"So Mary is safe?" I ask Ambrose one more time, wanting confirmation that my mate will be fine if we wait another week before waging war against the werewolf kind. "uhh...yeah," Ambrose replied hesitantly. "If anything happens to my mate, I'll personally see to your execution," I growl out at Ambrose as I walk past him and into my office. I scratched at my neck, where I would've been marked had the pain I felt from Ash biting Mary been mine. The phantom mark itched like a healing scab, which made me believe that Ambrose was telling the truth and that he was able to spell Mary. I pulled for my mate bond, wanting a sign from my bond or from my mate herself indicating that she was okay, anything to help me feel okay with abandoning her for the week, but the response was the as the one I was met with last night; nothingness, which was better than the heartwrenching effects of a mate who died but not as wonderful as the feeling of my mate's heart beating alongside my own. "You look lik
I etch out another notch into the side of the bedpost. According to the notches, it's been five days since Ash marked me as his and four days since I felt my bond with Nikolai slip away. In my heart, I knew that Nikolai was okay, but I could wash away the sense of dread I was feeling.During the day, Ash lets me wander the halls of the mansion. The house is always empty; the only residents here are Ash, myself, and a couple of servants. I've tried to win the servants over to my side, but they ignore me; they continue with their chores and act like nothing is amiss. But perhaps to them, nothing has changed. When I first came here, there was another younger female who'd been taken. She was long gone now, but what if Ash made a habit of kidnapping women, and the servants were desensitized from the matter. On the first day, Ash let me wander the halls; I tried to make a break for it. The moment my foot crossed the front door threshold, I was met with unbearable pain as an electrical curr
It's been four days since Kade and I left the castle and were transported to the woods beside the sprite land. Kade's inside man still hasn't made contact with us, and I've grown irritated sitting around here waiting. I could be doing other things with my time, like plotting out how to kill Ash, but instead, I've been pacing a river bed. I've managed to locate the end of the bed and the pond it feeds into, but I am met with resistance when I try to find where the river begins. The river leads to Sprite lands. The river is deep enough to swim in, and last night when I suggested to Kade that we could try to swim the river into spite lands, he agreed to it on one condition. We would give whoever this S person is until tomorrow night to show up and lead us inside; if he isn't here by then, we'll act out my plan. Kade doesn't know it yet, but I plan to kill everyone and anyone who gets in my way. I'm ravenous with hunger. I haven't fed on anyone or drank a blood bag since Mary was taken.
You're wondering why Stetson is the way he is," Delphine hums, her voice vibrating through me, "He was cursed as a child by the witch Belinda. He was cursed before the Princes closed the doors to the Sprite kingdom, but that is a story for another time. Right now, we should initiate the blood vow before your time has run out." She replies, her knowledge about my situation indicating she knows more than she's letting on.I go to ask another question, but she holds her hand up to silence me, "I can only see a brief glimpse of your future. You've chosen the correct path, Nikolai, but your fate will change if you come home empty-handed." She states cryptically, "Now take my hand and repeat after me." No longer hesitant about making a blood vow, I place my hand in hers, her magical energy rushing into my body as our hands become one. "A gift for later. You'll know when to use it." She whispers before raising the dagger and stabbing deeply into our joined hands, stabbing a hole directly t
To my surprise, all four of the princes are at the door when they open it to greet Delphine. "We've been expecting you." The blond hair prince, who appears to be the oldest, states, welcoming Delphine and me into their home. There are already six cups of steaming tea waiting for us on the coffee table. "I wouldn't expect any less from Tobias," Delphine states nodding her head toward the brown-haired brother as she sits on one of the six pillows sitting around the coffee table. "Please sit." The black-haired brother indicates to me, "It isn't every day we have visiting royals here in the Sprite kingdom, King Nikolai." He smiles, although it doesn't quite reach his eye. "Enough pleasantries," Spits the red-headed brother, his fire showing in his eyes, "Anya isn't going with you." "Jed," Delphine chides, "Please hear Nikolai out. Also, Tobias, I hadn't realized your ability to see the future had grown so strong. Your mother would be proud of you." Delphine states, praising the brown
"Alpha!" My scout calls to me, rushing through the doors of my home, "The King's army has been spotted; what would you like us to do." "Prepare the troops," I growl out before storming into the room and heading toward spWhen I discovered her in her room this morning, I immediately sent for the three witches; Befana, Baba Yaba, and Circe. "Are there any changes?" I asked when I stormed through the room, looking at Mary's seemingly dead body."None that we've noticed yet," Circe responded, her hands "waving over Mary's body. "THIS ISN'T SUPPOSED TO HAPPEN!" I yell, my arms sprouting fur, my wolf trying to escape having felt anger. "HOW AM I SUPPOSED TO BEAT THE ROYAL ARMY WITHOUT A PHOENIX ON MY SIDE!" "You still have the magic of all but the Sprites and the merpeople inside you. You're still as powerful as his highness." Befana spoke, trying to soothe my anger. "And if his mate is this bad, Nikolai won't stand a chance against you." Crooned Baba Yaga. Yes, but if the mate bond a
