Annalise's exiting statement resounded in my ears. It took me a moment to process what she said, but when I did, I chased her out of the room, catching up with her just outside the front door. It seemed that no matter the species, pregnant being move slowly. "Wait!" I called. "I have more questions!" Annalise turned to face me. "Well, the story is no fun if you are given all the answers." "And you know me well enough to know I don't take anyone's words at face value." "An aspect all good rulers should possess," she touted. "Maybe your mate could learn something from you, but it wouldn't matter. It's not like his words and demands bear any true meaning." A growl built in my own chest, one that made me seriously question whether or not I truly had no wolf blood. "Royalty may be given, but leadership is earned. He has that, I don't." "But you have the power to take it. Why don't you?" "Because I don't want it," I snapped. "Look at what the desire for power turned our parents into."
Annalise blinked slowly, as if she had just been struck across the face. "That... is not the turn I expected. Is that not the exact thing Melany and Karabasan did?"I smiled softly at her. "Name one person in this room Fate has assisted, given a better life. All it has done is harm each and every one of us. Is that retribution for crimes that were out of our control, or are we just being used as pawns to put on a show for our dear Goddess? Either way, it's wrong. If the Moon Goddess can take away immortality when her chosen no longer deserve it, we can take away the dealer when it becomes evident the deck is rigged.""No," Annalise declared, eyes darkening. "I can't stand by that. I won't see you destroy yourself and everyone around you the way our parents did.""You think that lowly of her, really?" Rudi scoffed. "You think Maise has the twisted, sadistic mindset to do what your father - what you - did to me? You forget. Fate doesn't only dictate the good. It a
Death.Death is all my future holds.And my future is very short. The cells were dark, swallowing me whole. Just like my impending death would. The walls felt as if they were caving in, suffocating me of the very oxygen I so desperately needed. The putrid stench filling the minimal space was the last thing I clung to in this life. I'd gladly swallow down every last gulp of the thick, sour stench if it meant the footsteps crashing down to the very lowest floor of the cell block were not coming for me.But I knew they were.Coming to lead me to my death. "Get up," a voice I recognized barked. A voice I used to love the sound of. Now, though, it was that death knell.I looked up into the grizzled man's cold, dead eyes, remembering the life and light that used to soar through them. Growing up, I had always laughed when I was told he was the executioner. There was nothing about him that identified him as a reaper. But now, his calloused hand jerked at the chain around my neck with a h
I stood over the sink, watching crimson stain the porcelain before being washed down the drain. I coughed up a mouthful of blood once more, anxiously waiting for my healing to catch up to the injury. I assumed a punctured lung - not exactly something that one should trust to accelerated healing, but I had handled worse. When I was confident there was no more blood to cough up and the external injuries had begun to show evidence of healing, I stumbled out of the bathroom and flopped down on my bed. I crossed my fingers that my roommate would be out late again - I didn’t want to have to explain coughing up blood. She would try and take me to the hospital again, and I would have to weave together another web of lies. Last time, they had begun to question if I was in an abusive relationship. Only with myself. But there was no such luck. I only had a couple hours of peace before I heard the door to our apartment crash open. “Maise! I’m home!” Leah called in her bright, sunshine
I posted up at the end of the bar, in my usual spot. I had half a mind to waltz around and make my own drink, but the owner of this fine establishment, Cato, didn’t often like that. Glancing around, though, he was busy and needed a hand. I wouldn’t get in too much trouble anyway, nothing more than a stern gaze. I slipped around the bar, grabbing a few drink orders and started mixing them before he could notice. Snagging cash from the customers, I headed over to the till. It was old fashioned, and I expected that to never change. Partly because I was absolutely certain it was impossible to break into. I looked back up, prepared to make my own drink, only to see Cato sliding one over to me. “Your usual, I assume?” I smiled down at the dirty shirley temple. “Thanks.” “You’re here for work, aren’t you?” I cocked an eyebrow at him, not sure how he realized I had just wrapped up my previous assignment. “You’re an open book to me, dear,” he chuckled. “You may be good at keepin’ se
“In the flesh,” the man grinned, revealing pearly white teeth and canines that would never quite recede fully. I had never met a lycan. They were the things of legends, almost. They weren’t natural, as in they were not born. They had to be turned, akin to the human mythology of werewolves. Lycans retained their full wolf form, but with greater strength, speed, and stealth in both skins. The mark of a lycan, though, came at a cost. They were more bound to the moon, as only the moon could turn a wolf to a lycan. The loss of an opportunity to find your mate, and near immortality. Some would not see these as bad things. I, for one, had no mate out there waiting for me, and I had also experienced this world enough to have no desire sticking around forever. For others, the prospect of surrendering your mate, if you hadn’t met them yet, was usually enough to refuse the moon’s gift. For those that had found the one, they were bound to lose their mate sooner rather than later, never to m
The beauty of Blair’s inner city house was that it was exceptionally easy to get to without being seen. I used to think it was a secret only I knew, but over the years I had learned several supernaturals in need of her assistance used it frequently. I yipped halfheartedly at her back door, leaning against the wall for support. The adrenaline that got me up off the ground had long passed, and I wasn’t even sure I’d be able to carry myself into her house. The door swung open, as if she had been expecting me. I looked up at her, pitiful puppy eyes begging for assistance. “You better be glad you’re a runt,” she huffed, scooping up my small wolf form. “I’m a witch, not a were. I don’t have superhuman strength.” Blame it on a napoleon complex, but I didn’t much appreciate being picked up - in either of my skins. However, I felt like I was on the brink of death, so my ego had to let that slide. As small as I was, wolves still weren’t tiny little purse dogs. Blair was as mindful as
Leah would kill me when she found my note. I hadn’t spent much time with her recently - I had been so busy - and I was standing her up on our raincheck again. More than likely, anyone would consider me a bad friend. She would never understand how everything I hid from her, every wall I kept firmly in place, was the best way I could be a friend to her.She was my friend, I would never deny that. But this was one of the reasons humans and the supernatural couldn’t be friends. If she found out, she would be targeted by the supernatural to avoid our existence getting out. That, or she would go insane. If it was just me, I would trust her to keep my secret. But, it was a whole world right in front of her, dancing on the peripheries of her sight, she couldn’t know about. I packed carefully. Every set of shoes I packed had heels. Wide legged pants, skirts, and leg warmers that would cover just how significant the heels were. My signature graphic tees and leather jackets. Anything that scr