Novels by Celestine S

Epilogue The garden at the Hale estate was filled with life and warmth, something that would have been impossible to imagine a year ago. Strings of colorful lights hung between the trees. A long table overflowed with simple but tempting food. At the center of it all stood a lion-shaped cake. It leaned a little to one side, but it had been made with love by Grandma Karen. At the heart of that small universe, on a soft blanket, lay Ethan, a six-month-old baby lion. He was dressed in a fuzzy costume with a hood and tiny ears, making him look like a cub ready to roar. He tried to crawl toward anything shiny, dragging his chubby body forward with a determination that filled Tessa’s chest with pride. Tessa looked around, taking it all in slowly. Karen sat in a garden chair, watching Ethan with open affection, a softness that even smoothed out the usually sharp lines of her face. Not far away, Tyler and Jack were busy with their own task. Tyler was trying to add another string of lights to

Nathan managed to get Ethan to sleep in just a few minutes. The small body went completely limp, warm and heavy against his shoulder. He let out a quiet breath of relief. At least one small mission had gone right tonight.Moving with extreme care, Nathan entered the bedroom. Every step was controlled, nearly silent, so he would not wake the baby sleeping on his shoulder or the woman who was supposed to be resting on the bed. He lowered Ethan gently into the crib, made sure he was positioned comfortably, then pulled the cotton blanket Tessa had chosen up to the baby’s chest.The exhaustion hit him the moment he straightened up. His bones felt heavy, but there was a quiet sense of satisfaction underneath it. The plan was simple. Get back into bed, slide under the covers, feel Tessa’s warmth, then sleep, even if it was only for a few hours.But when he turned around, his chest tightened.Tessa was not lying down.She was sitting on the edge of the bed. Her face was tense with pain, one h

Tessa was drifting in a dark, soothing layer of sleep when a cry pierced through her awareness. It was loud but fragile at the same time, like it was calling out and demanding attention all at once. Her brow furrowed, her breathing shifted slightly. She was not fully awake, but her heart recognized the sound instantly.It was Ethan crying. Her son.Even at just one week old, Tessa was already certain her baby had the strongest voice she had ever heard. Even half-asleep, her maternal instinct kicked in, urging her body to move.The room was dim. Moonlight slipped softly through the window, casting faint shadows along the walls. Tessa’s body felt heavy, exhaustion still clinging to every joint. The C-section incision made her hesitate to get up too quickly. She was just about to shift when she heard quiet movement beside the bed.She did not open her eyes. She only felt the mattress dip slightly, then the warmth next to her disappear. In her not-quite-conscious state, she knew exactly w

Tessa’s entire body felt light, as if it no longer had any weight. Darkness wrapped around her, but in the middle of that silence, one sound cut through clearly. A constant beeping that pierced her ears. She did not know what the sound was. She did not know where she was.With great effort, Tessa forced her eyes open. Her eyelids felt unbearably heavy. The bright light in the room blinded her for a moment before her vision slowly came into focus.And that was when she saw him.Nathan was there.He sat in a chair beside her bed, his body leaning forward, his head resting against the edge of the mattress. His hand was gripping Tessa’s tightly. Nathan was asleep, yet even in sleep his face looked tense, etched with worry. The dark circles beneath his eyes were unmistakable, making him look as if he had aged ten years in just a few hours.Because it had only been a few hours, right?A dull, throbbing pain pulsed through Tessa’s lower abdomen. Her memories came back in broken fragments. Th

Minutes crawled by like centuries from Nathan’s point of view. Every second pressed down on his shoulders with a weight that felt crushing. The flat, steady beep of the machine still echoed in his head, a ghost that refused to leave even after the door had been tightly shut. He pushed himself away from the wall. His muscles were stiff, his body aching, the cold from the floor seeping straight into his bones.Nathan’s gaze dropped to the tiny human in Karen’s arms. The woman looked at the baby with a softness that felt foreign to him. His child. His and Tessa’s. Part of him, the part still thinking clearly and drowning in guilt, knew this was unfair. The baby had done nothing wrong. Tessa had loved and wanted this child with her whole heart. She would hate him if she knew he could barely bring himself to look at the baby’s face.With an effort that felt almost impossible, Nathan stepped forward. One step, then another. The hushed conversations around him stopped. Every pair of eyes tur

The flat, steady beeping kept drilling into Nathan’s ears, burning into his brain like the echo of the moment the world stopped. Tessa. His Tessa. Lying there, motionless. Pale. Eyes closed.He wanted her to open them, to look at him again with that green that always anchored him to reality.“Please do something.” His voice came out rough and cracked, so wrecked it barely sounded like his own.They tried to move him back. Blue-gloved hands grabbed his arm and pulled, but he fought them with the blind desperation of a cornered animal.“Mr. Hale, you need to step out. We need space to work.” The doctor’s voice was firm, but all Nathan saw were the eyes above the mask, and in them he read the same panic that was frying him from the inside.“No.” Nathan growled, still struggling. “I’m not leaving her. She doesn’t want to be alone.”He knew they were right. He knew he should go. His body refused. He had to stay. Protocol meant nothing. Nothing meant anything. If Tessa left, if he lost her,

