LOGINXlynor’s POVI woke up feeling… strange. Usually, after a night when my demons surfaced, I woke up in agony—like my body had been ripped apart and crudely stitched back together.Sometimes the demons wouldn’t even fully release control. I would wake up half-conscious. But this time, I felt weak, yet oddly… stable.My mind struggled to piece together what had happened, then a voice cut through my thoughts.“Ohh… the reckless demon is finally awake now.”I jerked upright as my gaze snapped forward, meeting Ivara's eyes.She looked awful, with dark circles under her eyes and messy hair. She looked like she hadn’t slept a wink.My gaze traveled downward, and then I realized something horrifying. I had been lying on her. Not beside her. On her! Like I had used her as a pillow.“What the—” I immediately scrambled off her. “What the hell?!”She gave me a fake smile, then shrugged. “I guess I’m no use anymore.”“I've been waiting all night for you to wake up — or at least let go of me.” Her t
Ivara’s POVXlynor kissed me, possessively and hungrily, like he was starving, and I was the only thing keeping him alive.His hand tangled in my hair, holding me in place and heat spread through my body despite my terror.His mouth moved against mine with a desperate intensity that made my knees weak. Whatever demon had possessed Xlynor was kissing me like I belonged to it.The moment my mind caught up with what was happening, a sudden rage exploded inside me and I shoved him with all the strength I had.He staggered back, just a step while my palm swung before I could even think.The sound of my palm meeting his cheek echoed through the empty hall.“You—!” My voice shook violently as I wiped my lips with the back of my hand again and again like I could erase what had just happened. “What the hell is wrong with you?!”My chest heaved. “What made you think you could just— just kiss me?! How dare you?” I flared as I kept wiping my lips in disgust.No man had ever touched me that way… e
Ivara’s POVSomething was wrong, terribly wrong. II had never seen Xlynor like that before. He was always composed, cold, and calculated.Even when he was angry, it was controlled anger.But right now? He was breaking—he looked like he was in pain.I was still trying to understand what was happening to him when his eyes started flickering.Not shifting like a normal wolf’s — flickering. Gold, black, crimson, silver. Too fast. Like something was glitching beneath his skin.I froze, my gaze dropping to his hand. His hand was still holding my palm against his face… but it didn’t feel the same anymore.His fingers elongated as claws slowly pushed out beneath his nails.I gasped and jerked my hand back.Even his skin was slowly losing color and black veins crept up his wrist, spreading beneath his skin like poison.My heart slammed against my ribs. “Xlynor…”He didn't answer.When our eyes met again, he looked like he was struggling, and then he forced one word out through clenched teeth.
Xlynor's POVI didn’t mean to fall asleep.I had been sitting at the edge of the bed and watching her sleep. That was all. Just watching.Somewhere between watching her and drowning in thoughts, darkness overtook me. The kind I avoided for years.Sleep was never kind to me. It was a gateway. A corridor my demons loved to drag me through… even though they didn’t mean to.It was part of the curse, so I trained myself to function without it. Sometimes I went days without closing my eyes.But now, this was the second time in years I had slept that deeply. The first time was the night I found her at the lake — the day I brought her here.Her scent had wrapped around my mind and silenced the chaos, so I slept soundly.I would’ve still been sleeping if she hadn’t suddenly screamed.I jolted upright instantly, my heart slamming violently against my ribs as instinct took over.My gaze snapped toward the bed.She was scrambling backward and trembling violently, her silver hair disheveled and he
Xlynor's POVI felt it even before I woke up. I was holding something warm. No. I had my left arm wrapped tightly around it and pressing it against me like it was the air I needed to survive.Wait, warm? That alone was wrong.I never felt anything on days like this. I never even had thoughts or a mind of my own. My demons never allowed it.So why was I… calm?A sharp pain split across my skull the second I tried to move, and a hiss left my throat as I pressed a hand to my temple.What the hell happened?The room smelled of blood. And something else, something familiar, addictive, and intoxicating, which surprisingly left me calm.I forced my eyes open and scanned around.One of the chandeliers hanging on the ceiling above me had fallen, and the bulbs were not steady. They kept blinking.How did I get out of the chains that had bound me upstairs? How did I get to the lounge?I shifted slightly and the warmth in my arms moved.My brows furrowed and the moment I turned left, I froze.Her
Ivara's POVI didn’t know why my hands were shaking so badly.Maybe it was the way Zoya had smiled at me before dropping me off. That smile had been too sweet — sweet enough to turn sinister.She had forced me to come to the castle after I bluntly refused. She said it was important. That I had to deliver ceremonial robes for the wolf hunt to Xlynor.When I asked why she couldn't take them herself, she explained that Xlynor never took anything from her and, since we were close, perhaps I could speak to him.The castle loomed in front of me, the sight of it making my skin crawl. The air felt thick and wrong while my skin prickled as if unseen fingers brushed against me.Today was the Red Moon. Everyone knew the red moon brought chaos and, from the way I felt, I was going to be its victim.The moment I crossed the threshold and walked through the gates, something shifted in the air — like I had walked into a trap… maybe my own death.The gates slammed shut behind me. I flinched and turne
Ivara's POVCleaning felt ten times harder. I couldn’t move. I couldn’t even think. All that occupied my mind was my encounter with Xlynor.Everything seemed weird and absurd to me. Why was I so free with him, to even stay relaxed and let him touch me?The worst part wasn’t that he touched me… it wa
Xlynor's POVI had no intention of actually touching that mark at the back of her neck but then, after I pulled off the scarf, I didn't expect to see that it had actually increased in size.The last time I saw it, back then in the training hall, it was too tiny, almost invisible, and now it had sudd
Ivara's POV“Damn.” I groaned, my face scrunched up in pain.I had woken up with this strange pain at the back of my neck. At first, I thought it was the way I slept, but then it didn't seem like it. It felt more like I had hurt myself while sleeping or something had bitten me.Thankfully, Granny Jo
Xlynor's POVI sat behind the mahogany desk in my study, a thick cigar resting in the slim black holder between my fingers.I didn't like touching cigars directly. I preferred the distance.I flipped the pages of the book in my hands, my gaze focused as I scanned every line.“We've gone through over







