Filed to story: Owned by the Alphas Novel
Before I could ask what the hell that was supposed to mean or what they intended to do to me when I rejected them again on the next full moon, there was a deafening roar as Braxton rushed forward, his fangs bared as he ran at the mirror.
He collided with it, shattering the entire thing, shards of glass spraying everywhere as Nikolai’s arms came around me, spinning me around, hunching over my body as he protected me from the spray.
They cut through his skin, and he hissed but kept me tight in his hold as Braxton howled. I curled into Nikolai, his body so warm, defrosting mine.
The room fell silent as Nikolai stepped back and checked me over. Braxton came over and grabbed me, his hands going to either side of my arms as he leaned down to look in my eyes, his white.
I breathed hard, not sure what the hell had just happened, but snapped out of whatever focus I had been in. I knew I was in trouble by the glare of Nikolai on me and the way he stepped between me and the door.
“Her lips are blue,” Nikolai bit, and I reached up to touch them, sniffling as the coldness tried to make my nose run.
“Shut up,” Brax said, and his grip tightened on me. He just stared with those white eyes and then I felt him, inside me, moving through my body, winding through my organs before finding my mind.
It released a sharp pain and I cried out, trying to pull back, but he held me tighter.
“Stay,” he growled, and kept going, his breathing labored like he was struggling with something. I whimpered as the ache in my head intensified.
“Brax, stop,” I pleaded, clenching my eyes shut, trying to push out the niggling pain that was causing the ache.
When black spots started appearing in my vision and a nausea started low in my stomach, he finally pulled away, breathing hard, sweat beading on his forehead.
His eyes rolled back to normal and I let out a sigh of relief, sagging into his grip on me. Nikolai came up behind me and held me up as Brax stepped away, stumbling a little before narrowing his eyes on me.
“What the fuck were you doing?” he snarled, and I wished I could answer, but instead the dizziness claimed me, my mind spinning into a darkness before I could give any kind of explanation.
Not that I had one.
17. The Stories
I woke up with the worst headache I’d ever had. It pierced my brain so strongly, I winced as I tried to open my eyes.
“Here, have this,” Braxton’s voice said through the dark in my mind.
I blinked my eyes open to see him handing me a steaming mug of something.
“It’s lavender tea, it’ll help with the headache,” he said, and I sat up, grimacing at the grogginess in my mind.
I leaned against the headboard and took the mug, sniffing it before taking a sip. The heat was soothing, the smell calming.
I sighed and put it on the wooden bedside table before looking up at Braxton in the dimly lit room, the drapes drawn, the lantern next to me the only thing giving any light.
“How long have you been talking to those shadows, Lorelai?” Braxton asked, and I blew out a breath.
“That was the first time they’ve actually talked to me, or manifested in any way other than red eyes. But I’ve been seeing those since the blood moon, the night of the offerings.” I shivered, and he listened intently.
“And what did they say?”
“Why? I thought you said the shadows I had were good,” I asked, hoping to get answers out of him since I was giving him mine.
He clenched his jaw, then shuffled closer, his voice quieter but even more intimidating as he spoke. “The ones you were speaking to were not your shadows.”
That had me frowning, reaching for my tea to cure some more of the headache pounding away against my skull.
“Who were they then?”
“I was hoping you could tell me.”
He waited patiently, and I sat up straighter. I had no fucking clue.
“I have no idea what they were,” I admitted, and that had him frowning, but I was getting more and more frustrated with the pounding in my head.
“What the hell did you do to my head?” I snapped, rubbing my temple.
He leaned forward and kissed my temple, then the other where my finger had been.
“Sorry. They were burrowing. I had to push them out or they would have gotten too deep inside you, corrupting the shadows that are loyal inside you.
“I’m guessing that’s what they want. The ones in you are more powerful and if they can harness them, they control you,” he murmured, and I clenched my eyes shut, my head falling back as I blew out a breath.
I wasn’t ready for the shadows and whatever they wanted with me. More than ever, I wished I was normal.
“Is this because of the winter born thing?” I asked, even though I knew the answer.
