Gabriella“So, I know you aren’t going to tell me the truth, but I’m going to ask in any case.” Gabriella didn’t even know why she was wasting her time as she sat down and looked at her aunt and uncle on the other side of the cell bars. They really looked bad! And smelled even worse! “Why did you run?” She frowned. Her uncle scoffed, mumbling that she knew very well why they ran. Gabriella asked them who helped them but they weren’t even looking at her. Her uncle knew that if they jumped into begging for mercy, Gabriella would know that something was wrong and they had to play their cards perfectly if they were going to get out of this alive. After asking a couple of questions, Gabriella seemed to give up and left and they were left alone in the dark cellar cells again.“They aren’t going to talk.” Lucienne frowned as they walked into Gabriella’s office and she sighed, saying she could have told him that even before she spoke to them. They sat down and discussed how involved they thou
GabriellaThe girls wouldn’t stop teasing Gabriella about Lucienne, but for once in her life, she didn’t mind at all. It distracted her from everything her uncle had done and the fact that he might still challenge her for alpha. She couldn’t believe that he had actually thought he could get away with everything. What was he thinking? Not that she had ever shown much interest in running the pack, but honestly! Did he really think she would never find out? Then there was the fact that nobody in the pack did much about it. It was as if they had all resigned themselves to their fate. The pack she remembered from her childhood were warriors. They would never just have accepted this kind of treatment. No, there had to be more behind all of this.The last thing that bugged her was that Lucienne had been spying on her for goddess knows how long! He was right there! Surely, he could have told her what was going on. She couldn’t imagine Lucienne not knowing what was going on at home. Didn’t he
GabriellaFlashbackShe had to grow up quickly. She suddenly became the Alpha of one of the strongest packs in their region. There was the ceremony of the warriors to confirm their allegiance to her, meetings with the Alphas that were their allies, and then she hadn’t even touched the pack’s finances or reports about rogue attacks or any other reports. There were many things to consider and to be taken care of that she didn’t even know her parents did. It felt as if it was all just an awful nightmare, and that she had to pinch herself to wake up. It was not. They were gone, and she was an orphan.The water was getting cold, so she got out of the bath, dried herself, and put on her new pajamas. Her grandmother had taken her to the mall two days before, hoping it would take her mind off things a bit. She believed that Gabriella needed some new things that did not immediately remind her of what she had lost but made her feel good when she put them on. She loved her grandmother for trying
GabriellaWord of the mating ceremony spread through the pack fast and Gabriella could feel the excitement in the air as her friends were sitting around her office making plans. She honestly didn’t care what decorations and flowers they used or even what she was going to wear. All she cared about was getting it over and done with. She really didn’t like all the fuss around her, but she knew she would have to get used to it. Her uncle gave her an out all those years ago and she gladly took it so she could live the life she really wanted. Now she had to live the life she was destined to.Over the next two weeks, Gabriella and Lucienne spent their time between the dungeons and her office and there wasn’t much time for them to be alone. He slept in her parents’ room while she slept in her old bedroom, but at night, she found it difficult to fall asleep knowing he was just there. All she had to do was walk across to the other side of the very short passage and he was there. She had to laug
GabriellaShe felt his tongue softly lick the wound to close it and it sent a shiver down her spine. When she licked his mark, she felt him physically shiver, and deep down she knew she had done the right thing. Although she found it incredibly hard to let people in, she knew that whatever happened between her and Lucienne, the goddess chose him for her and things would always work out in the end. She fell asleep in his arms feeling good.Since most wolves spent their first couple of days alone to mate, the house was dead silent and everybody gave Gabriella and Lucienne their privacy. For the first morning at least. Around lunchtime, Gabriella woke up and heard a commotion going on downstairs. It didn’t sound as if anything was wrong when she popped her head out the door, which gave her some time to take a quick shower and get dressed. Suddenly, the idea of washing his scent from her body made her cringe, but she was in serious need of a shower!When she finally made it downstairs, sh
Venus and MelodyAdjusting to life in the pack house was different. For the first time, they didn’t actually have to hide who they were, but after years of doing it in the human world, it was difficult and they were a little afraid of what the wolves would think. Thankfully, Zion was in the room next to them and she sort of took the two women under her wing. The three quickly became friends and they were all incredibly happy for Gabriella.GabriellaIt was a huge adjustment having to share a bathroom with a male after she didn’t have to share anything before. She always made sure that wherever she lived, she had her own bathroom so she wouldn’t have to share, even with her two best friends. Lucienne was neat and everything, but it was still strange to do simple things like going to the toilet! He would follow her everywhere, and Gabriella was too scared to fart in front of him! Fine, so everybody did it, but what would he think of her if he heard the loud thunder that could sometimes
