LOGINShare
SEVENTY | A PROMISE KEPT
Last Updated:
2024-10-29 19:42:56Lily
Elijah stood where the door had once been. His chest heaved with exertion, but his grey eyes blazed as they met Lily’s. A thousand words were spoken in that one, singular gaze.Smoke coiled between them, wafts of it twirling like dancer’s dressers before it dissipated into nothing. Lily breathed deep, watching Elijah through the fading barrier. Forgiveness did not come easy to her, but she stepped into the space between them and knew, as his eyes widened, as his throat bobbed, that she wanted to forgive him. And she hoped that he forgave her, too.
“Hi,” she said, her voice croaky and rough-edged. He smiled at the sound of it, his shoulders losing their tension.
“Hi.” His lips twitched.
“You came for me,” Lily whispered, taking another timid step towards him. He was her every dream made manifest, from the basil-and-citrus smell of him to the gentleness in his gaze and th
Related chapters
The Broken Alpha SEVENTY-ONE | TORN
Elijah Even though he didn’t want to leave Lily behind, Elijah couldn’t stop smiling. His mouth pushed at his cheeks, her emboldened heartbeat echoing alongside his and reverberating through his chest. Every ache and pain in his body vanished, leaving behind only light and buoyant, radiant joy. She hadn’t left him. She hadn’t run. She loved him. Elijah curled his lips inward, desperately trying to get a hold of himself as he prowled between the cells. He stayed in the shadows, pressing his back to the walls whenever footsteps neared. Without his sword he felt naked, but the raw power of his flames gave him strength. He could do this. He could save Lily and the witch, and end Red Ripper’s tyranny once and for all. For the first time ever, he tucked his hair behind his ears. He told himself it was so that he could hear better, but the heady thump of his heart and the rush of heated blood through his veins told him other
The Broken Alpha SEVENTY-TWO | HIS HOLLOW VICTORY
AtticusAtticus had won, but it didn’t feel like a victory.Not when his hard-won prize looked at him like he was a monster. Not when Lily’s cheeks held onto the gauntness they had taken on during her time as Red Ripper’s captive. Not when her eyes, the eyes he had fantasized about for so long, were flat and so dark a brown he could only see his own reflection in them. There was no fire in her, not anymore.Lily was broken, and in the month since Atticus had so bravely saved her from Red Ripper – and saved his own pack as well – he hadn’t been able to fix her. In fact, Atticus wasn’t even sure that she wanted to be fixed.He huffed under his breath and reached for her. His fingers froze a half-inch from her shoulder. The duvet had slipped down, but her skin was far from bare. She was always cold, now. Anger burned hot in Atticus’s belly. She wore his t-shirt and his sweater
The Broken Alpha SEVENTY-THREE | HAWK
LilyThe last month had been a blur. No – it had been a whirlwind for Lily, sending her heart lurching in turbulent circles whenever it escaped from the cage she had so meticulously built for it.Every day, she stared at herself in the mirror as she dragged a comb through her dark blonde hair and tugged it into a loose braid down her back. It had grown, and as the autumn crept in, carried on the cold breeze that shook burning leaves from the trees, it was starting to darken in colour, too. Her eyes were her own, although they were set back further into the hollows of her eye sockets and glazed in a perpetual way that spoke of more than pain – it was an ever-present ache that ate away at her flesh, day and night, dawn and dusk.That was what the gaunt look to her features and the pallor to her olive skin spoke of, too. Even her plump, red lips appeared thinner and paler.Lily scowled up at the ceiling. She&r
The Broken Alpha SEVENTY-FOUR | BEST LAID PLANS
ElijahIt had been a month.Scratch that. It had been the worst month of Elijah’s life – worse than when his parents had died, forcing him to shift young at age twelve and take on the responsibility of being Sea Pine’s Alpha. It was worse than when Leahne had rejected him. It was worse – It was worse than everything, because he had been so close. He had almost saved her. She had been in his grasp, and then… She was gone. Just like that.“What do I do?” he mumbled, looking over the cliff’s edge and down, down, into the sea. He was a fire faelen, but sometimes it felt as though the water were his only friend.He twisted her mother’s garnet ring around her finger. At first, the knot of emotion in his chest had swelled, too thick and too fast and too full of guilt, for him to be glad he had it. He knew he should’ve encouraged her more to keep it, but as the weeks had bled into one another Elijah had been glad of the small comfort it afforded him. He had a piece of her, even if she no lon
