Sarah
Sydney holds open the garage door for me, silently, and I step inside. He turns on a light switch. Light spills over the large space. Stupid, menial things I shouldn’t be paying attention to come into focus.
I’m counting each breath I take and each movement he makes in the short amount of time we’ve been together tonight. I make note of the way his freshly polished, fancy shoes sound on the concrete floor, the way his watch catches the fluorescent light overhead as he reaches for a large garment bag laying over the washer and dryer, and how his eyes light up again as he glances at me before opening it.
That roaring in my ears has to be my heartbeat; otherwise, Sydney has some serious issues with the furnace on the far side of the room.
He turns toward me, discarding the garment bag back onto the washing machine, and holds open the most luxurious fur coat I’ve ever seen in my entire life.
SydneyI don’t miss the fact I just told Sarah something no one knows. Not even Kenna. Not even Ryan or Evander.It doesn’t matter. At least, I tell myself that. I’m not going to ruin her night by dragging her down into the depths of my own despair over my choices, which I’ve practically written in blood and all but pledged to the Goddess.I can’t deny how good it feels to have Sarah in my arms, though. She holds my hand as I softly spin us around the garden with the other couples. We’re probably the youngest pair on the dance floor. I spot my dad talking with a group of other Alphas. I don’t think he’s even noticed I’m here, but that’s probably for the best.All we’ve had to talk about lately is business. Ever since Uncle Ryatt had to close the borders between the two kingdoms, there’s been nothing but stress weighing down my dad’s shoulders.&nbs
Sarah“Get out!”Sydney shakes his head, taking another step, which means I’m either going to hit the door, or move out of his way, forced further into the sterile, brightly lit hotel bathroom.“You look ridiculous,” I spit, snarling the words. In my defense, he does. He’s wearing a white, fluffy robe that hits him mid-thigh and not much else from what I can tell.I’m wearing the same kind of robe.One would think that would diffuse things a bit, but no.I’m in pain, and the look he’s giving me right now is dizzying. Sydney looks like an Alpha, not the kind, slightly nerdy man I’ve grown to know and like.His canine teeth are slightly pointed and his eyes… fuck. They glow.“Are you about to fucking shift?” I dart away, my back hitting the glass exterior wall of the shower.He grabs
SarahWorn, weathered hands cup mine in the warmth of a room covered in faded wallpaper. Toys are scattered across a woven carpet of muted greens and yellows, and small voices lift in glee and mischief, blurred and faceless. The hands around mine are so large compared to my small, child-sized hands. Warm and rough, tender and caring, they curl around my fingers in a mother’s touch. “I know you're young,” the woman says, her face a fuzzy, fractured memory, “but you’ve lived through more than anyone should have to experience in one lifetime.”I’m eleven. Rain slams against the windows beside us. The landscape is a tangle of fog and storm clouds with nothing but a turbulent sea beyond. I’m just a child. I should be able to enjoy my childhood and not have to deal with all of this.“Look at me,” she whispers softly, gently, her voice so full of love but also pain. Her hands shake as she strokes my fingers. “You know what must be done. I will help you, but you can never go back. Everyone
SarahSydney’s hand slides down my side, gripping my ass, tugging me closer to him. My leggings feel impossibly tight and unnecessary right now. I’m desperate to get out of them, and I wiggle my hips for emphasis, which causes Sydney to groan my name and hiss out a breath. “Get them off,” I beg. He lifts his head, his eyes gleaming with heat and mischief in the soft lamplight coming from my bedside table. His eyes give me pause, a single second to rethink what we’re doing. Eyes like a storm brewing over the ocean when the normally crystal blue water turns dark and turbulent. Eyes that have seen so much beauty in the world and right now, they’re full of want for me. No one else has ever wanted me before. I don’t know how to feel. All I know is that Sydney is kissing lower and lower and every nerve in my body erupts at his touch. I arch against his lips as he kisses past my navel, and then his teeth catch the waistband of my leggings. He looks up at me with those eyes that are my
SarahI wake to something squirming next to me then sharp fingernails poking at my breasts before Blake latches like the champion he is. I open my eyes, startled to find him next to me, and look down at my son, who’s wearing a fresh onesie in sage green and a new diaper, from what I can tell.I turn my head to look at the clock on my bedside table. It’s 7:00 AM.And there’s a piece of printer paper next to the clock with neat scrawl I don’t recognize. I flex my fingers, catching the edge of the paper, and drag it toward me while Blake makes soft, blissful cooing sounds as he nurses.That’s when I realize I’m totally naked, and the flavors, textures, and feelings from last night come hurtling back as I clutch the paper and read the text.I’ll be back in two days.Sydney.I set the paper down and look up at the ceiling.What have we
