*** 17 years ago ***
I screamed out, the pain becoming too much. Here, on the floor of the dungeon, in the cage that was provided for me, I was going to have my fourth pup. It was the same every time. On this dirty disgusting floor, alone outside of the pack doctor, Iâd give birth to my pup and they would be swiftly taken from me.
âCome on, Katerina. Youâll be free after this one.â
The doctor stood in the corner. He was told not to touch me, not to comfort me. Only my pups. They only wanted them, not me. It made his words surprising; heâd never spoken to me before now.
Alpha Devon Cross, my mate, my love, my everything. In high school he was the one all the girls crushed on. He was the one that all the she-wolves dreamed to have as their mate. Someone like me though, an Omega, wasnât good enough for an Alpha like him. I thought Iâd be lucky if a kind, lower status wolf was my mate. I was so wrong.
When I turned 18, Devon found me, and took me right there in the classroom. We were mates. Me, an Omega, fated to an Alpha. But that first time we made love, he didnât mark me. Or the second. Or the third. Or any time after that. It wasnât until we graduated that I got the nerve to ask why he hadnât marked me. My wolf and I were getting restless, and we wanted to be claimed fully by our mate. Devon, the soon to be Alpha, laughed in my face.
âYou think some Omega is going to be my Luna? How stupid are you? Youâre my fuck toy, Katherine. My fuck toy and Iâll do what I want with you, when I want. But believe me, marking you will never happen.â
I still remember those words as they shattered everything I thought about mates, about love, and about him. He was cruel and terrible, much worse than his father who already ruled our pack out of fear. He didnât even know my name.
Another scream tore from my throat as a contraction rippled through my body. Sweat poured down my face. I hated him. I cursed him with every single breath over these nine years. Devon took a woman named Francesca as his Luna. She was a beautiful woman from another pack, part of an alliance Devon and his father worked out. However, she was a spiteful, jealous, and terrible woman. She was selfish and spoiled, doing nothing a Luna should do for her pack. I became the focus of most of her torture though. She knew I was Devonâs fated. That only I would be able to provide the powerful heirs that he wanted.
Normally, I was kept away from the pack house. I was rounded up and sent to live with the other Omegas in a barn house on the edge of the territory. That was home, with my fellow Omegas. But Iâd been brought in when Devon felt like fucking me or torturing me.
At first, he tried having pups with his Luna. But she miscarried twice and the third time the pup didnât last a week. He tried to get a witch to figure out what was wrong but from the rumors, she said the Moon Goddess cursed him for refusing the bond. Thatâs what led to him bringing me in to be his pup-maker. I thought maybe, if I gave him a pup, heâd realize we were meant to be together. That we had a place and that heâd be kinder to me.
My first pup was born. I heard their cry, and I laughed through the tears. Even though Iâd given birth in the dungeon, on a dirty blanket in winter, Iâd given my Alpha what he always wanted. I reached out to the doctor who had taken my pup from me, to hold them for the first time. But the doctor turned away. Leaving me alone, in the dungeon. I screamed and cried. I tried to follow him, take my pup back but I was too weak after giving birth. I didnât even know their gender. Within an hour, I was dumped back in the barn house, where I cried in agony over my lost pup.
It happened again a couple years later. I wasnât quite prepared, but I knew this time what was coming. I tried to ask questions. I tried to get information. But Devon would only abuse me if I asked him and everyone else was under his command to not speak of them in front of me.
The Moon Goddess was so wrong. I wanted to die and after the birth of my second pup, I tried. Multiple times over the couple years before Devon came out to the barn. He threatened that if I continued, he would kill every last Omega in our territory. The people who I had grown up with and who became my family. He knew and he used them to get to me. I stopped, hoping to save them. It was another seven years but he called on me again.
Immediately, Iâd become pregnant but this time I was sick. He ended up keeping me in the pack house, more as a slave but to keep an eye that I didnât decide my life was already done. That was when I met him, an Alpha from an enemy pack. He was kind and gentle. His smile lit up the room and he took pity on me. I spilled my heart to him, and he promised to free me. After this birth, he promised to come to me and we would disappear. But as soon as I gave birth to my third pup, Devon kept me locked up in the dungeon.
A couple weeks later, he came down drunk, screaming that heâd never let me go. That I wasnât allowed to leave or be free. Heâd been chained to me as his mate and so Iâd be chained to him as well. That night I became pregnant for a fourth time.