The Broken Alpha SEVENTY-FIVE | HARVEST MOON
LilyWinding her long, wavy hair into a braid, Lily could finally meet her eyes in the shadowed mirror. With every day that passed, she felt more herself – and more lost than ever. The grief was beginning to still, to quieten, but as it did she felt further from the life she had grasped, for so short a time.Strands of her dark blonde hair stirred slightly in the cool autumn breeze, spilling in through the ever-open window. The curtains rustled, drawing her attention to the purpling twilight outside.Soon, the shift would be upon her. Twisting the length of ribbon around the end of her braid – in the same citrine colour as the bunting she and Atticus had prepared for the festival of Mabben tomorrow – she hardened her resolve. She knew what would be waiting for her beyond the walls of this now-familiar bedroom. Lily had spent too many hours staring at it through the long nights spent in Atticus’s bed.Biting back a sigh, she pulled on a cloak and shoved her feet into a pair of well-wor
The Broken Alpha SEVENTY-SIX | MABBEN
AtticusThe sound of Lily’s howl made something earthen, something primal, roar to life in Atticus’s chest. He howled back, an Alpha calling to his Luna, to his mate. There were no complications here, like this: there was just the craggy silhouette of trees above and the rumpled earth below, with darkness filling every cavern in between.It was not the darkness of hate or shadows; it was the cool balm of the shade on a summer’s day, the comfort of solitude shared with another. Atticus revelled in it, his huge black body blurring with it as he moved through the woods.It should always have been this way. This was right; Atticus felt it in every part of him, in the pulse of his blood and in the shards of his bones. As Lily slowed, he did too. They were one: light and dark, shadow and sun. He nudged her with his nose, playful, joyous. This was right. This had always been meant to come to pass.Her words from before stung, but they had lost their barb as she’d shifted with him. This was a
The Broken Alpha SEVENTY-SEVEN | REUNITED
LilyThe bark was rough against Lily’s back. She drew comfort from it, from that subtle brush of pain. It reminded her that she was alive, that she had survived. She had made it out of the cell in Red Ripper.Dropping her head into her hands, she let out a ragged sigh. Writing a letter for Elijah had filled her with nerves, the kind that felt more like snakes writhing in a dark pit than friendly butterflies flapping their wings in her stomach. He’d seen Atticus take her, but… She was more worried about him that what he thought of her.There was something else, though – something Lily didn’t want to admit, even to herself. Writing to Elijah had suffocated her with guilt. Last night, she’d felt something for Atticus. Not in the same way that she did Elijah, nowhere near, but when he’d called her beautiful… She’d felt it. It was the way his eyes, limned from within like sunlight streaming through summer leaves, had burned into her. Then she’d broken her own rule, and she’d shuffled furt
The Broken Alpha SEVENTY-EIGHT | COMPASS
Atticus“So… No. No, I don’t think I could ever love him.” That was what she’d said. Lily. After everything he’d done for her – even going so far as to send that damned letter to Alpha Nobody – she saw no future for them. He’d saved her, brought her home, reunited her with her family…He clenched his hands into fists as he stormed away. Veins bulged in his arms. “Oh,” Lily whispered. He could just picture her, a delicate hand flying up to cover her pretty mouth. The yearning inside him burned hot, a smouldering ball of rage and desire making his skin prickle.He wrenched a handful of citrine bunting down and tore it to shreds. It glittered dully as it tumbled slowly to the ground. His heart was a compass, the needle spinning wildly in all directions. Did he love her? Did he hate her? He hated that he loved her, and he hated that, even now, she still wasn’t truly his. She was all he had thought about for months, and though there were glimpses of her heart warming to him in her burnin
Latest chapter
The Broken Alpha 109 | EPILOGUE
