RYDEN I sighed as hope rose in my chest and followed him to the basement. “I hope you’re right, but it was not in the blueprints.” “Only the owner and the company that installed the panic room have the knowledge where it is placed, and I know where it could possibly be, a room near to the master bedroom.” “It doesn’t even feel hot, and I don’t inhale smoke anymore. Your power is pretty convenient.” We went downstairs. In just a few steps, we were standing before the thick door made of steel. I knocked on it, and Ren held my arm and pointed at the camera. “Just say something and tell them to get out of the door.” “Are you sure it’s not toasted?” “Look.” He was right, it was working. The red dot was blinking. “We might as well, expose ourselves to the enemy.” We were pretty confident the plan would work. Dane jammed all the cameras installed. What went wrong? I didn’t have a clue. Alec was again two steps ahead of us. I grabbed the phone from my pocket. “No service, Ryden.”
AMELIA Walker stirred in bed, stretched, and opened his eyes. He then saw me and smiled. “Hey. What are you doing here?” He was so calm as if nothing happened to us today, he almost got us all roasted alive. “What do you remember?” “Alpha?” His gaze shifted to Ryden, joining me before his bed. He looked confused, bouncing his gaze between Ryden, me, and then to the guys behind us. He sat on the bed and looked at himself and the entire room. “What’s going on? What happened? What happened to me?” “What’s the last thing you remember, Walker? This is very important.” My voice came out harsh and strong. “Why are you angry with me?” He looked taken aback and still confused. “Wait. What do I remember?” He stared at us one by one and his eyes widened as if he finally got us something. “Oh, Goddess. Alpha, I thought he’d kill you.” “You remember about the challenge?” “Yes. Yes.” He looked at me. “Oh, Goddess. Are you okay? How did you escape? How’s everyone?” “So the last thing you re
RYDEN “So, we’re dealing with Demon.” It still sounded strange that we were talking about Demon from hell. I knew demons, hell, and heaven existed, but fighting against a powerful entity, how were we going to do it? “You’re not safe anymore, ladybug.” “I’ve never been safe since I got the power. Sensei and Ren had warned me against people who took an interest in this kind of power I had, that was why they trained me, I was hoping to fight against big bad werewolves or wraiths, but if the demon was coming after me, that is something I have to be ready for.” I looked at her. She seemed so calm and collected about it, and it terrified me. “You’re not sacrificing yourself, Amelia. I know that look.” She smiled at me. “Maybe this is my mission, my fate, what foretold me to do, that I will save the world from demonic entities so the future generations will have a better place to live in.” I snorted. “Nirvana sacrificed herself to kill Cyrius for that very same reason, and when we thoug
AMELIA I cried in silence, shoved my fist into my mouth as I grounded my pussy against his hot talented mouth. I ignored the twist in my gut. We weren’t supposed to be doing this, but it seemed that this was the only normal thing we had right now, loving each other. We were supposed to find Alec and kill the demon and its legions. On the other hand, we didn’t have the luxury and time for ourselves and might not get the chance to have each other again. We were on borrowed time. Tomorrow was not guaranteed, so we took the time left for us to make beautiful memories, or this might be the last. With his mouth sucking me hard and his tongue thrusting in and out of me, a moan that I’d been trying hard to control finally slipped my throat— a kind of moan that was deep and helpless and desperate to come. It was shamelessly loud. I should be ashamed, but it was Ryden who was giving me pleasure, making me feel good. So, for a moment, I didn’t give a damn until I came. My thighs spread wi
AMELIA As he began thrusting in and out, he grabbed my wrists and pinned them above my head with one hand, and the other was keeping my thigh in place. Defiance was my strong suit, but when it came to Ryden, I felt helpless to fight. It wasn’t just about having a soft spot. It was the trust I had for him. It was the relationship we built, and the bond we had that was unshakable. As I felt my pussy clench around him, squeezing him with each thrust, I broke the kiss and began panting. “I’m close. Don’t stop.” “Look at me, Amelia.” His voice was soft, and his hard breathing tickled my face. I did as he said, and he changed his pace to faster and harder. And we stared at each other as I got closer to the edge. Drawn out by the intensity of his thrust, the pleasure was making me dizzy. “Baby.” My eyes started to roll back, and I was helpless to resist it. And he said, “I’ll be right there with you.” “Yes—” I sunk my teeth into his shoulder, biting off the scream at the back of my t
RYDEN “Do you believe what she said?” Zeph asked us as we finally arrived at the penthouse. Ren’s two-story penthouse was spacious and minimalist in the center of New York. The interior was modern with floor-to-ceiling windows that overlooked the Fifth Avenue skylines. “Yes. I believe her. Do I trust her? Hell fucking no,” I replied as I looked outside the window. “It’s how easily she could betray us as she glamoured Zarah’s face. We should be very careful meeting people.” “And the fact that those wraiths or legions or whatever they call it can get inside us without even noticing it. That’s creepy,” Theia replied. “We should wear something to protect ourselves.” “Like Sphalerites,” Ren said to Theia. “The price is extortionate in the black market.” “How did you know, Ren?” Amelia came to the living room, and she just finished showering. She looked beautiful, fresh, and relaxed. “I wanted to know who’s selling.” “Did you find out who?” I faced Ren. “You’re not gonna believe it
