Novels by Alex Steel

The sun was rising over Howlingwood.We walked out of the bus station together, our fingers still intertwined. The streets were quiet—empty roads, shuttered shops, and a world still half-asleep. The sky was pink and gold, slowly bleeding into blue.I was still holding his hand.I didn't want to let go.Not because I was afraid he'd disappear if I did, but because, for the first time in days, I wanted him beside me without worrying about what might happen next.We walked through the town in silence. Past the café where I worked. Past the school where everything had started. Past the park where he'd told me I was a werewolf and I'd laughed in his face.So much had changed since that day. I'd gone from thinking my biggest problem was figuring out why Lucas kept staring at me to discovering that I was part of a world I hadn't known existed. There were werewolves, dangerous packs, a curse that could destroy the people I loved, and powers inside me that I still didn't understand.And someho

The station was empty now—just the two of us, the flickering lights, and the cold night air.I didn't know what to say.A few minutes ago, I'd been ready to leave everything behind. I'd packed my bag, bought a ticket, and convinced myself that walking away was the only way to stop hurting. Now I was still here, and the man I'd been trying to escape was holding my hand as though he was afraid I'd disappear if he let go.He was looking at me like I was the most important person in the world. Like he couldn't believe I was still there."Why did you stay?"I turned to face him. His gray eyes were searching mine, looking for something."Because I couldn't leave you."His fingers tightened around mine, and for a moment, he looked as though he wanted to say something else. Instead, he glanced toward the empty road where the bus had disappeared."I thought I'd lost you.""You almost did."The words came out sharper than I'd intended, but I couldn't pretend otherwise. His expression fell, and

I'd been searching for an hour.Her phone was off. Her parents said she'd left with a bag. Marcus didn't know anything, just looked at me with hollow eyes and said she'd been crying. Rachel hadn't heard from her either.I was terrified.I'd checked Emma's room first. The bed was empty, the closet door stood open, and a few clothes were missing. Her phone charger was still plugged into the wall, and her favorite hoodie was gone.She hadn't left on impulse.She'd been planning this.The thought made my chest tighten.After everything we'd been through, after promising her that I wouldn't hide from her anymore, I'd still managed to make her feel like running was her only option.I called her again.Straight to voicemail."Come on, Emma," I muttered, gripping my phone. "Please."I couldn't lose her now. Not after watching her powers nearly destroy her, not after seeing what Julian had done to her, and certainly not because someone had used my name to trick her.I had spent too long believ

I couldn't sleep.The room was too quiet, the darkness too heavy. Every time I closed my eyes, I saw Julian's face. Her smile. Her words echoing in my head.He's been hiding things from you since day one.I rolled over. Checked my phone. 11:47 PM.I stared at the time for several seconds before putting the phone back on the nightstand.I closed my eyes.Five seconds later, I opened them again.My mind wouldn't stop.Mara.The curse.Greyson.The ultimatum.Julian.Everything she had said during the confrontation kept circling through my head.I knew she had lied to me.I knew she had manipulated my powers.I knew she had tried to make me dependent on her.But that didn't mean everything she said was false.That was what scared me.Then it buzzed.A message from an unknown number. But the content stopped my heart."We need to meet. Just us. No witnesses. I'll tell you everything. —L"I stared at the screen. Read it again. Read it a third time.Lucas wanted to meet me alone? No witnesse

Julian walked into the estate like she owned it.Two pack members flanked her as escorts. She'd come willingly. That alone made me nervous. She moved through the front hall with that same confident stride, that same perfect posture, that same smile that never quite reached her eyes.She stopped in the center of the room. Looked at me. Looked at Lucas. Her smile widened."So. You've found out."I stepped forward. My legs were still shaky from the destabilization, but I forced them to hold me. "You tried to break me.""I tried to make you easier to control." She tilted her head. "There's a difference."Lucas moved beside me. His presence was a statement—a wall between me and her. "You manipulated her. You lied to her. You used her fear against her.""She wouldn't have listened to me otherwise." Julian shrugged. "You should be thanking me. I showed her what she was up against.""You showed me you can't be trusted." My voice was steady. Surer than I felt.Julian's smile flickered. Just fo

I held her unconscious body against my chest and tried to breathe.Her face was pale. Too pale. The gold light was gone from her eyes, but her skin was cold, and her heartbeat was too slow. "Wake up." My voice cracked. "Come on. Wake up."She didn't move.I tightened my arms around her."Emma, please."Nothing.The courtyard was still covered in the aftermath of her power surge. Cracks ran through the stone beneath us. A few lights had gone out. The air still smelled like something had burned.But I barely noticed any of it.All I could see was her.I should have told her sooner. About Julian. About the technique. About all of it. Olivia had gone to look for proof, and I'd waited, thinking there was time.There wasn't.If I had told Emma what we suspected earlier, maybe she wouldn't have trusted Julian.Maybe she wouldn't have spent weeks practicing those exercises.Maybe she wouldn't be lying unconscious in my arms now.The pack gathered around us. I heard footsteps, voices, the shu

