SLADEShe didn’t say the words back. The words I desperately wanted to hear, words that Asher wanted to hear. I’d been a jerk to her so I deserved it. But could I really live with the thought of her never loving me? I ignored the heart wrenching pain I felt. She was here with me on a day like this and that is all that matters. I needed her, and she was here. Beside me. Throughout the day, she stayed next to me. We worked together, ate together, and her presence was what I needed to hold my beast in. The initial aggression I felt was slowly dying down even though I couldn’t help but glance at the clock occasionally as the time drew closer. My twenty-fifth birthday.I’d had a lot planned for this day in the past. I was to officially bid my pack members farewell and hand over my duties to the next in line, either my Luna or beta, pending when my child is of age. Since I’d not made her my Luna yet, the council wanted to make that decision for me. I had a meeting with them that I resolved
ARIANoise. It was dark already and Slade and I were getting ready to sleep when we heard it. The sounds of footsteps, people singing from a distance. He heard it first and said something about it, but I shrugged it off until I heard it myself. I stood up from the chair I was seated, Slade following behind till we were at the front porch. The sight before me almost had me in tears.The pack members were gathering in front of their Alpha’s house. All of them. They were trooping in, forming a long line. They came in their numbers, thousands of them, little pups and adults, male and female, each with a candle in one hand. They moved in unison, filling the line, their candles illuminating the night and their faces downcast.I pressed into Slade who looked surprised. No. Dazed. His hands found my waist and he held me close to him as the members of the pack continued to shuffle into lines in front of us. There were thousands of them, many I recognized, many I didn’t. The last time there was
The crowd dispersed in chaos, everyone running to shelter. Silver bullets, the type that’ll kill a werewolf in seconds. My wolf recognized the scent as it filled the air. The screams of women and children, men trying to protect their wives filled everywhere. “Sapphire,” I muttered under my breath. It could only be her. She chose the right time. “Take them inside and keep them safe, Marcel,” Slade turned to his beta, handing me and Audrey over to him. “No,” I and Audrey chorused at the same time. Many guards had surrounded us, protecting their alpha and his heir. “Aria, Listen to me. I don’t have time to argue with you. You are carrying my baby. You have to be safe,” “So you expect me to just sit inside and do nothing?” I asked. “I’m not pregnant, I can fight,” Audrey said stubbornly. Slade groaned. He glanced at the men around us, and next thing I know, I’m being lifted off my feet. Myself and Audrey were taken into the house, along with many orders. Slade was gone in seconds as
Of all the things Sapphire said, I knew she was right about one. Slade will not kill her if what she says is true, but then she isn’t going to walk out of Dark Wolf a free woman either. That much is certain. I stared at the phone in my hands many minutes after the call ended, pacing the living room and trying to calm my seething beast. There’s no way Slade expects me to sit here and not know what is going on out there, especially after the call I just received. The penthouse was full of members of the pack, young and old, and several warriors stationed inside and outside, and I know these guards will not let me out since Slade instructed it. I was getting frustrated as the sounds of gunshots continued outside. I was scared. I cursed when I felt a vibration again only to realize it was Slade’s phone this time. I picked up without hesitation, listening to hear the voice on the other end before speaking.“Alpha Slade, are you there?” A deep husky voice asked.“This is his mate. What’s
SLADEI clawed at the wolf in front of me while trying to shake off the one on my back. He fell to the floor and using my hind legs, I pinned him to the ground, making sure to finish off the first wolf before returning to him. Four others approached me with speed. My wolf was covered in blood, but I wasn’t tired. I took them down, one after the other but sustained an injury on my right side. I knew I had a lot of enemies, but Sapphire had gone overboard to bring them together. Even the warriors of Cross Shadow were involved, the pack I’d refused to join Dark Wolf. I wasn’t surprised, because I knew Sapphire was preparing herself and taking her time. What surprised me was that she’d sold us to the werewolf hunters.I felt a mind link coming through and I connected to Marcel while fighting off the last wolf.“We have another problem, Slade,” My beta tells me through mind link. I could hear him panting, his hard breath indicating he was fighting off an enemy.“What is it?” I asked him,
ARIA“Slade!! No!” I screamed, wrenching my arms away from the man that still had his gun trained on me.“I swear I’ll shoot-“ I didn’t hear the rest of what he was saying as I rushed towards Slade, but Sapphire threw herself in my way, blocking me from reaching him. I heard gunshots behind me, then Marcel’s voice. When I turned, the man who had his gun trained at me was laying lifeless on the floor, and Marcel had Daryl by the neck, the two of them battling each other. Sapphire gripped my hair, pulling it hard, but I didn’t feel the pain from her hold. The only pain I felt was seeing Slade lay lifeless on the floor. I hit her jaw with my elbow and dodged a blow she aimed at me. I haven’t done a lot of training but I have watched the warriors train countless times. I’d watched Sapphire train and I was able to predict her next move. I saw her lunge for the gun on the floor, and I moved fast, kicking it out of the way. She rolled on top of me, punching me hard on the face before going
