Alone Cry

One noble lie. Fifteen years of cold, calculated hate. One moonlit night that changes everything. Savannah Reed is a woman forged in ice. When Grayson Cole, her fated mate, vanished fifteen years ago, he didn't just leave her alone—he left her carrying a pup he’d never see. To survive the shame, Savannah buried her heart, married a man she despised, and let a singular obsession take root: Revenge. Now, the Alpha has returned. Grayson is back to claim his territory and raise the formidable Ridge Hall, but he isn’t the arrogant wolf Savannah remembers. He is a man of jagged edges and haunting silence, watching her from the shadows with a hunger that threatens to melt her icy resolve. Savannah is determined to break him. She wants to see him bleed for every night she spent alone, for the son they lost, and for the life he stole. But as she peels back the layers of his betrayal, she discovers a "noble lie" more devastating than the truth. In the heat of the forge and the darkness of the sacred grove, the line between hatred and desire thins. Grayson is a raging Alpha to the world, but for Savannah, he is a male on his knees, begging for a mercy she isn't sure she can give. He sacrificed everything to protect her once. Now, she’ll have to decide if she can forgive the male who destroyed her world—or if the fire between them will burn the entire pack to the ground.

I've been overlooked by the Lawson family a hundred times over. On birthdays, they only ever get a cake for my sister, Jocelyn Lawson. When I'm sick, I lie alone in a hospital bed while they fuss around her. I tell myself to tough it out and be a good daughter, but no amount of my endurance ever earns me a drop of their favor. On my wedding day, I think I'll finally get my moment to shine, at least for once. But I'm wrong. My parents, my brother, and even my fiance—Felix Wright, the head of a mafia empire—abandon me to attend Jocelyn's graduation ceremony. They leave me standing alone at the altar, enduring the guests' whispers and pitying glances. But Felix just throws me a cold line. "It's just a wedding. We'll make it up another day." It's not the first time. At our engagement party, Jocelyn whimpers about a stomachache, and he rushes her to the hospital without a flicker of hesitation. I'm left to smile through gritted teeth, making excuses to a room full of guests. That's the moment it hits me. To them, I'll always be the spare. So, I walk away. I pack my bags and carry a secret with me—the child growing inside me. This time, I'm done waiting for their scraps of affection. I'm starting a new chapter in my life, for me and my baby.

My mother never believed me. To her, I was always just a lying pup. In my pack, every cub wore a Moon Oath Collar. Red meant you lied. White meant you told the truth. My sister’s collar always glowed a soft white. Even when she pretended to be sick to get out of an exam, her collar only gave off that gentle white light. Mine was different. Even when I was truly sick, my collar would burst into a violent red, and the punishment current would follow immediately. On my sister’s birthday, Mother prepared a bonfire feast for the whole pack. Just before they left, a splitting pain tore through my head, and I collapsed on the floor, begging her to help me. For one second, she almost picked me up. Then my collar flashed red. “To ruin your sister’s birthday, you’re even pretending to die? What a vicious child.” Then she walked out with my sister and left me alone on the floor. I died alone on the cold floor. But when I opened my eyes again, I was no longer inside my body. My soul drifted after my mother as I whispered the truth she had never believed. “Mom… I wasn’t lying. I really died.” And when they finally found my body, the red collar on my neck was still flashing.

You may k.i.s.s the bride," the priest announced and my body shuddered in resistance as the words I told him two days ago rang in my ears. I won't even spit on your face let alone marry you, Liam Knight. His eyes were shining in triumph, clearly stating that once again he won. He smirked cruelly, taunting me without words how he forced me to do exactly what I said I would never do even if he begged me. He didn't beg, on the contrary, he forced me to marry him. He took a step forward, raised my chin, I fisted my hand tightly at the sides when he placed his unworthy lips on mine. Disgusted with his touch but I tolerated it for the sake of my father who was at his mercy at this moment. He pulled away from my lips with the same rule smile intact on his face, "I made you mine, Babygirl and I can't wait for us to be alone!" He said darkly. My breath hitched looking at the darkness in his eyes. If I would have been the old Aurora I would be scared but not anymore. I might have bowed down my pride for my father but if he was looking for a submissive wife, he sure was not going to get one!

I was beginning to shed tears, couldn't wait any longer. "All the time I cry just because of you, and it doesn't touch you, you don't love me!" I said wiping off my tears with my hands. He took a sip from his glass cup. "You're mine, so it's your body. Why do you resist? Until then, a man has needs" He said confidently. "Because…" I was going to let it all out, tell him what a jerk he is, but I couldn't, he wasn't one to be messed with. Matt hated being disrespected or intimidated in anyway. "You know what… " I sobbed, Cleared my face "I would rather give another man my body!" "I would kill any man that touches you" he said with a light smile. "You wouldn't give me happiness, and you don't want me to get happiness from somewhere else, what kind of a man are you?" "No, Arianne, don't you dare question my authority." I ignored his words. "I'm a woman, I have needs too." "Come live with me, but you won't. I will make you a queen, give you all you want and—" "You mean make me your sex slave?" ....

