*Maddox*We are making progress on the war front. Every day, we are able to push our enemies back a little more without actually having to fight. I know that Alpha Eugene is doing his best to try and get others to come into the fray on his side, but so far, none of his negotiating is doing him any good.I know why that is, too, but I don’t want to admit it to anyone. Seth is the only one who dares to bring it up to me, and when he does, I bite his head off every time and tell him we have more important matters to attend to.“Sir,” he says as I sit in my tent staring at a map of the territory we have just claimed from one of Alpha Geofrey’s allies, “I believe you were going to call Miss Isla this evening about this time, weren’t you?”I look up at him in a bit of a daze. I’ve obviously lost track of time. “Oh, yes,” I mumble. “Thank you.” I have a portable phone, though they are very rare in our lands. We don’t have a lot of towers to help with signal transmission, so if everyone had a
*Isla*“Did you hang up on him?” Poppy asks me. She is pacing the floor about ten steps away from where I am sitting in the chair next to my bed, still staring at the phone. “You did, didn’t you? Bastard! Serves him right.”I do not bother to remind her that Alpha King Maddox is our sovereign and we should not be calling him names. Given the circumstances, she can call him whatever she’d like to.The Moon Goddess knows I’ve called him enough names myself in my head over the last couple of hours that I can’t be pointing out what she’s doing as if I am totally innocent. I just haven’t said anything out loud.I didn’t want to believe it was true.After I spoke to Antony, I came back to my room and walked in to find Poppy standing in front of my bed with her arms folded. I couldn’t tell if she was about to cry or if she wanted to scream, but I knew at that moment that whatever it was that had her so worked up it had to do with Maddox.And since I’d just heard the worst news imaginable abo
*Maddox*It was a four-hour drive from where I’d been stationed near the front line of the war back to the castle, and I’d have to be back early tomorrow because there’d been activity along the ridge we were currently considering attacking. Alpha Geofrey appears to be amassing his forces on the other side, getting ready to come after us.I need to be there if he attacks because, even though some of the other commanders are very good at their jobs, none of them have the sort of battle experience that I have. None of them are as capable of making sure the war goes the way it needs to as I am.For that matter, none of them are as good at anything as I am, but that doesn’t matter at the moment. I have to go home.I’ve thoroughly fucked up—again—and if I don’t get back to Isla as soon as possible, well, she might not be there when I do get back.And this time, it won’t just be her running off through the woods in the middle of the night. She’ll have our baby with her.I’ve contacted Comman
*Isla*“No?”I repeat Maddox’s response to asking him to leave my room, unable to believe that he’s just replied to me in that fashion.“What do you mean no?” I ask him. He’s just driven four hours to speak to me about the queen contest I’ve found about from my cousin, but when I’ve reached a point of being so unbelievably frustrated I can’t handle it anymore, I need a break from him. I need him to just go.“I mean, no, I’m not leaving. Not right now. Not when you’re still so angry at me,” he says with a simple shrug.“Maddox, clearly, there’s nothing that you can say that is going to make me understand what you are thinking and why you are doing this. Why not just let me get some sleep, and we can talk about this more in the morning? Maybe I will be able to comprehend it better then.” I hope that my explanation is getting through to him.“I have to leave first thing in the morning,” he says, and I feel my heart melt at his words.He’s leaving so soon? He literally just got here, and
*Maddox*I remember that something is different before I even open my eyes. The long drive, the fight, the amazing sex… I slept well last night because I am back home in my castle, in a comfortable bed, with the woman I love.But she is angry with me, and I honestly can’t blame her, though I was hopeful that explaining the situation would help her to get past it.It didn’t, though, and seducing her was probably not the best way to go at the time. I just couldn’t help it. She is so beautiful, and every time I am around her, I struggle to keep my hands off of her.I know the moment I roll over and face her, we will have to move into discussion mode, and I hate that. I don’t want to talk about the queen contest or the other women or how it’s supposed to make her feel. I just want her to trust me when I say that I love her and leave it at that.But it can’t be helped, so with a deep breath, I roll over to tell her good morning.And find an empty bed.“Fuck,” I mumble, knowing it is not li