I met my dear Alan at the border. We had to put it off. I couldnât leave while I was pregnant. I had tried but a dark force prevented me from leaving. Carrying his blood prevented me from crossing the border. And so, I endured this pregnancy. Locked in the dungeon the entire time.
âCome on Katerina, push.â
Squeezing my eyes shut, I grabbed the blanket under me in a tight fist. I yelled out as I pushed through, feeling the pup crown and then slip out. Quickly, the doctor took them in a towel and began clamping and cutting the umbilical cord. There was no reason to cry or scream or be upset. I knew already, I knew the process at this point.
âDoc.â
He didnât answer.
âIs it a girl or a boy?â
For the first time I asked and the doctor looked at me, surprised. I donât know if it was my defeated tone or that I even bothered asking, but he stayed quiet for a moment. Only the cries of my pup as he wrapped them in a blanket and carried them out of the cell. He paused just before the stairs up, looking at me and he caught my eye.
âItâs a girl.â His whisper barely reached me but my eyes filled with tears as he left the dungeon.
Closing my eyes, I laid on the ground, exhausted, in pain, and resigned to my fate. Devon would probably kill me now. Unless Iâd birthed four girls, I probably was of no use to him and he would kill me. I thought of Alan, my sweet Alan. My savior; the one who showed me that there could be something sweet and gentle in this world. I prayed for my little ones, that one day they might find love, that their father wouldnât be so cruel to them. I fell asleep and in my prayers turned to begging the Moon Goddess to save them from Devonâs wrath.
-
âKatâŠKat tell me youâre okay. Tell me Iâm not too late.â A broken voice woke me from my deep sleep.
Everything hurt and I felt weak, my life slipping out of my fingers. But I also felt myself being held, clutched against someone holding me gently. The light scent of sandalwood and peppermint pushed past the terrible dungeon smells. I knew exactly who it was. If I wasnât so exhausted, I would have smiled.
âYouâre pretty late.â My voice was scratchy and quiet but the hands holding me tightened, telling me that they heard me.
âWe are leaving now. Iâm bringing you home.â
I nodded, leaning against his chest as he picked me up like I weighed nothing. My eyes were too heavy to open so I just listened to the wind as Alan raced through the forest.
âKat, love, you need to break the bond when we cross the border. After that, you can sleep, alright?â
I nodded again, trying to save my strength. Instead, I focused on his scent. The wind brushing against my skin. The pain radiating in my body. The doctorâs words, âItâs a girlâ. My last little pup, sheâd been the strongest and most agitated one. She twisted and kicked the whole time, never letting up. She wasnât as big as my first, but she was bigger than the one just before her. My being sick affected them and I felt bad for how small they had been born, and two weeks early.
âOkay love. Get ready, Iâm about to cross the border.â
Taking a deep breath, I felt the twinge of the territory as we raced past it. The air changed as we ran. It felt lighter, easier to breathe. It was cleaner, the smells stronger in the forest.
âI, Katerina Frost, reject Alpha Devon Cross as my mate. I break the ties to the Silver Mountain pack.â
Alan held me tight as I screamed into his chest. The pain of my bonds breaking. I started to cry and he hushed me, trying to soothe me. We slowed down and I heard a car door open. For the first time, I felt myself sit in cloth seats and I looked up at Alan, worry etched on his face along with deep dark circles.
âAre you okay? We need to drive from here.â
My mouth turned up into a smile and my eyes filled with tears again. âIâm free. Iâm finally free.â
Hey guys! Thank you so much for coming in and reading. I'm really excited for this story. I hope you enjoy!
