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Swallowed by the Black River
Last Updated:
2023-06-09 01:40:32Related chapters
The Alpha King's Breeder Attacked in the Night
*Isla*I open my eyes to the feeling of… suffocating. I grip my throat, fighting for breath as an icy blast of water shoots from my toes all the way to my fingertips, my hair standing on end as a crush pressure drags me down, and down, and down. My eyes attempt to focus through the utter swirling darkness, not a single shred of light to be seen. I’m stuck. I’m thrashing. My head cracks against something hard and rough, and then I’m being pulled upwards towards the surface. “Isla,” Poppy whispers in my ear, and I jolt back to reality, sucking in a desperate breath, and opening my eyes to Maddox’s bedroom. “I heard you crying out, Isla. Are you all right?”“A nightmare,” I reply thickly, smoothing the hair away from my face. It takes me a moment to come to terms with the fact that I am in the bedroom, my body warm and tangled in the quilt. I turn to look at the bassinet near my bedside. “I have him,” Poppy says quietly as I turn to her, seeing the tiny bundle in her arms. “He was cr
Last Updated : 2023-06-10The Alpha King's Breeder A Vision of Blood
*Isla*It’s not even 5:00 in the morning when my toes touch the floor, cool to the touch. A day had passed since my nightmare of ice cold water, and tonight I dreamed of much more violent things. I was restless, unable to fully shut my eyes, and when I could, Isaac would wake. I’d eventually taken him to the nursery across the hall to be tended to by one of the nursemaids so I could try to get some rest. I’d felt guilty, and found it hard to sleep, but eventually I’d drifted back into my fitful dreams. More nightmares just like the first one. Soundless shadows wove through gnashing teeth and tearing claws until I woke again, sweating, and feeling like something was very, very wrong. Was it only in my dream that I tasted and smelled blood? Or was my house, my very room, now thick with a metallic scent that hadn’t been there before? I walk to the door as I pull my robe over my shoulders. It’s silent, so quiet I can hear my heart beating in my chest as I slowly turn the knob and ope
Last Updated : 2023-06-11The Alpha King's Breeder She Gave Her Life for the Prince
*Isla*Mystica’s eyes are hollow as she ties a ribbon around a bundle of herbs–rosemary, lavender, and sage. The whole room smells like spice, and when I look up at the ceiling I see nothing but bundles of drying greenery and flowers. This is Mystica’s haven, a small room near the back of the castle connected to the kitchen garden. Most of the maids use this space to hang herbs and store vegetables. I look at the rows and rows of built-in shelving, cans of last summer’s tomatoes, apples, and peaches perfectly organized and shimmering in hazy gray light filtering through the windows. I look down at the tea in front of me, which is supposed to be calming, but I can’t find the nerve to even lift it to my lips. Not after what happened last night, and not now that we're facing a threat from inside the castle walls. Two warriors stand near the door as I turn to look over my shoulder, their eyes focused on the windows behind where Mystica is sitting. “Has anyone said whether or not you’r
Last Updated : 2023-06-13The Alpha King's Breeder Can I Kill My Own Beta?
*Maddox*I lunge, colliding with Seth just as he swings the sword. The heavy metal slices through the air as I wrap my arms around his knees and send us both flying backward away from the blast of silver light now coming from the statue. I feel the sword graze my back, slicing through my shirt and scraping across my skin. It's enough to make me grit my teeth and growl as we roll and roll towards the far wall of the temple, the sword left in our wake. Seth’s fist smashes against the top of my head, and I momentarily see stars before I roll off of him and get onto my knees, panting. Only six feet separates us. “Don’t make me do this,” I say to him, my ears ringing sharply as I blink into the silver light now climbing in long ribbons up the walls. “Seth–”“I can’t let you leave this temple alive,” he says hoarsely, and I see blood trickling down his face from a wound he must have obtained when I slammed all of my weight into him and sent us to the ground. He takes an uneven step towa
Last Updated : 2023-06-14The Alpha King's Breeder It's Not Over Yet
Poppy groans as I help her sit up in bed, her face twisting with discomfort. While my magic was about to heal the stab wounds across her belly, she is still recovering from the black and blue bruises that cover her entire abdomen. She looks terrible, but I do my best not to make a face as I lift up her shirt to look at the… carnage. That’s the only way I can describe it. “I’ll live, Isla,” she rasps, rolling her eyes as she playfully swats my hand away. “Pardon me for being worried about you, Poppy,” I tease, sitting down on the edge of her bed with a sigh. I glance at the warrior sitting on a stool by the door, his legs crossed and his head hanging as he sleeps. We made it through the day. No one else had been attacked. But I can’t help but feel like this is far from over. “Did Isaac make it safely?” she asks in a whisper, her eyes drifting to the warrior by the door. “Yes,” I reply, the word sticking to my throat. I fight back the rush of grief welling in my chest as I run a co
Last Updated : 2023-06-18The Alpha King's Breeder Did You Touch My Mate?
