~~Riley, meet me in my room now.Mom....That was all the letter said. A maid had dropped by to pass me the written note clearly from my mother. I wondered why she wanted to see me.I quickly got dressed and headed for my mother’s.The door to her apartment had been left wide open, and so I walked in, slamming the door shut after I did."Mom,” I called, walking into the apartment. “Mom, I saw the letter,” I called out again.Finally I saw her; she sat on one of the cushions, tears streaming down her eyes. I rushed towards her.“Mom, what’s wrong?” I asked.“Riley”"Yes, I am here, mom. What happened?”“Seat down with me, would you?” she asked.I stared at her, puzzled. Still I sat.“Riley, I want to talk to you, and all I need you to do is listen to me.”“Okay, I can do that.” I said, hiding the panic I felt. I knew something was wrong."Good,” she says, and it took a minute before she started. “Do you know I once loved Slade?”“What?”That I didn’t expect.“I... maybe the problem w
“You were pregnant with me?” I repeated; it didn’t make sense. Why did she never bother to tell me this?“Do you know what this means?”“It means the monster is my father.” I began; she stared at me as if expecting me to figure something out, and finally it was clicking. If Slade was my father, then...“Alpha Thane is your brother Riley.”“What?”“I’m so sorry, I should have told you a long time ago; this is all on me; it is my fault, and I know it, but please...”“No. I don’t believe you, mother; you are lying, right?”‘No, baby, I am not, and you know that.”“I don’t know that! I don’t know you anymore; the only thing I know is that you never want to see me happy. Why, mother? Why do you want to take away the one good thing in my life, the one thing that finally makes me happy?”“I wanted to tell you Riley, but you told me it was all a contract and you would leave him. I was hoping that would happen; then maybe I could tell you at a later time, but you love him and things are gettin
It felt like good things weren’t destined to happen to me. I hated my mother more than I had ever done my whole life because she had told me a truth that I didn’t want to hear.Why did she have to tell me?That was the question echoing over and over in my mind.I couldn’t think of Thane as a brother, not after all we shared and all that happened between us. I had to be strong; no one was to see me in tears, so I had escaped to a more secluded space, a dressing room of some kind; there was no one in here, so I could cry my heart out.I felt like I had lost something dire to me, even if he was still there. This was what she wanted; she wanted to separate me from the only man I truly wanted.I would never let that happen. I had told myself that I would fight for what Thane and I had, and ‘this’ wouldn’t change it.But then being with him could feel so... wrong.Someone walked in.“I need some quiet time; leave now,” I ordered, backing the door.“It’s me Riley” Axel says and I turn to face
I had prepared exactly what I would say to Thane, but the moment he walked in, all I had rehearsed for hours was completely forgotten.His brown hair fell over his amber eyes and that’s all I could think about, how beautiful his eyes were. I couldn’t lose him, not just because he was the most beautiful man I had ever seen my whole life, but because I had fallen so in love with this man that I didn’t think I could live without him."Riley,” he calls.“Welcome back, Thane.”“You seemed to be a bit lost checking me out,” he mused with a smile before walking to me. “I got you something.”“Oh” I said in response; he took out the box and pulled it open, and it was a golden bracelet with emerald and blue flowery designs.“I could only think about you when I saw this,” he says, taking my hands and securing the bracelet around my wrist. No doubt it was pure gold; it looked so beautiful and very costly too. “Thane, I can’t take this.” I said even if I would very much love to.“Riley, don’t tur
If he loved me, then he should fight for what we had.Yet since I told him the truth that I was his sister, he hardly ever touched me; it had only been five days, but that was unusual for a man like Thane. He did kiss me, but it was never as passionate as it had once been. That would have to change because I was going to make a move... on him, tonight.I was in the sexiest pair of underwear. He would be back any moment. I laid on the bed waiting, and just as I had expected, he walked in.The moment he spotted me, he paused. I could see the need in his eyes, so strong, this was it; he was going to claim me.“Riley, put on your clothes.” He says and his words contradict the look in his eyes.The cold feeling of rejection washed through me, and I rose from the bed, walking toward him. “Thane look at me,” I pleaded, and he did. “Nothing had changed. Has it?”“No, you are still as sexy as ever,” he says, his eyes trailing down my body. Yet he held back.“You don’t need to restrain yourself
I had been on my way to Axels’ apartment when I walked right into my mother, she must have been waiting for me. I took a turn, trying to avoid her; she was the last person I wanted to see, but I felt her firm grip on my hands."Please, Riley, let’s talk,” she says.Talk? What's the point? We've been talking and it led to more problems, perhaps it was best I avoid chatting with her, this way she could keep her secrets to herself.“I do not need to talk to you right now; let me go,” I said. My voice sounded so cold, I almost didn’t believe it came from me. She finally let me go.“You were right, I didn't want you with him, I was never okay with that and so I knew telling you the truth would end what you both had, if only I knew how bad I was hurting you in the process. I acted selfishly but I think I have a solution.” she says, her eyes sincere."No, you don’t; the only things you can come up with are more problems, and I am fed up. I am sick and tired of you.”“Hear me out. I read abou
