The Crucial Shift (The Ariane Trilogy Book 3)

  The Ariane Trilogy

  Book 3

  A bond sealed. A new reality. A pack war.

  Since she met Orion, Ariane’s life had been anything but calm. With the threat of war looming only days away, ensuring victory for the Avynwood Pack was her primary focus. Some of her new friends would lose their lives in the fight, a fact she already accepted.

  But what if along the way, she uncovered new details about herself? What if becoming Orion’s mate revealed more than she ever imagined possible?

  A new shifter was in town, and she was thirsty for revenge.

  Contents

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  Epilogue

  The story will continue…

  Other Books by Michelle Dare

  About the Author

  The Crucial Shift

  Copyright ©2018 Michelle Dare

  Cover Design & Photography by ©MaeIDesign and Photography

  Interior Design by Down Write Nuts

  Editing by Barren Acres Editing

  Proofreading by Landers Editorial Services, Tiffany Landers

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, resold, or transmitted in any form without written permission from the copyright holder, except by a reviewer who may quote brief passages for review purposes.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are a product of the author’s imagination. If the location is an actual place, all details of said place are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to businesses, landmarks, living or dead people, and events is purely coincidental.

  The unauthorized reproduction or distribution of a copyrighted work is illegal. Criminal copyright infringement, including infringement without monetary gain, is investigated by the FBI and is punishable by up to five years in federal prison and a fine of $250,000.

  All copyrights are held by Michelle Dare and have not been transferred to any other individual. Sharing or posting of this material in any group is considered copyright infringement and will be reported to the authorities. Criminal and civil charges will be pursued for damages.

  Created with Vellum

  1

  My aunt is the Quivakond alpha’s mate? Just when I think I have a handle on things, everything spins out of control again. Never would I have thought, when Rion and I decided to drive to Pennsylvania, we would uncover this.

  “Are you a shifter?” I ask her. There’s no point in beating around the bush here. Either she is or she isn’t.

  Zayda takes a seat beside me. Her long, blonde hair lies over her slender shoulders. “I am.”

  “Get out! I had no idea. Mom didn’t know you could shift. She said the line stopped. That neither you nor Dad could shift.”

  “She didn’t know. Neither did your father. I never told them. I thought it would keep everyone safer that way.” Taking my hand in hers, she says, “I’m so sorry about your dad, Ari.”

  “I wish you could have been there.”

  “Did you give him a proper send-off?” she asks as tears well in her eyes.

  “Yes.” That’s all I can say. Anything else would end with me sobbing again and I don’t want to cry anymore. I’ve cried enough to last me many years.

  “You look so much like your mom,” Zayda says while holding my eyes.

  “Hold on,” Merrick, the Quivakond alpha, cuts in with his gruff voice. “You told me in the forest that Travis killed your father. So you’re saying your father is my mate’s brother and that my brother killed him?”

  I nod. “He didn’t kill him directly but sent his men to do so. Travis doesn’t seem to like getting his hands dirty. He’d rather have others do it for him.”

  “I’m going to murder him,” he growls as his eyes flash emerald green.

  “You’re going to have to get in line,” Rion interjects. “His pack killed my parents and my mate’s father. If anyone is going to end him, it will be me.”

  “Not if I have anything to do with it,” Zayda growls. “I can’t believe it was them who did this. I only knew of his passing in a car accident, not what caused it.”

  There is so much angry wolf in this room. Maybe swaying Merrick’s pack to our side won’t be so hard after all.

  “Okay, we all understand each other. We each want to kill him,” I add. “How about everyone grabs a limb and we pull?” No, it’s not the time to joke, but I can’t help it. The air is heavy with tension and I need to break it.

  “Ari, be serious,” Zayda states.

  “Oh, I am. Think of the pain we could inflict if we rip his limbs from his body. I’m not the same girl you remember. We haven’t seen each other in years. I’m not as weak as I once was.”

  “Or as vulnerable,” Rion adds.

  Zayda and Merrick both study me for a second. “You’re a wolf, too?” she asks.

  I shake my head. “No, but I can teleport. I also have the strength of a vampire and am hard to kill. The only way is to chop off my head. Everything else I’ll heal from. Oh, and I can transfer my memories to anyone. And I’m a dream watcher, but that’s been pretty boring lately. No premonitions recently.” I knock on the wooden table. I’m not superstitious. However, you never know. I’m not in the mood to go traipsing through the woods again anytime soon.

  “How?” she gasps.

  “Well, the watcher part I got on my own, same with the memory transfer thing. The other stuff was given to me by a vampire.”

  “Ford Verascue is her best friend,” Merrick states and crosses his arms.

  She shakes her head. “June must be having a field day with you.”

  “Nah, Mom pretty much leaves me be.”