MARCEL“The hunters have fled the pack,” Alpha Hance informed me through mind link “They are outnumbered, but they still pose a threat,” he says.“We need the prisoners back in the dungeons. Every one of them that survived,” I tell him back.“Many of them have gone into hiding. Where the fuck are you and where the fuck is Slade. Alive I hope?” He asked with a concerned voice. I didn’t respond but cut off the mind link instead. How can I explain the situation to him? Someone needs to keep things going out there. Daryl was dead and Sapphire had been apprehended. From the way Aria disfigured her eyes, it’s unlikely that she will be able to see again. She’d still face judgment by the council, but her recruits were not backing off. It seems like some of the packs that agreed to work with her had ideas of their own. While many have surrendered and others fled, some of the packs were still going on with the war even though they were clearly outnumbered. Our warriors were not backing down,
ARIAI tore my eyes from my baby and turned to my mate. He was smiling down at me while our child slept peacefully. I’d gone into labour at thirty-two weeks, earlier than the doctor had predicted but my baby was surprisingly healthy. A full-breed werewolf would carry a child for six months, but as an hybrid, I was expected to carry my pregnancy for nine months, but my little boy had come out at thirty-two weeks. It’s been almost twenty four hours since I put to bed and I was not to be discharged until tomorrow. Slade has been beside me, only leaving my side to take his own medications. He was healing, the doctor had said, but he still had a bandage around his chest. It wasn’t hard to see that he was obsessed with this child. In the last twenty-four hours, Slade barely allowed anyone near him, not even those who’d come bearing gifts.There was still a lot going on in the pack after the fight. Dark Wolf had won but with many casualties. Audrey helped in taking care of the sick as I was
I opened my eyes slowly to find Slade watching me and a small blush crept up my cheeks. “Why are you awake?” I asked him with a sleepy voice.“Just wondering what I did to get so lucky,” He smiled at me. “And you can go back to sleep, your mom is attending to Zion already,”I have gotten used to waking up at this time to feed my baby, but I had the night off today. It’s been three days after the mating ceremony and I have had to deal with a lot after that. We were also moving into a bigger house. Slade thought the penthouse wasn’t big enough to start a family which is just off considering how large it is. He wants Zion to have the best.Now that we share a mate bond, communication was easier between us. When I was overwhelmed, he’d feel it too, and did everything he could to make me feel better. He was a great dad to his son, and many packs were sending in gifts every day since the birth of Zion, wanting a form of friendship with Dark Wolf.Sapphire was sentenced to death, but only a
ARIA“You look so adorable,” my mom wiped her eyes with the back of her hands as she stared at me “Reminds me of when I married your dad. We didn’t have an elaborate wedding, but it was the best day of my life. Everyone thought I was crazy for marrying him, but it’s the one thing I know I did right and I’d walk down the aisle with him again if I had to,” she finished.“Mom,” I fought back the tears that threatened to fall to my cheeks. Luna Evelyn specifically warned me not to ruin my makeup, and I didn’t want to have to listen to her complain if I did the exact thing she warned me not to do.Today is the mating ceremony. The day I become Luna of Dark Wolf pack, and the day I have dreamed of since I set eye on my mate. It’s funny how much things have changed, almost unbelievable.I didn’t have any expectations coming to dark wolf, but I started to have expectations as the days passed. Expectations that I didn’t expect to come through. I’d hoped my mate will come to love me, but I’d al
SLADE“What happens to Sapphire?” My beta asked me. Since she was pregnant, I knew the council will not put her to death until the baby comes, but she’d lost her right eye completely and could not clearly see with her left. I don’t deny that I want her dead though, and by my hands. After all she did to my mate and my pack, she does not deserve to live. We’d lost several warriors and it saddened me. In all my years as Alpha, I’d not witnessed so much loss in my pack, even during the days of my invasion. My heart was heavy, but the thought of my son brought me joy. People were beginning to ask questions since many of them expected me to die. I did not just survive a curse, but also a silver bullet. I sighed, my right hands reaching up to clutch my chest while I drove with my other free hand. I needed to make a stop at the dungeon where Sapphire was being held and then to Allegra’s hut. I also know I need to address the members of Dark Wolf tonight. I had meetings with the council as w