*Isla*“Get–her–out–of–FUCK!” Antony takes the warrior by the shoulders, bending the man at the waist before driving his knee up into the man’s chin. “Get her out of here, Isla!”I’m scrambling to get Poppy off the bed. She’s hurt again, but actively fighting against me as I drag her by the waist across the room and away from where Antony is beating the warrior into a bloody pulp. “The knife is still in his chest!” Poppy howls, clawing my arms. “Stop fighting me!” I cry, but she kicks her legs, pressing all her weight into her heels to halt my progress. The warrior breaks free of Antony’s grasp and pushes him away at the same time he grabs the knife and twists. Antony shouts–and to my great surprise–slaps the warrior across the face. I freeze, obviously in shock, and fight the urge to laugh in disbelief as Antony shoves the warrior away and removes the knife from his chest himself, tossing it across the room. “Slap him again!” Poppy roars. I put my hand over her mouth and continu
Last Updated : 2023-06-20The Alpha King's Breeder Not Ready to Say Goodbye
*Isla*“He’s on his way back,” Ben says hoarsely, running his fingers through his hair as he takes a seat in the dining room. I hold Isaac against my chest, patting his back as I pace along the far wall where the sunset is beaming through the windows. “I talked to him a few hours ago. He said he’d be here by morning.”I nod, glancing out a window as I pass, as if I can make Maddox just materialize out of nowhere. “How is Antony?” Ben asks as he reaches for a bottle of wine. He motions with his hand to offer me a glass but I shake my head. “Fine. Angry, but fine,” I sigh. I look down at Isaac, who is asleep with his chubby, perfect cheek squished on my shoulder. “He’s been holed up in Poppy’s room all day. He wants to skin that man alive, Ben.”“I understand why,” Ben says through gritted teeth as he pours himself some wine. “Has the man said anything?”“He won’t even give us his name. I interviewed some of the other warriors, and no one recognizes him. No one knows who he is or wher
Last Updated : 2023-06-21The Alpha King's Breeder In Service of the King
*Isla*“It’s not even in the way she talks or handles business between the servants,” Poppy says as she winds a lock of my hair around a curling iron. “There’s just something strange about her.”“And Trinity hired her,” I add, dusting my cheeks with blush. “Yes, and that,” Poppy grimaces, starting on a new curl. “She probably just looks forward to the day I leave, Isla. If I leave. I don’t fall into the ‘be sweet and silent’ type of maid that she prefers, you know? And based on what you just told me, she thinks Trinity is dumb–”“She didn’t say dumb,” I laugh, smiling at Poppy through the reflection in the mirror. “But she did allude to Trinity being inexperienced and… well, I don’t really know how else to describe it. I want to like her because she’s done a great job in the role so far, but if Trinity is up to something… how can I trust her, or anyone in this house, for that matter?”“Well, Maddox will be home any minute now, and you won’t have to do all of this on your own anymore,
Last Updated : 2023-06-22
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The Alpha King's Breeder Stepping Aside
RyanThree Days LaterTarsian is gone. That’s the only way to describe it. The cities, the packs… it’s nothing but endless, blood-stained desert now. Even the sea lapping against the shores of Serpentia is stained a dark red, but I watch it fade as I stand on what’s left of a deck overlooking the ocean. Behind me, the incessant chatter of the injured and healing overwhelm the sound of the waves. A few people walk along the sand–warriors of different ranks and alliances. A young man in tattered Arcane Umbra armor talks to a group of men in armor from the Roguelands, reunited with old friends. The curse is gone. The soldiers the Umbra Mortis turned into his puppets, his monsters, well… so far, they have no memory of the war, which is a blessing. The rest of us remember, though. How could we ever forget what happened here? How are we possibly going to move on? “Ryan?”I turn toward Kenna’s voice as she steps toward me, edging around a group of nurses from Moonrise here to help treat
