I hear Alpha Graham's footsteps walk back down the hallway as he leaves the dungeon. Ryan tightens his grip on my neck, extending his wolf claws, making me yelp.
As soon as the door slams, Ryan releases my neck and kneels in front of me. His face is contorted with anger. His eyes flicker black as his wolf, Dagger, comes to the surface.
He grabs my shoulders, shaking me roughly, "What the Hell did you do to make him so mad?"
Why isn't he beating me like he told Alpha Graham he would? I stiffen my whole body, avoiding eye contact with him. I'm shaking so badly, I can't even speak now. The thought of two people beating me regularly for the rest of my life... it just can't be real. Can it?
How can the Goddess allow this to happen? I want to die. That's not an exaggeration. That's not me being dramatic. Please, Goddess, don't let this happen. Just let me die.
I shake so badly that I fall to my knees. I start to sob hysterically and my brain shuts down from being able to think rationally.
Ryan grabs my chin and forces me to look at him in his cold gray eyes. He looks at me in horror for a moment, "Wh-what happened to your eyes?”
He moves his hands up from my chin to just below my eyes. It feels like his hands are trembling against my face.
"A-are you a hybrid or something?"
All I can manage is to shake my head no between sobs. As I shake my head, I feel him starting to press his thumbs against my lower eyelids, obstructing my vision.
Oh no no no, he's going to poke my eyes out.
Holy crap! He saw the violet color. He is going to blind me. I place my hands on top of his trying to pull him away. I hear myself screaming, "NONONONOOOOO! STOP!! Don't take my eyes ouuutttt! PLEEAASSEEEE!!!”
For just a moment, time freezes. I don't mean like it feels like time is standing still because I'm in the middle of a traumatic situation. No, time is actually frozen. Well, frozen for everything except for me I should say. I can feel it in the air.
It only lasts for a moment. I pull Ryan's hands away from my face easily. The look of anger combined with confusion is stuck on his face. Next to him, a fly is suspended in mid-air. The second hand on the clock has stopped on the wall behind him. Drips of water aren't finished falling, leaving umbrella-shaped splashes in the puddles on the floor.
What the…Hell? Did the Moon Goddess hear me? Did she have mercy on me? Did she let me die?
I look back at Ryan with wide eyes. My hands are glowing purple. As quickly as it stopped, time starts again. Ryan starts screaming and pushes himself away from me. The tops of his hands where my hands were touching him are red and swollen.
I look down at my hands. They are normal again, not glowing purple. Seriously though, what the Hell just happened?
I shut my eyes tight, waiting for Ryan to retaliate.
“If you tell anyone, I will kill you." He says in my ear. Then he punches me in the stomach, knocking the air out of my lungs.
I hear his footsteps running down the hall, then out the door. I don't know how long I sit like this but when I finally open my eyes I breathe a sigh of relief.
I lean against my bed for a while longer, sobbing, shaking, and trying to catch my breath. He didn't hurt me? Surely he was coming back. I sniff the air, but his scent is gone. I listen carefully, but there are no sounds in other parts of the dungeon. I'm alone.
“Goddess, thank you for saving me. Thank you," I say out loud, just in case the miracle I just experienced was because of her.
I feel exhausted, but starting to feel calmer. Okay Kas, focus. I need to make dinner for the pack or Alpha Graham will find me and murder me. I don't think it's an exaggeration, either. Even if I try to run away, either he or Ryan would find me before I could get off the territory. I think he really would kill me at this point. Speaking of which, it was only a matter of time before Ryan comes back to beat the crap out of me like his father told him to.
I take a few deep breaths and make myself go down the hall to wash up at the sink. I splash cold water on my face and look in the grungy mirror. Both of my eyes are pure violet now. The silver streaks are starting to take over my hair. It isn't like an old person's hair. It is silvery white that almost shimmers, even in the low light of the dungeon. So weird, there's no way I'm going to be able to get used to this new look.
I go back to my room and get dressed in leggings and a t-shirt. I put on the baseball cap Diane gave me, pulling the brim low to hide my eyes. Throughout dinner, I receive murderous glares from Alpha Graham. I make sure to keep my eyes to the floor so he won't see the color. Ryan glares at me every chance he gets. After dinner, it takes longer than usual to stock pantries because whoever did it while I was in the hospital had no idea what they were doing.
It's well after midnight when I flop down on my bed and close my eyes. June 20th, I think to myself. It's the last day of school. Well, for other people anyway, not me. You don't need an education to cook and stock pantries, Alpha Graham's words ring in my ears. Just another day for me, I suppose. I wallow in self-pity for a bit before I roll over and try to fall asleep. I'm almost asleep when I hear a woman's voice.
