All Chapters of A Time for Strength: Chapter 21 - Chapter 30

“Luna, Lieutenant Fortier is on the line for you.” Carly’s voice comes through the intercom, startling me from reviewing budget requests. Alright fine. You caught me. I wasn’t working on reviewing budget requests like I’m supposed to. I’ve been staring out the window at an early spring snow shower. It’s beautiful. I almost never have time to myself anymore. Justice wants to go out and romp in the winter wonderland with her mate. Our warriors only have two weeks left before they come home. Will they have time to let their wolves out for a snowy run? It takes a second for my mind to process what she just said. When it does, my heart stops. I look at the calendar on the wall. It’s only Tuesday. Henri always calls on Thursday nights. He has been calling once a week to give me as much of an update as he can about the war so I can share with pack leaders. He’s not allowed to say anything about our individual warriors for security reasons. Most of the time, his updates aren’t much, but I’l

“What the fuck was that about?” I look around. Did anyone else witness that? A nurse peeks around the corner with a cringe. “Are you alright, Luna?” “Yes, thank you.” I nod to her. “What do you expect from a psychopath like Saint?” Justice says as if she’s not surprised. Doctor Nolan approaches me. “We’ve already given him a sedative, Luna. We're avoiding a wolfsbane tincture to subdue him with the rumor that Elder Randall is visiting.” “You heard that already?” I pinch my nose in frustration. “Where’s Doctor Stanton?” “She’s at the Sanchez house.” He advises. “Mrs. Sanchez was concerned about the delayed arrival as well.” “Yeah. That tracks.” I feel my shoulders drop slightly. Poor Maria. She loves her youngest son so much. She and Javier come to dinner service occasionally. I pay my respects when I see them, just like I do with Tyree’s family and the Ikedas. James’s family lives off territory, so we don’t see them often. With Maria, it’s different. She never stopped calling m

Milo’s POVShe said yes. I asked Leni to marry me and she fucking said yes. If you tell me there’s a luckier son of a bitch anywhere in the world, I’ll tell you that you’re a liar. I can’t believe I get to be her mate and now I get to be her husband too. Ghost can barely control himself. My heart is beating out of my chest. Bluebirds, butterflies, little hearts floating around in the air. All that shit. The plan worked. The entire unit helped. I’m glad I spoke to Bronx yesterday. After he warned me about all the bullshit Elder Randall has been trying to pull, he made some calls for me.The drivers stopped so I could pick up the ring in town. The jeweler is a nice old lady who sells estate jewelry out of her home. Her house smelled like cat piss, but Luna Sandy is one of her best customers, so I knew I could trust her.I traded a few rubies and emeralds from a dragon’s lair we raided. She was so impressed with the quality; she threw in extra jewelry for free. There’s a matching pair o

Lenora’s POV Best. Kiss. Ever. Until it isn’t. Milo sits back suddenly, making me open my eyes to see what’s wrong. His panic and fear hit me like a tidal wave. He’s hyperventilating. He looks… terrified? What happened? What did I do? “M-Milo?” I reach out to touch his arm. “What’s wrong? What happened? Milo?” He scrambles back and falls off the bed, hitting the floor hard. “SOMEONE HELP!” I scream through a mindlink and jump down to help him. “Something’s wrong with the Beta!” Milo’s handsome features become distorted as Ghost comes forward. He snarls and snaps at me as if he’s never seen me before. Maybe because I was too excited to see him and came in smelling like a rogue instead of getting a shower first? It doesn’t matter now. I have to help him. “Ghost, it’s me! It’s Lenora! It's Leni, your mate!” I grab his shoulders. His sharp claws reach out and painfully dig into my arms, ripping holes through the sleeves of my sweatshirt. I can’t pull away or the gouges will become

I stand up, roll my shoulders, and clear my throat to shake the doubts from my mind. A nurse in the hallway looks up from her medicine cart to bow to me. I nod my head to her, but don’t stop walking until I get to Milo’s door. They’ve turned most of the lights off in his room. He’s laying on his side, facing away from me. “Um, Milo?” I whisper. “Are you awake?” He doesn’t answer, so I quietly swing the door shut. I can come back tomorrow. The doctor said this isn’t my fault, but if I hadn’t let him kiss me, maybe he wouldn’t have had to be sedated. It’s a weird sense of guilt. I didn’t cause his trauma, but it sure feels like I’m to blame for his current situation. “Leni, don’t leave.” Milo’s voice is groggy in my mind. “Please don’t leave.” I look back in the room as he rolls over and looks at me sleepily. His steel-gray eyes are hazy and unfocused, but his lopsided smile makes my heart jump. Is it selfish to be relieved that he’s awake instead of getting rest? I approach t