The last few days of fishing pan out. Harry's sources bite. With Ariadne's appearance at the Auction House and the fluttering rumor that certain wolves of the night are planning to blow it away brick by brick, he's surfaced.Victor's packing a bag, getting ready for a stakeout with his Uncle, and Ariadne's making every attempt to slow him down under the guise of cooperation."Baby," Ariadne calls, holding out several different styles of jerky in her hands. "Which one do you want? Spicy or not spicy?""Just put them both in," Victor says, pulling on a Kevlar vest, smoothing out the velcro. "It's fine.""I wanted to eat one too," Ariadne stalls. "Just pick one."Victor indulges the Omega, very aware of the subtle changes in her scent, substantial and sweet, and calling. He doesn't look and points to the package on the very most left.And Ariadne frowns. "But you don't even like ginger."Victor sighs exasperatedly, gracing the Omega with his full attention. "Baby!"Ariadne shrinks back w

Ariadne can’t breathe. All the air has evaporated from her lungs. After a pensive night of waiting, when the hospital called her, she already knew something was wrong.Her wolf had whispered it to her; her other half was in life-threatening danger. Hearing the news that he was shot in the head was merely confirmation.Waylon’s driving, gunning it down the line, street lights passing overhead, a siren wailing in the distance, tires gliding against the road. The Beta’s chillingly put together, streamlined, and steady.Ariadne can’t even figure out the turn signals in her state, hunched over, knees tucked into her chest, crying inconsolably.“He’s-” Waylon begins, voice breaking off into a choked sob. He inhales sharply, focusing on the street, white-knuckle grip on the wheel. “He’s going to be okay.”Ariadne can’t speak, not a single word. Although if she could, she’d simply say that it was her fault, that she should have never let Victor go, she’s not sure he’s going to make it. And th

Ariadne wakes up from a dream she can’t remember, storm clouds in the distant and screams that could only belong to her children.The Omega wipes the stray tears from her eyes, sitting up from the hotel bed on the side that she’s not used to.It’s Victor’s pillow, his part of the sheets, his scent still trapped in the cotton from the night he’d slept there. Ariadne never should’ve let him leave, and now she’s reduced to cuddling with Victor’s pillow just to fall asleep for a few hours.Orange-Amber eyes appear in the dim, curious and concerned.“I heard a sound,” Waylon asks, cheeks ablaze. “Are you alright, Ariadne?”How could the Omega be alright? She’d just lost her husband and the person wearing his skin; Ariadne has to see him in a few hours to hash out a Pack Alliance.No one in their right mind would be halfway okay with the circumstances.“I’m fine,” Ariadne grumbles. “What time is it?”The dark sky outside gives no clue to the hour, ceaseless rain that could be a dream or nig

It's been two days. Every muscle, bone, and sinew in Victor's body aches. It's like the disks in his spine have been replaced by razor blades, and no amount of drink seems to dull the pain.Blindly seeing crimson, Victor tosses his glass into the opposite wall, shattering the thing into a million pieces.Then, chest heaving, he moves himself to the bathroom to sober up, drawing a hot bath. He wants so badly to move on.Only the man in the mirror is a stranger to him as he hovers over the sink, eyes glowing with red agitation. Who did he become in the last five years?And who is Ariadne Emerson to him?The Alpha looks older, fatter, the barest of laugh lines touching his eyes, the ghost of untold joy.But the most notable difference is the scar on his neck, the mark on his scent glands. It was something he promised he'd never do to himself, bear such a thing.The same thing that ended up killing his father.And the way Ariadne Emerson knew him, so well, so completely. How in love were

It's been a year since Ariadne's transformed. She's forgotten the sheer power that comes with it, washing over her body in waves, adrenaline pumping through her wolf blood.Ariadne doesn't expect to feel it. Animal minds are supposed to be simpler, right?She thinks in this form, she can escape it, the feelings that are threatening to crush her to dust, pain so acute that it's hard to breathe. But it's stronger than before, agony where there'd only been an ache.Ariadne sees her reflection, a great and terrible beast in her son's eyes, who recoils backward, never having witnessed his mother's transformation.Ashely's terrified, hiding behind Victor, studying her with a wide, wary expression."Give her back her son," Nathan shouts from the background, getting out of the passenger side, a hand on his neck from the whiplash of running the gate. "What the f*ck, Victor?"Ariadne's going half-mad, so many scents, so many people, but where did Gordon run off to.There's so much noise, and sh