After Lucianne settled the bill, she drove them to Annie and Christian’s home. The guards let her in and told her that the duchess was at the other end of the villa with her guests.
“Perfect. Thank you, Frederick,” Lucianne uttered with a smile, and the guard tipped his cap in response.
Lucianne drove across the estate and parked right in front of a single-storey building that was detached from the villa. Lucianne got off and Margaret followed her. When Lucianne's hand was inches away from the doorknob, her ears perked up.
She left the door alone and began walking around the building when she said, “They’re over here, actually.”
The moment they reached the back, Margaret gasped at the gorgeous greenhouse. It
That’s this week’s updates. Have a great weekend, everyone. See you all next week!
The defense ministers, Margaret and her mavericks, Lucianne, Xandar and Christian reached the Den. Chief Dalloway, who was escorting Kate, looked at the duke, as if asking him an unspoken question. Greg got the message, and pointed at the only chair at the side and said, “Over there, Chief.” Despite being surprised that this duke actually addressed him politely, he complied. Kate was confused. What was happening? And why did she have to go first? None of her friends knew what this was about, not even Margaret. But Tate knew, and it was killing him and his wolf to not say a thing to their mate. Lucianne even had to discuss with Xandar for two whole minutes before deciding whether they should tell Tate. Even n
Greg's answer made everyone even more stunned. Lucianne gritted through her teeth when she asked Kate, “Earlier, you told me that you didn’t know where the discretus who invaded Blue Crescent was supposed to take you. Now, the trace is showing that your boyfriend is from the Forest of Oderem. Are you saying that you didn't know where he was from?" "No." "Then how are these two contradictions both the truth?” “My boyfriend wasn’t going to bring me to the forest first. He said he needed permission to do that, not just the leaders’ but also the forest’s permission. I was supposed to go to a transit location. And he said that if permission was ever refused, we’d just live somewhere else.”
As soon as the vigils returned to vampire territory after the investigation of the hut and hideout in mid-afternoon, they made their way to the castle once again. Outside Pellethia’s study, Duica took a deep breath, knocked twice, and waited.“Who is it?” Pellethia’s familiar voice came from inside.“It’s VIG 001, Your Majesty.”“Come in, Duica,” came the reply.Duica was surprised. That was the first time the empress had said his name. Dominic nudged him and teased through their mind-link, ‘She might have a favorite after all!’After Duica rolled his eyes, he opened the door and Pellethia, w
Maddock spoke softer when he continued explaining, “Lady Luisa and Heros Pas were assassinated for what your late father deemed to be treason, which many couldn’t imagine how. Rosalie was never a royal aid or anything close in the first place. That decision did not help with the tension with the lycans at all. The untimely death of Heros Pas, one of the most prominent lycan officials, was one of the strongest propaganda used by their kind to instigate hate and encourage the wolves and lycans to kill us.”Pellethia refuted, “Rosalie was closer than a royal aid. She was practically family. My father did what any ally would have done - avenge her death. As for Lady Luisa, wasn’t she a close family friend of yours, Maddock?”“She was, though I don’t see how that’s relevant.”
In the part of lycan territory that was near the border of vampire territory, Gerella and the others were in Neptune’s warehouse, where Neptune claimed no one ever came unless he authorized them to come. He had an older warehouse too, but he, Klementine and Saxum all agreed that using the old one as cover wasn’t smart since the authorities would’ve already found the abandoned hut. If the duke somehow managed to figure out the hut was Neptune’s, he might send his followers to other old properties that were dormant. This was simply a precaution because Neptune doubted Greg Claw would know the hut belonged to him when he deliberately left it out of the duke’s annual check on rogue assets. Greg did this check to ensure that rogue assets either remained off the authorities’ radar or that it was registered to be legitimate in the authorities’ systems.
