*Lana POV*Matthias’ fist catches me in the side as I growl in frustration, trying to swivel from his onslaught of fists. I catch the smirk on his cocky lips and I lunge for him, grabbing hold of his still outstretched arm. I yank him close. Then pull his shoulder to mine, popping my hip out slightly as I bend over at my waist and yank as hard as possible, launching his body over mine. He lands roughly on the dirt ground before rolling out and giving me a huge grin. “Someone is pulling out all the stops today,” He chuckles. “You punched me,” I scowl, and he gives me a fake pout.“Oh, I’m sorry. Did you want me to treat you like a princess? I heard you were training like a good little girl. Didn’t realize you were expecting special treatment here as well.”“Fucker,” I mutter as I circle around him, trying to keep my angry wolf at bay.She is feisty as shit lately, with nothing and no one to calm her. And I am being punished, or so it feels like. I’m not allowed to spare with her for
I stare at Kohen who stands in front of me with his signature charming smile on his lips, holding out a picnic basket. I look at the large woven device that is holding my breakfast captive as my stomach rumbles and then I look back at Kohen, who takes a step around me. He holds it out like it is a carrot and I am the rabbit chasing it. The aromas from within aren’t nearly as intoxicating as the scent of butter rolls and bacon coming from the plates around me but, I have to assume what’s being served in here is also being served in the basket. “A picnic…” I state and he nods, holding the basket up as he continues to walk. I groan in frustration but follow along soon enough. At least no one will witness me eating like a big other than Kohen. I am healing, which means I need more food. Kind of. Okay, I’m just a hungry girl. “But it’s breakfast time,” I protest, finally catching up to him. Kohen sends me a stunning smile and I can’t help but return it. “A picnic isn’t strictly a lu
“Trauma fucks people up, Lana. Don’t try to reason with why he did it or—” “There has to be a mistake Maddox would never…” “I was the one that found the evidence.” He says, standing tall. “Me. I turned him in for it because I couldn’t stomach the thought of him being near you after learning he raped a girl. Took what he wanted with no regard for the consequences. No wonder he was so quiet all the time. If he had opened his mouth more, maybe we would have picked up on his lies.” None of it makes sense. Maddox raped someone? He killed Jaron… but how could that be possible? The night Jaron supposedly died, Maddox was with me looking at constellations in the sky. We fell asleep on my balcony watching the sunrise. “Maddox was with me the night Jaron died” I try to reason and Kohen laughs dryly. “Who says he didn’t do it before? Or when you fell asleep, and he snuck away?” He shakes his leg from my hold, my hands still outstretched as I try to muddle through the memories Maddox could
*Maddox POV*My fur rises on my back as I growl at the rogues before me. Julian is to my right, his father to my left as they filter in. Where they have the luxury of speaking through their mink link to each other, I am left to my own devices. I watch as three large wolves saunter to the front of the group and shift into their human form, standing stark naked in the waning sunlight. Alpha Felipe is the first to shift, Julian following suit. I stay in wolf form until Julian gives me a look. As I shift, someone brings us shorts and we pull them on, watching the rogues who have just arrived with wary eyes.“You do not belong on our lands,” Alpha Felipe says, his voice low and menacing. “And the exile does?” The leader asks, tilting his head.“He has his reasons to be here, reasons that are well within our rights to allow him on our land.” Julian says, stepping up to my side.“So he is here to challenge the new alpha too, then?” He asks. Julian freezes, but keeps his eyes focused on the
I fake a struggle to get him off, allowing him to think he has me. When he loosens his grip, I reach up and grab his jaw with my opposite hand and squeeze until his jaw bones groan and creak, his teeth puncturing my fingers as I glare into his wolf’s eyes. He whimpers, releasing my flesh, but I cling to him, jolting forward as he tries to yank free from my grip. Wolf form is always excellent for fighting, but it’s tiring, exhausting really if you aren’t careful. And just like I had expected, Jariah came in and bite off more than he could chew. Literally. I finally toss him to the side, his wolf stumbling to gain footing before leaping on his hind legs and springing toward me again.I step to the side at the last minute, reaching out and gripping onto the back of his neck as I lift him up with a groan of effort and place my other hand on his fur clad throat. I raise him as high as I can before barreling him back down to the ground, head and back first, the rest of his limp body tumbl
*Lana POV*My father stares at me like I am crazy, his eyes wide as he sits back in his chair, studying me, waiting for me to speak again. I’ve said my piece, and I meant every word. He may not know how to take it, but even if he says no, I still plan to do things my way. No more of this keeping me in the dark, and there sure as hell will be no more Prissy Bitch lessons. “And you are sure?” He asks.“Yes.” I say firmly. “You want to be alpha?” he asks, tilting his head. “If you do that, you will lose Kohen as a potential mate.”“He might still want me…” I whisper, a pang in my chest. I know he is probably right. But I can only think about so many people’s future. One person, to be exact, and it’s mine. “There is more to being Alpha than just claiming you want the title, Lana.” He gives me a small frown. “I know. But I have a plan.”“Oh, you do?” he asks, looking amused. “Yes.” I feel like a high schooler being patronized. “Mmm, please do share that plan because I am intrigued.”
