DamonI storm through the trees, my body vibrating with rage. The sting of defeat is a fresh wound, raw and festering. My sister, my own fucking sister, humiliated me in front of both packs. The show she put on was so convincing, she took most of my pack with her. How she must be gloating. She’s probably celebrating by riding Soren naked right now, ridiculing me and using him for her own pleasure. Her head thrown back, those golden tresses swinging as she thrusts, sweat running down her neck and dripping from her rigid nipples. She thinks she’s powerful? That she can stand against me and win? She got lucky. That’s all it was. Luck and mind tricks.The warriors who followed me are silent, trailing behind like lost dogs, too afraid to speak, too spineless to offer their opinions. Good. I don’t want to hear their pathetic excuses. I don’t want their pity or their empty reassurances. I want blood. I want vengeance.I stalk ahead, my mind spinning through the possibilities. Cerelia has h
HildaI’m struggling to wrap my head around how ecstatic I am. I never expected to get my happily ever after. So much has happened in the past year and there were times I just wanted to give up.Yet each one of those trials brought me to where I am right now. They turned me into the woman I am today. Brought me to my soulmate. I don’t want to relive them, but I don’t regret that they happened.“You look so happy,” Cerelia says, her voice a little husky. “That’s because I am,” I admit freely. “I get to marry the man of my dreams and become Luna of his pack and the mother of his child soon. All of my deepest desires, even those I had no idea I wanted,” I say, cradling my gently swollen belly, “Have come true.”Cerelia wraps her arms around me in a fierce hug. “I can think of nobody more deserving. You have a beautiful heart, Hilda. So full of love and compassion. Arlo and that little baby in there, are both so lucky to get you.”“Stop, my make-up,” I beg, dabbing at my eyes with a tissu
Damon The wedding is sickeningly perfect and I fight the urge to gag as I watch from the shadows with barely contained rage. Hilda stands there like she belongs, basking in the glow of her new title, her new life. As if she hasn’t been the catalyst for everything falling apart.Like she isn’t used goods, who never knew how to act like a real woman. Like she deserves to be the Alpha King’s Luna. What a fucking joke.She smiles up at Arlo, her eyes shining with love and devotion, and the sight turns my stomach. She looks radiant, draped in that pristine white dress, her hair adorned with delicate flowers as if she’s some ethereal goddess. She was never meant to stand beside the king. Her fate should have been to be my toy, not his queen.Arlo grips her hands, his expression soft, reverent. Every movement he makes toward her speaks of possession, of a bond that shouldn’t exist. He stares at her as though she’s the centre of his world, and she stares back at him with the same nauseating
HildaThe day is absolute perfection and the only thing that could make it better than spending it with everyone we love, is being alone together.The need I feel for Arlo to claim my body is almost overwhelming and he smirks proudly every time he touches me and I grow a little needier. His thoughts couldn’t be more obvious if he went around roaring, “Mine! She lusts for me!”But I fucking do. I’m not sure if it’s the bond kicking into overdrive because we’re married and I’m officially his Luna now, or if this is just me, wanting to be with my husband. My one and only. The man I promised to love and cherish for as long as we both shall live.“You’re going to cause a population explosion,” Arlo whispers against my ear as we slowly move across the dance floor. “What?” I ask bemusedly, so wrapped up in his wondrous scent that I’m barely aware of my surroundings.“Several couples have ducked out to go and mate, including Soren and Cerelia,” he informs me. “What does that have to do with m
ArloMoonlight pools into the room, painting Hilda’s skin in silver and shadow, and for a moment, I can do nothing but look at her.She’s sprawled across the bed, dark hair fanned out over the crisp white sheets, her lips parted just slightly, her chest rising and falling in a rhythm that makes something tighten low in my gut.Her eyes, warm and full of promise, track my every movement. We’ve been making love for hours, but I can’t seem to get enough of her.My mate. My wife. Mine.The thought sends a surge of heat through me, a primal satisfaction that I know is echoed in the way she shivers beneath my gaze. I take my drinking her in. Her bare shoulders, the dip of her waist, the slow, lazy way she stretches, displaying herself to my gaze.“Arlo,” she murmurs, voice thick with longing, my name a whisper that wraps around me like silk. I slide over her, caging her in with my hands on either side of her. “Yes, love?”She breathes out a soft laugh, but there’s no teasing in her eyes, on
DamonThe night air is cold, wrapping around me as I linger in the shadows beyond the cabin. The open window taunts me, offering a perfect view into the room where Hilda and Arlo are tangled together in the sheets, lost in each other.Disgust rolls through me as I watch them, their bodies moving in a slow, unhurried rhythm, their whispered words of love making my stomach churn. Pathetic.Arlo is supposed to be an Alpha, a leader, a man with power. And yet, he lets a woman, his mate, have this much control over him?Hilda cries out for what seems like the hundredth time tonight, her back arching, her nails raking over his skin as if she owns him. As if she’s the one ruling this moment. It’s sickening. No man should let a woman behave like that, moaning like a common whore, demanding, taking. A female should be subdued, conquered, claimed. Not…this.But Hilda’s never known how to act with decorum and it’s a blight on Arlo’s judgment that he’s taken someone so unworthy as his mate.I cle
