“Nix.” My mother rushed forward and got between us. “You can’t do this.” She pleaded with me, but I shook my head.
“Why not?” She growled and looked at our mother. She pushed me back, so that she was in front and I was watching next to Megan. “She has been very unsettled since coming back.” Megan turned to me. “I can’t blame her. She has finally shifted so her alpha aura, and your hormones have put here in a knifes edge. And then there is me. She has been dealing with my mourning my mate, and trying to claim him.”“Megan?” I looked at her, really looked. Her fur was a little patchy, and she looked exhausted. “She did what she had to. She held me back from claiming Brandon and I don’t regret it. It’s just hard. Shannon pushed her too far and now she will get her retribution.” Megan turned and limped back into my soul forest, where she could“Dad…” Brandon started.But Vince turned full circle to stare at the two of them. “You both abused your rank to protect an unranked wolf when she was overstepping. We have ranks for a reason. There is a pecking order for a reason. Ranked wolves are to protect the unranked wolves. Unranked wolves are supposed to fall in line. They are the backbone of the pack, but they need to know their place!” Vince screamed. “You had a weak child, Morgan. You mated an unranked wolf and had an unranked wolf. That is the chance you take when you mate outside of your rank.” Vince turned back. “But you do NOT allow your unranked daughter to push around the ranked wolves. You throw the entire order of the pack out the window when you do that.”“She is my pup.” Morgan tried again.I growled, tired of his shitty excuse. “And what?” I tossed out. “She is your daughter, but no one was trying to fight h
I turned to my mother and nosed the sliding glass door to the backyard. She hurried to the door and slid it open, and I walked out. I left the room full of the chaos I sowed and let the three of them figure it out. “Mother.” I called out, and she quickly followed.“Nix…Did you have to do that?” She came out and walked next to me.“I did.” I answered honestly. “She pushed her luck too far and we are tired of dealing with her.” I turned to my mother. “Shift. I want to run with you.” My mother let a small smile break out and nodded. She quickly shifted, and her brown wolf was a little smaller than Nix’s shifted form. Bigger than the average wolf.I took off with her trailing behind me. We breached the woods, and I slowed down, allowing her to overtake me as she knew these woods and I didn’t. She shot out in front, dodging trees and bushes she was intimately familiar with, while I b
I dropped down next to her with a thump. “What?”My mother smiled. “I should say my mother was the last pure Lycan, other than the king’s family. And I am three quarters as my father was half Lycan as well. A secret his line has kept almost as well as your father’s magic.” She looked over at me. “You are a little muddled. I don’t know if you have enough Lycan in you to have one.”“Have a Lycan?”“Yeah. So Lycans have a bigger wolf, and a wolfman form. But mixed Lycans, well they are blessed with two wolves…”“Two wolves?”“Yeah. One that is their Lycan, and can have multiple shifts. And their normal wolf. They inherit both wolves.” My mom shifted to her large brown wolf, and then into a smaller grey wolf, then back to herself. She panted as she settled back down on her knees. “It’s also why we keep our clothing. A gift passed down the Lyca
“Alive again?”I nodded. “In my last life, Brandon, had you killed? Dad was killed. Everyone was gone.”My mother took it better than I thought she would. “So you are saying that you lived a first life…”“We all do.” I looked down at my hands, where I was twisting my fingers. “Our gifts, they give us a do over, you can say. Like the goddess wanted us to see what could be, and she gives us a second chance to change it all.”“And it’s always bad…”I nodded. “As far as I know.”My mother trembled. “You saw what happened to your pup, and now you’re changing who your mate is…” She looked at me with a tiny spark of hope in her eyes. “Did you pick where you went back to, the time?”I shook my head no. “The Goddess selects, I think. One minute I was dying with Brandon screaming over me, and then next I was in bed six years younger. I didn’t choose to come back here. But I know I am determined to change the outcome. I refuse to watch my pup die again.”My mother’s breath caught, and I saw the
Dad!Pup? What’s wrong?She won’t stop…I don’t know what to do.She who? Won’t stop what? Pup, I need more information to go on… His voice didn’t sound panicked, but I knew mind did. I didn’t know how to explain it. Bring Nix forward. She can send what you see directly to me. My dad sent me, sensing my distress. So that’s what I did. I allowed Nix to come to the surface, and she saw our mother losing control. I could sense her opening to Loki, and then my mind was filled with his howl too. Loki?What happened to your mother, pup? My dad’s worried voice came through the howling.She knows.Knows what? Amy, you have to tell me what is going on or else I can’t help. His frustration was evident.She knows the truth. About our second chances, our power, the fact you lied. Everything. My mind’s voice was barely above a whisper, but I got it all out. The truth that had been nagging at me since the beginning of the summer. Why did you tell her? We said we wouldn’t tell her until this was ov
