Total pages in book: 121
Estimated words: 114617 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 573(@200wpm)___ 458(@250wpm)___ 382(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 114617 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 573(@200wpm)___ 458(@250wpm)___ 382(@300wpm)
The glows around them were so bright, I squinted to look at them—making it impossible to see what they looked like.
My wolf didn’t care.
She purred in my chest, boiling the heat in my body twenty degrees. She twitched my fingers, trying to make them rip off the scant covering I had. Wouldn’t want it getting in the way of the coming mating.
“A wind wolf and a fire wolf.” Boanna squeezed my hand. “They said it, High Priestess. It was prophesied the day of your birth that you would bring Wolf Nation higher than it’s ever gone before or ever will be.”
“Paxton of the Water Wolves.”
Three elements?
“Nyx of the Earth Wolves.”
Four?
“Badr of the Sun Wolves.”
Five!? I swayed on my feet. If my next mate was of the Metal Wolves, it would be my turn to faint.
In the beginning, there were only two clans blessed with the gift of the moon goddess, Luame, and her mate, Ola, the sun god. The moon clan were natural men and women who were blessed to turn into wolves under the moonlight. The sun clan were natural wolves given the gift of walking and talking as men during the day. When the first mother moon wolf mated with her fate from the sun clan, the modern-day wolf shifter was born—equally man and wolf. They also birthed the next generation of elemental wolves, the third element—fire wolves.
Thousands of years later, my ancestor mother wolves brought forth the water wolves, wind wolves, and earth wolves. Every generation bringing new power, diversity, and strength into Wolf Nation.
Except for Thema who, along with her two fated mates, created the metal wolves, there’d been no new powers or elements among the clans for over a hundred years. Now here I was with six fates of five different elements. I couldn’t begin to guess the power our children would have. The power we would have when we bonded and our abilities became one. One unit. One pack. One soul.
“Castor.”
Warm, soothing light fell over me, turning my head around. Our eyes connected and my wild, thumping out-of-control heart stopped.
Everything stopped.
No one knew until they stepped upon this rock if Luame would exercise her vicious sense of humor. Some fated mates had a massive age difference. Some were married to other people. Some were strong, enduring alphas matched to weak, afterthought omegas. Some were lifelong enemies, and others were simply good friends who couldn’t fathom touching each other sexually even if it’d save the world.
But Luame had no tricks to play on me that night. Castor was gorgeous. As he neared, the glow faded and revealed six feet worth of hard, rippling muscle; piercing green eyes; sharp freckle-dusted cheekbones; wavy, auburn locks, and full lips tugged into a smirk that quickened my pulse.
“Of the Sun Wolves,” he finished, closing the distance. Castor cupped my cheek and I swear I cracked a rib, my wolf tried so hard to leap out of my chest and tackle him. “Hello, Daciana.”
“It’s...” My mouth was as dry as the Sahara. Behind him, the glows were converging on us—making their way up the rock. My mates. My fates. My future. “It’s... Daze,” I rasped.
Castor smiled and arousal hit me so fierce, my nipples sat back on their haunches and panted, baring their eagerness to all of Wolf Nation. “Even better.”
“Come, Castor of the sun and Daciana of the moon,” Boanna sounded for all to hear. “Take your place before Luame and be joined as one.”
Castor moved back—smile hanging off his lips... while mine never appeared.
“No.”
“Everyone,” Boanna called, “gather together before— Wait. What did you say, High Priestess?”
“I said no.” And then I smiled—wide and smirking. “You’ll have to cook up the next batch of super wolves in someone else’s magic womb, because mine is closed for business.”
She gaped at me over the shocked gasps and confused whispers going through the crowd. “Excuse me? What are you saying?”
“Aww.” I turned on Castor. “Let me clear it up for you.”
Aided by the full and shining moon of Luame, my wolf burst from my skin—shifting in the blink of an eye. Before a single person could gasp, scream, cry, or move, I pounced on Castor, and ripped his throat out.
Chapter One
One Year Later
Isat in the crevice of the tree branch, watching the steady line of students new and old flow through the gates.
Corvin Academy.
It’d been my dream to go there for so long. The place where Papa met Mama. The haven where every young wolf from every clan came together to discover their place in the world, and make lifelong friends and lovers while doing it.
It was said the idea to do away with separate packs and become one under the banner of Wolf Nation was born within these halls. Five shifters doing the alpha track were captured by vampires while out on a run. During the awful months they were demeaned, interrogated, and tortured, they banded together. Fought for each other. Protected each other.