Mated To My Brother-In-Law のすべてのチャプター: チャプター 61 - チャプター 70

Nick The low hum of the packhouse had always been a sound Nick connected with normalcy. Not that it lasted for long with the sound of footsteps in the corridors, pack members hanging around, and the distant clatter from the kitchen. Today, he needed the packhouse as quiet as possible, so he mindlinked Alfie to evacuate the packhouse. He stood at the head of the council room, his palms flat against the round, polished oak of the table. Eight chairs lined the round table, the occupants already seated in rigid anticipation. Elder Esme sat beside him, her silver hair tied in a bun, her eyes sharp as an eagle.The other five council members… two senior warriors, the former beta, the former delta, a weathered she-wolf, Marta, who had seen as many alphas come and go like Esme… All wore the same irking expression. A careful one masking deep unease.Nick had not sat down. Out of respect, he wanted to wait till the twins arrived. He stood in front of the chair at the head of the table. Today,

Kira My boxes on the floor had multiplied overnight. I sat on my bedroom floor, legs wide open, surrounded by the mess of a life I had built in this pack. Clothes I would never wear again. Books I had read too many times… the cover page was no more. A ceramic wolf figurine painted a wrong shade of gray that Kayla had made for me after our first shift. It sat on the floor between my knees, and I could not bring myself to put it in the box of my old items. My childhood room looked smaller than my New York apartment, but it felt like home. Like my mother’s favorite lavender scents she used for every bedsheet and diffuser in the house. I was supposed to be sorting out my things, the ones I wouldn't need anymore, and packing what I'll be taking back to the city. Knowing I might never return to the pack had me stalling. I had been sitting there for about two hours, starring at the storage boxes like they held answers to my problem. The sun had set a while back, and the alarm clock on my

The packhouse was quiet in the hours before noon, most of the warriors out on patrol and the staff moving through their duties with the easy rhythm of routine. Nick sat behind his desk in the Alpha office, a room that had belonged to his father before him, and his grandfather before that. The walls were lined with books and old photographs, the windows looked out over the training yard, and the air smelled of leather and paper and the faint cedar of the fireplace that had not been lit in months.He was not looking at any of it. His gaze was fixed on the woman seated across from him.Dalia leaned back in her chair, her legs crossed, a folder balanced on her knee. She had arrived an hour ago, slipping into the packhouse through the side entrance, her dark hair pulled back, her face unreadable. Nick's younger sister had spent the last five years living in the northern territories, working with a coven of witches who specialized in the old magic. She was the only person he trusted to look

KaylaThe packhouse was everything Kayla had ever imagined.Dalia led her through the corridors with the ease of someone who had grown up in these walls, her voice warm and conversational as she pointed out the training wing, the medical bay, the private quarters reserved for visiting dignitaries. Kayla followed a step behind, her eyes wide, her hands clasped in front of her like she was walking through a museum.It was all hers now. Or it would be, once the ceremony was complete. The thought sent a thrill through her chest, quick and bright."The packhouse was built by Nick's grandfather," Dalia was saying, her hand brushing against the stone wall of the corridor. "He wanted something that could withstand a siege if necessary, but he also wanted it to feel like a home. Hence the gardens, the library, the sitting rooms. He believed an Alpha's strength came from the loyalty of his pack, and loyalty was earned through comfort as much as combat."Kayla nodded, though she was only half-lis

KaylaThe forest had become a labyrinth.I had been running for what felt like hours, but the trees looked the same in every direction—endless columns of dark bark and dripping branches, their bare limbs reaching toward a sky that had opened up and refused to close. The rain was coming down in sheets now, so heavy that I could barely see ten feet in front of me. My sweater was soaked through, plastered to my skin. My boots were caked with mud. My lungs burned with every breath.I slowed to a walk, then a stagger. My legs were shaking, my muscles screaming, but I could not stop. I could not go back. Going back meant facing Kira, facing Nick, facing the truth that had shattered everything I thought I knew. So I kept moving, one foot in front of the other, deeper into the dark.The rain muffled everything. The sounds of the forest—the rustle of leaves, the call of night birds, the distant howl of wolves—were swallowed by the relentless drum of water on earth. I was alone. Truly, utterly a