Novels by Hassan Mary

I froze in the doorway.Ryder sat on the edge of my bed, with his elbows on his knees, and his hands clasped. He looked up when I entered. His eyes swept over me, taking in my exhausted state, my raw hands, the way I was barely standing."Close the door."I did, with my heart hammering.He didn't move. Just watched me stand there like I was something he was trying to figure out."How was your first day?"The question caught me off guard. I hadn't expected him to ask. Hadn't expected him to care."Fine.""Liar." He stood slowly. "Mara told me you worked through lunch. That your hands are blistered. That Lila came by and made threats."Of course Mara had told him. She probably reported everything that happened in her kitchen."I handled it.""Did you?" Ryder took a step closer. "Because from what I heard, Lila grabbed you. Left marks on your wrist."I instinctively pulled my sleeve down, covering the bruise."It's nothing.""Show me.""It's fine.""Vada." His voice dropped lower. Danger

By midday, my hands were raw, I'd washed dishes for three hours straight. Mountains of them. Plates, bowls, cups, pots. The water was scalding hot and Mara didn't believe in breaks."Faster," she barked from across the kitchen. "Lunch prep starts in twenty minutes and I need those pots."I scrubbed harder, ignoring the burning in my palms.Other kitchen workers moved around me. They were three women and two men. All rogues but none of them spoke to me. They just worked, efficient and silent.I finished the last pot and set it on the drying rack."Good," Mara said. "Now chop the vegetables over there."She pointed to a table covered in carrots, onions, and potatoes. A knife lay beside them.I walked over and started chopping. My hands were shaking from exhaustion but I didn't stop.The door to the kitchen swung open.Lila walked in.She looked perfect with her hair pulled back.She smiled at Mara like they were old friends."Morning, Mara. Smells good in here.""Always does," Mara repl

The figure stepped into the room, it was a female. I could tell because she was tall and had curves in all the right places and long dark hair that fell past her shoulders. She was beautiful in a dangerous way, it was the kind of beautiful that knew it and used it.She closed the door behind her but she didn't lock it. She just stood there, looking at me with cold green eyes."So you're the one," she said. Her voice was so smooth.I sat up slowly. "Who are you?"She smiled, but it didn't reach her eyes. "Lila; Lila Frost. I'm sure Ryder didn't mention me."He hadn't.Lila walked further into the room, looking around like she owned it. "This used to be a storage room. Guess he cleared it out for you. How sweet."I didn't say anything because I didn't know what she wanted.She turned to face me. "Let me guess. You're confused, scared and wondering what the hell you did to deserve this." She tilted her head. "Nothing, probably. You're just unlucky.""What do you want?""To see what all

The rogue holding my arm dragged me through the fortress gates. I stumbled trying to keep up with his pace. He didn't slow down.The courtyard was massive. Stone walls rose on all sides, at least three stories high. Rogues were everywhere. Training, talking, walking with purpose. All of them stopped to stare as we passed.I kept my eyes down. I didn't want to meet anyone's gaze and I didn't want to see what they were thinking.Ryder walked ahead of us, his back straight, his stride confident. He didn't look back once or even checked if I was following. He knew I didn't have a choice.We crossed the courtyard and entered the main building. The inside was colder than outside. Dark stone walls. Torches lit along the corridors. It smelled like smoke and leather and something sharp I couldn't place.The rogue finally released my arm when we reached a heavy wooden door. Ryder stopped, turned to look at me for the first time since we'd arrived."This is where you'll stay."He pushed the door

The door slammed open and I jerked awake. Two Silvercrest warriors stood in the doorway."Get up. Alpha's waiting."My stomach dropped. This was it. Three days ago my father told me drunk and stumbling that he'd found a solution to his debts. That I wouldn't be a burden anymore because he'd sold me.I pulled on the only clean clothes I had. A faded shirt and worn pants. The warriors didn't wait."Move."I followed them through the pack house, barefoot on cold stone. A few wolves watched from doorways and none looked surprised or even sorry because they'd known this was coming.We walked through Silvercrest territory toward the border, I'd never been this far before.Alpha Marcus was waiting with my father beside him. Garrett Knox looked like hell. Three days of drinking and he wouldn't look at me."Is this her?" Marcus asked."Yeah."Marcus nodded. "Good, the buyer's almost here."I wanted to run, but I couldn't shift. I was twenty-three years old and my wolf had never surfaced, not e