  My stomach growls again, reminding me I haven’t eaten in hours. The drive up to eastern Pennsylvania was long and we only stopped a few times.

  Zayda stands. “Let me get you some food. I’ll be right back.”

  After she leaves the room, Merrick turns to us. “You’re welcome to stay here for as long as you like. Though we’ll have to move your car before someone at the park gets curious as to why hikers haven’t returned.”

  Rion stands. “Tell me where to put it and I’ll do so.”

  Merrick gives him directions where to drive around Jacobsburg State Park to get to the hidden entrance to the pack’s garage, where they store their vehicles. It sounds more like a parking deck to me. I offer to teleport him, but he said it would be good to stretch his legs some more after the drive. His wolf doesn’t like to be cooped up that long.

  Rion leaves, and I’m alone with Merrick. He studies me for a moment, appearing as if he’s seeing right into my soul. His thick arms are still crossed, the red flannel shirt he’s wearing pulling taut. “Zayda used to tell me stories about you when you were younger.”

  “I haven’t seen her in a long time. I thought she was still living in California.”

  “We only got together a few years ago. I’d gone three hundred years w
ithout finding my mate, and then I stumbled upon her on the West Coast. I knew she was a shifter right away, but she was timid, not used to being around others like her.”

  “I can’t believe she lived out there all alone for so long. She must have been frightened, being a wolf and not having a pack to support her.” My poor aunt. She didn’t want to come back to North Carolina, thinking it would put us all in danger. So she lived the life of a lone wolf. How isolating.

  Merrick nods. “After your grandmother died, Zayda didn’t have anyone who understood her issues, so she dealt with them alone, the best she could. She stayed across the country, not wanting to head toward your father. She was afraid of what might happen if she revealed herself as a wolf. Once we discovered we were mates, it was easy to get her back here. I already had my pack in place.”

  “I’m surprised my dad stayed in North Carolina, to be honest. I would have run as far away from Travis as I could.”

  “It’s where he was born and raised. It’s what he knew. Besides, his wife—your mom—is from there as well.” Still… My butt would have left. Given up everything I’d known if it meant getting away from that tyrant of a shifter.

  “Travis left them alone until recently. I’m guessing that me having a shifter for a boyfriend changed everything.”

  He runs his hand through the top of his brown hair. It brushes his shoulders in length. Normally, I’m not big on men with long hair. I prefer Rion’s shorter locks. But with Merrick, it makes him all the more intimidating.

  “You came here to ask for my help, correct?” he asks. “You and your mate want my pack to back you in this war. To fight alongside you and help defeat my brother.” Here we go. I have to do whatever I can to get them on our side. Not only because he’s Travis’ brother, but because having another wolf pack aligned with us would be very beneficial.

  “Yes. The more we can get on our side, the better. It’s not going to be easy, but we’re trying to get all the help we can to sway the odds in our favor.”

  “You have others who’ve already chosen to fight for you?”

  I nod. “Vampires, mages, a few fae, and other shifters. But Travis has a group, too. He has almost all the foxes, thanks to Ford killing one of them.” He quirks an eyebrow. Guess I better give him the rundown. “The fox was going to kill my human friend, and instead, Ford killed her. She was working for Travis. So I grabbed her drained body and teleported her back to Travis, where I left her carcass in front of his house. Of course, that was also when I found out that the fox had poison in her. Once Ford drank from her, it poisoned him, too, but he’s fine now.”

  “You’re pretty cocky, my dear.”

  “No, I’m not. I’m angry and hurt. I’ve reached a point where I’m tired of waiting for this war to happen. I want my shot at Travis. I want him removed from this world, along with anyone who sides with him. Paranormals shouldn’t be afraid to come into North Carolina. They should be able to freely travel through it, or reside there, without having to worry about a pack of wolves coming after them. They shouldn’t have to seek refuge in the Avynwood Forest.”

  It boils my blood to think of what would happen if Travis wins. It will only be the start, too. He’ll go after other states, and more paranormals will lose their lives. All because Travis is on a power trip of epic proportions. He needs to be taken down.

  “I agree, but we’re not dealing with your average shifter. We’re dealing with one that’s power hungry and won’t stop until he’s claimed the entire state.”

  “And then what?” I ask. “If you don’t help us, if others refuse, he’ll move on after he takes the Avynwood land. He’ll want more. And who knows where he’ll go next?”

  “You’re right. And that’s why I’m siding with you. That and the fact that he killed my mate’s brother. You’ll have the backing of me and my pack.”

  I immediately sit up straighter, trying to hold back a smile. “Really?”

  “Absolutely, just don’t tell anyone outside your pack we’re coming. I want to see the look on my brother’s face when he lays eyes on me standing on the other side from him.” If only he knew how grateful I am that he just agreed to side with us. How close I am to jumping out of my seat and hugging him. He doesn’t seem like the affectionate type, so I’ll keep myself planted where I am.

