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Chapter 83
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2024-12-15 23:58:32
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In Service of the Alphaย ย ย Chapter 84
JohnathanThe procession into the woods is quiet, reserved, and somewhat thoughtful. Rhoda offered to witness for the Omegas, as did Ingrid, the kitchen maid, and the Omega who wanted Preston dead. I made him come. If heโs so eager for death, he can experience it firsthand.I wish I left the shithead at home. He hasn't stopped talking since we left, condeming Ally the whole way. He's working my last nerve.I steer the rabid she-wolf deep into the woods, far away from my favourite places. I donโt want the memory of this day to haunt me forever, and if the Lycan scrolls I've read are to be believed, my forever is going to be a long, long time.Halfway to her place of execution, Ally starts to talk, shocking all of us into a standstill. โWho are you?โ she asks in a small, terrified voice. โWhere am I?โโOh, the poor wee thing,โ Ingrid exlaims softly and grasps her chest.โShe is a murderer,โ the only other male says. โShe deserves-โโShut the fuck up, Barry,โ the kitchen maid says. โThis
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๋ฐ์ดํธ : 2024-12-16In Service of the Alphaย ย ย Chapter 85
MaraPreston struggles free of my grasp, but Kahn manages to hold on to him. He pulls the Beta tightly against him, wrapping his arms and legs around the battling Lycan. And even then, the vampire still has to fight tooth and nail to hold on.The Beta is no longer just a wolf. His new strength is unbelievable and terrifying to behold.Preston is as white as the summer clouds that always float lazily along the blue sky. Heโs covered in sweat, and biting so hard into his own lip that Iโm afraid heโll tear it clear off.He arches his back, nearly slipping from Kahn's grasp, and roars, โLet me go!โI try to take Prestonโs hands again, but he twists free and continues to fight against Kahn. โMy mate!โ he screams, and his eyes flash dangerous. โI need to save my mate.โHe is going to shift. Any moment now, he's going to shift and kill us. โDo the thing,โ I say to Kahn.โWhat thing?โ the vampire asks. His voice is remarkably calm and even.โThe thing you did for Yarrick. When you touched him,
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๋ฐ์ดํธ : 2024-12-17In Service of the Alphaย ย ย Chapter 86
MaraTime slowly ticks by. I canโt seem to distract Gregory, and more than once he has a meltdown that leads to a lot of crying, screaming, kicking, and biting. The third time it happens, I sternly stop him, and hold on to him the same way Kahn held Preston. โI know you are very scared, but you canโt hurt other people because of how you feel.โโI want my daddy!โ he screams at me and tries to wiggle free of my graspโI know, big boy,โ I say. โSo do I, but do you see me kicking and screaming about it?โHe tries to bit and scratch his way out of my arms, but I refuse to let him go. โStop!โ I say and remarkable feel the warmth of my aura slipping out. Gregory calms down and goes almost limp in my embrace. โI know you are feeling some big things right now. Scary things. Use your words. Tell me what scares you.โโWhat if Daddyโs dead?โโHeโs not dead, sweetie,โ I say. I put my head on his brow and start to hum a lullaby I remember from my childhood while I gently rock back and forth with hi
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๋ฐ์ดํธ : 2024-12-18In Service of the Alphaย ย ย Chapter 87
Mara Itโs a long walk to Johnathanโs mountains, and Iโm not as fast as he is. By the time I reach the place, Iโm exhausted and itโs full dark. Itโs a clear, beautiful night, with the moon lighting my way. The air is crisp and clean here, the stars beautiful and bright, the majesty of the universe laid out before me like a painting on the canvas. What a magnificent place. Here, I canโt see Havenโs Crest, or hear the sound of people partying in the brothels and nightclubs. I understand why Johnathan likes to come here. Itโs peaceful. Like Iโve been wrapped in a bubble of warm quiet, calm. I stare up at the mountainโs sheer cliff. How the hell Johnathan can climb this thing is beyond my comprehension. There's no way to get to the top. Not that I can see anyway. I can feel him up there, though. His presence. But thereโs no way I can reach him. He won't even answer my mind link. โGood evening, Queen,โ an unknown voice says next to me. I squeal and jump to the left, away fr
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๋ฐ์ดํธ : 2024-12-19In Service of the Alphaย ย ย Chapter 88
