TWISTED FATES BOOK 2: EVEN MORE TWISTED

Sammie

It’s been two months since I lost Jareth. Not long after his passing, I was visited by his attorney, who had informed me that Jareth had bequeathed me all of his possessions in the event of his untimely demise. It seems that even in death, Jareth was still trying to protect me.

Who’d have thought a Vampire would have made a will?

Being a glutton for punishment, I remained living in the home we shared rather than sell it. This place was Jareth’s home, and I just couldn’t bring myself to leave. By living here, I could at least hold on to some part of him, even if it were something as simple as the home we’d shared together. For a while, I was in a deep slump living in such an enormous mansion on my own. Though it was never vocalized often, I knew in my heart that Jareth wasn’t just my sire; he was my Beloved, my mate. Wolves aren’t the only ones that mark their mates. One may be designated by the Goddess while the other may be chosen by their partner, but the passing of their soul mate holds the same degree of pain none the less. We had marked each other, bonding our souls together, and he was a loss that I had to mourn in my own way. As odd as it may seem, I decided to get quite a few tattoos hoping that I would feel something other than emptiness. I’m sure it may come as a surprise to most, but yes, vampires can get tattoos. We have unique artists that are approved by the Council who have magical abilities allowing for them to stay on our bodies permanently. In the last two months, I was visited by one such charge quite a few times. The countless hours of feeling the stinging needles dispel beautifully decorated designs along my body brought me the peace that I desperately needed. The constant pricking of their needles gave my eyes an excuse to release the trails of tears that I held captive for fear of betraying those around me. These tears were never questioned as the tattoo artist would only silently and diligently continue his masterpieces, never questioning. I assumed he thought my tolerance to the degree of pain was low, but then again, I never bothered to say otherwise, and neither did he. Out of all the designs that decorated my body, the one that held the most value was a small heart transcribed with the Romanian phrase în viață și în moarte dragostea noastră va rămâne (In life and death our love shall remain) placed right above my heart. It was a tribute to my Beloved Jareth, taken from a letter that he had left for me on our bed the same night he died; it was almost as if he had a premonition of his death and was saying his final farewell.

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Last month, I decided to take a step into the land of the living, or at least as much living as a vampire such as myself can do anyways; I asked my BFFs, Shay and Astrid, if they would be willing to move in with me. They happily accepted, so at least now, the sound of laughter resonates once again inside my enormous home.

After the whole Vampire Council verdict, I pretty much remained within the confines of home, or, on a rare occasion, I would venture over to Blood Moon Pack territory where I would visit Devon. Luckily, Jareth had already shown me who our blood supplier was, so I can still feed as often as I need.

Sadly, Jareth wasn’t the only person we lost recently. Maleyna was lost to us as well. I know that I didn’t spend a lot of time with Maleyna, but I still felt a kinship with her, and she will be missed. According to Astrid and Shay, their coven believes a gas leak occurred in her shop rendering her unconscious; her lit candles caused a fire, killing her in the process. Go figure, you live almost two hundred years surviving all kinds of supernatural beings and end up dying in the most human way possible. The worst part is that Jareth’s body was completely lost in the fire as well, making the burden of his loss even more significant. We held a service in commemoration of the two, nonetheless. I owed them both that respect.

Despite my hesitation with moving mine and Devon’s relationship forward any faster, I was still content with my Alpha mate. Slowly but surely, our closeness was becoming more apparent. The events that existed prior to our timeline variation may have embedded themselves deep within both of our minds, but it did not dismiss the fact that we were both very different people. I mean, I was now a vampire for Goddess sakes and Devon; this man was so much more than I remembered. The years with my absence resulted in a healthier, more powerful, and more self-assured Alpha than he had been a few years ago. He was indeed the great man that he was meant to be, and I wouldn’t change that for the world. Nor would I ever regret my choice; though made out of weakness, it still gave me the gift of Jareth. For that, I will always be grateful. I am no longer the weak, insecure person I once was, always questioning why things weren’t going my way. I was now all about the honest and forthright approach with my concerns. I have seen the consequences of letting them fester like a parasite that eats away at you, which because of that, Dasha was able to reap the havoc that she did. After everything that happened, I am finally a stronger woman, not just physically but emotionally as well. I deserve to be loved and not to fear loving back. As silly as it sounds. I finally love myself too, Jareth taught me this. To love yourself allows you to love others wholly and honestly. So, despite the trepidations that may occur, I have absolved to face them head-on, side by side with Devon. I know the biggest obstacle is his pack, and I don’t blame them. I am their natural enemy, a vampire, after all. I won’t run away this time, though.

Nay, Nay my friends.

I plan to persevere and prove to his pack that I would not betray them or their Alpha despite my nature and protect them all with my life as a real Luna should. Granted, I’m not the Luna yet because Devon and I are taking things slow; but I would rather prove myself to him and his pack so that his pack will remain unified once that time finally comes.

Tonight, Devon was kind enough to invite my friends Shay and Astrid to Blood Moon Pack so that we could all hang out. At first, he was a bit hesitant. Not necessarily because of my BFFs but rather because of the stint that Dasha and her witchery had done on him, so his wariness about having two witches in his packhouse was entirely understandable. Nevertheless, my girls and I were happy that I could finally have all my favorite people together in one place. Hell, even Michael and Aiden were warming up to me, which was a great start.