AMELIA Ryden divided us into a three-person team. Walker and Emil were stuck with me, while he, Zeph, and Zarah were preparing for the shield upgrade. Ren and Theia were our backups. Before sundown, we made it to the woods, south of the property. I didn’t know how much I missed this place until I was there. It was supposed to be our sanctuary from other werewolves and rogues. Instead, we were fighting against our own demonic entities. Deep inside, I felt guilty, and I couldn’t get rid of the thought that I was one of the reasons why things happened here. If I hadn’t come back, the wraiths and Alec’s evil plan might not have been implemented today. “You okay?” Walker came. “Yeah. I caught human scents.” “Me too. Could these be Alec’s men?” “Yeah, probably.” I connected our link to Ryden. “Did you make it to the pack house?” “Yes. We’re here. Completely trashed and we’re scanning for explosives as we speak. You know Alec likes to blow things up.” “Be careful.” “You, too, Ameli
RYDEN “Give me something so I can let you go. Your information for your freedom.” I grunted. My body still reverberated in anger, and he thought I would just give him mercy. This fucktard that shot Amelia didn’t know what he got himself into. He could barely speak. He seemed in shock after seeing a human just turned into a fire wolf. Despite his naivety, he fired the shots, shells raining down from the tree, and intended to kill my mate. He could have killed her. He could have targeted someone else. And he deserved to die. “Come with me. He had nowhere to go.” Zeph grabbed me outside the tunnel. Once we were there, he breathed deeply. “Are we really going down this road, Ry?” I stared at him in disbelief. “He came to my land, watched for our people for his target practice because he purchased an automatic rifle in the black market.” That was what he told us, and I didn’t believe a shit. “Do you expect me to just let him walk away after what he saw?” “He targeted wolves.” “Wow.”
AMELIA After what we’d been through together in a short time, something beautiful happened. I stared at him in awe, wearing the same face the first time he saw me in my wolf form and wolf fire. Now he had in him. He just became one of the four, and the most powerful alpha with that power. “Amelia!” everyone was yelling at me, except Ren. I felt like he already knew when I lost my wolf, that it would take over someone. “Ryden,” I called his name and looked him in the eye. He looked shocked and began to panic as his clothes burned down to ashes and he was completely naked before us, engulfed in fire. “Guys, can someone grab the extinguisher, please?” “You know it won’t work!” Theia yelled. I turned to her and pointed at the wooden floor. “It will work on the floor before this house gets toasted.” I’ll go take it,” Alessandro volunteered and stormed out of the office. “Ryden, if you don’t calm down, you’re gonna burn us all. Trust me. I’ve been in your situation, done that.” “W
AMELIA “Alpha, stop it. You’re still healing.” Naughty Alpha was looking all cute as he started kissing me on the cheek first, licking my earlobe, then his hand moved to my abdomen, slipping it inside my shirt, tracing his fingers up, teasing my nipple from the bra. “I want you.” “No, you don’t.” I looked at him. His eyes darkened, his breathing was hot, and I could feel his growing erection pressed against my thigh. “Keep your dick under control until you’re fully healed or I will scream.” “I am. Trust me.” He kissed me on the nose. “I missed you. I miss being inside you.” “Really?” I pressed his wound, and he winced. “Right, you’re healed.” His hand was gone, and he chuckled, shaking his head. “Have patience there, buddy.” “Yes. Tell him that.” I faced him and kissed him on the lips. “When we go home, you can have me all you want. I will be yours all night.” He grinned at me. “Is that a promise?” “You know I won’t break it, Ryden. You can tie me to bed if you want.” He arc
RYDEN “Amelia, stop!” I crawled back to bed. My ears hurt, and that was killing me more than my wound. Then I felt a warm liquid rolling down my upper lip. I wiped it off and realized it was blood. “You’re killing me, please? Ladybug, you have to stop.” The shrilling sound abruptly stopped. The shaking ended. Her body went back to normal. “Oh, Goddess. Baby.” Her eyes were wide as she finally back to herself. She cupped my face and wiped off the blood dripping from my nostrils. “I did do that? I’m so sorry.” “Unless I have that kind of power.” I was still staring at her. What kind of power she had was both frightening and remarkable. “What the hell is going on?” The door slammed open, and Zarah came, furious. She scanned the room and shook her head. “She did it again, didn’t she?” Ren followed Zarah inside, looking at my bloody nose. Theia and Nora were tailing him. “If you can’t get control over your emotions, Amelia, we have to confine you. You can kill any being just with you
