Conrad likes being pampered, but that spa experience nearly sent her over the edge.Athena wouldn't really speak to her after she commented on her manners - which she expected, she knows Alphas don't like to be called out for their behaviour - but that was fine.She had overheard plenty of drama while she was getting the stress beaten out of her body, and then even more while her hair was being deep conditioned.The masseuse had commented on her tattoos. Athena had given her a filthy look once she realised how covered Conrad was in them.Atlas already knew about them, but Athena's eyes started flashing straight away, so Conrad guessed that he was going to be told about them for a second time.The jacuzzi had been particularly chilly, and she wasn't talking about the water temperature.She had asked about Alex and how old he was, and Athena had completely ignored her.Conrad, deciding to give up, had started speaking to another lady, and they had been having a hilarious conversation fu
Before Conrad could process any thoughts, Amber has yanked her back into a cubicle.The door outside had opened and closed, and Amber is avoiding everyone at the restaurant."Don't tell my brother I smoke," Amber demands, clasping Conrad's hands between hers."Yeah, no problem. Don't tell your brother I smoke," Conrad grins, and Amber laughs.Her heart is still racing, but Amber showing her basic human kindness helps relax her a little."Oh, so you're not a regular Luna, you're a cool Luna," Amber laughs, and Conrad shrugs."Cool, yes, I suppose. I'm a Beta," Conrad whispers conspiratorially, excitement flowing through her veins. "That makes so much sense, holy shit," Amber exclaims, clapping a hand over her mouth.Conrad looks at her in confusion, and Amber flaps a dismissive hand."The tattoos. The pack. Your build. It all makes a lot more sense than you being an Alpha Female, I knew Alpha James didn't have a daughter," Amber beams, her face inches away from Conrad's."Am, you in h
So this is her. This is the mysterious Meg, Jane muses.Conrad merely raises her eyebrows for a second before she lets them drop, making her facial expression return to entirely neutral.A harder look at her informs her that Meg is not very muscular looking, nor very sturdy.We could fight her for him, Jane points out.No. But if she challenges us, we'll win, Conrad responds grimly, watching Atlas."I came to see you," Meg shrugs, and Atlas scowls."You're banned from these lands," he snaps, and Meg bats her lashes at him."The guards let me in. Don't blame them, though, they can't say no to an Alpha Female, and you know that," she pouts.Conrad wants to slap the pout off her face.If she were the jealous type, she'd probably slide up to Atlas, wrapping her arm around him or something similar to try and assert her dominance.She's not a jealous person, though, and she won't fight for someone who isn't fighting for her, so she keeps her mouth shut."I told you to leave my lands and nev
"I mean... Why bother staying? I certainly wouldn't," Charlotte points out, and Conrad sits up on her bed, her hair falling around her face."No, you totally would, and we both know it. I'm giving him until tonight to make up his mind, I'm not an unreasonable person," Conrad responds, tucking her phone between her shoulder and ear and she continues to chat to her friend."Yeah, I suppose. Do you not feel betrayed?" Charlotte asks, and Conrad rolls her eyes, pulling her laptop closer to her."Why would I feel betrayed? He screwed her before he knew I existed, it's not like he cheated," Conrad sighs, and Charlotte grumbles."Did you tell him he has until tonight?" Charlotte murmurs and Conrad stays silent for a moment, staring at the wall blankly."Con?" Charlotte calls through the phone, wondering if she's lost connection.Conrad blinks, snapping out of her daze."No. He's downstairs; I think he just got back from his run. I'm going to tell him now, I don't want it to be hanging over m
Most of her room is packed up, and it looks bare.All of the decorations and ornaments are put into their bags, and her drawers are empty."Lunch, my queen," Amber teases, handing her a sandwich and a can of soda."Thanks," Conrad chuckles, "I really didn't want to go down there right now."Amber pressed a hand to her forehead, feigning shock."Me neither! It's so quiet; I don't think they said two words to each other while I was down there, so they definitely know I'm up here with you," Amber rolls her eyes."Well, they can hear us cackling, of course, you're up here with me," Conrad grins, tucking her feet underneath her as she begins to eat."I don't know how you're so calm. If Theo didn't give me a straight answer and brought his mistress into our house, I'd be livid," Amber scoffs.Conrad shrugs, nibbling on the bread."He might just be trying to be civil. If it is his kid, I wouldn't want him to abandon him. I just don't want her clinging onto him and trying to claw her way back
"Conrad, slap a smile on your face. You're allowed to be sad, but you're taking the piss now," Charlotte announces, breezing into the room and flinging the curtains open."Get out of that bed," Charlotte demands, throwing the sheets off Conrad's cold body.A groan emits from Conrad's body as she rolls over and tries to snuggle under the remaining covers on the bed."No. Up," Charlotte sing-songs, and Conrad finally opens her eyes grumpily."I'm mourning. Leave me in my bed, please," she pleads, batting her eyelashes innocently."Firstly, your bed? Bitch, move your ass! This is my bed, and I'm reclaiming it. Secondly, you're not mourning; you're just lazy now. Thirdly, and finally, I have arranged for you to run a training session, so shake your tail feather and get up," Charlotte grins, wrapping her hands around Conrad's ankle and pulling.Conrad ends up on the wooden floor, a stream of curses leaving her mouth as she pulls herself up."Nope," Charlotte shouts, noticing her looking ba