GabriellaLucienne and Gabriella disappeared as soon as they got the chance. They had two days before the trial and their time was very limited. Lucienne still had to take care of the arrangements for the trial, and Gabriella had responsibilities toward the pack. Their time together flew by and as Gabriella took her seat in the hall, she sighed. It almost felt as if her relationship with Lucienne was just a dream. Zion was seated to her right and Lucienne to her left. In front of her there was a long table where the elder council took their seats, and in front of them, facing them were two more desks. To the right, her uncle and aunt sat with their legal representative, and to the left was the elder, who volunteered to present the case with his apprentice. Nothing like this had happened in their pack in a long time, which meant that the chairs that were packed out behind the desks were filled with interested pack members.Outside in the hallway, witnesses were seated far enough away f
GabriellaShe thought about it and thought about it, and no matter which way she went, it was clear that there was only one punishment that would suffice. Her uncle had to pay for his sins with his life. Gabriella didn’t know what she would do about her aunt since her wolf was going to be in incredible pain when her uncle was executed. Her aunt might just die of a broken heart for all she knew, and Gabriella didn’t want to admit it at first, but it quickly became clear that her only way out was to sentence both of them to death. Lucienne agreed that no amount of time and thinking was ever going to change the outcome and the sooner they got it over and done with, the better.Gabriella reconvened the trial and when she informed everyone of her decision, a loud roar of applause erupted. Her uncle was shouting profanities in a way that she had never seen before and her aunt had stopped crying. She just sat in her chair glaring at Gabriella. Gabriella gave the order for the gallows to be b
Gabriella“Well, it wouldn’t have been a group holiday if someone didn’t get hurt.” Gabriella laughed as they all piled out of the boat upon their return to the island. Jake was all fixed up thanks to some angel magic which nobody, not even Melody, completely understood. The fairy queen kept to her word and as soon as they arrived at the fairy docks, Jake was whisked off to a tent that was already set up.One of the other angels that were there treated Zion and Lucienne was supplied with some extra tea that Zion had to drink every night before bed. And just like that, a huge crisis was averted. If they were on the pack grounds when it happened, it might not have worked out as well, and all of them agreed. The angels really knew what they were doing, which made Gabriella wonder if she should find out if they could get one to move to the pack house.Her train of thought was quickly halted when Lucienne reminded her that they were meant to be on holiday and not planning more work. Since
MelodySeeing her friend going through such a hard time, all Melody wanted to do was comfort her, but now wasn’t the time. This was actually the perfect time to let Venus learn that Hunter was there for her just as much as her friends were, if not more. There was, however, something Melody had to tell all of her friends.She told Matthew the night before and he was simply ecstatic. Melody patient waited until everyone was seated at the breakfast table. Gabriella was the first to notice that their normally chatty friend had been awfully quiet all morning. Thankfully, the sudden budding romance going on between Venus and Hunter drew her attention and Melody almost breathed a sigh of relief!She wanted all of them to be comfortable and relaxed when she gave them the news because she had absolutely no idea how they were going to react to it. She waited until everyone had finished breakfast after deciding that she didn’t want to tell them before. They would probably get so excited that the
Venus“You haven’t done anything wrong.” Venus wiped the tears from her eyes. She wasn’t ready to say the words out loud yet, since it was still really early in their relationship, but she knew that she had to give Hunter a chance. Their friends were standing on the porch looking on as Hunter helped her out of the boat and when they joined everybody else Venus joked that the idea of not being able to work freaked her out and she had to make a run for it.She hoped the joke would distract them, but she knew better. It wouldn’t be long before the girls asked her what was going on. Since she didn’t have a mother to talk to, she had always confided in her friends. Maybe it was time she trusted them with her feelings now. She needed to figure out how she felt about Hunter. They were all used to meeting their man and falling instantly madly in love.Venus, on the other hand, had a completely different experience. How was she going to live a life without him after he had grown old and moved
