“Absolutely not.” Toya shook her head and crossed her arms.“Toya-”“No, Amy. I’m with Toya. You politely, graciously turn them down.” Wendy sidled up next to Toya. And then so did Micca and Hanna. I felt burning behind my eyes as I shook my head.“We don’t agree.” Hanna pulled her shoulders back and had this defiant look on her face.“You guys.” I started turning to them. But Micca stomped her foot. “No.” Her brows furrowed, and she glared at me. “You are our friend, our alpha, and we refused, dammit. I love the Moon Goddess in all her glory, but she can’t take you from us.”I sighed. “I love you. All of you. And I will be your friend and alpha until the end. But when the goddess, goddesses.” I corrected. “When the two goddesses you descend from come knocking, you answer.” I watched their faces fall. “They haven’t asked for anything I wasn’t already planning on doing. We have discussed this many times over.”“But you have a kid now.” Hanna murmured, and I nodded.“Just another reaso
The silence was only broken by the crackling of the fire. Hanna watched as everyone took in her words. She walked over to the pile of wood that Rowan left and chucked a few more pieces into the fire. The sound jolted everyone out of their thoughts. Wendy took in a deep breath, and then she gagged. “What the fuck?” She wretched again, and then the smell hit the rest of us. “What the fuck is that?” Micca gagged too. It was only Toya, Hanna, and I that didn’t gag. We looked at each other and then back to the other two. “That…” Hanna started, but stopped.“That’s what is smells like when you burn bodies.” I finished for her. Micca groaned and rushed away, puking closer to the house, while Wendy looked at me with wide eyes. “Why are you three okay?”“Because this isn’t the first time we had to do this.” Toya walked over to Wendy, pulling her away from the fire. Hanna went to grab Micca, and we walked to Carl’s grave, creating space. “The first time is always the worst.” I offered with
“How do you know this stuff?”“Like I said, the Japanese lines were very proud of their lineage and we all knew who the first family of Tsukiyomi was.” Hanna nodded to Toya. “The real question is, how does Toya know?”“And how Amy knows about the first family?” Micca pointed to me and I smiled.“Toya?” Hanna turned to her. “How do you know about the line from Nut?”“Because she is the one who created my family.” Toya leaned back and looked up at the moon. “We worship the Moon Goddess and Nut. She who oversees the starts and the sky. She saw the wolves, heard their songs, and wished to hear it in Egypt. So she asked the Moon Goddess for help and permission to create our line. My father is descended from her power.”“That’s why you’re so fast?” Micca furrowed her brow. “Not cool. I never had a chance of beating you.” We all laughed, remembering the races Micca tried to win for months. Then, one by one they all turned to me. I turned back to the grave and continued to fill it in. “I kno
Toya chucked a rock at me. “Be serious.”I turned and looked at my friends. “I am serious.” I looked at Toya, with her silent strength and Hanna, how far she’s come. It made sense that they were tied to a goddess. Too much sense. Then I looked at Micca and Wendy. “We were all drawn together. What if there was a reason behind it?”“There was a reason behind it.” Wendy leaned in, like she was going to whisper a secret. “You collected us, like that kids’ show. Oh goddess, what is it?” Hanna snorted. “The one with the weird animal things that say their name?” Wendy pointed to her. “Exactly. The Poki show. Your are a collector of people.” Hanna shook her head but she was laughing with Wendy.Toya smiled but just shook her head in defeat. “I am serious.” I stood. “I hate people, to the extreme. I have only ever had one friend my entire life, and she only had to deal with me during the summers. But you guys, you guys stuck around.”“Amy, I hate to tell you this but your are in fact a nice
I finished getting dress as someone knocked on my door. I walked over, still wrapping my hair in a towel, and cracked it open. Toya pushed a wine glass into my hand and stepped in before closing the door. “What’s wrong?” I sat down on my bed and took a sip. I knew Toya she had something on her mind and she came in here to talk it out, before bringing in the others. “I’ve been thinking about what you said…about the first families.”I nodded. “What about it?”“What if you’re right? What if we were all pushed together by the gods we descended from and now we are here?” She paced the room.“What if we were?” I shrugged and took another sip. “Does that bother you?”“It doesn’t bother you? We were pushed together, forced to be in each other’s lives, and now we are here.” She faced me. “Do we not get free will?”I eyed her as I took another longer drink this time. “Do you not like being friends with me?”She sucked her teeth. “Of course I do.”I tilted my head. “Are you unhappy with the ot
We all stared at Toya. Then Wendy came over and got into her face. “What’s wrong with you?”Toya pulled back, but her eyes were filled with panic. “Nothing.”“No, Wendy’s right.” Hanna came closer. “You are Amy’s biggest supporter. We are all close, but you and Amy have always had that extra bond. You have never once worried or questioned your spot here, or Amy’s decision. But this…” She waved her hand, gesturing wildly to Toya. “This isn’t you.”I felt my eyes narrow as I leaned against the table. “They are right. In the last three years, you have never once questioned your place here. You have questioned my decisions, but I always appreciated your opinion, but you always did it away from everyone.” “I came to you to discuss this alone, but you brought us down here.” Toya pointed out.“You are right. But so are Hanna and Wendy. This isn’t you.”Toya pointed at all of us. “You’re not buying this, right?”Wendy grabbed her hand. “Calm down Toya. We are just trying to figure out what’s
