Pursued silver falls uni.., p.1
Pursued: Silver Falls University 4, page 1
PURSUED
SILVER FALLS UNIVERSITY
M. SINCLAIR
LOST & BOUND PUBLISHING
IMPORTANT NOTE
Pursued is book 4 in the Silver Falls University series. Readers can find Lost, Forgotten, and Discovered (books 1-3 in the series) as part of the Kingdom of Wolves Universe Collection.
Please note, Lost, Forgotten, and Discovered should be read FIRST before Pursued in order to read the series in proper order. https://geni.us/SFU-1
Pursued: Silver Falls University #4
Copyright © 2023 by M. Sinclair in USA
All rights reserved.
No part of this publication may be reproduced/transmitted/distributed in any form. No part of this publication shall be shared by any means including photocopying, recording, or any electronic/mechanical method, or the Internet, without prior written consent of the author. Cases of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other non-commercial uses permitted by copyright law are the exception. The unauthorized reproduction/transmitting of this work is illegal. This book is a work of fiction and any resemblance to persons, living or dead, or places, events or locales is purely coincidental. The characters are products of the author’s imagination and used fictitiously.
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The Union of Love & Madness
CONTENTS
Description
Prologue
1. Effie Harlow
2. Effie Harlow
3. Effie Harlow
4. Ryder Bosu
5. Effie Harlow
6. Effie Harlow
7. Effie Harlow
8. Dakota Claymore
9. Effie Harlow
10. Effie Harlow
11. Caedmon Moroz
12. Effie Harlow
13. Effie Harlow
14. Julian De León
15. Effie Harlow
16. Effie Harlow
17. Tore Hansen
18. Effie Harlow
19. Effie Harlow
20. Effie Harlow
21. Effie Harlow
Author Note
What to read next!
M. Sinclair
Published Works
DESCRIPTION
Five broken alphas. One lost wolf. A fate she never expected.
I’d never looked into my past—never tried to discover what awaited me there.
Maybe I should have.
Mona’s arrival brought a whirlwind of possibility, even if her claim seemed impossible. How could I be her daughter? It was a moment of discovery quickly eclipsed by what she needed from me—why she had truly shown up at Silver Falls University.
Hastain, and others like him, were a threat to many, and the only way to stop them? True magic. Now my mates and I are on a mission to uncover the truth, all while being pursued by those bent on stopping us.
Those who want to shatter my snowglobe of happiness.
Join Effie Harlow on the second part of her journey at Silver Falls University.
This slow-burn reverse harem paranormal romance features five protective and possessive shifter mates that are bound and determined to keep Effie by their side, no matter what. To prove to her that she is so much more than anyone has ever tried to tell her she was. Will they be able to convince her of her place at Silver Falls and in their lives? Or will Effie get lost in the university crowds like she did back home?
Find out in this fourth installment of five in the Silver Falls University Series.
Warning: This PNR university-style RH will contain swearing, adult sexual content +18, elements of PTSD and mention of prior emotional, sexual, and physical abuse, violence, and additional darker themes. Minor cliffhanger warning.
Important Note: Pursued is book 4 in the Silver Falls University series. Readers can find Lost, book 1 of the series, as part of the Kingdom of Wolves Universe Collection. Please note, Lost should be read FIRST before Forgotten, Discovered, and Pursued in order to read the series in proper order. https://geni.us/Lost-SilverFallsUni
PROLOGUE
EFFIE HARLOW
My family was in danger.
I’d heard the words directly from the seer’s mouth. My heart was palpitating as I leaned against the stone wall right outside the grand ballroom, the celebratory feast in honor of my birthday going on inside. None of the happiness, the joy, or thankfulness I’d been feeling before mattered because now there was a looming cloud over the head of every single person I loved. My hand tightened on my throat as a nervous energy invaded my body.
It was my fault they were in danger. My fault.
Your daughter is in danger—she will bring danger to your entire family.
I knew my mom and dad would only hear the first part, but I was far more focused on the second part—the part where something I did, or maybe just who I was, would bring danger upon everyone. A tremble worked over my skin as thick tears began to crowd my lashes.
Distantly, someone called my name, and I knew I needed to go back in there—after all, this was my birthday feast. But now it felt like a shell of a celebration. I knew the threat was immediate or of major importance—or both—because the seer had pulled my parents out of the event to deliver the warning. I mean, if that didn’t say urgent, I wasn’t sure what did.
I should have stayed to listen to what type of danger, but I’d been so panicked that I’d missed that part while walking away. I needed to know, though. I needed to ask my parents. I had absolutely no clue how to fix this, but I would try.
“There you are. Little moon, what’s wrong?” My mom appeared in front of me, panic in her gaze as she captured my face between her palms.
“I heard what the seer said,” I whispered, confessing immediately, “about me bringing danger to our family.”
