“WEREN’T you afraid that I might embarrass you?” I asked Luther.He chuckled. “I know you wouldn’t do that. Besides, as if that would ever happen. Even if you just stood there and do nothing, you will still be beautiful. And I will still be clapping. Other men wouldn’t admit it, but deep down, they were clapping for you, too.”I smiled. Never in my life would I admit that I did that to make everyone see that Luther was now off the market. I would never have cared whose party this was or whose birthday we were celebrating. If I didn’t want to perform, no one could force me. But since in a way, it involved Luther, I felt like I had to show off… a little.I could still feel the lustful stares the women were showering him with. I could hear their every conversation. Some of the women here were the ones he used to date, women who wanted to have him back while some still wanted to have a taste of him despite the ring on his finger.And when it came to that department, it was hard to blame t
“I WILL give you a chance to change your mind. After all, I will be staying in this town for a while. That’s possible, right? Werewolves are now free to live with humans. Vampires should do the same.”“Three is a crowd. Haven’t you heard that? And you’ve had your fun. Wasn’t that enough?” I probed.We had been fooled. There was no Mage in San Antonio at all. This man’s scent was the reason why everybody thought Duncan had gotten over his wife so quickly. He came in her wake with this same floral scent. Now I understood that he put on that cologne in his desire to mask the scent of blood.And this hybrid was showing me how it worked. The scent of the werewolf’s blood had slowly disappeared and this floral scent was taking over, ensnaring almost everyone in the area, especially women.Duncan was collaborating with this hybrid. Right now, I think I would have preferred a Mage over a Vampire. If it was a Mage, with the right transaction, we might win without going to battle. But if it was
(Alexandra)TONIGHT, I was reminded of the many reasons why I fell in love with my husband. Even when I was already his, I still find myself falling more and more in love with him every hour, every day. At times, he was charming, playful, witty, sexy, romantic, and extremely adorable.But tonight, he was all that. And more.When we got inside the car, he didn’t drive immediately. He looked at me, his eyes wide-open. Then he leaned on his seat as if someone had stolen all his energy. He let out a sigh of relief and uttered, “We’re saved! I thought this was going to be my last time attending a party. Damn. I’m still one lucky son of a bitch!”I burst out laughing. It turned out that behind his smiles, he was nervous, too. Although it didn’t show.A moment ago, after I saw the hybrid drink a werewolf’s blood, I was so close to losing it. But when Luther showed up, acting like some sort of a celebrity, giving autographs and taking pictures, all the tension in my body evaporated.All that
(Luther)MY GRIP tightened around the stirring wheel while staring at the Victorian-style mansion a few meters away from me. After the incident which almost killed me, the Governor went off the grid. He had abandoned all his political responsibilities, his people, his friends, and went into hiding which made him the number two most searched politician in the country. The number one spot belonged to his half-brother who was suffering from the backlash of his previous actions including perjury, human rights violation, and corruption.“Now that we found out who your father was working for and we’ve dealt with almost all of the elites, I think it’s time to close the curtains,” Alexandra told me this morning before I left. We spent the entire night digging what we could about the Vampires. Beatrix, Giovanni, Kenji, and my team members were with us to learn, too.We had to familiarize ourselves with the new fans since they will be the next people we will have to face. The sudden spike in di
(Beatrix)STRONG, WEAK, young, old, rich, or poor, I believe we were all pretty much the same. We were all searching for home, for a place we could call ‘ours’. We were searching for that little warmth to get by in this harsh world. The strong ones looked for it to either keep their strength or become stronger. The weak craved for it in hopes of being strong. The young needed it to survive, the old looked for it to have something to hold on to until the day they would have to say goodbye to living.The rich would kill for it while the poor would thrive for it. That’s what home and warmth could do to people.The werewolves were no different. We fight for our place; we fight for warmth, for home.Once upon a time, I found mine. I found home. I found my version of haven, my peace of mind, my strength, and the source of my joy. I was silly to think that just because we were wolves, we would be together forever. But in the end, he became the source of my sorrow, too.When the humans killed
WHEN Alexandra left the house, I was about to follow her but then, Kenji tried to catch up to me and held my hand. This time, my tears fell. I had learned how to believe in the goodness of humans because of him. He was my sliver of hope.And when he proposed to me, I wanted to leave everything behind and just take the ring and run away with him. But I could not afford to be greedy with the man I had fallen in love with. I thought if we were to live together, I would only make him miserable. I was afraid to be the reason why his eyes would lose its sparkle.Wolves lead a very dangerous life and I didn’t have the heart to keep dragging him in my misery. That’s why I let him go. Who would have known that I would be the one dragged instead?“Do you have something else to say?” I asked in the coldest voice I could muster. But the tears in my eyes betrayed me.Kenji glanced at my left wrist. I noticed how pain flickered in his eyes when he no longer saw the gold watch that he gave to me. I
