Tous les chapitres de : Chapitre 1 - Chapitre 7

Corin Dawn was nowhere in sight, only a frozen gray haze gnawed at the Silver Stone pack’s territory. My fingers went numb in the icy water after the first fifteen minutes. The laundry room sat at the very bottom of the pack house, a windowless, damp hole where the air always smelled of mold, lye, and suppressed rage. Moisture seeped from the walls, as if the stones themselves pitied me for being forced down here. “For fuck’s sake… I hope they all rot,” I muttered under my breath as I scrubbed a massive training outfit caked with mud and dried blood against the edge of the wash basin. The soap burned my wounds, the lye ate at my skin, but I could not stop. My back throbbed. Yesterday Lumi had “accidentally” shoved me into the corner of the wood shed, and now my shoulder was one huge, pulsing bruise. But rest was not an option. If the clothes were not ready for morning training, the Alpha would not limit the punishment to words. In this pack, I had no rights. My mother was just

Corin By the time training began, my back had turned into a single, throbbing nest of fire. I had tried to wash the blood away with ice cold water stolen from the kitchen, but my shirt inevitably stuck to the fresh wounds. With every step, I felt the fabric tear at the thin scabs that had barely begun to form after the ten lashes. I had to go to the training grounds. The joint training of the Silver Stone and Brown Stone packs was mandatory for everyone who was not bedridden. This “cooperation” supposedly maintained peace, but in reality it was nothing more than a display of dominance. I stood at the edge of the field, trying to stay at the very back so I wouldn’t be noticed. The air was heavy with testosterone and raw wolf energy. Then they arrived. The warriors of the Brown Stone pack marched in like a conquering army. Mason led them. He was tall, broad shouldered, and surrounded by a dark aura that seemed to swallow the afternoon light. A scar ran across his face, and dar

Corin The dust hanging in the great hall and the smell of heavy velvet curtains burned my throat. I had been standing on the ladder all morning, cleaning the chandeliers and adjusting the decorations. My back no longer just hurt, it had gone numb. The places where the whip had struck throbbed and burned with every movement of my arms as my shirt tore at the wounds again and again. But I could not stop. Lumi was sitting comfortably in one of the armchairs in the center of the hall, sipping hot chocolate and watching my every move like a hungry predator. “There’s still a stain there, you mongrel,” she pointed at one of the crystals with a mocking smile. “If everything isn’t shining for tomorrow’s ball, my father will personally inspect your work. And you know he isn’t as forgiving as Martha.” I did not answer. If I spoke, I would only give her another excuse to torment me. A knot tightened in my throat and my eyes burned with exhaustion. I thought only of Glacier. Of the moment

Corin The huge pendulum of the clock carved into my chest with every strike. Boom. Boom. Boom. The people in the ballroom counted down in chorus, their voices echoing like a jubilant roar against the marble walls. I felt my blood begin to boil, but this was not fever. Something ancient, something rising from deep within, pressed against my bones. My wolf had finally awakened. Midnight. I was eighteen. In that sacred instant, an invisible, blazing chain yanked at my soul. The sensation hit me with such primal force that I nearly collapsed. The bond. The tight, pulsing thread that chained my soul to another. I sensed the scent of cold ice and pine, and my instincts cried out in bliss. Glacier. He was my mate. Fate had not lied. His promises had not been empty. The bond vibrated between us, clear and undeniable. From the corner of my eye, I saw Mason, the Alpha of Brown Stone, suddenly turn away. His face darkened, his shoulders tensing as if he were in physical pain. He