Understanding washed across her face. “Analise often has visions that occur years in the future, or of things that can be misunderstood. Right now she doesn’t even have a clear vision; this was just a feeling that was strong enough to spook her. I promise you, Effie, the only thing you bring to this family is joy and happiness. I don’t want you for one moment to think otherwise. Analise is just trying to keep us updated on everything her magic tells her.”
“You think so? You really think it’s not a big deal?” I wanted to believe her so badly, to let relief collapse over me, but I also knew there was a possibility she was just telling me that to make me feel better. I could see concern in her gaze still, I just didn’t know if it was because of how I was reacting or the situation itself.
“I promise, that is exactly what I think,” she confirmed, gently grabbing my hand and leading me into the ballroom. The guests welcomed us back and I let out a small sigh, trying to shake the dark moment from my mind. I still planned on practicing my own magic to help in case there was trouble, especially if it meant making my other forms emerge, but for today I would enjoy the beautiful party my parents were throwing me.
“Everything okay?” my dad asked as we reached the front of the room. I nodded as my mom said something about ‘telling him later,’ his wrinkled brow letting me know he was concerned. All too soon, though, our moment of privacy was interrupted as gods and goddesses alike approached our table to both wish me happy birthday and talk to my parents. I suppose it was one of the benefits of being their daughter—I got to sit and listen to everything quietly, and usually people forgot I was there since I was young.
I found most of what they were told fascinating, especially since I had never left the capital—something I hoped to change soon.
My gaze wandered as talk of civil wars in the eastern lands began, and I watched all of the couples on the dance floor waltz gracefully. I could never fathom how they moved so easily, how their dresses didn’t get caught under their feet. Every freakin’ time I had a dance lesson, that happened. Being graceful obviously wasn’t in my future…but maybe one day I would have a dance partner who was good enough to help me.
I nearly smiled at that. Now I was being really silly.
All of the girls my age, especially the ones in my tutoring classes, had started to talk about the boys they liked. They were from the capital, but since I rarely left the palace and everyone in my classes was female, I’d never met any of them. They argued about who liked who and if they would date one of them, and a bunch of other stuff I’d never thought of… Not that it mattered, I suppose. It wasn’t like I could date. That wasn’t in the cards for me—at least until I was like four hundred, according to my dad.
My thoughts were broken when the music suddenly stopped. The orchestra members were absolutely frozen in place, everyone staring at them in confusion—
Light burst out from the center of their group, and an ear-piercing screech sounded as I was tackled to the ground by my mom.
I whimpered as I hit the ground, my body being pushed under the table as screams echoed in the ballroom. I curled up further as my dad shouted something, leaving my mom and me hidden. Mom was trying to whisper something to me, but I couldn’t make out her words. My hearing went static as the room shook and rumbled with power.
The magic turned twisted and dark in the flash of a second, a presence entering the room that sent a chill over my skin. Sickness turned my stomach as I hugged my mom, her hand on my back and the fierce expression on her face not making me feel better. The room was darkening from the little I could see, and black fog seemed to be
My mom was gone.
“Mom!” I cried out, my pink magic surrounding me defensively as the room went absolutely silent. I knew something was terribly wrong because the quiet grew constrictive, and my chest felt heavy as icicles began to form underneath the table.
“Mom?” I whimpered. “Dad?”
A soft chuckle sounded, one that was filled with malice, and caused a terrified chill to roll over me. I curled further in on myself, squeezing my eyes shut and trying to focus all my magic on making me invisible—
The floor opened up underneath me, a scream tearing from my chest as my eyes snapped open.
The last thing I saw before falling into the darkness was an unfamiliar, victorious face.
1
EFFIE HARLOW
I’d never looked into my past—never tried to discover what awaited me there.
At least not to the extent that I could have. Of course I’d tried to ask Gerald or Theresa once or twice, but each inquiry had always been met with a negative response, to say the least. Although now that I knew more, I understood why they’d been so defensive.
It appeared that picking up children off the streets and selling them to the highest bidder was a habit of the Whitepaw pack. At least I had to assume that was the case since the way they had talked about it was so normalized. As if it was no big deal that the president of a university had purchased me for hundreds of thousands of dollars. Goddess. My stomach rolled at the thought.
There had been other times as well when I’d searched as far back as possible within my memories to find any clue as to where I’d come from, usually late at night in an attempt to ignore the crude comments coming from Gerald’s friends on the other side of the door. But each time I’d been met with an impenetrable wall, impossible to break through.
Then again, my old bedroom wasn’t exactly the best place to focus, the underlying fear for my safety always making my present take priority over my past. I had been far too focused on hiding from those intent on hurting me as well as those who had successfully hurt me.
Unfortunately, it now seemed my lack of effort was going to be the cause of far more chaos and confusion than I could have ever imagined.
