ScarlettAfter Finn’s tearful departure, I sat alone in the hospital room, my mind reeling. The revelation of our lost child had shaken me to my core, tearing open wounds I’d long thought had scarred over.Even now, I could still feel the phantom flutter of that tiny life, the dream of a future I had dared to imagine. Finn’s devastation had been visceral, undeniable. The man who had once rejected me without a second glance was now brought low, his pride and control utterly shattered.A part of me, the part that still craved his love and acceptance, wanted to reach out, to ease his suffering. But the stronger, colder part of me - the part that had endured five years of torment and loss - recoiled at the very thought.How dare he, I thought bitterly. How dare he come here, torn apart by guilt, and demand my forgiveness? As if any amount of remorse could undo the pain he had caused me.Yet, even as I tried to harden my heart against him, I couldn’t ignore the ache in my own chest. The ma
FinnI closed Scarlett’s door behind me, my hands trembling with the effort it took not to punch through the nearest wall. Her words echoed in my mind: “I will never show my face in front of you again.”“MATE!” Storm howled inside me, the sound so anguished it made my chest physically ache. My wolf had been in constant torment since Scarlett’s return, torn between joy at having her near and agony at her rejection.I barely made it to my office before my control slipped. With a roar, I swept everything off my desk, watching as papers scattered and my laptop crashed to the floor. The sound wasn’t nearly satisfying enough to drown out the pain.“Alpha?” My Beta, David, appeared in the doorway, concern etched on his features.“Out,” I growled, my eyes blazing red. When he didn’t immediately move, I snarled, “Now!”The door clicked shut, leaving me alone with my thoughts and Storm’s increasingly frantic pacing. I could still smell her on my skin from being in her room - a blend of lavender
Third pov David watched the council members as they entered the meeting room, their expressions a blend of worry and interest. He could tell they were aware of their Alpha’s unease, which permeated the pack bonds like a pre-storm charge. As the Beta, he felt it more intensely than others, the sharp pang of his Alpha’s suffering pulsing beneath his surface. The northern border dispute should have been a straightforward matter. The Stone Ridge Pack had been encroaching on their hunting grounds for months, testing boundaries, looking for weaknesses. At any other time, Finn would have handled it with the calculated precision that had made him one of the youngest and most respected Alphas in the region. But now... David studied Finn as he entered the room with a confident stride. While Finn may have seemed like a strong leader to the council members, David noticed the subtle signs of inner turmoil. The trembling hands and tense posture. It was clear that Finn was struggling to maintain h
ScarlettI hurried out of David’s office, my heart racing in my chest. The mate bond pulsed with intensity, sensing Finn’s presence in the council chamber. My wolf, Ray, whimpered and clawed at my insides, desperate to turn around, to go back.“Mate,” she pleaded. “We need him.”“We need nothing,” I snarled internally, though my hand betrayed me by clutching at my chest where the bond pulsed strongest.I hadn’t come to discuss hospital bills. I’d come because I’d overheard the maids discussing the meeting, and I had asked one to take me there since I didn’t know anything about his pack. I was curious— curious about how he led his pack, how he spoke during important meetings. I had let my curiosity get the better of me.But seeing Finn had scattered my thoughts. Five years hadn’t prepared me for how he would look sitting at the head of that table, power and authority radiating from him in waves. Finn... this Finn wore his power like a second skin as I watched him speak.“You’re impress
ScarlettI stared at my reflection in the bathroom mirror, fingers tracing the scar that ran from my collarbone to my shoulder. Five years of carrying these marks, of letting them define me. My wolf, Ray, pressed close to my consciousness, offering silent comfort.“You need to eat,” she reminded me gently, even though she was still angry with me.I’d been avoiding the pack dining hall, taking all my meals in my room. But the doctor had been clear - if I wanted to regain my strength, I needed proper nutrition. Not just the scraps I’d force down when the maids brought trays.“We could go early,” Ray suggested. “Before the others.”Before Finn.Just thinking his name made the mate bond pulse. I pressed my hand to my chest, a gesture that had become a habit. Sometimes I wondered if I touched the bond enough, it would finally break.“It never will,” Ray said softly. “You know that.”“It should have broken when he chose revenge over us.” The words came out bitter, rehearsed. I’d said them s