CereliaI could have sworn I sensed Damon close by last night. Lurking in the darkness and watching as Soren and I made love. The thought makes me shiver uneasily. It’s obvious that Soren didn’t pick up on anything, he would have spoken up. Maybe I’m being paranoid. I just feel like we may have made a mistake by not killing Damon. Me. I made the mistake. I could have easily ended his life during the duel, but I held back. Both because he’s my brother and I hate the thought of killing anyone.The problem is that his obsession with me means he probably won’t come after me directly. He’ll try and isolate me by taking out everyone I care about. He doesn’t have the numbers to take on our pack, and certainly not King Arlo’s, but Damon is vengeful. He’ll look for a different way. Honor means nothing to him, he only cares about winning.I need to speak to Hilda before she and Arlo leave on their honeymoon. He’s taking her to a place deep in the mountains, next to a lake, he wouldn’t say an
HildaThe cabin is everything Arlo promised and more. Secluded, breathtakingly beautiful, and best of all, completely isolated. It sits perched on the edge of a pristine lake, nestled between towering pines and framed by the jagged peaks of the mountains. The air up here is crisp and cold. So much so that I can smell snow in the distance. I know it won’t be long before the windows are fogged up from our activities. I honestly don’t understand the overwhelming desire I’m feeling, but I’m not complaining. I’ve been incredibly drawn to Arlo sexually from the moment we met, but this is a craving that just refuses to go away no matter how often we make love. Fortunately for me, the cabin is quiet, peaceful, and for the first time in what feels like forever, there’s nothing clamoring for our attention. Just us. Able to do whatever we want for a blissful week. Arlo barely waits for the front door to close behind us before he’s shedding his clothes. His shirt hits the floor first, followe
TaraThe tea is barely warm, but I don’t care. It’s quiet in the cottage, and Ash is here, lounging on the couch like he owns the place, one long leg stretched out, the other bent so his arm can rest on his knee. He’s watching me sip my tea like it’s the most fascinating thing in the world.And he keeps leaning closer. I give him a mock glare. “Ash.” He brushes his nose against my cheek, kissing the corner of my mouth. “What?”“You know what.” His grin is wicked. “I’m just admiring you,” he protests, his innocent tone completely at odds with the glint in his eyes. “I swear, if you kiss me again, we won’t make it back to the party-”He kisses me again and I lose myself in him for several minutes before gathering the strength of will to pull back.“Ash,” I laugh, pushing lightly at his shoulder. “I’m serious! Hilda will drag us out of here naked if she has to. And I will never recover.”“Neither will she,” he mutters. “Which is why I’m being very responsible right now.” I snort. “Your d
AshAfter two days in Tara’s bed, I honestly wasn’t sure my legs still worked. They do, but just barely.We’ve both managed to stumble out into the daylight today, blinking and dazed like creatures dragged from some romantic fairy tale.Sore, hungry, and maybe a little too pleased with ourselves. Tara’s gone off to help Cerelia with decorations, and I’ve been assigned the incredibly noble task of carrying boxes of cider to the main clearing where Hilda’s preparing to throw what I’ve been assured will be a “respectably rowdy” victory celebration.The werewolves are happy. Relaxed. They laugh louder. Touch more freely – which is saying a lot. The tension that used to hum just beneath the surface is gone for now.They survived. And they’re still free to live as they choose. The human world blissfully unaware of their existence.I’m halfway through hauling the second crate of bottles when I hear the unmistakable patter of quick little footsteps, followed by an even quicker voice.“There y
TaraI’ve never felt anything like this.Not just the physical sensation of Ash’s hands and mouth on my skin, though even that alone would be enough to steal my breath. It’s the bond. The raw, unfiltered tether between us. Every touch he gives me, I feel twice. My own response and his.His hunger. His awe. His aching, consuming need. It rushes through me like fire laced with starlight.Every pass of his lips over my skin, every brush of his fingers, echoes back into my body in waves, dizzying and electric. I arch beneath him with a soft cry, overwhelmed, and he moans into my throat like he feels it too.Because he does. I glance up at him, his hair falling loose around his face, his pupils blown wide with desire, and my heart stutters.“Ash,” I whisper. “It’s too much. I feel everything you do-”“I know,” he murmurs, voice wrecked. “Gods, Tara, I know. It’s driving me mad and I don’t want it to stop.”He kisses down my stomach, his hands holding my thighs open like I’m something sacre