Ronan nearly fell on his back, and I laughed.He landed on his feet, staring at me as if I'd grown a second head. "What?"I lowered my training blade. "What what?""You laughed.""People do that.""Not you. Not at six in the morning. Not while we're training." He pointed his wooden sword at me. "What happened to you?""Your footwork is terrible. I found it amusing.""My footwork put you on the ground twice yesterday.""And yet here you are, struggling to keep up."Ronan narrowed his eyes before lunging at me. I blocked his strike, stepped aside, and caught his wrist. One turn later, his sword was pointed at the dirt.He looked down at it. "You're enjoying this.""Perhaps you're finally becoming entertaining.""That's it. I'm telling everyone you've been replaced by a cheerful impostor."I released him and stepped back. "You should focus on your defense.""I am focused on my defense. I'm also focused on the fact that you haven't looked like you've wanted to kill the world for three str

I woke before Cassian and reached for my suppressant compound before I did anything else.Ten doses left.I counted them twice, then set the container on the bedside table and looked across the room at him.Cassian was still asleep, one arm resting above his head. His face looked relaxed in a way I rarely saw during the day. Then the bond stirred.I went still.It felt warmer than it had yesterday. Last night, I had kissed him because I wanted to.Not because of the bond. Not because fate had decided we belonged together. I had made that choice with a clear mind, and Cassian had understood what it meant to me."Stop staring at me."I nearly knocked the suppressant container off the table.Cassian hadn't even opened his eyes."I'm not staring.""Of course not." His mouth curved. "You're conducting a security assessment.""Someone has to make sure you're not secretly dangerous while you sleep.""That's considerate of you.""Don't get used to it."He opened his eyes, and we looked at e

Eleven days.That was how long I had before the suppressant compound needed to change, before another cycle began and I had to decide what came next.The academy was quiet that night. Lyra was herself again, Cain's override had been dissolved, and Ronan had evidence that could strengthen the informal council review. We finally had something to work with.But none of it answered the question keeping me awake.What was I going to do about Cassian?I lay on my bed, staring at the ceiling, when the door opened. I didn't need to look to know who had entered. I recognized his footsteps, the familiar pause before he closed the door, and the quiet way he moved around the room.He set something on his desk before turning toward me.For several seconds, neither of us spoke.Then I sat up. "Eleven days.""I know.""Not because of the eleven days.""I know that too."I studied his face, searching for something I couldn't quite name. He looked tired, but his attention was entirely on me."I'm afra

The ward dissolution attempt on Lyra happened three nights after Val's conversation with her.Ronan needed time to prepare the technique. None of us knew exactly what would happen when Ronan tried to break Cain's construct, and we couldn't afford to make a mistake.We met in the herb garden at midnight. Val, me, Ronan, and Lyra, who sat in the center of Ronan's prepared ward circle.The garden was quiet, with only the rustling leaves and the occasional distant howl breaking the silence. Ronan had cleared a space between the herbs and drawn the circle himself. Small stones marked its edges, each carrying a faint magical glow.Lyra looked nervous, but she hadn't changed her mind.Val knelt beside her, holding her hand. Ronan checked the markings one last time before turning to face us."Before we begin, I need everyone to understand something," he said. "This isn't a simple cleansing. I'm dissolving a construct that has been attached to Lyra's mind. We don't know how deeply Cain embedde

I asked Lyra to meet me in the herb garden.She came immediately.Lyra settled into the chair opposite me, brushing a loose strand of hair behind her ear."You sounded serious in your message," she said. "Is something wrong?"I had rehearsed this conversation several times, but none of those attempts had prepared me for sitting across from her and knowing I was about to change how she understood her own memories."Yes," I admitted. "But I need you to hear everything before you decide what to think."Her expression grew concerned. "Val, you're scaring me.""I know. I'm sorry."She reached across the small table and touched my hand. "Whatever it is, you can tell me."That almost made it harder.I told her. Not everything at once—I built it carefully.I started with Cain and the disappearances. The things Lyra didn't know about. The students who vanished and returned behaving differently. The evidence suggesting that Cain had been conducting experiments on people under the cover of legit

I watched Cassian walk through the Solas common room and noticed something I had not seen in the three years I'd known him.He looked like himself.Not the golden boy. Not the performance. Not the armor. Himself, underneath all of it, which turned out to be someone who stood differently when he wasn't carrying the weight of his own expectations.He wasn't checking who was watching him or adjusting his expression whenever someone approached. He simply walked through the room, acknowledged a few people, and continued toward the exit.It was subtle, but I noticed.Cassian had spent years trying to be the person everyone expected him to become. His father's approval, his rank, his reputation, and his future had always seemed to occupy space in his head. Even when he was relaxed, some part of him remained guarded.Recently, that guard had started to come down.I suspected I knew why.I fell into step with him on the way to the training yard."You look different this morning."He glanced at