LOGINShare
23. Validation
Last Updated:
2025-02-16 02:00:10
Related chapters
Winter 24. A Blood Curse
Pulling my sleeves up, I was washing out the pot that Ember made the sauce in. She was next to me, rinsing off the pan she made the chicken in. They had refused to give up their “big plans” so, at a stalemate, I got up to wash the dishes. Damian snuck a beer from the fridge and was sitting behind us at the island.“Em, I have a question about Linny.”She looked up at me, and I could see the flash of pain in her eyes. “What about? Is this about Winter?”I pursed my lips together. “It was something Winter said. She said that Linny tried to curse Caleb? That the curse was the reason why he hates Winter. Even though she is his own blood.”“She told you that?”Turning around, I looked at my brother. “Yeah. I also met him today…officially. He definitely doesn’t realize who I am.”“I didn’t expect him to. He was wrapped up in his own drama back then. On top of that, you don’t exactly look like the little kid that left.” Damian chuckled. “I’m surprised Winter told you about that.”“I am too, a
Last Updated : 2025-02-17Winter 25. Serenade Me, Brother
Despite Monday’s surprise dinner, the week went smoothly. I’d turned in the plan for Winter’s German session, much to the surprise of Miles. It was a debate with him if she was willing to take on two tests for language at the end of the year but I assured him she was going to be fine. The lesson’s were progressing along smoothly in the Latin classes and most students were showing improvement even within the few weeks I had taken over.There were problem students. In the Latin 1 classes, it was easy to tell who took the class because they wanted to and those who didn’t. I needed to figure out something to motivate the ones who either took the class because of their parents or because they didn’t like the other options. I didn’t have the problem of not liking languages, so I needed to think of something that would have helped motivate me in the past.“Mr…Penn?”I looked up from my book at a few she-wolves gathered on the sidewalk. I’d decided not to cook breakfast and headed down into th
Last Updated : 2025-02-17Winter 26. Truths
Damian pulled into the parking lot that housed the training grounds. The building itself had been added onto and then looked like it went through a remodel since I’d left. It looked impressive and I wondered how much it cost to update it.“Come on. We will start on the side here.”He jogged past the cars and the building. I nodded to a few of the warriors coming and going before jogging after my brother. This was definitely part of a show. By the time I reached the trees, Damian had already shifted and was raring to go. His wolf, Aurik, at the forefront. Onan was jumping at the chance to run with him.Stripping, I placed my clothes next to the pile that my brother left. However, I did fold both our clothes into neat piles before I shifted. Onan took over almost immediately and barked at Aurik.‘Onan has been itching to chase Aurik.’ I opened up the mind link with my brother.‘Chase? How dare you.’ Onan growled.This was one of the few times that I allowed everyone to hear Onan. Damian
Last Updated : 2025-02-18Winter 27. If Only
I looked at my brother for a long time. Unsure of what to say. It really never crossed my mind that my leaving would take such a toll on him. I always thought it was better that I left. There was nothing for me at Blue Crescent. The last thing I wanted was to get in Jared’s way. He was taking over for Uncle and I didn’t want anything to do with that. Leaving made sense back then.‘You didn’t even discuss it with them though. You just up and left. You didn’t even talk to them for a month until you had already enrolled and were in classes.’Sighing, I shook my head. “It was never because of you. I just felt like an extra. I was always in the way. Here and back at Uncles. Always. I just thought it would be better to remove myself from everything. It had nothing to do with running from you. I was…running from everything within the packs.”I continued after a breath. “I’m an Alpha. Just like you. I shouldn’t be. I shouldn’t even be stronger than you. Yet somehow, here I am. I don’t want to
Last Updated : 2025-02-19Winter 28. Bits and Pieces
“Miss St. James, if you would hang back for a moment.”It had been a long double period but we made good progress into The Hobbit. I’d decided to do the same thing I had chosen for Winter for her German Midterm. It was going to be hard, but I knew that they could do it. It would help them feel more confident in their skills and would give them a boost into mastering the language.“Mr. Penn, I need to go. My Dad is here to pick me up.”I frowned. “I just wanted to ask if everything was alright.”Leaning against the desk, I set my hands on the edge of my desk. She was shifting her weight and even tapped her toe into the ground.“Does it have something to do with Miss Sierra?”Krista growled. “I hope she walks too close to a flame with the amount of hair spray she uses.”“Krista.”“Sorry, Mr. Penn. She doesn’t deserve anything. She cheats in nearly every class. She’s a bully and even bullies some of the younger students to do her work for her. If Winter wasn’t here to get in her way, she
Last Updated : 2025-02-20Winter 29. Connections
I stepped into the library, fully accepting that I wouldn’t see Winter. She hadn’t been at school Tuesday or Wednesday. Damian and Ember weren’t saying anything and I had no information coming in from anyone. It was frustrating to the point where I started to show up at the training grounds after school to let off some steam.After yesterday though, Damian told me to lay off because too many patrol warriors were calling off because I had gone a little too hard. Onan chuckled but we would have to just do a straight run today. However, I was surprised to see Winter, sitting in the back of the library.She had her book open on the desk and a notebook open next to it. Coming up to her, I looked her over. There didn’t seem to be anything physically wrong. I didn’t realize how worried I looked until Winter looked up at me and smiled.“I’m okay, Mr. Penn.”Nodding, I sat down on the other side of the desk. “Are you sure?”This time, she nodded. “All good. Sorry to miss so many classes.”“As l
Last Updated : 2025-02-21Winter 30. The Next Generation?
