No Claim: A Dark Reverse Harem Romance (The Alpha Brothers Book 2) Read online

  "We need to go," I say, not sure what else I can say as nerves hit me hard. I'm terrified, but I can't let them see it. I know they suspect my emotions either way.

  "Remember our discussion. You stay behind us, and we end this. You do not intervene. No matter what," Alpha demands. "You protect yourself and our unborn children."

  "I remember the plan," I reply, holding my head up high. "We will do what we must to keep the pack. Let's go," I say, nodding my head towards the doors. Letric keeps his hand locked in mine as we all go to the carriage and get inside. Letric sits on one side of me, whereas Alaric sits on my other. River and Alpha sit on the other side, both of them keeping their gazes fixed on mine. The carriage drives us into the pack and slows down once more and more people fill the streets. The people move slowly, just as I hear them chanting my name. Calling for me to live.

  "The people of your pack love you as much as we do. We will win this together," Alaric states. I was once nothing, and now I am more loved than I could imagine. It is a good way to die if this is to be my last day.

  "She is your sister; can you kill her?" I ask. "Have you really thought this through? I know what family means to you."

  "For you, I would burn the world down. Never doubt it," Alpha remarks. "You are our family."

  "The same as my brother, just less fire and vivid imagery," Alaric tells me, his voice is strong and determined. I look towards Letric last, who lifts our linked hands and kisses my knuckles.

  "I wish she could be different, that we didn't have to kill her. She is our half-sister...but she threatened you. I will never let anyone touch you," Letric answers me.

  "Thank you, and if there is any way we can get into her head, get her to stop this madness, then we will," I say, knowing I have to give her a chance. "But she will pay with blood for my mother."

  "Not at the risk of your own life, Elodie," Alpha warns. I nod once at him before looking out of the window, seeing the clearing just before we turn into it. The carriage stops not much later, and Alpha gets out first, and I follow next. River places his hand on my back once he steps out behind me, and I nod at Angel and Pela who are holding people back. They both look more than concerned, but they cannot help me now.

  "About time you got here, brothers. It's been a long wait," she says, giggling in a childhood manner as we all step into the clearing. My mates go to my sides, two on each side as we face Katriel and her mates. All five of them. I run my eyes over each of the mates, knowing this just became so much more dangerous for us. Four of them are massive, with big arms and bigger swords in their hands. Two of them are thinner, but the look they give me suggests they are more deadly than their muscular friends. Katriel has a thin white cloak on, similar to mine, and tells me that she plans to shift. The white cloak is a strange comparison to her messy, leaf-covered black hair and dirty face. Her mates all look the same, making me think they don't have a home and spend a lot of their time as wolves in the wild. Wolves that do not look after themselves as they should.

  "I accept your challenge, but it is not too late to back out and walk away. I will let you walk away, only this once, mind you. Once this starts, it will end in blood," I state.

  "Then it ends in blood. You killed my dad," she growls and pushes off the cloak. In the blink of an eye, she shifts into a massive brown wolf, one that is likely the same size as my own. I close my eyes as I push my own cloak off my shoulders, and my wolf pushes out of my mind. When I open my eyes, I step a large paw on the ground in front of me and let out a long growl. The challenge begins.

  I keep my eyes locked on Katriel as she tries to run at me, only to be thrown onto the roof of a house by Alpha before he gets into a fight with one of her mates. I keep my eyes on her, even when I hear screams and shouts. Even when I smell blood and worry about my mates’ lives. Katriel jumps from roof to roof, getting closer to me. I quickly back up and run, jumping onto the roof in front of the one she is on. If wolves could smile, her wolf does before she runs at me. I brace myself for the hit, just before she slams into me and her large teeth snap at my neck as I kick her off, rolling back onto my paws. She slides across the roof, knocking off tiles as she goes.

