My father skidded to a halt at the edge of a small clearing with a stump in the center. I slid off Loki’s back and he trotted off to shift. He walked back to me and gestured to the center. “Go sit.” I nodded and walked into the clearing. The tree’s shadows were still deep, as the sun has just breached the tree tops. I shivered, not from the cooler temperature since wolves burn hot, but from the feeling of woods. It felt like something was here. Something was waiting for this moment. I turned to face my dad, and he was still at the edge of the clearing. “Why are you still back there?”“This isn’t for me, it’s for you. I have already done my time in this place.”“Your time? What are you talking about?”“This is a sacred place. The clearing here holds our family’s power, and it’s warded against it.”“Against it? Dad, what are you talking about?”“Just listen. Sit down on the stump.” I sank to the top of the stump and then looked back to my father. “Take your shoes and socks off, then p
“Let’s go! Faster! Your wolves, not humans, you can do better than this!” I screamed out again and again, standing next to the Beta and Gamma females. Tina and Lynn watched the females struggle to run around the inside track. I turned to face them with wide eyes. “What is going on?”Tina shook her head and watched the struggling women. “The females here only train if they want to. Your father doesn’t force us to train.”“I told him it was a mistake.” Lynn the Gamma looked at the girls with a curled lip. “Look at them. It’s only been two laps, and they are already winded.” The muscled woman shook her head and tossed her arms. “I don’t understand this laziness. What happens if we get attacked?”“Well, I’m here for two months, and in the future, you two will continue this after I leave.” The two women cut their eyes to me and I nod. “I talked to my father, and he caved when I went over the last pack that kept this outdated opinion for the females in the pack.”“What pack?” Tina furrowed
I waited for the reality of what I said to sink in. “What? You said it yourself. I can’t command you to hurt yourself. Fine, let’s go with something else. What if I commanded you to give me all of your money?” I stared down at the girl and she looked away. “Something you’ve done I see.” I snarled. My eyes flashed. “What’s your name?” “Stephanie.” I slammed my aura out, and Nix took control as I raged. “Do jumping jacks until I tell you to stop.” Stephanie’s eyes widened, but I turned away to reel in my wolf. She started bouncing up and down, and some girls chuckled and I snarled. “You think this is funny? Do you want to join Stephanie? Being made to do something and not being able to stop yourself is a horrible feeling.” I whipped back to the girls, and Nix snarled again. My power struck out again, dropping everyone to their knees. “Everyone here will do jumping jacks until I say stop.” Everyone started, even Tina and Lynn, but I commanded them to stop. “What are you planning?” Ly
“How did it go today?” My father nudged me to a seat across from him and waved to an omega. She brought in the plates. “Thank you Manda.” “Thank you Manda.” I smiled up at the girl, and she ducked her head, then left. I turned back to my father. “It went as well as expected.”“Which wasn’t good at all.” I pointed to him and nodded. “Exactly.”“What happened?” He dug into his food, and I told him about the day.“We started with running, and even those that had already shifted were…”“Weak?” my dad threw out while waving his knife around.“Pathetic.” I countered. I cut into my steak and nearly moaned with the first mouthful. “They barely made it two laps before they were huffing. Then I called them over, and we started to talk about what was going on.”“And…”“And then some girls were giving us push back about commanding other wolves. So I made a point.”“What was the point?” My father focused fully on me and I grimaced. He might not agree with my decision. “They wanted to hide behin
“I look exactly like her…”“Well, you have your mother’s nose.” My dad laughed. “I didn’t want to scare you.” He peered at the picture, then at me. “This is where we come from, Amy.” He tapped the photo. “Our power stems from her. We have her to thank for everything we can do to protect our pack.” “You use your power to protect your pack?” I met his eyes.“Of course. We do what we have to do.” My father sat back down and wiped his face. “Anyway. Let’s forget about that for now. What are your plans for the girls?”“I commanded anyone that was using their power to demand things from weaker wolves to never command again.” I cut my eyes away from his face. I knew this would not sit well with him. “Amy!”“I know, I know. It’s against the law, but there is something going on with them. One girl was going to say something, but then one of the others commanded her to shut up. So I made sure she couldn’t command anyone else.”“But you can’t fight against wrong doing by following suit.”“Comm
The next morning was much of the same. I awoke to my father’s knock, and we made our way to the clearing. He nudged me into the clearing and I walked to the stump and sat down. By the time I looked back up, he was already gone. “I don’t know what the fuck is going on, or what I am supposed to do here.” I shook my head and took off my shoes. I planted my feet and took a cleansing breath. Then I closed my eyes and focused, like my father explained. The air was a soft, gentle breeze. I felt it dance across my skin. It played with my hair, tangling my curls as it blew through the clearing. The early morning sun crested the tree tops. I could feel the warming light hit my skin. I wiggled my toes in the grass, and it tickled my the bottom of my feet. I opened my hands, palm up on my knees, and settled deeper on to the stump. “This is stupid.” I opened my eyes and looked around, but I was talking to myself. “Is it?” I whirled around to see my father’s grandmother walking towards me. “H
