It was a fortress, no doubt. A huge victorian fortress with tall, thick stone walls. But that wasn't what had my gut in a twist. It was the name... Dreaden. The same name the lady from the candle shop uttered before she got a seizure. But I had heard it way before than that, though I couldn't remember when or where. They had all been warnings that I so foolishly disregarded. Now I was paying the price. I didn't get to mourn over my stupidity for long because yelps from the girls snatched my attention. Two of them were being dragged by a man forcefully. Something snapped inside me, and I shot to them, pulling them off his clutch. "They can walk by themselves." I glared at him. "You-" He took a threatening step towards me when another of them stopped him. "Let them, Doyle." He looked like he had an entirely different thing planned in his head for me, nonetheless, he didn't protest. I turned to the girls huddling around me, and my chest tightened to see the affrighted looks on t
I gathered the plates and uneaten food, proceeding to wipe the table set with fresh flowers and scented candles in the middle of a rose garden. It wouldn't hurt if the man having the date wasn't my own mate. But it was. I could say it from the distant hint of pine and woods lingering in the air, in the seat where he sat, in the handkerchief he used. But I refused to cry. I refused to believe his feelings for me would evaporate just like that in the span of three days. Then there was the mate bond as Nola stated which wouldn't let a werewolf forget about his other half even if he tried like humans did. They felt it harder than us. He must feel it harder than me. Then why was he...? The frightful incident from moments ago resurfaced in my mind, causing goosebumps rise all over me. I couldn't blame it to the cold anymore because they gave me a new set of clothes aka a maid dress which consisted of six layers; seven if I considered the ruffled headpiece. It was the ghastly appearance
Three days. Three days were all I had left till I'd lose the love of my life. Lose the girls who had put their faith on me. And lose the chance at a life I had yearned forever. If I analyzed what Iris said, then that'd only mean Hades was under the witch's influence. She was controlling him somehow. Controlling his actions. But how? The incident before Hades disappeared dawned upon me, and I gasped. That rogue Alpha with his forbidden black magic. He struck Hades before getting caught, resulting in an obstacle to his healing abilities. Could he have been a pawn to her sick game? Could she have spread her poisonous tendrils on him through that? Or why else would Hades come here in the first place? I stilled, my chest clearing off a weight I had been carrying the past nights. That only meant, those hurtful words he spoke didn't actually come from him, but they belonged to her. She made him do that. That bitch. My hand clutched the cleaning cloth in a fist. How dare she touch what w
Dozens of predatorial eyes watched me as I backed further into the stone wall, the cold seeping through my thick maid dress and stinging my skin. When Hades said dungeon, I wasn't expecting to be casted into a confined space with several of rugged rebel men. The only thing separating them from me were the metal bars and the six feet wide hallway in the middle. I guess they were the people in the underground Merida was talking about. I had been looking for ways to meet them, yet when fate brought me right into their region I couldn't get a word out except for pleas of mercy. The dark look each of them held, and the scars that blemished their appearances into scary and wild, it plunged me into a dark memoryland of the night with the Alphas. And it wasn't like walls or bars ever stopped them. Then there was the fact that Hades wasn't here to save me anymore. One of them with a scar under his right eye slowly stalked towards the bars of his cell, tall and ripped like he crushed windpi
I watched heavy-breathed as Aeneas casted a spell, and one by one the men started getting sucked into the bushes around the walls. Some were badly injured from Doyle and his force, and what was worst was that they weren't healing as fast as they were supposed to. Years of prison did this to them or the witch's evil witchcraft I couldn't tell.I wanted to help them. I needed to. The moon was getting darker little by little, and my desperation plummeted. Blood, gashes and growls, everything made me want to run. But the only way I'd go now was ahead, but with Aeneas guarding the entrance like the gates of hell I couldn't get through. My feet moved when Doyle advanced towards me. An Invisible barrier seemed to have appeared, because I stumbled over it and fell. Two black boots stepped on either side of my waist, making me whirl around and drag myself away from him. Doyle watched me, a cruel, very cruel smirk splitting his face. I scrambled further until my back hit a barrier behind, my
Hades' POV~ "Gisele!" I shot to her direction, feeling a sharp, piercing pain shooting through a dozen places on my back. She opened her eyes, those electric blue eyes that drove me insane, and peered up at me. Her pupils dilated at my sight before the rest of her eyes followed. She gasped, finally grasping the situation, fear replacing the brief mirth in her face. I hated it, but the fact that all her emotions circled around me made me feel a strange kind of satisfaction."Hades!" She cried, trying to peek at my back, but I kept a firm grip on her arms, stopping her from seeing it. "What did you do?""I'm fine," I said, my tone strained. "No. No, let me see-" "Stop." I restrained her, palming her beautiful face. "Look at me. Say those words again." "What words..." She ran her frantic gaze all over me, tears staining her unblemished cheeks, her breaths coming out in short pants. She looked lost like she was on the verge of having a panic attack. But then she stopped, really look