*** Skylar POV - Present Day *** âSky, are you sure you still want to do this?â I looked up at my friend, smirking. âAre you kidding? Vince, weâve been planning this for months. Literally months. Iâve paid all the freshmen to pull as many fire alarms around the school as possible.â âCan we really do this though?â Steph came up behind me and helped steady the speaker I was setting into the ground. Taking out my ruler, I checked the angle of the box before tilting it back two degrees and bolting it down. âWe got this, guys. Stop worrying. You have your masks and your escape plans. You donât need anything else other than your rocking soul.â Steph sighed and nodded. âYeah yeah.â âAre you going to be okay? Youâre the only one without a mask. They are going to know itâs you.â Vince was always the one who wanted to worry for me. He hovered a little too much sometimes. I already had two older brothers and a sister, I didnât need anyone else hovering. âIâll be fine. I know the worst my
My eyes watched as the teachers and staff lost complete control of the kids. Kids now ran out of the buildings, joining the amassing group. They tried to stop them, realizing that the alarms were just pulled and nothing was going on, but it was too late. Our plan had worked. Now the next phase was going to start. The school would call the Alpha, my father. The next test of my months of research and experiments. We finished up the second song and I leaned into the mic to start the song off. âWeâll never get free, lamb to the slaughterâ âWhat you gonnaâ do when thereâs blood in the water?â âThe price of your greed is your son and your daughterâ âWhat you gonnaâ do when thereâs blood in the water?â Vince took over and I hit the bass drum, to start off the chorus. My eyes glowed as we finished the verse and we dropped into the chorus and I slammed across the toms and cymbals. It was fucking awesome. I hadnât been this excited and this pumped before. âI am the peopleâ âI am the s
“What did it look like I was doing? I was playing music for my fellow classmates.”My eyes found Emmett’s and I stared at him, trying to ask if he was okay. He gave me a quick nod, now that our father was turned to face me. Emmett was my savior and I’d do anything to protect him. He was social, kind, sweet, and compassionate despite our upbringing. Not to mention with our blonde hair and soft features, he was a panty-dropper when he smiled.Emmett, however, had no spine when it came to our father. He took everything without so much as complaint or attitude. His grades were fairly average, but he also coasted, trying not to make waves. His wolf wasn’t always happy with his docility, but he never took control.I was the complete opposite. Outside of Vince, Steph, and Henry who I had known since kindergarten, I was a social disaster. For some reason, I received the social anxiety trait, barely able to speak to people normally. I’
âSkylar, stop. You too, Greg. Quit it.â Caleb chastised us both but neither of us let up glaring at each other.âWhat are you guys up to today? Since you canât be home.âI clamped my mouth shut. He was so out of the loop. Caleb didnât understand the hell we went through. That we took every opportunity to leave this place. That we never considered it home. That this wasnât a normal childhood like he and Catherine had. The only thing they were ever subjected to was the petty anger that Francesca directed towards them.It wasnât until we were ten that we found out she wasnât our actual mother. It made sense, not a single one of us looked like her or our father. All of us had the same blonde hair and brown eyes. Our dad had black hair, blue eyes and sharp features that looked like straight edges. He probably would be handsome if he wasnât scowling or barking orders. Francesca looked like she used to be beautiful. But time and anger twisted her features into an unattractive woman with brown
I nodded. âIâll be fine. We only have a little bit of time left. Then, weâll be opening up Carlâs Automotive 2.0.â He shook his head and laughed. âYâall better not call it that. No one will show up.â âBut thatâs the mystery of it! Who is Carl? Why doesnât he work there? What happened to him?â I smiled as he laughed again. âYou areâŠsomething else. Go get me a damn fuel hose so we can get started.â Skipping away, I headed to the back warehouse of the shop. When I finally found the hose and pulled it, another car had shown up and Emmett was helping them, writing notes on the issues they were coming in with. I kept my head down and bee-lined for Carl.â âHere you go. I cut it to size, too.â He took it and slipped under the car, starting the tedious process of replacing it. I managed to help with my slimmer hands as I held the line in place as he maneuvered it where he needed it to be. It was cut perfectly as he reconnected everything.
