Ezra's POV
"Ezra let's go! Let's go!" ...
"Please Ez! Everyone is waiting on us!" shouted someone I assumed was my baby sister.
It was early. Too early.
The next thing I knew the door to my designated room busted up and in ran my seven year old sister, Blaire. "Ez-RA!" she whined. It was really hard to say no to that one there. She was tall for a seven year old by human standards, but for a werewolf decended from an Alpha she was normal. She had naturally curly hair that was brown, but just barely. It was almost black. I imagine when the time comes her wolf will be the same color, but that's just my guess. It was summer, so her skin was tan and that made her light blue eyes stand out even more. With her in my space, I knew trying to stay in bed any longer was futile.
"Ugh. Fine. I'll be down in 5 minutes." I mumbled into my pillow.
It was a day I dreaded every single year. Disney Day. The day my father insisted we take the youth of our pack to Disney World. He felt it was important to teach members of our pack how to interact with humans, and have fun while doing it. With them being under the age of 16, we didn't have to worry about any of them shifting on accident.
I felt too old for this. It's Disney for fuck's sake. It's for babies. I'm next in line for Alpha, so he insisted I go everywhere he went.
I hate everything about it. Especially the smells! Goddess the smells...Human sweat, food, dirt. Even the water smells. And the heat! I am never as grateful to live in Washington as I am when I have to make this shitty trip. Why does it have to be so hot?
I won't even mention the noise. Werewolf hearing is a bitch sometimes.
Shaking myself from my whiny thoughts, I rolled out of bed and ran across the hall to the bathroom cursing how tiny the shower was. We rent this mansion from an allied pack, and while the bathroom is bigger than most it the damn shower head isn't high enough. I may only be seventeen, but I am already 6'4 and still growing.
I showered, dressed and checked myself in the mirror. I don't really give a shit what I look like, but my father will bitch at me if I don't at least look like I tried. I keep my dark brown hair pretty short. It makes training easier, and getting ready even more so. I spike that shit and go! My light blue eyes are even brighter today than normal. They almost look white and very unnatural compared to a human's. I haven't shifted since we got here and my alpha genes were making me a little twitchy I guess. I'll have to make sure I keep the shades on today.
Dressed in board shorts, a fitted white tee that showed off my fit body, and my favorite tennis shoes I sauntered down the stairs to the irritated eyes of my parents.
"It's about damn time Ezra." my father, Alpha Osirus Drasus deadpanned. He was a big man. 6'6 easy, brown hair like mine, and he was in insanely good shape for a man his age. It comes with being the Alpha of a strong pack. You can't have a weak Alpha running around. That would just be asking for trouble. That's why I am going to be even stronger. I want to expand our territory. I'm going to be feared but fair. Having that mindset made it hard for me and my dad to jive. Especially since I'll be taking over after my Alpha ceremony on my eighteenth birthday.
"Sorry. I'm late. I didn't want to come." I said. That erned a glare from my mother, Elizabeth.
I turned and headed for the door before they could say anything else.
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As soon as we got through the gate of Magic Kingdom I threw my parents the dueces and took off into the crowd of sweaty humans. I might be forced into this stupid trip, but nobody was going to make me endure a day with all those tiny werewolves! No. Fucking. Way.
Even being seventeen I towered over most people. It made it easy to people watch. Everyone was way too happy to be out in this heat in my opinion.
I was already melting in the midmorning heat, so I ducked into the first shaded ride line I could find. Pirates of the Caribbean was tolerable. It was nice and cool, it was on a boat, and the ride itself actually lasted a little while. I didn't hate it, but I would never admit to liking it.
The sign said the wait time was 20 minutes. I didn't mind standing that long as long as I wasn't outside in the sun. They even had fans going in here.
I wasn't more than ten steps into the line when I smelled it. The most intoxicating smell I have ever smelled in my life - lavendar and mint.
My instincts told me what it was. What SHE was. My mate.
