Share

107

Author: Cate Jasmine
last update Last Updated: 2025-03-28 20:30:03

I want to cry.

It can’t be.

I cannot be going into heat, and Cadoc Collins absolutely, positively cannot be my mate. It would never be allowed. Not in a million years.

Fat, hot tears trickle down my cheek. My heart hurts and a wave of pure panic surges higher and higher, looming, about to break. I can’t breathe. My lungs won’t expand.

And then, out of nowhere, music floods my ears. I startle, almost whacking my head on the ceiling as I pluck the earbuds out and fling them down beside me on the bed.

The music still plays, faint and tinny. Guitar. Harmonica.

A human sings. He has a nasally voice, but it’s kind. Cheerful. There’s another instrument, the strange one that makes a spooky squawk. A theremin.

I lay my head back down, my ears next to the buds.

A hi-hat begins, and then it’s joined by the steady thud of a bass drum. A sweet female’s voice chimes in on the chorus.

It’s a pretty tune, lovely and simple.

I don’t know how I started the music—I don’t think I tapped anything—but it’s
Continue to read this book for free
Scan code to download App
Locked Chapter

Related chapters

  • The Tyrant alpha   108

    Nia’s freaking out. She keeps flicking her gaze toward the emergency exit. If I give her the nod, she’ll create a distraction. I just don’t think my limbs would cooperate. I try to give her a reassuring smile, but even my lips feel weird and disconnected.My mate can’t be Cadoc Collins, but even if it’s not, there’s still no good choice.A nob would be hell. I’ve watched Drona and Geralt. He gets bigger year after year, and she gets dimmer.A scavenger male might be worse. Who has it tougher? Drona’s pups or Uncle Dewey’s? At least Avalon can speak to her sire on the rare occasions he comes by when the pups are still awake. I can’t remember the last time Uncle Dewey spoke.Besides, too many scavenger males go for a walk. My father did, and he took my dam with him. Or whatever took him, took my dam, too.I don’t want my pup to end up alone, stowed away in the bunk I once slept in, wearing my old clothes, hustling for buttons I once touched.I can’t let that happen, but there’s no way o

    Last Updated : 2025-03-28
  • The Tyrant alpha   109

    Yes. My wolf nudges me with her snout. Ours.There is no doubt in her.He must recognize what we are to him, but he’s not flushed and sweaty and shaking. His gaze doesn’t even venture back to the scavenger tables. It’s like there’s a force field around me, deflecting his attention. No one would notice—no one seems to—but it’s as obvious to my wolf and me as the nose on his face.What do I do?Shift. I’ll bite him. My wolf delivers the image into my brain, fully wrought, even the tang of copper on my tongue.I spear my fingers into my hair, pulling chunks of my bun loose. I realize what I’m doing and try to shove it back together, but it’s no good.Go to him.My wolf nudges harder.I don’t want to—I want to hide under the table with the Goff snarfing scraps—but there’s something in me demanding that I go to him. It’s not my wolf, although she’s in complete accord. It’s an urgency in my blood.But he’s ignoring me.Didn’t he rescue me when we were pups, though? He handed me down that bo

    Last Updated : 2025-03-28
  • The Tyrant alpha   110

    What do I do now? If only there was a hole I could jump into.I open my mouth to say please—I can manage please—but before I can, Cadoc nods at Seth Rosser.Seth rises to his feet, moves to my side, and grasps my upper arm in an iron grip, turning me so hard my rubber sole squeaks.“Take her back where she belongs,” Cadoc says to my back, and Seth propels me forward, steering me past table after table of rubbernecking nobs and gawking humans.I let him, and my wolf complies. She’s dumbfounded, at a complete loss.I take a deep breath, trying to soothe us both, and I inhale a mouthful of rotten eggs. Dear Fate. It’s coming from Seth. I gag.Seth tightens his grip, and my wolf rumbles a warning, rattling my ribs. She stretches against my skin, and my stomach rolls. His touch is like a slither. Like a squelch. I shrink from him, and he squeezes harder.Behind us, at the front where Cadoc sits, there’s the sharp crack of splintering wood. A few females gasp, but I don’t look back to see w

