Dis The shades that the burning glow of the lower mantel created were breathtakingly beautiful, like autumn on fire. The view was my reward for keeping watch over the hundreds of thousands of evil souls that aimlessly walked around, each one awaiting their turn to move closer to the Earth's core. My job is to make sure that the number of souls stays in check to keep the Earth going. Let me backtrack..... When the essence of evil leaves the living surface it is sucked through the Earth's layers until it reaches me. Here, at the lower mantel, it continuously walks around with all of the other souls as it awaits its turn to go to the core to heat the Earth. If too many souls go to the core at once, the earth gets too hot. Too few and there will be another ice age. Who exactly am I? Depends on the location and point of time that you ask. It also depends on who is telling the story and how much they exaggerate for attention. Some call me The Devil, Lucifer, Dis, Hades, Pluto, or Orc
Seth It was late by the time I turned onto the long stone driveway of the packhouse. I put my truck in park, but before I got out, I stared at the large stone and log cabin-style house. All these years I wanted nothing more than to bring Rhiannon ..... Rieka here. To bring her home. To share my life with her by my side as my Luna. But she didn't even know that the supernatural existed beyond the fantasy world. We were nothing more than myths and legends, childhood fantasies. Plus there's the fact that her entire life has been nothing more than a lie. "We need to have a meeting with the others tomorrow," I told Lucius as I finally left my truck and made my way towards the house. "No shit, but how about we handle one thing at a time? Like the cookies that you have a death grip on for example?" Lucius replied without shame. I looked at the large container tucked under my left arm, completely forgetting that Julia ended up baking a bunch of chocolate chip cookies while I picked a
Seth The sunlight coming through my bedroom window told me it was time to get my ass out of bed. If only I had gotten a decent night's sleep. After I took a shower and got dressed, I sent a mind link out to those closest to me that we needed to have a talk before breakfast. I immediately put my block up so that I wouldn't get bombarded with questions and proceeded to reschedule any business plans that I had for the day. As I made my way to the meeting room, I decided to swing into the kitchen and ask the cook to have breakfast brought in for us. It'll probably be better not to have a bunch of hangry wolves to deal with on top of everything else. Once I made it to the decent-sized room, I closed the window shades, sat down at the long wooden table, and proceeded to click my pen on it. "Calm the fuck down," Lucius demanded with an annoyed tone. I rolled my eyes at his hypocrisy but decided not to point out all the times I had to tell him to relax. Now wasn't the time for a p
Rhiannon My head felt like a lead balloon while my tongue stuck to the roof of my mouth from the dryness. I quickly rubbed my hands on the surface that I was lying on, making sure I was, in fact, in bed and not the grassy field. A breath of air left my lips as I felt the smooth sheets against my skin. I slowly opened my eyes just enough to see the water bottle that I kept on my nightstand. I quickly reached over, grabbed the bottle for dear life, and drank the entire thing. After moving my tongue around in my now-quenched mouth for a few seconds, I forced myself out of bed and made my way to the bathroom. As soon as I opened my bedroom door, I saw Amar sitting in the hallway, his gray eyes staring at me. A simple groan was the only thing I could muster as I walked past him. Once in the bathroom, I turned the shower water on, and the bathroom filled with steam. I found the bottle of Excedrin in the cabinet, used my hand to cup water from the sink, and took three of the pills be
Rhiannon (Rieka) Dub and I made it back to the farm much quicker than I thought we would. Which I was thankful for as the weather seemed completely untrustworthy as the howling wind made dark clouds dance across the sky. I pulled out my phone as soon as I dismounted and sent Timophy a message, letting him know that I was here. As I took care of Dub I kept chasing away a bad feeling that kept lurking inside of me. "It's been a long, emotional week, Dub. Let's get you back out with the others, " I said to my only friend in the world as I led him out to the pasture with the other horses, blaming the feeling I had on everything that's happened. To keep myself busy, I decided to go to the hay loft and sweep up all of the loose hay into a large pile. I must have lost track of time because before I knew it, everything was swept up, and a harsh knocking pulled my attention towards the loft wall by the stairs. Timophy was leaning against the loft wall, his black hair was messy, and