  “Don’t worry,” I say. “I hadn’t planned on it. I’m hoping him seeing you throws him off his game and gives us an advantage.”

  He strokes his beard in thought. “There’s a group of fae not far from here in the Poconos. I wonder if I can get them to join us. They’re an older group—ancient magic. They might not want to get their hands dirty, or they might be bored and want to have some fun. They like to cause mischief, those fae.”

  I smile wickedly. “Mischief can be fun.”

  Merrick laughs loudly as Zayda comes back with a tray of food. “I only have sandwiches for now until dinner is served.”

  “That’s fine. I’ll take anything at this point. I’m about to chew off my arm. We didn’t stop often on the way up here. We wanted to get here sooner rather than later.” I lift a ham and cheese sandwich, my mouth watering. “Thank you.”

  “You’re welcome.” She smiles and sits down beside her mate. “I’m surprised you didn’t teleport up here. It would have been safer, given who is after you.”

  Swallowing the first bite of food, my stomach is slightly appeased. “We had people keeping a lookout for us. Travis and his pack weren’t anywhere near us when we left. I didn’t want to teleport, though. After all that’s happened with my dad, Cace, Wake, Ford, etcetera, I needed a break.”

  “Cace and Wake are wolves in your pack?” Merrick asks. “I haven’t kept up with the business of other packs.”

  Emotion begins to clog my throat at the mention of Cace. “Yes, Cace was killed by Javen.” I leave off the part of it being my fault. I can’t go down that road right now. And with what everyone told me about Cace, he wouldn’t want me to. “And Wake is Aries’ son. He was ousted by the pack, thanks to a vampire bite, then went to the Diaminsey Pack in revenge. But once they discovered he was helping me, they kicked him out and left him near death. I had to work hard to get him back into the Avynwood Pack.”

  “A vampire bit Aries’ son?” Merrick asks, shocked.

  I nod. “No one knew it at the time or until years later. We only found out when Ford and I dug into his head and broke down a tough wall the vampire built so we couldn’t discover what he’d done. But between the two of us, we handled it and saw what really happened.”

  “Let me guess. Travis?”

  I point at him. “Bingo.”

  A boy, who is probably around sixteen years old or so, strides into the room. He’s got sandy colored hair and dimples when he smiles. “Who’s the hottie?” he asks, while picking up a sandwich from the table.

  “Your cousin,” Zayda replies, very matter-of-fact.

  The boy starts to choke on the sandwich, coughing and sputtering, spitting it onto the floor. “My... What?”

  “Ladon, this is Ariane, your cousin.”

  “You have a son?” I ask, astonished. “Where did you hide him the last time I saw you?” It’s been a long time, but I would have remembered having a cousin.

  “With his dad. He’s human, and so is Ladon. His dad doesn’t know about the other part of me. He knows I’m living out here with Merrick but thinks we’re hippies surviving off the land.”

  “Get out! I have a cousin.”

  Ladon’s face is a lovely shade of red. “A cousin who wishes he could take the hottie comment back.”

  “Don’t stress. We’re fine,” I tell him. “Too bad you can’t shift.”

  “I wish I could. Can you?”

  I shake my head. “I do have a vampire friend who could maybe make you one of his kind, though,” I add before taking another bite of the sandwich.

  “Ariane Sanderly,” Zayda admonishes. “You will not help my son become a vampire.”

  I shrug. “I
was only saying it’s an option.”

  There go Merrick’s eyes glowing green again. “He will not let a vampire suck on his neck.”

  Pointing at my mouth, I say, “If you haven’t already figured it out, I don’t have much of a filter. My smart mouth goes along with my sassy attitude.”

  Merrick grumbles something unintelligible as Zayda lays a comforting hand on his arm, attempting to calm his wolf down. All the while, Ladon is looking at me like he won the cousin lottery by me bringing up the option of him turning vampire.

  Rion enters the room, stuffing his keys into his pocket. “The Jag is tucked safely in the fortress known as the Quivakond garage.” No one laughs or even acknowledges he’s here outside of me. His eyes hold mine as he reads my thoughts. “Ari, you can’t go around offering to change people into vampires. Who knows if Ford would even agree to that?”

  “I was only giving the kid an option.”

  He shakes his head and takes a seat beside me.

  “Wait,” Ladon states. “You’re barely a little older than me and you have a mate already? That’s not fair.” He drops down in the chair in front of him, sulking.

  I laugh. “You think it’s fun being a human and having a shifter for a mate? The stories I could tell you.”

  “Ari,” Rion warns.

  “What? It’s not like this ride was all roses and rainbows so far.”

  Zayda cuts in, “Ladon, what have I told you? If fate wants you to have a shifter for a mate, then you will, but the time isn’t right yet. You’re still young. It could be years before you find someone.”