My mom sobbed into his chest. “Don’t say that Gav. I am so sorry. I betrayed you.”He forced her face to meet his. “Look at me Ain. Never say that. This isn’t on you. Everything for the last seventeen years everything that happened was because of me and my decisions. And I realized that a long time ago. I never blamed you, not once.”“Gav, how can you say that?” She closed her eyes. “I can’t imagine…”My dad looked at her and gave her a soft smile. “Can’t imagine what?”“Why would you forgive me after everything? I treated you so badly. I had to do- My dad covered her mouth with his hand. “You did what you had to do to keep our pup safe. Just like I did what I had to do to keep you safe.”“Gavin. You can’t mean that.” My heart broke at her words. How could she not see just how much he loved her? He leaned in and kissed her lips softly. “I love you, Ainsley. I never stopped loving you. I didn’t blame you for anything before, and then when Amy told me the truth, I felt like I was dyin
I dropped onto the sofa with both my parents looking down at me. My father mouthed the words sorry, but I just flipped him off and he laughed. “Now spill.”“Well, you already know the beginning of the story. I woke up, in the past, you sent me to Dad’s hoping he could figure something out to help me. Dad came clean, told me about our powers, and I started training.”“She also started female warrior training back up.” My dad pointed out but my mom glared at him over her shoulder.“What do you mean ‘back up?’.” I watched him gulp, and then he rubbed the back of his head. “I was missing you. And I had hoped that you still had friends in the pack.”“I cut everyone off, Gav. It was too hard.”My dad nodded. “Amy told me this summer. If I had known the truth, I would have stopped when I still had a semblance of control over the situation.”“Gavin Michael Maclean, what did you do?”“I gave the order to stop everything you were supposed to oversee in hopes your duty as a luna would push you
“It was magic, not how I truly felt.” My dad tried to comfort her. “What happened? What necklace, and who is the she-wolf?” My mother listed off the questions in quick succession and I wanted to laugh. “Ainsley…are you jealous?” My dad smirked, but she just backhanded his arm and she turned back to me. “After I noticed something was wrong, I worked to get my power under control. Great-grandma helped me. And-” “Wait, the dead woman?” My poor mother was trying her best to understand everything, but she was lost when it came to powers. “I’m used to Carl and his gifts, so I’m a little lost, but people coming back from the dead should be off the table, right?” I laughed with my dad. “Think more like spirit. Her spirit helped Amy.” “You got help from a fucking ghost?” She came over and sat next to me. “Mom. We are werewolves, and you’re surprised by ghosts?” I patted her hand, and she shot me a glare. “Listen. That is
Rowan stared at me for a minute before he stood. He pulled out his phone and started to hit buttons. “Did you hear me?” I snarled, and he turned his phone screen to me. “Look.” I stared at his face before my eyes flicked to his phone. It was our text chat. I read through the screen and stopped. “That isn’t right.” I pulled out my phone and selected our chat log and showed him. “What the fuck is going on?” He pulled my phone to his face. I stared at his phone. Messages he sent that I didn’t receive. I pulled his phone out of his hand and clicked to the call log. Nothing. All the calls I made were missing. “How is this possible?” I looked up. Rowan was still looking at my texts. “You texted me?” I just nodded. “Of course I did. I also called. I felt pathetic after a week of being ignored, but I had questions and you were answering my emails.” I handed back his phone. “Wait…you emailed me? My secure email?” I nodded. “Yes.” I nodded. “You told me to. So I did. But I had a questio
Rowan pulled back from my face and looked me in the eye. “Okay.”Nix receded, leaving me panting and confused. “What?”Rowan stood, and I nearly stumbled back from how fast he stood. “I said okay.” His smile was perfect. Everything about him was perfect. I shook my head to clear it. “I’m confused…what?”He laughed and then gripped me at my waist, pulling my body against his and he bent down, kissing my lips and making me nearly moan. His lips were soft, biteable, and I wanted to spend the rest of my night exploring them, but he pulled away. “You wolf has made a good point. If I want to earn her name, if I want anything from you, I need to prove it.” Rowan squeezed my hips, and I felt my eyes flutter from the slight pain. I was learning things about my likes, my needs, in this life I never explored in my last. I was a little lost in thought as Rowan stepped back.I tried to grab at him but my hands met air. I shook my head to refocus, and I bit my lip to stop myself from doing somethi
I screamed and dropped into a fighting stance, only to find Rowan on my sofa staring at me. I tossed my head, dropping the towel that I had wrapped around my hair to the floor. I nearly growled when I found him sulking in the dark, but I just stood up and patted my naked chest. Calm down. I shook my head and chuckled at my stupidity.The feeling of soft skin on my fingertips had my hand freezing. Naked chest…I slowly looked down, as if I was a human in one of their horror movies. When my eyes met the pile of towels, my mouth dropped open. My eyes landed on my naked and prominent chest, currently on full display, and I screamed again. I snatched the towels and ran out of the room. Oh, my goddess. Kill me now. I crumpled on to the bed in disbelief. Did that actually just happen? “What the fuck am I supposed to do?” I dropped my head into my hands and groaned. “I would put on clothes if I were you.” Rowan’s voice sounded right outside my door. His voice was low, gravelly, and filled w