Mona, the blue-haired woman from my dreams, was claiming that I was her daughter. The room had frozen at her declaration, with the exception of President Hastain who hung suspended against the wall by some type of invisible force. One that appeared to be suffocating him as he clawed at his throat, turning blue in the face. I could hardly focus on that, though, when Mona was continuing to stare at me with a soft affectionate smile that followed words that were so incredibly foreign.
A mating bond is sacred and should be celebrated, honored, far grander than this…especially for my daughter.
Her daughter. Mona was my mom. I couldn’t begin to process that. Not only that I’d found my mother, but that she was someone like Mona—the woman looked like a true goddess.
The ceiling of the room had turned transparent upon her arrival, the moon shining down and casting her in a silver glow—a moonbeam personified. A dress of silver stars and clouds surrounded her, flowing out and spreading throughout the room, casting it in a surreal, dream-like aura. Rather than making the room feel peaceful, though, the darkness fueled the rising tension as a nervous energy bubbled through the dining room behind me.
While I may have been stunned by the beauty of it, and it seemed like others were in a similar state, I could practically feel the bubble that would soon burst, causing the stupefaction to disappear.
That was when chaos would erupt.
Then again, maybe it would last. What did I know about true magic? All I recognized for sure was that this was what my mates had meant when they’d mentioned it before. Although, even if Hastain did have true magic, it wasn’t comparable to this.
A nervous panic began to crawl up my throat, feeling extremely overwhelmed as any bravery I had when I’d announced to everyone that Tore marked me disappeared and was replaced with caution and worry. I felt off-balance and had no idea what to say in the face of someone looking at me so expectantly.
A worried noise left my throat as my wolf whimpered and curled up inside me, staring at the woman claiming to be our mother in both anger and distrust. I understood why my wolf felt that way, especially if this was the woman who had abandoned us to the Whitepaw pack, but I couldn’t entertain those emotions. Not yet.
The noise that left me snapped my mates into action. They immediately turned and looked back at me in concern, from where I stood between Ryder and Caedmon. Confused murmurs filled the space as people began to pull from their shocked states, causing me to feel even more uneasy as the heavy weight of their gazes fell on me.
“You’re Effie’s mother?” Dakota’s voice pulled the attention from me, his commanding presence and demanding tone making me feel a sense of security and gratefulness for my mate, because he at least seemed to know the right questions to ask.
“Yes,” Mona said, far more casually than I thought was warranted in this situation. Luckily she didn’t appear to be bothered by his tone, but instead rather amused. It was clear she was powerful though, considering how she was holding Hastain hostage, making me feel that much more on edge. We needed to be more cautious with her.
Her gaze moved to Hastain, offering him a menacing glare. “I would have preferred a private meeting to tell Effie exactly that, but I had to step in before things grew more dire.”
Dire was a fantastic word for Hastain’s suggestion of forcibly breaking my mating bonds with my men along with the ties they held to each other as members of a blood-bonded pack. The thought made me feel almost dizzy, and thankfulness overshadowed all my questions, that this powerful woman—no matter who she was—seemed bent on stopping him from moving forward with it.
Not that my mates would let him.
“Who are you?” asked a deep, accented voice that vibrated with power. Ryder’s grandfather. His dark eyes were narrowed in distrust, and despite his youthful appearance, from the half-shaved hairstyle to the tattoos covering his neck and arms, his power and the painfully intense aura that surrounded him revealed his nearly ancient nature.
It didn’t help that he was seemingly livid. Something that stood out in comparison to the shock and fear that filled the rest of the room.
“Ojiisan, don’t.” Ryder’s soothing voice that always made me feel settled echoed through the space in warning. I wasn’t positive if that was his grandfather’s name or title, but it caused the older man to look at Ryder with anger before directing his attention back to Mona. Ryder didn’t like that, and I could feel the tension through his frame increase as I tried to move my body into action, wanting to comfort him.
My fingers slid against his arm, wrapping around his forearm. Ryder looked down at me, his gaze filled with concern and a tiny bit of fear. I didn’t know if it was because of his grandfather or Mona, though.
“Emiko,” Mona offered in greeting, making me think that was the man’s name. Then she smirked. “You know exactly who I am.”
It was clear he didn’t like her answer because immediately his eyes went wide and he spit out, “Impossible.” He broke into another language while looking down at his son, Ryder’s uncle, who stared down at the floor in contemplation…or maybe it was fear.
Swallowing down my nerves, I went to say something, knowing I needed to speak up—
The doors slammed shut.
I wasn’t sure when they’d been opened, but the shockingly loud noise had me looking towards the door. Caedmon’s father still faced them, the doors having closed right in his face as he’d tried to flee. He spun sharply to face Mona, his gaze darting to Hastain before moving back to her.
