Novels by Ashley Sheeks

One Year LaterThe Bloodwood had grown green again. No longer called The Bloodwood, it was renamed The Greenwood. In the soft light of dusk, its leaves shimmered faintly silver, catching the last breath of the moon. Where once the ground burned red, wildflowers now tangled through soft moss. The air was warm, sweet with the scent of pine and rain.Lira adjusted the crown of pale blossoms in her hair, laughing as Eastin fumbled beside her. His fingers, steady in battle, were hopeless with ribbon.“Stop trying to make it perfect,” she teased.He grinned, a little sheepish. “I’m Alpha. It’s supposed to look regal.”“It’s supposed to look us,” she said, tilting her head. “And we’ve never been perfect.”Eastin laughed softly, then took her hands. “Then let’s just be real.”As the pack gathered beneath the silver canopy, the ceremony began—not with vows or divine blessing, but with the howl of the pack. A song of unity. Renewal. Forgiveness. When it faded, Eastin and Lira pressed their for

Emry’s POVThe world smelled different now.Not of ash or fear or power—but of life. Warm earth. Dew. The faint sweetness of wildflowers blooming where the Bloodwood had burned.Emry stood on the ridge overlooking the valley that had once been nothing but ruin. Now, small huts rose between the trees, their walls built from living wood that shimmered faintly silver in the sunlight. Wolves and rogues worked side by side, laughter breaking through the hum of rebuilding. It still felt fragile, like a dream that might vanish if she blinked too hard—but it was real.Behind her, footsteps crunched lightly over the soil.Braxton.She didn’t have to turn to know it was him. She felt him in the bond—steady, grounding, a warmth that filled the hollow places she’d carried for so long. He slipped an arm around her waist, resting his chin on her shoulder.“Still staring at the view?” he murmured, his voice low and rough with affection.“It’s strange,” she said quietly. “For so long, I thought peace

Veylan’s POVThe forest was still.For the first time in an age, it didn’t hurt to breathe.Veylan knelt amid the ruins of his own creation, the Bloodwood now pale and shimmering with morning light. The power that had sustained him for centuries was gone—drawn out of the roots, the soil, even his own blood. All that remained was silence, and the faint hum of something purer.He was alone.And yet, he wasn’t.A familiar warmth brushed against the edges of his thoughts, soft and hesitant. He lifted his head. The air shimmered, and she appeared—no longer radiant with divine fire, but quiet in her light.The Moon Goddess.Her form was neither woman nor celestial being now, but something in between—gentle, whole, at peace.For a long moment, neither spoke.“You came,” he said, his voice rough with disbelief.“I never left,” she replied. “Only watched, waiting for you to stop fighting shadows.”He let out a shaky laugh. “I fought because I loved you.”“I know.” Her gaze softened. “And I sil

Eastin’s POVThe world held its breath.The Bloodwood no longer screamed—it sighed. The air that had once burned red now shimmered silver, gentle as moonlight on water. Eastin stood at the edge of what had been the heart of the corruption, watching his sister kneel in the center of it all.Emry’s power had dimmed to a faint glow beneath her skin, threads of light pulsing slow and steady—alive, but quiet. Braxton crouched beside her, a hand steady on her shoulder, his expression a mix of awe and disbelief.She looked up at Eastin, eyes wet and shining. “It’s over,” she whispered.But he knew better. Nothing that big ever ended—it simply changed its shape.He stepped closer, the silver earth soft beneath his boots. The Bloodwood had stilled, but the air still trembled faintly, like the world itself was waiting for something more.Then the wind shifted.A breeze rolled through the clearing, carrying with it a scent Eastin hadn’t smelled in a year—cedar, rain, and the faintest trace of hi

Emry’s POVLight and darkness warred inside her, tearing through her like two storms colliding. The Bloodwood pulsed with her heartbeat, its roots convulsing, its breath thick with shadow.She stood on the fissured ground, one hand braced on her chest as if she could keep the power inside. Around her, everything trembled—branches bending, mist splitting in ribbons of red and silver.And then—Emry.Her mother’s voice.Emry’s head jerked up. The mist parted, and there she was—Seren—bathed in light that bled gold into silver. Her hair streamed like water, her eyes alive with the power of the Goddess. Behind her stood Theron, his hand steady on her shoulder, the faint blue of his aura wrapping her in protection.“Mother?”Seren smiled faintly. “You’ve grown into everything I feared—and everything I hoped.”Tears blurred Emry’s vision. “How are you here?”“We were never far. The Bloodwood held us. Now it’s time it lets us go.”A laugh, smooth and sharp, rolled through the clearing.Veylan

Seren’s POVFor a long time, she dreamed of nothing but roots.Roots that bound, roots that breathed, roots that listened.They had grown through her bones and blood, whispering of all that had come and all that would come again. She should have been afraid. But fear was a luxury of the living, and she had long since become something else.When Seren’s eyes opened, the world bled red.The roots pulsing around her glowed faintly, alive with power that was not her own. Beside her, Theron lay still, half-buried in the same living cocoon. His chest rose and fell in a slow, unnatural rhythm — the Bloodwood’s breath keeping him tethered.She turned her head, the effort agony, and saw her reflection shimmering on the inner surface of the roots. Her face was pale, ethereal, her veins glowing silver beneath the skin. The mark of the Goddess still lingered on her throat, faint but unbroken.Alive. Somehow, impossibly, alive.The Bloodwood hummed a question in her mind.Why do you still fight, c

