No Straight Roads: Eve Novels & Stories

KOLTON I slammed my foot on the gas pedal, tearing through the main gates of the Winter Pack fortress. My black SUV skidded across the gravel courtyard, kicking up dirt and rocks as I slammed the brakes and brought the vehicle to a sudden stop. My chest heaved, my claws itching to tear something apart. The boundary race had finished hours ago, and Eve was nowhere to be found. My guards had sworn she was at the archery training grounds, but she had vanished into thin air.

The sun, relentless and unforgiving, beat down on the dusty path leading from the servants’ quarters to the main house. I was ten, and the path was etched into my memory, every pebble, every crack. It was a route I knew intimately, yet one I was rarely allowed to fully explore. My world was largely confined to the small, neat rooms behind the imposing mansion, a world of hushed conversations and the ever-present scent of cleaning products and warm food.

“How else do you get proposals?” Dev hated it that he was being pressurized to get married. Not that he loathed the prospect of it, but there was a lot more he wanted to accomplish before getting bogged down with a task he wasn’t interested to shoulder at the moment. But something his mother disclosed troubled him very much. “The astrologer has foreseen turbulent times ahead, so, be wary on the job front and otherwise.” “It’s a clear sign that I shouldn’t get married anytime sooner,” Dev had refuted, to which his mother chuckled. “Don’t be silly, Dev. It has nothing to do with marriage. Just be careful while traveling, moving around, or dealing with people, especially with strangers.”

Seeing he was distracted, Ariadne grab Eve and run. Running towards the hallway, they were stopped by few wolves but Ariadne made sure her wolves are already on the edge and quickly attack the rogue wolves. Eve had to stay back while pulling the grey cloth which currently cover her nude body. After defeating the wolves, Ariadne grab Eve’s hand and ran as fast as they can. Eve notice blood oozing down her forehead but Ariadne didn’t stop. They continue to ran to a thin hallway which Eve had never been before. When they reach the ned of the hallway, their pathway as blocked by rusty gates where its lock has been cut smoothly.

Reasonable honestly. Then nobody answered. Because the answer was obvious. The symbols described something called: The Four Roads. Ancient paths leading to forgotten places. Most had vanished from history. Then Ava traced one symbol carefully. Then: "This road." Pause. Then: "It leads to the City of Echoes." Silence. Then Rowan smiled. Dangerously. Then: "The City of Echoes sounds cool." Then Cassian immediately replied. Then: "That's exactly why it's dangerous." God. No.

“Aviva of Endova, everyone.” The men at the table turn like they just realized I’m here. I pale. “She’s going to be working with Commander Evander, under his direction, during the construction of the road into the Deadlands.” “The Deadlands? There can’t be a logical reason why we’d need a connection to the Deadlands. What on Goddess’s green earth could they possibly offer us?”

The honesty lands hard. Sarah turns toward the speaker. “That’s your plan? Slow?” “Slow enough to spend the dead once.” Renn’s face twists. “I hate this room.” “We are not in a room,” Mara says. “I hate the concept.” The route in my skull shifts. Leo is trying to adjust around us. Even angry, even decaying, he cannot stop helping. A second path appears, thinner, marked in amber. NURSERY WASTE SECOND GATE. A status icon blinks beside it.

✦THAT NIGHT✦ ◈FLATBUSH AVENUE◈ The black Valentino SUV tore down the near-empty stretch of Flatbush Avenue, its headlights slicing through the dark. Zeph glanced into the rearview mirror, a flicker of solitude in his eyes, before swerving toward the curb. The door burst open and Matteo was shoved out, wearing only his boxers, his clothes flung after him. The SUV roared away, swallowed by the night.

he said regretfully. "What do you mean barren?!" My voice couldn't hide the frustration I felt. "It is a wasteland, Alpha. No houses, no trees, no vegetation, no animals. There is nothing left inside the territory." My Beta pointed towards the east. The rising sun was already casting a rosy hue across the sky. "Let us wait for light so you may see for yourself, Alpha." I kicked the wet earth beneath my feet trying to control my anger. The Moon Goddess was laughing at me, spitting in my face! Damn Her! Damn HER! I looked up at the sky and I growled, unleashing all my anger.

I’ve decided on Oklahoma City and I'm using mom’s laptop to try to find a cheap place to stay. I might already have a job. The black escalade was gone when we left the funeral home and I haven’t seen it since. There hasn’t been any strangeness going on with Brodie and Wyatt, so it must have been my anxiety causing me to be suspicious. They had no idea about Rob or Wyatt would be in my face about it. I still haven’t contacted Rob. I don’t have it in me to deal with him and I want to enjoy my time away from him and not have him ruining it.