I wonder if I will ever be delivered from the hell that I have to live everyday. My dad has been a drunk ever since my mother walked out on us. I was only five when I realized that my dad was not like other dads. I had to clean up his messes. There were time I could not even go to school because I did not have any clothes to wear that fit. I knew that if social services got involved my dad would be angry and take it out on me. Things got worse when my dad became involved with the mafia. It was a way to work off his gambling debts. I was worried that one night he would not come home because he had gotten into deep with the mafia. That fear became a reality when my dad walked in with Joseph Rossi, the largest mafia boss in the state. “Selena, pack your things, you are going to be living with Mr. Rossi from now on.” I did not understand what was going on. “Why dad? I do not understand why I am going to live with him.” Mr. Rossi cleared his throat “You are going to live with me now because I own you. Your dad traded you to me to pay off his gambling debts.” I tried not to cry but I could not stop the tears - my dad sold me; I am now officially in hell.

The night before my due date, a pack of rogues kidnapped my Alpha mate, Louis Ross. To save him, I traded myself. The rogues swarm with excitement when they had me, tearing off my clothes and growling filthy words into my ears. Ripping open my belly, they tore my pup to pieces. I reach out to Louis through our mind-link, only for him not to answer. … When it was over, he held me in his arms, crying as he vowed to slaughter every last rogue for what they had done to me and our pup. I heard his Betta chatting with him before I lost consciousness. "Mr. Ross, you looked so impressive. I would have been fooled if I hadn't known it was all an act. Don't you think you're going too far by letting a pack of rogues violate your Luna just so you could marry Ms. Amanda? She was carrying your pup..." "Only Amanda will be my Luna. I had to ruin Jody's reputation to justify stripping her of that title. The pup? I never intended to let it be born." My wolf let out a cry so raw it felt like the sky shattered. The mate whom I loved and protected with everything? He loved my stepsister, Amanda Singleton. Even our pup was nothing more than a sacrifice for her.

On the day of the mating ceremony, I'm supposed to be marked by William Ernst and become the Luna of the Shadow pack. However, Annie Denver, my younger twin sister, suddenly comes back from abroad. Dad, Mom, and William end up abandoning me, choosing to pick her up from the airport. While Annie posts a family photo on Facebook, flaunting how everyone in the family loves her, my family cuts me off whenever I try to contact them through mind-link. They end up closing the mind-link. After calling countless times, William finally accepts my call and asks me to stop rushing him. He tells me that today's mating ceremony is canceled and will be rescheduled on another date. My dearest parents, brother, and the man I love the most all turn me into the laughingstock of the entire pack—and the most ridiculous bride of all. Despite being laughed at, I didn't cry or make a scene. After taking care of everything, I write a number in my journal—the 99th time. This is the 99th time they have disappointed me. From this moment on, I won't beg for their love anymore. I fill out an application for Arcetic expedition, ready to leave them. They all think that my silence and constant compromises with Annie mean I've matured. They fail to realize that I'm disappointed to the core. I am leaving for good.

My blood runs cold as he pulls me closer to him, "A fucken restraining order Shey!" he says through gritted teeth as his hold on me becomes harder. I try to pull myself out of his grip but I am pushed up against a wall, with his body pinning me beneath his. His hot breath on my neck as he inhales my perfume, he is holding my one hand behind my back as he tries to undress me with the other. "How will you ever learn Shey? You. Are. Mine!" I let out a whimper but his grip only got tighter. He pulls me away from the wall only to push my back against the wall, my cries for help being muffled by his harsh kiss as he pulls down my top and fondles my right . I move harshly under his grip as I try to come free but he only backs away and punches me in the face causing my body to be thrown to the floor. I hit the ground hard as I felt my body ache and tears start to fall, "Help!" I cry out "Can someone please help me!" I yell. I am then picked up by Bruno and thrown into the wall again, my cries becoming more agonising, "You are going to wish you never left me !"

Atenea, a young woman of captivating beauty, displays an innocent face that could easily be mistaken for that of an angel; however, don’t be deceived, for behind that appearance hides the very devil in a small body. She accepts Valentino Rizzo’s marriage proposal—an ice-hearted businessman—bound by the obligation to save her father’s nearly bankrupt factory. When the young Russian sets foot on Italian soil, she comes face to face with her future husband’s mistress. One might think that the fragile girl would cry over a future with a fiancé who has another woman, but… —“You’re my fiancé’s woman, you say?” —she removes her sunglasses, a gentle smile curving her lips—. “Nice to meet you, I’m Atenea Volkova, the future wife of your man. Sorry… our man.” In contrast, a husband with a cold and unyielding heart, who constantly shows her his disdain and openly professes his love for his mistress, becomes astonished when he discovers a small detail that binds him to his tiny wife. Love arises, grows, multiplies, but at some point, it must perish, for Atenea Volkova is not willing to give her heart to any man. It was a promise made on her knees before a grave, where her fragile heart was buried for life. Can true love bloom between a heart of ice and another cracked and closed to the feelings of love?