Another bout of thunder echoed around me. It was already raining heavily. The first drop fell an hour ago and it had been falling harder and harder since then.
I was soaked to the bone, freezing cold, and I seemed to be walking in circles.My panic had long since faded.I had accepted the fact that I was going to die. In a few hours, I would be joining my parents.I was okay with that.I had tried to find my way out of the forest, but no matter how hard I tried or how far I walked, I couldn’t get out. The trees seemed to go on for miles and miles, and I had yet to find a sign of something familiar to help me get home.My foot caught on something, sending me falling to the ground. I tried to stop my fall, but ended up twisting my wrist. Instead of getting up, I curled into a ball with my injured wrist cradled to my chest.It took too long for me to realize that the thunder wasn’t the only thing echoing in the air.My body jerked when a twig snapped behind me. I sucked in a sharp breath and held completely still.Every instinct inside me warned me to run.To fight because there was a predator behind me.Another twig snapped, closer than before, and a second later, something touched my back.Squeezing my eyes closed, I bit my lip to stop my chattering teeth.I could hear the animal sniffing me. Its nose moved up my back and all the way up my neck. It pushed the wet strands of hair away and pressed its snout against my skin.Tears mixed with the raindrops, and before I could stop it, a whimper fell from my lips.The animal froze and did something unexpected.It licked my cheek.I whimpered again when it nudged my shoulder.For a moment, nothing happened.I flinched at the first snap of bone.The second made me feel sick.I curled tighter into a ball.“Are you injured?” a deep, slightly accented voice questioned. “I don’t smell any blood.”Was he a friend or an enemy?My pack has never given me any reason to trust them or to interact with the other packs that visited. So I had no idea which packs were enemies or which were allies.“My name is Lucas. I’m the beta of the Crystalvalley Pack.”I had been right about not being in pack territory. But I was in another pack’s territory and that could only mean trouble.A howl pierced the air.Lucas muttered a curse. “Axel, can you take care of her?”Bones snapped and a moment later, a wolf jumped over me and took off into the forest.It was the perfect opportunity to get the hell out of here before he came back.But my limbs wouldn’t move.I was too cold, and it was starting to seep into my bones.Silence surrounded me.The rain slowed to a drizzle and a few minutes later it stopped completely.I blinked.The silence was deafening.Whoever Axel was, he hadn’t shown up.I could try to find a way out of the forest again. However, the fact still remained, I was on another pack’s land.I slowly sat up and glanced around.There was no one around. No more howls echoing in the air. Whoever they had been chasing seemed to have been caught. Which was why it was the perfect opportunity to leave.Based on what I knew about pack rules, wolves invading another pack’s land without permission was punishable by death.I was human, but that didn’t mean that I wouldn’t be punished.Getting to my feet, I stumbled slightly and hit the ground again.I froze.I hadn’t imagined it. That was definitely a growl, and it was close by. Careful, as not to draw any attention to myself, I felt around the ground, searching for something I could use as a weapon. My fingers brushed sticks and dirt and then something more solid. I gripped the rock tightly and waited.The wolf approaching me was not the same one who had first found me, and I had a feeling it wasn’t the so-called Axel.It had a sense of danger radiating off him. I couldn’t fight the fear and panic filling me.A twig snapped.I jerked upright and spun around with the rock raised and ready to use.But a rock would have had no effect on the animal charging me.It was three times as big as me with canines half the length of my forearm.It growled as it lunged at me.I closed my eyes and mentally prepared myself for the pain I knew was to come.Only it never did.My eyes snapped open when I heard a thud, followed by a pained whine.The wolf was no longer in front of me. It staggered to its feet a few feet away from me, swaying slightly.A man appeared behind it.He stared straight at me as he leaned over the wolf, gripped the wolf’s upper and lower jaw, and then tore him in half.Blood and body parts were sprayed everywhere.With the fear of the impending attack fading, I blinked at my rescuer.He must be the man the beta told to take care of me.The dark cloak he wore fluttered in the wind behind him, making him look like someone out of a movie.His eyes, I realized, were glowing red. Scary-looking, but for some reason he didn’t scare me as much as the wolf had.One thing I knew for certain was the fact that he wasn’t human even though he looked like one.“You give up too easily,” he muttered as he stepped over the body and walked towards me. “If you hit it hard enough, you might have been able to crack its skull.”“A-Axel?” I stuttered.“Yes, little human.” Axel crouched in front of me. “Are you lost?”I nodded.“It’s too dangerous for your kind to be wandering around the forest so late at night on a full moon.”I swallowed, debating whether I should tell him I wasn’t there by my own free will.A howl pierced the air, followed by three more.“Looks like the hunt is over.”“H-hunt?”Axel tilted his head to the side slightly and silently studied me for a few seconds.“You’re not a werewolf,” I muttered.“No, I’m something far scarier and much more dangerous.”“W-what?”“A vampire.”“Sweetling.”I frowned as Axel’s soft voice penetrated my dream. It wasn’t a nightmare like usual, it was a nice peaceful dream, one I didn’t want to wake up from. “Cora.”A groan slipped past my lips when he gently shook my shoulder. Forcing my eyes open, I blinked up at his face hovering close to mine. Axel gave me a gentle smile as he reached out to move the hair from my face. “You’re bleeding.”His words confused me even more. Axel pulled the sheets down and then gripped my arm and gently pulled me up. Frown deepening, I glanced around and then down at my body. Slipping his arm under my knees and the other around my back, he pulled me against his chest. I wrapped my arms around his neck but risked a glance back at the bed. Horror hit first and then embarrassment. Not only were my pajama bottoms covered in blood, but there was also blood on the bed sheets. I buried my face against Axel’s neck. “I’m a werewolf,” I mumbled. “I’m not supposed to get my period, am I?”“You are s