*Maddox POV*I wake with a start. My chest aching from my pounding heart as I sit up straight, looking around my massive empty room. The sun creeps up in the distance, a sliver of its light shimmering through the exposed portion of the window. I fall back with a heavy sigh and run my hand over my face. My scar feels smooth now. Gone are the infections that once plagued it, the pain of it a ghost, but the meaning of it still weighs heavy on me. On my new pack.Julian walks in the door, whistling as he flips on the light and takes a seat on the edge of the bed. I growl and throw him a scowl as he sips on a cup of coffee. My cup of coffee, I’m sure, as he just holds an amused look on his face, watching me intently. “What?” He shrugs and I scoff, throwing the blankets off of me, padding across the cool hardwood floors to the bathroom.“I want to thank you, Alpha, for not sleeping in the nude this time.” He hollers at me as I roll my eyes and start the shower. I peek my head around the d
*Lana POV* Kohen throws his fist into the wall, the drywall crumbling as I roll my eyes. He has been far more angry lately. His usual cheery exterior is somewhere hidden behind the anxious wound up wall he has placed over himself. I knew he wouldn’t take me joining his shadowing well. But it’s been weeks, and I really thought he might come around to it by now. After all, he thinks it is just me trying to make sure that if anything happens to him; the pack will be in excellent hands. “Maybe we should go train?” I offer, reaching out and taking his fisted hand in mine. He looks at me with a conflicted look before pulling his hand from mine. “That’s all we do. Train, train, train.” He drags his hands through his perfectly styled black locks and I give him a sympathetic smile. “We are training for something very important.” I remind him, and he scoffs, pacing away from me with his hands on his hips. Then he turns to face me, his green eyes turn to lasers as he drags them over my body
Thank you to my awesome loyal readers for sticking with me through yet another journey! If this is your first story of mine, then thank you for giving me a chance! I plan to have more stories to come in the future but as my due date for my fifth child is fast approaching everything is up in the air! I am writing a new story but will bot be posting anything until it is finished to ensure that if I go into labor early you arent left waiting for weeks for an update! If you would like to be updated on when I am back to writing and check out my other books you can follow me here on GoodNovel OR you can search me up through other means (I legally cant say where but the place were everyone communicates online these days.) Search Miri's Shifter Cafe for extra insight into characters, sneak peeks, and and new information pertaining to furture works and what is going on in the world of my characters! You all have been amazing on this journey with Maddox and Lana! I would be so honored if y
*Maddox POV**8 years after Lana’s Epilogue*Lana chases little Rosie through the daisy filled meadow, her two younger brothers fast on their heels, growling like the little monsters they are. After spending the day with all the children cooped up in the car, they need to let off a lot of steam. They screech and squeal, our four-year-old Mikail no doubt the loudest as his little cheeks flush pink with effort from running. Declan stops and wiggles his little body, his tongue hanging out as he blows raspberry sounds and then runs off away from his little brother once more. Lana swoops in and scoops Mikail up, propelling him after his bigger brother with a victorious smile on his face. After a little while, Rosie stumbles up to me, her eyes droopy and her hair wet with sweat. I can’t help but chuckle as she wipes her brow and her hair sticks straight up. “Phew. That is exhausting.” She sighs.“Oh, yeah?” I ask and she nods, stealing the bottle of water from my hand and taking a deep s
*Lana POV* *Two years later* The sun peeks out through the horizon, breaking into a new day. The day I get to tell Maddox the amazing news. I have wanted to tell him for more than a week, but he has been off visiting Julian’s pack, which he has officially handed over to the newly mated Lexi and Simeon. It wasn’t at all surprising when Julian called and relayed that he was passing the title off. Maddox and I both knew he never wanted it. I should have just gone with him, but I wanted him and Julian to have their own time. Their bond is deep, one of brothers and one so much more than I ever thought Maddox was capable of with his quiet nature, but Julian compliments him. Or rather annoys him into having a good time. Julian promised me that Maddox would not be allowed to sleep in and that he would make sure he trained daily. I trust he will wake him up early every day, but I do not, however, believe for a damn second he will actually hold Maddox to training. Not that I actually care a
The committee left yesterday, but not without expressing their great upset over not being able to take Allen back with them. Lana, however, stood her ground and insisted they had more than enough information to take to the Waning Moon committee and inform them they are under investigation.Especially since she gave our committee two extra days to gather information from Allen. Two days of him healing from his injuries so he could handle his punishment better, but we kept that bit of information to ourselves. Lynne and Harold made an interesting case for keeping Allen alive, but selfish as it may seem. I want him dead. And so does everyone in our pack. In the end, our pack’s punishment takes priority. Which I am damn thrilled about. It also helped our case that they still have Brian and the three other alphas who they can get information from before they are dulled out a harsh punishment.“Are you up for this?” Lana asks, trying to be a supportive mate, and I frown at her. She shrugs.
