Emory’s gaze met Kain’s as he settled into the bench adjacent to them.“I felt the disturbance. Are you alright?” he asked her.“I’m fine, Kain,” she said, looking at Rahl.The look in Rahl’s eyes was hostile. “I don’t know how things work where you’re from, but jumping on the king’s carriage like that is monumentally idiotic and disrespectful.”“My apologies for the intrusion. I couldn’t ignore the unstable surge of energy coming from Emory. I had to make sure she was safe.”“She’ll always be safe with me. You have no right to interfere!”Despite the way he was glaring at Rahl, Kain’s voice remained calm. “I understand your concern. But she’s my mate, and I can’t ignore her distress.”Rahl sighed loudly. “I only want good things for you, Emory. But I need some time to process all of this.”“I’m not trying to usurp your place, Rahl. She needs help navigating the intricacies of our bonds.”“I barely have a place with her,” Rahl said.Their back and forth didn’t interest her. Her only c
“You don’t mean Rodyn told you where he was going, but you didn’t tell me,” Emory saidTaking a deep breath, Kain met Emory’s gaze. “He didn’t want you to know where he was going, Emory,” Kain admitted. “I gave him my word, and I couldn’t go back on it. I only do it now because the stakes are high.”She struggled to accept his excuse for withholding the truth, even though she understood it. She regretted not pressing him for the truth before. Instead of demanding answers about Rodyn’s whereabouts, she was distracted by her desire for Kain.Now that the situation was urgent, she was even more frustrated with Rodyn. After they talked about him not letting her in, he went and did this? It made her feel coddled, which made her even more frustrated.“Where is he?” Emory murmured quietly.“It’ll be alright,” Kinshra said calmly, stepping closer. “I know you worry about Rodyn, but you have to understand where Kain’s coming from. We have to get to Rodyn right away.”She walked away from her a
Her lips thinned into a tight line, and her eyes narrowed as she glared at Aworyn.She understood the goddess’s intention—to provoke her, push her limits, and unsettle her resolve. But she wasn’t going to let Aworyn’s manipulations get to her.“I am not here to engage in a battle of egos, Aworyn,” Emory continued. “I won’t play your games. Whatever is left to settle between you and me, and Rodyn, we will do it today. Now stop acting like a child and get down here!”Aworyn descended, her beautiful green eyes flashing with anger. “How dare you speak to me like that? I am divine, an immortal force! You are nothing compared to my power!”“Unless power is solely based on immortality or divine status, you’re a complete fraud!” Emory retorted.Aworyn’s face contorted with rage as she raised her hand, preparing to unleash her wrath. But before she could act, Emory’s own powers surged forth, forming a protective barrier around her. Keeping her eyes on Aworyn, Emory could only sneak a quick pee
Kain watched Rahl’s commander along with a few Lycans lead the Chavére Alpha in. Crixus was a tall man with a heavy beard and broad shoulders, dressed in matching black uniforms as the Lycan guards. As the Chavére Alpha entered, he bowed slightly to the Lycan King, but his eyes betrayed a subtle disdain. “I’d like a moment with Emory, King Rahl,” the Chavére Alpha requested. Standing back, Kain watched Rahl settle into a black throne that hadn’t been there before. It appeared to be made of pure shadows shifting and curling around his form like a living creature. Looking closely at it, he noticed the mandalas absorbing the surrounding light and pulsing like stars. Taking in this extraordinary sight, Kain realized that Rahl’s power was far greater than he had ever imagined. In his peripheral vision, he caught Kinshra rounding the corner to meet her nephew. They had such striking green eyes, reminding him of Emory. While the Chavére Alpha shared Emory’s deep ebony skin, his eyes we
The age of the Lycans began with a great war between the gods and dragons. For aeons, they fought and no one knew how it started or why. All anyone remembered was that it had given rise to the ancient race of warriors called Lycans. The gods were losing, and they knew it. They grew desperate, and Aworyn—the goddess of the moon—created her children from the remains of a falling star. They were born with a special connection to the world and were the fierce warriors the gods wanted them to be. Before the dragons vanished into the void, a truce was reached for self-preservation. A truce that would last until one of them produced a descendant whose blood was evenly split between them: half god and half dragon. A descendant powerful enough to end the war—and it would be their only chance of peace and survival. After the prophecy of the truce was made, both sides dispersed. Aworyn left humanity and the Empire of Morrian to the first, noble line of Lycans. The Lycans forged an unbreakab
Emory Chavére looked up from her phone in the back seat of the cab and gazed at the towering Chavére packhouse. Guests were streaming into the compound from every direction.It was hard not to feel nostalgic for the life she was leaving behind in Broiia only to return home for her brother’s funeral.Home.Kedar hadn’t been home in such a long time. Not since her brothers sent her to Broiia after their parents were murdered to be raised by an aunt she barely knew. Her parents and brothers had built this compound with their bare hands while she ran around like a crazy pup, but it was no longer home.Unlike when it was built, the pack house was now bigger, newer, and much more luxurious, and she was the stranger now.Trey, the oldest Chavére and Alpha of Kedar, always argued that the war hadn’t ended and wouldn’t let her return. The news of Nolan’s death two years ago snuffed out Emory’s desire to return to Kedar. Now Larc was dead, too: slashed by a Lycian sentinel two weeks ago.They w
With her gaze fixed on Rodyn, she struggled to maintain her composure as her heart pounded against the memories of their last encounter. It was the night before she left for Broiia. She was fourteen; Rodyn seventeen– and they both planned to visit Eleadoí–the capital–in the fall. Their relationship was never meant to be: Emory knew Rodyn would never be her mate even without needing to tap into her wolf — she had never felt that spark ignite with him. They had both been through certain life-altering changes in the last few months leading up to that day and they both knew they didn’t belong together. But their chemistry kept drawing them back to each other. He was hot, exciting — and completely wrong for her. The morning after she left Krelon, it still didn’t feel real. Rodyn was impossible to keep track of, and not just because Aunt Kinshra wouldn’t let her. Five years ago, Rodyn vanished from the map of the Empire of Morrian, and rumours spread that he had gone rogue. “Rodyn we ta
The whole night, Emory ran, keeping enough distance between her and whoever Trey would send after her. Next up, she had to figure out where she was and what to do.She wasn’t going back to Broiia or Kedar. Being a Chavére, and a member of one of the last two packs that hadn’t submitted to the Empire of Morrian, she couldn’t go anywhere. The wastelands weren’t safe either since the Lycans lurked there. Living in Broiia, a pack south of the Empire, they never had to worry about encountering Lycan sentinels because they would have to pass through Kedar to get to them.Her only other choice was the Rolan pack.Then she laughed at herself. It made no sense for her to leave Kedar just to go to Rodyn’s pack for shelter.Emory hissed as she wiped the sweat off her brow.Standing on the riverbank, her hands on her waist, she looked around, unsure of where she was. She spent most of her life in Broiia, and this mindless decision to run might just have been her best move: she never got a chance