It was obvious, since my brother and I were the only ones I knew of with them, and Brax’s nod confirmed it.
“I wish I could tell you no, but winter borns seem to be susceptible to them. We haven’t had any in a long time. Last time there was a winter born, their shadows corrupted them. You’ve probably heard the stories.”
I nodded. I had. Everyone had.
Those stories of Elias Cardinal, the last winter born human, going on a murdering spree through the villages, fighting the wolves, turning into some skeletal thing that nightmares were made of thanks to the shadows ripping him apart from the inside, talking to him, making him believe he had to.
He was the reason for the winter born curse, for the stigma I lived with. There had been no winter borns since then.
“Why are winter borns susceptible? Why does it even matter?” I snapped, frustrated that it was another part of my curse I couldn’t change.
“There’s no moon in winter. Three months of no moonlight. The city gets locked down, and the magic in our territory becomes…” He hesitated before continuing, “…
unbalanced. The shadows, we call them shadow demons, have more of a grip on the corporeal world.
“Being born in that time somehow comes with shadows inside you that can either become loyal like yours or corrupt. But either way, they are powerful, and our world is full of creatures who want more power,” he explained, and I sat forward, sipping my tea, my headache finally starting to edge away.
I was enthralled with what he said. Being from the women’s village, we learned nothing of the wolves or the world except how to grow crops and look after animals to produce trade and supplies, half of which went to the wolves.
I wanted to know more.
“I’ve never noticed that there is no moon in winter,” I admitted, and he smiled.
“Yeah, not something we advertise. The days are shorter, the wolves scarier, but don’t worry, we’ll send you back to the humans when winter comes. It won’t be safe for you here,” he admitted, as if that’s what I was scared about.
And maybe I should have been–but I wasn’t. I was more disappointed that I wouldn’t see them for three months. Winter fucking sucked.
“So the shadows, the ones talking to me, they can’t be trusted?” I asked, thinking of my brother, who had said the opposite.
I grew uneasy at the idea of him saying yes to them and needed to find out what that meant without telling them that he had.
I trusted them to an extent, but I wasn’t delusional. I knew the wolves would protect themselves, and if they knew my brother was walking around with the shadows inside him, they’d probably do something I couldn’t forgive them for.
I didn’t want to get to that point without knowing what it meant.
“No. Not those ones. Trust yourself; the ones you have will protect you. They called to me when they felt the others trying to get in, but you have to be more aware if they appear to you, Lorelai.
“They are leeches. The longer you talk to them, give them your full attention, the longer they distract you and suck the life out of you, literally,” he urged, and I swallowed hard, remembering Nikolai’s comments about my blue lips.
How close had I been to death?
“But they asked me for permission to get inside, why would they do that if they could get in anyway?” I asked, and Brax sighed, looking over me like he was trying to figure out how much to tell me before leaning closer.
“The others don’t think you should know this much until we get to the bottom of how they are accessing you. It could be dangerous for us wolves to have them so close to us,” he admitted, and I kept quiet.
I knew they had access because my brother had said yes. That link I could feel. The pressure, the bond that I had with him. I stayed silent, and Brax narrowed his eyes.
“The shadow demons can take over your mind, slowly and painfully, getting information. Like riding shotgun, seeing and spying. But they can’t take you over or control you until you give them access,” he said, before leaning back.
“Has your brother mentioned the shadows?” he asked, and I knew he was suspicious.
I had no idea how his powers worked but if I could read a lie, I’m sure he could too.
“The shadows could be spying now?” I asked, ignoring his question about my brother.
“No. I pushed them out. That’s why it was painful, because they were already so deep. Sorry again,” he said, grimacing as I emptied my cup of tea and put it down.
“Don’t be. I don’t want them in my head.”
“Good.” He smiled. “Keep thinking that, and it’ll be harder for them to get in there.
New Book: Veiled Desires of the Alpha King Novel
Dayson was the alpha of the largest pack in North America. Powerful figures from other packs sought to offer gorgeous girls as potential mates for Dayson. He steadfastly rejected these advances, he was not a pawn to be manipulated. But eventually there came a mysterious girl he could hardly say No. Who was she?