A glowing green orb that shined like the sun. I walked closer to it and I could see the orb was pulsing. With every step closer, I could feel my pounding heartbeat, and my heart was in time with the orb. “What are you?”Nix and Megan walked out and sat beside me. “This is your power. This is the center of your soul. Your power that runs through your body comes from this orb. Your entire being is in sync with this piece of you.” Megan nudged against my hand.“Megan and I are a part of you, but separate. We are our own souls that share your body and mind. But this part of you would still be here if we weren’t. It is woven into your very soul. Your human soul. This is your grans legacy for you, the very power that ran in her veins, your father’s veins and now yours. It will pass to you pups and beyond.” Nix leaned forward.“If werewolves were to even die off, your line would continue to hold power.” Megan followed suit and leaned toward the orb. Ribbons of power floated out and stroked
“Let’s go.” I yelled behind me, frustrated with the progress these last few weeks have given to these ladies. “Hussle.” I ran with them, leading them while Lynn and Tina running at the very back. I would have lapped them three times if I ran my regular pace. Which is ridiculous. I don’t have access to my wolves yet. Soon Amy. Soon. Nix’s voice came to me as I panted around the track. I finished the laps and walked over to the water cooler and grabbed a bottle of water, waiting for everyone else to finish. I stretched out my arms and then dropped to the ground to lean over my legs to stretch them. “Amy, you are killing us.” Cass dropped next to me and I looked up, surprised.“You finished first.”“No, you did.” Cass pushed me and laughed, but I shook my head slowly.“No, Cass. You were behind me. Which is fantastic. You don’t have a weak wolf.” I smiled over at her and Nix chuffed in my head. Of course, she doesn’t have a weak wolf. Lily just doesn’t see the point in putting her str
We ran for a while, and we all heard when Erubus started running after us, but Nix snorted. We were far enough away that Nix had a plan. She ran for a little while longer and then she dove into a bush. “You turn Megan.” “What?” Megan jolted up, but Nix was already running back to us and then she pushed Megan forward. “Nix, what are you doing?”“It’s your turn to run. Now go.” Nix chuffed out a laugh as she pushed Megan to the front, almost forcing the shift from her form to Megans. Then I watched as Nix ran to the candle and added another.“What are you doing?” I walked over to her and watched as the second candle flair to life.“Changing our scent.” She looked at me like I was dumb, and in that moment, I felt it.“Why?”“Because we can’t have the same scent, and I want to see how this male treats my soul sister.” Once the candles were strong, she turned back to Megan, who had just finished shifting. “Now, run and be free, Megan.”Megan was frozen on the spot for a moment, but then t
Nix snorted. “You already told me you ran Tuesdays and Fridays, yet every day I looked for you, there was no one. I’m tired of inconsistent males trying to impress me.” Nix turned away from him. “If you are looking for a fling, or someone to mess around with, I am not your wolf.” “What?” His surprised sounded genuine. Nix snarled at his tone. “I said what I said.” She bunched her muscles, and I knew she intended to leave. “Wait.” There was something in his voice that made her pause. It wasn’t panic per se, but something like it. “What now?” She was at her wit’s end. The male had played with her too much and she was over it. “I don’t want a fling or some wolf to mess around with. I want a mate.” His voice was clear, and there was almost a desperation for her to understand. “Maybe think it over.” Megan offered, and I smiled. “This is the wolf you have thought about daily for months. Maybe something came up, and he was away. It’s not like you know his human and he can let you
After I kicked my two friends out of the elevator on their floor, I continued down to the main floor. I gave a tiny wave to Jora, who was wrapping up his shift, and I walked out the door. I am sure he called after me, but as soon as I hit the cool morning air, I was running. I ran around the building, straight into the woods, and shifted into Nix. She paused on a hill, feeling the wind ruffle her fur, and she closed her eyes. “I have missed this feeling for far too long.” I receded enough inside to sit next to Megan. “I promise we will make time for both of you to shift more.” I turned to look at Megan. “And I want to train in your form as well.”I felt her stiffen next to me and she turned her head to look me in the face. “You would have no reason to fight in my form.” I wrapped my arm around her. “It is always better to be prepared. What if you are running and are attacked? We won’t be able to stop to shift into Nix.” I ran my fingers through her fur. “If would make us vulnerable