*Isla*“You’re going back to the front?” I am standing in my bedroom, staring at Maddox as he explains to me why he has to leave even though I’ve just been told that the war is over for now. The conflict has ended; the troops are surrendering. Why in the world does he have to be there to collect their proverbial swords?“Yes, I have no choice, Isla. I’ve got to go meet with the other Alphas that fought alongside Alpha Geofrey and negotiate some terms with them. We can’t just shake hands and call it a day.”He says these things to me like I am so stupid I don’t know how war works. Yes, of course, I get it. Negotiations have to be made. I imagine there will be some sort of heavy fines to the lands that fought against the crown. I bet there will even be some changes in leadership.My question is… why does he have to be the one to talk through all of that? Doesn’t he have people who specialize in this sort of thing? Not to mention, his Beta is a pretty capable man if he would just give Se
*Isla*I am standing in the ballroom.My dress is long and blue, probably to bring out my eyes. It seems like every time I go to a ball or something of that nature, someone comes to dress me, and they tell me that I should wear blue to bring out my eyes. Or sometimes they tell me I should wear red to accent my lips or hair.I am wearing blue today, so I can only assume my eyes are sparkling….Crowds of people flutter around. I am nervous. I am scared. I can’t remember why. I walk between the other people, many of which are simply standing around the perimeter of the dance floor, talking to one another, eating the snacks that float by on trays carried by well-dressed waiters with impeccable manners. All of them have a beverage in their hand.My blue dress swirls around me as I walk. I am uncomfortable. I don’t want to be here.A woman is laughing loudly; it’s almost a cackle. Her face is a bit fuzzy as she turns to look at me, but she continues to laugh. Why is she off-kilter?The whol
*Maddox*Back at the front, the negotiations for peace are almost completed by the time I arrive. I am furious about the entire situation, but I cannot let that show. People need to think this is what I want even though I would much rather stay out here and continue to chase Alpha Geofrey around and around for a few more weeks (or months or years) than go back home and have a fucking contest to find a wife I don’t want or need.Commander Vember has done an excellent job of negotiating everything, even though it’s not what I wanted. I can’t be upset at him for doing a thorough job. When I get there, we sit in an office near the outskirts of Alpha Geofrey’s territory in a village we now control, in a building we now occupy, at a desk that someone in Geofrey’s pack will probably never return to.He goes over all of the terms while the other Alphas, those who have fought against me and lost, sit in a conference room down the hall. The sums of tributes they have agreed to give to the crown
MistyTwo white wolves in a clearing.Their bodies made of mist and aether, standing side by side.Mates. A marvel of second chances and extraordinary fate.Two white wolves turn toward the sunrise knowing what they must leave behind; what he sacrificed for those he loved and her refusal to let him go into death alone.Two white wolves stand over their earthly bodies. He, battered and still.She, going into death with eyes open, cupping her mate's face between her graceful hands, her eyes locked on his at the moment of her dying breath.Their last words had been simple. I love you.They always had.They’d promised this instance in stolen moments, in private corners, when there was nothing but the stars to light their way.I will not stay here without you.I will not leave you behind.And so, it was.Two
AvivaThe first flakes of snow fall from the sky as I watch Ryan trying to herd everyone in position. Bundled against the cold in a wool coat Freya and I worked tirelessly on for the last three weeks, I step to the side, finding myself in the center of the crowd standing in the middle of the village of Silverhide. I watch my mate and his Beta, James, nudge families together and run back and forth toward a tripod where Ryan’s camera rests, facing us, to gauge whether all one-hundred and fifty people are in view of the lens.Ryan stands behind the camera with his hands up, his hair dusted with snow. “Okay. Nobody move!”A few excited giggles whisper through the front of the crowd where the numerous children are arranged. I glance around, watching as James joins Dahlia’s side, their baby on her hip. The baby girl finally has a name. Cosette, named after a friend of Dahlia, but they call her Cossie for short. Other babies
Two months later…RyanThe Harvest Festival has been held at the festival grounds between Endova, Teshka, and Navvan for centuries. When we arrived two days ago, leaving only a few people behind in Silverhide to make sure the animals are tended to in our absence, the wide, open space had been nothing but rolling plains.Now, it’s a city of canvas tents and twinkling lights, the air spiced with smoke and the smells of meals being cooked at each fire. Songs mingle as I walk through the festival with Aviva on my arm. I’m wearing a normal outfit. Well, not normal, actually. Mom forced me into a suit and tie with the Crescent Falls royal banner and all of my metals from my years as a warrior draped over my shoulders. Aviva is wearing that white, fur-lined dress again and a pair of new sheep-skin boots Freya and Mercy made for her, but instead of freshwater clam shells and pearls decorating her hair, her curls are w