It was evening when the royal family members, alliance members, ministers, warriors, Margaret and her followers, and ten vigils were at Bordure, the part of wolf territory that was most susceptible to rogue attacks when attacks used to be frequent because of its significant distance from larger and stronger packs. They were also here because these packs were the closest to vampire territory and, according to Greg, rogue lycan territory. None of the pack leaders reported seeing any rogues or proditors, but the fact that this was the most vulnerable part of wolf territory AND a rendezvous point between Kate and Rudolpho made them pick this particular location to stand guard. They stood between the wolf packs and the neighboring territory ahead, hoping that nothing would happen. The instructions were simple: stand guard, and i
As soon as Gerella stepped into the civilization of vampire territory, wondering if she was in the right place. She pulled her grey hoodie up, trying to draw as little attention to herself as possible, wondering if it was smart to go invisible. She decided against it because she didn’t want other discretus to think that she had something to hide. She was glad to see that whoever else was on the street hid their heads as well, but they did it because they hated the early evening sun, and wanted as little of it as possible. On her way here, Gerella already knew that she had to hide her eyes since its blue color did not match the green ones from the population. She was trying to find something that would hide her peculiarity until something outside the subway station caught her attention. It was an advertisement for contact lenses in five distinct colors, and the model’s eyes were blue like he
Pellethia blinked for a second before she skipped over the formalities to the more pressing matter at hand, ‘Aunt Lucy, Ella is here. In the castle. She said the next location the hybrids are planning to move to is most likely Bordure.’ Lucianne held her breath as Pellethia continued, ‘She doesn’t seem to be lying. And she’s probably betraying the hybrids because the children are falling ill. She kept emphasizing the need to end this before any little ones die. Octavia and I are leaving for Bordure now. We’re bringing Rafael, Amber and anyone else at our disposal. Aunt Lucy, should you see the hybrids first…please don’t engage in battle until we get there.’ A sudden howl echoed through the air, the kind of howl that wolves and lycans used to warn each other about an incoming attack. Lucianne’s head turned to where the team of ten
Dear readers,Thank you for giving “The Rogues Who Went Rogue” a chance, and for following through to the very end. I hope that this sequel was entertaining enough to keep you engaged, and empowering enough for you to draw strength from it whenever you need the boost.I hope you can spare a few minutes to rate this novel and leave a review here and on Goodreads. It'll help a lot in seeking new readers and sharing the love!To anyone who dropped comments with encouraging words from time to time, thank you. You have no idea how helpful these have been on the days when I experience severe fatigue or writer’s block.Now, with regards to what’s in store for the next book in the Coalescence of the Five Series, it’s this - in Book Three, we’ll be acquainted with hunters and a potential duchess, but the publication date cannot be confirmed as of yet. I am discussing the contractual terms of a writing project with another platform, and if that proceeds, I would be working on that book in the s
As he gently took the baby girl from her mother, everyone braced themselves for the deafening screams that would usually follow. But what came next was just soft coos as Enora leaned against her uncle’s shoulder, resting her head there with a soft smile. After a few quiet moments, Greg glanced at the child before looking back at Xandar and Lucianne when he questioned, “What did you two feed her this morning? What sorcery is this?” Christian had a theory, which he shared as he walked over to Greg, “Maybe she’s starting to warm up to us. Let me try.” As soon as Greg reluctantly detached Enora from his shoulder and the baby realized that she was going to a different adult that was neither one of her parents, she screamed and started tearing up as she pressed herself again
The ceremony to return the title was held in the abandoned castle next to the Forest of Oderem. Pellethia had an unexplainable feeling that it had to be there, as did Lucianne. When the servants went to have the place cleaned up, all praying that they weren’t going to encounter anything out of the ordinary when they did their job, two among the sixty cleaners entered a room on the highest floor that was covered with a very thick layer of dirt and dust. When the two servants assigned to clean this particular room opened the windows to let in some air, a dash of breeze came from the forest and blew at a part of the dirt on the floor, making the poor servants flinch before instinctively holding each other as they quivered in fear. When nothing happened for the next few moments, they slowly released their hold of each other. Th
Gerella walked gracefully down the aisle, and while all eyes were on her, her sights stuck to her groom who looked like he was close to tears as he beamed at her. When she reached him, he offered her his hand to help her onto the platform. The music stopped, and the guests took their seats once more. After the marriage officiant recited from the Scriptures of Matrimony, he announced that it was time for the exchange of vows. Toby began, “Ella, from the moment we met, I knew that my life was never going to be the same again. Not only can I now boast about being the only one among my friends to get the most beautiful hybrid for a wife, your mark practically gave me the license to also gloat about being able to see a discretus when they cannot. You have no idea how much fun I’m going to have lying about a discretus’s presence when we’re training.”