The Alpha King's Breeder Not Quite Enough
ColeI choke myself awake. Smoke fills my lungs, smothering my senses for precious seconds I quickly realize I don’t have. Muffled voices fill my ears–a few shouts of pain, of surprise. People are calling out for friends and comrades.I’m not in the afterlife. I know that immediately. Pain echoes through my body like waves, driven by the tide of my heartbeat as my body claws back to life, my chest wounds knitting together in real time. But my hand is freezing. I squeeze the fingers tangled in mine and jolt back to reality, rolling with effort to curl my body around Misty. “No,” I breathe into her hair. “Come–Come back.” I can’t feel her anymore. My hand slides up to her neck, my fingers trembling as I feel for her pulse. It’s there, but barely. A weak thump that pauses for several heartbreaking seconds. “H-Help!” I try to shout the word into existence, but my voice cracks painfully, turning into a scream. “HELP!”Figures rush toward us in a blur. The battlefield erupts into view, sh
The Alpha King's Breeder The Ultimte Sacrifice
MistyI land on my feet in a sea of mist. Silver fog snakes around my ankles, around my glimmering armour made of pure light. For a moment, I think I’m… lost within the aether–in the misty, shadowed undercurrent that separates our realm from the Goddess’s kingdom. But wet grass squishes beneath my boots as I stumble forward, breathless, damn near in pieces. Rain pelts the top of my head as I grope for anything to grab onto before I careen toward the ground. I yelp as my body lands with a thud. Thunder booms, followed by its rolling echo as it bounces toward me. The rain fizzles to a gentle whisper as the mist begins to part. A great stone wall comes into view, and then two voices carry toward me, lifted in alarm. I sit up with great effort, kneeling as I gasp for breath that won’t fill my lungs. I slowly lift my head and see two women–one young and… stunning, with long, blonde hair and ocean blue eyes that seem to glow as she holds my gaze, her lips parted in surprise. The seco
The Alpha King's Breeder The Gate of the Gods
Cole“Undo it,” I tell him. “Take the curse back and reinstate order.”He purses his lips to a thin line, confused. “But, Cole, I can’t. It’s not something you can just… stop. Think about it. Use that big brain of yours. Do you see this place? Tarsian is so much bigger than the rest of Eastonia. Riches beyond belief lay below the sand. There used to be mines and forges here, mines that pulled silver and moonstone from the ground and forges that turned that into magic. Yet, in our time, the magic is hoarded by the royals–the Allied Kings.” He sweeps his hand toward the battle. “But not anymore. Once I open the gate, it’s over. This world will be no more. You can come with me, Cole. Be a god instead of a king.”“You can’t, Richard. You failed. Misty is safe, with her family. You needed her to do this.”He smiles a bit sadly, but his eyes flare with mischief. “Yes, she is. Such a shame, really. It would have been easier to do it with her help. Quicker, less leg work for me.” He opens the
The Alpha King's Breeder Coated in Armor
Misty“Forgive me, please,” I say to Mom as we walk side by side to the war room, which is really just a massive training area at the very base of the castle. “I know I just got back…hours ago….”“Bring them back for me,” she replies sadly, her hand ghosting down my back. She stops at the staircase leading to the furthest depths of the castle. I turn to face her, and she tucks a lock of my hair behind my ear. “I’m okay here. I’ll keep the kids happy and comfortable.”That’s my mom’s power. Being the leader of this family. She has a knack for bringing everyone together, keeping everyone loved and… whole. I pull her into a hug and squeeze. “I’ll come home again, I promise. I’ll be bringing my mate home with me in time for Solstice, I promise.”Her tears fall into my hair. I reluctantly let her go and turn for the stairs, refusing to look back. I have to look forward–only forward–if I’m going to get through this. Ella’s already in the armory, sorting weapons, her eyes locked on her tas
