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Chapter 22
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A Time for Strength Chapter 23
***Trigger Warning - This chapter begins depictions of wartime Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). This theme is depicted in multiple chapters throughout the rest of the book. Since the triggers for this subject are different for everyone, this will be the only warning related to it.*** “Lenora, what do you want your birthday celebration to look like?” Ashley and Carly sit across from me with huge grins on their faces. “We need to begin planning now, but you don’t have to do anything. Just show up for the party. We’ll take care of all the details and planning.” “My birthday isn’t for three months and I don’t want a celebration.” I stuff the last of my sandwich in my mouth. “Honestly, I almost forgot about it.” “Come on, nerd. It’s your eighteenth birthday and you’re Luna now.” Ashley tilts her head. “People want a reason to celebrate.” “We’ll have our annual pack celebration on the summer solstice. That’s good enough. Everyone loves it. No one will know the wiser.” I wave my ha
A Time for Strength Chapter 24
“What the fuck was that about?” I look around. Did anyone else witness that? A nurse peeks around the corner with a cringe. “Are you alright, Luna?” “Yes, thank you.” I nod to her. “What do you expect from a psychopath like Saint?” Justice says as if she’s not surprised. Doctor Nolan approaches me. “We’ve already given him a sedative, Luna. We're avoiding a wolfsbane tincture to subdue him with the rumor that Elder Randall is visiting.” “You heard that already?” I pinch my nose in frustration. “Where’s Doctor Stanton?” “She’s at the Sanchez house.” He advises. “Mrs. Sanchez was concerned about the delayed arrival as well.” “Yeah. That tracks.” I feel my shoulders drop slightly. Poor Maria. She loves her youngest son so much. She and Javier come to dinner service occasionally. I pay my respects when I see them, just like I do with Tyree’s family and the Ikedas. James’s family lives off territory, so we don’t see them often. With Maria, it’s different. She never stopped calling m
A Time for Strength Chapter 25
“Luna, can I hold your hand so I can be the first one to give Uncle Milo a hug?” Elle runs up to me in the foyer and hops on her toes with excitement. She doesn’t know how exhausted I am and she shouldn’t. I spent most of my night helping guards chase off rogues. Their activity has jumped since I got the phone call that our warriors landed. A small piece of me wonders if Bronx is right. How would they know to attack now? Our men were supposed to be home by now. Whoever they were getting their information from wasn’t able to relay the delayed arrival. Maris advised that Elder Randall got drunk off of bourbon and went to bed early. But did he really? “I think we can arrange for that.” I bend down and help her zip up her coat. “As long as you hold still and salute the warriors while I give a welcome home speech. Don’t worry though, it will be quick.” “Rin, too?” She looks past me at her best friend. “Her daddy is coming home with Uncle Milo!” Hana is across the hall speaking to Tyre
A Time for Strength Chapter 26
Milo’s POVShe said yes. I asked Leni to marry me and she fucking said yes. If you tell me there’s a luckier son of a bitch anywhere in the world, I’ll tell you that you’re a liar. I can’t believe I get to be her mate and now I get to be her husband too. Ghost can barely control himself. My heart is beating out of my chest. Bluebirds, butterflies, little hearts floating around in the air. All that shit. The plan worked. The entire unit helped. I’m glad I spoke to Bronx yesterday. After he warned me about all the bullshit Elder Randall has been trying to pull, he made some calls for me.The drivers stopped so I could pick up the ring in town. The jeweler is a nice old lady who sells estate jewelry out of her home. Her house smelled like cat piss, but Luna Sandy is one of her best customers, so I knew I could trust her.I traded a few rubies and emeralds from a dragon’s lair we raided. She was so impressed with the quality; she threw in extra jewelry for free. There’s a matching pair o
A Time for Strength Chapter 27
“Milo?” A voice brings me back to Earth. “Huh?” I blink hard and look around. My heart is pounding and my cheeks are wet with tears. “How do you feel, son?” Doctor Nolan is sitting on the coffee table in front of me. Doctor Stanton is in the chair behind him looking at me with concern. “I-I must have gotten distracted.” I wipe the tears away and clear my throat. “Sorry, w-what were we talking about?” “It’s okay, Milo.” Doctor Nolan pats my knee and looks at his watch. “You’re done for today. You were distracted for about an hour, son.” “What? No, that doesn’t sound right.” I try to stand, but he gently pulls me back down. “Milo, we’re going to recommend you stay here for a little longer. We want to meet with you and the Luna to explain why. If you don’t want us to discuss your medical information with her, we won’t, but it will help her understand our concerns.” “N-no, that’s okay. You can tell her whatever.” I grind the heels of my palms into my pants legs and blink back the
A Time for Strength Chapter 28
Lenora’s POV Best. Kiss. Ever. Until it isn’t. Milo sits back suddenly, making me open my eyes to see what’s wrong. His panic and fear hit me like a tidal wave. He’s hyperventilating. He looks… terrified? What happened? What did I do? “M-Milo?” I reach out to touch his arm. “What’s wrong? What happened? Milo?” He scrambles back and falls off the bed, hitting the floor hard. “SOMEONE HELP!” I scream through a mindlink and jump down to help him. “Something’s wrong with the Beta!” Milo’s handsome features become distorted as Ghost comes forward. He snarls and snaps at me as if he’s never seen me before. Maybe because I was too excited to see him and came in smelling like a rogue instead of getting a shower first? It doesn’t matter now. I have to help him. “Ghost, it’s me! It’s Lenora! It's Leni, your mate!” I grab his shoulders. His sharp claws reach out and painfully dig into my arms, ripping holes through the sleeves of my sweatshirt. I can’t pull away or the gouges will become
A Time for Strength Chapter 29
I think back to what Milo was just saying to me. Worried that he was too broken and that I might not care about him. Thinking that he fucked up his meeting with Doctor Stanton. “Is this setback going to discourage him?” I look at Bronx for an answer. “Uh, if it does, we would never know. It’s the tracker in him. He blends into any scenario pretty seamlessly. It helps him find details any of us would miss. It’s instinct for him to hide how he really feels.” He shrugs. “Milo is one of the least violent werewolves I’ve ever met. I don’t know what happened after I came home, but I can tell you one thing, the day of that attack… probably one of the worst days of all of our lives. For Milo, it will weigh down heavier and for longer. Ghost has a tendency to let things linger. He doesn’t let go like other wolves do. That gets to Milo.” “From what we could discern just now, he didn’t recognize you, and he thought the nurses and orderlies were witches during his episode." Doctor Stanton step
A Time for Strength Chapter 30
I stand up, roll my shoulders, and clear my throat to shake the doubts from my mind. A nurse in the hallway looks up from her medicine cart to bow to me. I nod my head to her, but don’t stop walking until I get to Milo’s door. They’ve turned most of the lights off in his room. He’s laying on his side, facing away from me. “Um, Milo?” I whisper. “Are you awake?” He doesn’t answer, so I quietly swing the door shut. I can come back tomorrow. The doctor said this isn’t my fault, but if I hadn’t let him kiss me, maybe he wouldn’t have had to be sedated. It’s a weird sense of guilt. I didn’t cause his trauma, but it sure feels like I’m to blame for his current situation. “Leni, don’t leave.” Milo’s voice is groggy in my mind. “Please don’t leave.” I look back in the room as he rolls over and looks at me sleepily. His steel-gray eyes are hazy and unfocused, but his lopsided smile makes my heart jump. Is it selfish to be relieved that he’s awake instead of getting rest? I approach t
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