Training has given her some sort of stability.She had reluctantly listened to Charlotte, and attended the therapy sessions she had booked for her around her Beta training.She would probably be ascending to her title within the month, as long as there were no issues; which there inevitably would be.Conrad sweeps her dark hair over her shoulder, a smirk on her red lips as she walks into the board room."Hello, gentlemen, we're here to discuss your project?" She asks, quirking a brow as she sits into the chair at the top of the table, crossing her legs.She's wearing a red pantsuit that matches her lipstick, and her makeup is immaculate.She rarely goes into the city, but she couldn't rearrange this meeting."Hello, Ms Rosser, it's lovely to see you again," one of the man chirps.Being called 'Ms' Rosser knocks her for a second; she's always called Beta Rosser, or Deputy Beta Rosser."You too, Mr Clarke. Will we begin? I know we all have better places to be," she proposes, folding her
The dress looks phenomenal.It emphasises the difference between her hips and waist, something that she'd usually avoid, but she's embracing for once.She slicks some more red lipstick on, fluffing her hair and straightening up."Ooh, you look cute. Date?" A woman she recognises from advertising asks with a grin."Yep. Do you think it's okay?" Conrad checks, doing a twirl in the mirror."If you have any jewellery, I think it would make a big difference," the woman suggests, glancing at her watch, "good luck!"Once the door closes, Conrad reaches into her bag, digging along the bottom.She manages to lay her fingers on a set of earrings, quickly putting them into her lobes after taking her boring studs out.Her tattoos peek out from the halterneck of the dress, her back mostly exposed.She inhales slowly, calming her nerves before she walks out of the bathroom.She didn't think it would feel this real; when she suggested it, she didn't actually think he would agree to go.She walks out
Josephine and the elite teams did exactly what they had set out to do. They had moved so efficiently that they had knocked out most of the command structure entirely before the hyenas had a chance to even sound an alarm to warn the others that their doom was coming.Any who did not actively fight, were given the choice to end their days there and now or move semi willingly to an enclave Josephine had been working on for far longer than Alexander had realized. To Josephine, Melody was just another target, one of far too many in a larger pattern. One that Josephine had been working to end on her own long before Melody had even been born.Alexander was in awe as Guillermo filled him in on the progress during a rather social seeming jog several weeks after the incident; which was all Alexander could bring himself to say about it all. Still working on it with his therapist. But things were going better. He was focusing on being a dad, and decided to take up carpentry. If he was going to li
Melody drove up to the familiar house, the smell of burnt clutch heavy in the cabin of the vehicle. Melody didn't know how to drive a manual, let alone an old truck with a heavy gear shift and broken power steering. Thankfully it didn't matter. The truck just had to get her here. Looking all normal, and human and alone. If the truck had to stay behind because Melody had wrecked the transmission on the relatively short easy drive over, no harm done. Flint would carry her to Alec's pack lands and virtual sanctuary until they could arrange to get back to their own home.The home looked significantly worse than she was prepared for. The picket fence she had admired that first day hadn't been painted in a while when she had left, and hadn't been touched since. Many boards were missing or broken. Beverly must have hated it, she had been a realtor and she was good at it. At making homes look good enough that people wanted to live in the warm homey environments she created. Looks were often d
"You don't have to do this yourself, Guillermo and I can take care of it.." Alexander pleaded with Melody. That evening as she insisted on preparing everything to travel across the country to execute Frank. Throwing random clothes into a suitcase while she stomped around the room on feet far too heavy for someone of her size."Yes I do!" she was nearing hissing at him as she insisted strongly. She paused, packing the suitcases, "I need to do this, he hurt my whole family Alexander. He needs to pay for it. I need him to pay for it. To know he brought his end on himself, I want him to know." Her words were so heavy with with such a finality to them, that Alexander, never able to really say no to her finally gave in. She could come on the mission, only if the shrink and doctor cleared her first. After this afternoon's panic attack, and early pregnancy he was sure she wouldn't get the clearance from the doctor. She's pregnant, no doctor would let her go out to murder their step father.He