The Alpha King's Breeder I Choose You
MistyEverything else is a blur. Aviva’s screamed words. Ella’s rushed explanations. Grandma taking me by the shoulders and leading me away, tucking me in a sitting room somewhere in the depths of the castle. I barely feel her arm on my shoulder. I barely register sitting down in a chair, holding the bloody pages in my lap and watching the firelight dance over the untidy scrawl I know so well. I sit there for what could be hours. Eventually, I’m joined by Sarah and Kenna… and then Aviva. Still, I haven’t read the letter. I’ve read my name, addressed at the top of the first page, over and over again. This is his final goodbye, and I’m not ready to accept that. “What are we supposed to do?” Kenna grinds out. “The reports coming out of Tarsian are–”“I don’t fucking care what they are!” Sarah’s voice pitches with fury. “The father of my sons is fighting for his fucking life right now, Kenna.”“My mate, too!” Kenna shouts. “But we’ve been told to stay, to be prepared to defend Moonrise
The Alpha King's Breeder Over Our Heads
MistyI wait in the hallway for Luke, not believing he’s actually here, in Moonrise, in the same place I currently am. Eventually, he’s escorted around a corner by two of Ella’s royal guards. His eyes go wide when he sees me, his cheeks flushing. “Misty–”“Luke,” I whisper, trying to smile at him, but my heart is skittering out of my chest. He glances at the guards before taking several swift steps ahead of them to reach my side. I pull him across the hallway to a set of windows and benches overlooking the city of Moonrise, now bathed in afternoon light. “You got out,” he says in disbelief. “I heard that you had, but I didn’t believe it–”“Is Georgia safe?” “Yes, she’s with her family. Her father’s fighting, but she and her mother went to Crescent Falls–”“What did Cole have you working on in the castle?” I rush out. “I was supposed to help you with it but never got the chance.”He pulls a small, oval object out of his jacket pocket and hands it to me. “It’s a cryptex. He said it wa
The Alpha King's Breeder Convincing the Queen
MistyBefore my body even catches up to itself, Mom has her arms around me, pulling me into the tightest hug possible as Sarah’s powers shudder away, falling like ash that covers the ornate red carpet in one of the upper wings of Aunt Ella’s palace in Moonrise. Golden finishes blur my vision. My senses go haywire for a fraction of a second before familiar scents and voices bring me back to reality. I slowly fold my arms around Mom’s back and squeeze. Neither of us says anything for a long, long time. I stand on my tiptoes and rest my chin on her shoulder, closing my eyes and breathing in her sweet, floral scent. She’s been wearing the same perfume for decades. She always smells the same–the smell of my childhood. “Mama,” I whisper into her strawberry scented hair. She trembles with silent sobs, cupping the back of my head as she pulls away. Her big, dark blue eyes–eyes she shares with Sydney and Ryan–sweep over my face, over the new lines of exhaustion and heartbreak. I feel a p
The Alpha King's Breeder No Girls Allowed
MistyIt’s morning. Early morning–still too early for the sun to breach the mountains and send light spilling over the village of Silverhide. I roll over on the couch, wrapped in a thick blanket, and stare at the dying embers in the stone fireplace across the room. I haven’t slept. Pain echoes through my body, settling deep in my bones. It’s not a sharp, bright pain. It’s the kind that aches and throbs–a dull thrum of noise that makes it impossible to focus, let alone close my eyes and rest. I feel empty. Empty, and alone. ‘Why did you do this to me?’ I ask through the sliver of bond I still share with Cole… I hope. I hung on so tight when he rejected me, refusing to let him do it. But his voice is no longer in my head. My eyes are dry and rimmed red as I watch the embers flicker like stars against a sea of darkness. I have no tears left to cry. I used them up. They’re gone. Ryan and Aviva’s bedroom door opens nearby, a shadowed figure ducking as Ryan steps out of his room and