(Alexandra)I GLANCED at Beatrix while I was driving. The weight of another heartbreak that she was bearing was shown on her face. I had seen that expression before. That was also what she looked like when her mate died.“I’ve been a fool. I’m so sorry for not realizing it sooner, Xandra. I failed you and the pack. I feel so ashamed. I want to die from humiliation.”I had seen Kenji’s expression whenever he would look at Beatrix and the latter was not aware. That was how Luther would gaze at me, too. Maybe it was not one-sided. Kenji might have fallen in love with Beatrix along the way. But that love did not placate the deep-seated anger he had been harboring for both werewolves and humans.When I heard her sob, my free hand reached out to hers and gave it a light squeeze. I learned that from Luther. During the emergency meeting this afternoon, Beatrix had been grilled by the Alpha as well.In the morning, Clay found an envelope outside their house. There was no sender written on the
(Duncan)San Antonio, Nueva Ecija 1990“IT was tragic, wasn’t it? Losing the one we love. They leave permanent scars in our hearts which no medicine in the world could heal. I know that terrible feeling that’s why I’m here to help you. I can wake Therese for you, Duncan.”Slowly, I lifted my face when I heard that voice. I was greeted by a tall man with pale skin and blue eyes. He was wearing white all over. From his hat and trench coat down to his leather shoes. It was night time, but he was shining so brightly.“Are you… god?” I asked in a hoarse voice.He laughed. “God. I like the sound of it. You amused me, human. I hadn’t laughed like that in a long time. I am no god, Duncan. I am much better than him. I heard how many times you had prayed to that same god, but you were unheard, weren’t you? Unlike him, I listened to your plea, and I am here for you right now. Your family is embarrassed of you. They shunned you. All your friends had already left you. But I will not do that. I wil
LUTHER’S fingers grazed my cheek as he stared at my face. He swallowed when he glanced at my lips. Seconds later and he pulled my head and waist as he claimed my mouth. He nibbled on my lower lip, urging me to open my mouth and when I did, he hungrily pushed his tongue in until our tongues met.When he finally let my mouth go, he took a rough breath and rubbed his erection against my stomach. “You look so lovely again today that I just wanna devour you right here, right now, Mrs. Sinclair.”Although completely aroused, I held it in and just smiled. “You can’t. Dad texted me an hour ago and said he’s preparing a victory party for me. We need to go back to San Antonio. How did you even escape from Iris?”“No worries. I told them that I was promised a date and I would claim that promise today. They seemed to understand. Dad told us to take our time, he’ll look after our princess. She even happily let me leave by myself. She had one thing to say, though. She said it’s her Christmas wish.”
(Valerian)“THE ROYAL family from the wolf empire is here to give their greetings and gifts to Your Majesty,” Matteo, the host of the event, announced. The guards opened the castle doors and from there, Alexandra, Luther, and their daughter appeared and walked towards the center of the hall, towards me.After Alexandra’s wolf reappeared, her hair was back to being crimson and so was her daughter’s. Luther’s hair, however, was still ink-black. It was the only thing he retained from his human genes. But whenever these three were on the edge of their emotions just like what happened in San Antonio before, their hair would all turn crimson along with their eyes.Together, these three could move mountains.Iris was at their middle. I stared at the Luna Queen, she was as stunning as before, but whenever I see her lately, her beauty just transcends everyone around her in another level. I guessed it was the radiance in her eyes. She was happy and it showed. She was shining more than ever.See
‘THE CRAZIEST thing in the world happened, but I cannot tell you about it yet, little sis. Telling you will spoil whatever scheme your moon goddess is cooking up. So, don’t get too disappointed if I will shut up for now. But be assured that Val is okay. He was just shocked and confused. Let him be. This is his first time being in this state. It’s actually fun to watch him rattled,’ Nick assured me. He winked. ‘He will figure it out and he will get over it, trust your big bro.’ ‘When?’ I asked. Nick laughed. ‘In fifteen to twenty years, I guess?’ Nick seemed to be having the best time of his life teasing Valerian. Even now, he was grinning beside Val who just ignored him. He turned to my direction and tenderly smiled. “I’m proud of you,” he mouthed. “I know you will be great.” “Thank you so much,” I replied. Halfway through the red carpet, I glanced at Giovanni who quietly walked with me. Just like my husband, he had come a long way, too. All of us had matured. He had become one