SydneySnow covers the normally golden plains on the outskirts of Moorn, a small territory far outside of the city center. It took a full day to reach this place, this hovel between two hills where the distant border of Eastonia looms.I don’t want to be here. The distance between Sarah and the damning truth between us is excruciating, damn near tearing me apart.But I’m still an Alpha. Still a royal. And there are some things I just have to do.The wind rushes through my fur as I wait beside my father, who’s also in his wolf form. We’re both large and dark brown with glints of gold throughout.Night has fallen. I know we’re both exhausted. We traveled on foot without stopping for a break. Maybe he needed to run in his wolf as much as I did.But still, tension makes my muscles lock. My mind is in shambles, and my heart is….I’m devastated. I d
SydneySarah doesn’t turn from the window. The sunrise hasn’t reached us yet, not fully, but the first inklings of morning creep through the curtains. Frost hugs the glass panes. It will be another frigid day, colder than the last. The faint light ghosts over her skin, illuminating her face in silver.“Sarah?” I say into the soft light.She turns her head slightly but doesn’t look at me. I notice two pieces of paper on my desk, one of them folded in half with Blake’s name written neatly across it.My heart falls into my stomach as my gaze slides to the second piece, a letter addressed to me.The truth hits me like a knife to the heart. There’s only one reason she’d write her son a letter.“You’re leaving?”“It’s best for both of you that I’m not here.” She turns ever so slightly so her face catches the
SarahIt’s freezing. The cold air bites into my skin as I roll downward uncontrollably, my body bouncing off rocks and through pockets of ice.My mind is in shambles alongside my heart. I don’t try to stop falling. I don’t have the strength, even if I wanted to.Ten years of hiding my powers… I didn’t know what else to do. I can’t control them like I used to. I have no idea where I landed, but I know I’m still close enough to Sydney that I feel his gut-wrenching despair, grief, and fury as I continue to roll downhill.My head smashes against something hard and cold as I come to a rough, jolting stop, half of my body submerged in icy water.I look up at the clear blue morning, at the frost hugging the trees overhead.Death is better. Death means Gabriel is useless. Death means he’ll never find me, and Blake will be safe.Sydney and his family are safe at lea
Misty“Everyone’s okay,” I tell Lexa and Addy, laying them out in the center of Ryan’s bed, side by side. Both babies scowl up at me–Lexa, for not being her mother, and my own son for showing another baby attention. Lexa’s face scrunches. She puffs her cheeks out in the threat of a wail while Addy picks up on her energy and begins to whine. I cover my ears, taking the deepest breath I can handle, and scoop both screaming infants into my arms for the hundredth time in the last two hours. “They just won’t sleep,” I say, rounding the corner into the living room where Sarah is still camped out with her new babies, and Sydney is pacing like a madman in front of the windows, looking for any sign of Kenna, Ryan, Aviva, and the kids. Sarah’s fast asleep with her brand new twins resting in a floor cot nearby, but Sydney has free hands, so I thrust Lexa against his chest without saying another word. “Freya’s supposed to be coming up to help,” he says under his breath, still looking worse fo
AvivaRyan looks hilarious in the too-tight clothes borrowed from some rural villager half his height and weight. He glances at me with a scowl, rolling his eyes and cursing under his breath. “Don’t look at me, Aviva.”“I can’t help it. Your whole ass is out,” I giggle, wiping tears from my eyes. Goddess, I wish I had his camera with me. He reaches down to pull what had once been trousers down over his thighs while shooting me another glare. He had to cut them into shorts to fit. The shirt isn’t any less revealing, but at least he’s not naked… or worse, in his terrifying beast form. He’s too exhausted after being in his beast form to shift into his wolf, which would have been easier than this, but I’m enjoying myself thoroughly at his expense. A few of the men from the village titter behind us while I walk a few paces behind my mate who’s turning a deep red in the face and sulking as we walk up the rural road, passing a few shops and cabins where people peek from their windows as we
AvivaThe forest shifts from endless shadows to an assortment of pale gold as the sun rises. I’m sprinting in my wolf form, Ryan not far behind in his. There was no reason for him to shift into his beast, thank goodness. He’s actually slower in that form than his wolf, but we’ve covered serious ground in the two hours since leaving Silverhide. Forty miles, in fact. A new record. Panting, I reach the far edge of the forest that weaves through the tribal territories of the Deadlands. Behind us, the packs of Silverhide and Endova are just waking up for the day. Ahead of us, the sun hasn’t even begun to touch the towering mountains to the far west, where my new powers showed me a glimpse of Maeve and Logan. I’m still getting used to the prickle of energy that wasn’t there before. It’s now the air I breathe–the blood rushing through my veins–the rhythmic thump of my heartbeat. I’m changed; for better or worse, I don’t know. All I know for sure is that we have another twenty to thirty m