ARIAI tore my eyes from my baby and turned to my mate. He was smiling down at me while our child slept peacefully. I’d gone into labour at thirty-two weeks, earlier than the doctor had predicted but my baby was surprisingly healthy. A full-breed werewolf would carry a child for six months, but as an hybrid, I was expected to carry my pregnancy for nine months, but my little boy had come out at thirty-two weeks. It’s been almost twenty four hours since I put to bed and I was not to be discharged until tomorrow. Slade has been beside me, only leaving my side to take his own medications. He was healing, the doctor had said, but he still had a bandage around his chest. It wasn’t hard to see that he was obsessed with this child. In the last twenty-four hours, Slade barely allowed anyone near him, not even those who’d come bearing gifts.There was still a lot going on in the pack after the fight. Dark Wolf had won but with many casualties. Audrey helped in taking care of the sick as I was
MARCEL“The hunters have fled the pack,” Alpha Hance informed me through mind link “They are outnumbered, but they still pose a threat,” he says.“We need the prisoners back in the dungeons. Every one of them that survived,” I tell him back.“Many of them have gone into hiding. Where the fuck are you and where the fuck is Slade. Alive I hope?” He asked with a concerned voice. I didn’t respond but cut off the mind link instead. How can I explain the situation to him? Someone needs to keep things going out there. Daryl was dead and Sapphire had been apprehended. From the way Aria disfigured her eyes, it’s unlikely that she will be able to see again. She’d still face judgment by the council, but her recruits were not backing off. It seems like some of the packs that agreed to work with her had ideas of their own. While many have surrendered and others fled, some of the packs were still going on with the war even though they were clearly outnumbered. Our warriors were not backing down,
ARIA“Slade!! No!” I screamed, wrenching my arms away from the man that still had his gun trained on me.“I swear I’ll shoot-“ I didn’t hear the rest of what he was saying as I rushed towards Slade, but Sapphire threw herself in my way, blocking me from reaching him. I heard gunshots behind me, then Marcel’s voice. When I turned, the man who had his gun trained at me was laying lifeless on the floor, and Marcel had Daryl by the neck, the two of them battling each other. Sapphire gripped my hair, pulling it hard, but I didn’t feel the pain from her hold. The only pain I felt was seeing Slade lay lifeless on the floor. I hit her jaw with my elbow and dodged a blow she aimed at me. I haven’t done a lot of training but I have watched the warriors train countless times. I’d watched Sapphire train and I was able to predict her next move. I saw her lunge for the gun on the floor, and I moved fast, kicking it out of the way. She rolled on top of me, punching me hard on the face before going
SLADEI clawed at the wolf in front of me while trying to shake off the one on my back. He fell to the floor and using my hind legs, I pinned him to the ground, making sure to finish off the first wolf before returning to him. Four others approached me with speed. My wolf was covered in blood, but I wasn’t tired. I took them down, one after the other but sustained an injury on my right side. I knew I had a lot of enemies, but Sapphire had gone overboard to bring them together. Even the warriors of Cross Shadow were involved, the pack I’d refused to join Dark Wolf. I wasn’t surprised, because I knew Sapphire was preparing herself and taking her time. What surprised me was that she’d sold us to the werewolf hunters.I felt a mind link coming through and I connected to Marcel while fighting off the last wolf.“We have another problem, Slade,” My beta tells me through mind link. I could hear him panting, his hard breath indicating he was fighting off an enemy.“What is it?” I asked him,
Of all the things Sapphire said, I knew she was right about one. Slade will not kill her if what she says is true, but then she isn’t going to walk out of Dark Wolf a free woman either. That much is certain. I stared at the phone in my hands many minutes after the call ended, pacing the living room and trying to calm my seething beast. There’s no way Slade expects me to sit here and not know what is going on out there, especially after the call I just received. The penthouse was full of members of the pack, young and old, and several warriors stationed inside and outside, and I know these guards will not let me out since Slade instructed it. I was getting frustrated as the sounds of gunshots continued outside. I was scared. I cursed when I felt a vibration again only to realize it was Slade’s phone this time. I picked up without hesitation, listening to hear the voice on the other end before speaking.“Alpha Slade, are you there?” A deep husky voice asked.“This is his mate. What’s
The crowd dispersed in chaos, everyone running to shelter. Silver bullets, the type that’ll kill a werewolf in seconds. My wolf recognized the scent as it filled the air. The screams of women and children, men trying to protect their wives filled everywhere. “Sapphire,” I muttered under my breath. It could only be her. She chose the right time. “Take them inside and keep them safe, Marcel,” Slade turned to his beta, handing me and Audrey over to him. “No,” I and Audrey chorused at the same time. Many guards had surrounded us, protecting their alpha and his heir. “Aria, Listen to me. I don’t have time to argue with you. You are carrying my baby. You have to be safe,” “So you expect me to just sit inside and do nothing?” I asked. “I’m not pregnant, I can fight,” Audrey said stubbornly. Slade groaned. He glanced at the men around us, and next thing I know, I’m being lifted off my feet. Myself and Audrey were taken into the house, along with many orders. Slade was gone in seconds as