Francium cursed. I dropped the phone, putting my hands up to stop her. I kneed her in the stomach and shoved her back. She snarled at me and lunged back at me. Her eyes were filled with light and maddened, glinting in the far. Francium was screaming at her. I couldn’t make out the words. I could smell him bleeding, but his blood smelled nothing like mine. Then I could barely smell my own blood. My senses were going haywire. She grabbed me, trying to force my head aside as she reached with her tongue towards the open wound in my shoulder. I shuddered as I felt her panting over the wound like a beast.This wasn’t Claire. This wasn’t my best friend, but she was in there somewhere, wasn’t she?I could barely hear Armageddon through the speaker. The car jumped again, bouncing her off me and me onto the floor. I was trapped in the small space, but it gave me enough space to kick Claire a little harder. She flew back and snarled as she landed against the door. I kicked again when she lunged
I swooned and the phone tumbled from my hand as I fell aside. Francium cursed again, swerving the car and bouncing us along as more shots were fired at the car. He zipped and zagged, sliding us around in the back seat as he tried to avoid the bullets.“Hold on!” Francium yelled, turning off the road.“What are you doing?” I asked, trying to hold on to the handle as he turned again.“Taking a short cut. It’s harder to shoot through the trees.”The wound burned like fire. I smelled it burning like silver. I felt it creeping through my shoulder. I looked at the wound and saw it starting to turn black. My stomach churned. Was I going to lose my arm because of that bullet?Was I going to lose my life in this chase?“Fucking silver bullets. They really want to kill us,” Francium cursed. “I don’t know what the hell Damian wants with you Hedy, but he wants it bad… Are you really, Pandora?”I didn’t answer and hoped that Armageddon hadn’t heard him. Instead, I fumbled with my safety beacon. I
There was nothing but pain for a long time. Pain and silence. My lungs were burning. I couldn’t move. Would Candido find me? Would Moon Shadow return my body to him? Would he bury me with care? Would he cry?I didn’t know.“Hedy!” I heard Claire cry. I tried to breath and felt the air and water gurgling in my chest. I choked and coughed, trying to expel it. I cried out in pain. My leg was thrumming with pain. I could keep my head above the water. I flailed and struggled. Metal creaked sharply then hands were on me, dragging me up and out. Pain dragged across my back and down my side as I coughed and sputtered.“She’s still breathing.”“Quick, get her onto the land. Can we use any of the supplies?”“I don’t think so. It’s all soaked.”“Fuck!”“Just give it to me.”I hear something rip, then something was wrapped around my shoulder and waist tightly. I opened my eyes seeing Claire and Francium looking at each other.“I’ve got this, see if you can pull anything out of the car.” Francium
When she was gone, I looked back at Candido, whose jaw was set in a firm line. He looked upset, but not angry.At least, I hoped he wasn’t that angry.“I’m sorry,” I said softly. “I shouldn’t have…. There’s so much that I—"“You endangered your life just to make me jealous,” Candido said. “Do you know what would have happened to me if you had died?”My lips twitched. I felt warm hearing him say that. His voice was tight with emotion like he was trying to hold himself back from crying. Maybe he really did care about me as much as I had hoped, even before then. Maybe without the whole mate thing, it wouldn’t have been so hard to get him to admit it, and all of this could have been avoided.“I know that now…”“When the car was crashing… when you called my name,” his voice trembled and wavered. “Have you any idea how terrified I was when I realized you were in so much danger and I wasn’t close enough to save you? Do you know?”I winced and nodded. “I understand. I’m sorry, Candido.”He li
“It’s so good to meet you formally,” she said, pulling her mask and hood down.She looked just like the woman who had been in that photo, Candida, except her eyes were a dark brown. They were probably twins, but I didn’t ask.Did that mean that twins ran in Candido’s family? My face heated at the thought of a pair of twins in my arms with his eyes and my hair. Would they be gold wolves too? I didn’t know, but the thought warmed me.Vanessa smiled and wrapped her arms around me. “Candida would have loved you.”She pulled back and cupped my face. “She’d have stuffed you full and probably ripped your father a new one, too, but she would have loved you.”I almost laughed at the thought because it would be exactly what he deserved. It was comforting to think that Candido’s mother would have liked me. I didn’t know much about her, but she sounded like quite the character.“If I can entrust you with one more mission?” Vanessa said with a wry smile and a glance at Candido. “Do not let ‘Dido g
His expression turned tender before wrapped his arm around my shoulders.“Okay, let’s get you back to bed,” he said, pressing a kiss to my temple.Vanessa let out a little laugh as Candido walked with me back to the room I’d been given.As soon as the door closed behind us, Candido dug into his jacket and pulled out a small knife. I stopped him before he could slit his palm. I pulled the knife from his hand and tucked it back into his jacket.“No.”He stiffened his jaw. “Hedy, I know what my aunt said, but you have to know that I—”“Usually listen to absolutely no one,” I said.“I am perfectly fine.” His voice was firm, but his eyes were red-rimmed and sunken into his face. There were dark circles around his eyes, and he looked ready to fall asleep at any time.“All I want right now is to snuggle with you.” I looked up at him. “Can’t you just give me this? It’s less painful.”His nostrils flared. “That’s not a good idea.”“Why?”“Because I want you desperately.” He said. “And you’re n