    Last Updated : 2025-03-28
  • The Tyrant alpha   111

    Bevan busies himself collecting our clothes and shoving them into his string knapsack. We all know Cadoc’s not coming, but my wolf howls and howls, each one louder, more confused.A flock of geese takes off from the lake. A car alarm whoops in the nob’s parking lot.Nia nuzzles my haunch and licks my fur. It tickles like a mouse’s tongue.Finally, my wolf falls silent. A terrible, cold wind blows through the cracks between our ribs. A sharp something has lodged in our sternum. It throbs. It pierces.My wolf hacks and gags, but she can’t dislodge it. She lumbers to four legs, and she howls one last time, furious and bereft.Bevan, Nia’s wolf, and mine stare at the faded green metal door on its rusted hinges. It stays closed.My wolf sniffs and narrows her eyes.For a moment, white hot rage battles with bone deep grief, and I brace myself for her to plow through the door like a bulldozer.But then, by some miracle, the feeling ebbs, and she lets out a wolfish snort. I swear, she says, “

    Last Updated : 2025-03-28
  • The Tyrant alpha   112

    I force my fingers to stay poised over my keyboard, and I stop myself from glancing down to compare.The frayed cuffs of her jeans covered most of her worn sneakers. The rubber was peeling away from the canvas. She’d doodled on the toes. Rainbows arching between clouds.She looks so young, but she’s eighteen. That’s the first thing I had Seth find out after the incident in the library. She’s in her twelfth year at the Academy. Her final year. Her kind don’t continue on to professional training.The instructor wraps up the Q and A, looking to me for the signal that I’m good. I incline my head, and he dismisses the class.My entourage surrounds me as we make for the parking lot to drive the half mile to the Tower. I inhale deeply on the way, chasing Rosie’s scent. She smells like the spice aisle at the grocery store, sweet and tangy. Even with my senses on overdrive, I can’t track her. It’s been too long, and the wind’s too strong.It’s fine. Moon Lake territory is safe. We have no crim

    Last Updated : 2025-03-28
  • The Tyrant alpha   113

    Somehow, I make it until the end of the day. I leave at the stroke of six, aware that the others won’t go home to their families until I’m gone. Seth and I grab burgers from a cart on the pier. He ends up finishing mine and his. We watch the sun sink behind the mountains to the west of the lake, past the Bogs. My entourage clusters a few yards away, eating tacos, muttering amongst themselves in hushed voices. They scent my mood, and their wolves are uneasy.I peer toward the Bogs, trying to make out the trailers and docks, but everything past the Narrows is shrouded in darkness.“I can’t go to her.” I don’t know if I’m telling Seth, myself, or my pacing wolf.Seth grunts. “Derwyn’s on her.”“She must hate me.”He doesn’t bother blowing smoke up my ass. He holds out his uneaten fries. I shake my head.We walk to the High Rise. The streetlights flicker on.Guards greet me in the foyer, and my entourage peels off to head down to the gym.“You coming?” Seth asks.I nod at a Roberts to cal

    Last Updated : 2025-03-28
  • The Tyrant alpha   114

    Griff and Seth drag their asses back to the center of the mat. I adjust my stance. This summer, Killian Kelly had a field day exploiting the fact that I signal my moves by leading with my left foot. I overcorrected, and now I have to find the right balance again.Seth spits a tooth on the mat. “Aren’t we due for dinner?”“We can miss aperitifs. Come on. Gloves up. We have time.”“Not for my face to heal.”“No one gives a shit what your face looks like.”“Fuck you.” Seth grins and licks the red from his teeth.“Come.” I wave him on. He lunges. I take the blow on my chin and nail him with a right. Griff tries to sweep my leg, but I anticipate the move and front snap kick, toppling him like a tree.“I surrender,” he moans.“No surrender. Get up.”“My back is broken, man.” He is lying at a weird angle.As always, Seth is the last man standing. I give him a nod. “Come.”Seth throws a haymaker. I sidestep easily and feint left. He falls for it, but I pull the punch.He drives a fist into my

    Last Updated : 2025-03-28
  • The Tyrant alpha   115

    “What is it? Is it human?” I don’t do drugs, herbs, potions, none of it.“Not sure. It’s good shit, though. I got it from the witch, uh, I mean the wise woman.” He breaks off a chunk and hands it to me. It has the consistency of ginger, but it smells like what you’d find under a rotten log. “She calls it gumwood.”“I eat it?” I snap and point to my water bottle on the side of the ring. A young Powell dashes to fetch it.“No, man. You chew it up, and then you spread it on whatever hurts.”That is possibly even more foul than eating it. “The wise woman is fucking with you.”“No, I swear.” Kenny raises his hands. “That’s how it works.”I lift the baggie high in the air and glare at the dozen or so males in the gym. “Who uses this shit?”They all do. I’m not stupid. Of course, only Seth has the balls to admit it. He glances up from where he’s collapsed on a lifting bench and sighs. “Yeah, man. What?”“I chew this and spread it on my skin? Is that how this works?”“Yeah.”I grit my teeth,

