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Chapter 128 – Ink and Poison

ผู้เขียน: Quinn Montclair
last update ปรับปรุงล่าสุด: 2025-12-26 15:10:28

Alexei

The cane is gathering dust in the corner of the bedroom.

I don’t need it anymore. My leg still aches when the weather turns, a phantom throb where the steel went through, but the muscle has knit together with that terrifying, accelerated speed that comes from being Wolf.

And from being close to him.

I leave the room before Kieran wakes up. He’s sleeping deeply, his face buried in the pillow, one arm thrown over the space where I was lying five minutes ago.

I don’t want to wake him. I don’t want him to see the restlessness that’s been itching under my skin since yesterday.

It’s early. The sun is just bleaching the eastern sky, turning the gray stone to a pale, cold gold. The Keep is waking up. Servants are lighting fires. Guards are changing shifts.

Usually, I walk through here like I own the place. I joke with the cooks. I terrorize the new recruits with detailed critiques of their posture. I make noise.

Today, I stay out of sight.

I turn a corner near the library and almost c
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  • A Different Kind of Alpha: Blood Oath   Chapter 200 – PS

    AlexeiBuilding a cottage with an Alpha who has never held a hammer in his life is a test of patience that I am fairly certain qualifies me for sainthood."It’s crooked," Kieran says.He’s sitting on a large, flat rock near the water’s edge, a book of poetry resting on his knee, a goblet of wine in his hand. He’s wearing a loose linen shirt that catches the breeze coming off the lake, and he looks like a painting of a tragic, beautiful prince in exile.Except he’s not tragic. And he’s definitely not in exile. He’s just annoying.I wipe the sweat from my forehead with the back of my arm and glare at the porch railing I just installed."It is not crooked," I say. "It follows the natural curve of the wood. It’s rustic. It’s charming.""It lists to the left," Kieran observes, taking a sip of wine. "If I lean on it, I’ll fall into the hydrangeas. And I’m quite fond of those hydrangeas. I planted them myself.""You pointed at a spot in the dirt and told me to dig," I remind him. "That’s not

  • A Different Kind of Alpha: Blood Oath   Chapter 199 – Lunch and Torture

    KieranLunch is a battlefield.It shouldn't be. It consists of roast chicken, crusty bread still warm from the oven, freshly churned butter, a sharp, crumbly cheese that tastes like heaven, and wine that shines like rubies in the crystal goblets. It’s a meal fit for a honeymoon celebration.But we are not alone.Across the table sits Eli. Picking at a grape with the meticulous precision of a surgeon, his eyes bright and entirely too observant. Next to him is Ronan, a silent, brooding mountain of muscle and patience who is methodically destroying a chicken leg.Beside me is Alexei. My Mate. The man who, mere hours ago, had me pinned against a mirror until I forgot my own name. He’s eating with gusto, his knee pressing against mine under the table. A constant, solid point of contact. Here. I’m here.It feels good. It feels right."You're sitting very straight," Eli observes, finally popping the grape into his mouth. He chews slowly, staring at me. "Remarkably upright. For a man who was

  • A Different Kind of Alpha: Blood Oath   Chapter 198 – Greedy

    KieranI wake up to pain.It’s a dull, throbbing ache that lives in my wrists, in my hips, in the muscles of my inner thighs. My skin feels tight, chafed in places where silk rubbed against it for hours. My neck stings where the mating mark is still fresh and angry.It is the best I have ever felt in my life.I lay still for a moment, listening. The Keep is waking up. I can hear the distant clatter of the kitchens, the changing of the guard on the wall. Usually, these sounds trigger a cascade of anxiety. Is the roster done? Is the grain counted? Is the wall secure?Today, the sounds are just noise. They don't touch me.My mind is quiet. It is a still, glassy lake.Until I turn my head and find that Alexei is not in bed.The spot beside me is still warm, the furs rumpled where he pushed them off. Panic flares for a microsecond, before the bond in my chest hums. It’s a golden tether, warm and solid. I can feel him. He’s close. He’s calm. He’s filled with a fierce, protective affection

  • A Different Kind of Alpha: Blood Oath   Chapter 197 – Unraveling the Alpha

    AlexeiThe heavy iron bolt of the door slides home with a sound that feels like a guillotine dropping on the rest of the world.The noise of the feast, the drums, the shouting, the endless toasts to our health, is instantly severed. The silence in our bedroom is sudden and profound, thick with the scent of beeswax candles and the lavender Kieran’s taken to burning, pretending it calms him.He isn’t calm.He’s standing in the middle of the room, still wearing his ceremonial robe, ass bare beneath it. I can see my bite in his neck and the urge to grab him is very strong, but he’s trembling. His hands are moving restlessly, stacking the scrolls he just took off the desk on a side table, straightening a quill that was already straight, smoothing a nonexistent wrinkle in the rug with his toe."The River Pack delegation was offended by the seating," he says to the wall. "Did you see Elder Thorne’s face when the pork was served? I think the music may have been too loud. Oryn looked pained."

  • A Different Kind of Alpha: Blood Oath   Chapter 196 – After Party

    EliThere is a special circle of hell reserved for people who invent obsidian butt plugs, and currently, I am the mayor of that circle.Six hours.It has been six hours since Ronan, the love of my life and the bane of my existence, slid that heavy, cold piece of stone inside me and told me to behave.Six hours of standing. Six hours of sitting on hard wooden benches. Six hours of watching Kieran and Alexei make heart-eyes at each other while I try not to whimper every time I shift my weight.I am vibrating. I am leaking. I am fairly certain that if anyone looks at me too closely, they will see the steam coming out of my ears."The wine is excellent," Ronan says, his voice a low, pleasant rumble beside me. He takes a sip from his goblet, looking the picture of relaxed, Alpha elegance. "Don't you think, Eli?"I grip my own goblet so hard the metal groans."It’s fine," I snap. "If you like drinking fermented grapes that taste like a foot."Ronan turns to me. He has that smile on his face

  • A Different Kind of Alpha: Blood Oath   Chapter 195 – The Ceremony

    KieranMy hands are shaking.I stare at them. They’re pale against the heavy, blue velvet of the ceremonial robe. I clasp them together, willing the tremors to stop, but my pulse is hammering in my wrists like a trapped bird.Having all my bits dangling freely under the robe, and knowing the entire pack will be getting to see them up close and personal soon, is not helping."You look like you’re going to a funeral," Eli says. “This is supposed to be the happiest day of your life. Breathe.”He’s adjusting the collar of my robe. His touch is surprisingly gentle, despite the sharp edge of his tone. He’s wearing a silk tunic the color of wine, paired with tight black leather trousers, and for once, he isn't vibrating with chaotic energy. He looks solemn."It feels a little like a funeral," I whisper. "My dignity is dying today.""Don't be dramatic," Eli chides, smoothing a wrinkle on my shoulder. "It’s a mating ceremony. It’s ancient. It’s sacred.""It’s voyeuristic," I hiss. "We are goin

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