ALEJANDRA.Traveling through the jungle on the back of an ATV is not how I imagined my trip would end. Though, I guess it’s not over.I am riding on the back of an ATV with Puma driving. I hug onto him tightly, per his request.The jungle is absolutely gorgeous. Huge trees, thick greenery, colorful birds. There are even some unique animals that I’ve never seen before, probably some that want to eat me, but I try not to think of that.I don’t know how long I’m on the back of that ATV, but by the time we stop my butt in numb from sitting on the seat so long. My legs are wobbly when I get off. Phoenix grabs my arm to keep me from stumbling.“Where are we?” I look around.We’ve stopped in what appears to be the middle of the jungle. Any city that we’ve seen is long gone and I haven’t seen any other person around. No houses, nothing. But then I see it. It’s blurry, but there is… something.I grab Phoenix’s hand and step forward, walking through what I can only describe as a force
ALEJANDRA.I’m a freaking fairy princess.I take a moment to let that sink in.Roshan, my biological father, takes us somewhere private where we can talk without everybody listening. I don’t go anywhere without Phoenix, Park, Forrest, and Desmond, so they come too. Alpha Romano stays with us to be safe. The fae don’t really trust wolf shifters, but they do trust me, despite the fact that I’m half wolf. It’s all very strange.I still can’t believe that I’m in Sri Lanka. And I can’t believe that I’m a fairy.My dad is alive.I don’t know how I feel that. Since he is alive, why didn’t he come after me? I mean, in a way it’s good that he didn’t. If he did, would I have ever met the guys? I’d probably be happy stuck in this protective bubble that they have around their small town. I don’t want that for me. Not even now. Not even if it means that I won’t be safe.I’m just confused by all of this, but Roshan is going to give me answers.As we walk through the town, I realize it’s not
ALEJANDRA.Roshan invites me to a barbecue. Apparently they’re grilling food for me and we’re going to eat a ton, listen to music, and dance. I’m exhausted from the long plane ride, but everybody is so excited to see me and hang out with me. And I feel bad, so I go, even though I don’t know if I will be able to stay awake for it all.Roshan even brings me a dress that one of the ladies made for me. I have no idea how she made it so quickly, but it’s cute and I think it’s sweet that somebody made me a dress. Nobody has ever done anything like that for me before.As I’m getting ready for the cookout, a couple of girls stop by and offer to fix my hair. They appear to be around my age, but I know looks can be deceiving. Fairies age slowly. I also don’t want to ask them their age because that seems rude. Though, maybe that’s just a human thing.The girls braid my black hair. Or… they’re similar to braids, but also kind of not. All I know is that my hair looks gorgeous and I kind of look
ALEJANDRA.Heat creeps up my neck and warms my cheeks; my heart races as anger threatens to overwhelm me. The kitchen floor in my castle is going to get worn down from the amount of pacing I’m doing.I’m mad at the way the fae have been treated.I’m mad for the war that happened a millennia ago.I’m mad for the life that was stolen away from my birth mother and father.But mostly, I pissed for how things are now. Even a millennia later, the fae are still being hunted down like animals and it’s not right. The ground shakes again and I know I need to get my emotions under control, but I just can’t right now.“You’re so cute when you’re angry.”I look over and see my guys are smirking.I roll my eyes at them. “I’m glad you can find humor in this horrible situation.” I stop pacing and turn to face them. “And it’s not cute. It’s fierce.”The guys laugh.“Come, let’s go to bed.” Forrest walks over to me.I sigh. “Fine.”I am tired, but I don’t know if I will be able to sleep. I j
ALEJANDRA.I end up falling asleep in bed with Phoenix. I know I should’ve went back in the room with Forrest and Puma, but I couldn’t bring myself to after what I did with Phoenix. I wanted to stay with him and cuddle with him. And somehow, we ended up having sex two more times throughout the night.I imagined I would be sore and hurting, but I’m not. It must be due to my supernatural healing, because I remember Katherine talking about how much it hurt the next day.I end up sleeping in later than I’d planned. It’s after nine o’clock when I look at the clock on the nightstand. Phoenix is still asleep, so I kiss him on the cheek and get out of bed, careful not to wake him. I go into my own room so I can take a quick shower.Puma and Forrest aren’t in my bed anymore. I wonder if they’re awake or if they went to their own beds in the middle of the night sometime. I also wonder if they know what Phoenix and I did. I mean… I wasn’t exactly quiet, but they were asleep. I think.Oh gosh
ALEJANDRA.My time with Roshan has left me exhausted. I’m not sure how much progress we made today, but I was actually able to cause an earthquake without being upset. I also made it rain, which brings a whole new meaning to ‘make it rain.’ I still have a long way to go, but with his help, I’m confident things will work out. The only problem is… Forrest is Alpha. He needs to get back to Shifter Academy. It’s important. I know it is. He’s told me how vital going to school there is for the future of the pack. Instead, he’s stuck in a bubble with me in a jungle in Sri Lanka. “We need to talk,” I say to Forrest, sitting down on the couch beside him. He’s reading some sort of fae history book and that warms my heart. He’s so supportive of me. He closes the book and angles his body toward me. “What’s up?” “I think we need to go back to Shifter Academy.” Once the words are out of my mouth, I can feel how right they are. I’ve never thought that staying here was a good idea. “You need to
ALEJANDRA.I rub my sweaty palms on the skirt of my dress.I shouldn’t be nervous. There really is no point to be. I guess… maybe I’m scared of rejection. What if Roshan doesn’t like my idea or… What if he isn’t willing to come with us? What if he wants to stay here in the happy bubble forever?“I don’t want to hide,” I start out. My voice comes out strong considering how nervous I am. “My mates… they have a duty too. Forrest is going to be Alpha one day. And Alpha Romano has been here with us too. But we can’t just stay here.”“Did you not hear what I said about fae who leave here? They usually end up dead, your mother included.” Roshan’s eyes go wide as he pleads his case with me. “Please, Alejandra. I beg you. I lost Mary Ann, I can’t lose you too.”“Come with me.” I scoot close to him, putting a hand on his forearm. “Come back to Shifter Academy. I still need to be trained and you’re the only one who can do it. I want to reintroduce the world to the fae. I want to fight for my
ALEJANDRA. As we are getting ready to leave, a few elders show up at the castle. They try to talk me out of leaving. They try to tell me just how dangerous the outside world is. But I inform them that I, of all people, know just how dangerous it is. I have had threats on my life from the wolves—and they’re my own people. So I understand where they’re coming from. The elders were alive to see what happened with the war firsthand. The fought alongside their friends and family. And they experienced loss like I never have. I couldn’t even imagine the horrors that they’ve been through. The only loss I’ve experienced is when my mother’s parents died. I didn’t know them very well. We only saw them a handful of times throughout my life and I was only a small child when they passed away. I think I was barely old enough to understand what death was, I just knew it made my mom really sad. But what the fae went through during the war—that is impossible to comprehend. Because ninety percent o