    Last Updated : 2025-03-28

Latest chapter

  • The Tyrant alpha   484

    The humans know about shifters, of course, but there’s no need to draw more attention to us than we already do, as strangers in such a small town. Folks already gawk as Annie leads us to the village commons even though the streets are busy. It’s market day.As soon as we reach the grassy expanse filled with tables and tents, Alroy and Diantha peel off, heading in opposite directions. Griff seems torn, but when he sees that Diantha is making a beeline for a booth with racks of female clothing, he hurries to follow Alroy.Annie leads us down the makeshift walkways, smiling when she’s greeted by name. My mate is still shy, but there’s no trace of fear in her scent. I breathe her happiness and excitement in, letting it flush my lungs clean of the oily town air.She sees her friends before I do and lets go of my hand to run toward them.My mate. My Annie. Running with a smile lighting her face.This is a good, good day.Two females rush around their table, the third making her way more slo

  • The Tyrant alpha   483

    JUSTUSMy perfect, beautiful mate does not like surprises, so she knows exactly where we’re going as we trot through the woods that run along the human highway. At first, I was sad that I couldn’t spring this visit on her, but I love watching her wolf get more and more excited the closer we get to Chapel Bell. Her short little legs are moving so fast, I almost don’t have to slow my pace.Alroy, Griff, and Diantha don’t have my patience, so they’re several yards ahead of us. Poor Griff has to be the buffer between them, and he keeps getting caught in the crossfire when their wolves decide to break the monotony by sniping at each other.I was worried that Annie would be too nervous to venture this far from camp, but she gets more confident every day. I’m pretty sure that’s because when we were out for a walk two months ago, she saw me take out two ferals that were encroaching on our territory to the north, so even though Killian and I pretty much fought to a draw, she knows I can handle

  • The Tyrant alpha   482

    He bares his fangs, yanks the needle from his neck, and blinks at it, bemused.“Did you stab me with a fucking knitting needle?” He holds it up. Blood oozes from the wound, dripping down his bare chest. I didn’t even hit an artery.Justus snarls, squaring his shoulders and bending his knees, readying himself to attack. Every inch of his body is covered in mud and blood, gashes and purpling bruises. White bone shows through a jagged slash on his forearm.A male coughs, clearing his throat. “Can we just take a beat?” Killian raises his hands, raw flesh where his nails should be.I wouldn’t have thought it possible, but he’s as battered as Justus, and he seems to be favoring his left leg, like his right can’t hold weight. Our males spar constantly. I’ve seen all of them beat up at some point, but I’ve never seen any of them mangled this bad. I can’t believe either he or Justus are still upright.“That bitch stabbed me.” Leith points at me with the knitting needle.Justus howls and steps

  • The Tyrant alpha   481

    My wolf skids to a halt several feet away and then slinks forward, keeping the fire between her and the Salt Mountain wolf, letting the smoke block her scent. When she’s too close to dare creep closer, she huddles close to the ground, staring up and up at his tremendous mud-caked haunches. She’s a miniature in comparison. All the females are, and we all stare, powerless, as the wolf’s bones crack and a strapping man rises from the hulk of his beast.His blond hair shines through the dirt. I’ve seen him. Leith Munroe. The new Salt Mountain alpha.He rests his hands on his hips as if there isn’t chaos all around him as his wolves play a game of distraction, breaking after our slower, smaller, or older males and mauling them until our strong males are forced to turn back, away from us, to rescue them.Leith takes no notice of our wolves, even when they get close, or me, skulking behind the fire. Why would he? I’m no threat—skinny and small and stinking of fear.Instead, he’s intent on so

  • The Tyrant alpha   480

    ANNIERun! Run! Run!I squat as low as I can in the wildflowers and tear off my clothes.A few yards away, Killian and Justus are murdering each other. Tye, Ivo, and the rest are just watching, and no matter how much I scream, no matter what I say, their wolves don’t listen.And the Salt Mountain wolves are up to something. They’re edging away from the fight toward the trail to camp. Quarry Pack is so intent on the fight, they either don’t notice or don’t care.I have to get to Khalil, and my wolf is faster.Run into the woods! The woods!I huddle in the tall grass and summon my wolf. For the first time in my life, she’s ahead of me, bursting through our skin before I’m ready, assuming form like she’s surfacing from water rather than tearing herself free from bone and muscle.She runs away from the woods, toward the trail. The Salt Mountain wolves have gotten ahead of her, so she hangs back, keeping low and downwind.Turn around! Now!What are they doing? They can’t think to attack La