Lucious is flying above us, burning everything his fire can touch; he doesn't care if the people he harms are on his side or ours. "Draq, Dru," I yell out to the twins, hoping to be heard over the screams of those being burned alive. "Lucious must be stopped. If he continues on this way, nothing will be left." The twins both give each other a knowing look, communicating in a way that only twins can before they acknowledge me. "We will do our best to make you proud, your highness," Draq replies, bowing his head before shifting into his massive beast. "If anything happens to us, just know that we fell with honor," Dru states, bowing his head as a sign of respect before shifting into his great beast. Anya gasps in astonishment, this more than likely was her first time seeing a dragon up close, reminding me that she'd come along with us. "Marques," I commanded the merman, "I need you to take Anya somewhere safe." "You need me in this battle," Marques states urgently, glancing over
Ambrose's magic exploded, throwing Nevaeh and I in the opposite direction of Nikolai; while I was still pissed that Nevaeh hadn't listened to me and sought safety, I couldn't focus on that right now. I needed to focus on the tasks at hand, keeping Nevaeh and myself safe while cutting through our enemies and helping Nikolai rescue Mary. I glanced around, taking note of the mayhem surrounding me; there wasn't an easy path to take getting to Ash's home; we would have to head directly into the center of the war. I looked from where Ambrose's magic had tossed us, ensuring he was okay. He was battling head-on with the witch Befana. He seemed evenly matched with the high witch, battling her spell for spell, but I wondered how long he would be able to keep up with this; Nikolai had fed from him earlier, and he'd held the protective shield over us for nearly half the battle. Looking quickly over Ambrose's features, it didn't seem like the fae was weakening in the slightest bit. The longer he
As I sit in my chair looking outside, I recall the past. It's been over a year since my Phoenix cleansed the Earth, and to hear the way others told it, it had been quite a spectacle. Nevaeh told me she'd felt herself dying and then saw a bright light so pure that she couldn't help but walk to it. She thought it was the entrance to the Heavens, but when she reached for the light, she felt herself being pulled through a fiery inferno, and when she came to, Kade was cradling her head, murmuring to her softly over and over again how much he loved her. Kade had told me he was mourning the loss of Nevaeh when he felt a darkness sweep over the Earth. The darkness that surrounded him was ice-cold, and its touches felt like the grim reaper had come to collect the souls promised to him. Kade said he felt the darkness engulfing him, but then a pure voice called to him, beckoning him to jump off a ledge away from the darkness. Kade told me he almost didn't listen to the voice; having lost Neva
When Ash tossed me aside, I expected to feel something, anything but the emptiness I was feeling inside of me. How could I feel the intensity of Mary's throat being slashed and then feel nothing but sorrow? How could a mate survive their other half's tragic death? I'd watch my mom destroy herself from the inside out over my father's death, but looking at her physically, no one could tell that she had died on the inside. That's exactly how I felt; I felt dead inside. I could hear people screaming, swords clashing, and the smell of fresh blood spilling onto the ground, but I couldn't do anything to stop it. I couldn't move from the spot where I had landed. I could hear the Alpha laughing and taunting me, jesting over Mary's unnecessary death, but I was too weak to stop him. I was too weak to put my sword through his back and silence him. I had failed my friends and my country, but more important than both of those combined, I had failed her. Mary trusted me to keep her safe, she truste
Ambrose's magic exploded, throwing Nevaeh and I in the opposite direction of Nikolai; while I was still pissed that Nevaeh hadn't listened to me and sought safety, I couldn't focus on that right now. I needed to focus on the tasks at hand, keeping Nevaeh and myself safe while cutting through our enemies and helping Nikolai rescue Mary. I glanced around, taking note of the mayhem surrounding me; there wasn't an easy path to take getting to Ash's home; we would have to head directly into the center of the war. I looked from where Ambrose's magic had tossed us, ensuring he was okay. He was battling head-on with the witch Befana. He seemed evenly matched with the high witch, battling her spell for spell, but I wondered how long he would be able to keep up with this; Nikolai had fed from him earlier, and he'd held the protective shield over us for nearly half the battle. Looking quickly over Ambrose's features, it didn't seem like the fae was weakening in the slightest bit. The longer he