Seth I sat in my personal office that was connected to my bedroom, clicking my pen on my desktop as Sam sat in a chair across from me. Words may have been coming out of his mouth, but I honestly had no idea what he was saying. I was completely distracted by the uneasy feeling in the pit of my stomach. It only got more intense as the seconds ticked by, and it didn't help that Lucius was starting to act anxious. It felt like a little tornado was spinning in my mind, faster and faster. "Seth? Are you ok?" Sam asked with concern in his voice. My ears heard him, but my brain was too preoccupied to answer. "SETH!" Sam said my name loudly as he leaned across my desk and clapped his hands in front of my face to get my attention. "Something's wrong," I said as I quickly stood up and started making my way downstairs with Sam right behind me. "You need to use your words better than that, Seth, " Sam said as he followed towards the front door. "It's Rieka. I need to ....." "
Julia I leaned back in my recliner and sipped my glass of wine. Amar's high-pitched whining was giving me a migraine, and I needed something to try to dull the pain. I debated mixing something a little stronger, but I knew it was only a matter of time before .... "JULIA!" Seth yelled my name as he slammed my poor old wooden door shut. Amar finally shut up and I heard him jump off of Rhi's bed. He peaked his head around the corner of her doorway long enough to look at me before returning to her bed. If a dog could sneer, believe me when I say that he would have. I think the old mongrel was looking forward to this. I kept quiet as I heard Seth's footsteps getting closer. Soon enough, the Alpha was standing in front of me with his lead warrior by his side. The both of them were glaring at me as I rolled my eyes. I didn't miss the quiet scoff that left Roxanne's lips. She never did like me, especially when she found out I enjoyed hitting on her older brother. "What the fuck is
Rieka "Rieka?" A familiar female voice whispered my name. My new-old name ..... I kept my eyes closed tightly as I didn't want to wake up in the dream world of horrors once again. "Rhi, you really need to get out of bed now. There are things we need to tal ......." My eyes shot open, and I quickly sat up in bed as I realized that the voice I was hearing was actually coming from INSIDE my head. My heart started racing as I looked around the unfamiliar room that I was in. The queen-sized bed I was in had a slate blue and gray quilt, the walls were foggy-gray with natural wood trim, the old wooden floor had a large dark gray throw rug, there was a single antique wooden dresser with two matching nightstands, and there was a faint pine odor that lingered in the air. I had no fucking clue where I was ....... but then it hit me ..... "Timophy ...." I whispered his name out loud, fear evident in my voice. Panic started seeping in as I curled myself up in the blanket. Fear of the u
Izzy After breakfast, Damian and I left the packhouse to go on a walk as the others went to the stables to start cleaning it up. I know that everyone assumed I'd be staying, but I just didn't know if I was ready for that. I still needed time. "Have you seen that dog since he was let out this morning?" Damian asked quietly as we walked towards the woods. I shook my head. "No. It's kind of hard to call around to find his owners when he's not here. Maybe he ran back home or something?" Damian playfully grabbed my hand, spinning me around to face him with an obviously fake cared expression on his face. "What if he's a secret spy?!" I raised an eyebrow as I bit my bottom lip to try to contain my smile ..... and my sarcasm ..... but it wasn't working. "Don't worry, D, I'm pretty sure everyone already knows what a slut you've been ....." I immediately started laughing as I watched Damian's face fall, letting him know that I was playfully busting his balls. "Low blow, Bella!" D
Rieka The smell of coffee woke me from my deep slumber. As I stretched and opened my eyes, I immediately noticed that I was alone in Seth's king-sized bed. As soon as I sat up, I saw that there was a single cup of coffee with a small handwritten note leaning up against the cup so that I could easily read it. 'I didn't want to wake you. We're in the kitchen cooking breakfast. Seth.' I reached over and picked up the cup of coffee, smiling when I realized that not only was it still hot, but also because Seth remembered that I preferred my coffee black. I sipped the nectar of the Gods as Lupa groaned in my mind while she woke up. And to think I was enjoying having my own thoughts to myself .... Lupa scoffed with annoyance. "Sucks to be you. How about breakfast?" I stayed in bed as I finished my cup of coffee. I honestly didn't want to get out of bed .... out of Seth's bed. It was the most relaxing night's sleep that I had ever had, and it wasn't just because of the mattress.
