My boots clipped along the grey flagstones until we felt the morning sunshine on our faces. Maddox followed as I walked towards the empty herb gardens. Surrounded by thick plumes of sage and rosemary it made my head dizzy. Nikolai and Maddox looked at me with concern, neither of them questioning what they had just witnessed just yet. All dressed head to toe in black, we looked more like assassins than mourners. From his black pants Nikolai produced a folded letter. “Maddox, can you find us a motorbike, we’re getting out. I need you to ensure my mother and father get this message. Beta Adrian can stay with Freya for now. I need you to switch to my parents. They are not left in a room without someone awake watching. I trust you to pick the right people from the Beta Warriors. Nobody brand new. They will protest but I demand it. Beta Guards in shifts, constant vigilance.” I stood in awe of my mate. How had he gotten taller in the couple of hours we had parted. Confidence oozed from e

The vision swirled around me, the same as every time. Ascending wooden stairs, a door opening to reveal a bedroom with brass horseshoes above the bed. There she was. Waiting with a maniacal grin and wild brown hair. Feral, unpredictable eyes peering out from the brown hair, wearing her sackcloth, peasant style dress.She raised her arms, her smile widening even further as she whispered, “you,” before her and Nikolai moved towards each other, as if preparing to embrace.So far, so familiar. A black void swallowed me, waking up with my wrists pinned by Nikolai. Restraining me as I flailed, crying “No! no! Why can’t I see more!” my frustration boiling over.“Vee, I’m here, I’m here,” he whispered, looming over me, allowing his spiced scent to calm me. He let go of my wrists and helped pull me back up to sitting where I held my head in my hands.“I need to see more! Every night I try to get a clue, a hint of anything we can use but I’ve never managed. Your mother could pause it, even take

I’ve never killed anyone before. I’ve run through hundreds of sparring routines, every offensive and defensive position you could imagine has been run through, in theory. To take a blade across a mans throat is different. I thought it would be tougher, yet the sharpness of the bladed arrows and their silver made it like slicing through butter. Knowing that person wanted to harm Nikolai, Priya practically guided it for me, keeping my hand steady and nerves in check as the blow struck. Laden with bows and arrows the archers were not prepared for close combat at all. The garbled, bloody noises the bastards made as they fell were harder to absorb. The briefest resistance from the windpipe as the blade followed its path. Kharkov, Jackson, and my father taught us all well. We knew to keep pushing the weapon as far as we could. To slash was not enough. The shove of the blade must be deep enough to put the man to the ground. At the same time we were taught to use our free hand to rip out an

I've loved him forever. Like, literally forever. I’ll curl up into an armadillo ball and roll away to a brand new life before I ever tell him though. He’s my best friend, the future Alpha. He’s perfect. I’m…me. Laying in bed at night I am easily able to conjure up his features. Our house is only a few doors away from the packhouse. It is a good thing I cannot see his bedroom window from here else I would have spent the past weeks as an insomniac. I already lose myself enough times during the day, imagining that one day he would realise I am right there, waiting, ready. Except he has a fated mate out there. Someone born to be a Luna. I kid myself that it could be me but why would it? I’m just one of hundreds of Beta daughters in the Shadowlands alone. No rank or distinction has landed on my head. I have no visions, healing ability, or special wisdom to offer our people. Even in my own family I'm just one of five daughters who all kind of look the same. /You will always be special t

I didn’t react to her. It’s the Alpha thing. You have a wolf as old and powerful and Vez and shifters are drawn to you. Zeke and Franz have to use their well-honed flirting skills with their Beta wolves. Still great guys, but I have women flirt and hit on me whether I like it or not. That ball at White Forest for example. It was a fucking jungle of wandering hands but it got them nowhere. Now my mind turns over the idea that all those low cut dresses and winning smiles were a purposeful distraction. It certainly allowed Nikolai to slip out with Gen whilst I was stuck dodging one fiesty brunette. Frank and Zeke laugh at my lack of action. I blame Matilda. Something changed when we got our wolves. Pre-teen everything was just school, games and teasing. If anything I avoided hanging out with the Kharkov girls, leaving Gen to explore the world around Cragstone with Frank and Zeke. Of course, puberty hits and suddenly it’s a lot more fun to hang out around girls. The shallow river,