Gisella's POV~ The dark time was over. Hades was back to me, safe and sound. So were the girls, sent back to the pack with the warriors. I didn't know how they found us, or who was that stranger brought the dagger of death to Hades at the end moment. But I was glad to all of them. From the deepest core of my heart. What was even better was that the prisoners were sent back to their respective packs and families as I had promised myself. With Dreaden gone, the place started to gain its colors back. The fog lifted, and the dark aura of wickedness cleared. I supposed this was the reason I felt so violent at times, felt like my thoughts weren't really mine. They were being corrupted by the curses she forged between the walls of her territory. Seemed like the guards and other sorcerers had been victims of it as well, because they immediately surrendered and apologized. Except two...Aeneas and Carla stood there cuffed, glaring at the council guards and the men. They refused to bow d
As though something snapped inside him, Hades' arm around me tightened, and he suddenly backed away the car. The GPS flashing to show he was taking entirely the wrong turn. "Wh-What are you doing? The airport is the other way." "The airport can wait. I can't." On cue, I felt his stiffness tracing me in all the right places, making me shudder and fall back in the same line with him. I nodded, dazed and held his shoulders for support."Fuck," he cursed, his voice strained, and it made me burn, from between my thighs to my face, a sinful sound threatening to slip my lips. I buried my face into the crook of his neck to hide the effect he had on me only to get drunker on his masculine smell. He wasn't pleased with my decision though. His hand rose from the gear and his fist wrapped around my hair, tugging my head up, not painfully but with just the right pressure. "Don't ever hide yourself from me." "D-Don't crash and kill us," I gasped, out of breath when the car picked up a speed I
Eight years later~ "Elizah?" I stared at the empty room, my brows furrowing. He was supposed to be in his table studying. "Elizah," I called again in a low voice afraid the twins might wake back up.I and Nola spent three hours trying to get them to sleep, and then I dozed off, completely forgetting that I had promised my elder son to help with his homework. Walking down the hall, I checked in the other rooms, even the twins' just in case he decided to visit them like he did sometimes, yet no sign of him. My stomach knotted with unease. Normally, he'd come running to me on my first call, occasionally the second no matter where he was in the house. He was such a sweet kid. But today as I ran around looking for him, I knew something wasn't right. Not working myself up as the doc suggested because of the heart problems I developed over the years as heirloom, I decided to check his hiding spots. There were several throughout the house, the most used one being behind his bookshelves in
One month later~ I sat before the huge mirror like a mannequin princess being coddled by a dozen women. A soft, warm air blew on my hair as someone blow-dried it. Two painted my nails, and another ran several brushes on my face applying make-up. This was the big day. My wedding. Yet as I looked up searching for familiar faces among the people surrounding me I missed the ones I called family. Some more than the others. Some I hated that I ever loved. They took things from me. Significant things. Parts of my heart that I can never get back. But it was a relief knowing the ominous time was over. The evil lurking in the dark waiting to pounce and feed on our happiness was gone forever. And if someone new decided to test their luck, I knew Hades would be right there, protecting his family, and his pack like the feared blood alpha he was. And with him beside me, I too could tackle any storm, swallow any pain and vanquish any enemy that dared to wedge their evil ploys between us. "The d
"No!" I screamed, my chest constricting so painfully I could be sure I was having a heart attack. But it turned out to be fruitful because Gordon's head shot my way, and Hades took that opportunity to slam his forearm on his elbow pit, making a crack echo through the trees. He didn't stop there because the next moment he headbutted the elder sending him flying across. Hades was bloody all over, but he was okay. However, there was no relief as I knelt beside Tera, my head spinning, and a strange pressure building in my belly. Shaking my head, I glanced at the huge broken branch sticking out of her torso. "Tera," I cried out. "Why did you do it?""Don't... get your knickers... in a twist, woman. I'm not... dying for you," she spoke between coughs, her eyes squeezing shut as she clutched the wood and tugged at it. But it didn't budge. She tried again, a gritting scream leaving her lips, but once again, the wood piece refused to come out. It was stuck to something inside. Falling b