"Hello!"
I quickly scramble to my feet, looking everywhere for who it could be. I'm the only one in the room. I peek into the hallway and look around but no one is there either.
"Hello?" I whisper loudly down the hallway.
"Ugh, Kas. This is no way for a warrior to behave. Get your shit together." The voice chides. I realize the voice is coming from inside my head.
"A-are you my wolf?" I ask hesitantly, worried that I've gone insane.
"I am. My name is Elexis. You can call me Lex."
"Oh, Elexis. You woke up a day too late. Our Alpha just turned us into a slave less than twelve hours ago. We have no way to escape now." I feel tears welling up.
I explain everything to her. How the Alpha killed my father, how the Luna made me live in the dungeon, the beatings, all of it. I sob through the whole thing.
"I'm here now, Kas. Don't worry. We are a child of the Moon Goddess. We're a warrior. Which means we are strong. We will get through this.”
“Lex, earlier, when my hands turned purple and burned Ryan. Was that you?”
“Sort of. That was you, but my waking up helped activate your power. I can explain more later. Get some sleep for now.”
I sit on the edge of the bed in the silent room. So this is what twenty-five feels like. I wonder if a hundred and twenty-five will feel just as good. What about two hundred and twenty-five? I laugh to myself at the thought as I head into the bathroom. I look in the mirror and run a brush through my white hair. None of the sparkly gray came back when it grew in four and a half years ago. I examine the mirror closer. It looks like there are some more violet flecks in the light gray of my irises, but maybe that’s just me being hopeful. I still don’t have any abilities other than being able to shift and mind linking other pack members. I splash water on my face and brush my teeth. There will be time to shower later before the pack Summer Solstice party and pack run. I pick up some toys that made their way into the closet room and find a dark blue sundress to wear. Once I am changed, I look at myself in the full-length mirror and smile. When I get into the living room, Marco comes up an
The smell of pine needles and lavender fills the room. I keep my eyes closed and hide my smile as the giggles get closer. “Mommy? Are you awake?” Maya’s little voice whispers loudly. I can feel her weight climbing onto the bed. “Shhh, Maya, Mommy gets to sleep, because it’s her birfday,” Andreas giggles at her while he climbs onto the bed as well. I roll over and pretend to yawn with a big growl and stretch my arms out wide, grabbing them both and bringing them toward me. Their happy squeals fill my heart with joy. “Hello, darlings,” I squeeze them tightly in my arms. “Mommy, happy birfday!” Andreas says happily and gives me a wet kiss on the cheek. “Mommy, Auntie Delilah said she’s made a cake for you,” Maya says with big gray eyes. She lays in my arms and plays with my white hair. She gives a sly little smile, “I think she made chocolate.” “Oh, she did, did she?” I smile back. The twins talk excitedly at the same time, telling me about all the things they want to do with me to
Kas’s POV I sit in front of him, even though he doesn’t know I’m there. I’m afraid if I look away, I may never see him again. Elexis’s black snout pushes under my elbow so I will put my arm around her while she sits next to me. I let myself lean heavily against her while we watch our mate realize that my spirit has left my body. “He broke the mate bond, Kas. Our spirits’ journeys are finished,” Lex says quietly, “There are no more lifetimes for us.” “I understand,” I nod slowly as I run my fingers through her silky onyx fur, “Lex, through everything, I forgive him. I’m sure it seems foolish, but I don’t have the desire to hold on to hate or malice when I move on. So, I forgive him.” “Of course you do. You have a good heart, Kas. I know how much you loved him over the centuries.” “I’ve made my peace, and I died knowing I did everything I could do to save my sisters and keep my pups alive. There is nothing else I need to fulfill me.” “It has been a pleasure being your wolf, Kas. I
“She’s pregnant?” I ask out loud, no one in particular. “Twins,” Reggie says dully. “Based on how big she is and comparing her to when Musu was pregnant, we think she’s due any day. Since she hasn’t eaten, her babies are basically using her body for nutrition. For lack of a better term, they’re eating her alive,” Milo says, as he brushes his hand against her cheek. He sits back on his heels and looks at her with tears in his eyes, “We don’t know what happened to Lex. She hasn’t been able to heal her for over three weeks now.” “What did the doctor say?” I gulp hard. I plant my feet to the ground, afraid to move. “You said no fucking doctors,” Reggie hisses at me through gritted teeth, “or have you forgotten?” “LOOK WHAT YOU DID TO HER YOU SON OF A BITCH!” Saint’s first words in weeks are pure rage against me. He tries to claw his way forward to take control and get to Kas, still protective of her. I take a step forward. A small piece of me, a deep down part that has been hidden awa