CHAPTER TWENTYEVELYNIF YOU OPEN THAT DOOR, YOU'LL FIND OUT WHY THOMAS WAS REALLY KILLED.I read the message three times.Lucian read it once.Then held out his hand."Phone."I pulled it against my chest."No.""Evelyn.""It's addressed to me.""I know.""Then why would I give you my phone?""To trace it."Daniel turned from the front seat."I can do that without taking it."Lucian looked irritated.I smiled."Technology. Amazing.""This isn't funny.""No. But your face is."His expression didn't change."Daniel.""Already working."I handed Daniel the phone.He connected it to his tablet.Andrew leaned forward."Who besides Thomas called you Evie?""Family. Martin sometimes.""Gabriel?""I never met Gabriel.""His recording."I nodded."But whoever sent this says Thomas made them promise."Lucian looked at Andrew."You?""No.""Martin?"Andrew shook his head."He would've called.""Adrian?""No," I said.Lucian looked at me."Why are you so sure?""Adrian enjoys making an entrance.

CHAPTER NINETEENEVELYN"Catherine."Victor said Lucian's mother's name like it was nothing.Like he hadn't just accused her of murdering my biological father.Lucian didn't move.Neither did I.The speaker crackled above us.Finally, I found my voice."You're lying."Victor laughed softly."I wondered which of you would say it first."Lucian stepped toward the speaker."My mother killed Gabriel?""Yes.""Why?""Ask Helena."Every head turned.Helena went still.That was enough.My stomach dropped."You knew?""No."It came too quickly.Lucian heard it too."Careful."Helena's eyes narrowed."Don't threaten me in my own archive.""Then answer her."I stared at Helena."Did Catherine kill my father?""I don't know."I laughed.Not because it was funny.Because apparently that sentence was contagious.Victor's voice filled the room."She's protecting Catherine."Helena looked toward the speaker."And you're manipulating her.""Both can be true."I hated that he was right."Victor."He w

CHAPTER EIGHTEENEVELYN"Victor Hale isn't Victor Hale."The words didn't make more sense the second time.I stared at Helena's phone.Adrian was still on speaker."Then who is he?"Silence."Adrian.""I don't know."I laughed once."Of course you don't."Lucian looked at Andrew."You do."Andrew's face tightened."No.""You knew Gabriel. You knew Blackthorn. You knew Victor.""I knew the man calling himself Victor Hale.""That isn't what I asked."Andrew looked toward Helena.She didn't help him.Good.I was tired of everyone protecting everyone else's secrets."Who was Victor before Blackthorn?" I asked.Andrew rubbed a hand over his face."I never knew his original name.""But Gabriel did.""Eventually.""And that's what got him killed."Andrew hesitated."Possibly."I pointed at him."No."He sighed."Yes. I believe that's what got him killed."My stomach twisted.Gabriel had discovered who his own half brother really was.And died for it.Thomas had spent years burying that truth

CHAPTER SEVENTEENEVELYNThe drive to Westchester took forty-three minutes.I knew because I counted every one of them.Not intentionally.My brain had simply decided that if it kept track of something ordinary, like minutes, it wouldn't have to think about the fact that we were driving toward a property owned by Blackthorn.Or that Martin's phone had somehow appeared there.Or that March 17, 1983 was apparently the day Blackthorn recruited my biological father to protect Lucian's mother.Or that Lucian and I had kissed again less than twenty minutes ago.That last one was especially inconvenient.I looked out the window.Lucian sat beside me.Close enough that our knees occasionally touched whenever the SUV turned.Neither of us acknowledged it.Daniel drove.Andrew sat in the front passenger seat staring at the dark road ahead.A second security vehicle followed behind us.Three more men were already heading to the property from another direction.Lucian had wanted six.I had asked

CHAPTER SIXTEENEVELYNThe alarm began to scream.Lucian moved before anyone else.One second his hand was in mine.The next, he was in front of me with his gun drawn."Daniel.""Already on it."Daniel pressed two fingers to the earpiece at his collar.Martin slammed the laptop shut.Andrew stared toward the ceiling.The alarm continued.Loud.Relentless.Completely unnecessary considering everyone in the room was already terrified."What does that alarm mean?" I asked.Lucian didn't look at me."Interior breach.""Inside the house?""Yes.""Wonderful.""Evelyn.""I'm coping.""Cope behind me."I stared at the back of his head."We discussed this."His shoulders tightened.Even now.Even with someone apparently wandering around his house uninvited, I could practically see him forcing himself to remember.He turned."Will you please stay behind me until we know what's happening?"That was better."Yes."Lucian blinked."What?""I said yes.""You agreed.""Don't sound so shocked.""I am

CHAPTER FIFTEENEVELYNLucian stared at the photograph.So did I.There was no mistaking us.His hand at my waist.Mine twisted into the front of his shirt.My face tilted toward his.His mouth on mine.A moment that had belonged to us for approximately sixty seconds before Victor turned it into a threat.Now I know what he has to lose.Lucian's hand tightened around mine."Daniel.""I know."Daniel was already working on the replacement phone.Andrew leaned over the front seat."When was it taken?""Less than two minutes ago.""From where?"Daniel enlarged the photograph.The angle was high.Across the street.Maybe a second-story window.Lucian looked through the tinted glass."Keep moving."The SUV pulled away.Two security vehicles followed.I looked at the picture again."Delete it."Lucian took the phone from Daniel."No.""Why?""Evidence.""Of my terrible judgment?"His eyes lifted to mine."Is that what you think it was?"I regretted the joke immediately."That's not what I m