~Tia~Everything has been fuzzy at best. I swear I’m going in and out of consciousness. Sometimes, I can see everything going on around me, but I can’t interact with any of it. Other times, I’m completely involved and aware of my surroundings. I don’t understand what’s going on or why, and I’m not even sure if my baby is at risk.I was livid when it was suggested that we have an Alpha and Luna ceremony for Paul and Imogene. How could it be suggested that they take over the pack? It isn’t like the pack is without leaders, and Paul was already an Alpha. He gave up his position and handed it down to his sons. It’s been less than a year since we took over, but I know we’ve been doing a good job. I tried to protest, tried to scream out against it, but the words wouldn’t come. I couldn’t yell or scream, and the only words that came out were, ‘yes’ and ‘great idea.’ Oh, Goddess, I was ready to rip my own throat out at that time. I couldn’t believe I let this happen, that I lost myself the w
~Nikki~“STOP RIGHT THERE!” My heart had been beating out of my chest. I saw Imogene gearing up, collecting as much power as she could. I flashed back to the pain I felt when she tried to kill me, and I just knew it was going to be a thousand times worse than that. Those words made me hold my breath. I look behind me and see a woman standing there with a few people behind her. I recognize her despite not seeing her in so many years. She’s as regal-looking as I remember. She stands tall; her silver hair sways behind her and swirls around her face. Unlike Imogene, her eyes are a brilliant green. She’s wearing a sheer, black dress with long, bell-shaped sleeves. “Who the fuck are you?!” “Imogene, we’ve been looking for you! You have crimes to pay for.” Imogene throws her head back and laughs.“Screw you! I will pay for nothing. If you know what’s good for you, you’ll leave from here and take your people with you.” High Priestess Owlyn smiles and takes a step forward.“You don’t recogn
~Tia~I felt a little pinch, which morphed into a sharp pain. I tried to block it out to help my mates, but I couldn’t get past it. When I stood up, I felt liquid between my legs. My water broke, but there was also blood. My fear heightened, and my heartbeat increased. I called out to my mom, but she wasn’t the one to grab me.My body is moving fast, and I’m secure against a warm body. I look up, and I shut my eyes quickly. I have to be hallucinating. I thought the scent was familiar, but I figured the pain was messing with my head. I open my eyes again, and he looks at me quickly, giving me a small smile. OMG! How is Stuart here right now? I turn my head to look where we are headed. For all I know, he will throw me in the woods somewhere and end my existence. He blames me for his unhappiness. He blames me for not being able to live life with his fated mate. He has hated me all my life, and I’m sure he’d take the opportunity to end me if it presented itself. We are actually going to
~Tia~All eyes are on me, and my mates look pissed. I can’t believe it myself; I asked for my ‘father.’ I can’t remember the last time I ever considered Stuart as my father. He was horrible to me my entire life, and it made a lasting impression. I just can’t explain what’s so different now. I mean, I know, but I don’t really get it. Love, what are you saying?Did you just call him ‘dad?’ I sigh, knowing this explanation will take a lot more than the words I’m about to say. This is going to be a conversation that I know they were going to want to have later. I need to talk to him. Just…..please….. I watch my dad make his way from the door to the side of my bed. They took the baby for tests, and I want to get this out before they bring the baby back. “I want to talk to my dad, if that’s okay.” My mates look like they want to protest, and Paul looks confused. The only person who seems okay with this is my mom. “Let’s give them some space, though there’s news that everyone should know.