7 weeks later “I’ve actually already had two. They taste pretty good.” Toby told Lucianne as they stood by the table with the trays of cupcakes. He then added, “I’m glad she decided to start a business out of this. Her baking skills are fantastic!” Hailey made those cupcakes. She was now a probationary kindergarten teacher on weekdays and a baker on weekends. She and the other mavericks still worked for Greg, but they were free to indulge in their hobbies and passions when they didn't have maverick duties. Some even pursued career paths that earned a salary the 'normal' way. Jade opened a cyber café which attracted lots of youngsters, and Hailey baked cupcakes or made pastries to sell to Jade’s customers. She offered him a small percentage of her earnings for his space. Some even came in just to buy her baked goods.
After Margaret managed to compose herself, she cleared her throat, looked into Tate’s eyes that held so much love and assurance, and began reciting her own set of vows, “Tate, when we met, I thought that our bond wasn’t going to last. I thought that a rejection would follow, from you or me, or even from the both of us. You haven’t the faintest clue of how relieved and happy I am that I’ve been proven wrong. Very wrong.” “I was wrong to think that our bond is a mistake; I was wrong to judge you based on the title you inherited; and I was wrong to think that you could never love me the way I didn’t know I needed to be loved. Never in my wildest dreams could I’ve imagined falling in love again, and never did I think it was someone as perfect as you are, Tate. I held so much hate from my past, carrying it throughout my life, even scaring away a few acquaintances with my untamable inferno, yet y
The Alpha of White Blood got cheers and claps even before the bride emerged. He was pleased to see that his pack members were not giving the vampire guests odd looks, and he was proud that, when he raised this matter with everyone weeks before the wedding, they seemed more excited and welcoming than reluctant and disapproving. What surprised him most was that the vampires didn’t sit at one place, but were scattered among the wolf and lycan guests. The Alpha wanted the integration but he definitely didn’t expect to get it this soon. Tate took a good look around to commit the sight before him to memory - the memory of his closest friends and pack members here to celebrate his and Margaret’s special day. When his eyes fell on Lucianne, she linked, ‘Margaret’s more t
3 months laterAlissa was pulling Gabriel by his arm through the rows of white, yellow and beige flowers in a nature park where Tate and Margaret decided to have their wedding ceremony. In the sea of White Blood pack members, Alissa finally found the creature she was looking for.“My Queen, this is Gabriel, my second-chance mate and husband. Gabriel, this is our queen.” Alissa said with the widest smile that Lucianne had ever seen. Alissa and Gabriel tied the knot two months ago in the marriage registrar’s office, with only the attendance of her triplets, Gabriel’s brother, Greg, Hailey, Desmond and Ivory.Lucianne smiled warmly at the nervous-looking man in a tuxedo. “Well, it’s a pleasure to finally meet you, Gabriel. We’ve heard a
Alissa’s furrowed brows and puzzled eyes shifted to the door, and her defensive instincts kicked in. She extracted the hard drive from her laptop and slid it into the custom-sewn compartment in her jeans. Reaching for the loaded gun and heading for the door, she tried to guess who that could be. The property was bought under an alias. Her landlady never came up in the last ten years she stayed here. Greg and the others usually gave her a heads-up before dropping by.She looked through the keyhole to see if she was able to get anything from the slit. All she saw was a sand-color shirt. She was also picking up a delightful yet somewhat familiar scent of oak and rain. The knock came again. She pressed her ear to the door, where she heard a heavy sigh before something was placed on the floor as the footsteps retreated.Alissa waite