I hate it in here. The depressing smell of vibrant flowers wraps around me and the dim lighting that only makes his skin look more sallow. The man laying before me is longer recognizable as my father. His dark veins are the liquid silver now working their way through his sunken cheeks and pale complexion. There is no beating liquid silver when it hits your bloodstream, apparently. I have had silver poisoning, and it nearly killed me. It was a near miss for Matthias as well, who still is recovering. But liquid silver? This is new to us, at least the weaponized version if it. Of course it’s existed. We live in a world separate from humans but not completely removed. I can only imagine the horrors that Allen opened in his pack for the short time he was in charge. Though I doubt he was the first in their pack’s history to do said crimes. He was probably just the first to get caught.I close my eyes, allowing the mental barrier down. My emotions have been so pent up, like a damn nearing c
*Maddox POV* I enter the room with far more composure than I thought I could manage. My wolf stands with me, ready for the onslaught of whatever might come out of Allen’s mouth. I have the answers I wanted, the ones I can give my father to help him rest easy and let go. What I need is to watch Allen break the same way he wanted to break me. But there is a time and place. In front of the committee, before I have cleared my name seems like a bad time. So instead of spinning and facing Allen to relay the gory details of his son’s demise, I remain in check and glance at the faces of those who once again control my fate. “Maddox…” Lynne says in surprise, looking at me as I give her a nod. Allen immediately goes rigid, his eyes darting to the committee members, pleading. I can feel Lana coming in behind me and Matthias tries to hide a smirk. He either knows shit is about to go down or he is hoping it will. I suppose I’m not one for beating around the bush in important matters. “I wante
I have never been more grateful for Maddox to have his mental block up than I am right now. My eyes snap to Harold and Lynne and the remaining committee members, who look just as angry and surprised as I am. Lynne bolts up and storms out of the room, her eyes near red in fury as she passes by slamming the door behind her. I turn back to Allen, loosening my grip a little for him to breathe easier. “And your reason for infiltrating my pack?” I ask him, my chest heaving up and down as I try to remain in control of my temper while Matthias quakes in barely restrained hatred. “If you had permission to do all that, why would you need to enter my pack? Replace Matthias’ dad?” Allen glances at Matthias with a blank expression. “I wanted a pack.” He says, as if the answer were so obvious. I scoff and shove him into the wall. He grunts in pain and steadies himself with his hands. “Bull shit.” I grit out, stepping closer to him in an intimidating fashion. “I was an alpha. An alpha needs a
*Lana POV*The mood is somber as I walk alongside Maddox, his hand secured in mine and his eyes fixated on the ground ahead of us. I know silence is his safe place, but I can tell he is drowning in it right now. But there is no way for me to help him right now. He has shut off the mental link, and I understand why. He needs to wrap his head around this all. When we arrived only an hour ago, Matthias was frantic. He had Allen locked up and guarded. Not that the asshole could make it very far with a gnawed off right foot and mangled left leg. But he couldn’t find Maddox, and he was worried. Matthias doesn’t worry, not like that. Not for people like Maddox, people that rarely need to be worried about. I slide a glance up at him, his jaw clenched and his muscles taut with stress. His cheeks are a bloody mess of deep grooves and blisters and his eyes are red and puffy. He looks fucking terrible, and I have no idea what caused such an injury. All I know is asking will get me nowhere when
I sprint through the woods, my eyes sliding back once to look at my father before I focus my mind solely on Allen. The fucker who can’t seem to play fair. No matter the situation, he always has something up his sleeve. He has never been a fighter, always forgoing training and giving Kohen different dirty techniques to use to win. Dirt in the eyes, silver spiked gloves or a dagger. How the hell did they come up with these disgusting ideas?Using weapons of such magnitude has always been banned. Of course, trying to survive, all bets are off the table, but even just having a silver weapon fashioned is against our rules, our moral code. We are animals, yes, but we already have wolves. Why would we need other weapons?I come up on Matthias who looks over at me, surprise written on his face. I can sense his inner turmoil. Does he help the Mad Alpha or does he try to find Allen before me so he can get his own revenge? What he doesn’t pick up is that I am still here, for the first time in wh