Lucious is flying above us, burning everything his fire can touch; he doesn't care if the people he harms are on his side or ours. "Draq, Dru," I yell out to the twins, hoping to be heard over the screams of those being burned alive. "Lucious must be stopped. If he continues on this way, nothing will be left." The twins both give each other a knowing look, communicating in a way that only twins can before they acknowledge me. "We will do our best to make you proud, your highness," Draq replies, bowing his head before shifting into his massive beast. "If anything happens to us, just know that we fell with honor," Dru states, bowing his head as a sign of respect before shifting into his great beast. Anya gasps in astonishment, this more than likely was her first time seeing a dragon up close, reminding me that she'd come along with us. "Marques," I commanded the merman, "I need you to take Anya somewhere safe." "You need me in this battle," Marques states urgently, glancing over
"Alpha!" My scout calls to me, rushing through the doors of my home, "The King's army has been spotted; what would you like us to do." "Prepare the troops," I growl out before storming into the room and heading toward spWhen I discovered her in her room this morning, I immediately sent for the three witches; Befana, Baba Yaba, and Circe. "Are there any changes?" I asked when I stormed through the room, looking at Mary's seemingly dead body."None that we've noticed yet," Circe responded, her hands "waving over Mary's body. "THIS ISN'T SUPPOSED TO HAPPEN!" I yell, my arms sprouting fur, my wolf trying to escape having felt anger. "HOW AM I SUPPOSED TO BEAT THE ROYAL ARMY WITHOUT A PHOENIX ON MY SIDE!" "You still have the magic of all but the Sprites and the merpeople inside you. You're still as powerful as his highness." Befana spoke, trying to soothe my anger. "And if his mate is this bad, Nikolai won't stand a chance against you." Crooned Baba Yaga. Yes, but if the mate bond a
To my surprise, all four of the princes are at the door when they open it to greet Delphine. "We've been expecting you." The blond hair prince, who appears to be the oldest, states, welcoming Delphine and me into their home. There are already six cups of steaming tea waiting for us on the coffee table. "I wouldn't expect any less from Tobias," Delphine states nodding her head toward the brown-haired brother as she sits on one of the six pillows sitting around the coffee table. "Please sit." The black-haired brother indicates to me, "It isn't every day we have visiting royals here in the Sprite kingdom, King Nikolai." He smiles, although it doesn't quite reach his eye. "Enough pleasantries," Spits the red-headed brother, his fire showing in his eyes, "Anya isn't going with you." "Jed," Delphine chides, "Please hear Nikolai out. Also, Tobias, I hadn't realized your ability to see the future had grown so strong. Your mother would be proud of you." Delphine states, praising the brown
You're wondering why Stetson is the way he is," Delphine hums, her voice vibrating through me, "He was cursed as a child by the witch Belinda. He was cursed before the Princes closed the doors to the Sprite kingdom, but that is a story for another time. Right now, we should initiate the blood vow before your time has run out." She replies, her knowledge about my situation indicating she knows more than she's letting on.I go to ask another question, but she holds her hand up to silence me, "I can only see a brief glimpse of your future. You've chosen the correct path, Nikolai, but your fate will change if you come home empty-handed." She states cryptically, "Now take my hand and repeat after me." No longer hesitant about making a blood vow, I place my hand in hers, her magical energy rushing into my body as our hands become one. "A gift for later. You'll know when to use it." She whispers before raising the dagger and stabbing deeply into our joined hands, stabbing a hole directly t
It's been four days since Kade and I left the castle and were transported to the woods beside the sprite land. Kade's inside man still hasn't made contact with us, and I've grown irritated sitting around here waiting. I could be doing other things with my time, like plotting out how to kill Ash, but instead, I've been pacing a river bed. I've managed to locate the end of the bed and the pond it feeds into, but I am met with resistance when I try to find where the river begins. The river leads to Sprite lands. The river is deep enough to swim in, and last night when I suggested to Kade that we could try to swim the river into spite lands, he agreed to it on one condition. We would give whoever this S person is until tomorrow night to show up and lead us inside; if he isn't here by then, we'll act out my plan. Kade doesn't know it yet, but I plan to kill everyone and anyone who gets in my way. I'm ravenous with hunger. I haven't fed on anyone or drank a blood bag since Mary was taken.
I etch out another notch into the side of the bedpost. According to the notches, it's been five days since Ash marked me as his and four days since I felt my bond with Nikolai slip away. In my heart, I knew that Nikolai was okay, but I could wash away the sense of dread I was feeling.During the day, Ash lets me wander the halls of the mansion. The house is always empty; the only residents here are Ash, myself, and a couple of servants. I've tried to win the servants over to my side, but they ignore me; they continue with their chores and act like nothing is amiss. But perhaps to them, nothing has changed. When I first came here, there was another younger female who'd been taken. She was long gone now, but what if Ash made a habit of kidnapping women, and the servants were desensitized from the matter. On the first day, Ash let me wander the halls; I tried to make a break for it. The moment my foot crossed the front door threshold, I was met with unbearable pain as an electrical curr