My eyes stared down at my bottle before I drained it. “We should head back. I don’t want to get yelled at because we stayed away too long after the she-bitch told us to get out.”Carl chuckled and nodded. “Thanks for the help today.”“Thanks for letting us work.”“Next week then?” Carl held out his fist.I gave him a fist bump, followed by Emmett. He answered, “At the latest.”Carl walked us to the bus, and since it was already dark outside. We waved as we got on and sat in the back.“Think we should pick up dinner?”“If we take it home, you’re holding it. Last time it just got wasted in my hands.”Emmett chuckled. “Maybe we should just eat it there?”I nodded. “The usual place?”“Sure.”We got off after two stops and jaywalked across the street to Giorgio’s. It was our f
When I walked into school on Monday, I was regarded as a hero. It was funny considering I usually kept my head down and no one bothered me, especially with my anxiety. This was different though. The kids clapped, moved out of the way, whistled. It was kind of exhilarating. Emmett was smiling as he walked next to me, nudging me every so often.In the distance, I saw Steph and Henry at my locker, and I gave a quick wave to Emmett before running over to them.“Maybe we shouldn’t have worn masks. I’d like some recognition.”I laughed at Henry. “You wanna get punished, too? The only reason the school isn’t doing anything to me is because my father handles all our punishments. But if you want to join me…”Henry looked wide-eyed for a moment. “Nope. No thanks.”“That’s what I thought.” I opened up my locker only to be shoved into it and hit my head on the shelf in it.I
My eyes widened and I nodded, trying not to smile. He walked into the front office and I followed and tried my best to look solemn.“Alright. I need to head out. Alpha, said to hurry up.”The lady at the front desk, Mrs. Wilson, nodded. “Yes, of course. We’ve already signed her out. See you tomorrow, dear.”I nodded silently and Justin put his hand on my back, leading me out of the office. He didn’t remove it until we stepped outside into the guest and teacher parking lot. His Raven Black 1969 Mustang was parked and I ran my hand over the hood.“Does she need a tune up? I’d be happy to get my paws on her engine sometime.”He laughed, opening the door for me. “Only you can make working on a car sound sexual.”I flashed him a grin. “Cars are sexy, what can I say? Sit on one long enough and sometimes the purr will make you scream.”“Goddess, Sky, what the
I can't believe I'm actually here. We are at the end of Shift. Done. Complete. Marked and mated. ;)First off, thank you. All of you. Every single one who liked, who commented, who corrected my spelling, who didn't do anything but just read. Every single one of you have stuck with me and I can only hope that you guys enjoyed a peek into the lives of Sky, Ethan, Justin, Emmett, Kev, Sam, Kat, Caleb...and so many other characters. They are near and dear to my hearts and I honestly will say, closing this last chapter out was such a heartfelt moment for me.I could not have continued this without my regulars. You know who you are and I just want to say even when I felt down, I knew I had to keep going because I honestly didn't want to disappoint. As a lot of you know, I struggle with being sick a lot. So having my writing means so much to mean and having you guys be so patient during that time means the world to me. Especially when it feels like there is so much negativity on the internet.
My lips crashed onto Skyâs and it was an entirely different feeling with the electricity of the mate bond. Niru was growling and howling incoherently in my head but at the same time, it all made sense. I wanted her, needed her. Needed everything that she would give me. The thing that surprised me the most was that I wanted to share her as well. Pulling away, I looked at Justin who was just about foaming at the mouth.âShe tastes like orange citrus as well. Would you like to taste her lips?âJustinâs irises blew out and a shiver ran through his spine. He reached for her but it was a lot more gentle than I expected. He brushed her cheek and sucked a hair behind her ear before pressing his lips to hers. She molded up against his body and I stepped up behind her, brushing the hair out of her face.âCan you taste it? Taste the orange with the salt from the sea?âJustin hummed as he pulled back slowly taking her lip between his teeth for a moment before letting it go. I smirked, feeling how
Justin chuckled. âYou mean Fast Orange? Yeah, I smell it. Of course thatâs what she would smell like. She uses that shit almost every day.âI smiled and I realized he was beaming too. This time we did follow our noses. She had been here but she wasnât here anymore. We followed it back up the stairs as she wove through the art tents and through the throng of people that had amassed. I pushed through first, following just my instinct, Niru almost fully taking over.Justin was right behind me, never once straying or getting stuck behind someone else. I followed the orange scent and it started getting stronger. Like I had just stuck my nose in the bucket of the stuff she kept in the shop bathroom. The beach was relatively quiet since it was getting cooler as the sun was going down.Near the edge of the waves, just where it was lapping up onto the sand, Sky stood alone. Her large-brimmed woven sunhat was pushed back on her head and sunglasses were set around the top of it. She was wearing a