RYDEN “You knew all this time, and you didn’t warn us?” The way Victor averted his gaze and looked as ashamed and guilty as ever. He only proved to us that he knew all along, and what after all, powerful alphas there were out there that he called himself the Alpha King. “What the fuck is wrong with you?” Amelia was angrier than me. Despite losing her wolf, I could still feel her emotions, and my mark on her was still intact. “Whoever he is will come after every alpha who comes his way. Do you understand how deep the trouble you’re in? He will come after our allies, take control of the werewolf council, and take your position. But you don’t give a shit, do you? As long as you’re safe over there and sipping coffee and whiskey.” “Of course, I care.”I even rolled my eyes at his reply.“Cut the bullshit, Head Council. I know you’re scared, but we can protect you. Alpha Califf, Alpha Knight, and the rest of our allies can protect you, but you have to be honest with us.” “No, Amelia. N
AMELIA “You lost your wolf to save my life. I’m so sorry you have to choose between me and her.” “I can live as a human, but I can’t live without you. You said you loved me, did you mean it?” I lifted my gaze to see his reaction. He still looked handsome despite almost dying and still in pain. “I love you with every beat of my heart. I love you till my last breath, Amelia. I don’t care if you’re human or a tiger or a mouse.” “A mouse? Really.” I sniffled. He tried to hold his laugh, and he grimaced instead. “You should take pain meds.” “No. The bullet that shot me was not an ordinary bullet, was it?” “Yes. Sebastien said, it could be a high-grade military prototype silver bullet, and it should explode inside your body, but it didn’t. It was either intentional or faulty. We don’t know. None of us has seen that kind of bullet before, even at the Werewolf Council.” “How are you feeling?” “Why are you asking me when I’m not the one that has gotten shot?” “So you’re still feisty
RYDEN My eyes fluttered open. The first thing I saw was the white ceiling until everything came back to me like flashes of memories. I was in Hawaii and Amelia and I had a fight. Nora was talking me out of it. Then I got shot. I groaned as I tried to move. I was shirtless, a bandage on my upper left chest reminded me it indeed all happened. I should have been dead by now. How am I still alive? Then I heard a snore. I turned my head to my right. There she was. I didn’t even know she snored. I guess, that was first. “Amelia?” I tried to move to reach for her, but my wound was killing me. I might have lost a lot of blood, and I didn’t heal faster than my normal healing process. “Ladybug.” She gasped, jolting to sit on the chair. Her eyes grew big as she turned to me and saw me awake. “Alpha? Oh, Goddess!” She threw herself at me and hugged me tight. “Agh!” I groaned and hissed in pain as I tried to wrap one arm around her. “My wound.” “Shit. Sorry.” She slowly pulled away from me,
AMELIA The surgery was successful. I didn’t even know Sebastien was a corpsman until today. He, Zarah, and Shadow just saved my mate, and I owed them a lot. Ryden was still critical. Since the bullet was silver, it slowed down his recovery. He could be dead, though, but what kind of message our enemy was trying to send to us, and who were the people behind this? What would they want from us?” I was still grateful despite everything. Watching Ryden in bed, breathing, and alive, was the greatest feeling in the world. I still felt the dread crawling in my skin of almost losing him. “How do we find Margaret? “That’s a problem for another day. And it’s not your problem anymore. It’s mine.” I turned and faced Zarah. “Do you think she’s working with Alec now? I mean, why would she? She’s your leader. What did Alec have against her?” “I don’t know, and I’m exhausted, kid. You should get some rest, too.” “Are you avoiding my questions?” I rose from the chair and looked at Ryden one mor
AMELIA “Father!” I felt the surge of energy rush through me that siphoned from around that it shook the house down and exploded into an intense blast, shattering the glasses in the entire house, everything near me went flying including Theia. I could still feel the extreme pumping of my heart as the sound of splashing shattered glasses dropped on the floor. I heard Theia hit the wall and then she fell, groaning. “Amelia!” Ren came, his eyes could slice me into two at how pissed off he was. “Are you going to get us all killed?” I breathed deeply, trying to calm myself down, but it wasn’t working. I still felt the unconfined energy rolling and thundering through me. “Holy shit!” Theia was quicker on her feet and rushed in my direction. Ren stopped her, blocking her from getting close to me. “Stay there.” “Why?” Theia asked, but Ren was actually talking to me. “Amelia, stay right there.” It was not a statement but a warning. Sebastien came, still wearing the bloody gloves. “Wh
AMELIA Ryden. My breathing caught as I mumbled his name. I felt him— he was in great pain. He was terrified of something. Something happened. I quickly put my clothes on, grabbed my things, and went outside the room. Nora’s scream poured adrenaline through me as I stormed out and followed her voice outside. “Ryden!” A shudder of dread and terror ran down my spine, and I sucked in a sharp breath as I looked down at my wounded mate. My world stopped. Tears streamed down my face. I stood still, then my body shook, and watched Ryden bleed out to death. “Amelia!” Someone shook me. “Get the fuck inside!” I watched Sebastien and his beta Alessandro carry Ryden back inside. “Now is not the right time for a nervous breakdown. Amelia, look at me.” Ren cupped my face, forcing me to meet him in the eye, and I did. “Ryden.” My chin trembled. My entire world faded as I met Ren’s terrified gaze through my blurry eyes. “Pull yourself together. The shooter is still out there.” “Yeah. He wi