Cass's POV Happiness. That's what described my mood. I was happy to be in Disney World with my family. It was one of my favorite places we went on vacation. Even if it was a little hot most days. That's what the pool is for in the afternoons! There was always something interesting going on and I never got bored. Even though some of the rides were a little on the easy going side, I enjoyed them. I enjoyed the history of the company as well. I guess I just like history in general, but that's not really important right now. Right now, I'm standing in a ride line with my folks listening to my chatty mother talk about the rest of our plans for the day. I pretty much ignored most of what she was saying until she started talking about food. I love food. All food. We were currently standing in line for the Pirates of the Caribbean when I got a wiff of the most amazing colgne I'd ever smelled. Holy shit it smelled amazing! It was like a co
Ezra's POVI had to get closer. My mate was here! I couldn't believe it! Werewolves travel and visit places with humans all the time. It's not rare, but I have to say I was surprised. What are the fucking odds? I had to get to her without making a scene."Pardon me, my parents are up there." I said to anyone that kept me from cutting in the line. I couldn't make a scene, but I had to find her. I'd never felt a pull so strong. They always say when you know you know, and they weren't kidding!The scent of lavendar and mint got stronger and strong until I spotted her. Beautiful chocolatebrown hair pulled into a high ponytail exposing the most sexy neck I'd ever seen, cut off shorts showing perfectly tan legs, a gray fitted tank top, and black converse.Then I froze. I took another deep breath. Some was wrong. She's human. HUMAN?! This can't be right. I studied her again. Fuck she was beautiful, but that was besides the poin
Ezra's POVThe rest of my day went by in a complete haze. The Magic Kingdom seemed extremely big until you were actively trying to avoid someone. I only caught her scent one other time during the day and it took less strength than before to stay away. That was a good sign.I just wandered aimlessly. Trying to focus on anything but Cassandra Miller. Fuck I wish I hadn't heard her stupid fucking name. I can't believe I let her touch me! I can't believe she felt the mate sparks! I can't believe she's human! I wanted to scream! Rage and frustration came over me in waves.I finally spotted my parents and their group of werewolf youth all wearing their matching Best Day Ever Disney shirts. I waved as they spotted me and walked up to join the group. Still lost in thought. My mother pulled me from my internal rampage, "Ezra, honey. Are you okay? Did you have fun being a loner at Disney?" I looked into her hazel eyes. I could see love and concern. My mothe
Cass's POVTwo Years Later...It was my eighteenth birthday. I laid in bed that morning staring at the ceiling, not thinking about anything in particular. I got up and dressed in my favorite pair of skinny jeans, white fitted short sleeved v necked t-shirt, a black blazer, and a pair of red converse. I went with curling my hair, and natural makeup. Comfy yet stylish - That was my jam. I grabbed my backpack and jogged down the stairs. I could smell the food my mother had been cooking since I first woke up. I've got a good sniffer, what can I say? From the smell of it, I knew she'd made bacon, eggs, and french toast. Half of the way down the stairs I heard my dad call my name. I knew based on where his voice came from, he must be in his office. I walked the short distance past the kitchen to his office and walked in without knocking."Hey Sweetheart. Happy Birthday!" My dad was eyeballing me with concern and added, "
Cass's POVDad turned to walk back in the direction of his truck, the tear long gone from his face. I, however, was rooted in place. I couldn't move. Shock had taken over me. The ringing of my dad's cell phone inerupted my mind's sea of nothingness."Janine! Hey, I was just about to call you."....."No I hadn't had a chance to text you back. I'm sorry."....."Yes. She's fine. It was another one of her spells, just quite a bit worse."...."I know dear I want answers too. They don't have any though."...."No! She's not staying. We are about to be released. See you soon." Dad said cutting mom off and ending the call before she could say anything else. We must have been here longer than I thought.I could hear my dad's heart beat and it was still pumping a little higher than it should. He was still a little uneasy about what had happened. How could he not be? His daughter had just. Fuck. I don't even want to say it. Mainly because I still didn't have a
5 YEARS LATER... CASS'S POV I walked into the lecture hall about thirty minutes before class would start. I wanted to get a feel for the room. This was my second semester as an Assistant Professor. I was so excited to get the job. I enjoyed it, plus it helped me pay for my masters degree. Thank god I was going to be done after I take my comps in a few months. I never went to UCONN to play basketball. After my first shift, my dad and I decided it would be best to lay low. Mom was pretty disappointed, but my dad worked his magic and convinced her it was for the best. So, I gave up my basketball scholarship and took an academic one at UCLA. I had completed several hours of college credit in high school, so I with some determination I was able to complete my undergraduate degree in English Literature ahead of schedule. I'm now persuing a masters degree in Folklore. I know it sounds like an odd thing specialty, but folklore ha
