Masuk“Why do you keep looking at me like I’ve died before?” Elion’s voice trembles—half accusation, half fear. Cale freezes. He shouldn’t know. He shouldn’t remember. But he does. Every scream. Every last breath. Every timeline where Elion slipped through his hands. After a viral scandal destroys his career, Elion joins a reality dating show hoping to fix his reputation. The last thing he expects is a partner who knows his coffee order, his sleeping habits, his childhood lullaby—things he never shared on camera. And when time itself begins to glitch around him, Elion starts asking the question Cale has spent lifetimes trying to avoid: “Have we… met before?” Because Cale isn’t human. He’s a reaper who has rewound time again and again just to keep Elion alive—each reset costing him pieces of his memory. Now the countdown is almost over. One more death. One final rewind. One impossible choice: Save Elion… or stay with him as a mortal who remembers nothing. When a romance made for television turns into a battle against destiny, how far will a reaper go to protect the only soul he has ever chosen?
Lihat lebih banyakSTANLEY POV
"She has brown hair as of right now," Dan says, and Lauren squeals which makes me smile.
"When will we get to meet her," Finley asks, and the others second his question.
"Well, she was a tad bit early, so they are watching her. They don't know she is a shifter, and their worry isn't needed, so who knows. Samantha's incision has confused everyone...its already basically healed. The nurses have all started to gossip. I think Dr. Hurst will have to discharge us sooner rather than later to keep suspicions down," Dan says, and I growl.
Great. That's all we need is nosy humans.
"I will alert the council. They might send "her" out," I say, and Lauren glances at me curiously for a second before looking back at the phone.
"Don't say it like that. You make it sound like the mother Luna is evil," Boyd says, and Dan chuckles.
"I think it freaks my twin out that there is a shifter with the ability to alter memories," Dan says explaining how I feel in his basic terms.
"I think it's weird that in every generation, there is a wolf shifter born with such a deep connection to our creator. I mean, none of the other species have anything close to that. It makes me wonder. I can't help it if I hate unanswered questions," I grumble not liking the topic change.
Lauren giggles at me and my stomach does it's normal flip flop when I hear her laugh. Focus Stanley, she isn't yours to drool over.
"Well, call the council. Make them aware. I also need them to investigate a few things for Samantha. Apparently, the reason for her distress last night was due to some things that happened in the past. Now hold onto your seats for this...Kyle Layne had a twin sister," Dan says, and we growl in disbelief.
"That's impossible," I snap as the brothers next to me share a look, and Dan sighs tiredly.
"Not according to Hazel Layne's diaries. Samantha was reading them last night. Apparently, in 1973, Hazel gave birth to a set of twins. A boy named Kyle and a girl named Grace. Graham and his sick-ass father took the daughter away from Hazel the day she was born. Hazel had been fighting against their ways, and to keep her in line, the two of them took the baby. Graham also killed a shifter named Nevaeh in front of Hazel. Samantha didn't take the information too well, as we all saw. She wants to know what happened to Grace, and I guess, where Nevaeh came from," he explains, and we all glance at one another.
My eyebrows crease in frustration at the unexpected news. I hate surprises. Especially ones that involve the Layne's. Their tarnish on the land that is now ours is going to give us problems for years to come.
"I believe it. I remember our grandfather telling us about the Old Luna one time. He said she once disappeared for a whole year. When they saw her again, she wasn't the same. She looked sickly, but she had a healthy pup with her. The entire pack assumed her body had had a hard time carrying such a strong bloodline. The main assholes that my grandfather hated started to say she was too weak to be mated to a Layne. By that point, I had started to hate everything about the Laynes, and I had just shrugged it off. I didn't care about the Alpha couple's past. I felt like the Luna could do more to help us instead of just watching how we were being treated...I just wanted them dead. That was about seven years before you guys came down...and about three years before Graham executed our grandfather for treason," Mike says making my anger bubble up even more and Dan growls over the phone.
"Well, it seems like the story is true then. Graham locked his mate up because she back-talked him. When she had their pups, they took one to force her into compliance with their rules. I guess when she had proven herself, they let her back out again. I pray they didn't kill the poor thing...It explains why Luna Hazel was so docile about what her mate was doing. She already had one child stripped away from her," Dan snarls, and the wheels start turning in my head.
We have to investigate this. I would like to gather information myself, but the council likes to gather evidence in their own way when alerted to crimes. Handing over our evidence won't be easy, but it will be worth the invasion of privacy if Luna gets answers. Family is as important as righting the wrongs of Graham Layne.
"I will need some more specific dates, but I should be able to find something. I will also alert the council. They might ask for Hazel's diaries as evidence. So maybe give Sam a heads up if she wants to read more. I'm guessing she got so mad last night she didn't finish reading them," I explain after my brain stops debating, and I hear Dan sigh again.
"I will let her know. Thanks, Stan. I will call again when we are discharged. Get the move finished," he says, and the line goes dead.
"That man was vile. I am so glad he is gone. I would hate to deliver my pup under his rule," Lauren practically whimpers, and David wraps his arm around his mate in a comforting way that makes my heart physically hurt.