The next few weeks passed in a whirlwind of class, training, and silence. I dragged myself through the door after yet another long day. I dropped my dinner onto my coffee table and face planted onto my couch, and groaned. I was exhausted. I wasn’t sleeping properly and in between classes and the double training; I was running on hopes and dreams at this point. I rolled over with a groan. “Fuck.”My phone gave a tiny ding, and I scrambled to pull it out of my pocket. It was a quick text from Wendy telling me she made it home. I tossed my phone with another groan. This time, I sat up and screamed. “I’m so fucking stupid.” I gripped my head in my hands and pulled at my hair. “Goddess, how could I be so stupid?” I stood and stalked my way to the bathroom connected to my bedroom and stripped off my clothes.You’re not stupid. Megan offered, but Nix stayed silent. I jumped under the hot spray and instantly crumpled to the floor. I leaned my head against my knees and for the first time si
Vince closed his eyes and shook his head. “I will make an announcement later. No one should be stupid enough to rub that in any wolf’s face, but to do it to an Alpha is asking for death.” He huffed out a breath. “Are you okay now, Amy?”I made it look like I was fighting Nix for control. I started to shake, and she receded slowly, laughing the entire time. This is going to be fun. Nix chortled as she slunk back into the dark forest of my mind. The fur receded, and my eyes and fangs shifted back. I watched as Vince and Brandon both breathed out a sigh of relief. “I should say I am sorry for losing control, but I’m not. Nina deserved everything I did to her.” I scoffed. “She’s lucky I didn’t kill her.” I turned to Toya and Wendy. “Thank you.”“Always.” The two of them squeezed my sides and then sat back down in front of their food. I turned back to Vince. “Am I in trouble?”He stared at me, really stared at me as if he was trying to figure something out, but then he slowly shook his
The others were already sitting when I walked over. Toya was openly staring at me with a smirk. “Did you have a little fun in line there, Amy?” I chuckled, but I was still angry. “It’s like a rot in this fucking school.” I slammed into my seat as the others just stared at me. “No matter where I turn, someone is bullying someone. When did this become our status quo? We are not fucking humans.” I had to calm myself down, but this is kinda perfect. It shows that I’m not doing well. I allowed tears to come to my eyes and I shook my head. “I’m sorry.” I wiped at my face in frustration. “It’s okay.” Toya followed my lead and wrapped her arm around my shoulder. I heard her sniffle, and a tear hit my shoulder. “Look at how pathetic you two look.” Instantly, Nix was at the surface. Fur rippled down both of our arms. Black against her dark brown. We looked at each other and both of our eyes were shifted. We separated and looked behind us to find Nina and her band of idiots. And Nix ripped a
I stretched my neck as I walked into the caff. Sleeping on my couch was about as comfortable as you assume. I felt my neck pop, and I wanted to groan. I shook myself as I headed to the line to grab breakfast. I needed food and caffeine as soon as possible. I grabbed a tray and waited for my turn. I felt myself wobble on my feet. I was more tired than I thought. It’s also the emotional side of things that is weighing you down. Megan’s voice called from the darkness of the forest in my mind. Last night wiped you out. First it was Toya’s emotions, then your own, and you ended the night with your mother’s emotions pressing down on you. It takes a toll. Nix agreed, and I had to nod. They were right. I was physically and emotionally exhausted. If I could have missed today I would have, but I set this meeting up last night with everyone and we had a plan to make. “Excuse me.” A soft voice called from behind me. I turned to see an omega male. “Yes?”His eyes widened. “It’s your turn to g
I woke with a jolt. My mother was standing over me with slightly swollen eyes. “Baby?” I wiped my eyes.“Mom, is everything okay?” I grabbed for my phone on the table. It was six in the morning and I wanted to cry. I finally crawled under the covers at almost midnight, and I loved sleep. “It’s morning. I didn’t mean to scare you, but I’m heading out.” I sat up and rubbed my eyes again. “Are you sure?” I grabbed for her and pulled her down by my legs. “How are you doing?”“I’m okay, baby.” She leaned in and kissed my forehead. “I shouldn’t have come here.” She ran her hands down my hair. “Of course you can come here, mom. Any place I am you can come. Anytime.” I reached for her other hand. “I will never be too old to not need my mother.” I smiled at her. But she shook her head. “No, baby.” She closed her eyes and looked over my shoulder. She was thinking about something. “I was selfish.”“What do you mean?” I felt her hands convulse in mine. “If, goddess forbid, your father was ac
Her sobs were ragged, but it was the screams that broke me. We crumpled to the floor as she screamed her pain, and all I could do was hold her and allow her to release it. She wouldn’t listen to me until she did. It wasn’t until I heard the door shut that I realized Rowan had left.I grabbed her around her shoulders, and under her legs and I picked her up. I carried her to my bedroom and laid her on my bed. And then I did the only thing I could. I pulled the phone out of the lockbox and I dialed my father. It was late, but I could only hope he would answer. I slid in behind my mother and I waited for the ringing to stop. I closed my eyes in defeat when the call went unanswered and his voice played in my ear. “Hi, you have reached Alpha Gavin Maclean. I’m currently busy, but I will get back to you.” My mothers screamed again as she heard my father’s voice. “He’s gone.” Her scream shook the sliding glass door. I hung up the phone and called back. “I told you he was gone, baby.” She g