Here you go, lovelies. One more chapter before they storm the guild.
LILACI looked at Mom and was completely stunned by what she’d done to my cousin.How could she treat her like that? There was a difference between pushing someone and being unnecessarily cruel. Never once had she done that to me while I was training, so why did she do it to her?Enzo had every right to feel the way that he did. On this, I certainly sided with him. I’d be taking over her training. There were ways to teach her emotional control that didn’t involve Mom’s method. No fucking matter what the stakes were, I wouldn’t do what she had done. It was beyond fucked up.“Why?” I asked her, seething at the memory of what Violet looked like as she destroyed herself.None of us were able to get through that barrier. I was thankful that my mate had called Enzo because only he’d been able to. He suffered to get through it, but he accomplished what we couldn’t. It was crazy how powerful that barrier was. Not even Mom’s magic and mine combined had done shit to it.My mate wrapped his arm a
VIOLETRaelynn giggled as she ran away from Niccolò. He had embraced her from day one.It was great to see them together because you could see how happy it made them both. The scary ass Vittori turned into a cuddly teddy bear whenever she was around. She already had him wrapped around her little fingers. His eyes lit up every time she called him Papa. Apparently, both Cara and Zayne had spoken to them respectively, and it was exactly what he and Lilac needed to be able to move forward with their bond.I was a sap for happy endings. Sure, it was a long way off, hopefully, for any of our life stories to come to an end, but the sentiment was the same.It had been five days since I had the breakdown and ended up snapping. Everyone else was pissed off at Aunt Kaia for what she did. I was more hurt than pissed off, especially when I heard about her reasoning. I had spent two years being at someone’s mercy. Ron didn’t want to use me as a weapon, but he did use me for his own benefit. Then the
ENZOThe drive was tense, each of us caught up in our own thoughts.Everyone who came with us was trained. Not everyone was an elite warrior, but every single person was a capable fighter. However, it was imperative that we did not get caught up in complacency because that would lead to failure. Focus was crucial to our success.We had put in as much training as possible. It would just have to be enough.Reika had been an amazing asset with training us in different techniques that could give us the upper hand against the hunters. As she pointed out, reactions during a fight were typically based on memory. They used moves that were familiar to them. So, us using moves that weren’t common would most likely give them pause and throw them off, giving us an advantage.There was no guarantee that all of us who entered that compound would walk back out of it at the end of this. That was weighing down upon me. I felt responsible for each person that was on our side.My mate was bearing the wei
CANDICEThis was the day that I had longed for since I was imprisoned here against my will.Violet and her people were going to storm the guild to save us all. The Goddess Selene chose her warrior perfectly. It had been amazing to watch as she grew into herself and her abilities. She was far more powerful than I ever imagined that she could be, and this was still just the beginning of her journey on both the werewolf and Fae sides.‘We’re about thirty minutes out from needing that distraction,’ I heard Violet say in my mind.‘Okay. Please be safe. If you need to turn around then you do it. Don’t risk yourselves more than need be,’ I responded to her.The sheer number of their reinforcements didn’t get rid of the risk. There was so much that could go wrong. Hunters were humans, yes, but they had a fuckton of dangerous weapons here. Their goal was the eradication of supernaturals. They spent generations studying the various species in our world – weaknesses, strengths, and everything tha
ENZOWe were waiting in the shadows of the tree line for Sven’s confirmation that we could continue forward.There was a lot of nervous energy bouncing around inside of Violet right now. She was so close to her mother and sister but still so far. I knew that she would love to rush in with guns blazing but knew that it would ruin any chance of saving her family while also risking all of our safety.“The security feeds are now being looped, so you can proceed,” Sven said through the comms that we were all wearing.I looked down at Violet and asked if she was ready. A steadying breath was taken before her head nodded. I raised my hand, flicking my wrist to signal to everyone that it was time to move out.We were as silent as possible as we moved towards the compound. Surprisingly, the first guards had not sensed our approach. Niccolò and I raised our tranquilizer guns and shot them. They fell to the ground, knocked out cold.“They aren’t human…” Violet whispered, cautiously approaching th
VIOLETI side-eyed the woman who was leaning against me as we walked down the corridor. Despite the bruises and scars, I had never seen her more beautiful than she was right now because she was finally back with us after everything. Her body was weak from two years of being mistreated, but her will was ironclad. I had always admired her strength. That was what kept her going no matter what they tried to do to her. Daph was on the other side of her, helping to hold her up as well. Thankfully, Daph’s injuries were minimal. The bruises from what Alpha Bradley had done to her were nearly gone. Oh, he would suffer greatly for everything that he'd done and everything that he'd facilitated. I wished that he was here just so that I could end him, but he did not deserve an easy death. No. He deserved a fate that was far worse than that. The only way that he would receive that was by us properly handling the situation. It was imperative that this was done in front of the Werewolf Council so t
