Lenaleia

For six years, I was Hazel, girlfriend to the future Alpha, Julian. I thought we had forever, a cherished place in our werewolf pack, even as a human. Then Mate Hunt night ripped it all away. I woke up lost in the forest, only to find Julian with her – his true fated mate. His words hit harder than the forest floor: I was just a 'placeholder.' Six years together, and he tossed me aside, his fingers bruising my throat as he growled that I meant nothing. My world, my heart – shattered.

Left for dead, freezing and injured, a different kind of predator found me. A colossal black wolf, eyes glowing gold, big enough to swallow me whole. But instead of tearing me apart, he curled around me, a warm, terrifying shield against the biting cold. For a moment, I felt safe.

That safety vanished when my pack, my family, found us. The Alpha who raised me, Maxen, didn't see a survivor. He saw a disappointment. Turns out, he’d only taken me in hoping I’d magically become a werewolf like my mother – the fated mate who’d rejected him. When I couldn't shift, he cast me out, branding me an omega, the pack’s punching bag.

Now, I'm less than nothing, surviving on scraps and enduring their cruelty. What they don't know, what I don't know, is that my monstrous protector is no ordinary rogue. He's Lykos, the wolf of Kael, the Lycan King. And Lykos has decided I am his fated mate – a human. Kael is furious, but his wolf has a will of its own, dragging the King himself towards my abusive pack.

My old life is over. My only ally is a creature of legend. And the most feared Lycan in existence is on his way. Is he coming to save me, or is the King's arrival just another nightmare waiting to begin?

A King’s Curse, A Wolf’s Claim

Six hours in a cramped SUV was enough to make anyone cranky. Add in the constant tension radiating from my companions, and I was ready to snap. 


I shifted in the passenger seat, trying to find a comfortable position for my long legs. The dashboard clock glowed 4:17 AM. We'd been driving all night, and I was starting to feel the effects of sleeplessness.


In the back seat, Liam and Silas had finally dozed off. Liam's head lolled against the window, while Silas snored softly, slumped against Orion, who remained rigidly awake. His eyes never stopped scanning our surroundings, even in the darkness.


She hadn't said more than ten words since we left the cave. Her slender hands gripped the steering wheel, knuckles white with tension. The faint glow I'd noticed earlier still emanated from her skin occasionally, pulsing subtly like a heartbeat.


"Are you ever going to tell me where we're going?" I finally asked, breaking the heavy silence.


Chapter 103 - Riding with an Echo Witch