“Then why, why did he turn me down?” I asked, and Axel had been about to say something, but he stopped. He knew something, something he wasn’t going to tell me.“Have you tried a DNA test?” Axel asked instead.“On my way here, I ran into my mother who also brought that up... but I don't see the need of going through that only to have my hope shattered?”“Riley, I hope you don’t feel bad about me saying this, but your mother was with... others too, not just Slade,” he says, and I nod; I wanted to believe it too, I wanted to believe there was a chance.“What are the test requirements?” I asked him.“Thane’s blood or oral fluid,” Axel said.“I'd prefer he doesn't find out about the test until I get the results, and that would be impossible if I needed his blood or... saliva.”“Then his hair would do, and I could get that for you.”“You can?”“Of course,” he says with a small smile.“Thank you… so much”Something occurred to me. Axel had always been there when I needed him, but I had nev
“Is it twenty-four hours yet?” I asked Axel."There is still twenty hours to go” Axel answered, and I groaned.“Hey... what about now?”“It is still twenty hours to go, maybe minus twenty seconds. Riley, you have to calm down.”“Calm down? How do you expect me to calm down?” I asked, frustrated at everything. “You know what? I’m sorry... I know I could get very irritating, but these four hours feel like a whole day already.”“Maybe because we are practically sitting down and waiting for twenty-four hours to pass by.”“You have any ideas to pass time?”“Have you ever used a gun before?”“That’s a random question. No, I just held it a few times.”“Well then this would be fun... put on some pants, we got to go” he says."Well, my clothes are back in Thane’s room, and I am not going back there.”“I could find something that is a bit smaller for me,” he says, staring me up and down. “You are really small.”I glared at him, sticking my tongue out childishly. “Maybe you are just too big." He
3ALEXANDER POVI watched her sleep. I couldn’t say exactly when the insecurities set in, but lately she kept talking about how she’d gotten “fat.” She wasn’t—she was pregnant, strong and healthy for an expectant mother.I pressed a soft kiss to her forehead. I’d spend eternity reminding her of her beauty if that’s what it took.It was time for work, but I didn’t want to leave Kaida alone—not with her due date only weeks away. Before heading out, I went to check on Alexa and found she was already awake.“Daddy, take me to Uncle D, pleeeease,” she begged.She was too adorable to refuse, but it was far too early.“It’s still sleeping time; he’s resting,” I said gently.“But Uncle D don’t sleep. He a vampire,” she whispered, as though sharing a top secret. I could have asked where she’d learned that word, but I already knew the answer.Then Kaida’s cry rang out from the next room: “Alexander! It’s coming—the baby…”My heart jolted. I raced back to our room and found her leaning against t
1.***PHIL POVTwo Years Later…I had never felt so nervous.The day had finally come — Selene had turned twenty-one two days ago, and soon everything between us was about to change."Good luck, friend," Austin said to me."You got this," Ruth, Austin’s mate, added, and I nodded.A year ago, Ruth had finally said goodbye to the Winter Pack and joined her mate, Austin. Their reunion had been beautiful, and the pair had been inseparable ever since.I wanted something like that too — though I hadn’t realized how badly until I met Selene.At many points, I had thought about canceling the plan of waiting, but this time, Selene had been the one against it. I refused to think too deeply about the reason behind that.Now I stood by the door to her house and knocked.I waited a few moments; there was no response, so I knocked again.A woman answered — a complete stranger."I’m looking for Selene. Selene Ashford?" I asked."Oh, the Ashfords don’t live here anymore," she said — and my heart drop
“The others are very angry,” Kyiv said to me. “They think I’m on your side, and that’s why I killed Skale. It’s no secret they don’t like me very much, so they’ve requested something from me—to make clear where my loyalty lies.”“And I’m guessing this thing they requested of you somehow involves me.”“That’s right. Let’s look at the pros of this operation. You’d get to leave the cell for a short while—after days of being locked up, that has to mean something. But then the cons: you’d be paraded naked in front of thousands of rogues, bound, and many would want to… touch.”“I have nothing to be ashamed of, but I’m more worried about your little plan with the plane crash. Aren’t you worried the news that I’m alive will leak out?”“I too believe this is a bad idea. Even if I stand to benefit in many ways — I’d finally prove myself a capable leader to the rogues, and the other rogue leaders would have nothing on me. But I still don’t trust their promises to keep the rogues silent, so the n