VIOLETI was not certain if she had known about the pregnancy or not. I also didn’t know how she felt about it. Not everyone could accept giving birth to a baby that was not consensually conceived. It was a decision that only they could make.Her nostrils flared, attention snapping towards Joshua. Her face paled when she saw him. She ducked her head as shame rushed through her. Not fear but shame. I could imagine where her mind went. The mate who had been fated to her came upon her being raped. Then she was pregnant by someone else on top of that.“You can do it now if you’d like or you can wait until we get out of here, sir,” she told him softly, trying her best to control her voice.“My name is Joshua not sir. What are you talking about?” he asked her, clearly uncertain about what it was even if I had a feeling where this was going.“Rejecting me. It’s okay if you don’t want to wait.”His jaw clenched hard enough that I was afraid it would end up cracking. Panic. That was what he fel
ENZO‘How do you feel about Reika’s revelation?’ I asked Titan.I had often wondered what my life would be like as a father. It was something that I truly wanted to experience whether or not the child was biologically mine. I had never imagined beginning a family with someone until Violet came into my life.Titan tilted his head in thought and took a few moments before he answered me. I had always appreciated how much my wolf thought about something before he answered.‘I don’t remember my past lives, but I had them. I’m certain that I had mates and potentially even had some pups. Reika is different because of the type of wolf that she is. We share a very close connection and don’t block each other out. I saw the memories of those Alpha mates that she had, but there was no affection for them except for the respect that she still holds for them to this day. However, it was completely different for the memories of Avalynn and Natalia. I felt her complete heartbreak as she watched them di
CANDICE“C’mon, let’s give the new family some peace,” I said with a smile, happy to see how much they already loved the little one.We gave hugs and kisses before leaving the room.“Hey, Daph, why don’t you go check on the food preparations? Perhaps Eli wouldn’t mind helping,” I suggested, looking at him.He immediately nodded, saying that he didn’t mind in the least. I bit the inside of my cheek to keep myself from grinning. Eli was a good kid, so I had no worries when it came to him being around Daph.His response perked her right up. She looped her arm around his and damn near pulled him. She was already asking him questions about himself. Daph had this magnetic personality, one that could pull anyone into her orbit. Even the crankiest of people weren’t immune to her special brand of charm.An arm wrapped around my waist, sending a flurry of delicious sparks wherever our skin touched. I hadn’t expected for us to be fated to one another. I had no idea why we didn’t have this bond be
ALPHA BRADLEYThe ringing of a phone jolted me awake. I looked at the clock and was immediately pissed the fuck off. It was five in the morning. Whoever was calling had a death wish.“What?” I snarled into the phone.“Alpha, there’s a…situation…” Taylor’s voice trailed off.His vagueness pissed me off further. Sentinel or not, he knew better than to waste my time. The world had better be burning or else his body would be. “What type of fucking situation?” I asked, throwing the blanket off of me and standing up.Whatever happened had better be important or else I’d just have to snap his neck and be done with it. I didn't have the time, patience, or desire to deal with incompetence. I walked over to my closet and slipped on a pair of sweatpants but left my chest bare. I lived alone in my house on the Council’s grounds. My ‘mate’ died years ago. She was just a means to an end so that it wouldn't appear odd for me to live alone and without a mate like some of the others had. “The guild
ENZOTitan and I were already compiling a list of things that we needed to get for Avalynn. A small part of me wondered who the biological sperm donor was. If the mother had been one of the breeders then there was no telling for certain.I knew that she was a pup, but I wondered if she was a hybrid or a full werewolf. We needed to know just so that we'd be able to give her the best possible care. It didn't matter outside of that. Hybrid infants often had specific needs based on their genetics. Breast milk helped to provide for those needs, but it was obviously not something that we could do with her.‘Reika said that she and Violet are okay with us running a DNA profile on her like we did on them. They want to know too,’ Titan told me.Well, that was good to know. Now, I wouldn't have to wait to ask. I made my way downstairs and told Dr. Sutton what we wanted done. The good news was that some blood had already been drawn earlier, so Avalynn wouldn't need to be poked again. The results
