I dreamt about her all night, my mother but this time the memories were good. I tried my best to ignore her, but she insisted and she took residence within my mind..... telling me how she loved me, how specialI am I and my mate.Coal was around , i could feel his grip on my waist. I didn't know what he discussed with Marku and other pack members but whatever it was, I had no problem with it.[ one day you going to give birth. That child will be the strongest of them all. A man, a lycan, a god. He will lead the wolf-kind to flourish, but not without tribulation. He will be handsome just like your mate ] The dream went on through out and I had nothing to do about it.******I opened my eyes to the morning light without hate for the first time. I could feel my body beginning to heal, finally, mending the wounds that everyone could see, though the mental pain would remain so long I let it. It was the first day I hadn't risen with anxiety."Marry me today," Coal said, sleepily. I rolled o
I wore a dress of lace with a hint of blue and held a bouquet of gathered wild flowers in my hand. I had not nerves, but pure excitement building in me, I could not wait to be Coal's wife. I wore simple jewelry, though he picked lavish expensive jewels, they just weren't me.I wondered how he'd be dressed, standing there at the end of the isle so perfect. The entire pack was to attend, along with Marku's pack. All the vampires, all the wolves and all the children to be in one place for the first time in a long time.I found that white wasn't exactly fitting this time around, and Aatos assisted Coal, choosing the color I saw in his eyes when he looked at me with all the love in the world, a color he shared with the beast. It was a part of him.I took a deep breath, the rest of my life just around the corner.Aatos looped her arm in mine, Queen Raine on the other side of me.cameras, waves, and smiles from the isles as we passed, but I could only focus on one thing and it was the angeli
EPILOGUE BRINLEY'S POV:We had risen from the ashes of all that had happened to us.Our pack had begun to rebuild and thrive in the South of Greece, sustaining a profitable population.Laws were changed, regulations were put in place, and our people were treated with kindness and respect.My end of my dead mother's prophecy was fulfilled. On the exact day she'd predicted, I'd given birth to not only a son, but also a daughter. I had never seen Coal so full of love, joy, and pure happiness.We'd named them after the Greek twins, Apollo and Artemis. Apollo was the god of prophecy, healing and light so we felt it fitting for our son. We named his twin sister after the goddess herself, in representation of the gifts she'd given us.As we leave our old life of war and death behind us, we prepare for a new chapter of birth and healing. I pray that my children never face the challenges we had, be smart enough to avoid such danger and know when to say no. I'd teach my kids the lessons I'd l
BRINLEY’S POVA bastard pup.That’s all I was.That’s all I would ever be.Alpha had allowed me to live. My new-born life in his hands, just a few breaths old, and still wet from my mother’s womb, he chose my fate. He gave me the gift of life.But his gift had not been without cruelty.He made sure of it...I was allowed to breathe, but I, along with my mother, had been shunned. Throughout the whole life we were labelled outcasts, forced to live and watch the tightly-knit, loving pack family......but never allowed to be a part of it.Torment. I could think of no better word to describe being an outcast for as social a creature as a wolf. Wolves thrived on their connection with other wolves. But not me. All my life, the only feeling I knew was loneliness. It consumed me, like a festering sore, eating me from the inside, out.I would forever pay for the sins of my father, whoever the hell he was. My mother had refused to even speak of him.And then she died.I was ten at the time she d
Another wave hit hard. No longer able to sustain my weight and balance on my hands and knees, I fell to my side.I bit the inside of my cheek to stifle the de,zz,zzSep groan that fought to escape my lips. Violently shaking, I convulsed, the extra consciousness in my head becoming even more clear. My jaw elongated. Fur pierced through my skin. The swish of a tail brushed against my back legs.And then it was over.I lay there, my chest heaving.It had happened. I was a Wolf!All of those years of hoping and worrying and waiting, my ever-present animal companion was finally here.Head spinning, I worked to organize my thoughts. My mind reached out tentatively, Hello?Her reply didn’t consist of exact words, but I understood it.The process had been scary for her as well, but she was excited. And more than I could have hoped for, she was just as happy to meet me as I was her!My heart swelled with love for this creature, who had always been inside of me, but I just now met. I wanted to t
COAL’S POVThe night began like any other. There had been no indication that my life would irrevocably change in just a few short minutes. No omen that this night would be the tipping point for my future.And yet it was.Seated around the campfire with my brothers, my father handed me a beer, while I waited for Calla to arrive.“Thanks,” I grunted.Twisting the top off with a flick of my wrist, I turned it up and took a few swigs, enjoying the coldness of the liquid down my throat.My thoughts wandered, tuning out whatever sex joke my adolescent brother was telling, and ignoring their raucous laughter. I’d heard them all, and they stopped being funny around the age of twelve. I sighed heavily. They were sixteen and eighteen now, when would they grow up?Calla sauntered in fifteen minutes later. She wore a slim-fitting white top, and blue shorts, which revealed her long toned legs. Flipping her blond hair off of her shoulder, and flashing her million watt smile, she stepped past my fat
COAL'S POVThe days passed slowly, painfully. Time felt heavy, an unbearable burden on my soul and body, suffocating the very life out of my bones. I wasn’t sure if I was strong enough to bear it.Sitting at the large desk in my office, I stared blindly at the fireplace across the room, nestled in between floor-to-ceiling bookcases. Winter was coming. Soon, flames would fill the fireplace, flickering in a complex dance, releasing heat into the atmosphere.But nothing would warm me.Not anymore.I suspected the cold pit in my stomach, and I would remain good friends for eternity. I leaned back, my hands clenching the armrests of the executive chair. The leather chair creaked in resistance.Recent events ricocheted in my head like a pinball machine on crack.Immediately following the shocking revelation that Brinley was my mate, I’d insisted she not clean my room anymore. I’d used some ridiculous excuse that I didn’t want her around my things. When in reality, I couldn’t care less if sh
As I was lost in my thoughts, Calla’s hands found mine. “Coal?” She whispered to get my attention.My eyes snapped to hers. I forced myself to refocus and tried to keep the gruffness out of my tone, but still, my voice lowered, “Calla, I need to know what you’re up for. Obviously, we already know the situation with my mate.” I could barely say the word without grimacing in pain. “You haven’t found your mate yet. I understand if you would rather cool things off between us because I need to start thinking long-term.”She frowned, her face crinkling in confusion. “What does that mean...’thinking long-term’?”“It means I’m going to be Alpha one day, and I need a suitable Luna.”The hackles on her back rose. She stood. Her hands found her hips. Her voice rose in agitation, “And what makes you think I’m not a suitable candidate?”I had to stop myself from rolling my eyes. “You are not suitable because you still have a mate out there you haven’t found yet.”Her eyebrows rose in understanding