I woke slowly. My alarm going off was probably the worst thing I had ever heard in my life. All I wanted to do was to stay in the soft, warm comfort of their arms. Their arms…what? My eyes sprang open to the soft glow of the recessed lighting in my bedroom. The room itself was familiar, but the arms wrapped around me were not. I turned my head slowly to the side, terrified to find the lost soul, the woman I thought I left behind beside me. I closed my eyes in relief when I saw it was Toya. I turned to the other side to see Wendy snuggled on my shoulder. The rest of the night flooded back to me and I remembered that my two friends had slept over. Whether it was for them, or for me, I was grateful. Toya finally cracked an eye. “Shut it off.” She groaned as she snuggled into my side. I started to laugh. “I would, but my phone is on the other side of you.” My voice was soft, but both girls flew off of me. Wendy fell off the side of the bed with a soft bang.“Fuck me. I forgot.” Wendy gr
Toya leaned over and kissed my head. “Let’s stop talking about it.” She pulled back a little more and fluffed my hair. “Wendy, hand me the blow dryer.”Wendy got up and handed the cast aside dryer. But I turned. “You don’t have to.”Toya pulled me back like my mom used to do when I was little. “Sit still. You can’t go to bed with wet hair. And you can’t get sick. We have a long day ahead and need to be up in a few hours.” She clicked on the hair dryer and Wendy came over and whispered in Toya’s ear, then she slipped her shoes on and left.“Where is she going?” I yelled over the sound.Toya leaned closer and spoke directly in my ear as she continued to blow dry my hair. “She needed to grab some things from our place. She will be back in a minute.” I just nodded because I was too exhausted to ask. I leaned against my own knees with my eyes closed as Toya dried my soaked hair. It was the most peaceful feeling I have had since I was a child. I hadn’t realized how tired I was until Wendy
I opened my eyes to find Wendy and Toya staring at me expectantly. “What’s wrong?”Wendy glanced at Toya, and she turned back to me. “We just wanted to see if it worked?” I stared at her for a moment, and she smiled. “Your wolves? Are they okay?”I smiled and opened my mouth, but instead of words, a yawn large enough to crack my jaw hit. “Yes.” I smiled softly. “They are tired, but alive.”“Thank the goddess.” Toya sat back and went back to my hair. “Now, your wounds?”“The Mara. I didn’t know she could hurt me. But as I ran away from the caves, she grabbed my hair. She was dragging me back into the caves and I knew I couldn’t let her pull me too far back or else I would get lost. So, when my hand shifted to my claws, I sliced through my hair, but she had already done some damage.”“Some damage?” Wendy scoffed.“You are missing a huge chuck. And I know it will grow back fast, but you aren’t healing properly right now, so I don’t actually know that.” Toya paused with her fingers on a t
I closed my eyes in disbelief. “Is that bad?” Toya leaned over and whispered. I just nodded. “This isn’t the end. The goddess has a plan.” I told her and I hoped it helped a little with the pain of everything she was dealing with. “She wouldn’t do this to you unless there was a reason.”“I know. And I think this is the reason.” She whispered, her voice growing lower. “Why?”“Because everyday Vince commands me to come to the pack house. To sit next to him and Derek.”“What the fuck?” Wendy’s eye grew wide. “That’s torture.”Lynn sniffled and, for the first time, I could hear how much this was killing her. “It is. But only because he refuses to accept my rejection. Even though my wolf has accepted her fate and is trying her best to recoup, he won’t let the link die. He calls to us, every night. And makes us come stand next to him every day. The bond on my side is shattered, but my wolf is still in pain.” Lynn took a deep breath. “Anyway, I didn’t call you to complain.”“It’s okay if y
“Holy goddess.” Wendy’s fingers twitched in my hair.But Toya just nodded. “As I read more about spirit walking, I learned about the Mara.” Toya wiped my arm and caused me to hiss again. “The Mara?”“It means bitter soul. It’s like what you explained. A lost soul, whether they lost themselves while they were still alive, or after they died, and they wander, looking for a life to take over. If you had read more about it all, you would have been prepared.”“Hey now.” I pulled back, but she pushed me back down. “Lay down. I want to check your head.” Toya pushed again and Wendy helped her part my hair. “Amy.” She hissed as she saw the damage.I laid back down, but huffed out my breath. “I read that book, inside and out.” “There were a few pages stuck together. I don’t know why.” Toya tapped a page. “Wendy helped me figure it out.”“I had to use a tiny bit of water around the edges to release the pages from each other. Then I used a blow dryer to dry them again.”“Seriously?” I hissed a
“Do you think she is going to be back soon?” Wendy’s voice was soft as she squeezed my hand.Toya started down at my body and raised her shoulder. “I don’t know.”“It’s been so long.” It felt like days had passed since I left my body and started down the black chain leading to Amara. Toya smiled. “It’s barely been an hour.”The truth hit my stomach. An hour. How was that possible? So much had happened in the short time. I stared at the lost soul, listen to her manic laughter as she faded. And my stomach dropped again. I cracked open my eyes to find the two women still clutching my hands. “Amy!” Wendy screamed and dove into my arms. “You’re back.”I smiled and nodded. But Toya, Toya seemed a little reserved. “I read the book while you were gone.” I turned to her and cleared my throat. It felt dry and painful.“And?”“Tell me something only Amy would know?” Her words were measured and her eyes stared into my soul. “Our fathers are still alive.”Toya seemed to glare at me, as if tryin