[Hyacinth] On Monday, waiting for me on my office desk was a copy of the pack newspaper. Featured in a full-page spread is a grinning picture of my sister, Ash, holding Alpha Danver’s arm. They look happy. The title has been gone over in a bright yellow highlighter. I pick up the newspaper and scan the page: ANNOUNCEMENTS: ALPHA SLATE DANVERS and LUNA ASHLYND ANDREWS JAMES, daughter of DELTA HENRY JAMES will officially declare their commitment to each other on September 25th in a public wedding ceremony on the morning after the ALPHA BETA BALL as a conclusion to the festivities. The entire pack is invited to the reception to follow. Champagne, cake, and light refreshments will be served. On the bottom of the page, two words have been scrawled in a swirling hand: I win. I didn’t even bother asking Lisa if anyone had been seen entering my office and leaving that note. I know who did it. Sadly I cannot say I’m surprised that Ash would want to show off. That seems to be how she op
[Hyacinth] His pine and sea salt smell is so soothing that for one, brief, shining moment I let myself forget that we have an audience and leaned up against him, breathing in his scent. Releasing a sigh I didn't know I was holding, I close my eyes. I hear a cough from behind us and I remember where I am and who I am with. Standing, I straighten out my clothing and try to smile “Sorry,” I apologize, “I can be a bit clumsy sometimes.” The sun shining through Slate’s light brown hair casts a halo around his head, giving it an almost golden glow. I find myself breathless and mesmerized as I look up into his glowing blue eyes, his face still and his lips slightly parted. “Not…Not a problem,” he stumbles over his words...”I’m glad I was here to catch you.” Another cough from the van on the street reminds us both of where we are and what we have become to one another. We aren’t even friends anymore. We are barely associates. And we both have other people to love. “Slate sweetie, we
[Ashlynd] Cindy had fallen asleep somewhere along the way with my fiance holding her hand. Yes, I'm upset at Slate for putting his hand on hers in the first place, but that doesn't mean I'm not angry with her as well. Cindy must think I'm a complete idiot if she thinks I don't notice. She must be a bigger fool if she believes that a single word she says about not pursuing Slate, not trying to win him over for herself, is even remotely convincing. If she thinks she can steal my alpha, my chosen mate, and my future husband, she has no idea who she is messing with. I’ve seen the way she looks at him--you'd have to be blind not to notice how her cheeks grow rosy and her gaze distant every time he enters a room. I know that she wants him. \ But he’s mine. I claimed him long ago. I knew that I wanted him from the first moment I laid eyes on him. Looking down at the large sapphire on my hand, I place it on the steering wheel in such a way that it captures the sunlight, sending blue-tinte
[Hyacinth] It felt like I had been holding my pee for an hour before I finally got into the stall. Looking back, I see the van is still there, but that our crew is slowly starting to pile back in to continue on our trip. I better hurry up. What if they forgot me here? Closing the door I lock it securely behind me. BANG BANG BANG!!! “Occupied!” I shouted loud enough to wake the dead. “I’ll be out in a minute!” After driving for 4 hours, I am grateful for the opportunity to rest and NOT be in a car, even if my resting space is an over-used, under-cleaned truck stop bathroom. Just having a moment to myself without listening to Ash’s prattle about wedding plans or Cameron wondering aloud how his mate and children are doing, feels calming and… BANG BANG BANG!!! “JUST A MINUTE!!” I yell a bit louder this time. Either the person on the other end is hard of hearing or impatient. Either way, I don’t appreciate how this person is trying to rush me out of the bathroom before I’m done. I
[Slate] I am tired. Unlike almost everyone else, I haven't had a chance to sleep. I spent much of the ride down holding Cindy’s hand. She had been crying in her sleep. Crying over the hurt I caused her with my harsh and unnecessary words. I don’t know why I feel it is necessary to be such a brute to her. I guess seeing her kissing Drew all those nights ago still has my heart stinging. It isn’t like we meant anything to one another, but I guess…I guess part of me had been hoping for something I should have never wanted in the first place. Her. Once I step out of the van, I walk towards the truck stop store. As I grab an energy drink in the small shop I look out the window and see Doctor James waiting in line for the bathroom, bouncing up and down from foot to foot.. Feeling grateful that I had taken care of my needs at our last stop, I continue shopping, picking up a bag of chips for myself, and one for Cindy. I miss our lunches together. Maybe I can recover our friendship during
[Hyacinth] The roar gets louder. The rogues touching me have fallen to the floor, except for the last one who is looking back the way they entered with fear in his eyes. I am trying to stay awake, but I can’t. The world is going dark as a clawed hand reaches forward and grabs my last attacker by the throat. My eyes are too heavy to remain open. My body is useless, my arms and legs are heavy like bricks--cold, hard, and completely drained of life and energy. I don't know what just happened, but my body did something to protect me. Something powerful and deadly. Whatever it was, it wasn't natural. Is it possible that my hands can hurt? And if that is true, can they also heal? Was everyone right when they assumed I had healed that little girl with my hands? Does it even matter? Based on how I feel right now, I'm going to die soon anyway. I can feel my body slowly shutting down. Is this what it feels like to die? Two strong arms smelling of sea salt and pine lift me from the dirty f