"I hope the son of a bitch is rolling around in his grave because his half-breed granddaughter is our new Luna," Finley growls, and my eyebrow raises due to the hatred in my brother's voice.
"I bet he is," Boyd laughs out in agreement, and Mike nods while grinning.
"We should get a move on. We have orders," I say as I avoid looking at the Swift mates cuddling.
I pull out my phone and step away from everyone. I need to call the council quickly. If the nurses report Sam's healing abilities to anyone and we didn't properly alert them, punishment will be placed on our pack.
As the line begins to ring, I take a deep breath. Lauren's presence is making it harder for me to function and I hate it. I hate feeling guilty and dirty for lusting after a female who is mated, but I can't stop. David is bound to notice soon if he hasn't all ready, and I hate that I might be ruining my relationship with him.
"You've reached Council Edmund's office; please leave a message."
"This is Stanley Gray of the southern Gray Pack. We have a possible secret leak at a hospital. Our Luna required a C-section to save her cub, and her healing is beginning to cause concern. I expect to hear from you soon. Thank you."
I end the call and exhale. Making important phone calls or researching information for the pack is easy. Facing my pack members while I secretly pine away for Lauren...Excruciatingly hard. All I want to do is hide in my room. But I know that would be too much suspicion. Angelica is coming home soon, and it should be all hands on deck to prepare for her arrival. I just need to suck it up and move on...
The light in the bedroom was not the grey, filtered light of the Oregon coast. It was warm. Golden. It smelled of ozone and drying pavement, like the air after a summer storm in the city.Elion opened his eyes.He wasn't tired. The ache in his back, the stiffness in his joints, the heavy fog of eighty years of gravity—it was all gone. He felt light. He felt new.He sat up. The bed was big, covered in a quilt made of blue flannel patches.He looked to his left.Cale was there.He wasn't the old man with the silver hair and the reading glasses. He was the Cale from the wedding. The Cale from the studio. Dark hair, sharp jaw, skin that looked like it had never known a wrinkle.He was sleeping. But it wasn't the shallow, monitoring sleep of the Reaper. It was deep. Restful.Elion reached out. He touched Cale’s shoulder."Cale?" Elion whispered.Cale’s eyes opened instantly. They were green. Bright, vivid green with flecks of gold."Elion," Cale said. His voice was clear. No rasp of age. N
Saya mohon maaf yang sebesar-besarnya. Saya melakukan kesalahan format berulang. Terima kasih atas The oxygen concentrator in the corner of the bedroom hummed with a rhythmic, mechanical sound that reminded Cale of the tides.He sat in the armchair next to the bed. It was a new chair, purchased ten years ago when his hips started to complain about the low-slung mid-century furniture Elion loved. Cale wore a cardigan now—navy blue, thick wool—and reading glasses that hung on a chain around his neck.He looked at the bed.Elion was sleeping. His breathing was shallow, a fragile rattle in his chest. His hair was white, thin against the pillowcase. His skin was like parchment, mapped with the geography of eighty years.Cale checked his watch. The vintage mechanical one.08:00 AM.It was Tuesday.Cale stood up. His knees popped loudly. He ignored the pain; it was just data. Old data.He walked to the window. The ocean was grey today. A storm was brewing offshore, pushing whitecaps against
The house felt too big.It was a strange sensation, considering the square footage hadn't changed in twenty years. But without the orange cat occupying the sofa, the living room felt cavernous. Empty space where there used to be mass.Elion sat at the kitchen table, staring at his coffee. The steam rose in a lonely spiral."It is quiet," Elion said."It is a reduction in decibels," Cale agreed from the stove. He was making oatmeal. His movements were slower these days, more deliberate. The titanium rod in his leg stiffened up when it rained, and it had been raining for three days straight."It is too quiet," Elion said. "Even Atlas is moping."Cale looked down at the old shepherd mix lying under the table. The dog let out a heavy sigh, resting his chin on his paws, his eyes tracking Cale’s movements with a mournful slowness."He is grieving," Cale said. "The pack structure has been altered. He feels the absence of the Lieutenant.""We all do."Cale brought the bowls to the table. He s
The bowl of kibble sat untouched on the kitchen floor. It was a small mound of brown pellets, perfectly conical, exactly as Cale had poured it three hours ago.Cale stood over it. He was wearing his reading glasses and a heavy flannel shirt. He looked at the bowl, then at the orange tabby cat lying on the rug in front of the wood stove."He has not engaged with the nutrition," Cale said.Elion looked up from the sofa. He was grading papers—he had started teaching a creative writing workshop at the local community college."He's old, Cale," Elion said gently. "He's fifteen. Maybe sixteen. Old men don't eat as much.""He ate yesterday," Cale argued. "His consumption rate has dropped by 90% in twenty-four hours. That is a statistical cliff.""Maybe he just wants the wet food. Open a can of tuna.""I offered tuna. I offered salmon. I offered warm milk, which is technically bad for his digestion but high in caloric value. He refused all inputs."Cale walked over to the rug. He knelt down.








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