Lucy.It had been three days.Three torturous, sleepless, soul-wrenching days since I discovered my father might still be alive and in all that time, not a single trace. Goddamnit, I was losing my fucking mind. Every morning I opened my eyes to the same nightmare.Each day bled into the next like ink in water, smearing the hours into a haze of fruitless searching and suffocating silence. I’d burned every bridge, followed every trail, bribed and threatened anyone who might have heard a whisper and still came up empty-handed. It was like the earth had swallowed him whole.That afternoon, the silence shattered with a scream.I bolted upright in bed, my heart hammering as the house trembled around me. I didn’t need to be told, I already knew.“Mom!” I shouted, rushing out of my room and nearly crashing into the hallway wall as I sprinted. “Mama, I’m coming!”She was twisted in the sheets, her body slick with sweat, cracked lips gasping as she screamed again, this time louder. Her fingers
Ivy.I hovered in front of the door, my hand trembling just inches above the brass handle. My chest felt constricted, every inhale sharper than the last, my heart hammering so loudly it drowned out every other sound. calantha had already darted under the bed, eyes wide with panic, her small frame shaking as she dragged the blanket down to cover herself.I didn’t blame her. Hell, if I had anywhere to run, I might’ve done the same. There was no telling what waited on the other side of that door, but every instinct in me screamed that it wasn’t anything good. The heavy footsteps that had stomped their way down the hall had stopped a while ago, and yet somehow, their absence was even more chilling.Grinding my teeth, I forced my hand to close around the handle. I tried to tell myself I’d been through worse. But that was a lie. I hadn’t. Maybe… maybe this really was the end of the line.I exhaled slowly and twisted the knob. Alpha Ellison stood on the threshold, and he wasn’t alone.Two gu
Ivy.My room was a total mess. Clothes were scattered all over the floor in random piles. The bed was half-made, but that didn't bother me. I need to figure out a way to leave this city at once.I looked down at the blood-stained cloth in my hands. My fingers shook as I held it tight, trying to hide it, trying to get rid of it. But no matter where I put it under the bed, in the closet, behind the curtains, it felt like it was still there. I could see it. Feel it. The thick dark blood soaking through the fabric, staining my skin. The smell lingered, strong and sharp, and it wouldn’t go away. I felt like it was stuck to me.I pulled the cloth against my chest and bit my lip, trying to slow my breathing. Each breath was short and uneven. I had to calm down. I had to get rid of it or maybe hide it. Dammit!!! I need to make up my mind before anyone sees the damn thing.I scanned the room for somewhere to stash the evidence, but everywhere I looked seemed so open or rather too exposing. Eve
Lucy.The first thing I noticed was the steady beeping of a machine, matching the dull pounding inside my head. My eyelids felt heavy and dry as they slowly opened, and the harsh white light above made my temples throb sharply. I groaned, my voice hoarse and unfamiliar.“Lucy,” a deep voice called softly.I turned my head with effort, and saw Alpha Ellison. I couldn't even deny the joy in my heart knowing that he was there for me. “Alpha Ellison,” I whispered, my throat rough. “You’re here…”“I wasn’t going to leave you,” he said, calm but serious. “I needed to be sure you were alright first.”A lump formed in my throat. I tried to sit up, but a sharp pain stabbed my side and I gasped. Goddess! My whole body ached so bad and I was so afraid of moving an inch again.“Easy,” he warned, placing a steady hand on my arm. “You lost a lot of blood. When I arrived at the prison, you were already badly beaten.”I blinked against the sting in my eyes. “Thank you… for saving me. I don’t remembe
ALPHA Ellison.The silence in the room was thick. The kind that made your heart race, like you were being hunted.I sat next to her, my fingers brushing hers lightly. I watched her chest rise and fall slowly. Lucy lay motionless. Still, the doctor insisted she would get better. He said her body was repairing itself, that her wolf was fighting back. It was only a matter of time.Time.I hated that word now.“I need you to wake up, Lucy,” I whispered, moving a stray hair from her pale forehead. “I need to hear your voice. I need to see your eyes again. You promised me forever, remember?”The room answered only with the steady beep of the monitors and the soft hiss of oxygen helping her breathe. Nurses came in to check her vitals, asking how long she’d been out, if I’d noticed any changes. I answered without really thinking, eyes fixed on her. One nurse offered a hopeful smile. “She’s holding steady, Alpha. Just keep holding on.”“Yeah,” I said quietly. “That’s all I’m doing.”After they
AuroraThe smile on her lips vanished as swiftly as morning dew under sunlight, and I should’ve seen the warning in that. But I didn’t. I couldn’t. Not until I heard it.A faint rustling.Soft at first. Then again louder this time. That unmistakable sound that sets off alarms in your gut before your brain can even catch up.Something moved.From behind her, out of the woods, from within the darkness, shapes began to form.Men.Five, maybe six. Dressed entirely in black. Each step deliberate. Figures born of shadow, suddenly real.I stepped back instinctively, my veins threading with fear and confusion. “What is this?”calantha didn’t budge. Didn’t blink. Her expression was cold, satisfied like this was exactly what she’d been waiting for, the final piece that made her whole.“Mother?” My voice rose, my heart pounding. “What’s going on?”Still, she said nothing.The men kept advancing.Then one of them turned his head toward the front of the house. Toward my door. The one that stood be