CHAPTER 85
JULIAN’S POV
HUMAN CITY!
The city pulsed like a living, breathing thing—lights buzzing overhead, cars streaming past in colorful blurs, music floating through the air like smoke. I wasn’t used to this kind of noise, this kind of rhythm. It wasn’t the wildness of the forest, but it had its own… hum. Raven, on the other hand, was already glowing.
“Julian!” she called, tugging at my hand as we passed a crowded sidewalk. “Look!”
A street artist was crouched low, spraying swirls of color across a massive canvas sprawled on the pavement. With a few flicks of his wrist, he brought to life a galaxy—stars, nebulae, wolves howling into the void. He worked fast, smearing and scraping like he wasn’t even thinking. Just moving.
Raven crouched beside him, eyes wide. “This is magic.”
CHAPTER 91BLINDING LIGHT!I woke to the sound of murmuring voices.The bag was gone. My wrists were raw but unbound. I sat in what looked like a stone bunker—dimly lit, the air cool and damp.Julian was beside me, sitting against the wall, a shallow cut on his cheek and blood on his collar. But his eyes found mine the second I stirred, and his shoulders relaxed.“You good?” he asked quietly.“Define ‘good’, ” I croaked.Before he could answer, the door creaked open. A woman entered first—tall, silver hair pulled into a braid down her back. Her eyes were sharp, but not cruel. Behind her came a large male, broad-shouldered, with an aura that screamed alpha even though he wore no mark.Neither of them looked like rogues. They looked like soldiers.&ldq
CHAPTER 90THE FOURTH KNOCK DIDN’T COME.Instead, the door handle jiggled.My breath hitched. Julian held up a hand—wait—and stepped forward soundlessly, his body blocking mine as he neared the door. The knife glinted in his hand, his stance steady, but I could feel the tension rippling off him like heat."Housekeeping," the voice said again, louder now. But there was no cheer in it, sounded more like mockery.Julian moved with purpose, pulling a heavy-looking chair from the corner and jamming it beneath the door handle in one motion. He didn’t speak—just grabbed my wrist, his grip firm but careful, and pulled me toward the bathroom."What are we…"He opened the window.We were on the second floor. Not high enough to kill us, but high enough to hurt. My stomach sank.
CHAPTER 89EDGE OF NO RETURN.That's where I was.It was just my name—but the way she said it, soft and broken open, stripped me bare.Her hand slid up my chest again, hesitant but deliberate, tracing the lines of my collarbone, my throat. Her thumb brushed my jaw, lingering at the corner of my mouth.Every instinct roared to life. Yet again!Take her.Mark her.Make her yours.I caught her wrist gently, holding her hand against my heart. "Careful," I whispered hoarsely. "You're playing with fire."She bit her bottom lip—that soft, pink mouth driving me out of my mind—but she didn’t pull away. Instead, she leaned closer, so close I could count the faint freckles across her nose."I'm not afraid of burning," she said, her voice trembling but sure.
CHAPTER 88TIME STOPPED!Then…She looked at me. I looked at her.And we absolutely lost it.Raven doubled over, laughing so hard she wheezed. I leaned against the counter, wiping tears from my eyes."Did it just fart at you?" I gasped."I am a grown woman!" she cried between hysterical fits. "And that was the funniest thing I've ever heard!"Still snorting, she turned back to the griddle—and promptly fumbled the spatula, flipping one of the pancakes right onto the floor with a dramatic splat.We both stared at it. Dead silence settling between us.Then Raven placed a hand over her heart, solemn as a priest. "A tragedy," she intoned. "A tragedy of Shakespearean proportions."I barked out a laugh so loud it startled the birds outside.&n
CHAPTER 87THOUGHT IT WAS A DREAM!I thought that the hum of distant traffic, the muted voices from the hallway, the faint creak of old hotel pipes were just scraps of sleep clinging to me. But then I opened my eyes and saw him.Julian.He was standing by the small closet, back tense, tossing shirts into a bag with sharp, efficient movements. The early morning light slanted through a crack in the curtains, washing his silhouette in a cold, colorless glow.My stomach tightened.I sat up slowly, the sheets rustling under me. "Julian?" My voice came out scratchy with sleep.He didn’t look at me. Just shoved another piece of clothing into the duffel and zipped it halfway. Then, he tossed a hoodie at me. "Get dressed. We’re leaving."The cold finality in his tone snapped the last remnants of sleep from my mind.
CHAPTER 86RAVEN'S POVTHE MOMENT FADED AWAY, like snow on a sunny day.Julian’s hand tightened around mine—subtle, firm, but urgent.Without a word, he pulled me forward, scanning the street with a sharpness that set every nerve in me alight. When he spotted a cab idling half a block down, he lifted his free hand and whistled, quick and low.The yellow car jerked into motion, tires squeaking slightly against the curb. Julian opened the door, practically ushering me inside before sliding in after me.“RavenStone Hotel,” he told the driver.The car pulled off into traffic, and only then did I allow myself to breathe.I turned to him. “Julian. What the hell is going on?”He stared straight ahead, jaw tight, shoulders rigid with tension. “Nothing.”