Novels by Zophirya

Sophia ~I didn't go home that night. Or the next.Alexander didn't show up at the institute. Didn't have Marcus follow me. Didn't call except for one text each morning: "Good morning. I love you. I'm waiting."Simple. Direct. So unlike the Alexander I'd known.On the third day, flowers arrived at my workspace. Not the extravagant arrangements he'd sent before—a single white rose with a card in his handwriting: "One day closer to earning your trust. - A""Secret admirer?" James asked, smirking."Persistent husband." I touched the soft petals, my heart aching."You know, for what it's worth, I think he means it." James leaned against the doorframe. "I've done some digging. Alexander Wyndham hasn't been seen with Elena Hartley since your confrontation. He's turned down three major business deals. And according to the society pages, he's been notably absent from every social event.""How do you know all this?""I have my sources." He grinned. "Also, your friend Jennifer won't stop textin

Sophia ~I stayed at the institute until seven PM, burying myself in work to avoid thinking about Alexander's parting words."You should go home." James appeared beside my workstation, concern etched on his face. "You've been staring at that canvas for twenty minutes without moving.""I can't go back there." The admission came out broken. "I can't face him. Not tonight.""Then don't." He pulled out his phone. "My sister has a spare room in Brooklyn. She's traveling for work. You can stay there as long as you need.""James, I can't impose—""You're not imposing. You're surviving." He squeezed my shoulder. "Let me help you, Sophia. Please."I nodded, too exhausted to argue.The apartment was small but warm, filled with plants and books and the kind of comfortable chaos that came from actually living in a space. So different from the sterile perfection of the penthouse."There's food in the fridge. Extra towels in the bathroom." James handed me a key. "And Sophia? Turn off your old phone

Sophia ~I made it to the Morrison Restoration Institute by nine AM, my heart still racing from defying Alexander's order to stay home."Mrs. Wyndham!" Dr. Morrison greeted me at the entrance, his white beard and warm smile instantly calming my nerves. "Or should I say, Ms. Chen? I wasn't expecting you until Monday.""I wanted to see the workspace." I forced a smile. "Get reacquainted before my official start date.""Wonderful! James is already in the lab. He'll be thrilled to show you around."James Chen looked up from a Renaissance painting as we entered, his dark eyes crinkling with genuine warmth. At thirty-five, he had the kind of easy confidence that came from passion for his work rather than inherited wealth."Sophia." He set down his tools, extending a hand. "Welcome back to the real world.""It's good to be back." I shook his hand, surprised by how natural it felt. No pretense. No calculation. Just simple human connection."I'll leave you two to catch up," Dr. Morrison said,

Sophia ~ Alexander came home two days early. I was in the kitchen making coffee when I heard the elevator ding at six AM. My stomach dropped. He wasn't supposed to be back until Friday. "Sophia." I turned slowly, mug in hand. He stood in the doorway still wearing his business suit from Tokyo, his tie loosened, dark circles under his eyes. He looked like he hadn't slept in days. Good. "Alexander. I wasn't expecting you until—" "Where were you Monday night?" He cut me off, his voice dangerous and quiet. "I told you. I had dinner plans." "With who?" He moved closer, and I forced myself to hold my ground. "I called Jennifer. I called your parents. No one knew where you were." "Because I didn't tell them." I took a sip of coffee, proud that my hands didn't shake. "I'm allowed to have privacy, Alexander." "Not when you turn off your phone. Not when my security can't locate you. Not when you disappear for eight hours without explanation." His jaw clenched. "Do you have any idea wh

Sophia ~"You're unusually quiet."Alexander's voice broke through my thoughts as we rode home from the gala. I'd spent the rest of the evening watching him orbit Elena like a planet drawn to the sun, all while maintaining my perfect smile."Just tired." I kept my eyes on the passing city lights."You barely spoke to anyone after Elena left.""Did you notice?" The question came out sharper than intended. "I thought you were too busy with foundation business."His jaw tightened. "Sophia""It's fine, Alexander. Really." I turned to face him, channeling every ounce of Eleanor's words into armor around my heart. "You were networking. That's what these events are for."He studied me with those calculating gray eyes. "You're angry.""I'm tired," I repeated. "There's a difference."The penthouse felt suffocating when we arrived. Alexander loosened his tie, watching me kick off my heels with unusual intensity."What did Eleanor Hartley say to you?"My hands stilled on the zipper of my dress.

