KADE Our pack had a healthy or unhealthy gambling habit depending on how you looked at it. Gambling kept things interesting. Our biggest bets came every year regarding the Alpha games. I pretended that I was upset that Elle had the crowd’s favor, but I could not be upset because I was really fucking proud of her. Us sparring had been on my mind since she I witnessed how easily she got Dulaney to submit to her. It only intensified when I watched her spar against Gabriel. There was no doubt in my mind that this would be a stimulating experience just like it was for Tyre and Faye to face off. Neither of us took the initial shot when Tanya counted down from three. We circled each other, observing and calculating. Elle’s body was loose without an ounce of tension that I could see. Even her eyes were clear as she looked me over from head to toe. Her eyes veered to the side of me, eyebrows pulling together. All it took was a moment’s hesitation as I fought the urge to look for her to sho

KADE We were all thankful when there were no further traitors in the pack. The three she-wolves had supplied Elwyn with information. They would spend a week in the cells before being put on trial. Our pack did not grant leniency when it came to traitors. There were four more girls that Elwyn took advantage of, and Abigail compelled. They all spent time with Elle and agreed to join the support group. It sicked me that this all happened under my watch. It did not matter that Abigail used her gift to stop us from knowing. I still felt responsible because I was the Alpha. If anyone could help those who suffered then it would be my amazing mate. Elle suffered too much in life, but it never once broke her. The entire pack pulled together in order to get ready for Bandore. Stella had been thrilled that Elle chose her to help organize the bunkers. One thing that Elle was great with was finding the right ways to encourage people and to embrace their own strengths. Caiathus and his family c

KADE It was the hardest thing I ever had to do when I forced myself to stay back as Elle approached Bandore because anything could have happened. The only thing that kept me rooted was the fact that I believed in my mate. I wanted to destroy the bastard for ever looking at her, but it needed to be her. He took from her for years, and she needed to be the one to destroy him and reclaim the control that he had held over her even if she had not been aware of it. I had never met vampires or dragons until they showed up with the bastard. However, they were our allies and helped save our pack. There would have been more injuries and possibly even a death toll if they had not been here. Mystra was serious when there were just minor injuries. Seventeen injuries including Elle’s was a number that we were all happy with. It could have been so much worse, and we had been prepared for it to be. However, there had been one of Dante’s pack members who had been injured severely. One of the vampi

KADE There were praises all around the pack about how blessed our pack was with Elle as Luna. Even some of the she-wolves who had been snobbish towards her because she was my mate changed their tunes when they saw how much she cared about Nightshade. It was not just the pack as a whole but each individual member. She was the catalyst this pack needed to heal from everything that had happened. My amazing mate had an innate ability to see people’s strengths and use those to help them find healing within themselves. She did not try to heal them but helped them learn how to heal themselves. Grandma commented that Elle had found her footing a lot easier than she or my mother did. All of this reminded me why she was the one chosen to fulfill the prophecy. I doubted anybody would be better suited for it than her. “Got to discuss something,” Apollo said hesitantly as he joined us at the training field. Today would begin the tryouts for the games. We were excited to narrow down our picks.

ELLE Last night was a blast after I put the piece of shit on the ground. It was great for everyone to really let loose and relax. Even I was coaxed into it because there was no way I could deny the joy of our pack surrounding us. Kade challenged my competitive side to see who could be the quietest while we christened the room twice. Then it was my turn to see if I could break his resolve by waking him up this morning. I needed my dessert before we started today, but he insisted that he got his too. It was a win-win for the both of us. “Alpha, Luna, will you sit with us?” Molly, one of the pups, asked us. “Absolutely!” Kade said as he set our breakfast down. “How are you feeling about today?” he asked her. Molly was five, and she was on her way to being a fierce warrior. Denny helped train the little ones with us. During tryouts, Molly took down two pups twice her size. She had only gotten better since then. “Nervous. What if they’re all stronger than me? I’m still small. What if