Venus“What are you doing here?” Gabriella exclaimed as she met Venus in the car park.“Meeting you. You sent me a note to meet you here.” Venus looked amused but Gabriella frowned.“Hi, girls, beautiful day for a run.” Zion appeared from behind one of the trees and it was clear she had just shifted and changed into her yoga clothes. The girls were still very confused when the three guys appeared with suitcases.“What’s all this?” Gabriella laughed and Lucienne promptly explained. The guys had planned a holiday for all of them in the fairy kingdom and Melody and Matthew would be joining them near the border to the homelands. To say that the girls were surprised was an understatement! Venus tried to make excuses that she just had too much work to take care of, but Hunter wouldn’t hear of it.The girls were all bundled into a van with the guys and off they went. The guys had been prepared for everything and answered each question the girls had about what was going to happen to the work
GabriellaIt had been an incredibly long day and Gabriella was hiding from Venus on the terrace overlooking the training grounds. Lucienne and the warriors were training and she almost wished she could join them, but she was just too damn tired. Being queen was not what she thought it was going to be. Not that she thought anything really. It wasn’t something she had planned for her future and she wondered if she would ever be able to get her book done.“Spying on your man, I see.” Zion’s voice interrupted Gabriella’s thoughts and she blushed bright red.“You caught me red-handed!” She laughed as she turned her attention to her friend. “I never imagined I could love him this much. If I think back to when I found out we were mates,” She turned her attention back to the training grounds as Zion stood beside her.“Yeah, it hits you like a train, doesn’t it?” Zion pulled a face and they both laughed.“Don’t you girls want some dinner?” Melody appeared and they laughed as Zion commented tha
GabriellaNow that Gabriella had been crowned queen, it meant she was traveling a lot more than she originally thought she would. It felt strange walking into the council chambers this time and she instantly felt it. The weight of presenting her kind in the council was resting heavily on her shoulders. It didn’t feel like this before. Before, she was just there to fight for survival. Now she was going to be part of the group of people who made the decisions that guided their entire region of supernatural creatures.“Well, I would like to start by congratulating Queen Gabriella on her coronation.” The queen of the fairies was the first to speak. The appearance of the entire council had changed since they last met. The mistress of the forest had been replaced by a new representative as well since she had been imprisoned, but the king of the vampires still kept his seat. For some reason, they couldn’t find any proof that the man was involved in the Wolf King’s plans even if he fought sid
GabriellaGabriella was surprised at the amount of work that went into sorting out who was born and who died. She was even more surprised to find out that they didn’t even have all the documentation. This was a mammoth job Venus was trying to get done, and Gabriella was going to make sure Venus had everything she needed to do.They all went to bed late and were up early again to work on all of it. She did promise Venus they would help, but they just started when Gabriella noticed that the boys were missing. She asked the girls if any of them had an idea where the guys were going, and when nobody did, Gabriella called Lucienne through the mate link.He promptly but politely informed her that he thought it best if the boys didn’t help the girls and they were outside training. When Gabriella told the girls, Venus quickly agreed and showed them the little pile of papers the guys had been working on the night before. They joked around saying they were sure the boys each sat with one certif
VenusLife as the assistant to the queen was a little more complicated than Venus had expected, but Venus quickly got all the necessary etiquette under the knee. Her problem wasn’t that she had to figure it all out. Her problem was that she had to now teach the damn wolves what it all meant to them! Venus was getting resistance from all corners and not just in their damn pack!Suddenly, alphas needed to see her about everything! It had become clear that Caesar didn’t keep up with his duties as he was supposed to. Being the ruler of the werewolves meant so much more than just chasing after wars! Venus had to bring all the paperwork for all the different packs back up to date since Caesar didn’t take care of any of that. New births had to be registered and deaths were just a damn mess! Venus sighed, thinking to herself that she would probably never be able to get it all back up to date as Hunter brought her some lunch.He had been an absolute godsend and she had no idea what the hell sh
GabriellaThe war was over and the pack had settled into a normal rhythm again. It took a couple of months for things to be sorted out completely, but as Gabriella cut the ribbon to the new part of the pack house she felt proud of what her people had accomplished.All the new pack members were linked to the pack in a special ceremony the night before and today was moving day. The pack house was almost twice the size it was when she came back from her first visit. They had also done some upgrading in the older part of the house and she was happy with what her people had done to make life easier for everyone.Melody and Matthew returned from the homelands two weeks after everyone else and Melody was an enormous help during the construction of the pack house. She not only made sure that everyone was fed, but she also helped out when it seemed as if it was going to be impossible to get something done. Gabriella caught herself wishing she had magic like that a couple of times.The coronati