Novels by Phattie

Chapter 100(whew!!!) The Author's YapIf you've made it here...Hi.First of all, thank you.Seriously, thank you.This is my very first completed novel, and I honestly don't know how to explain what this journey has been like. Before writing this book, I worked as a ghostwriter. My job was simple in comparison. I was given outlines, chapter breakdowns, character directions, and all I had to do was bring someone else's vision to life. It wasn't easy, but there was always a map.This time, there wasn't.This time I had to become the map.I had to decide where every character would go, what every chapter would become, what every conversation should feel like, and somehow make all of it connect into one story.I won't lie to you. Somewhere around Chapter Twenty-Something, I wanted to quit.Many times.The outline I started with isn't the story you just finished reading. Characters changed. Plot twists appeared out of nowhere. Some scenes refused to cooperate. Others surprised me so much

Elara's pov The boys had finally fallen asleep,the hotel room was strangely quiet.Ronan and I had escaped into the tiny kitchen just to avoid waking them. He insisted on making tea despite nearly burning the kettle twice."You've survived bomb blasts," I laughed, leaning against the counter. "Yet boiling water is your greatest enemy."He looked offended."I'll have you know this kettle has been plotting against me since we checked in."I folded my arms."You poured water into the sugar container.""It looked thirsty."I burst into laughter."You are impossible.""I've heard that before.""By everyone?""Mostly you."I laughed so hard I had to hold the countertop for balance.God...It felt strange.Laughing.Actually laughing.Not because I was pretending.Not because I was trying to keep the boys smiling.But because I genuinely found something funny.Ronan looked at me with a softness that made my chest ache."I missed that.""What?""Your laugh."The smile on my lips weakened."I

Elara's pov The silence that followed our tears was unbearable.My boys still clung to Kael's body, their tiny hands refusing to let go, their sobs slowly fading into exhausted hiccups. I wanted to comfort them.I wanted to comfort myself.Instead, my eyes drifted across the ruined room.They landed on Ronan.He hadn't moved.Not once.A strange chill settled over me."Ronan?"The word barely escaped my lips.No answer.I frowned."...Ronan?"Still nothing.My heartbeat quickened.Every instinct inside me screamed that something was wrong."Ronan."This time my voice was louder.When he still didn't answer, panic exploded inside me."RONAN!"I forced my battered body to crawl toward him, every movement sending fresh waves of pain through my broken ribs and bruised limbs. My palms slipped on blood. My knees scraped against shattered glass. I didn't care.I reached him.His body lay frighteningly still.His skin had lost what little color it possessed, and the blood covering him had be

The last bullet left the chamber with a deafening click.Silence swallowed the room.Kael staggered.For the first time since I had met him...He fell.The impact of his enormous wolf body against the floor shook the room beneath us. Dust drifted from the ceiling. Broken furniture rattled. For one impossible second, nobody moved.Then the change began.I watched his wolf fight it.Every muscle strained against surrender. His claws scraped grooves into the floor. His great body trembled violently as if refusing to abandon the monster that had made kingdoms kneel.But even monsters have limits.The fur receded.The massive frame shrank.Bones cracked and folded back into place.A heartbeat later...Kael lay before me.Human.His chest rose unevenly.Silver-riddled flesh struggled to knit itself back together, but the wounds refused to close. Blood seeped from every hole Ronan had opened, staining the shattered floor beneath him.Around us, no one spoke.Only breathing.My own ragged gas

Elara's pov I followed his gaze.Ronan stood in the doorway.For one impossible second, I thought I was imagining him.He looked as though death had chased him all the way here and only barely lost. His clothes were torn beyond recognition, stained with soot, dirt, and dried blood. Fresh blood still trickled from wounds that hadn't had the chance to heal, while older injuries stretched across his skin in angry scars. Every breath looked painful. His legs trembled beneath him, yet somehow he remained standing, one hand wrapped tightly around the gun pointed at Kael.His eyes met mine.The fear inside them stole the air from my lungs.Not fear for himself.Fear for me.Fear that he had arrived too late.The first shot echoed through the room.Kael jerked.The second followed before the sound of the first had finished bouncing off the walls.The third came just as quickly,bullets that would probably be our only salvation because our wolves would forever be beneath the Alpha's own—we wer

Elara's POVThe aquarium had become the boys' favorite place in the house.It wasn't enormous, but it was beautiful. Blue light rippled across the walls as schools of brightly colored fish drifted lazily through the water. My youngest had his face pressed against the glass, laughing every time a stingray floated past, while his brother insisted he could recognize every species after only two weeks of staring at them every morning.Children adapted frighteningly fast.Maybe that was a blessing.Maybe it was a curse."Mom," my oldest called, pointing excitedly. "Look! The shark is back!"I laughed, walking over to him."It never left. It lives here.""So we're living with sharks?""We're visiting them."He nodded as though that explanation made perfect sense.A moment later, my youngest tugged on my hand."When is Uncle Ronan coming back?""He'll be back soon.""And Daddy?"The smile on my face faltered.I crouched until I was eye level with them."I told you, sweetheart..."Before I co