Alexander and Melody spent their time with their kids and Diana. Letting Alexander's mother take care of everything while Melody and Alexander played on the floor with their kids, ate snacks, and just enjoyed the peace of their family. Raven was stomping around in her room out back, apparently a nap was not coming easily. "I guess it's not all she hoped it would be?" Alexander ventured softly while James was cuddling in his lap, almost asleep with a picture book in his hands."She has wanted this all her life, maybe dropping a vampire sighting on her this early wasn't the best idea." Diana said, softly, her voice like a lullaby as James drifted off to sleep. Melody was just returning from putting Ansley down for a nap, and smiled at seeing James limp in his fathers arms. She came over, gently and carefully picking the little boy up who snuggled into his mother's body as she picked him up, and took him to have a nap as well. Giving Alexander some time alone with his mom."Alpha doesn'
The next morning it was confirmed by Guillermo that Frank and Robert had almost certainly had something to do with Beverly's murder. Randy was only innocent of this particular crime because he was already in prison for a statutory rape charge. A combination of wire transfers from offshore accounts, messages on burner phones, and finally a time line established when Guillermo searched recent security and surveillance cameras around the small town where Melody and Alexander had met. Trying to figure out what had happened and when.Beverly was a woman who liked routine he learned, and even though she couldn't find a job after she had been laid off, had tried to keep busy. She volunteered, working at the animal shelter some days, food bank on others. Spent an hour or so in the town library applying for jobs before hitting the grocery store before heading home to cook for her family. She didn't seem to interact much with anyone in the town. She hadn't carried a cell phone in over a year be
The first couple photographs showed three women, roughly Melody's age, nothing else in common between them. They were all of different heritage, but all were very dead, by the similar ragged horizontal slash across their throats. No metal blade had opened their throats, that was the mark of a clawed hand. Then there had been two men, Melody didn't know them, but her heart filled with sadness as she realized these were all probably the dead mates to alphas. Who in turn according to Alexander research, never knew their mates were taken and murdered, instead thought they had been rejected. That each of these people had been stolen and their lives ended, causing echos of heartbreak for so many people, filled Melody with guilt that twice she had been taken, and twice she escaped mostly unharmed. She didn't know why she was ok in her home now, and these people weren't.Alexander was just finishing up with Guillermo, his own worry at a new level with the news from his head of security. He dr
This was how his life should have been. Raven would be unbearable if she ever learned that she really had been right all along. She was born for this, Alexander wasn't. He didn't feel any guilt at all now. As he laid Melody in a rocking chair so he could run a bath for her, he checked on his mother as she did the same for Ansley.James was staying with Robin and her family tonight. James adored his older cousins, and seeing how other people lived their everyday lives. He was a nosey kid, Alexander hoped he didn't drive his very controlled sister insane overnight. James was more in tune with his grandmother or Lark. Almost like Robin could feel his worry, Alexander's phone buzzed with a notification, he checked and saw a video of a wide grinning James holding a Mario Kart Steering wheel in his small hands, his face aglow with joy as he tried to play with his older cousins, who were laughing at his eager attempts to widely steer around the course. The sound of generations, and blended f
Melody awoke with the most unwelcome deja vu. The particular heavy and slow feeling of waking up after having been knocked unconscious. Judging by the rhythmic pounding and pain radiating from the back of her head, it had been physical this time instead of chemical. She didn't know if that was better or worse, she still felt sick and nauseated, and the headache was worse, but her body didn't feel as clumsy.The overwhelming wrong feeling had diminished, but things were certainly not right. But at least she was able to think now. She looked around, lovely another cement room from floor to ceiling, a single caged in bulb in the ceiling for light, and a clean, if uncomfortable pallet underneath her. Things smelled clean, which at least wasn't offensive and an improvement on the first kidnapping. Melody wasn't scared this time, she was boiling under the surface like a secret lake of lava.Yup, she had been kidnapped again. Ansley! Where was her daughter? Who had taken her. Melody knew she
The next week was perfect, better than ever before. Alexander was scheduled to see his counsellor at least twice a week, he was getting Raven up to speed on current pack issues and general local politics. He felt lighter. Like himself in a way he had missed without even realising he had been missing something at all.Melody's days were a little more boring. Delia had texted her on schedule all through the weekend through until Sunday night. Then she had called to let Melody know she was taking a week off school and going on vacation with the man she had gone home with on Friday night; and was still with. Melody had worried about her friend, but after talking on the phone, Delia was safe, and happy, and excited. So Melody wished her friend well. Maybe the dark tall brooding man Delia was with was a shifter too, and Delia was his mate. Melody gnawed on her lower lip wondering how she would even try to ask her friend if that was the case, without letting too much slip if Delia wasn't in