I sigh and pick up my tea, taking a long sip as the bell for the front door of the coffee shop rings, and I look up as Vesnia walks in. Her curly red hair is in a stylish messy bun on top of her head, loose locks framing her face. With high-waisted black jeans and a white cold shoulder T-shirt, she looks fantastic. I haven’t seen my best friend in nearly six months, and the small bump she had when I last saw her is now a full-blown bump about to pop. Vesnia and Bryne live in Wales, on a small road where no one knows what they really are, and Vesnia has a charm bracelet that hides her wings from view. Their next-door neighbour is Vesnia’s dad, and even though he doesn’t remember her, he looks after her like a daughter. They are almost as close as they were before, and I’m so happy for her. Standing up, I wrap my arms around Vesnia the second I can, and she hugs me tightly back.
“I’ve missed you, bestie,” she whispers to me before pulling back and taking the seat next to me. “How was the trip?”
“South America was amazing. Peru was my favourite place to look around, but when we saw Machu Picchu,” I start, and a wistful sigh leaves my lips. “The Temple of the Sun was just amazing to look around. We found more evidence my ancestors lived there for a while, and I felt a connection like no other.”
“It sounds dreamy. Maybe in a few years, I can go with you on your next adventure,” she says, rubbing her belly. “I’m sure our little girl will love an adventure if she’s anything like her mummy.”
“If she is anything like her mummy, she is one amazing little girl,” I say, and Vesnia grins at me. We spend the next few hours, long after my parents leave, talking about everything we have missed and making plans to see each other in a few weeks’ time.
I stand up, offering Vesnia my hands to lift her up. “You call me the second you go into labour. I will be there.”
“You best be there. I can’t have this baby without you!” she protests. I bet she could, but I don’t say that out loud. We hug one more time before leaving the shop and going into the alleyway by the side of the building. Vesnia uses a travel stone, a gift from the tales, to make a portal and step through to her home. I use my magic, making a portal on the other side of the alley to the beach near my house on the island. I step through onto the beach and instantly take my shoes off, sinking my feet into the warm sand.
“Mummy!” a tiny voice shouts, and I turn around to see my little six-year-old boy running across the beach right for me. His black hair, a big surprise to us all as we expected the baby to have my blonde hair, is thick with curly locks, and his eyes are the very image of Henry’s. He looks so much like him, but he is a master vampire. We could sense the power he has from before he was even born, and we have no doubt our son will run his own coven one day. One day. I’m not nearly close to letting go of my boy yet. I grab him under the arms, spinning him around as he laughs before I hug him tightly. Theodore Gabriel Lightson is the light of our lives. Our happy ending. We chose to stick with my last name because choosing between all his dads was difficult. “Daddy Myles found a cool shell. Want to see it?”
“Of course I do,” I say, putting him back down. He holds my hand tightly as I look across the beach, seeing Ren, Henry, Thallon and Myles in wolf form sitting on the beach. They each watch us, the love so clear in their eyes. It’s been a long few years for us as we finished off building the island, and more vampires came out of the woodwork. The coven is now nearly ten thousand strong, and they even sing songs about me and my mates. Ren officially made Myles, Thallon and Henry royal advisors before Theo was born. The pregnancy was a total shock to us all, but we couldn’t have been more delighted. The birth was difficult and the most pain I’ve ever been in, but this time it was different from any pain I had before. This time, I got the greatest gift in the world from the pain. Theo drags me down the beach, past my guys who smile at me, and to the pile of shells on a picnic blanket close by. Theo shows me all the shells he found with one of his dads and how he loves the dark blue curly one the most. He can add them to his collection in his room.
“How was lunch with Vesnia?” Ren asks me as I sit back, crossing my legs and enjoying the rare sunny day we get on the island. South America did not have that problem, and Theo loved the hot sunny weather as much as we did.
“Amazing. She is close to having her little girl,” I say, and while we are on the topic... “Where is Aala today?”
“With her boyfriend,” Thallon grumbles, and Myles’s wolf huffs. None of my mates were impressed with their little girl getting a boyfriend last year, but I was so happy for her. The boyfriend is a tale, and he really does seem to care about her. I try not to get too involved. “Talk of the devil,” Thallon says, nodding his head behind me. I turn back to see Aala walking down the pathway to the beach with her boyfriend at her side. He has bright blond hair and a cheeky smile, and for a second, I wonder what their children might look like. Aala met her boyfriend at the tales academy where all our young attend, as well as angel children and wolves. The demons have their own schools, but there are some half breeds that attend the Lost Time Academy. We never had to worry about Aala at the academy, not with her aunt Hazel there to watch her closely. Hazel’s little boy regularly comes and stays with us, and he is the sweetest little boy. Prince runs at their side, and I did wonder where our big fluffy dog had gotten to. We still don’t know what breed he is, but Ren suspects a mixture of a few kinds, but he is just white and fluffy, and incredibly loyal. Prince runs to me, licking my cheek before I gently shove him away, and he grumbles as he sits next to me.
“Hey, mum!” Aala says when she gets closer. Theo runs and hugs her, and she starts chasing him down the beach as he giggles. Prince gets up and chases after them as my mates glare at Aala’s poor boyfriend.
I lie back and stare at the blue skies...where for a second, I swear the clouds look like angel wings before they drift away, leaving only the clear, endless blue of the sky to look at. With my son’s laughter filling my ears, the warm sand at my back, and my mates all with me...life couldn’t get better.
The Missing Wolf. Please carry on reading for small excerpt.
Leaving the past behind.
Anastasia
I stand still on the side of the train tracks, letting the cold wind blow my blonde and purple dip-dyed hair across my face. I squeeze the handle of my suitcase tighter, hoping that the train will come soon. It’s freezing today, and my coat is packed away in the suitcase, dammit. I feel like I’ve waited for this day for years, the day I get to leave my foster home and join my sister at college. I look behind me into the parking lot, seeing my younger sister stood watching me go, my foster grandmother holding her hand. Phoebe is only eleven years old, but she is acting strong today, no matter how much she wants me to stay. I smile at her, trying to ignore how difficult it feels to leave her here, but I know she couldn’t be in a better home. I can get through college with our older sister and then get a job in the city, while living all together. That’s the plan anyway.
We lost our mum and dad in a car accident ten years ago, and we were more than lucky to find a foster parent that would take all three of us in. Grandma Pops is a special kind of lady. She is kind and loves to cook, and the money she gets from fostering pays for her house. She lost her two children in a fire years ago, and she tells us regularly that we keep her happy and alive. Even if we do eat a lot for three kids. Luckily, she likes to look after us as I burn everything I attempt to cook. And I don’t even want to remember the time I tried to wash my clothes, which ended in disaster.