LilyLily stared down at the letter, a tiny smile tugging at her lips. There had been something nagging at her, ever since the battle, and at last she understood what it was.Lily,Or I suppose I should refer to you by your proper title. Luna Lily,I always knew you would grow to be a completely insufferable pack leader. We last met at the Great Battle, as it is already being termed – and, really, should we not wait until longer than a few months have passed before we name things with such grandiose titles? – but you did not seem to recognise me. If I were another, I may have been hurt by that. Then again, you never were very good at seeing through my disguises.Therefore, I have decided to be blunt. I have lost everything. My home and my people are gone. I took that Alpha wolf you had a soft spot for, Atticus, to bargain with Blood Moon. To no avail, might I add. He was more irksome than he was useful, so he has been deposited back in his rightful home. The issue is this: I have no
The Broken Alpha 108 | HEARTFELT
ElijahElijah stared up into Lily’s beautiful face. “Elijah?” she breathed. He gazed at her, feeling like he was staring straight into the sun. Her warmth enveloped him, bringing heat into his frozen limbs. Elijah flexed his fingers and toes, waiting for the dark to swallow him once more.But it did not. He waited and waited, his heart in his throat, but nothing happened. He took a breath, then another. And life went on. His life went on.“I’m alive?” he whispered, raising his bloodied hands to the morning sun. “I think so?” Lily laughed; it broke, becoming a sob. Gently, he was lowered to the ground. They fell into each other, their hands clutching desperately, their bodies pressed flush. Elijah dropped his forehead against Lily’s, just breathing for a moment, relishing in the way his chest hollowed and filled with air. “You’re alive,” she whispered, pulling back to stare at him with wonder swimming in her eyes. “How? I saw you. I,” a hiccup cut her off, and more tears filled h
The Broken Alpha 107 | SUNRISE
Lily“Lily?” her dad murmured, his strong hand settling on her trembling shoulder. “Lils, we can’t stay here. We need to go home.”Sunlight fell in slanted beams through the trees, casting everything in a strange, gold-green light. Elijah looked more faelen than he ever had before, his skin pallid, his pointed ears sticking out of his long hair. She swallowed hard. Her face was dry and stiff with tears and her throat ached from screaming. And her heart lay in tatters on the ground beside him.“I won’t leave him,” she rasped, bowing over his too-still body and clutching at his torn clothes. “I can’t.”He sighed, the sound twisted and broken. “It’s okay, sweetheart. It’s all right. You don’t have to leave him. I won’t either.”She turned to look at her father with fresh tears beading along the dark sweep of her lashes. “You won’t leave me?”“Never again,” he swore. The lump in her throat grew too large for her to speak, but she nodded, her lips quivering. Silent sobs overcame her for
The Broken Alpha 106 | AUBURN
AtticusNeither Ralphin nor Trove spoke to Atticus as they went to face the Blood Moon pack. They kept sharing long glances, only looking away when Atticus tried to catch their eyes.The battle was already diminishing as they joined it. With the magic of Red Ripper gone, the wolves were shifting back into their human forms as the moon set. They had no leaders, no plan, and the Blood Moon pack were fresh and uninjured. Atticus barely had to think as he fell into the easy routine of fighting, punching and scraping and kicking. This part had always come to him with ease. It was other things he struggled with. Other things – like Lily. He slammed his fist into the jaw of a weedy, speckled wolf. Huh, he thought, it was no wonder that one had wanted to join Red Ripper and use their magical hoo-hah to get ahead. It didn’t stand a chance against a real wolf like him. He gripped its throat, squeezed, and something snapped deep within it. He dropped it to the ground, a sneer tugging at his mo
The Broken Alpha 105 | EMPTY
LilyNo.Lily could not think beyond that single word. This couldn’t be happening. She’d waited so long to see Elijah again, and now…No.She shoved out of Atticus’s arms, rage burning through her. “You,” she snarled, slamming her fists into his chest. His unharmed chest, which had been healed by Elijah. “You did this.”He looked at her blankly. “Of course I did. I did it for us, Lily. You would never have been truly happy with me while Alpha – Alpha Elijah lived. He was basically dead already.” He inspected his nails, wrinkling his nose as he picked out a sliver of dried blood.A sob built in her throat. She tore away from him and fell to her knees beside Elijah, gripping his ripped shirt in her fists and bowing her head over his. Her tears fell onto his face, blurring her vision so she couldn’t even see the man she loved. “Come back to me,” she rasped again, her whole body shaking with need.Warm hands pressed in on her. She recognised the touch of Elijah’s Beta, Ithia, and her own