The blood in my veins went still as I stared at the man before me. Silver rooted hair and grey eyes. He had the proudest smile plastered on his face as he closed the gap between him and Iris into a loud, sloppy kiss. "Mhm, I missed you, babe," Iris cooed. "I'm here now, my love," he cooed back, and they both turned to me with matching looks of pure mockery. The nerves!Those two? Together? All this time? Shock and disgust combined with each other struck me frozen for a moment. My gut feelings had always been right. Of course it had to be him. Every single of those evidences denoted so. I should've known. I should've fought harder with Hades to prove my reasonings. But then the shock got buried under the weight of the brazen revelation of his dirty game.Every ounce of blood in my veins started to downright scorch. "The fuck you just said?" I snarled. "Manners, girl," uncle Gordon spoke, but then his lips curved into a wicked smirk. "Oh wait, I forgot you didn't have a mother to
Once Garett called off the celebration, the guests started departing with confusion and disappointment washing off the earlier enjoyment from their faces. Some even looked annoyed, but of course they knew better than to complain. I, on the other hand, felt like there was a stress attack swirling deep inside me, but I couldn't freak out now. I had to think about my child. I had to keep it from any kind of harm's way. And when Nola and Iris ran my way, the panic somewhat alleviated from my core. "What happened?" Iris asked. "Are you feeling alright, darling?" Nola followed. "I'm fine," I replied, taking deep breaths to calm my nerves. "I think they caught Alpha Ryan." Nola gasped while Iris sent me a baffled look. "Who's that?" "An alpha who attacked our pack a while back. He even tried to hurt Gisella," Nola explained.Iris' eyes rounded, and she looked around, her gaze alert. "Luna," Wyett and the two other bodyguards stepped closer, "We should go. Alpha asked to take you back
"Why are we here?" I asked, looking around at the fancy shopping mall Hades brought me first thing in the morning. His arms wrapped around my torso and whirled me around. I frowned, staring at the shop before me, but then the name and the long white fluffy gown on display of the shop quenched all my curiosity, and I gasped, my eyes widening. I whipped around too fast, felling a dizziness follow. But I shook it off, my heart pounding in my chest. "Are you going to buy me a wedding dress?" "You're not planning on marrying me in one of your pink sundresses, are you?" I giggled, my insides bubbling with excitement. "No, but a pink bridal gown wouldn't be bad, don't you think?" "Nothing on you looks bad. Drill that into your head, pet." I smiled, feeling a silly swooning moment pass me at the nickname. I missed hearing it from him. It might sound crazy, but I might even prefer this over love, or weird enough, my own name.Hades did as per my wish though. Because the next thing I kne
I sat at the hospital bed anxiously watching Hades and the pack doctor talking between themselves. I couldn't fathom what gotten into Hades all of a sudden. The whole way back home he had been so paranoid even the smallest sounds or movements around got him unduly worked up, and so overly protective even the smallest of road bumps made his free hand shot out to shield me. I had asked him, but he refused to answer before the doctor checked. I told him I was fine. It was only the weakness from not eating enough, but he wouldn't budge. He even made sure half of the nurses from the hospital come aid me like I was some patient with serious illness. My perturbation palliated a little when Bree barged into the private chamber. "Bree," I relieved. Greeting the Alpha, she rushed to me. "Luna, I heard what happened. Are you hurt?" I shook my head. "No, I'm not. But Hades is acting weird I don't understand why. Do you know anything?" She sent me an apologetic smile. "I'm having my hunches,
Sneaking Sam's car keys wasn't the easiest thing, but I did it. I took his car and slipped out of the Church ground. I left my scarf in the shade just so Hades wouldn't lose my scent completely and go berserk. I knew it was the stupidest thing to do right now, but I also knew Hades wouldn't believe me. Not without proof. Whichever uncle Gordon was talking about. And at this point, I was desperate. Something in my guts told me he was speaking about my papa's apartment. Something inside suspected he was behind this murder. I only needed to prove it to Hades and the world. But what I didn't understand was why he would do that. As Papa said the one who started it steered Papa and the other hunters looking for the culprit to the Vilkas spouses. He framed them to get out of the hook. But would Gordon really do that? He had been raising Hades since their death, and sometimes it even felt like he was angry at me for being the daughter of the one who took his brother's life. Then... Could
"Gisele, let me handle this." "So you can let him off the hook?" "I'd never do that," Hades clipped. I stared at him. Maybe he wouldn't because as I had always heard, Hades took justice to a whole new level. He didn't even spare a rare hybrid for wronging one of his allies. Didn't care what the council had to say. "If he's guilty," he added. My teeth gritted. Maybe it was because he never punished a family member before cause when it came to family, even the great rulers fell weak. Turning away from him, I barged through the office door uncle Gordon worked in now. He had been staying in the pack since we arrived from Alaska and helping Hades operate the pack business while he had been recovering and spending more time with me. It felt like a blessing until now. I couldn't keep control of my anger as I stormed right to his desk and slammed my hands on it. "You. You killed my father." He looked up, eyes widening for a brief moment, then they hardened. "Gisella," Hades appeare