This was a conversation I did not want to be apart of. Hell, I didn’t even deserve to be in the room. I didn’t care that I was to keep the charade up that maybe I was going to be Damian’s pick for Beta. In this room right now were some of the most influential people in the pack. I did not belong.‘Stand up straight. You aren’t here as a Penn. You are here as a Herne.’ Onan snapped at me.“Who do you suppose we throw out there, Cal? Hm? Just give the pack a bunch of names? Let them decide?” Maddox was rolling his eyes but there was an irritation to him that normally wasn’t there.“The pack is getting restless. They don’t know what the future holds. I think it’s time we show them what the future looks like. What the next generation looks like so they feel secure in the pack’s future.”Brittany scoffed. “Oh? You think anyone in the pack is going to feel secure with your youngest being Beta?”“My daughter is a strong Beta…” Caleb snapped at her.“With a bad attitude and a bad work ethic. I
Last Updated : 2025-02-22Winter 31. Childish
I stared at my brother. He was smiling up at me with his cheesy grin. His face didn’t show anything other than thinking it was funny to say something like that. Turning on my heel, I threw the door open and headed down the hall.“Cas! Wait!”Jogging down the steps, I turned and glared up at my brother who was still smiling at the top. “That’s not funny, Damian. It’s not a fucking joke.”“Who said I am joking?”I threw my hands out. “You are Alpha. You! I told you time and time again that I did not want to be Alpha. That I was not cut out to be Alpha. I left because I didn’t want to be Alpha.”Damian sighed. “No. You left because you didn’t want the pack to fight over who should be Alpha. Not that you didn’t want to be Alpha.”“It’s the same fucking thing!”“No, it’s not.”‘No, it’s not.’ Onan echoed Damian in my head.All I could do was growl. “I am not. Will not. Ever. Take over as Alpha. If that is what you actually brought me back here for, then I’m leaving. I’m not doing this with
Last Updated : 2025-02-23
Latest chapter
Winter 82. Plan F
We pulled into the pack house driveway and I was surprised to see quite a few cars around. The pressure on my chest felt heavier when I realized not a single one of these cars was Caspian’s. Getting out, I left my backpack behind and Caleb even waited for me to walk with him to the door. Did he think I would run? Looking around, I wondered if it would be an option.“Inside, Winter.”Nodding, I walked into the house. What used to be a safe place for me now felt slimy. It felt like I didn’t belong here anymore. Nor did I feel welcome. Stepping into the kitchen, Luna Ember smiled and started to pull me into a hug, but I stepped back. Caleb growled but I didn’t care. Not after everything.“Winter…I know it may not seem like it now…but we really just want the best for you.” She stopped trying to hug me, at least. “I know it’s hard to see now, but trust us.”All I wanted to say was no. I didn’t want anything to do with any of this. This was wrong. Everyone knew it and I didn’t understand wh
Winter 81. Lockdown
*** Winter’s POV *** “You doing okay?”This had to be the fifth or sixth time that Krista had asked that today. It made me wonder if I really looked that miserable. Or if it was just the fact that there was more of a presence of the pack warriors than normal at the school. They were here to make sure everyone was safe but Krista, myself, some of the teachers, and Principal Miles knew better.“Krista, stop asking, please. You’re just making it worse by asking.” I closed my locker, staring at the front of the blue metal door. “I don’t know if I can be.”There was a good part of me that regretted my decision. Stepping out of Caspian’s arms, hurt so much more than I thought it would. The looked on his face broke me. I couldn’t believe what Alpha and Caleb had done. I couldn’t believe they would go that far or that they would think it was okay.Of course we would fight that! I didn’t care what Caleb said, Caspian was my mate. I knew it. I felt it. There was no way that Caspian wasn’t my m
Winter 80. Standing Down
“What…what is going on?” Winter looked between her Alpha and her father.Onan was sitting just behind my consciousness. He was ready to take over and fight both of these wolves. The fact that one of them was our brother didn’t matter at this point. None of that mattered. These two were trying to take our mate away. I didn’t think they would try to go this far. It didn’t even register that this was an option.“No.”It was a single word from me. However, between Onan and I, the growl and the power that came with it, it might as well have been a right hook to the face of both of them. I was still holding Winter against me, her hand holding my arm. What’s worse is that I could feel her shaking.“You want to break an alliance, Caspian? We need to keep our alliances if we are going to survive. We break this, and we lose their support. Support we count on often.” Damian was struggling still under my anger. “We need this.”“Not. Winter.” I struggled not to shift, the only thing keeping me grou
Winter 79. What Have You Done?