Toya jumped over the table at me but I was ready. She shifted her hands as she tried to tackle me, but I jumped out of the way. She sailed past me and I wrapped my hands into her braids and yanked her back. She flew off her feet with a snarl. “I’ll kill you.” She snarled again, but I was already moving. I slammed her to the ground as I slipped my hand into the bag Micca brought down. I pulled the first length of rope out and turned to the girls. They had grabbed Micca by the arms and were holding her. “Get her into a chair.” I called back to them and slid a spool of rope to them. “Tie her too it.” Toya tried to slice at my throat. Whatever had eaten away at her was digging in deep, removing any and all love she had for me, and left only anger and fear. I pulled my hand back and punched her as hard as I could without breaking anything, dazing her. “Amy…” Hanna looked back at Toya. “Are you sure?” I could see the doubt trying to push forward, but she shook her head again. I watched he
She thrashed against the rope, the chair, my magic, but I held her in the chair. I waited until the bright cord finished the connection around our circle. Then new connections between each of us wove around us. Each person had a cord for each other. The golden cords wove into a tapestry of our bond, a golden shiny piece of artwork of our friendship and love for each other.Only now there were tarnished spots. Dark places on our bonds, where they were being attacked. I stood, looking at the cords, and most were still shining brightly. All of them were actually, all except the ones that trailed to me. “The bonds are all intact except the ones that lead to you.” Wendy stood trailing her fingers of the cords. She plucked the cords between her and me, and I felt a tug. It rippled in my chest, but I could tell it was weakening. The dark spot in the centre growing bigger. “Our bond is growing darker the louder the whispers get.” Hanna plucked the cord, and it vibrated, but hers was weaker.
I sat back, watching the grey curser flashing on the screen. I needed to answer him, but I was still a little lost on how to approach him. It’s still weird knowing that Thoth is a man. When my dad introduced us, it was just vague information. Thoth will help you. No gender. No name other than user name. I asked over and over, but he stayed quiet. We talked about computers at first. But then our conversations grew deeper. He asked about my day, complained about his own. It wasn’t until I joked with him about telling Brandon that he was a human female that he finally cracked and told me he was a man. Another alpha my father was friends with. One he had grown close to from overseas. I shook my head to clear it. Whatever feelings I did or didn’t have for Thoth would have to wait. I wouldn’t approach any relationship until everything had been handled.NixtheGoddess: Hey. I’m alive. Vince had captured me for a few days, but I got out. I’m at work. I have a full day, but I will do a full d
Humans fall in love… The words bounced around in my head. There was no fucking way. I turned to look at my wolves, who were sitting comfortably. There is no gods damn way.Nix snorted as she looked at Megan. She’s really trying to convince us…when we share her fucking soul and already know the truth. Megan shrugged. I wasn’t going to point it out to her. She ran to her computer every night for months, talking to the man. If she wanted to be stupid, that was her prerogative. They both looked at me and I staggered back. YOU KNEW!Both shrugged. Look. Nix stepped closer and ran her side down the barrier. After Brandon. I wasn’t going to agree to any mate. But then you met Rowan.And while we both liked him. Megan pressed against the barrier, sending love. There were too many things holding you both back. Including us. What are you guys even talking about?Nix sighed. She pulled back and looked at her paws. I knew you loved Rowan. We both did. And before we realized Erubus was Rowan,
I sighed before I pulled up our chat screen. The dark screen was full of messages that I had missed.Thoth: Hey. You missed our chat last night. We were going to work on getting into the mainframe. Is everything okay?Thoth: Amy? Hey. It’s been hours. I’m starting to worry.Thoth: Amy? I called your dad. He said he hasn’t been able to get in touch with you, and he’s even starting to worry. Is everything okay? We are starting to panic.Thoth: Okay, listen, I know you are probably busy. Especially with the kids. I know you said that the king was in the past, but maybe you should reach out to Rowan about the kids. Maybe he can help.Thoth: Hey it’s been another day. Are you okay? I fully expect you to message me back today. I called you but you didn’t answer.Thoth: I just realized it might be weird that I called you…I got your number from your dad. I figured since we are friends, you wouldn’t care. Thoth: Okay, don’t be weird about me calling you.Thoth: I’m panicking.I laughed at tha