  • The Tyrant alpha   479

    “Lavender is light green this time of year. It doesn’t bloom until June or July.”“What are you going to do with it now then?”“Make a sachet. The scent mostly comes from the oils in its leaves.”“Make a sachet for who?”I wade through the tall grass to stand close to her and inhale her sweet rainy scent.“For the den,” she says, glancing bashfully up at me from under her thick brown lashes. She’s wearing my old sweater and another pair of my drawstring pants. Her pulse flutters at the base of her throat. She’s excited, too.Maybe we should cut this trip short and head back to the den.Or take a detour into the woods.She probably wouldn’t do that, but I think she’d agree to return to camp. I draw in another deep breath. Her arousal teases my nose.My wolf snarls.Annie startles.It takes my brain three seconds too long to catch up.Underlying the rain and slick, there is another scent. Earthy, yes, but not the right earth. It doesn’t belong. I’ve smelled it before. A long time ago.I

  • The Tyrant alpha   478

    My grip on the pot handle tightens. Water sloshes over the sides. My jaw clenches, my guts knot, and my dry eyes burn.I can’t do this.I have to.“Justus?” Annie appears in the den entrance. She’s wrapped herself in a light pink sheet, and she’s holding a cup. “You brought water.” She smiles, padding toward me on bare feet.And then she stops. Her smile falls aways.She blinks in the sunshine, the bleariness of sleep disappearing as she takes in my grim face and desperate hold on the pot. If I had dignity, I’d find a way to smile back. Say good morning. Act like everything is fine.Her chest falls as she lets out a long, silent breath. She looks me straight in the eye. Her fear and doubt are clear as day.She’s going to ask me to take her home now.She takes a step closer to me, and then another, until we’re toe to toe. She gazes up at me, and for a second, all I can see is her beauty—her graceful neck, her delicate pointy chin, her soft, curving lips—and then I notice the expression

  • The Tyrant alpha   477

    “Trust me,” he shushes, the hot head of his cock already notching at my entrance. He flexes his hips and sinks into me, a groan of pure relief torn from his throat. He fills me so completely that I ache where I take him, but I love it.I pant through the strain, and he gathers me close as he thrusts, cradling me to his chest, kissing my lips, my brow, my cheeks, the tip of my nose. I start to rock my hips in time.“You’re so beautiful, Annie,” he rumbles in my ear. “So perfect for me. My Annie. Mine.”I sigh and ride his bucking hips, his cock stretching me until I feel like a glove made for him.“Come for me, now,” he growls. “Now, Annie.”Hot cum floods my womb, and his knot catches and swells, tearing a raw shout from my throat. His fingers find my clit while his fangs sink into my shoulder.I scream, bucking against him, but I’m caught, so he moves with me, hushing me.I hover another second on the edge, somehow above myself, watching his strong arms tremble as they wrap around me

  • The Tyrant alpha   476

    I let my hand fall and turn my head away.He snarls. He doesn’t like that.I drop back so I’m sitting on the pallet, lift my chin, and fold my arms. His wolf rumbles unhappily. He shouldn’t have let his man mess with my nest.He dips his head and looks up at me from his lowered eyes, a wolf playing at a lamb. “I’m sorry, Annie. Here it is.”He holds the pillow out.It’s a trap.Of course it’s a trap. I reach for it anyway. As soon as I grab the pillow, he yanks and falls to his back, dragging me with him. I tumble on top of him. He quickly nips the pillow from my grasp, tucks it behind his head, and grins up at me.I push up on his chest, struggling upright until I’m straddling his waist. He crosses his arms behind his head.I lean forward and try to pull the pillow free, but his head is too heavy.“Just ask nicely, Annie.” There’s a new note in his voice, a gravelly depth that has nothing to do with his wolf.I prop myself on his folded biceps. They’re hard and velvet and flexing und

Explore and read good novels for free
Free access to a vast number of good novels on GoodNovel app. Download the books you like and read anywhere & anytime.
Read books for free on the app
SCAN CODE TO READ ON APP
DMCA.com Protection Status