Mia When Jay went into the bathroom to get ready for bed, I stripped out of my clothes and put on his robe. Once I heard the shower running, I decided to sneak in and brush my teeth. "You can't really sneak in when I can smell you," Jay said with amusement from the shower. I rolled my eyes as I continued to get the taste of dinner out of my mouth. I keep forgetting that everyone has a scent and that werewolves can smell their mate. Vampires have a strong sense of smell, but we smell .... other things. Blood things ..... "If those two were honest with each other, you and I would have met so much sooner," Jay's voice coldly trailed off, and I knew he was just vocalizing his frustrations. "If that happened, where would Rhi be right now?" I asked after rinsing my mouth with mouthwash. Jay was silent for a few seconds, but it didn't take long for him to go back to the subject we were discussing before Izzy's storm interrupted us. "You're really OK with living here?" I smile
Rieka After I got out of the shower, the smell of pizza called me downstairs to the living room, where I found the others already sitting around with full plates. "I wasn't gone THAT long, was I?" "I seriously thought we were going to have to send a search party, " Izzy answered sarcastically before eating a chicken wing. I rolled my eyes as I grabbed a plate and helped myself to the pizza and wings that were on the coffee table. "If I could do a happy dance right now, I would," Lupa said with glee. "Now that the guest of honor has finally joined us, can someone here explain to me what the hell the bird thing is about?" Seth asked as he gave me a coy grin, moving over so that I could sit next to him on the couch. I quickly looked over at Izzy, hoping she'd make room for me, but instead, she grinned and ever so slightly shook her head no. Bitch. Lupa chuckled as I made my way to the only open seat and sat down next to Seth. "Why don't you ask Jay and Blue," I grumbl
Rieka "Don't ever fucking do that again!" Mia's voice yelled as soon as we got out of the truck. "Oof ..... easy, killer. I feel like I was hit by a train," I heard Izzy say with a pain-filled groan. I looked over to see that Mia had evanesced over to Izzy and was hugging her tightly. Seth walked up next to me, gently placing his hand on the small of my back. I immediately spun around and glared at him. "You're the one that chased Dub and I!?!" "Fucking asshole," Roxie said with a scoff as she walked by us towards the packhouse. Seth closed his eyes and lowered his head as he rubbed the back of his neck, "I'm sorry, I ....." SLAP! The sound made us turn towards the front porch to see Damian holding his cheek while he stared at Roxie with a surprised expression. I guess the comment that Roxie made wasn't directed toward Seth. "What you did to her was so disrespectful! Then, you start fucking your way through Omegas? Disgusting!" Roxie yelled at Damian as she poked
Rieka There was a loud ringing in my ears as I continued to rub and blink my eyes. It didn't matter how many times I repeated the process, nor if my eyes were open or shut .... all I could see was blinding white. "Give me a minute, " Lupa grumbled with irritation. My sight slowly started to return as the ringing in my ears faded away. But the ringing was replaced by the sound of Mia's scream ..... ..... Izzy ..... I pulled my arm out of Cerulean's grasp and clumsily made my way down the stairs towards the spot where I last saw Izzy. Damian was kneeling on the ground with a hand on his forehead, struggling to come to his senses, and I hurried past him like he didn't even exist. My heart sank as I reached the unmoving black mound that was in the middle of the charred spot in the yard ..... no, no, no, no .... please let her somehow be OK ..... Too many emotions were running through me to think straight, and I never bothered to take the size and shape of what I was lookin
Rieka Izzy followed the black SUV up a long dirt road, or at least what we thought was just another dirt road. But to our surprise, it was the private driveway of the breathtakingly beautiful stone and log packhouse .... a building that I had seen in the past and just assumed was some type of resort. "This place is to die for," Mia whispered from the back seat. "Fall in love with your mate, Mia. Not the house," Izzy lectured her sister as she put the car in park next to the SUV. "Yeah, yeah, " Mia replied with an eye roll. Izzy let out a deep sigh as we watched Jay and Damian exit the SUV, turning around to look at us expectantly. I had to admit, I was a little jealous of Izzy and Mia. I know Izzy wants to reject Damian, but both he and Jay were easy on the eyes. "Let's get this over with," Izzy whispered as she unclipped her seat belt and placed her hand on the door handle. Mia reached over and gave Izzy's shoulder a reassuring squeeze before she eagerly got out of
Rhiannon After Mia, Izzy, and I bought what we needed to get through the weekend, and Mia made sure that Ron and Bet had everything under control at the farm, we followed Damian and Jay's black SUV back to their pack. I took in the scenery as Izzy drove, while Mia messaged with Jay from the back seat. There was a brief moment when I became excited while we traveled the back roads as we were heading in Gram's direction. But it left as soon as we turned onto a road that went in the opposite direction. "Do you really want to visit Julia when we're supposed to be following a couple of strange wolves? What would happen when they find out who you are, and that you're a liar?" Lupa chastised me for my thoughts. As I quietly stared out the windshield, not wanting to admit that my wolf was right, I caught something brown run out of the woods and into the road as soon as the SUV ahead of us passed .... what the fuck is .... "STOP THE CAR!" The tires came to a screeching halt as Izzy
Rieka Damian and I looked on in uncomfortable disbelief as Mia continued to eat Jay's face off. Ok, so she wasn't literally eating his face, but she wasn't holding back on the PDA by any means. The pull of the mate bond was obviously strong for her. A vampire being mated to a werewolf wasn't extremely rare, but it wasn't exactly a common occurrence, either. Vampires will fall in love with each other like humans do. Some even have arranged unions. But if a werewolf is mated to a vampire, the vampire will also feel the pull of the mate bond. "I ..... I need to go find Izzy, " I said uneasily, not wanting to be around for the makeout session, but not really wanting to tell Izzy the news, either. "Should I go with you, Nicole?" Damian asked just as I turned around and started to walk away. "Nicole?" Mia questioned the name as my brain hesitated to remember that ..... "That's you!" Lupa said loud enough to make my ears ring. Shit ..... shit, shit, shit! Today is going to be