phone buzzed, the vibration cutting through the stillness and dragging me fully back into reality. I groaned softly, fumbling for the phone on the coffee table and squinting at the screen. Doctor Jacobs. The name blinked at me, and for a split second, I debated letting it go to voicemail. Bu
[--Kaiser Volkov--]Elias wouldn’t stop pestering me. Text after text, hour after hour, all asking for the same thing: permission to attend the Blue Moon Festival. The man didn’t just ask—he hounded, pleaded, and occasionally tried to guilt me, then insulted and threatened, as if I owed him anything. But the answer was always the same.No. I didn’t trust him, not with something this important, not with something this sacred. There was a reason I kept him at arm’s length, and his persistence only made him seem all the more suspicious. I could practically feel the tension behind his words, the kind of tension that made you wonder if someone was pushing a hidden agenda. Still, I refused. Firmly. Politely at first, then with less patience. Like telling him to fuck himself in so many words. Even the most cultured terms. Today marked day four of the festival, and if Elias thought I was going to crack, he was sorely mistaken.He couldn’t bully me about other things, so he should know better.