Sophia ~Three days passed in tense silence.Alexander worked late every night, though I suspected he was avoiding me as much as I was avoiding him. We moved around the penthouse like strangers, carefully orchestrating our schedules to minimize contact.But Saturday arrived too quickly, bringing with it the charity gala Alexander had demanded I attend."The dress is in your closet." Alexander's voice came from behind me as I stood in the bathroom, staring at my reflection. "Valentino. Your stylist will be here at four.""I don't need a stylist.""You need to look perfect." He appeared in the doorway, already dressed in his tuxedo. God, why did he have to look so devastatingly handsome? "The Blackwood Foundation Gala is the social event of the season. Everyone will be watching us.""Watching me, you mean. Watching to see if the Wyndham marriage is cracking." I turned to face him. "That's what this is really about, isn't it? Appearances."His expression remained neutral. "Appearances ma

RAVEN Thirty Years After SolsticeThe university auditorium held three hundred young wolves—none of them born when the revolution began. They'd grown up with democracy as normal. With choices as expected. With freedom as their birthright, not their battlefield.I stood at the podium, grey-haired and slower but still here. Sixty-three years old. Ancient by wolf standards for someone who'd fought as hard as I had."Your professor asked me to speak about the early days." My voice carried despite age. "About what it was like building democracy from nothing. Fighting for the right to choose your own leaders."A young wolf raised her hand. "Why did you have to fight? Why didn't wolves just... vote?"The question was innocent. Beautiful. She genuinely couldn't imagine a world without democracy.That was victory."Because thirty years ago, wolves lived under tyrants. Alphas who ruled through strength. Who killed anyone who questioned their authority. Who decided everything for everyone." I w

RAVEN The Council chamber had been rebuilt three times in ten years. Each iteration larger, more permanent, more confident. Now it held representatives from one hundred twelve democratic packs—every continent, every territory, all choosing self-governance.I stood at the podium for what would be my final address as Supreme.Twenty years. The Constitutional term limit I'd helped write. Twenty years of leadership, and now it was time to step down."Ten years ago today, we faced impossible odds." My voice carried to wolves who'd fought beside me and wolves who'd only heard stories. "We were twenty-three packs. Two hundred fifty wolves. Facing four hundred coalition forces and centuries of tradition that said democracy was weakness.""We survived. Not because we were stronger. Because we were willing to sacrifice everything for the right to choose. Two hundred seventeen wolves died proving that choice mattered more than safety. That freedom was worth any price."I looked at the memorial

RAVEN The threat didn't come from coalition remnants or assassination attempts or internal discord.It came from humans."The United States government is demanding renegotiation of our treaty." Rodriguez's emergency briefing interrupted a routine budget meeting. "They're claiming we've expanded beyond the original territorial agreements. That seventy-eight packs across multiple continents constitute a sovereign nation requiring formal diplomatic recognition.""That's good, right?" Sara asked. "Recognition means legitimacy.""It means they want to regulate us. Tax us. Control us." Marcus studied the official documents. "I've seen this pattern. Humans recognize supernatural entities only when they want to exploit or contain them. Never out of genuine respect.""What are their specific demands?" I scanned the treaty proposal."Registration of all wolves. GPS tracking. Mandatory reporting of pack movements. Restrictions on international expansion. Essentially, they want to know where eve

RAVEN The crisis came not from enemies but from success.Seventy-eight democratic packs now existed across four continents. Growth so rapid we couldn't properly integrate new members. Couldn't train them in democratic processes. Couldn't ensure they understood the principles behind the procedures."The Brazilian packs are fighting among themselves." Rodriguez's report was grim. "Three reformed packs in territorial dispute. They're demanding Council arbitration but won't accept our authority to enforce decisions. They want democracy's benefits without its constraints.""That's the pattern everywhere." Alpha Catherine looked exhausted. "We're spreading faster than we can educate. Wolves join because they see prosperity, not because they understand principles. When democracy gets hard, they quit.""So we're failing because we're succeeding too fast?" The irony wasn't lost on me. "We won the war but we're losing the peace.""We need to slow expansion." Alpha William's suggestion surprise

RAVEN The poison was slow-acting. Professional. Designed to look like natural illness rather than assassination.Chen caught it three days into my "flu"—noticed symptoms that didn't quite match, ran tests that revealed traces of wolfsbane derivative in my system. Enough to kill me within a week if untreated."Who?" I asked from the medical bed where I'd been confined."We don't know yet. It was in your food, but the compound cafeteria serves two hundred wolves daily. Could have been anyone." Kira's frustration was palpable. "We're testing everyone who had access, but—""But finding one poisoner among two hundred suspects is nearly impossible." I closed my eyes, exhausted by my body's fight against the toxin. "How long do I have?""Chen's neutralizing agent is working. You'll recover fully in a week, maybe two." Rodriguez sat beside my bed. "But Raven, this is the fourth attempt this year. Assassination is becoming routine. Eventually, one will succeed.""I know.""So what do we do? I

RAVEN The anniversary ceremony drew wolves from fifty-three packs. Fifty-three democratic territories where a year ago there had been only twenty-three. Growth. Evolution. Democracy spreading like wildfire.I stood before the memorial wall, now expanded to hold two hundred seventeen names. Nine more wolves had died in the year since the solstice—accidents, illness, one assassination attempt, natural causes. Far fewer than the hundred seventy-three who'd fallen in a single battle.Progress measured in lives saved. In deaths that were tragic rather than catastrophic."One year." Alpha Catherine stood beside me, grey in her hair that hadn't been there last winter. "A year since we thought we'd all die. Since we faced impossible odds and somehow survived.""We lost good wolves." I touched Jax's name, the ritual that started every difficult day. "Too many good wolves.""But we saved more. Built more. Became more." She gestured to the gathering crowd. "Look at them. Fifty-three Alphas work