Novels by Hassan Mary

SILVER AND STORMCassius moved like he'd been born to kill.I'd spent twenty-three years believing I was the weakest thing in Silvercrest Pack. I'd scrubbed floors and kept my eyes down and let people call me worthless so many times the word had almost felt true.Standing in this blood-soaked courtyard, silver fur rippling across my skin and violet eyes burning in the dark, I understood for the first time that I had never been weak. I had been hidden.And I was done hiding.Cassius's Phantom Wolf form was enormous, broader than Ryder's black wolf, built from decades of battle and brutality. He circled me with the lazy confidence of a predator who had never once lost."There she is," he said, and somehow I heard him clearly despite everything. "Your mother wasted her whole life running from what she was. Look at you. Magnificent.""Don't talk about my mother.""I knew her better than you did, little wolf." He feinted left and I tracked it, didn't bite. "She was exactly like you. Stubbo

Ryder’s growl silenced them instantly. No one dared meet his eyes.We reached the main gate just as Cassius’s force crested the ridge.There were more than twenty. At least thirty Phantom Wolves in human form, moving with eerie coordination. Cassius walked at the front, tall and silver-haired, his hazel eyes scanning the walls until they locked on me standing beside Ryder.Even from this distance I felt the pull of blood calling to blood. My wolf recoiled and lunged at the same time.“Ryder Blackwood!” Cassius’s voice carried unnaturally far, laced with ancient power. “You had your chance. Hand over my niece and this ends without unnecessary death. Keep her, and I will take her from your cold corpse.”Ryder stepped to the edge of the wall, every inch the Rogue Alpha who had built an empire on fear.“She’s not your niece. She’s my mate. And the only thing you’re taking today is a shallow grave.”Cassius laughed, cold and certain. “Still clinging to that bond? How touching. But bonds b

The scout’s words still echoed in my ears as Ryder’s door slammed shut behind him. Less than an hour.My heart slammed against my ribs so hard I could feel it in my throat. Cassius wasn’t waiting for the deadline. He was coming early, like he could sense the bond tightening between Ryder and me.I pressed my palm to the crescent scar on my right hand, the old childhood mark suddenly burning like a fresh brand. My wolf stirred beneath my skin. She didn’t understand fear the way I did. She only understood mate, threat, protect.“Vada.”Ryder’s voice cut through the rising panic. He had come back into the room without noticing. His storm-gray eyes were already bleeding red at the edges. Cipher was close to the surface.“You’re shaking,” he said, low and rough.“I’m not ready.” The admission tasted like ash. “I can make my eyes glow and grow claws, but that won’t stop an army. I don’t know how to use whatever power Cassius wants from me. I don’t even know if I can use it.”Ryder crossed

CHAPTER 16RYDER'S POVI didn't sleep.I'd tried, gone to my office and sat in the chair behind my desk and closed my eyes, but Cipher wouldn't settle, kept snarling and pacing and pushing at me to go back to her room, back to the girl I'd walked away from even though every instinct I had was screaming to stay.By the time the sun started rising I gave up and went to find Kade.He was in the armory checking weapons with three other rogues, all of them moving with the kind of quiet efficiency that meant they knew what was coming and were preparing for it."How many hours do we have left?" I asked.Kade looked up. "Maybe six, Cassius gave you until this afternoon, he'll be here when the deadline hits.""And the rogues?""Armed, ready, scared but staying." He set down the sword he'd been sharpening. "What about the girl?""She's learning control faster than she should, but I don't know if it's fast enough.""Then make it fast enough, you've got six hours to turn her into whatever she nee

The room felt different after Ryder left.I looked at my hands and thought about the claws, about the power humming under my skin waiting for me to figure out how to use it.I closed my eyes and reached for my wolf.She was right there, closer to the surface than she'd ever been, awake and aware.I thought about Cassius coming back, about the rogues who might die because Ryder chose to keep me.My eyes shifted.I felt the gold bleed in, felt my vision sharpen until I could see dust particles floating in the afternoon light.I held it for ten seconds, twenty, thirty, then let it fade.It was getting easier every time.I tried the claws next and watched silver claws extend from my fingertips without the bone-cracking pain from before.I retracted them smoothly.The power was responding to me now instead of just erupting when I got emotional.But I could also feel something else building under the surface, something bigger, something that felt like it was waiting.The command ability Cas

I walked to the window and stared out at the courtyard below while Cipher paced inside my chest, still snarling about the fact that I'd unchained her."Where do we start?" Vada asked behind me.I didn't turn around yet because I needed another second to get Cipher under control."With the truth," I said finally. "About what you are, about what Phantom Wolves can do that regular wolves can't.""Tell me.""Phantom Wolves are faster than regular wolves, stronger, harder to kill because your healing is accelerated." I started pacing. "Your senses are sharper, you can hear conversations from three floors away, smell blood from half a mile out, track someone through a forest in the dark.""I've noticed some of that.""That's just the baseline, the dangerous part is what develops after you bond with a fated mate.""The power Cassius mentioned.""Yes, bonding unlocks abilities that were dormant, and in bloodlines like yours where the wolf was suppressed for decades, those abilities come back