Ezra's POVI was out for a run along the south side of our pack border. It was a beautiful day for January. The sun was shining. The trees were still convinced it was winter, but it was weather I couldn't pass up the chance to enjoy. I like to run in wolf form when I can. It helps relieve some of my daily stress. As a wolf, I am quite large. Larger than my father, and certainly larger than any other wolf in my pack. My fur is jet black. Only alphas are capable of having jet black fur, but not all have it. My father's was not. His was dark dark brown, and almost black but not quite. I was secretly proud of my black fur but a good leader doesn't brag."Alpha, I'm going to put all the files on the newest warrior trainees on your desk." Jax, my lead warrior said via mindlink. We were starting warriors younger than any pack ever has. They still recieve proper education either by private school or some even choose to go to public school. That's completely up
Cass's POV I was done a little earlier than I anticipated and decided to just relax the rest of the evening. I loaded up in my good ole Jeep, and went by and got mine and Alex's favorite Chinese takeout. I then headed to my home. I live on the outskirts of the city. It was my attempt at being as secluded as possible in the event that I had a melt down or something. It also allowed me to shift whenever I wanted to. I had very few neighbors way out here. Alex lived closer to the university, but stayed over a couple nights a week. I stayed with him occasionally, but I always claimed that I slept better in my own bed. It probably sounded extremely upity, but Alex never complained. I think if I was happy, he was happy. We both knew eventually we would need to sort out where we would live after we got married. If I am being honest I don't know how I would live in the city and keep my sanity. There are always so many noises and smells. It wears me out.
Cass's POVI've always been one of those people that either doesn't dream at all, or has crazy weird dreams. No in between. Sometimes the crazy dreams are just that. Crazy nonsense. Sometimes they are nightmares. Those usually involve me trying to get to Alex before that deafening crack hits my body like a bullet, but my feet are so heavy and I can only run in slow motion. Those are the worst. I've dreamt of Ezra many times. Rarely in a romantic setting though. He always appeared at random times doing random things. One time, I dreamt that my washing machine was overflowing with rainbow suds, and Ezra came to my house to see if I wanted to go meet his pet turtle. They say your dreams mean things about you. I'd love to know what the hell that one meant.After my exhaustion overtook me, I started to dream. It wasn't unusual. I was late for class, but was mad about something I couldn't figure out. So I went for a run. Somehow, I ran from UCLA campus to the clearing
Cass's POVSomething in me snapped. I don't know if it was the overwhelming moment of meeting Zeus or if it was the overload of more information that I needed to learn. Or maybe it was the mention of a war I didn't understand. Whatever it was, I let a little bit of my sanity slip and began to laugh.It wasn't a small giggle. It was a loud, obnoxious, from the diaphragm laugh. The look of confusion on Zeus's gorgeous face mad it worse. He clearly wasn't expecting this reaction. Maybe he expected determination, or fear, or maybe awe. That's not what he got. He got me. Me doing everything I could not to double over and laugh even harder than I already was.I steadied myself by leaning over on the pillar that Zeus had previously stepped out from behind. I put my right hand over my heart, and took a breath. "I'm sorry." I giggled out. "I really am." I laughed a few more times before I let the madness fade."Are you mad? How has anything we've
Cass's POV Steady breaths. Steady heartbeat. Steady breaths. Steady heartbeat. "Stranger Danger" is a concept we are all taught at a pretty young age. You don't talk to strangers. You don't take candy from strangers. If a stranger offers to let you see puppies in his van, you say "no"...or in my case a VIP tour in a temple. Shit. My parents would be shaking their heads at this. Good job, Cass. Good Job. I needed to act casual. This guy didn't smell like anything other than a normal person. I didn't smell anything wolf related on him. He didn't seem to radiate any sort of power. Ever since the activation of my Lycan genes I always have an acute sense of someone being dangerous. Amphitrion didn't ooze anything except normalcies. Unless you count those insane good looks. Which in this moment, I needed to NOT be focused on. Playing it casual was the only way to go. The only thing that had my senses on high alert was
