ANMELDENChapter 14.2Nessa’s POVThe sunlight streaming across my face was the first thing I noticed when I woke up. I didn’t know why, but I felt much lighter this morning, even though I knew a major problem was waiting for us because of the High Court and those old wolves. When I went downstairs to the kitchen, I was immediately greeted by the smell of burning garlic. My forehead creased. It smelled like slightly burnt garlic, but there was also a hint of mint and forest. Wait. What was that scent? It smelled just like Matthew.“Matthew, what are you doing over there?” I asked with a soft laugh as I leaned against the kitchen doorway.The apron looked ridiculously small on him, barely fitting his enormous frame. He was holding a large spatula as if he had an enemy inside the frying pan he was about to strike. Across from him, Mama stood with her hands on her hips, shaking her head, while Klien stood seriously beside them with a notepad in his hand, looking as though he were documenting a re
Chapter 14.1Matthew’s POVI breathed heavily.“Look at her, Matthew. She looks so beautiful beneath the moonlight,” Match whispered inside my mind, his hyperactive energy completely settling into a soft, protective rumble. “Our Luna has suffered too much. The diner, the cold nights, the fear… we must make sure she never cries again. If the High Court tries to touch our family, we will show them why we wear the crown.”“I know, Match. I know,” I thought back, tightening my embrace around Nessa’s soft waist as she finally fell into a deep, peaceful sleep beside me.Her sweet vanilla scent was the only thing holding back the dark abyss of rage that Klien’s report had opened in my chest. A biological weapon. A curse. That was what Elder Vance was planning to call my boy. The traditionalist faction was terrified of Zarek’s awakening, and because they could not control his hybrid strength, they chose to brand him a monster.I looked at her pale, delicate shoulder, where my golden mark was
Chapter 14Nessa’s POVIt was difficult to breathe in this mansion when you knew the whole truth. After our conversation in the dining hall with Zarek and Klien, my chest felt even tighter. A biological weapon? The child I had raised through countless sleepless nights, exhaustion, and the little money I earned from baking bread was suddenly being called a poison? Those High Court council members had some nerve. I couldn’t stop my hands from trembling with anger as I stood on the spacious balcony of the mansion. It was already late at night, and the noise of Manhattan below seemed unable to reach this place, swallowed by the overwhelming tension surrounding us.“Nessa,” a deep, hoarse voice broke through my silence.Matthew. I didn’t even need to turn around to know it was him. The warmth of his aura slowly crept over my skin, enveloping my entire body even before he touched me. He had just taken a shower and was wearing a simple gray shirt that looked ready to burst against the sheer
Chapter 13Zarek’s POVThe air in the house always smelled different after a storm. Back in Queens, the rain just made the asphalt steam, bringing up the scent of old grease from the diner and wet exhaust from the city buses. But here, overlooking the green expanse of Central Park, the air tasted of high altitude, clean glass, and the thick, heavy static of my father’s royal aura.I sat at the long dining table, my tablet open to an advanced astrophysics lecture I was supposed to be reviewing for my accelerated college credits. But my mind wasn’t on the equations. It couldn’t be.Ever since the full moon passed last night, my inner wolf, Sexton, had been pacing a tight, restless circle right behind my ribs. His paws felt sharp, his silver fur bristling against my consciousness every time a door opened or a floorboard creaked down the hall. He was waiting. We were both waiting.“You are staring at the same page for ten minutes, Prince,” Klien said, stepping into the dining hall with a
Chapter 12Matthew’s POV“Go to her, Matthew. The wall in your head is making her sad. I can feel her spirit shivering through the bond,” Match whimpered inside my mind, his massive golden form pacing restlessly across the spiritual plane of our shared consciousness.“She thinks we are pulling away again. She thinks we are the same ghost from six years ago. Go hold her. Let her smell the forest.”“I am going, Match,” I thought back, my footsteps making no sound as I walked down the quiet marble hallway of the mansion.The heavy leather-bound scroll from Klien was still sitting on the desk in my study, its dark crimson seal feeling like a physical weight burning through the wood. A biological weapon. That was what the High Court was calling my son. A lethal toxin to any werewolf who didn’t possess the pure Royal Alpha bloodline. The traditionalist elders were preparing to turn the entire Lycan world against my family, and the mere thought of it made a low, dangerous growl rattle deep i
Chapter 11Nessa’s POVI breathed a sigh of relief when the heavy doors of the grand salon finally closed. Damn, I felt like I was choking on air while standing in front of those High Court elders. They were so fake and arrogant, but I felt even more breathless when Matthew blocked my view again.He was wearing a black silk shirt, his hair still messy, and he looked like he could walk around naked without giving a damn about the world. And now that our enemies were gone, the intense embarrassment returned to my chest. I don’t know why, but my face suddenly felt like it was on fire when I remembered what we had done last night under the full moon. Every touch of his, every whisper inside my mind… damn, I felt like running away from this man again and hiding under the sink.“Mom, your pulse is racing again,” Zarek remarked through our telepathy, clearly teasing me as he walked back toward the kitchen. “And no, it’s not because of Elder Vance.”“Zarek, shut up if you don’t want me to thr