JohnathanThe only reason I decide to leave the mountain is because I can feel Mara waiting for me. Her emotions are carefully controlled, and she refuses to let the sadness in. She keeps it at bay, allowing it to nibble at the fringes of her mind, but all her attention is focused on me now. She's watching me. I can feel her eyes, even from a distance. Her concern is for me, not herself or the pack, or even my son.There have been moments throughout the day when I felt pangs and stabs of intense sorrow from her, and every time she purposefully pushed it all away. First so she could take care of Preston, then Gregory, the pack, and now me. She had a very busy day, doing my job, keeping everyone and everything together. And what did I do? I hid in the mountains like a proper fucking coward, wallowing in self-pity.Half an hour later, I find her at the foot of the mountain, sitting in a clearing with her legs outstretched, leaning on her hands, face turned to the moon. For now, she is
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๋ฐ์ดํธ : 2024-12-20In Service of the Alphaย ย ย Chapter 89
JohnathanItโs business as usual at sunrise. The weekend is drawing to a close and our visitors are leaving, none of them even aware of the drama that unfolded around them over the weekend.I sit on the ridge overlooking the road, watching the humans drive in and out of Haven's Crest. โWe have to close the town,โ I say to Kahn who decided to join me on my morning excursion.โThose humans bring the money. They're the reason your Omegas have jobs.โโThey could also be spies, assassins.โ I donโt care about myself, but anyone who knows just a little about me, knows how much my son means to me. How much Mara means to me. They could just as easily kill them to get to me.Kahn snorts loudly. โNo human would ever be able to get close enough.โโA sniper could.โโAnd kill you with what?โโA silver bullet.โAgain the vampire lets out a derisive little snort. โPlease. Nothing so pedestrian. It will take more than a little silver to kill you, Johnathan. They need to get closer than that.โโIn Mara
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๋ฐ์ดํธ : 2024-12-21In Service of the Alphaย ย ย Chapter 90
MaraI find Donovan at the old pack house where a crew is busy cleaning up, carrying decaying furniture and debris from the crumbling building. โWhat is going on?โ I ask the Beta.Donovan straightens and wipes sweat from his brow with his forearm. โWell, yesterday, before everything went tits up, Beta Preston told us that Alp- King Johnathan wants to fix this place up for the Alphas. "Preston left before he could put a crew together, so I decided to do it.โ He gives me an uncertain look. โI- I hope I didnโt overstep. You gave us a home. Safety. We just want to be helpful.โMuch as I hate to admit it, Donovan would be a good second Beta. He has all the leadership skills and training for it. The crew consists mostly of the Gammas and Deltas from our old pack, and a handful of Omegas Iโve seen around the town and new pack house. I don't know who we can and can't trust anymore, but I doubt anyone can do much damage while they're busy cleaning up the massive pack house. The ones we need
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๋ฐ์ดํธ : 2024-12-22In Service of the Alphaย ย ย Chapter 91
JohnathanThe days bleed into weeks, the weeks into months. The wheels at Havenโs Crest keep on turning, the world keeps on spinning. If it werenโt for the wolves that showed up here every day, reporting about the vicious attacks that befell their packs, I could go on in blissful ignorance, believing nothingโs wrong.Every night, the vampires search the town and surrounding forests, looking for the assassins and spies who fled when we started our interrogations. We caught two in my house. One of them was Susarah.Gregory was heartbroken when I arrested his nanny. After all the work he put in to be a good boy for her, her betrayal crushed him. I can't get over the fact that I blamed my son for mistreating Susarah, but after Kahn spent ten minutes with my boy, he declared that Gregory could see her true intentions - he just didnโt understand what he was seeing. His violence was a direct reaction to her true heart. It wasnโt an excuse for his actions, but my son fought against his inst
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๋ฐ์ดํธ : 2024-12-23
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In Service of the Alphaย ย ย Thank you
And that is all she wrote folks.My dearest readers, I'd like to thank you for coming on this ride with me. Thank you for sticking around, for your thoughtful comments, and support. I may not always reply to every comment, but I do my best to read them all and I appreciate every one of you.Johnathan and Mara are two of the most complex characters I've ever written, and I hope I did their story justice. I always say that I'm not an author - I'm just the dumb ass writing up the incident report. The person chosen to tell their story. And that was very much the case here. I'm not in charge of a story, the people in my head are.My next book will be available soon, and I promise it will not be another saga like this one.I love you guys. Thank you for making my twisted heart sing.Until we meet again,Celice.