RyanAn hour earlier…I can’t scrub the image of Aviva dead in my arms out of my head. It’s been several days since the battle, since the moment I put her in my uncle's arms and turned back to the ravaged scene, not knowing whether or not she survived the journey all the way to Maatua.Three days. It was three entire days before Sydney arrived in Silverhide with news about my mate. I’d just arrived back at my territory, exhausted and in tatters, when he clapped a hand on my shoulder and used his powers to spirit us to Moonrise, then to Veiled Valley, then to Maatua. He’s not as strong as Ryatt. Jumping took a toll on us both, and when we finally arrived at my grandparents’ beach house, I collapsed before I even made it up their driveway.Everything since the battle is a blur. Navvan is just… gone. The few survivors were mostly women and children who’d left the villag
AvivaI wake with a start to bright, warm sunshine and the smell of salty air. I grope white sheets, blinking several times to clear my vision as an unfamiliar bedroom fades to life around me. Warm white walls. Pale wood finishes and sleek furniture in soft browns and creams. White curtains drift in a salty breeze coming through several open windows, and a glass door opens to a deck with a view of… a view of the ocean.I’ve never seen the ocean before. From where I lie, I can hear the waves crashing on a white sand beach. Music I don’t recognize drifts toward me, carrying two voices with it, one male, and one female.“Your parents worry about you endlessly, Misty.”“They have nothing to worry about. It’s not like I’m ten anymore, Grandpa. I can make my own way in the world now. Plus, where was their worry when they shipped me here four years ago, huh?”“You
RyanI’ve been dreaming about tying Aviva to my bed, but I’m going to make it a reality for entirely different reasons. Now, I’ll be tying her to keep her there, forever. No more hunting. No more fighting. No more killing rogues barefoot in the woods.No more putting herself in situations like this. I will do her dirty work. I will gladly do it. I roll with Hardan in his… hellhound form? Whatever the fuck he is now. I wish, Goddess, I wish I could have faced him man to man instead of beast to beast. I would have loved to see the look on his face when I ripped out his heart for even thinking for a second he had some kind of claim to my mate, even before I found her. We roll down a decline. I sink my talons into his belly, ripping hard, but I already know hellhounds aren’t that easy to kill. We crash into an oak tree. Leaves shower over us as he tries to claw free of my grasp. He’s calling out, bellowing strange, high-pitched howls. The forest floor rumbles as I sink my claws into hi
AvivaI’m having the time of my life.I zigzag through the woods in my wolf form after three rogues who’ve decided they want nothing to do with me. In fact, the rogues have stopped hunting me over the past several hours and instead are trying to get as far away from me as possible. Their prey has become their biggest predator.I did my best to lead the horde away from Endova. That was my goal–the reason I made the snap decision to leave my mate behind and race into the jaws of death itself. Now, I have the horde moving away from the tribal packlands all together, herding them back into the open plains like a shepherd, and they’re my sheep–if a shepherd killed their sheep, that is.I’ve lost count of how many there are. My red fur is completely black with their blood. I catch my reflection in another small, burbling creek as I leap, seeing only my eyes shining like polished amber against a
Ryan“She’s not here, Ryan,” Mercy hisses as I run through the village. She’s hot on my heels, grabbing my fur to try to pull me to a stop but I’m not in my right mind.It’s been five hours since I last saw Aviva. Andrew and I have been scouring the forest and plains for any sign of her, but I lost her scent, and my desperate attempts to mind-link with her have come up empty and silent.I shift into my human form the second I cross into the pack house and immediately crash into one of the tables, tripping over the bench and landing on my side with a crunch. I’ve been in my wolf form since last night. Exhaustion sings through my bones as my vision spins. I hear Andrew similarly falling to the ground with a choked groan before hurried footsteps reach the pack house. Someone throws a blanket over me with a scoff, followed by Mercy’s sharp, soprano voice ripping through the air as she starts s
RyanIt’s barely dawn. Four hours ago, I was taking a deep breath as I tucked my mate into our bed, and now we’re here, lying low in the grasslands ten miles from Silver, with twenty of my best warriors scattered behind me. Stars still fill the sky, shining under a blanket of deep navy and vibrant violet. It's kind of hard to stay focused when the sunrise looks like this, the first echoes of gold casting Aviva, in wolf form, in a halo of light. She’s crouched in the swaying grass just a few feet below where the rest of us are lying, hiding in the scant brush and scorched trees. I watch her edge forward a few inches, her body covered in weapons and leather–one of her special dresses from Endova. A half dozen whispers ghost through my head, mingling with the thundering of my heartbeat in my ears as we watch, and watch, the dozen or so rogues passing by, moving in a lazy formation toward the forests we, and the tribal packs, call home. ‘What are they doing?’ Andrew lies on my left sid