There was a read receipt but she wasnât replying. Not that I blamed her. Sky probably saw right through my charade. Justin looked over my shoulder at my phone. âYeah, because thatâs not over the top.â I growled at him but continued to stare at the screen. Finally, I held my breath when the three little dots appeared. Justin was the opposite, breathing heavy as he started at my phone as well. S: Well, itâs nice to be remembered today. Both Justin and I winced. Oh yeah, she was mad. âWho can blame her? I sure canât.â Niru added his two cents. Shaking my head, I typed up another message. Mate #1: Iâm sorry, baby. Really. Come on, letâs celebrate together, yeah? We can go to your favorite place in the city, have a nice dinner or whatever you want. Justin snorted. âWay to lay it on thick.â âWhat else do you want me to do? We fucked up. She knows it. We know it. Iâm not about to lose the chance to be with her on her birthday because of it. Are you?â That shut him up as we both
*** Ethanâs POV *** My alarm went off and all I wanted to do was throw my phone at the wall. Iâd gone to bed at three in the morning and I knew this alarm was for eight. My eyelids didnât want to open and I turned over in bed, burying my face in my pillow. This had been the first time in three days Iâd gotten to bed. It was a chore dragging myself up the stairs but Iâd made it.Normally, I loved doing the work behind the scenes. The problem was is that the inspector with an entire tree trunk shoved up his ass decided that he was going to nitpick laws that werenât even updated in this century. I would know because I fucking checked. Mr. Marrow had been out three times and each time we passed the first set of requirements but would find even more to throw our way.âYou need to be extra safe when it comes to our youth. You know, they are our future and the path to a better tomorrow.â Niru copied his grating voice almost perfectly, before growling and snapping his jaw. âIf I could just s
*** Four Months Later *** My eyes peeled open and I reached out for my phone. The screen flashed four in the morning and I groaned. My hand fall back against the sheets and I laid there for another moment. However, it was Raine who started to bounce up and down in my head.âRaine, come on.ââBut Sky, arenât we doing to do the thing?âHer exuberance and happiness made a smile creep onto my face.âCome on, Sky. If we go early, we can be there early!ââAlright, alright! Fucking hell.âThrowing the blankets off of me, I got up and padded into the bathroom. Going pee and taking a quick shower, I woke up enough to feel somewhat alive. Coffee would get me the rest of the way there. The kitchen was quiet when I walked in and I still continued to thank the Goddess for it. It had been a month since everyone moved the hell out of my place. There was still work needing to be done in the apartments but I left that to the contractors and the guys themselves.For now, I would enjoy the simple peace
I sat on the stairs of the porch, looking out over the back yard of the pack house. Everything was so quiet here. It was nice to take a break from the chaos that was now my home. At least for a few minutes. The wind blew and I tucked a stray hair behind my ear. Looking down at my phone, I stared at the messages that were there. E: Hey Sky, I feeling a little better today. Sam made some kind of soup. It was completely inedible. She had to order pizza. It reminded me of when you tried to cook that pasta dish and you somehow managed to burn the pasta. E: I went shopping online today. Got some more clothes. Bernard came by and cut my hair for me. That was nice. It was getting in my eyes. They wonât talk about you though. Itâs like you donât exist anymore and I hate it. E: Today was a bad day. I donât know why. I just woke up and I threw up until there was nothing left in me. Sam tried to help but I felt disgusting. Iâm reminded of what I did. What I had done. Itâs like it comes back
We headed down the road in Ethanâs truck. I was squished between Ethan and Justin in the center seat of the bench. Still, it felt nice as I rested my head on Justinâs shoulder and my fingers laced with Ethanâs. Iâd need them to handle this trip.âI gave one of the new homes to Sam. Her and Emmett have been staying together.ââSo she didnât reject him?âEthan squeezed my hand. âShe didnât. She hasnât marked him but when she heard what you did, I think she thought it only right for her to give him a chance as well.âMy heart lightened just a little, knowing that something good may actually come from all this pain. Ethan turned down the road that was brand new and I could see the new homes that were being built. There were three blocks of them that were already finished and he pulled into the driveway of one that was a block down. I scooted out of the middle and Justin helped me down from the truck.âWhatever you do, pretend like Iâm not here.âBoth Ethan and Justin gave me confused look
I woke up screaming and my eyes flung open. Everything was hazy and I didnât know where I was. All I could remember was the all consuming feeling of the darkness. How sticky my hands were from Emmettâs blood. The last sound that came from Marrok as I killed him. My heart sped up as I started to hyperventilate, as my stomach started to roll.âHey! Sky! Itâs okay. Youâre okay. Youâre safe.âA hand brushed my cheek but I flinched away from in.âShit. Hold on. Iâm pulling over.âI felt bile start to come up but I just coughed, forcing myself to not throw up. I hadnât realized we were moving until the motion stopped completely. It helped a bit for my stomach but I still felt like I couldnât breathe. Hands slipped under my arms and pulled me up from my laying down position. My head fell heavily against Ethanâs shoulder and arms held me tight.âYouâre okay. Iâve got you. Iâm right here.âThat broke the damn. I started to cry as I grabbed onto the front of his shirt, balling it up between my