Arabella
“What fresh hell is this?” I mutter, staring at the news coverage from Elysium in horror. I can’t believe what I’m seeing. Frederic, who is by far the most conniving wolf I’ve ever met, is on screen getting tricked into admitting his crimes by that little whore, Selene. The worst part is that she drags me into it too, and he doesn’t deny a single word.
My mouth falls wider and wider open with every word that passes between them. The cunning bitch clearly knows they’re being watched, and she eggs him on for the cameras. A dozen questions flood my mind as their conversation escalates. How on earth did this happen? How did she even find out the truth? She isn’t smart enough to figure it out on her own.
I gasp when Frederic raises his hand to stri
Knocking on the door of the bedroom my father assigned Selene, I hear a dull thump and a sudden scampering sound within. Pushing the door open I scan the space, noticing a photo book splayed haphazardly on the bed as if it had been dropped there in hurry, and a pair of abandoned slippers on the floor by the headboard. However, I don’t see hide nor hair of the woman I came to find. Stepping inside, I call, “Selene?”Her sweet scent floats to my nose, muddled with a distinct tinge of acrid fear. Despite my sympathy for her plight, my sweet mate unwittingly placed a hunt under my nose, and no wolf worth his salt can resist such a tempting offer. “Come out, come out wherever you are, little wolf.”I hear a muted whimper in the direction of the bed. Furrowing my brow, I realize it had sounded awfully low to the ground, and after a moment I understand. The poor thing was so frightened she&r
ArabellaI have to admit, I like life much better with Bastien unconscious. It’s so much less stressful not having to play pretend every second of every day, especially with the constant news stories about Selene and Frederic. Part of me feels vindicated that Frederic exposed himself through utter overconfidence and stupidity – after all the times he called me names and criticized my mistakes, it feels good to see him get his comeuppance. Still, there’s no denying it’s inconvenient. Not to mention I very nearly slipped up with the memory potion. It hadn’t occurred to me that if Bastien wasn’t awake to drink the potion, it’s effects might have worn off by the time things have finally settled down enough for him to rejoin the waking world. It wasn’t until he started muttering Selene’s name in his sleep that I realized my oversight, and I very quickly called in another favor from my underworld
Frederic I’ve been on the road for hours, following Selene’s trail East and wondering if she’s truly on her way to the Calypso pack. It seems like the only possible destination for the route she and her witchy mentor are taking, but I can’t imagine she’s actually headed someplace where she might be killed just for being a Volana.If I’m right there’s only one possibility: for one reason or another, she must think that Bastien is there. If I’m lucky, I might be able to catch up to her before she finds him. I know if she would just give me another chance and listen with an open mind, I could convince her to stay with me. I regret our fight on the street, especially since it ruined more than ten years of undercover work and exposed me to the pack, but I also regret raising my hand against her. Still, I’m sure I can make her understan
Bastien I was getting ready for bed when I felt it. The strangest sensation deep in my chest, like something was tethered to my ribcage and dragging me forward. I was helpless to resist it, following the pull even though it could have been leading me anywhere. Arabella shouted after me that I couldn’t leave. We couldn’t afford for me to be seen, and even if no one connected us, there was a curfew. She tried to stop me, begging me to tell her what was going on and not to go, but I simply shook her off. I don’t know what came over me - it was like I was in a trance. When I made it out onto the street I had enough of my senses intact to evade the sentries patrolling the block, but I didn’t care about anything else. All I knew was that I had to find the source of this eerie power. Axel urged me on at every turn, showing no fear or doubt whatsoever. I knew very little of the city, but my early investigations told me I was
Selene If Bastien wants to hold me up against this wall and growl at me for the rest of our lives, I’ll gladly let him. It’s honestly a miracle I’m not crying like a baby just being reunited with him. The crushing weight that left my shoulders when I saw him was absolutely unfathomable. I truly did not realize how much stress I was carrying until I felt the sweet release of knowing my mate is unharmed – even if he has lost his marbles a bit. I don’t have the first idea what Arabella has done to him, but it’s clear he has no idea what has been happening while he’s away - or even what happened before. If she were a Volana I might think he’d been hypnotized, but since she’s not, I have to think some sort of magic is responsible. When he looks at me with that bewildered expression and opens my coat to reveal my
Selene“Selene they’re almost on us!” Helene whispers urgently.Staring at my mate, it’s easier to summon the shadows than ever. While he watches, still looking deeply confused as Arabella begs him to reject me, I wrap the darkness around the mouth of the alley. I can hear the sentries on the other side of the dark veil, but they cannot see us through the impenetrable fog.“Who goes there?” One shouts, hesitantly reaching into the darkness. I extend the shadows toward him in reply, inky tendrils reaching out for his body like a predator. Both men leap back with little yelps. “What the hell is this?”‘It’s got to be some kind of magic.” The other replies, “call it in.”“We need to get out of here.” Helene urges me, tugging at my arm as I continue to wait for Bastien to decide whether or not to reject me. Luna won’t let me move until we know our fate, even if the outcome is too painful to contemplate.Arabella, staring at the shimmering void I’ve conjured in abject horror, seems to feel
Bastien“Arabella what was all that?” I demand as soon as the apartment door is closed behind us.The blonde stares at me in innocent confusion. “What do you mean?”“All those things Selene said, about Frederic being exiled and her being hospitalized – about me still having my memory after the assassination attempt?” I’ve been replaying the conversation over and over in my head, every confusing detail sticking in my mind, and new baffling details reappearing every minute.
SophieLila is sprawled on the sofa in our apartment in Asphodel, flipping through Drake’s photo album. There used to be a time when that album filled me with jealousy. Half of it was occupied with photos of Selene – when she was pregnant with Lila, the early days after the pup had been born. Now it fills me with longing. I want a pup of my own so badly, a dream I never even realized I had until Drake claimed me as his own.I haven’t confessed this dream to my mate yet, but I know he wants the same thing. He’s been endlessly patient with me, taking every new stage of our relationship one step at a time. One day soon I hope to share this sec