Candido looked toward the door. “I’ll be there soon.”I heard whoever it was walking away from the door then he turned to the cabinet to pull out clothes.“What about me?”“You should get some more rest,” Candido said as he tossed clothes onto the bed for himself. “You’re still a bit too injured to be doing much of anything.”I grit my teeth. “You’re doing it again. You… You can’t push me out of this or protect me from it. We’re in this together. I’m going, and your aunt said you need more rest!”He licked his lips and turned his head. His eyes flickered with light as they dragged over me.“You… are a distraction,” Candido said, his voice low and rough, more of a rumble than anything. “Right now, I can’t afford distractions. Stay here, Hedy, and get some rest.”I set my jaw. “I’m going, Candido.”He sighed and turned around. “Why do you feel the need to?”“Were you listening to anything I said? I…” My shoulders slumped, so tired of explaining this. “I want to be by your side. I want t
We followed the guard to the observation room, where people were hustling around and murmuring.“Give me an update.”“The scans are picking up presences. A lot of them, but we can’t get a hold of how many.”The readings kept changing, ranging from no one to over a hundred people, but the screens that showed the camera views were all blank. There was no way to tell how many were there through the cameras, but maybe that was just because of how injured I was.Francium tilted his head at an almost unnatural angle. “There’s something off about… the view.”I frowned and thought back to when he spoke about having some sort of immunity. Was this a vampire’s illusion? Could it affect scans too? I worried my lip. If it was all technology built to read werewolf presence, maybe built from the knowledge that was in the old books, then maybe, just maybe, a vampire’s power could mess with the scanning.“Let me… go out and see,” Francium said. “It’s easier to see with my own eyes than through a came
She cocked an eyebrow. “They might be related, but there’s no way to know if they’re compatible.”“They’re both golden wolves. That should be enough.” I swallowed. “I don’t care what you have to do, you have to keep him alive.”Her eyes drifted down to Candido with an odd expression on her face. “I’ll see what I can do,” she looked up at me. “But… there will be a hefty cost.”“I don’t care,” I said. If Candido was really being used to stabilize Solare, whatever that meant, then I had make sure that he had enough life force, that his body still remained, after that was done to wake up. “I developed a drug that strengthened wolves,” she said. “I have a feeling that it would at least help.”My eyes bulged. “You’re… You’re the one who made the drug for the vampires.”She smiled. “I am. And?”I growled at her. “You’re a traitor.”Her smile turned cold. “And you aren’t the alpha king’s mate.”She cocked an eyebrow. “Given the state of the world, do you think they’ll care?”“Of course, the
“It was unsure if my Beloved King would have ever risen again and to what world,” she said. “It was for the best that I changed the path.”“We’re mates,” I said again. “We’re mates. Nothing you say can change that.”“Mates,” she scoffed. “A tool for conquest. Were you not listening? The vampiric power you inherited from your mother was the only reason you could fake the moon mark. The white fur you inherited from your father turned platinum because of it. When you were no longer a vampire, after Cillian had drained the last of that power out of you, you were just a plain werewolf…”“I don’t believe you,” I said. “I won’t believe you. You’re just trying to trick me.”“Your real moon mark vanished the night that your mate died trying to protect you.”I saw the senior diving in front of me and jerking as the bullets hit him in the chest. “Him?” I growled. “No. I can’t believe that.”“Neither could your mother,” she laughed. “By the time you met your grandfather, I had already been makin
I pushed at the wall, trying to get over there and drag Estella away from Candido. Then, Vanessa appeared dressed in a wispy gauzy red dress. She looked younger than the last time I had seen her. Two younger men followed her, chatting with her though I couldn’t make out what they were saying. They were dressed in red tunics. Then, I saw Claire and Francium striding towards them in red. They were holding hands. Her hair was gathered up in a flower wreath as they smiled together. They looked so happy together as they sat beside Candido and Estella. Soon, I saw other people. I saw Claire’s parents and the people I remember dying over the course of the war. They sat together in a circle around Candido and Estella, chatting happily. “Don’t be happy!” I yelled, banging on the wall. “Claire! You’re supposed to be my friend! Get her away from my mate!”No one even noticed I was there. They laughed and chatted, welcoming other people as they came to join them. Everyone else was wearing red,