Bronx’s POV “Come on, man. It’s been a month. We’re sick of this shit. If this is your order, if this is truly what you want, then man the fuck up and come to the dungeon so you can see your damn handy work,” Milo’s steel-gray eyes bore into me, “Like you said, you don’t give a fuck anymore, so prove it. Come see what you’re doing.” “Watch your tone, Milo,” I stand up, growling at him. “Look, Bronx, you can come with us right now or you can find Blood River another Beta. I have plenty of packs who have already said they would give me asylum. Fuck being a Beta. I’ll take a job as a front gate guard and call it a fucking day. I’ll pack my shit, take Codi, and leave today if that’s how you really want this to go down. Your choice,” he crosses his arms and stares me down. Behind him, Reggie has his hands on his hips, looking at the floor. “What about you, Reggie? You're awfully quiet. Are you part of this ultimatum, too?” I lean forward against the desk, giving him a chance to speak u
Milo’s POV Marco had told us to find her binder before Bronx ordered us to lock him in solitary confinement. He said Kas kept note cards and binders for everything. We just had to find the correct binder to figure out what she was up to. He couldn’t tell us anymore because of some sort of potion he had swallowed. He was right. We rifled through dozens of binders in her office until we found one in her desk drawer that had a sticker labeled ‘Manae Notes’. It detailed everything, complete with cute pictures of rooms and furniture she wanted to use magic to create so her sisters would be comfortable in the home she was building for them. Some of the note cards were actually thin sheets of parchment that looked like they were hundreds of years old. Others were thick handmade papers that were crumbling on the edges. There were at least six different languages among the cards. Musu helped us translate most of them, but a few she said were in dead languages she wasn’t familiar with. Regardl
Kas’s POV I wake up in the morning feeling stiff and sore. I slide out of bed with a groan and look in the mirror. Even more than yesterday, I don’t recognize the reflection I see. Pale skin with dark bags below my eyes. All the violet from my irises is gone, replaced by a gray so light, it could be mistaken for white. I gently run a brush through my brittle, thinning hair. It is no longer gray and glittery. It’s turned into a dull shade of white that matches my eyes. I put on a loose dress and a heavy long cardigan to hide the joints protruding from all my angles before I go out to address my sisters for one last time before escorting them to Kardiá tou Manae. When I first met Lenora, bruises from my nose being broken upset her. What she would think now at my self-imposed deterioration. I turn to the side and admire my growing belly. I let myself smile when I feel the impatient little kicks coming from inside. I spend time with each team of sisters and make sure they are still on
Bronx’s POV Halloween comes and goes. Thanksgiving comes and goes. Winter Solstice is only a couple of weeks away. The frigid Montana winter trudges on. The world keeps turning as if Kas never existed. Last week, I heard Katherine Santoro’s abandoned estate in Greece burned down to the ground. No fatalities and no signs of the other residents and staff who lived there several days prior. A few days later, hunters found Katherine’s naked body, along with an unidentified woman, both mauled by wild animals in a wooded area of Mongolia. The artist's sketch of the other woman is clearly Cora. As soon as they confirmed Katherine was dead, I had my people get to work on acquiring Santoro Enterprises. Within several months, I will be the CEO, absorb the company into MasonCo and create a logistics division. If there are any Manae hiding among Santoro Enterprises staff, I will flush them out and throw them into the dungeon to rot. It’s what they deserve. If Kas ever dares show her face aga
Katherine’s POV The estate is unusually quiet when I get home from work. I don’t notice the usual hustle and bustle, but I chalk it up to coming home later than I normally do. I push open the door to my darkened office, pour myself a glass of scotch, and make my way over to the desk. I turn on the desk lamp and sit down, taking a deep sip of my drink. “Hello, Iokaste,” I lean back in my chair, addressing the woman in the tall wingback seat across the desk, “You look like shit.” “Hello, Katherine. Thank you for the compliment,” she snarks at me and leans forward from the shadow, letting me see her pale skin and sunken eyes be more clearly. Her spindly hand supports her chin. The longer I look at her, the more I realize she is way too thin. “K-Kas. Are-are you alright?” I stammer when I see her true condition. “Don’t worry about me, darling. You never have before. I’m here because I need you to do something for me. I’m going to give you a choice on how you do it,” she says, steepl