LOGINVIOLETI came to slowly, hesitant to leave the sweet nothingness that was sleep.Then, there was a low growl from somewhere in the room. Brian? I peeled my eyes open, and it was Brian, all right, or rather his wolf. But I could tell immediately that there was something wrong.“Brian,” I called and regretted it.His head swung to me, almost like he didn't realize I was in the room. And those eyes were vacant. There was no recognition at all. The black demon stalked towards me, his shimmery coat catching highlights from the sunrays that filtered in, fangs gleaming and dripping saliva like they wanted to taste blood, and he was between me and my only escape route—the door. Hot sweat ran down my back, sticking my clothes to me. It was all too soon.“Brian,” I tried again, making my voice as persuasive as possible, but those dead eyes weren't close to recognizing me.He gave three short barks, growling more aggressively. And I knew then that I was done for.I leaped at the same time he di
VIOLETLuna… Luna… Luna…The title followed me everywhere I tried to run. Their voices washed over me, their faces blurred, but I knew they were mocking. A title I had earned in blood. A title that now demanded my blood.I didn't see their concern, I couldn't hear the confusion. Breathe, I needed to breathe. Someone tried to touch me, and I shrank back, letting my legs carry me further away.“Luna?” The owner of this voice didn't give me time to run. Her arms were around me quickly in a warm hug. “Great heavens, you look petrified.”In the sea of haziness, that hug was the grounding I needed. Everything came back into focus and for the first time since I'd heard the news, I could take a breath.“Aliya?” Out of the blue, I broke into a loud wailing sob, surprising even myself. It wasn't a simple cry of discomfort, no, these were ugly sobs that shook me with their intensity.I cried for Brian, the sixteen-year-old boy who had lost his way, and I cried for the 106-year-old Brian, the wol
VIOLET Death. He had shadowed my life for as long as I could remember. The death of this and the death of that. Had it all been leading here—To this moment where I would succumb to him too? Brian tightened his arm around my waist like a steel band. He seemed to be verbally berating the seer, but the words blurred into nothing. My mind had floated away. I scanned Willow's cabin with detached eyes, touching every detail. I felt like a fly on her windowsill, rather than the Luna whose death she had pronounced. Her cabin was naked, stripped of warmth in all senses of the world. A cot lay rumpled at the far side of the small room, like she had risen from bed not too long ago. A side of the room functioned as the kitchen, but there was barely anything, just a table cluttered with jars and herbs I couldn't recognize. Then there were the chairs. She was younger, younger than me, from the looks of it, and her house was so… empty. Just like Brian's. I had not changed all that I wan
VIOLET “Violet, they don't bite.” “It is looking at me like it will bite,” I snapped at Brian. “They eat grass,” he ground out. “He might decide to try meat today.” The animal looked as wary of me as I was of him. He eyed me angrily and went back to munching the hay that had been set out for them. “You can watch for today, then,” Brian said and tried to wrestle the shears away from me, but I didn't let him. “No, I will do it,” I insisted. “Well, then do it already.” I eyed the animal warily again; it seemed to mind its business, carefully eating, but I knew its attention was on me. It won't bite. It won't bite. I chanted repeatedly in my head, but I realized my mistake the moment I crouched down. The animal turned with a speed I didn't know was possible, and rammed its heavy horns into my forehead. My vision blackened for a moment, and I fell back on my butt, disoriented. Brian gave a full, roaring belly laugh behind me. I rose to my feet, turning to him with angr
VIOLET My breakfast at lunchtime didn't help much, and I crawled back into bed and let exhaustion pull me under again.By the time my body was finally satisfied, dusk had painted the room in deep blues. I spent the first hour of consciousness in my tub. Brian could be really thoughtful when he wanted to be.The wood had been polished till it gleamed and shone. And it was big enough to fit two bodies. I couldn't wait to test out if it was as sturdy as it looked.I soaked until my fingers pruned, trying to wash away the lingering ache in my muscles — and the image of Calvin’s raw shoulder.It would be the first time I was seeing Keren in weeks. I hadn't seen her since before my willing exile and the visit.If I tried to help, I would be refused so I waited in the sitting area for her. Her relationship with Brian made sense now. This probably meant she had cooked for another woman, another of Brian's mates right in this very kitchen. A sharp possessive heat flared through my chest, and
VIOLETBrian's lips were warm against my forehead, but I couldn't find it in me to rise with the sun as he did. After the events of the day and night before, I needed to stay longer in bed before I could confront a new day.And he had really worn me out. I wasn't certain my exhausted legs would obey if I tried to move them, so I didn't.The next time I awoke, I made my body move. It creaked and groaned, but it worked. A half win. Calvin was in the sitting area when I emerged.My senses were still dulled so I didn't notice him until I was in there. “Calvin?” I exclaimed, surprised by his presence. My hair was an abandoned nest, and I was wearing an ugly pair of Brian's shorts and an equally ugly shirt. Their comfort made up for their extreme ugliness and I wasn't expecting company.I expected he would be placed on bed rest and by the look of him, he should be. His arm was in a cast and a sling over his shoulder, and he groaned quietly when he stood. “Luna.”I was unsure of what to do o
VIOLET “You look lovely, Vi.” Brian's low voice rolled over me, low and warm when I stepped into the sitting area.My black dress was one I was lucky enough to pack on my forced trip here. It was hand-sewn by Liz, a woman of many talents, and it was irrevocably mine.I didn't like to wear it ofte
VIOLETBrian didn't pause or stop, he went through the trees like a black demon, breaking branches and snapping twigs as he went.A huge branch snapped in my face, and I almost lost my seating. I grabbed his fur with too much force, doing my best to remain seated. I would take wolf-riding classes i
VIOLET I stood in stance before Aliya, in the moments before chaos. She was in her fighting stance too.“Do not hold back, do your best to hit me.”She was barely finishing her words, before I went after her with the first punch.She evaded me easily. There was a raised eyebrow as she crouched bac
VIOLET The dent was growing, it was larger this morning.I sparred with the tree like it had long auburn hair, each blow landing with precision. My unmoving opponent creaked, bathing me again with almost dead leaves. Perhaps signalling its surrender, but I'd stopped listening three baths ago.“Two