ENZOViolet was practically dead on her feet by the time that we finally cleared out the guild’s compound. I knew for a fact that I would never be able to forget the horrific things that we saw tonight. There was a vast difference between hearing about it and witnessing it. My fucking heart shattered for everything that they had gone through. NOBODY should be treated the way that these survivors had been. That was precisely what they were – survivors.I prayed to the Goddess that she would provide opportunities to help them heal from their trauma. We would do everything in our power to make it happen.A rough estimate was that we rescued around two hundred people tonight. It was the largest successful rescue mission against hunters that I've ever heard about before. There were no fatalities from our pack or our allies. There were, however, many injuries and some very serious ones, but they would get the best possible care.Thankfully, we had evidence of everything that we encountered
VIOLETDr. Sutton and her team were actively treating the people that had already been brought to our house.A triage station was set up, along with curtains for privacy. I knew that everyone was overwhelmed and hadn’t had time to wrap their heads around the fact that they were no longer prisoners in that fucked-up place. Hopefully, in time, they will be able to allow themselves to embrace their newfound freedom.“Dr. Sutton,” I called out to her.She asked one of the nurses to give some pain medicine to the woman that she was tending to before excusing herself.A frown pulled her lips down when she saw Rainy. I could tell how furious she was at how these people had been treated by the hunters. She wasn’t alone in that sentiment. Not by a longshot.“We’re going to be bringing in a large group of individuals who were being experimented on to test different species’ healing abilities. Some of them are really severe just by judging the outward appearances. This little one, Rainy, has been
ENZO‘How do you feel about Reika’s revelation?’ I asked Titan.I had often wondered what my life would be like as a father. It was something that I truly wanted to experience whether or not the child was biologically mine. I had never imagined beginning a family with someone until Violet came into my life.Titan tilted his head in thought and took a few moments before he answered me. I had always appreciated how much my wolf thought about something before he answered.‘I don’t remember my past lives, but I had them. I’m certain that I had mates and potentially even had some pups. Reika is different because of the type of wolf that she is. We share a very close connection and don’t block each other out. I saw the memories of those Alpha mates that she had, but there was no affection for them except for the respect that she still holds for them to this day. However, it was completely different for the memories of Avalynn and Natalia. I felt her complete heartbreak as she watched them di
VIOLETI was not certain if she had known about the pregnancy or not. I also didn’t know how she felt about it. Not everyone could accept giving birth to a baby that was not consensually conceived. It was a decision that only they could make.Her nostrils flared, attention snapping towards Joshua. Her face paled when she saw him. She ducked her head as shame rushed through her. Not fear but shame. I could imagine where her mind went. The mate who had been fated to her came upon her being raped. Then she was pregnant by someone else on top of that.“You can do it now if you’d like or you can wait until we get out of here, sir,” she told him softly, trying her best to control her voice.“My name is Joshua not sir. What are you talking about?” he asked her, clearly uncertain about what it was even if I had a feeling where this was going.“Rejecting me. It’s okay if you don’t want to wait.”His jaw clenched hard enough that I was afraid it would end up cracking. Panic. That was what he fel
VIOLETI side-eyed the woman who was leaning against me as we walked down the corridor. Despite the bruises and scars, I had never seen her more beautiful than she was right now because she was finally back with us after everything. Her body was weak from two years of being mistreated, but her will was ironclad. I had always admired her strength. That was what kept her going no matter what they tried to do to her. Daph was on the other side of her, helping to hold her up as well. Thankfully, Daph’s injuries were minimal. The bruises from what Alpha Bradley had done to her were nearly gone. Oh, he would suffer greatly for everything that he'd done and everything that he'd facilitated. I wished that he was here just so that I could end him, but he did not deserve an easy death. No. He deserved a fate that was far worse than that. The only way that he would receive that was by us properly handling the situation. It was imperative that this was done in front of the Werewolf Council so t
ENZOWe were waiting in the shadows of the tree line for Sven’s confirmation that we could continue forward.There was a lot of nervous energy bouncing around inside of Violet right now. She was so close to her mother and sister but still so far. I knew that she would love to rush in with guns blazing but knew that it would ruin any chance of saving her family while also risking all of our safety.“The security feeds are now being looped, so you can proceed,” Sven said through the comms that we were all wearing.I looked down at Violet and asked if she was ready. A steadying breath was taken before her head nodded. I raised my hand, flicking my wrist to signal to everyone that it was time to move out.We were as silent as possible as we moved towards the compound. Surprisingly, the first guards had not sensed our approach. Niccolò and I raised our tranquilizer guns and shot them. They fell to the ground, knocked out cold.“They aren’t human…” Violet whispered, cautiously approaching th