Jude With my fists in my pockets and a smirk on my face, I climbed the steps into my brothers not-so-humble abode. If I were a betting man, which I was, I’d place all my coin on Nova being the one to tell Ryker what I’d done. Ophelia didn’t seem the type to run crying to the Alpha, though it was an amusing thought. Would she tell him how I forced myself on her, leaving out the parts where she whimpered for more, mewing like a sweet little kitten? Would she include the part where she ground her cunt on my face, chasing her pleasure like a fucking Goddess? I’d known it the second I sucked her clit into my mouth and heard the fractured cry she released. Ophelia had darkness in her, the kind that called out to my own. She could play coy. She could lie to herself and the world around her, but she wasn’t able to lie to me. No, I saw right through those doe-eyes. She might’ve been part angel, but she was also part demon too. I reached Ryker’s office to find him standing in front of the
OpheliaWhen I say I ran into Nova, I meant that literally.One moment I was traipsing through the forest, trying to ignore the very evident breeze coasting between my legs and simultaneously wrap my head around what just happened, when I slammed into a gardenia-scented girl.For a moment, it felt as though the forest were holding it’s breath, using clawed branches to pin me in its grasp. No matter which way I turned, there had been no sign of the path we’d taken to the clearing. Only when I snared my magic, holding tight as though it were a wriggling worm, did the forest finally exhale and show me the way.“You just punched me in the tit.” Nova stumbled back with a groan, a hand on her aching breast. “Goddess, what the hell happened to you?”I must’ve looked disheveled then. I reached up and felt my knotted hair. What I found was a few stray rose petals and even a leaf or two.Nova’s eyes remained on my hair, even as an errant breeze caused her to stiffen. Her nostrils flared and I r
Ophelia “You’re a terrible, sadistic friend!” I shouted as yet another wave toppled me over. I’d picked seaweed from my hair, seashells from my bra, and had even pried a tiny crab off the sole of my sneaker all within the course of an hour. Nova, as dainty and pretty as she was in her pink sundress, was a fucking savage when it came to utilizing her water affinity. She’d hurled frozen sea-cicles at my head, animated a clump of weed so that it lunged at my face, obscuring my vision from her next blow, and had even willed the water deep within the sand to suck me down a solid foot. Nova shouted back, “And you’re a soggy, sore loser!” Meanwhile Coop stood on the shore, his hands cupped around his mouth, as he shouted words of encouragement at me. I might’ve appreciated it at one point, but he was drawing an audience. Right now there were three—no, four—families watching me meet my untimely demise via a pastel-wearing, water-slinging witch. My magic might as well have been a squid,
Ophelia Eventually, the conversation drifted to my training session with Nova. Coop was practically bouncing in his seat as he told the others what I did. They exchanged glances that felt loaded, brimming with a silent conversation I wasn’t yet privy to. Denver ran his eyes down my body as though he were seeing me in a new light. Even Arielle and Sarah were examining me, staring hard enough to make me wonder if they could see the magic bubbling beneath my skin. “You think we can trust her, bro?” Again, Denver flicked his eyes over my body. “She’s going to be a part of Alpha Ryker’s crew. The ceremony’s this weekend.” I didn’t ask how Denver came to know that. Coop twirled the lit joint, which had gone out sometime during the conversation, between his fingers. “Positive, man. And that doesn’t mean she’s got to tell them every damn thing that’s going on in her personal life. If you had seen her back there on the beach you’d understand. She’s got some serious power; she just doesn’t
OpheliaThe next morning I was abruptly woken by Lucille screeching my name so loudly that I was sure the Moon Goddess herself could hear her cries.It startled me so thoroughly that I was ripped from sleep. My mothers journal tumbled from my chest where it had laid all night and onto the floor.“OPHELIA!”I shoved it beneath my mattress, threw on what I hoped was a clean change of clothes, and rushed downstairs.The moment I spotted Lucille’s red face, her lips puckered with anger, I knew I was in for it. Kimberly stood further back, leaning against one of the pillars flanking the entrance to the lounge.I’d just reached the bottom step when she lashed out. Her hand flew from her side and cracked across my face before I could blink. Pain danced along my lower lip, followed by something wet. I reached up to touch it and found my fingers slick with blood.The familiar crackle and roar of a brewing storm began to take place in my chest. It had become easier to call on it as of late.Luc
OpheliaSand sprayed behind me as I reached the beach. It slowed me down, forcing me to pump my arms and legs harder. I could now feel Jude closing in on me, his raucous laughter filling my mind, shredding my thoughts into confetti.I swiveled my head back and forth, searching for somewhere to hide. There was the bathroom shack, along with a few changing tents. Cornering myself wasn’t ideal, but apart from running down the entire length of the beach, I wasn’t sure what else to do.Before I could make a decision, hands grabbed me from behind. A gasp ripped it’s way past my throat as I was slung over a shoulder. I landed with a grunt, my ass in the air and feet flailing.Jude’s scent of amaretto enveloped me, spiking only when I slammed my fists against his lower back.“Trying to give me a massage, little dove? Or are you trying to grab a handful of my ass?”“You’re fucking crazy!” I hissed, my cheeks quickly growing red as I thought about all the people likely to see us.“Yes, and you’
OpheliaMortified was a good word to describe how I felt as I followed Ryker out of the dressing tent and onto the beach.Jude was halfway down the beach, strolling leisurely towards where the others sat around a crackling bonfire. There was enough sunlight to make out their forms, though the shadows darkened their faces, making it impossible to tell where their eyes strayed.Before I could follow, Ryker stopped me with a hand on my arm. I stiffened and he quickly removed it, tucking it behind his back.“Did he force himself on you?” Ryker’s voice was impossibly low, thick like honey, yet dark as spilled blood. “Tell me and I will put an end to it. I’ll offer you protection in any way I can.”Such a thing shouldn’t have warmed me to Ryker, yet it did. I could see how much he cared about Jude. It was evident in the way he watched him, his brows creased and eyes clouded. He cared, and yet he knew the kind of man his brother was.He loved a monster. I couldn’t help but wonder if the mons
Ophelia“Time for the rules!”I accepted the bottle from Nova and brought it to my lips. The acrid tang of alcohol had me releasing another shudder.“There are rules?”I wasn’t a stranger to alcohol or the silly little games that came with it. Back in high school, after Kimberly chased away what little friends I had, I found an in with the outcasts. I’d never gotten particularly close to any of them, but that didn’t keep them from inviting me to their late-night get togethers hosted in an abandoned house on the outskirts of the packs borders.I quit going after Lucille opened the restaurant.Nova’s shoulders bounced as she laughed. The pale tendrils of her hair were curled. The top half was pulled into pigtails, topped with tiny ribbons that floated in the breeze.“In this coven there is! Choose Truth and you have to answer the question honestly. No loopholes or escape plans. With Dare you can either complete the dare or…” Her voice took on a sing-song quality as she thrust the bottle