Cass's POV The beauty of the stone palace in front of me was remarkable. I stretched my neck and leaned my head back to look up so that I could continue to take it all in. It was clear that this structure was old, ancient even. It was taken care of though. Pristine. There was something about this place that drew me in. Almost as though it had a power all on it's own. I was drawn it. I could feel it seeping into my very essence. Filling my soul. It felt right. As though it was mine all along. "It's beauty is capitivating is it not?" I drew my attention away from the alabaster wonder in front of me. I was greeted by the youngest appearing of the council members. He was tall, and extremely handsome. Although he was much older than he appeared, as humans go, he gave off the appearance of a man in his fifties. Bits of silver in his dark hair that probably only made him more handsome with age. His eyes were green and seemed extremely kind. He had on a wedding
Cass's POV I left the States without saying goodbye to Ezra. It was for the best. We said we needed to be said. The plane that the elders sent was a beautiful private jet. I guess I shouldn't be surprised that they've accumulated funds over the hundreds of years they have been existence. Their official title was The Council of Elder Wolves. Not particularly creative, but I digress. The plane ride was going to be long, and I was the only one on the plane aside from the pilots and the small crew that only occasionally came to ask if I needed anything. The constant buzzing feeling from the plane's engines was very relaxing. The quiet was welcomed as well. I hadn't really been left alone very much since Alex's death. So the alone time was nice. As much as all the uncertainty that had been circling my life had caused me to worry, wonder and stress, I left feeling different. I felt, for the first time in my life, like I was going in the right direction. I w
Cass's POV Over the two weeks that passed, I trained hard. Harder than I've ever trained in my life. It felt amazing. It made me feel alive. My days consisted of the same routine. Wake up early, eat, train, get to know the warriors and the Alphas that came and went, train some more, eat some more, and at night I would shift and go for run with the moon. I had orignally planned to head to Rome to meet with the elders after two weeks but had decided to get one more week under my belt of training. It also gave me time to find out what the plans would be to keep working to raise our armies while I was away. It drove me insane to not know what we were raising an army for. The vampire attacks were not always obvious. Since the appearance of the King on US soil, there had been fewer and fewer bodies left for the world to see. The larger cities, however, had been reporting the homeless disappearing. Less and less were on the streets. Humans of course woul
Cass's POV It was when I felt the sparks from Ezra's hand gently making it's way down from my waist that I snapped out of the euphoric haze created by the mate bond. I placed both of my hands flat on his ridiculously chiseled chest and gave it a big shove. Ezra flew back almost ten feet. I instantly felt uneasy from the loss of touch from my mate. I hadn't intentionally sent him flying that far, but seeing him recover fine and never really lose his footing kept me from any feelings of remorse. The look of shock, confusion, and maybe hurt was evident on his face, but I didn't care. I was out of breath from the kiss, and if I was honest I felt a little empty. The realization of that sent me over the edge. "No! You don't get to just kiss me now that you know I'm not a human and suddenly regret rejecting our mate bond!" I was seething, and in response to the aggression rolling off of me in waves, Ezra's Alpha instincts had him instantly in a defensive posture with
Cass's POV I had only had a glimpse of everyone when this taller than average young teenager came a kidnapped me. Even being tall for her age, the girl was still shorter than me. I couldn't help but laugh. "Okay Blaire. You've successfully kidnapped me. We can slow down now." I took that moment to slow the both of us so that I could take a look around. To say that I was wowed would be a fierce understatement. The great room that I was in was incredible. It resembled the grand lobby of a lodge, although at the moment it was empty. Everything was rustic and wood. There were multiple fire places, and groups of couches and rocking chairs placed around them. They were clearly there for pack members to gather together. Looking up I could see that the different upper floors could overlook the railing and see all the way to the ground floor. The entire room smell of cedar and magic. It looked like the most cozy place I had ever seen. I just wanted to grab a book and
Ezra's POV Today was the day that so many warriors were scheduled to arrive. Our kind was coming together to prepare for potential war. While no direct threats had been made to our packs in particular by the vampires, there were lots of random rogue attacks. They were always very well planned and calculated. Someone was doing research. These rogues weren't normal either. They had strength that they shouldn't have. Their eyes were a shade of red that wasn't natural to our kind. We had yet to capture one alive. While, my territory had yet to be tested, I knew it was coming. It was hard to focus on vampires when all these rogue attacks were happening. However, the elder council made it pretty clear that if King Valerius was back, a war was coming. None of us knew when though. That's why the meeting with the elder council was happeing soon. We needed information. I assume his presence in the United States is because of Cass. Her ancestors were in Europe the last ti