OLENAA sharp sting landed on the back of my head, and I flinched forward before snapping my gaze up. Ava stood there grinning, her palm still hovering like she was proud of the slap. My head throbbed, but I clenched my jaw and shifted my eyes to Rubbie. She raked her gaze over me from head to toe, one brow arched like I was some kind of joke.“Wow, what’s gotten into you?” Ava drawled, her voice filled with mockery.Rubbie smirked, rubbing the side of her nose before stepping back with lazy confidence, her eyes never leaving mine. “Okay…” she breathed, as if already amused by whatever was about to happen.From the corner, another girl clicked her tongue. “Gosh, you’re gonna ruin that poor girl’s face,” she muttered, tilting her head toward me.“I can’t believe this fool even has the guts to challenge Rubbie,” someone else chimed in.“I swear, I feel like smacking the back of her head myself,” another voice cut in, laced with spite.Their words stabbed at me one after another, but I k
OLENAI stood behind the castle, my gaze caught on the cherry blossom tree swaying in the quiet breeze, its petals glowing like soft pink lanterns, but my mind wasn’t on the tree, it was on him.There’s no way I started that kiss, I muttered under my breath, heat rising in my chest, what the hell was I thinking? My eyes, traitorous as ever, slid to his soft pink lips and then up to those gentle eyes that seemed to pull me under no matter how hard I tried to look away.“Stop staring,” he said with a crooked smile, his voice low and teasing, but he didn’t move back.I dragged in a sharp breath, the cool air filling my lungs, but it didn’t calm the pounding in my chest. He didn’t even need to touch me to make me burn. Just standing there with his sharp jaw catching the light, his messy hair brushing his forehead, his whole damn presence and I mean every bit of him was enough to undo me. “Can I shock you?” he asked, his gaze still fixed on the tree as though it held secrets only he coul
ABRAHAMYes I was annoyed when I saw her in my room, my things thrown across the floor, but I couldn’t bring myself to lash out. I immediately gave orders to bring Medea into the castle even though she refusing to come down here, it’s strange how no one knows where she really stays, the slave quarters people whisper about are always empty whenever someone checks, she's so arrogant that it annoys me.“I thought you wouldn’t come,” I said, watching her dab a damp napkin against Olena’s sweaty forehead, her gaze sliding up to meet mine, her fingers tightening just slightly on the cloth as if daring me to push further.Medea locked her eyes on me, steady and unflinching, like she only wanted to prove she wasn’t afraid, and maybe she wasn’t, she was a witch after all and I had no choice but to respect that because Olena needed her more and her treatment couldn’t wait.She crushed herbs in her palm, the scent rising in the air as she pressed them gently to Olena’s lips, then lowered her he
OLENAI’d been stuck in this room all evening, slouched on the couch, staring at the walls like they might whisper a secret, but they never did so after a while I just sank deeper into the cushions though my chest kept nagging that I was being lazy, that I should at least push myself to look around, maybe even step into his room and see what he hides there.I dragged in a sigh and forced myself up, my legs heavy as if the air itself didn’t want me moving, and for a moment I wanted to just leave this place but I couldn't because he never said I should leave and I knew I had no choice but to wait here for him, praying Morgan wouldn’t show up first.“His life is so soulless,” Silvie muttered as I gave a slow nod, hand tightening on the doorknob, and with a faint creak I pulled the door open. “You were asking if he once had a slave,” Silvie.“He was lying, right?” I asked as I slipped into the room, shutting the door behind me with a soft click and turning the key until it locked.She hu
ABRAHAM POVI wanted to grab her hand and make her understand that losing her would shatter me, that I’d rather face death or crawl crippled through life than watch her slip away from my side but the words jammed in my throat. All I could do was release a long sigh before pushing myself to my feet, my chest heavy, fear gnawing at my ribs as I turned and forced my legs to carry me away even though every step felt like betrayal yes Alaric carries my blood, my younger brother by birth, but I could never see that power-hungry viper as family his envy has stalked me since childhood, always lurking in his eyes, and though my parents’ deaths rest like chains on my shoulders I know the truth it was my cursed blood, my imbalanced shifting inherited from our father’s line, that tore them from this world through me.We all believed I was healed, that the curse had finally broken after the endless rituals and bitter medicines, but that lie crumbled the day I lost control and shifted into the bea
OLENA POVAbraham Chambers.My whole body ached, pain throbbing in every limb as Abraham knelt beside me. He didn’t ask what I’d been doing at the vampire palace, he just got to work. His hands were steady, dipping cloth into a bowl of herbs as he pressed it against my torn skin.His face wore that usual mask of coldness yet there was something lighter in his eyes, almost like he was… concerned. I’d never seen him like this, and it unsettled me.“Do you need something to eat?” His voice was low, almost gentle, as he brushed the back of his hand across my forehead. His gaze softened with concern.I shook my head quickly, though hunger clawed at my insides. “No.”It felt strange, sitting there completely naked, and yet he didn’t look at me with lust, didn’t try to touch me in that way. Just calm, careful hands, moving from one wound to the next.He pressed another herb-soaked cloth to my knee, eyes flicking up to mine. “Silvie…”My breath caught. My eyes widened as I stared at him.“Tha