Weeks passed, and in that time, I made the remaining people do what needed to be done. They fixed up the building Candido and I were in. While they couldn’t get the water or electricity working, there was a roof and the floors were cleaned. They brought me food when they came to check on Candido and busied themselves with trying to contact whoever else might be alive. “Miss Hedy.”I looked up, glaring at them. “How many times have I told you to call me luna?”The man lifted his head. “Until the king confirms it, I would never disgrace the position that way.”I glared at him. “Then, I suppose you’ll be tried for treason, then.”His eyes narrowed as two people entered the room. “You’re supposed to be regent, right?” The woman asked. “You have some authority.”I lifted my head. “I’m luna.”She pointed at the man beside her. “Then tell this man that I want nothing to do with him and he should leave me alone.”“We’re mates!” He growled. “You’re not going to leave me.”“There is no mark,”
When I opened my eyes, I knew I wasn’t awake. Candido wasn’t there with me. I was seated across a long table that I had never seen before. The windows were all made of stained glass. Moonlight filtered through the colorful glass and sent the colors splashing everywhere. At the other end of the table was the vampire king. He was darker than I remember, but his hair glowed the way it had in that castle. The crown on his brow twinkled with light. To his left, like an odd reflection, was Marius. His blonde hair didn’t glow, and he didn’t wear a crown, but looking at the two of them it was so obvious that he was related to the thing. Their eyes glowed the same. I clenched my jaw and glared at them both. “Where am I?” I asked. “If you think you can change my mind about—”“The time to change your mind has long since passed, Hedy,” the vampire king said softly. His lips twitched into a small smile. “The time to make different decisions is long since over.”He took a deep breath and shook h
I shook my head. “You’re lying. You have to be lying. How would you know if the door was closed?”He laughed. “It was closed to her and all the other traitors. No child of Lunae who still walks in the Goddess’ grace would be turned away from returning home.”I swallowed and shook my head. “She never got Candido’s grandfather or father… I imagine she’s burning with jealousy that you’re so close to what she wanted,” he smiled. “Or maybe she’s proud that you share the same tastes.”“None of that matters,” I said. “I’m not a vampire. I never was. I’m a werewolf. I’m Candido’s mate. Tell me what you plan is. What are trying to do? If you’re trying to hurt Candido, I’ll never forgive you.”He laughed, throwing his head back. “Why would I give a fuck about your forgiveness, traitor?”“I— ““You’re even worse than Hedwig in some ways,” He laughed. “At least Hedwig mourned Candido’s father and grandfather. At least she was faithful in her pursuit. You jumped at the chance to get as close to f
I fell to the ground, choking. For a moment, I imagined Candido stroking my hair like we were in one of the parlors at the Estate before the war. I could almost hear him reading a book to me, some book that I was supposed to read for class but didn’t want to. I didn’t remember the words. I wasn’t even paying attention to his words or the book. I didn’t care. I just loved that he was spending time with me. It was all that I wanted. It was all that I had ever wanted. I closed my eyes and let myself sink into the memory. Slowly, the darkness faded. I felt his lips on my forehead then he was gone. It was so cold. I shivered in the wind that picked up over the mountaintop. I opened my eyes. Dawn was coming over the mountain. I shook and rolled over and tried to get up. I could see Candido there. His fur was still golden. He hadn’t turned back. He didn’t move. I crawled toward him. “Candido?” I whispered. “Candido? You can’t be gone… She promised me. I… You promised.”I got to him and we
“Fuck!”I rolled over and tried to see what was happening as I sucked in breath after breath. I choked, trying to catch my breath as I saw a glint of silver cut through the air. The man barely choked as his head tumbled through the air. His body went up in flames. Then, I saw Raven’s face. Her eyes were filled with blood-red light.She walked toward me. A flash of silver went by me and the gag loosened. I spat it out and my hands fell apart like the cuffs were broken. Her sword was aimed at me. Her expression was cold as she looked at me. Her hand trembled. Tears streamed down her face. Her jaw trembled. Then, she lowered her blade. I couldn’t believe it. I looked around, searching for someone else, but there was no one. It was just the two of us behind the barrier. Then, the wall of light shimmered and started to fade.I heard a stroke of thunder and turned as lightning fell from the sky and slammed into the side of the mountain. I smiled. Candido was using his power and winning. W
The fury simmered behind the tears in her eyes before she turned back to the group. They talked a little longer When they broke apart, none of them came my way. Most of them went with Wren, but the man with bandages headed toward a different truck. I eyed him suspiciously. What was he doing separate from the rest of them? Were the rest of them going to Candido and leaving him behind? Where were they going?I looked across the way as Harper and Wren and the others looked at me, glaring. Their eyes were filled with red light. They drove away, never taking their eyes off me. One of the women was crying. I looked over at the bandaged man as he hauled himself onto the back of the truck, still leaning to one side. Then, the truck I was in started to drive away. I turned back to see where were going and knew we were headed toward the mountain from my vision. My heart started to race. It seemed like we were heading to the end of the war now.“Black Team,” someone said. “En route to Gold Tea