Sarah
“It really wasn’t that bad,” I explain, seated next to Hadley at the kitchen table. For the past half hour, I’ve been telling her about the dinner party and how Sydney announced our mate bond. Hadley’s been listening while picking at her food, nodding along and smiling when I explain the juicer bits.
“Well, look at you, getting to explore the castle. One day, I want to see it.”
“It sounds like we’re going to have a big wedding after all. I suppose the reception will be held there.”
Hadley smiles and pushes her plate away. “How are you feeling?”
“In general? A little overwhelmed, honestly–”
“No, right now.”
I look down at my plate. I’ve barely touched my food. In fact, my head hurts a little bit, and my stomach is in knots. “It’s been a busy week. I think I’m just tired.”
I
Sarah“Where is he?” I pace around the kitchen table toward where James is sewing Cosette back together while Dalia sits at her side, her face colorless and eyes wide with shock. “Ryan, where is Sydney?”“I don’t know,” Ryan growls. He’s wearing one of Sydney’s T-shirts which is too small for him. It’s already ripping at the seams as Ryan takes a swig from the bottle of fine scotch I dug out of the bar in the dining room. Ryan is as drunk as a wolf shifter can be right now. His eyes are unfocused as he blankly watches James put another perfect stitch in Cosette’s side. She doesn’t even flinch as she stares at the ceiling. Her eyes are dry, and her expression is vengeful. “You told me he went after Gabriel. You need to take me to that den, right now!”“You’re not going anywhere, not until Evander–”“Where is my mate?” I grab his arm, shaking him violently. It’s been over an hour since… since Hadley died. My poison-addled brain is still trying to wrap itself around the cold, hard trut
SydneyI roll onto my back, unsure how much time has passed. One second, I was tackling Gabriel into the fog-soaked pavement, and the next, I’m here, in a lightless room that seems to stretch for miles. I’m not alone. Gabriel coughs nearby, followed by the sound of his leg dragging over what feels like tile.My eyes eventually adjust to the darkness, and the ceiling comes into view several hundred feet above my head, domed and intricate, with sweeping murals from an age long lost to time. “Where did you take us?” I ask, turning my head toward the slightly blurry figure resting his back against a shadowed wall. Gabriel looks at me, his light brown hair brushing over his shoulders, much longer than the last time I saw him. His eyes narrow, and his mouth parts in a firm scowl. “I didn’t take you anywhere. You shouldn’t be here. You’re not the one I needed, and I’m running out of time.” He groans softly, physically dragging his leg up so it’s bent at the knee. I watch his leg begin to
SarahI pull the crank that opens the ceiling in the tower, watching as the night sky comes into startling clarity. The stars are faint overhead, shielded by a layer of thin mist that moves across the sky like wisps of smoke. The moon, however, is full and painted a pale blue. It’s stunning, and even through the haze of poison still in my system, I can feel its pull.The voices that usually come from the orrery are silent as I move toward it, taking note of its gears and spiraling tangles of sleek steel and brass. The planets in our solar system circle around the moon in this version of the heavens instead of the sun like a direct line to the Goddess, and as I approach, my heart in my throat, the moonlight reaches the flat surface at the base of the orrery and sets the entire alight in dancing shadows.My heart rate quickens as the voices start up, whispering through the room like the mist hanging below the stars.&ld
SydneyI jolt upright, blinking into near total darkness. Moonlight sweeps over a cavernous space, illuminating darkened corridors and intricate carvings along the green-gray stone of the wall I’m facing. Condensation drips down the stones, gathering in pockets of moss.Cool night air touches my skin as I scan the perimeter, catching sight of four gray, wolflike bodies bleeding green onto the tiles.Reality sweeps over me like a tidal wave that washes me back into my body. I clutch my stomach, finding myself clothed somehow. I pull my shirt up and run my hand over my muscles. There’s no stab wound where Gabriel’s knife pierced my stomach.“Syd?”“Dad?”A groan echoes off the walls as I rise to my knees and look around, spotting Dad on his side only a few feet away.“Dad, Goddess fuck, what happened? How are you here?” I crawl to him, my pants s
SarahWarm, golden sunlight beats down on my skin. I blink into it, squinting against the onslaught of differing colors and the sense that I’m somewhere totally and completely unfamiliar. I’m in a bed, that’s obvious. The sheets beneath me are soft as butter and smell like roses with a faint hint of pine. A delicate lace canopy hangs from the posters of the bed, drifting in a warm spring breeze. The light–golden with hues of magenta and violet–drifts over a domed ceiling and reflects rainbows on the intricate floral wallpaper hugging the room, which is….I sit bolt upright and hug a thick, satin duvet to my chest. Where the fuck am I?Several windows line the far wall, the view on the other side of the glass obstructed by multicolored stained glass. I turn my head slowly toward a strange object on the bedside table. It’s no bigger than my forearm, and a pale circle of light floats over its pointed tip. Slo
*Isla*Rain pounds my back as I follow Alpha Ernest up the wide marble steps to a home I never expect to see in real life. I look around quickly, but he is walking fast, and I don’t have much time to see the outside of the mansion. I only know it resembles a castle. The dreary sky seems fitting, considering my bleak outlook.Likewise, this castle is fitting for an Alpha King.Under the wide porch, there is a bit of shelter from the wind. I pull my thin cloak around my shoulders. When Alpha Ernest’s fist pounds on the door, I jumped. Everything about this day is unexpected and has me on edge.The door opens a bit and a man with a thin, long nose gapes out at us. He is wearing a butler’s suit, and I relax only slightly.Not that I expected the cruel king to open his own door, but I am thankful not to be faced with him right away.“Greetings! Greetings!” Alpha Ernest says in his jovial, exceedingly loud voice. He laughs in the back of his throat, his gruff tone as raspy as the thunder in
*Maddox*I hear the word come out of Alpha Ernest’s mouth, watch his gums flap as his fat cheeks shift into a smile, his greasy mustache dancing as he tips his head up and blinks at me.He’s like a shoddy used car salesman, trying to convince me to take something I don’t want or need.Something that’s broken and doesn’t even work correctly—something that will never serve its intended purpose.What he doesn’t know is that I’ve already been considering finding a breeder for the last few months. I just haven’t had the time to try to find a woman who would fit the requirements.Everything he’s said is true. I certainly don’t ever want to marry again, no matter what. Even thinking about my wife makes my heart tighten up and my eyes begin to water. I have to immediately push her beautiful face from my mind. No, I will not ever take another bride.That means, in order to have an heir, I have to find a woman who’d be willing to carry my child knowing that there are no strings attached.That s
*Isla* The head maid lets go of me when we hear a male voice demanding to know what she is doing. She turns to address him as I cover my face, pain radiating through my cheeks and nose. “Beta Seth,” she begins, “this girl was being careless with the king’s belongings and disrespectful to me. I was simply teaching her a lesson, the same way I would teach any new servant a lesson, sir.” I wipe a bit of blood from my upper lip with the back of my hand and turn to see a handsome man walk into the room. He is tall with dark blond hair and white shoulders. His green eyes are focused on the other woman in the room, and his intense stare has her rigid stance wavering. “How dare you?” he demands. “You were asked to show Miss Isla to her room, Mrs. Worsthingshorethinshire. No one asked you to teach her anything. I can’t imagine she did anything careless. What could she have possibly done? I didn’t see anything broken between here and the king’s offices.” I watch as the woman’s throat moves