I stared at the water in the wooden bowl. I was so thirsty.Could anything be worse than this?At least I would have one less thing to worry about—thirst.I reached for it. It was far enough to cause some strain on my already bruised wrist as I stretched for it, and then I took hold of it.Just before I could lift it up, the bowl slipped from my bloody grasp and fell to the floor, the contents splashing across the ground.Fuck.Well,I guess I really have no option now.Something captured my attention — a blackish smoke swirling in the air, growing thicker with every second.Then, through the smoke, Daemon stepped out.“There you are, about damn time. I was starting to wonder if I was at the wrong place,” he muttered.“How did you find me?”“I made a very wild guess.” “Kaida — how is she?”He tapped on the transparent glass, as if testing its strength.“She’s perfectly fine, and she knows you’re not dead. But she might not be too happy about the fact that I didn’t let her come with m
“There’s a slight chance we aren’t dealing with a pack,” Daemon said. “Thank you for this information.”“Wait, you’re leaving me here? I just proved how important I could be.”“Yes, indeed. If you get any other information, just reach out,” he said, then turned around. He was really leaving.“Fuck you.” I muttered beneath my breath.“I heard that,” he called out. “I intended for you to hear that!” I said, but of course he was already gone.My gaze fell on Sebastian, still standing on the other side of the wall. He raised both hands in surrender before backing away. Frustrated, I stomped off..Kate arrived at the pack a few hours later. This time, she brought along her luggage.“You won’t really need all those for a few days.”“No, I won’t. But I’m not planning to stay for just a few days,” she said, walking into her room. I followed with two more of her luggage. “I’m moving into this pack,” she said finally, and I couldn’t deny how surprised I was at that.“Really?”“Yes,” she said,
I walked past the patrolling soldier and Phil, who followed after me.“I thought you said you were leaving? I was worried you’d do something rash, so I came after you.”Good thing he and the other patrollers hadn’t witnessed what happened earlier.“Plans changed. Guess I was about to make a rash decision — but I changed my mind.”“Are you okay?” Phil asked, inspecting me.I knew I didn’t exactly look my best — I’d spent god-knows-how-long in the healing room, then ran straight to pack my bags, dressed in nothing but the white gown the healing wardens had supplied. My eyes must have been red from crying. But every other person in the pack looked the same, if not worse.They were all mourning Alexander—I realized.Many cast pitiful glances at me.“Why did he have to go?”, “He was too young to die,” “He ‘was’ the best Alpha the pack had ever had.”Everyone had something to say about Alexander.I could hardly believe I’d run past all these people without noticing a single thing. On the wa
KADIA’S POVI woke up in the healing room.A pair of blue eyes watched me — Daemon. He looked… different, and it wasn’t just the new haircut. There was something about him that made him seem more human."Daemon," I called; my throat felt so dry.He seemed to have already prepared for that. He passed me a glass of water, which I quickly emptied.Everything came flooding back — the news about the plane crash. It became harder to breathe.“Kaida. Calm down.”"He's gone — he was in the plane when it crashed."I yanked out the tubes attached to my arm and rose to my feet. The movement had been too abrupt; the room seemed to spin.I felt hands guiding me back to the bed. I couldn’t hold in the tears.“He shouldn’t have been there. I made him go, and now…”“Stop.” Daemon said, cutting me off. “He is not dead. I visited the site; I didn’t find anything that indicated he was among the ones that died.”“You were at the site?” I asked, my heart speeding up with renewed hope.“Yes. The moment I h
ALEXANDER’S POVMy blurred vision slowly cleared, and I realized I was in what looked like a small, empty room.The wall facing me was made of thick, transparent glass.I couldn’t tell how they managed to get me in here—there was no window or door, only a narrow slot likely meant for passing food and letting in just enough air to keep the ‘prisoner’ alive.I could only assume there was some kind of hidden entrance.My hands and ankles were bound with thick silver chains.The chains felt excessive—I could barely move a muscle.More wolfsbane than I’d ever consumed in my entire life had been pumped into my system, completely immobilizing me and filling me with this nauseating, sickly feeling. I hadn’t realized I was shivering until I noticed the tremble in my fingers.The room was chillingly cold, and with the wolfsbane suppressing my werewolf abilities, I was no exception to the cold. I tried to summon flames. Nothing.Maybe I was just too weak to summon the flames. The crushing feeli
1KADIA’S POVWhen I discovered the news of my pregnancy, I had been so happy. But I knew a lot would have to change.I had to be more cautious—for the baby. That meant I wouldn’t be able to keep training the pack soldiers for much longer. Of course, I’d have to give up that duty eventually and it had become a part of my life. I would have to watch my diet, too. And then there were other things. Like the fact that I would grow big, and I might not look the same. My toned stomach which I had spent years working on would be no more.This had been the type of life I once abhorred, but everything was different now—I wanted this. I could see a future with Alexander, filled with laughter and little kids running around, and the thought made me smile.Lara was the first person to find out I was pregnant.After I discovered the pregnancy test was unmistakably positive, I was as scared as I was excited.Lara happened to be visiting the pack, and we kind of bumped into each other. She was all s