Standing up from my lean, I cocked my head to the side. “I mean, it wouldn’t be a great travel time but I could do it. Probably not every day.”Winter frowned as she stopped, looking up at some of the books. “Wouldn’t it be easier just to move to the city? You wouldn’t need to commute as much. It would be less stressful.”Now I could see where she was going with this. Walking over to her, taking her hand in mine and kissing the back of her hand, I shook my head.“I’m not here to work, Winter. If I wanted to solely work, if I wanted to focus on this side, I wouldn’t have left England.” Her eyes widened but I smiled. “I’m here now for my mate. For my other half. I could move here. I could move back to England. I could do all these things to make it easier to do something that I love. I’m not here for that.”“But…this is your job.”I shook my head again. “This is something that I enjoy. A hobby. I could turn it into my full time job if I wanted. Not at the cost of losing my mate. I came
Winter 78. A Taste
I couldn’t help the smile that filled my face as Winter looked up in awe. We had gone through the entrance and I was speaking with the front desk for a moment to get our badges. I’d contacted Carrie to get some strings pulled. Under the guise checking out their research facilities for my work, I wanted to show Winter more than just the museum exhibits. However, looking at the awe on her face, she might have been okay with that.“I remember it being big when I was little, but I didn’t realize they were this big even as I grew up. It almost seems impossibly big.”“It is, isn’t it? Sometimes we forget that there are things bigger than us. Especially being wolves. We are strong and it can seem like we are at the top of the food chain. Except in the face of something like a dinosaur.” I was waiting for the director to come out and confirm my identity. “You said you came here before though?”Winter nodded. “We were supposed to go to the water park. It started to pour and the school had to ch
Winter 77. Flower Girl Energy
I wondered how long I could get away with ignoring Damian’s shouting in my head. We had another half hour or so to the end of the pack territory. If I could make it that long, then I would be fine.‘ANSWER ME! WHAT THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU ARE DOING?’This time I winced. Onan growled, it echoing just as loud for him. Winter must have caught my flinch since she looked over at me. I gave her smile, but winced again when Damian mind linked me again.‘YOU DID NOT HAVE PERMISSION TO TAKE HER! DO NOT MAKE ME REPORT YOU FOR KIDNAPPING, CASPIAN!’“Alpha, I’m assuming?” She looked back to see if the car was still following us.Nodding, I looked in the mirror as well. They hadn’t stopped, but they had backed off quite a bit. I wondered what Damian was thinking. It didn’t make sense to pull them only to yell at me. Not to mention that his accusation of kidnapping would be on shaky ground. At least within the pack laws.“I’m wondering if I can just ignore him until we get to the border. His mind
Winter 76. Loosely Considered Kidnapping
‘Just go in, Caspian. No one is going to think it’s weird you’re there.’ Onan was at his limit with me and I could feel his irritation at my hesitation.“I can’t just…go in. One, I’m not a teacher anymore. Two, I’d be picking up Winter. Which would end up raising flags.”He let off an annoyed sigh. ‘Outside the fact that she is our mate and it’s not weird. You are now Caspian Herne. The wolfs out of the bag. You can’t hide anymore that you are the Alpha’s brother. Both good and bad.’Rubbing my face, I let out a more exasperated sigh. Damian and Ember had been using that to their advantage. Every time I went into town, went shopping, or even at home, they had a wolf watching me. I didn’t know what they expected me to do, but apparently, it was something.Whether or not I wanted to let them be at the mercy of the Council, I worried that Winter would end up in the crosshairs. I worried that I would lose her simply because I wanted to spite my brother and didn’t wait to think about how I
Winter 75. Anger
The kitchen was quiet for a moment. My brother and I stared at each other. Ember was looking at me as well, but she turned to her mate. He didn’t look at her. His focus was on me and I wondered if it was because he was still deciding if giving me the truth was worth it. My hand curled into a fist.“Yes, we made the decision to lock Winter’s wolf away!” Ember was the one who answered, the words tumbling out of her mouth.My eyes continued to watch my brother as he sighed and rubbed his eyes, his back falling against the wall. He pulled his leg up and frowned. Damian looked exhausted, but not from the blooming bruise on the side of his face.“We…we made the decision. A choice. To protect her and the pack. Especially after Linny passed…” Ember sat back on her knees, looking up at me. “Yes, we made the choice. I’m sorry, Cas.”“Why? Why would you do that? What could a young wolf do to pose such a threat that you brought in magic, forbidden magic I might add, to seal away her wolf? You can’
Winter 74. Rolling Up Your Sleeves
*** Caspian’s POV ***I tried to be as normal as possible for Winter. She was already nervous going with Maddox and I to the diner. It was funny because we definitely turned a few heads. However, once we sat down, she relaxed a little. Not as much as I wished though.This had broken her. She spoke about not having her wolf but the fact that it had been taken from her. Not that she wasn’t supposed to have one, didn’t just devastate her. I was gutted. It wouldn’t change how I felt about having her as a mate. My acceptance of her wouldn’t change. This just felt so raw.I’d had Onan with me years before most wolves did. We were a team. Albeit a weird team. We didn’t think or work together like other wolves but he was the other part of my soul. My grouchy old man part of my soul.‘Hey.’I chortled. “Tell me I’m wrong.”Onan huffed. ‘Whatever.&