Misty“Briar,” Sarah says weakly, sweeping her thumb over the perfectly pink baby girl’s cheek. Sarah smiles softly, her eyes still glazed with exhaustion and her hair damp with sweat. “And this one–” she reaches for the second baby, another girl, nestled in a traumatized Sydney’s arms. “Celeste.”“Those are beautiful names,” Aviva says gently, laying another warm rag over Sarah’s forehead. I’m watching from afar, my trembling hands cupping a mug of calming tea that’s doing nothing for my system. I was a teenager when Sarah came into Sydney’s life. I remember whispers about her falling ill but didn’t understand how horrifically sick she’d really been until now. Sarah is a Mystic. She’s different. It takes so much more energy to heal her. Healing her sucked my powers dry, and I feel… shockingly empty right now. It was like running a marathon and then getting hit by a bus, but she’s alive, and so are her twins. Sydney accepts another cup of tea from Ryan with a weak nod. He looks lik
MistyCole doesn’t tell me I should get some rest, and for that I’m eternally grateful. I pace the cabin, watching as he organizes and takes inventory of his medical kit. I remember the day I found out he was a physician. It had been a shock. My arm had been torn to the bone by a rabid, cursed wolf, and this man–this stranger who I thought was evil–sewed me back together again. That feels like a lifetime ago. Maybe it was, honestly. Sometimes I wonder if our weeks in Richard’s fortress actually happened or if it were a fever dream. But the glint of lantern light on the sharpened edge of a scalpel pulls me back into reality as he drops it into a pot of boiling water. “Are you going with us?” I ask into the silence. Cole’s mouth twitches with something unsaid. He shakes his head, glancing at me over his shoulder. “No. I’m going to stay here with Addy and be available to anyone who needs a healer.”I wait for him to tell me I should try to get a few minutes of sleep, but he doesn’t. I
Aviva“No one needs to worry about me,” Sarah says confidently, cradling the swell of her belly as she leads our group through the woods toward the lake. “I’m not going to go into labor right now, I promise.”Sydney grumbles something under his breath in response, the words drifting on the warm breeze making the leaves dance above our heads. Ryan’s hand is on my lower back–a warm, solid presence. Lexa’s asleep in her sling on his back, and when I look up at the two of them–with Ryan wearing a traditional Endovian sling and his face cast in uncertain shadows–I feel a prickle of regret. Part of me believes I shouldn’t have told him about what I saw in the forge. The past lives I walked through, the wars, the downfall of our kind… and most importantly, the fact that in another life, we lost our children and were separated for decades, only to find each other again in the very last moments before we both died. It stings to think about, though it doesn’t affect our lives now. I’m not sur
AvivaI watch Sarah and Misty leave the room. Misty takes Lexa with her, giving me a moment alone. I should be resting right now. If Maeve and Logan aren’t found by sunset, I have to put these new, unnatural-feeling powers to the test. I listen to the soft conversations taking place just beyond the bedroom door. I already know Ryan’s on edge and doing his best to handle this situation, but having Evander and Sydney here isn’t helping his stress levels at all, I fear. His wife almost drowned, his uncle wants me locked up in Moonrise until my powers fully emerge to ensure I’m not a danger to myself and others, and Maeve and Logan are still out there, hopefully together and safe. The door opens a crack before widening, revealing my mate and a large plate of food. The scent of blueberry syrup fills the air, bringing back memories of making this exact breakfast for my sisters, but that… causes my mind to drift back to the tangle of new memories. Memories of the countless lives my soul
MistySometime in the dead of night, Cole took Addy from my arms and laid him in his crib. I was next and woke up tucked against Cole’s chest as the first rays of warm, morning sunlight drifted through the window. Addy wakes up happy every morning lately and is beside himself with glee when he sees me looking down into his crib, extending my arms for him. Cole thinks Addy looks like me, but I beg to differ. I think his hair will be blond, of course, given that both his parents have fair, light hair but his eyes are starting to change from that soft blue to a paler, icier gray, like Cole’s. I run my fingers through his hair while he nurses. Cole continues to sleep, and I let him. I’m dreading starting our day, honestly, and stepping out into the village to see the aftermath of Kyra’s destruction and wait for news about Maeve and Logan.I feel awful for Kenna. My heart is shattered for her and Evander. I hold Addy c
MistyCole’s arms are wrapped around my stomach, his eyes widened in disbelief as he stares at Aviva. She looks like a wet rat right now–completely soaked to the bone with her hair plastered to her face and her knife belt hanging off her waist, but otherwise she’s whole.My powers are a meer flicker of what they usually are, but I feel them simmering to life as the strange, glowing symbols all over her arms and legs start to dim, and the roaring in my ears fades to the point I can hear my rapid heartbeat and Cole’s heart behind me. Ryan looks devastated. Devastated, and shocked–a myriad of emotions I can’t even begin to put into words. He shakes his head, mouthing Aviva’s name as he reaches a hand toward her then retreats. Aviva looks terrified as she scans the group, panting hard, her breath coming in shallow rasps. She turns her gaze back to Ryan, and her expression shatters, tears welling in h