In Service of the Alphaย ย ย Chapter 160
MaraI stand on the platform next to Johnathan. For once, I'm wearing a proper dress, fit for the occasion. Before us is a sea of reporters, cameras flash, microphones are pointed at us like guns, quiet voices ripple through the air.Behind us is the ruin that was once our town. Johnathan insisted that we have the press conference here, and he made sure to invite reporters and podcasters of his own choosing. He really doesnโt trust the humans and their peace deal. The last two weeks had been brutal. We kept finding fresh bodies all over the place. All of them had been recently killed. Children torn apart, mothers with their babies still in their arms. Each dead child hurt me as deeply as if they were my own, and I finally understood the prophecy. It was never my own children who died. I begged the Goddess to spare my child because we had lost so many before the humans came back to take the town.Johnathan sent warriors into the forest to look for the culprits. They found a dozen supe
In Service of the Alphaย ย ย Chapter 159
MaraJohnathan is filthy and smells of death, but I donโt care. I roll into his arms and cuddle tightly against him. Itโs all I can do. I can barely move as it is. I feel as if a bulldozer ran over me, and left me on the streets to bleed to death.I can't process it. All that blood, the pain, the suffering, the death. I even feel sorry for the human soldiers who had to endure that brutal battle. I lie against my mate, his arm protectively around me, and I cry. My heart has been torn to pieces. They took almost everything from us - and those who are truly responsible, the ones who sent their soldiers here to die - will never be punished for it. They will never feel the loss. They get to go on with their lives as if nothing happened.โKing?โ someone asks, her voice coming from far, far away. I hear her, but I canโt place her. My mind is a buzzing mess, unable to hold on to any thoughts.โWhat is it, Ingrid?โ Johnathan asks, his voice muffled.โI, uhm, we found your mother.โโAnd?โโI-
In Service of the Alphaย ย ย Chapter 158
JohnathanBefore the dust even settles, someone sticks a camera in my face. Not one of mine - a human. โMister Banks, can you tell us what sparked this conflict?โAbsolute fucking vultures. Iโm still on my knees, naked as the day I was born, staring at my trembling, bloody hands, and they want a fucking statement from me?I look up and straight into the camera. โWe didnโt start this,โ I snarl. โYou did. Look at it. Look at the mess youโve made. We never bothered anyone, all we ever wanted was a chance to live our lives in peace.โThey killed the fae king today. Are you aware? Did you see him die?โ My voice is cold, bitter.The reporters are quiet, giving me room to speak, to contradict myself, so they can spin this in their favour. I know how they operate by now.โDo you know what the fae did for you? They never killed you, they never bothered you or harmed you. All they ever did was comfort those who were hurt, healed the sick, eased the suffering of the dying. And you killed them. Fo
In Service of the Alphaย ย ย Chapter 157
JohnathanโIโm sorry,โ I say to Kahn after our hurried meeting.Mara and Talitha already left with Oberon to bring the townโs children to the fae forest. The Omegas and humans who canโt, or wonโt, fight are heading off into the woods to hide in the caves.โIโve waited hundreds of years,โ the vampire comments dryly. โAnother month wonโt kill me.โโYou might die tonight.โHe just shrugs. โUnlikely, but if I doโฆ I hope Frans dies with me so we can be together in the afterlife.โThat is such a cold way of looking at it, but I guess itโs pragmatic under the circumstances. I donโt mind dying tonight, but I donโt want Mara to die. The only reason Iโm still fighting is for her and Gregory. Itโs as good a reason as any other. A man who doesnโt have a reason to fight is a useless soldier. Heโll give up as soon as things get too difficult.โWhy are you even fighting?โ I ask Kahn. โIf youโd rather be dead?โโI donโt want to die,โ he answers calmly. โI just wouldnโt mind if I do. Iโm really fuckin