ScarlettMy heart raced as David led me to Finn’s office, beating faster with each step closer. How could I face him? What if he rejected me again? All these thoughts flooded my mind as we approached his office.Ray stirred restlessly within me, equal parts trepidation and hope.“Are you sure about this?” she asked softly.I took a steadying breath. “No. But I have to try.”When we reached the front of his office, David paused outside a heavy wooden door, his expression both anxious and elated. “He’s inside. Just... take your time, okay? He’ll be happy to see you.”I nodded, swallowing down the lump in my throat. Happy might be an overstatement. Finn had learned to conceal his emotions, but I could still feel the echo of his pain through the mate bond.Slowly, I pushed open the door and stepped inside. The office was different from my father’s— all dark wood and towering bookshelves, Finn’s scent lingering in the air. And there, behind the large desk, sat Finn.He looked up as I enter
FinnHolding Scarlett was a gift I didn’t know if I deserved.My hands ran over her shoulders, her back, as if confirming she was real; that she was here, in my arms, and not some vision craved by my guilt. She felt softer now, her presence gentler yet stronger. The years apart had changed us both, but while she had transformed, I felt emptier, as if my heart had withered in her absence.Every whispered confession she made, every hesitant touch, broke through me like waves on a shore, relentless and purifying. I wanted to speak, to tell her how much I’d missed her, how every sleepless night had felt like a punishment I couldn’t escape, but the words lodged in my throat. What did I have to offer her beyond my own tattered soul?Her gentle fingers brushed my face, tracing the lines that time and regret had carved there. Her touch was so familiar yet so heartbreakingly new, and I leaned into it, desperate to remember the feeling of her warmth.“Finn," she whispered, her voice soft and fil
ScarlettAs I stood there, wrapped in Finn’s arms, a quiet sense of disbelief washed over me. Could this really be happening? After everything we had endured. The anger, the rejection, the pain - were we finally breaking free from the shadows of our past?I looked up at him, taking in the vulnerability in his eyes. Gone was the imposing, unyielding Alpha I had once feared and loved in equal measure. This was a different Finn - a man softened by regret and humbled by loss. My heart felt heavy for the burden he carried, yet he held me with such tenderness. Could I really move on from the past and accept the new future he was offering me?The last few years had built walls around my heart. Finn’s rejection and the loss of my baby had been the final blow after a lifetime of disappointments. And yet, standing here in his arms, I felt those walls begin to crumble, like stones eroded by a gentle stream.It terrified me, this loss of control, but there was a softness in me that couldn’t resis
DicksonThere isn’t a single soul here. Not one. A place that was once bustling with rogues and outcasts has fallen deathly silent, mutated into a graveyard of memories and broken ambitions.The emptiness mocks me as I stand amid the ruins of my former glory. The bitter taste of regret floods my mouth as my thoughts drift to Scarlett—that woman who had seemed so insignificant, so easily controlled.If I had known she would become someone like this; this force of nature, this omen of destruction - I would have crushed her rebellion before it could take root.I would have held her down, broken her will, forced her to submit to my every command.By now, I would have been crowned Alpha King, with packs bowing before me instead of lying here, surrounded by the ashes of my mate and my dreams.“Who are you?” someone suddenly asked.My head snaps up, instincts instantly alert. I hadn’t detected anyone approaching—not a scent, not a sound, not even the subtle shift in air that usually betrays
Dickson.“How DARE you!” Scar’s voice shattered the silence, her amber eyes flashing with such venomous rage. She spat her words, each one aiming directly at my heart.Her beautiful face contorted with disgust, transforming the woman I loved into someone I barely recognized. “If I had known you were such a pathetic, spineless FAILURE, do you honestly believe I would have bound myself to you? You worthless bastard.”“Scar, please, just listen—” My desperate plea withered under her furious glare.“SHUT UP!” she snarled. “I thought you were something special- something magnificent. A true Alpha with the strength to crush that goddamn pack beneath your heel.”Her lips curled back, revealing her canines. “But I was catastrophically wrong. You’re nothing but a coward hiding behind excuses.”She paused, drawing a ragged breath, the contempt rolling off her in waves. “I lie awake at night wondering how moon goddess could have made such a grievous error in allowing you to become an Alpha.” Her
Leonardo“But...” A howl vibrated from deep within my chest, loud, raw and dangerous, making her freeze in place, fear flickering across her eyes.“Out!” I thundered, watching with savage satisfaction as they all scattered like terrified mice.I exhaled slowly, tension draining from my shoulders. These ants, always underfoot, always intruding.As she scurried away, I turned back to the mirror, straightening my cuffs.Now, it was time to meet my guest. The one I’d been waiting for.I walked as fast as my legs could carry me, finally reaching the throne room.“Here comes the king,” the guards announced. As they swung the doors open, my breath caught in my throat. I was awestruck by her beauty.Her aura pulsed with power, different and extraordinary in a way I’d never encountered. A possessive thought blazed through my mind: This woman must be mine.I forced myself to walk past her, even as my senses heightened to catch her scent, noting how she bowed her head in submission and respect.