Ryder moved to my other side and slipped his hand in mine. Nothing was said between the three of us as we headed towards the stage that had been set up. Keiran was already there, making a joke about something. All the focus was on him which meant that nobody had seen Axel’s confrontation with his mother. We had arrived just in time to hear the end of their conversation. I glanced up at Axel. He was still mad, but at least he had managed to mask his expression. Although people were still wary of his crimson eyes. My heartbeat increased the closer we got to the stage. Axel’s hand slipped out of mine when we reached the stairs. He moved behind me as Ryder led the way up the steps. Keiran turned, eyes locking with mine. He smiled as he held his hand out towards me. “I would like to officially introduce Cora Marlin, our mate, and your new Luna.”I turned to smile at the people. “Tonight we’re not only celebrating Cora’s special day, but we will also be welcoming her to our pack.” He
Most of the pack was already gathered at the usual spot. Laughter and conversation filled the air. I sucked in a breath, trying my best to identify as many scents as I could. There was no sign of danger, but that didn’t make me feel any better. I knew how easily things could change. Cora’s hand tightened. My eyes snapped down to hers. She smiled at me, but it didn’t reach her eyes. Her scent had changed the moment we stepped foot out of the house. I tried talking Keiran out of making it a big deal but he insisted. This was an important day for our pack. They needed to see Cora holding her head high and acting at Luna. These pack dynamics still confused me. It was so different than how things were done in the Vampire nests. A shudder raced down my spine as memories flooded my mind. Cora suddenly stumbled. My hands instantly shot out to steady her. Our eyes locked and held. I realized with a start that she had paled. She looked sick. “What happened?” I questioned. “Are you fee
“You can’t hide in there forever,” Blue called from the other side of the door. “Come out and let me see.”I ignored her as I studied myself in the mirror. Blue had chosen one of the new dresses Keiran brought me without my knowledge. I smiled as I remembered our day at the mall. It was scary at first, but the longer we walked from shop to shop, the more I relaxed. He didn’t give my fears a chance to get the better of me. And he certainly spoiled me. I now had a lot of clothes, more than I owned before. Keiran even offered to pay if I wanted to get my hair and nails done. I agreed to have my hair cut but declined the offer to do my nails. There was no use wasting money on something I didn’t need. The bathroom door opened, startling me. Blue peeked around the door and then pushed it open wider. Her eyes widened as they trailed over me. “Wow,” she breathed. “You look beautiful.”“T-thank you.” I brushed my hands over my middle. “I’m not sure about wearing it though.”“Why not?”“
Maybe we should have talked to Cora first. I glanced over at her. It was supposed to be a surprise trip. Something to get Cora away from the pack so everything could be set up for her party. Not only were we celebrating her birthday, we were going to officially welcome her into the pack. She was already ours and the pack knew about her so the introductions weren’t necessary. But Demetrius suggested that we keep doing things traditionally. So here I was driving Cora to the human town under the pretense that we needed a few things for the party. Cora was tense. I could sense her wolf hovering close to the surface and I understood why. This was a big step for both of them. It was also considered a test. “We need more of those plastic plates,” I said. “I was thinking of getting a few extra cups and cutlery just in case.”“Is the whole pack going to be there?” “Yeah. Some will probably only stop by for the introductions.”She looked at me then, but her attention was pulled away when
As expected, the moment I fell asleep, my dreams turned into nightmares. I found myself jerking awake only to be lulled back to sleep by Keiran’s purring and Axel’s reassurance that I was safe. My dreams were a mess. It was a mix of being locked in that room and being tortured to waking up in my old pack with Dean as my mate. Somewhere during the third nightmare, I woke up to Keiran gone. Before I could question it, Axel and Ryder took control, distracting me by undressing me and giving me multiple orgasms. The last time I fell asleep it was sandwiched between Ryder and Axel with the blissful waves of my orgasms slowly fading. There was no nightmare after that. I woke up near noon feeling exhausted. There was a faint pounding behind my temples and my body ached but I pushed the pain aside as I slipped out of bed and headed into the bathroom for a shower. With my hair wrapped in a towel, I pulled on one of Keiran’s shirts and then left the room to search for my mates. The smell of