(Alexandra)MY POSITION was the closest to Beatrix. I could have stopped her from killing herself. But when she shook her head and looked at me with weariness in her eyes as if she was begging me not to take another step, I couldn’t move my feet.This was her wish: to be one with the man she loved. As heartbreaking as it was, I had to respect it.“Beatrix!” her parents yelled and sobbed.She confessed it to me while I was still pregnant. Kenji was the second mate given to her by the moon goddess. It was something she didn’t have the courage to tell even to her own parents knowing that they would not be happy about it anyway. It was rare for wolves to be given another mate after the original one dies. In fact, it was so rare that there were no records of it anywhere.Trix could be the first to experience such phenomenon and there could be a reason behind it, reason which Kenji and Trix had an eternity to discover.My knees staggered, but Luther was quick to grab me by the waist. Both o
(Beatrix)I HAD a secret that I could never admit to anyone. A month after the tragedy that killed my best friend, I was able to recover. At that time, I was about to go back to my duty in the pack but on my supposed to be last night at the facility, Kenji paid me a visit.His voice was gentle as he talked to me. He spoke like an old friend of mine. His eyes were affectionate as he called my name. He didn’t talk anything about vampires and wolves. Kenji only talked about the time we dated. And I pretended to be crazy so I could keep seeing him, so I could keep being with him in my own way.And maybe I had really gone crazy. Who would have imagined that I could stay in that facility for seven years all for him? For a chance to hear his voice? But for me, that facility had become our secret place, our hideout.‘I’m the world’s richest man. I have everything that money could buy, Trix, but I would swap them all for a day to be with you again, to feel your kisses one more time, your hugs,
THE WIND grew more violent as each second passed. The birds that were resting on the branches of the trees all squealed and flew away. We were yet to see the hybrids, but we knew they were here. We could feel it as tension sizzled in the air. We could even smell it. Their blood scent was everywhere which meant that we were now surrounded by them.And when Kenji had finally made his appearance, the steel gates flew towards our direction. But we were quick to evade them. There were hundreds of hybrids and they were all wearing red cloaks. I saw the faces of the men who made my mother suffer. And when they sneered at me as if they were remembering the same thing, my blood boiled and my body shook with anger.“The reports are true after all. My best friend and my mentor are indeed in one place and are working together. What a reunion,” Kenji said as he smiled, but it didn’t reach his eyes. In fact, he had a dead look in his eyes as if he was uncertain about tonight’s outcome as well. When
I STOOD up and ran my fingers through my scalp. “When you told me to escape with you back then, I wanted to do just that. It was not just you. I wanted so badly to forget, too, Trix! I would do anything to forget even for a day. I want to escape, too! I want to be with you, too! But I can’t forget their cries. It haunts me all the fucking time.”I kneeled before Trix and when I could no longer stop myself, I held her hands and buried my face in them, relishing the familiar warmth that I could not feel in any other place no matter how hard I searched.Only Beatrix could do this to me. If it was not her, it would not work. She was my sanctuary. The voices were still there, I could still hear them. It seemed like I had been cursed to hear them for as long as I lived. Or maybe my mind was just playing with me, maybe I had gone crazy. My mind was a wretched place to be. And so was my heart.But with Beatrix this close to me, the voices were not as loud as before. It gave me the chance to l
(Kenneth)“HAVE MERCY, your majesty! I am still your father-“The old lying son of a bitch didn’t get to finish his sentence when I swung my sword onto his neck. His head rolled onto the floor along with the rest of the Mages who swore their loyalty to me. It sucks how Valerian was right again. The clan who abandoned me before because I was not as strong as them only came to find me after they heard how I rose to the throne. If I didn’t discover what they were secretly planning to do behind my back, they would have overthrown me and would have tossed me on the streets, poor and powerless.Their plan backfired, though. I killed them before they could even do that to me. Using a spell, I stole all of their magic.They were only after my throne, my position, and my army. To hell with them all! I don’t need them! They could rot in hell and after all this, I will see them there. In hell will be where our next family reunion will take place.After I killed the man who claimed to be my biolo
(Alexandra)“GET up, Alexandra. Shift and run with me.”When I heard Dad’s voice, I wiped my tears away and rose. His eyes were full of compassion as if he could relate to what I was feeling. He gave me a soft smile.“Shall we go?”I nodded. When he shifted, I followed him and shifted as well. Together, we ran in the woods as quickly as we could and howled. It was the farewell ritual that I didn’t get to do for Mom before and Dad was allowing me to finally do it for her now.It was seven years late, but I hope Mom could still hear it… including my apology and gratitude. While we were running, I was taken aback by the huge number of wolves who ran behind us including Luther. They howled along with us until we reached the lake once again.When we all transformed, the women took me someplace else and I just let them. They prepared a white silk dress for me to wear. They assisted me as I wore it. When I