  I slip on a few tiles as I run at her, lunging and biting into her back leg, tasting her blood that fills my mouth. She cries, kicking me off and jumping on me, her teeth digging into my shoulder as her claws latch onto my neck. I whine as I try to shake her off, but it only sends us both flying off the side of the roof. I land on top of her in a gap of people, and her teeth let go of me enough to climb away and circle around to her. She limps in front of me, letting out a loud toothy growl as she lowers herself down to pounce, her mouth dripping with my blood. I growl back and snap my teeth as I lower myself as well, knowing I need to end this fight. We run at each other, crashing in a bundle of teeth, blood and pain. I growl as I slam my teeth into her neck and pin her down to the ground. Every time she moves to fight me, more blood pours from her neck, and I know I've got her. She can't escape this.

  To my surprise, she starts to shift back, and I jump off her, watching as she cries, holding her neck. I sense my mates come to stand behind me, and I briefly take my eyes off Katriel to look at them. Alpha is smothered in blood and cuts, including a nasty looking one on his stomach. Alaric and Letric have shifted, both their wolves are in no better condition. River steps out to my other side, holding the head of one of Katriel's mates in his bloody hand. River looks the worst out of all my mates, covered in cuts that leak blood and teeth marks on his chest that I want to see healed. River chucks the head in front of Katriel, and it rolls until it stops by her feet. I close my eyes and pull myself back, opening them again as I crouch on the dirt ground. I lift myself to my feet, ignoring how much my shoulder and everywhere hurts as I stand up.

  "It is over. Submit, and leave this pack. My mother has been avenged with your mates’ blood. You can leave," I say, giving her the chance I promised myself I would. Even if I want nothing more than to kill her and finish this.

  "And if I don't leave?" she asks.

  "Death is all that waits for you in our pack," Alpha states, his voice cold and emotionless. I know she can't stay, she is too dangerous and reckless to be trusted.

  "Kill me. They are gone, and I'm nothing without my father and my mates. Kill me. Please," she begs, keeping her eyes locked on mine as she speaks. "Please." Her heartfelt plea goes straight to my heart, because I could only imagine how she feels. Living would be a far worse punishment than death. I step forward only to have Alpha and Letric grab my arms, stopping me.

  "She is our sister, we should end this," Alpha states, and Letric’s eyes say the same thing without words.

  "I am alpha. I must end this," I say. Tears roll down my cheeks as Alpha lets my arm go and falls to his knees, bowing his head. Alaric and Letric follow right after him, and then River. The effect goes on as everyone around us goes to their knees.

  "I submit to my alpha," Alpha tells me. I shakily place my hand on his head, knowing this means more to me than anything else in the world could. I feel my babies kick and move in my stomach, almost like they are reminding me that they are safe. I walk to Katriel and look down at her and feel nothing but sorrow for what her life could have been. In the end, it was her choice to be this way.

  "Rest in peace, Katriel," is all I can find myself able to say as I lean down, wrapping my hands around her throat. I turn her head to the side, the crack of her neck vibrating through my arms and ears. I let her dead body fall to the ground before I turn around and look at my mates and my pack as I slide my hands to my bare bump. It is over, and now we have our future to protect.

  Epilogue

  Elodie

  "That is it, Elodie. One more push and your second baby will be here," healer Periya tells me. I scream, squeezing the bedsheets even tighter as I push and push. I feel the moment my second child enters the world, and seconds later, there is a little cry that matches his brother’s. The pain was incredible to push my first son out, and
the second was no easier. I am never getting pregnant again, that is for sure.

  "Congratulations, it is another boy," she says, wrapping up my baby boy in the white sheets after cutting the cord. Another boy. I have twin boys.

  "You did so well. We are so proud," Alaric says, kissing my forehead as he leans over me. Letric sits on my other side, tears falling down his cheeks. Alpha and River are nearby, holding our firstborn son. Each of them looks as exhausted as me, as it has been a long labour since my waters broke ten hours ago. I knew the labour would be difficult, but this was much longer than we expected. We did have two helpers at the start, but I ended up kicking them out when they suggested I needed to hurry up the birth like I had any control.