The Broken Alpha 104 | IN DEATH
ElijahElijah fought through the darkness, every step excruciating. His burns seared his flesh, but he was alive. For now.His heart thrashed. The sounds of battle raged ahead, howls and choked off screams and the dull thumps of bodies smacking the ground. It was messy, undignified, and Elijah had never longed to be a part of something so badly.Because Lily had to be there. Everything in him was screaming that she was, even though the thick, pulsating magic cloying the air was throwing off the power of their mate bond. He could not pin her down – but still he knew.At last he reached the clearing. The remnants of magic hung heavy in the cool night air, sparking at his touch as he stepped through the boundary they’d made and through the ring of trees. He paused, sucking in heavy breaths, leaning heavily on a trunk as he tried to pick out Lily amongst the mass of wolves.Bile rose in his throat. Bodies were piled up everywhere, ringing the clearing, bloody and mutilated. He realised wi
The Broken Alpha 103 | KING
AtticusAtticus relished every racing beat of his heart. He was alive, more alive than he had ever felt, and each solid pound of it meant that he was still there. Still fighting.Still fighting for her.When he’d seen that arrogant, too-pretty-for-his-own-good, so-called Alpha kiss Lily, he’d seen red. He’d let that bright, burning red edging his vision become a prediction of the future: Apollo would bleed for all that he’d done. But this fight was no normal fight. Atticus was strong, brutally so, but Apollo never seemed to tire or lag. He had no weaknesses that Atticus could take advantage of, no faltering glances or too-slow reactions. He was on top form, all of the time, and Atticus’s energy was starting to wane.He whipped his head around, searching through the crowd for his Beta or Gamma. They were lost to the writhing sea of bodies, part of the blur of dark fur and bloody teeth surrounding him, packed tight in all directions. His pride kept him from asking them for help. Apoll
The Broken Alpha 102 | CEREMONIAL
LilyA howl shattered the clearing. It tore apart the chants, reverberating through each of the elements swirling through the darkness.The blade froze a hair’s breadth above Lily’s chest. She let out a ragged breath, though her eyes remained fixed on the glint of the blade. It shimmered in the moonlight, trembling in Peverton’s shaky grip.“Potentia grym,” he muttered, shaking his head. Then, again, louder, he said: “Potentia grym!” and raised the blade anew. Before he could slam it down into her chest, though, a huge black wolf smashed into him. Lily gasped, twitching away from the blade as it fell. It caught her foreleg, slicing down towards her paw, her blood dripping down onto the earth before she could tear away.The wolf towered over her on her altar, its fur alight with all four elements. The ends of its black fur were tinged red by the flames; air made its hair sway; ivy coiled up its legs; water slicked down its back. A loud sizzling noise drew her attention away. Her bloo
The Broken Alpha 101 | WARDS
ElijahThe brush of the magic skittering over the veil was cool to the touch. Elijah dipped his fingertips into it, a shiver running down his spine and raising the tiny hairs prickling down his forearms. A sense of foreboding washed over him as he stepped through, his foot landing solidly in Red Ripper’s territory.The entry point of this veil was different to the last one he’d come through. Darkness ebbed and flowed like a river in the far wood, but Elijah turned away from it. He had one goal to focus on: find the cells. Once he’d managed that unnoticed, he could worry about the incessant scratching at the back of his mind and the oppressive weight of magic hanging thick in the night air.Ducking low, Elijah picked his way towards a flickering light in the distance. He’d drawn out a scribbled map of the territory, as it was in his memory, but whether that was accurate to the reality he’d witnessed or if the Red Ripper wolves had changed the pack’s layout since then, he had no idea. I