AshFor a long, breathless moment, I can’t move. Tara’s lips are soft and warm against mine, trembling just slightly, like she’s not sure I’ll kiss her back.But I do. Gods, I do. My arms fold around her instinctively, drawing her closer, and everything else, everything dark and twisted and sharp, fades into nothing.The world narrows to her body pressed against mine. Her mouth, open and trusting. Her hands fisting gently into the front of my shirt.I kiss her slowly, reverently, afraid to shatter the fragile magic threading between us. Her lips taste like honey and forever. Like everything I’ve ever wanted and never dared to ask for. Every time I move to pull away, she tilts her face to follow me, like she can’t bear to stop.And gods, I think I might break.When we finally come up for air, we’re both breathless. She gazes up at me, cheeks flushed, eyes luminous in the low lamplight. “Close the door,” she whispers. “Come to bed with me.”My heart does something strange in my chest. L
TaraCerelia can barely keep her eyes open as Ash and I help her up the path toward her and Soren’s cabin.Her steps are slow and dragging, her head lolling against Ash’s shoulder more than once, but she’s still stubbornly mumbling that she’s fine even as she stumbles.I tighten my grip under her arm. “You're not fine. You're spent. Let us carry you.” Cerelia slow blinks at me, before shaking her head. “I’ll walk.” Clearly Hilda’s rubbed off on her.Ash says nothing, but his jaw is tight, and I can feel the way he braces her against him more firmly, almost carrying her by the time we reach the porch, but leaving her the illusion that her feet are nearly touching the ground.Soren comes sprinting over, “There you are! I ran over to look for you once we were sure the humans left our land, but you were gone!” He’s already scooping her up in his arms like she weighs nothing at all. She doesn’t complain this time, sighing happily as she turns her head into his chest.“You’re amazing,” he m
HildaCerelia is swaying on her feet, pale and drained, but when I step closer, she straightens with visible effort. I hesitate for a heartbeat. She’s already given more than enough today. She shouldn’t have to give more.I can’t ask her to restore Malcolm’s memories just so I can have my revenge. “Thank you for everything. You should go and rest,” I tell her.She looks back at me, exhausted but clear-eyed, a half-smile on her lips as she informs me, “He remembers everything.”I exhale slowly, tension bleeding out of me, hugging her for giving me this gift. I need him to remember. I need him to know why he’s being punished.I double check Malcolm for weapons. I’m not taking any chances with him. Even armed, I know I can take him, but I don’t want any interruptions or unnecessary struggles. He’s taken up too much of our time already.I grab a single leash from the pile the warriors dropped earlier and snap it to the heavy collar locked around his throat. “I’ll see you back at the pack
AshThe moment Cerelia finishes weaving the last of the spell, I feel the tension ease from the air.The humans stand frozen, still blank-faced and motionless, but something subtle has shifted in the atmosphere around them. Like a storm passing just overhead without breaking.Hilda rises from where she’s crouched by a line of confiscated weapons, brushing her hands clean against her pants. She strides toward Tara and me, her expression grim but steady.“It’s your call,” she says, her voice pitched low enough that only we can hear. “You have to decide whether Redgrave goes back to the city or if we deal with her here.”Tara turns to me immediately, her blue eyes fierce and sure. “Ash, it’s only fair that you get to choose,” she says. “I’ll stand by whatever you decide. You’re the one who suffered the most because of her.”For a moment, the world feels very small. Like the two of us are the only ones in existence. And the truth has been laid bare between us.And gods, the relief that po
CereliaI hear them long before I see them. The scuff of heavy boots against the forest floor. The low murmur of voices trying to stay quiet but too weighted with nerves and suspicion to succeed. Labored breathing and faint curses.Clearly the humans haven’t taken a moment to consider how sharp a wolf’s hearing is. Never thought their whispered orders and rattling weapons would be beacons in a forest whose sounds we know like they’re our own breaths.I tighten my focus, steadying the pulse of the spell waiting in my hands. It’s nearly time and I’m so ready for this to be over.All around me, the warriors stay perfectly still, crouched low among the shrubs and trees. No one moves a single muscle. They breathe so quietly that even I can’t hear them. It’s like the entire forest has conspired to hide us, holding its’ breath for what’s about to happen.They’re very close know. Hearing the rattle of Tara’s chains makes my jaw clench. Every soft clink is a reminder of why we’re doing this. W
CereliaI sit cross-legged within the circle of runes, hidden beneath a dense screen of shrubs and low-hanging branches. Around me, warriors melt into the landscape, nearly invisible even to my trained eyes. The humans will never spot us unless we want them to.At least, that’s the hope. They may have gadgets we’re not familiar with. I have to make sure my magic is faster than anything they have to offer.I roll the smooth amber stone between my palms, centering myself. The amplification spell thrums around me, delicate but vast, like a spider web stretched to its limit. It’s ready. I’m ready. Now we just have to wait.Hilda crouches beside me, watching the distant path through the trees where our enemies will appear. Her face is set in that calm, slightly amused expression she wears when she’s holding a dozen different plans in her head at once.Scarlett can be rightfully proud to have this fierce woman as her mother, I think to myself.Hilda’s head cocks to the side before she le