  "Here you go," healer Periya says, and hands me my second baby boy before covering my legs with a blanket and giving us a moment alone. I cry, not being able to help myself as I stare down at his little face and closed eyes. He is beautiful. So beautiful. Both my babies have dark brown hair like mine, and they have features that somehow look like all of their fathers. Alpha walks over, with River right behind him, and I make room for him to pass me the baby. I hold both my babies in my arms, this perfect moment between us as my mates surround me, and we look at our sweet children.

  "They are perfect," I whisper, but even perfect doesn't seem like a strong enough word to describe them. I run my eyes over every little dimple, the plump rosy cheeks they have and little pink lips. They are so endlessly perfect that I struggle to be able to pull my eyes from them to my mates.

  "It's no wonder, they look so much like you," River says, and we all chuckle. They are too beautiful and amazing to be like me.

  "Do you think the names we chose suit them?" Alaric asks. I nod, looking down at my baby on the right just as he opens his eyes for the first time. He has bright blue eyes, ones that remind me of my mother.

  "His name is Tiryn Alpha Alaric Masters, first born alpha of the Luxa Pack," I whisper and look at my other son, who has his eyes open too. His eyes are blue as well, but a much darker shade. So dark they are almost black, and he reminds me of Alpha. "And your name is Jatheod Letric River Masters, second born of the Luxa Pack."

  "Perfect names," Letric whispers, kissing the side of my head.

  "I must clean up Alpha Elodie now," healer Periya states, coming over to us. I happily hand my babies to Alpha and River, who leave the room with Alaric and Letric not far behind them, to no doubt show grandma Mary and aunt Arabella their new family members as they wait outside. I never had a family, but now I have so many that my heart is fuller than it ever has been.

  "Tiryn!" I shout, stepping on another one of his wooden horse toys in the corridor as I come out the throne room. He is always leaving his toys, food or anything around the castle since he started shifting a year ago. I know seven-year-old boys can be messy, but he has to learn to pick things up after himself. I spot a bundle of black fur just before a small wolf runs past me, and I shake my head.

  "I will go after our mischievous son," Alaric states, coming out of the room just after me. We have been stuck in a council meeting for the last few hours, a chore we have promised the pack to do once a month to air out large issues in the pack. I kiss him briefly before he runs off down the corridor, and I’m sure he is happy to be able to get out and have a run around after sitting for so long. I lean down and pick up the toy before heading down the corridor to the children's room.

  I push the door open quietly, just in case I wake someone up. I pause when I see Alpha stood near the window, our small baby girl in his arms as he sings her a song. Alpha is so sweet with our daughter, just like he has been with our sons as they grew up. I place the toy on the side, not wanting to interrupt their moment before closing the door quietly.

  I walk down the corridor, pausing when I pass a window and seeing my family outside. I walk close to the window and look down, seeing Jath's white wolf running with his brother's black wolf away from River and Alaric, who are letting them give chase. They all look so happy as they run around, and the snow starts to cover the ground. It may be summer here, but it is always snowing. We sometimes visit the island, where half our pack choose to live, governed by my betas. Eventually, we hope our sons or our daughter, Faye, will choose to live and govern the pack there. Either way, we have peace and the loyalty of the entire pack. A pack where everyone is a no claim.

  The end…

  Spin off series, Vampire Captive.

  I was a blessed vampire queen until the day I decided to kill my king.

  Now I’m a captive of alpha wolves, rulers of the Luxa Pack, and it is no place for a vampire.

  They decide to keep me as a slave on this strange land across the sea, and no part of me ever wants to go back to my home.

  I ran from my world, from my people, and from everything I had ever known to a world much darker than I ever thought possible.

  I crave their blood, they crave my immortality.

  They also want my heart, and if they knew who I really was...they would want my throne.

  18+ dark reverse harem romance based in the Alpha Brothers Series world.

  Possible triggers and dark themes.

