~Mark~“How’s it being back here?” I stand in front of the packhouse at Emerald Lake, and so many memories wash over me. I grew up here and always thought I’d die here. Now, I have a new home and a new role, but this place will always hold a special place in my heart.“It’s not like this is the first time I’ve been back since I’ve left.” Lynn places an arm around my waist and snuggles in close.“I know, but still. It isn’t the same without you.” I kiss the top of her head, and we walk toward the packhouse.My sister and her mates stayed a few days with me, getting to know Jenna and me as an Alpha. Tia called and suggested that I come back with them so we can make a plan about Aida. I hated to leave my mate, but it made sense. I need us to be on the same page. If there’s a pending war or something, I need to know what my involvement may be.It’s late at night, but we’ve been on the road for a while. I’m starving, and I walk into the kitchen to get some food. The kitchen is closed, but
~Sonya~Nothing has changed; the same thing every single day. I’m not saying that I’m surprised, but it’s downright boring. There’s no excitement, no variation. I get that jail isn’t supposed to be fun, but I don’t think anyone really gets the mundaneness of it all. I don’t think anyone truly understands how insane you can go living this way. I mean, unless you’ve been in jail before, that is.The only bright spot has been seeing my jailer, my favorite jailer. I’ve tried to talk to him, but of course, he doesn’t respond. I won’t give up, though. He’s wonderful to look at, and if I can get more from him, I want to try my hardest. I get to see him when he takes me for my visits, and it’s the highlight of my day. I don’t know how or when, but I’m going to get him to cave, and when he does, I’m going to enjoy the hell out of him.I’m wrapping up another mind-numbing visit with my dad. I swear I wish he would find something else to do. I have nothing to say to him since he’s part of the re
~Mark~We all gather in the conference room, ready to come up with a plan. Everyone is chatting among themselves, and it reminds me of how much I’ve missed being here. I’ve created a new family and friends in my new pack, but they could never replace what I’ve known all my life. I clear my throat while looking around the room. “Can we get this started? As much as I love you all, I want to get home to my mate.”“And his baaaaaaaby!” Lynn smirks, and everyone chuckles. I throw a pencil at her, but she’s quick to dodge out of the way.“Okay…. okay. Let’s get to business. Mark is right; we need to go ahead and get started.” I nod at Landon in silent appreciation and sit back as everyone is brought up to speed. My parents are here, along with the former Alpha and Doc Nikki. Stuart is here with the ranked members and their mates. It’s a big group, but everyone here is associated with this case in one way or another.“So what’s the plan? What do we do next?” Eyes land on Doc as she poses the
~Sonya~The week passed slowly, with me feeling like I was losing my mind. I couldn’t escape the voice no matter what I did. What was worse was my dad wasn’t even visiting. Since I said to him what I did, he’s been absent. I know that’s my fault, but I swear he picked the worst time to stay away. I haven’t been able to use him as a distraction.My trial starts today, and I’m not even nervous about it. I guess I’m so preoccupied with this voice that I haven’t given it a second thought. I can admit that I’m scared. I have no idea who the voice belongs to, and that terrifies me. It keeps saying they are coming for me, but who is ‘they’??I finish changing into the clothes that were given to me. These are the royals, so appearance is important. The trial won’t be like they have it in the human world. It’s the King, along with the Elders. There are no lawyers or anything like that. Evidence is presented, I say my piece, and then a decision is made. As one-sided as it sounds, it’s actually
~Lynn~I roll my eyes for probably the millionth time. “Don’t you two have an office to occupy?” I swear these two live to aggravate me. Vonte has been in my office flirting shamelessly for about an hour now. Devonte joined him at the half-hour mark and thought it would be fun to join in. Don’t get me wrong, I love flirting with my mates, but there’s a time and a place. I mean, they look good as hell. Devonte’s shirt is sticking to his muscular body because he has been training all morning. Vonte is just fine, no matter what he does or wears.A thought pops into my head in full force. My body heats up, and I feel a blush across my face. I swear I’m a big hypocrite! I distinctly remember going into their office strictly to seduce them. I still remember the fun we all had that day. We took turns and joined in together, spending a few hours in their office. I shake my head to get rid of the thought. That may all be, but I still reserve the right not to have it happen in mine. “Mmmmmm.” S
~Sonya~I lean back in the armchair and place my left leg over my right knee. I cross my fingers on my lap and look at the couple in front of me. I swear this chick is familiar, but I can’t quite put my finger on how or why. The guy is sex wrapped up in a package that I would love nothing more than to pull apart. I have a feeling that if I were to try it, she’d rip my head off. “How do you even know about me anyway?”“Does that matter?” I smirk at Ivan.“It may not matter, but I sure am curious. What exactly do you think I can do for you?” It’s Ivan’s turn to sit back, and he does.“I was able to watch you work not so long ago. It was interesting how things played out, but you made a huge mistake not utilizing your opportunity to end everything.” I shrug my shoulders and inspect my nails.“A lot of things could have been done differently. I choose not to dwell on the past.” I put my feet on the floor and lean forward. “Tell me what you plan on having me do.”“I need a message delivere
~Jenna~I wipe my mouth with the hand towel I have next to me. I push the mat out of the way and lay down, letting my face touch the cold tile. Shit, this is the worst. I mean, it’s bad enough that it’s morning sickness, but the fact that I get it any time other than morning makes this worse.Sparks erupt on my lower back, and I can’t help the smile that grows on my face. The toilet is flushed, and I feel his warmth behind me. “You know, if anyone were to come in here, they would think we were crazy to be lying on the bathroom floor like this.” I chuckle.“Us being here is all your fault.” Mark scoffs.“How do you figure that?” I turn so I’m lying on my back. I look up at my handsome mate.“You put me in this position. One can’t get pregnant on their own.” Mark leans down and presses his lips to mine.“I don’t remember you complaining when we were creating this little bean. As a matter of fact, I clearly remember what you said…..”ohhh Mark”......” harder, baby”.....” faster, mmmmm”...
~Mark~I drop to the floor, darkness taking over briefly. I struggle to lift my head, sweat drenching my forehead and chest. My breathing is heavy and erratic. There’s something wrong with my mate, something very wrong. We have her, Alpha. We are on the way to the hospital.I struggle to get to my feet, my body feeling like a ton of bricks. Strong hands find their way under my arms, and I’m lifted in the air. My feet gently touch the ground, and my body glides. A burst of cool air hits me, causing me to lift my heavy head. I find myself outside, going in the direction of the hospital.The scent of disinfectant hits my nostrils, and I almost choke on its intensity. A door opens in front of me, and I’m placed on a soft surface. There are beeping machines in the background and bright lights above me. I look around the room, taking in the plain decor that makes up the hospital room I’m in. I shift on the bed, sparks flying around me. I look to my left and see her body. Her chest is rising
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