In Service of the Alphaย ย ย Chapter 156
JohnathanWhile the rest of the town is becoming complacent, going on with their lives as if nothing is wrong, Iโve been working, never relaxing, never letting my guard down.It's not over, not even by a long shot. I keep my soldiers fit, healthy and battle ready. We have accumulated a staggering amount of weapons and heavy artillery, all of it hidden from view. Oberon assures me that the humansโ satellites canโt penetrate our magical veil, but Iโm sceptical. No magic is infallible, just as the humans arenโt infallible, and those fuckers are industrious. I wouldnโt be surprised if they develop some kind of technology that can โseeโ through our protections.It only took us two years, but we finally found a crack in the human alliesโ armour. The brilliant people I appointed over that time managed to find backdoors into the humansโ computer system and started intercepting their encrypted communications.I have no idea how theyโre doing it, and I decided not to ask. There are some things
In Service of the Alphaย ย ย Chapter 155
MaraJohnathan makes a plate of food for my father and hands it to him. To my surprise, my dad sits as far away from us as possible. "I know how much I stink," he announces. "I don't want to spoil anyone's appetite."With my father seettled for now, I can finally ask Kahn the question I've been burning utter since the trio showed up here, โHow did you kill Thrax?โโThey were hiding in a cave. He was in the death sleep. So old, and he still couldn't resist it. I just dragged him out into the sun, and poof. Dead in seconds. It was kind of disappointing really. I wanted fireworks. Anyway... we stuck around just to make sure he didnโt come back after sunrise.โโGood,โ my mate says. โSo itโs all sorted?โโYeah, looks like it,โ Kahn says.I look at Eli who is still chowing down. It's as if he can't stuff the food into his mouth quickly enough. "What happened at Red Ridge?"The vampire looks at Eli who doesn't utter a word, he just grunts and moans as he keeps chewing. It's my father who answ
In Service of the Alphaย ย ย Chapter 154
MaraโWhat if weโre wrong? I ask. โWhat if heโs been playing us all this time?โItโs the first time since the incident with his mother that I feel I can talk to Johnathan about my concerns. He had so much to deal with, his heart was so heavy, that I did not really want to pile on. But if Eli has my father then I canโt postpone it anymore.โYou saw him in your vision. Rick was torturing him. They don't usually torture people who cooperate.โโYes, but thereโsโฆ a ripple effect, isnโt there? When we change the future, we donโt just change the outcome, we change other things too. Itโs almost as if- the whole world bends around the new future weโve created.โโThe butterfly effect,โ my mate says with a little smile. โOne small action can affect the larger system.โA puff of air explodes from my lips. Iโm relieved that he understands. โExactly.โโOkay.โ He smiles at me. โIf he is on his way here, then it means weโve altered the course of our destiny, correct?โI nod.โThen weโll just have to
In Service of the Alphaย ย ย Chapter 153
JohnathanThe inside of my skull explodes with hot rage so intense that I see the world through a thick haze of red. I am aware that I am on my feet, snarling and growling at the vampire. Dante surges, ready to rip Kahnโs throat out. Iโm only vaguely aware of the othersโ presence. โYou had no right,โ I grit past my teeth. โYou took my vengeance from me. It was over!โโCan you excuse us?โ Kahn asks the others.โNo, they can not. Who the hell do you think you are?โ I curl my hands into fist, aware that I wonโt be able to hang on to Dante much longer.Kahn would probably survive if I tear him to shreds, but I wonder if heโll survive being eaten.I blink, and the vampire is on top of me, his hands curled around my neck. I fall backward, missing the edge of the chair by an inch.โYou have no clarity anymore,โ Kahn says, and lets me go.Enraged I get to my feet, ready to pull him apart like a fly. I look around at the empty dining room, and my anger simply fizzles. โWhen did everyone leave