I walked into the office early the next morning. I was exhausted still, but I had things to do. Alannah stood with a shout. “Amy! You’re back.” She ran over and hugged me. “I was so worried when I hadn’t heard anything from you.”“I just spent some time with my mom on an island off the coast. Cell service was bad.” I sniffed her. “You smell good.” I pulled back, patting her back. “I like the perfume, what is it?”She looked a little confused for a moment. “It’s vanilla.”I smiled. “It smells great, but I can tell it’s wearing off. You might want to add a little, so it lasts all day.” I winked at her as understand entered her eyes. “Good idea. I’ve been running around all morning, so I was really sweaty.” She turned around and went to her desk, pulling the bottle from her purse and spraying herself. She turned to me expectantly. “How’s that?” “Perfect.” I looked around. “Is Rick in?”She shook her head. “He left early yesterday after his meeting with the alpha. I think we weren’t fee
I opened myself up as I sat down and sent out a call. “Sorry it took so long.” I sighed as I sat down next to her. “You were busy.” Carl’s voice was sad, and as I looked over, both he and my grandmother looked worried. “But you are here now.”“I didn’t expect both of you.” I sighed.“Daddy.” Carly called as she jumped up, but I grabbed her. “He’s not really here, baby, remember? You can’t touch him.” She trembled and then she sat back down. They settled across from us with the grave between us. “I forgot.” She looked at him. “I miss you, daddy.”“And I miss you too, baby.” He leaned over, then need to touch his daughter too much. “I heard every time you prayed to me.” His eyes softened. “And I want you to know, baby. That if you want to call Amy mom, or if at any time Amy gets a mate and you want to call him dad, your mother and I won’t mind. We will always be your mommy and daddy.” The tears in his eyes were full of love.Carly looked at me and I smiled down at her. “You don’t hav
I pulled into the house a little earlier than I expected. The grocery store was pretty empty. I only saw two workers. I grabbed my groceries and was out of the door before anyone said hello to me, which was fine. I needed a shower, and to see my girl. I brought everything inside and put it next to the closet. I left the door locked until I was ready to go over. I would do everything I needed to first because I knew if I went to the cabin, I was going to get an earful. I hopped in the shower and groaned. It felt amazing to have my shower again. I had bought new shampoo, conditioner, and body wash. I had a brilliant idea as I was shopping. One that was sure to make Brandon go slightly insane. I smirked as I sniffed the strawberry scent I had missed the last few years. Nix and Megan both sniffed the air and sighed. I missed this smell. Nix purred in my mind.Megan nodded. It makes me feel at home. I finished my shower and got out, covering myself in more strawberry scented product. My
I ran past my house, and I wanted to turn in, to check in on everyone. But I had to run back and pretend I just got back in. I ran past guards and patrols, gaining speed. When Nix got tired, Megan took over. I kept feeding magic into our feet, and after a few hours of running back and forth, weaving through the groups of wolves, I was finally off pack lands. Nix? I turned back to my exhausted wolf.Yeah? She rolled over to look at me. Use the vacuum. She furrowed her brow. What the hell are you talking about?Remember when we were learning to change our scent? The candle changed it and the vacuum…Made it disappear completely. I nodded. Exactly. I don’t want anyone following our trail. She nodded and hopped up. I watched as she dragged herself to the clearing and I summoned the vacuum. Itg was funny to watch her blow out the candle and then turned on the vacuum. She got the switch on the third attempt with her claws. She grabbed the hose with her teeth and sat down with it pointe
I heard Vince call out behind us, but I pushed Megan to run fast. I felt the first trap try to pull strength from us, and I realized I hadn’t carved the rune onto Megan yet.Fuck. I pushed forward, shoving my wolves back. The instincts were telling us to run, to flee, but I needed to get the rune on to her skin or else we wouldn’t make it very far. Amy, we have to run. Nix screamed from behind me, but I still forced Megan’s body to freeze. I stretched out our leg and used a claw to cut into the skin. I could hear the footsteps coming behind me. Amy! There is more the Vince chasing after us. We have to go. She tried to push, but I held her back. Trust me, we need this or else we are cooked. I looked behind us as Vince pushed through the last trees, blocking our view. His face broke into a smile, but then he faltered as he saw what I was doing.“Hey, what are you doing?” Vince stepped closer and the smell of blood hit his nostrils. His eyes snapped to my leg. “If you wanted to die, yo
The guard was pacing, nervous. He kept glancing back at me and muttering to himself. That put me on edge. Why does he keep looking back here? Nix stood and started to pace. I don’t know. But it’s not good. I moved to the clearing, checking on my magic. I had been funneling all of mine and Nix’s extra energy into our well. Building it until our flame turned into a giant bonfire. The magic was burning bright, and it took effort to keep it contained, my like my aura. How are you doing? Megan called back to me. We are ready. I shot back. I had been studying the book for days until I figured I could use a reversal rune to block the drain of our power. It will actually pull power from those chasing us and feed it into our bodies until we remove the rune. I had carved the rune into Nix and myself. Megan, I left for last. The door slammed open and Brandon strolled in. I wanted to recoil from the look on his face; it was so vicious. But I would never hide or cower from this man. “Looky l