“I missed you, Aunty,” she says, hugging me. “Aww, I missed you too hun.” She smiles before looking at the tea. “I made some for Grandad and Grandma. I didn’t see Uncle Atticus or Daddy, so I didn’t ask them.” “Your Dad was dealing with Xander, and I’m not sure where Zion is,” Zaia replies. “But
ZADE. Confusion ripples through me as I look at the older man before me. Why is he here? Do I turn and walk away? There are kids present and Valerie was shouting, but she seems fine. But I still turn to her just as she walks over to me. “Zade…” “Why were you shouting?” I ask quietly as she plac
I can hear them talking. There’s a window open somewhere, but I remain where I am, smoking my cigarette. “…joining us?” Zaia’s faint voice reaches me. “No,” Valerie’s voice comes. “Oh…” “Sorry,” Valerie’s quiet voice comes. “Don’t be. He has every right to do what feels best for him,” Hugh says
ZADE. It’s late at night, and Sebastian and Zaia’s older three kids have now gone up to bed and I’m relieved. For some reason, the Menace refused to stop looking at me all evening. The oldest, Zion, is pretty mature for his age, and he’s grown a lot from the last time I saw him. Sia, she’s decent
We fall silent, pondering on those words. “But we have to try, for their loved ones, for Adriana, for Atticus, for Linette and for Hugh,” Valerie says as Kaia now climbs onto my lap and stares up at me. Atticus looks up and nods slowly before he looks away, sighing heavily. “It’s rude to stare,” I
If I had any doubt before that something was bothering him, it’s gone. I can almost see the pain in his face, the music, and the way he’s pouring his soul into it. I wait, as his fingers fly over the piano keys, his heart thundering louder with every touch. Somehow the music feels nostalgic, remind
VALERIE. It’s the following day, and the tension is high, partially over what we are about to attempt with the healing and also something has gone down between Zade and Atticus. That was clear from the hostility at breakfast, with Zade simply taking his coffee and walking out when Atticus entered.
‘We won’t succeed, will we?’ I ask Zade, my eyes fixed on Zion. ‘We won’t know until we try. There’s always hope,’ he replies. Our eyes meet, and I nod. He’s right, I can’t give up before even trying. I look around the room, knowing that everyone must be feeling similar to how I am right now. The
“Your dad gives me a reaction, and he’s a tad more gullible than you, so it’s fun to mess with him.” Her impish smile reminds me of Xander, and I shake my head.“I’m glad this isn’t real then. You and Xander would be the death of him.”“Yeah, we’ll keep the pretence going though. If the Arkan had an
It’s crazy how I actually would trust her around them, even if she is one of the Arkan. She has some compassion when it comes to kids… looking at her now as she talks to Kaia about something it’s almost hard to imagine she’s a killer. Almost.The image of her cold eyes as she raised a gun and pulled
~ ZION ~Milena. She has a way of keeping me on edge when nothing else or no one else has that effect on me; I don’t know what she’ll do next; it was one of the things I like about her, but right now I’m not enjoying it. Her sly smiles that tell me she’s up to something and the way she hugs Mom and
Kaia, on the other hand, is confident and bubbly. That’s the only way to describe the twenty-one-year-old redhead with the huge smile and bright blue eyes like Zion’s.His uncle is a few tables down, but occasionally I feel the prickling sensation at the back of my neck of someone watching me, and I
~ MILENA ~“Smell me?” I repeat, my cheeks involuntarily flush as I shove him back, only to meet hard fucking muscle.“Your arousal, to be precise.” He smirks, baring those teeth in a dangerous smile.Oh, hell no.I know what werewolves are capable of, but right now I don’t need to hear that. I don’
I nod, smiling slightly. “Yeah, thirteen. And she has, a lot of time has gone by hasn’t it?” I agree, looking at her. Even her… she’s not that girl anymore. So much time has gone by and yet… seeing her all dressed up like this makes me picture a life we can never have.If I didn’t kill her brother.
~ ZION ~My eyes widen as I see Uncle and Milena staring one another down right after she gave me the finger, for goddess knows what reason.Fuck, I didn’t think he’d be here today. He hates these things. My stomach twists with unease as I stride across the hall.“Uncle, this is Milena, my girlfrien
“Careful, Tobias,” one of the men warns.I sip my champagne. “I assure you; I am very critical of him too, but what I do know is he topped in every field in comparison to every other alpha in the state. He is known to be fair, reasonable, and strong enough to handle the pressure that leading the sup
~ MILENA ~“I know. Nice to meet you, Mrs King. I’m Milena,” I introduce myself as I offer her my hand, but she moves closer, giving me a hug.“Lovely to meet you, Milena. Call me Zaia.” She moves back and looks at Valerie. “This is my good friend and Zion’s aunty, Valerie.”“Nice to meet you, Docto