Selena had no idea how long she'd been at the hospital, helping care for the survivors. Every part of her body ached with exhaustion. She kept staring toward the entrance, silently hoping Raven would walk through those doors somehow. But no matter how long she waited, he never came.Rowan had been badly injured, and Amara and Selena were tending to his wounds together. As they wrapped the bandages around him, Selena quietly slipped him a few drops of her own blood while he was still unconscious, using it in place of a healing capsule so he'd recover faster. No one noticed.Now, Rowan was finally awake"Selena," he whispered as she looked over at him. "Before the battle started, Raven asked me to give this to you after everything was over." His voice was weak from the pain as he held out a crumpled piece of paper. Despair was written all over his face.With trembling hands, Selena took it from him."Selena, you should go home and get some rest," Amara said gently, rubbing her arm.Sele

The next morning, Selina woke alone to the sound of the alarm she had set the night before. The sheets on Raven's side of the bed were already cold. That was when it finally hit her. He was really gone. She could still vaguely remember the kiss he had pressed to her lips and the quiet whisper telling her he loved her. At first, she had thought it was just a dream, but it had all been real. As she got out of bed, her eyes landed on a handwritten note resting on the nightstand. My love, I'm leaving. Don't worry about me. Do your job the best you can and save as many lives as possible, but don't push yourself too hard. I'm proud of you. I love you more than anything. Forever yours, Raven. Selina's lips trembled as she fought back tears. She drew in a long, steady breath, forcing herself to stay strong before getting to her feet. She still had a job to do. Once all of this was over, she and Raven would finally begin their new life together. After taking a shower, she put on the uni

“Shhh, sweetheart,” Raven whispered as he rubbed Selina’s back while she sobbed softly, struggling to steady her breathing.Selina was known for being strong and composed, but overhearing Raven talk to Silas about her safety if anything happened to him had hardened her heart with pain. That conversation forced her to face just how dangerous their situation was and how deeply it could wound them both. She could not even bear to imagine losing Raven. The thought alone made her body tremble in fear. She prayed silently that it would never happen, because she knew she would not survive the devastation that would follow. Selina refused to walk any farther down that path of thought.“Selina.” Raven cupped her cheeks and gently guided her back so they were face to face.Selina lowered her head. The trembling of her chin was impossible to control as tears welled again, blurring her vision.Raven tucked her hair behind her ear and lifted her face, but Selina kept her eyes closed. She did not w

“This zone is dangerous. No healers or reinforcements are allowed to cross this line,” King Thorne said, pointing to the red line on the map.The war had begun. Pressure and tension weighed on everyone in the room. This was not just another battle. It was a matter of life and death, with the survival of their entire species at stake.“What happened to the unit we sent last night?” Leon asked, pointing at a spot on the map where the troops had been deployed.“They were slaughtered,” Varkon snapped.“What?” Raven growled.“Our plan was flawless, so how is it possible that not a single one of them survived?” Rowan asked, disbelief heavy in his voice.“Damn it,” Raven muttered, clenching his fist.“This explains why we’ve been losing at every turn. They already know what we’re going to do, like we’re deliberately sending our people to be wiped out,” Leon added, his voice tight with anger.“The plan we’re discussing right now, if it leaks, we’ll know the traitor is one of us,” Rowan said c

Morning.Shouts from outside the house jolted Selina awake. She sat up abruptly, her heart pounding as she rushed to the window in a half-dazed state. The remnants of sleep vanished the moment her eyes widened at the sight of a crowd moving hurriedly down the street in the opposite direction.“Selina!”The door burst open as Raven rushed in. “Are you okay?” He immediately grabbed her arm and pulled her into his chest, holding her tightly as if to make sure she was unharmed.“I’m fine. What’s going on out there?” Selina asked, her voice still trembling.“Dozens of our pack members were found dead at the end of the road,” Raven said. The words made Selina’s heart feel like it stopped beating.“What?” she whispered, shaking.“They were all killed the same way as the previous victims. At first, we thought it was the work of a serial killer. But this time, a note was left with the bodies. It’s been confirmed that the witches are behind it,” Raven explained.Selina’s head spun. Just when th

Selina frowned when Maya called and told her about what had just happened to their pack. Worry crept into her mind.“What do you mean?” Selina asked anxiously.“Three members of our pack were found dead near the border. The pack healer said the cause of death was magical. Rumors about witches attacking werewolves are spreading fast,” Maya said.Selina’s heart skipped, fear tightening her chest. “But the last witch of their kind is already dead. How could any of them still be alive?” she asked, her voice trembling.“I don’t know if it’s true or not, but the rumors are spreading like wildfire. I’m scared things will get out of control if we don’t act quickly,” Maya continued.Selina tried to calm her down. “Don’t panic, Maya. Everything will be fine. Raven said Alpha King Thorne is investigating this. A body was also found in the Kendall pack a week ago.”“I’m still scared. I don’t even dare take Oliver to the park because of those witches,” Maya said. They talked a bit longer, and Seli