  Chapter 24

  I watch in the shadows as my king roughly thrusts in and out of the woman under him, his grunts only briefly heard over the sounds of her loud moaning. I stare at his long red hair that falls around his face, his toned and muscular body underneath it. My king is handsome. Though his face may be desirable, his heart is revolting. His hands dig into her hips as he finds his completion on a long groan and shouting out my name. My king pulls out of the woman, and she rolls over, looking up at him adoringly. I knew she liked him, and I warned her more than once of what he is truly like, but she didn’t listen.

  She leans up as he looks back down at her and slowly slides his hands into her hair. When he lowers his head, making her believe he is going to kiss her, my king slides his hands to her neck, and in one swift moment, breaks it. The sound of her neck cracking will be forever etched into my mind, like the sounds of many people’s deaths before her. After a while, I stopped feeling any shock at witnessing death. It’s now become a reminder that one day my own soul will be free. Death is all that is promised to me now. Her soulless body falls back on the bed almost in slow motion as I watch, powerless to do a thing, like always. This woman was too young, too kind and now ruined.

  “Did you enjoy the show? She was your friend, no?” my king asks me, turning and slowly walking over to my place in the shadows of the room. The coldness of my shackles just reminds me that I can’t show him any emotion as I look into his red eyes. She was my friend, in a way. A maid who I had grown to like because we could laugh together. Now she is dead, like every other person who got close to me, except for my king, the only one I wish were dead. “I asked you a question, my dear queen.”

  “What answer do you wish for?” I ask him in an overly sarcastic tone as he stops right in front of me and lifts a hand, smacking me hard around the face. I fall to the floor, trying not to cry out.

  “You know the answer I want. Lucky for you, she was a good fuck, and I don’t want you tonight. I will return for you tomorrow, sweet Arilee.” I don’t reply to his cold, deep voice as I watch him walk out the door, slamming it shut behind him.

  Chapter 25

  “The king wishes you to wear this, my queen,” a servant woman says, holding out a deep red dress that leaves little to the imagination. I don’t know why I bother trying to hide anything from him anyway. After he killed my father, he married me and stole my kingdom. Once I conceive and birth an heir, he will get rid of me as well. I am no use to him after that. I pray every day for a second to escape before he gets what he wants. I nod to the maid, pulling my white nightdress off and stepping into the red dress. The next few hours, the new maid makes my waist length dark red hair fall into curls down my back. My hair matches the dress, yet I’ve always hated the colour. It reminds me of death and losing my family. It reminds me of my king and his
brutal nature.

  The maid places the crown on my head, its yellow stones reflecting the fire light in the room in almost a beautiful way. If anything was beautiful and pure in this castle anymore, that is. I stand up and walk to the door, knocking twice for the guards to open the doors for me. Three guards wait outside, each holding their swords out in case I try to escape while I am not tied up for a night, though none of the guards will look at me because they remember my father, and their very existence means they betrayed their king. And their princess.

  I walk in the middle of two guards and follow the one in front down the silent corridors of the castle. The castle used to be filled with laughter, children and love. Now, it’s an echo of its former self. The land is cold, snow falls in what should be summer, and there is nothing but a shell of the land I loved left. I follow the guard into the dining room, seeing my king stood in front of the fire place, his red hair straight down his back and his stance rigid as he watches the fire.

  “Leave us,” my king demands. The guards instantly bow and quickly walk out the room. I stand still, knowing I can’t sit down or move until he says so, or he will punish me. The whip marks on my back are a sore reminder. “Come here.” I used to flinch when he demanded me to come close to him, but now I walk over and stop at his side. I place my hands behind my back, holding my own hand to comfort myself in a little way.

  “Tell me something about yourself. Before I took you as my queen, that is,” he asks. I watch him closely, wondering exactly what game he is playing. When he first took my kingdom, he tried to pretend to be nice to me until our wedding night, that is. That night, he forced me to feed on him as he stole my blood, my body and darkened my soul.