Why doesn’t he just propose to her right here? Seeing him sitting there, so smug, so certain of what they are to each other, makes my blood boil. He might as well drop down on one knee and put a ring on her finger if he’s trying to rub it in my face.I’ve never seen Aurielle’s face turn that shade of red. She drew in a slow, shaky breath, like she was trying to pull herself back into control. “Cassiel, stop.”The man had the nerve—the audacity—to smirk at me over her head. “He can see the hickies,” he said lightly. “I’m pretty sure he knows how close we’ve gotten. Me calling you my woman won't change much.”Aurielle blinked, her eyes widening. “You said there weren’t any.”Cassiel’s laugh rolled through the room like a low, unbothered breeze. “Guilty,” he said without a shred of shame.Her hand twitched, fingers brushing against her neck. “Is that why you wouldn’t let me look at the mirror?”He only nodded, as if it were the most casual thing in the world.I cleared my throat before t
By the time Cassiel returned, the Crowe family were hunched together in the corner of the sitting room, talking in low, urgent tones. Their voices were hushed, the kind of careful conversation people have when they are trying to stitch something that is still bleeding. They were making up, with the excerption of Maxwell who no one was talking to. He's quite the coward. I know it's bad when I have a stronger back bone that a former pack leader. Cassiel caught my eye as he crossed the room and gave me a small, almost private nod. I returned it and felt the familiar, cold certainty that he had already moved through the house, checking what needed checking. He always did his work quietly and thoroughly.Meriam and Maxwell decided to go home after a few minutes. They had come to soften the blow, to make sure Matthias did not collapse over the news that he had a half sibling. They hugged one last time by the door, then left with Maxwell’s shoulders tight and weary. As the door shut behind
My mother’s words landed in my chest like a punch. I could feel the blood drain from my face.“Say that again. He can what?” I heard my voice go higher than I wanted.She rolled her eyes, cool and practiced. “If he chooses to, he can try to prove to the pack that you are unfit to rule. It would get messy. I have no stake in this pack. It is not in my bloodline. If the affair had been on my side, none of this would matter.”The simple logic hit me harder than any insult. Because the affair was on my father’s side, Rhysland could, with proof, stake a claim. He could challenge my right to lead. I could almost hear the gears grinding in my head as I tried to put the pieces together. Am I cursed? In the old language, does Mathias perhaps mean 'child who shall never know peace'?Why would Rhysland do this? Why show up after all these years? Why bring this into my life at a moment when everything else was already collapsing? I'm already on the brink of a mental breakdown why would this half
I guided Meriam carefully back to her seat, keeping a hand on her arm until she was steady. She looked worn down, her strength frayed at the edges, yet she still carried herself with the grace of a former luna. The fact that she had chosen to weep in my arms told me everything about how deeply broken she felt. From what I had overheard before stepping into the dining room, she had been holding her own against Nerissa, arguing with her sharply, but now the walls had finally crumbled. For her to allow herself that vulnerability with me— it meant she trusted me more than she trusted her son and husband.I lowered her gently into her chair and took my place beside her, while Cassiel settled on my other side, his quiet presence grounding me. I glanced at Maxwell across the table. He sat rigid, his hands folded too tightly, his face turned downward. He had always been good to me, kinder than most, though blind—hopelessly blind—when it came to his son’s cruelty. They had both, he and Meria
Cassiel and I had spent the night talking about everything. Then kissing, then laughing and touching each other which had led to us not being able to back to bed so we got in his car and drove here to Matthias's home. I'm not sure how well thought out our plan is but we're here. When we arrived, I hadn’t expected to walk straight into a family intervention. The atmosphere was suffocating, the kind that clung to your skin and weighed down every breath. Matthias looked as though he was seconds away from bursting a blood vessel, his hands fisted on the table, veins raised along his temple. His parents sat stiffly on opposite sides, their faces etched with regret and shame. Nerissa lingered at the edge of the room, smugness barely masking her unease.And then there was Rhysland.He sat slouched in his chair with a simmering arrogance, as if he belonged here, as if barging into another man’s house with his mess and a smirk on his face made him a god. I guess Meriam must have already confi
My father sank deeper into his chair, shoulders folding inward as though he wanted to vanish into the fabric. His face was pale, his hands gripping the armrests as if they were the only things keeping him steady. My mother, on the other hand, looked at him with an expression so sharp it could have cut glass—pure disappointment, tinged with disgust.“An Aldric,” she spat, her voice low but seething. “Is that why your mother wanted you with her? Because of her special golden eyes? Her special powers? Her family's influence?”My body stiffened, trembling from the inside out. The weight of her words pressed down on me. I turned to my father, but he said nothing. He didn’t even lift his head to meet her gaze. Shame clung to him like a second skin, and for once, the man who had always barked orders sat in silence like a guilty child.I forced myself to look away from him and turned toward Rhysland. “Why are you here?” My voice was clipped, rougher than I intended, but I couldn’t bring mysel