~Nikki~The silence is overwhelming, but I’m finding it hard to concentrate. This is a somber moment, yet all I can think about is my mate’s scent. He smells of pine and freshly cut grass. His scent fills the room and makes my mind fuzzy. I’ve already blocked Aluma; she’s been screaming out for him since the ceremony.I want nothing more than to claim him right here, right now. I have to keep reminding myself that now isn’t the time. Tia just got out of surgery and gave birth to my grandpup; everyone is trying to clear their minds and get back acclimated. As badly as I want to claim my mate, and I do, I have to wait until it’s acceptable.“I don’t know how to feel. How did it happen?”“We aren’t completely sure, Landon. We went to talk to her about this Imogene situation-”“Why would you talk to our mom about Imogene?”“I think it was your mom who sent her. She was constantly texting and calling. I was able to put eyes on her phone a few times and I saw her name. All we know is someon
~Nikki~The sparks, there are no words for the intensity, what they do to my body. Every cell has become alive, and I can feel the kiss down to my toes. I can feel the heat pool in my center, and I know that my juices aren’t far behind.Paul wraps me up, pulling me up his body. I wrap my legs around his waist and cross my ankles behind his back. I pull back and look at Paul, both of us breathing heavily. “My house is too fucking far.” I giggle a bit.“I have a room at the packhouse, reme-” I can’t even finish my sentence before Paul whisks me away to the packhouse. He spins us so fast that I had to grab his neck to keep upright. We bust through the backdoor of the packhouse and barrel through the dining room and kitchen. I swear I hear a few gasps and mumbles as we go, but I don’t care.The stairs are a blur, and I hold on tighter so I don’t fall out of his arms. I lose track of the number of stairs we travel up, but I refocus when I hear a door slam open. I look around, and we’re in
~Paul~“So you spoke to the Moon Goddess herself?” Nikki is wrapped in my arms, and I’m kissing her up and down her face. The feeling of contentment I have is beyond words. “I did. She was the one who told me that we were fated mates.” Nikki told me this before, but I just wanted to clarify. It’s amazing that she was able to speak to the Goddess. “And why couldn’t we feel the bond?” I kiss each of Nikki’s fingers, loving the giggle it elicits.“I told you all of this already, haven’t I?” I nuzzle Nikki’s neck, trying to keep my desire in check. I swear I can’t get enough of her. If this is how our future will be, I’m more than happy to live it. “Tell me again.” My voice is muffled as I speak into Nikki’s neck. “She said that she tampered with the bond. You and I have been through a lot when it comes to love, and she wanted us to explore our feelings for each other and not reject the bond. She wanted to give us the chance to not miss out on each other.” I maneuver myself so Nikki i
Three Months Later~Nikki~I’m at the kitchen sink, rinsing a pan out along with a few other items. There’s a window in front of me, and my mate is on full display. He’s standing at the grill, and I must say he looks delicious. He’s wearing a ribbed tank top that hugs every muscle in his chest and torso. I watch his muscles flex as he seasons the meat and flips it over. My hands have stopped moving, and my mind has turned to mush. Paul looks up, catching my eye. He’s caught me ogling him like he usually does. He flexes his muscles a bit and blows me a kiss. I can feel my cheeks heat up, and I refocus on what I was doing. His chuckle irritates me, but in a good way.“And then, Im-a-bitch,-”“Seriously Lynn?! Must you refer to her like that?”“What would you rather I say?” I walk out, chuckling at the back and forth. That child is such a mess, but I love her. I hand Paul the items I was rinsing and kiss him on the cheek. He turns his face to capture my lips, and a simple kiss turns into
6 Months Later~Paul~It’s been six long months, and Nikki still hasn’t woken up. Owlyn has been here and tried to get a response from her. Nothing has worked because she says it has nothing to do with magic. The doctors don’t have an answer, and I’m just lost without her.I knew she shouldn’t have volunteered. I felt in my heart that it wasn’t the right choice, but what could I do? I love her with everything I have, and I couldn’t tell her not to do what her heart said was the right thing.I run my hands through my hair and then over my face. I haven’t left her side in six months, and I’m beyond tired of seeing these walls. My sons have tried to get me to leave, and so has Tia. I refuse them because this is where I’m meant to be. As long as my heart is here, I will be here. Tia has been here often and has brought our grandchild, but besides those visits, it’s just been Nikki and me. I refuse to believe that I finally found my fated mate just to lose her so quickly.I put my head in m
~Devonte~The pain in my heart is all-consuming. I want the pain to stop, but I don’t know how to make that happen. I curl up tighter, hoping that the pressure will help with the pain. It’s all too much, and I don’t know what to do to make it better.Abe has gone silent, and I’m not surprised. He’s been struggling the most, and I have no words to soothe him. I wish I could wake up yesterday when things were what they were. I’d give anything to go back.“BROTHER?! BROTHER WHERE ARE YOU?!” I curl up tighter as if that’s going to keep me from being found. I don’t think I can handle the words and emotions that will surely follow my brother. I can’t take what that would mean.His thudding footsteps get closer and closer. I know I can’t hide myself; there’s no way to become invisible. I can’t keep this from happening. I hold my breath, waiting for the inevitable. “D, I found you. I’ve been looking everywhere. Our mate, she needs us. She needs you.” I’m trying to block out his words, but I’m
~Third Person~Everything seemed to happen all at once. Andricia is thrown against a tree trunk and curls up with a whimper. The pain is too much, causing Andricia to shift back into Tia. The twins witness this, and all restraint is lost. They shift and run at Imogene, who quickly wraps them up in blue light.Nikki hasn’t taken her eyes off Imogene, so she’s ready to interfere. As she shoots her light at Imogene, it strikes her in the stomach. Imogene is taken off guard and loses her grip on the twins. They fall to the ground and falter as they try to get on their feet. Eventually, they gain their footing and try to attack Imogene again.Imogene defends herself, reduced to hand-to-hand combat with the edge of magic. She repeatedly strikes the wolves as they throw themselves at her. They are taking a lot of punishment, but they refuse to stop. Their only goal is to defend their love, though they’d rather take the time to see about her.The group is joined by vampires and rogues alike.