[Hyacinth] I must have misheard the Alpha. I'm starting to wonder if I dreamed everything that happened as I was falling asleep in the hospital because when I woke up, there was no sign that he was ever there. Even his scent was gone, wiped away by the antiseptic smell that often accompanies hospital settings. A nurse came in and helped me dress as she eased me into a wheelchair. "Standard procedure," she reminded me even though I grumbled at the unnecessary nature and how I could walk on my own. "Tsk tsk, Dr. James. You know better." They admonished me. "After a shock as bad as the one you suffered after your attack, you're lucky the doctor isn't holding you here another 48 hours for observation. But your alpha was quite insistent that you be released today." The nurse has that far-away look that many she-wolves have when thinking of our alpha, "So we are releasing you to the care of your pack." Drew was waiting for me in the receiving room, rocking back and forth on his heels n
[Hyacinth] Am I a murderer? I cannot remember anything about the events of that afternoon. I don’t even know if those men succeeded in touching me, or if someone came in and saved me. I don’t know how or why I woke up in that bathroom surrounded by dead or dying men. Not to mention how did my son know? How did Bash know about the bad wolves, how many of them there were, or if they were dead or not? There is so much about my son that I have yet to understand. And it would seem, so much for me to learn about myself as well. I couldn’t bear to be at home any longer, so I decided to head to work.I need a distraction from rehashing all the negative thoughts running through my head, but also because I need answers. My mind is full of too many questions, none of which I can answer from my bed. Sitting at my desk at work, I take a break from the morning shift of seeing patients and pull out the two folders I had been looking at before. I don't know if I will find any answers with
[Hyacinth]What happens next still feels like an impossible nightmare. It was such a blur that it almost didn't feel real. Slate and I freed our senior pack members and they in turn freed the others. The remaining witches were gathered and imprisoned in the very cages they had created for the wolves who were now free. Silver doesn't have the same effect on them so the shackles and cages do not burn them, so in a way, we are treating them with more humanity than they ever showed us. The pack leaders who had attended the summit and our pack have allied. We call our new coalition The Protection and Preservation Coalition and as part of this coalition, each member pack has agreed to share resources and skills to build a standing army of trained soldiers with Alpha Silvers in charge of their training, making the Blue Moon Pack the premier location for training the best soldiers..We made the mistake before of believing the witches are long gone. Now that we know that we were tragically
[Hyacinth]The room is filled with the sound of chanting. Nobody has noticed Slate and me yet, which is good. We don't want them to see us. We need to save our people. If we are lucky, we can make quick work of this and save our pack.And our son, who is at the center of it all. He is the source of their spell. I can see the energy being drawn from him like the witches are drinking his soul. Slate squeezes my hand and through our link shows me an image of what we must do. The me from before all of this would have hesitated, but now I know that hesitation will just lead to more heartbreak and pain for everyone. "We can't let any of them escape," he is full of so much vengeance that I am a bit frightened of and for my mate. This time apart, and the pain he has received from the witch's hands, has changed my gentle Alpha into someone harder.Will he ever be free of this pain he now holds inside--someday perhaps but not today. Today he will have his revenge. And so will I. Slowly, I
[Sebastian]I know the bad man in the cloak. I remember him when I met him before. I should have whammied him before he could hurt us. The other kids can see the truth too. His illusions do not work on us. Maybe it is because they are a part of my pack now. I claim all of them. I am their alpha. The mean witches chained us all together. The chains end in a necklace and two bracelets that burn where they touch our skin. Some of us have blisters from where they rest, There is no way to move our hands or legs without much pain.None of us have gotten food or water, and the little ones are so scared.I am scared too, but I don't want my pack to know. I need to be like my papa. Strong and silent, ready to defend them. The grown-ups came to rescue us, and we were so excited to see them. First, it was the Gamma and Drew, but then I saw they were not themselves. They were put in one of the awful silver cages.A kind old lady and a bunch of wolves came in a few minutes later. But like the ot