I looked at the digital clock on the nightstand in my room. We had maybe an hour to get ready before Devon came and picked us up. “Shit,” I muttered to myself. I totally dilly-dallied, and now I was running behind.

Knowing Shay and Astrid, who are both anal about being on time, I wasn’t worried about them being ready, so I decided to get my ass in gear. I took a quick shower and dried off. Wrapped in my fluffy towel, I blow-dried my now ombre violet purple hair and gave myself a few loose curls so that I could wear it down. It’d grown it past my shoulders now.

That’s right; I changed it again.

New do, new me.

I walked out of the en-suite bathroom and went directly to my walk-in closet. What to wear … about what to wear? I pondered, eyeing the numerous clothes and shoes organized by color and occasion. I had a lot to choose from. Jareth had spoilt me. Goddess, I missed him. I felt a pang in my chest. Sometimes it was really hard when little reminders of him presented themselves. I really was fate’s bitch. How else would you explain a human, well former human now, being mated to an Alpha werewolf in one timeline and an ancient vampire in another? Yeah, your guess is as good as mine. I suppose everyone has their baggage mine just happened to be within the supernatural world. I sighed; I really needed to get a move on before the tardy police, or my BFFs as I lovingly call them, start hounding my pokey ass.

I decided to on my red suede shorts that landed at my thigh and a fitted white button-down shirt with a ¾ sleeve, and my red matching suede over the knee boots. After I applied my makeup, I checked myself in the full-length mirror hanging on my closet door and went downstairs, where of course, everyone was waiting for little ol’ me.

I quickly strolled up to Devon, who looked very appreciative of my outfit, and gave him a quick peck on the cheek as he wrapped his big strong arms around my waist and smiled.

Goddess, that smile of his was doing things to my nether regions.

“Hello, Alpha Montgomery.” I teased, batting my long lashes up at him.

“Hello, my little firecracker.” He teased back as he gave my ass a light smack in jest.

I giggled.

Pretty sure my panties were becoming quite saturated. Dev’s smirk told me he was aware of it too.

Damn Werewolves and their heightened sense of smell.

“Hey babes, you ready to go?” I turned and asked Shay and Astrid, who smiled and gave me a thumbs up while giggling. Yeah, they knew my hormones were on high altitudes when Dev was near. Oddly enough, I noticed that they too seemed extra excited today for some reason, but I couldn’t quite put my finger on why. I’d have to remember to ask them to spill the tea later on when we were alone.

Devon quickly released me from his embrace and grabbed my hand, intertwining our fingers so that we could all make our way out to Devon’s black Porsche Cayenne SUV. We were heading over to Blood Moon’s Packhouse.

Goddess, I loved his car; it was dark and sexy, just like his smoldering gaze.

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We arrived at Blood Moon’s five-story packhouse a half-hour later because while his territory borders my home, the roads to and from each location are around the surrounding forestry, making it a longer drive than by foot.

To be honest, calling this palatial home a house was an understatement; a mansion was really more like it. Hell, its size over towered my own home. It had at least twenty-five bedrooms, a couple of game rooms, an indoor and outdoor pool, two kitchens, two dining areas, an indoor theater that could easily sit approximately thirty people easily and two offices, one for Devon and one for Michael and Aiden to share. The place was stunning, to say the least; it reminded me of an old colonial manor with its deep rust brick exterior that had several windows donned with beige shutters. Almost all the building’s rooms had been carpeted with a rich plush taupe shaggy carpeting, which was as soft as if you were stepping onto a stuffed animal. Most of his pack members lived in their own homes. This place was mainly where some staff members, guest rooms for visiting higher ranks, on-site rooms for Dev, Micheal, Aiden, and the un-mated teens lived. Typically there were always a few pack members scattered about, but surprisingly, no one was around this evening. “Oh, sorry,” Devon remarked offhandedly, “I forgot to mention that I had the pack give us all some privacy for a few hours. Just so that we didn’t make anyone feel awkward, they’re still getting used to Sam, and I think the girls may make them a bit edgier considering the whole Dasha thing. But don’t worry, I made sure to arrange for Mrs. Gebhart, the packhouse chef, to prepare a nice dinner for us, so everything should be set up in the dining hall on the main floor level.”

The four of us started heading through the living room when the sound of two sets of anxious footsteps came barreling down the stairs and down the hallway.

Aiden and Michael rounded the corner looking entirely out of their minds as they stopped and peered at our small group. Both men looked unkempt, as if they had been caught off guard. The two men lifted their heads, sniffing the air, and their eyes widened as they instantly fell upon my two BFFs.

Immediately, Shay and Astrid stared back at them, their gaze just as intense. Michael bolted over to Shay, followed by Aiden, who stood mere inches from Astrid. A low growl emanated from both the wolves as they stared intently at my two BFFs. “Mate.” They simultaneously announced. Shay and Astrid both let a sly smile spread across their lips as they reciprocated. “Mate…”

Holy Shit … MY BFFs are mated to Devon’s Beta and Gamma! If this weren’t my real life, I’d swear this was totally cliché.

I mean, really …what are the odds?

Maybe the Moon Goddess watched too many episodes of the Vampire Diaries. I pondered.

Before any of us could actually process what was happening, there was a sudden knock at the door.

Aiden ran to answer it and immediately returned with a small package.

“Who’s that for Aid?” Michael inquired.

He read the label. “Hmm … it’s addressed to … all of us.”

Devon arched his brow in disbelief. “What? Who’s it from?”

“…Maleyna.”