~Jenna~I scramble backward, making sure my back is flush against the tree trunk. I try to quiet my breathing, but it's proving to be a task. I search around me, but there’s only darkness. The night air is still filled with the sounds of a battle, but I can’t see what’s going on.“Ughhhhh.” I slap my hand over my mouth in an attempt to stay quiet. I look down and see the bright red blood. I shut my eyes tight and try to think about anything else. If I freak out right now, I won’t be able to get back to safety.Every inch of my body hurts, but I can’t think about that now. I need to get out of here and make it back to the packhouse. I struggle to my feet, using only my right arm. My left just hangs against my body. Every twist and turn of my body brings a wave of excruciating pain, but I have to ignore it right now.I finally get to my feet and stand against the tree trunk. My breathing is erratic, and my chest is heaving up and down. “Where’d she go? I don’t see her.”“Sniff her out.”
~Aida~I’m applying pressure to my sister’s neck, and I feel her body giving in. This is so easy it’s pathetic. I would have thought that she would have trained during my absence. She had to know that I would return, and with my return would come the fight for her life. I guess having a brain doesn’t guarantee that you’ll use it.Portia’s body slumps to the ground, and her breathing gets heavier. I swear she’ll be dead in a minute. While part of me is rejoicing, the other part of me feels that she’d be getting off too easily. She’s the cause of all my problems, even the cause of Adela’s death. I may have administered the final blow, but it wouldn’t have come to that if she hadn’t disrupted our plans.Portia completely falls under, and I let her go with a thud on the ground. I get to my feet and walk around her limp body. Her breathing is shallow, so I know I can still play around with her before I kill her. I just need to figure out what games will be fun to engage in.I walk around h
~Ivan~One of the twins lunges at me, and I step out of the way. The other twin moves toward me, causing me to dodge slightly. This can’t be how they expect to beat me. If things continue this way, I’m going to win without breaking a sweat.I don’t want to spend a lot of time with these two. I need to go find Aida and so help anyone who has tried to put their hands on her. No one will hurt my love and live to tell the tale. I’d scorch the Earth before I let anyone hurt her.These imbeciles are staring at me but have stopped lunging. I guess they realize that it’s useless. It doesn’t matter what they do to me, they won’t win. I’m a vampire, so my natural state is on a different level. On top of that, I’ve been around for a long time. There isn’t much that I haven’t seen before, so they are hard-pressed to find something new to throw at me. “We’re wasting time, boys. I have more pressing matters.” I flip two fingers in the air back and forth. I hear reinforcements moving in. “Let me jus
~Lynn~I reach into the vampire’s chest and pull out its heart. My hand is covered in blood, but it’s as black as tar. There’s a stench to it; it smells like it’s rotting. I guess that makes sense because vampires aren't like the rest of us. They are the undead.I look to my left and can make out Abe in the distance. He’s ripping the head off of a vampire. Another vampire has climbed on his back, but he shakes him off. I look to my right, and Mace has the leg of a vampire in his mouth, and he shakes him like a rag doll. I duck quickly, missing the clothesline that was intended for me. I look behind myself and kick out, catching the perpetrator in the stomach. I wind the rope around my fist and throw a punch. The rope, mixed with the strength of my punch, causes my hand to literally push a chunk of her arm onto the ground. I follow up with a round kick and straddle her body as soon as it hits the ground. I rain a combination of punches on her body before ripping her throat out.I’m tir
~Jenna~I’m herding those who can’t fight into the safe rooms. We have entry points on both ends of the pack, but I’m only worried about those on this end where the packhouse is. Elderly pack members, as well as children, have been running here in droves. The sooner we get them to safety, the better off we will all be.I take one last look around and turn to the opening that will lead to the underground tunnels. It isn’t a long walk from the tunnels to the rooms; we wanted to make sure everyone would have a chance to get to safety. Once I get inside, the doors will be locked, and we will wait for word that everything is over.Crying sounds behind me, causing me to whip around. A pregnant woman with a toddler is running toward where I’m standing. A few warriors rushed out to her, working overtime to keep the vampires back.I watch the woman run forward with her baby’s hand in hers. She trips, and her knees hit the ground, causing her to lose her grip on her child. She cries out and cra
~Mark~I’ve been on alert all evening. I know tonight is the night, but I have no idea when. It’s just a guess, but we expect an attack on this pack. It isn’t that I’ve done anything to Aida, but her enemy is my best friend, and my mate has gone after her obsession. It seems they are trying to hurt Tia in any way they can, and that would include attacking this pack.I haven’t been Alpha that long, and I’ve only had my fated mate a bit longer than that. I have a baby coming and I like my life right now. I don’t want to lose anything right now, but this battle could have me lose it all.I clean off my desk and put files in the filing cabinet. I think the best thing right now is to have time with my mate. I want her to know how much she’s loved, just in case. I close the office door behind me and turn to head up the stairs. Alpha, we have a breach! My heart begins to thump in my chest as the seriousness of the situation grabs me. I take a deep breath and let it out. Hey, beautiful. Wher