[Hyacinth] Once the stars cleared from my eyes and my lungs remembered how to breathe, I looked up at my handsome mate lying above me, his body resting on his forearms, still glowing from the power of our union. My legs are wrapped around his waist as my body seeks to capture every last ounce of his love. Panting, and covered in sweat, our bodies rock softly as we settle back to earth. My legs slowly relax. We just made love in the forest after playing tag as wolves. For so long I never thought I'd have this, that I'd have a mate. But now that our souls are joined, I know that he isn't just my mate--he is my other half. "Hyacinth," Slate speaks into my head, his words as clear and sharp as if he had opened his mouth and said the words aloud. As he gently pulls out of my core to lie down next to me, I shiver at the feeling. It feels so much more intimate now--I not only feel what I am feeling, but I can feel what he is feeling too, as if I am both of us at the same time. Lying
[Thirty minutes earlier][Roderick]I should have never come here. I should have stayed in my swamp. Wolves and witches are dying all around me, terrified as they watch my illusion unfold around them. This is why others cannot use my power. This is why we stay far, far away from all of this. When a wolf like me interferes, when we join the fight, it often causes more harm than help. We intended to scare the witches, but a spell like this does not discriminate. Everyone in the area is affected, including the wolves who are little more than prisoners. Rushing from their seats, they may run towards the shelter of the auditorium. Those who were sitting closer to the front almost trample the ones towards the back as they make a mad dash to escape. The Beta and her team move forward, eliminating as many witches as they can. Unfortunately, the wolves in the audience are not in control of their bodies, the spell holding them captive is. And right now the remaining witches are terrified
[Ashlynd]I am dying. I know I am dying because I can feel the life draining from my body as the blood flows from my wounds, wounds that were inflicted by the love of my life and my darling sister, his mate.Seeing them run after one another, initiating their mating ritual, covered in my blood is not how I expected my wedding day to end.If only I hadn't been born a witch. Today would have been magical when Slate and I finally found one another, joining as man and wife. It would have been the beginning of a beautiful life together. But instead, my sister and the rest of the rebellious pack attacked and took everything important away from me in one deft move. When she bit the rings from my hand, I could no longer feel his heart, how in those moments as the spell started to take hold, he both pitied and hated me. The spell to make him my familiar, my witch's pet. would have forced him to be loyal and faithful and do what I wanted without complaint.It would have been as if I were the
"Mark me?" I whimper as I retake my bipedal form, returning to a body with only two legs instead of four. "You are my Luna," he growls as his form shifts above me. It has been so long since I've had him this close to me, naked and vulnerable, wanting to touch me, that I start to cry as I reach up to touch his chest. "Are you sure that is what you want," I want him, now more than ever, but I don't want him to feel like he is making a mistake. His expression softens as he bends his elbows, lowering himself to me so that he can press his lips to mine gently. "It's all I've wanted for a very long time, Hyacinth. I want you to be my Luna, my wife, and the mother of my pups.""About that, I reach up and touch his face," that night, before you asked Ash to be your mate.His face darkens. "I don't want to talk about that right now," he insists as he kisses me again, this time with more need. "I want you, I want my mate. And I need you to be mine, now. Not just because I want you, but becaus
[Hyacinth]Slate gives me a small head start. Bounding ahead, my heart pounding, I run on my new wolf legs, sprinting through the trees, weaving around them like the breeze itself, touching the branches and the bark with my fur as I brush past them yet easily missing any logs, rocks, or pitfalls in my path. I am graceful and strong in my wolf form, and my legs are long and powerful. Even though Halcyon is the one in charge, I can still feel everything--the cool wetness of the soil beneath the pads of my feet, the smell of fresh rain in the branches of the tall pine trees. And the scent of my mate not far behind me. He smells so good, so mouthwateringly delicious. Like the sweetest candy.Now I finally understand the gravity of what had been taken from me when my mother chose to seal off my wolf. She took away a whole world of sensations. I played in these trees as a little girl and ran through them gleefully as I played with the other pups. I had no idea what I was missing without
[Hyacinth]By the time I make it to the top of the aisle, Ashlynd is already holding Slate's hand as a preacher speaks over the two of them. Next to her are two of her new witch sisters. Next to Slate is nobody. I have already missed the part where they ask those in attendance if they have any objections to this union. Knowing Ashlynd, she probably didn't even include that part. She isn't the type to welcome opposing opinions. Everyone is focused on the scene in front of them. In the audience is my father and his wife, my evil witch step-mother. Also included are all the alphas and their senior cabinet members who came to the summit and Alpha Beta Ball. Every important wolf on the West Coast, as well as a few from the East Coast and one as far away as France. I'd be impressed if I wasn't terrified. All of these wolves are under her compulsion, controlled by the spell worn around Ashlynd's neck. I stand there, unnoticed and numb, unable to move as I listen to his promise to love an