My Alphas' Dark Desires novel Chapter 388

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~Valerie's POV~

All I knew was that I had fallen asleep after what felt like the longest day of my life. My body ached, my mind refused to quiet down, and I couldn't shake off the tension from yesterday.

I had wanted morning to come fast, to finally get the killing over with… to do what needed to be done.

But now that it was here, Storm still hadn't called.

I stood in front of the mirror, staring at my reflection. The girl looking back at me seemed put together, calm even, but her eyes told a different story. Tired, heavy and haunted.

0% panic, 100% composure.

"Here goes nothing," I muttered, exhaling through my nose.

My voice echoed faintly in the stillness of the room. I brushed my hair out of my face and adjusted the strap of my top, pretending I wasn't trembling inside.

I hadn't spoken to any of my mates since last night, and though part of me knew that distance was necessary, it didn't stop the guilt gnawing at me.

I hated lying to them; I hated pretending, but what choice did I have?

They couldn't know about Nightshade. Not yet. Maybe not ever.

Still, a quiet voice in the back of my mind whispered, What if they found out?

The thought alone made my pulse quicken. It was almost impossible to hide something like this from six bonded souls. They could sense every shift in my emotions, every tremor in my aura.

Grabbing my bag, I took a deep breath and forced my legs to move. "I'm heading to school for breakfast," I called out.

Solstice stirred under her blanket, her sleepy voice drifting through the room. "See you there."

I gave a small wave she probably didn't even see, and slipped out.

The cool morning air hit me with that crisp scent of dew and pine. The corridor was still empty, save for the occasional hum of a distant door closing. My boots clicked softly against the floor as I walked through the hall, trying to shake off the unease.

Then my phone buzzed.

My heart jumped when I saw the name glowing on the screen. Storm.

I froze, glancing around to make sure no one was close by. When I was sure, I stepped near the stairwell and answered quietly. "Hey, baby couz."

"Hello, Storm," I said, my tone instantly softening. "How are you?"

"Good as new," his smooth, familiar voice came through, grounding me. "I've got it set, Val."

My breath hitched. "You did?"

"Yes. The ritual was complete. Now, you have nothing to worry about."

Relief rushed through me so suddenly that my knees almost gave out. I leaned back against the wall, closing my eyes. "Storm… how can I ever thank you?"

He chuckled. "By being you. Taking care of yourself and Solstice. And maybe… just maybe enjoying those dates with your mates."

I smiled faintly, my lips trembling. "Storm…"

But the line went dead.

I let out a long sigh, tucking the phone into my bag.

For a moment, everything around me felt alive again: the rustling leaves outside, the soft chatter of early students, the faint hum of life returning to campus.

For the first time in a while, things almost felt normal. Almost.

That illusion shattered the second I reached the school gates.

"Ash," I breathed, freezing mid-step as he appeared in front of me, blocking my path.

His golden eyes locked on mine, steady and unreadable. "We need to talk."

"Not now," I muttered, trying to step around him. But Ace appeared beside him, arms crossed, jaw tight.

I groaned. "Seriously? You two are doing this here?"

"Correction," Xade's deep voice rumbled from behind me. "All of us are."

I turned, and my stomach sank. There they were: Ash, Ace, Xade, Dristan, Axel, and Kai, closing in on me in perfect unison: six powerful men, six very annoyed wolves.

"Well," I said with a forced smile, "this is a nice ambush. I'm guessing this isn't about the hypnosis case?"

Dristan's smirk was sharp, but his eyes didn't carry any humour. "Damn right it's not."

Xade's tone was low. "What's this we hear about you changing your mind on the dates?"

I had faced worse before, but nothing… nothing terrified me quite like the fury burning in my mates' eyes when they thought I was slipping away from them. 𝕗𝗿𝕖𝐞𝐰𝗲𝕓𝐧𝕠𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝐨𝚖

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