LeonardoThe clash of bodies and the sharp scent of blood reached my ears before the dust settled. From the high balcony of my palace, I watched as the woman tore through my guards like they were nothing but paper dolls.Interesting.The Crescent Pack’s Luna, Scarlett. I had heard much about her; an ordinary omega turned Alpha’s mate, a woman marked by both suffering and defiance.And now, here she was, standing amidst the fallen, her chest rising and falling with steady breaths, her hands bloodied but unwavering.She was not what I expected.I had anticipated someone broken by rejection, tamed by the harsh hand of fate. Instead, what I saw was fire. A warrior. A queen in her own right, even if she did not bear the title.Beside me, my Beta Giovanni shifted uncomfortably. “Should I intervene, my king?”I held up a hand, stopping him. “No. Let’s see what she does next.”Below, Scarlett stepped forward, her boots crunching against the dirt as she towered over the wounded guards. A slow
Scarlett“Ray,” Seraiah muttered. “I believe she is Seraphina’s weaker version.”“What did you just say?” I asked, my voice barely a whisper. The world seemed to tilt beneath my feet as I struggled to process her words.My mind refused to accept what I was hearing, scrambling for any other explanation.“Are they joking? This can’t be real.” My thoughts raced frantically. “My Ray can never become something sinister like this.”Ray’s memories cascaded through me like a warm, familiar tide—her gentle presence when I needed comfort, her unwavering loyalty when everyone else had abandoned me.I remembered how she had nuzzled against me during those endless nights when darkness threatened to consume me. How her soft whimpers had somehow formed words of courage when I was drowning in despair. She had stayed beside me when no one else would even look my way.So how... how is it possible for her to be this wolf?“I guess you don’t understand what I’m saying,” Seraphina said. Her smug, superior
ScarlettThe battlefield smelled of burnt flesh and blood; an intoxicating mixture of death and destruction.I stood in the center of it all, my hands still tingling with the lingering heat of my flames.The scent of the rogues’ burned remains filled my senses, but instead of loathing, I felt something else entirely.Satisfaction.I closed my eyes, inhaling deeply. My power, the thing that had been locked away for so long, now coursed through me like an untamed storm, crackling under my skin.When I opened my eyes again, I saw Finn watching me.His ocean-blue gaze was filled with something I couldn’t quite place, something between awe and… fear. The thought sent a strange thrill through me.I understood why he was behaving like this. He thought my power might have controlled me, consumed my soul, and that I might kill his people after dealing with all these rogues.But he was wrong. I am the sole owner of this power. I can easily control it now.“Fin—”“Watch out!” he screamed as he l
FinnI was burning with rage as I followed my Beta to my office. Why? Why did it have to be now when I was finally with my mate? It had been weeks since I had held her in my arms.Kissing her and feeling her warmth had been pure bliss—until Beta David decided to shatter our moment.“You’re here, sir,” Gamma said, rising to his feet as soon as he spotted me.“Why are you still here?” I asked, unable to mask my shock. “I remember you leaving after me.”“Yes, we have an urgent matter, Alpha,” he said, making a path for me. I strode to my chair and sank into it, my jaw clenched tight.“What is so important? What is so urgent that it demands my attention?” I scoffed. All I needed was to escape this room and return to my mate’s bed.“We noticed some changes at the pack border,” David responded, his voice tense. “And we needed to treat it with urgency, sir.”“What?” I slammed my fist on the table, making both men flinch. “Is that why I was dragged here? Don’t tell me you can’t handle a bunch
Scarlett“Here you are, Alpha,” someone said, breaking the spell and making me push him away.“Ha,” David breathed out, his eyes darting around nervously. He looked at me before focusing on Finn, his gaze held both apology and discomfort.I was red; red with embarrassment that burned through my entire body. I nearly wanted to dig a hole and hide inside, mortification making my skin tingle.“Why are you here, Beta?” Finn asked through gritted teeth. He was burning with rage, his jaw clenched so tight I could see the muscles working beneath his skin. “What you needed to say must be important for you to come here at this point… at this time.”“I’m sorry,” David pleaded, his voice strained with genuine regret. “I didn’t know that…” He trailed off, sneaking a peep at me. I blushed harder, trying to hide my face behind a shroud of hair. “You were in the middle of something important, Alpha.”A loud roar vibrated in Finn’s chest as he spoke. “Go straight to the point, Beta.”“Alpha, we have
ScarlettDarkness.That was all I had known.I had screamed, I had clawed, I had begged, but the monster inside me had laughed. It had worn my body like a second skin, moved my limbs as if they were its own, twisted my voice into something sinister and cruel.I had watched helplessly as it used me to hurt the people I cared about. Watched as Finn stood before me, unwavering, even as I burned him. Even as I tried to hurt and break him.But he never fought back.He had spoken to me - not to the monster, not to the entity that had taken over, but to me. The part of me that was drowning, slipping away. His voice had been a lifeline, and I had grasped it with everything I had left.And now…I was back.I barely registered the trembling of my limbs as Finn held me against his chest. My body felt like it had been through a war, every muscle aching, my skin raw from the flames I had wielded.The scent of scorched earth lingered in the air, but I could feel something else now—warmth, solid and