My eyelids felt unbearably heavy, begging for sleep, but I couldn’t afford to give in. Meanwhile, my phone battery had already died, and if William didn’t show up, I wouldn’t be able to call for help anymore. Had I made the right choice by calling him?I dragged myself forward a few inches, forcing the wound to throb with pain again. Pain was the only thing keeping me awake. The wind had begun to turn cold, a sign that afternoon would soon give way to another dark, freezing night.Just as my eyes started to close again, I heard footsteps approaching at high speed. Before I could react, a massive wolf with reddish-brown fur appeared before me. My heart pounded in my chest, snapping me out of the daze I had been sinking into. A mix of emotions churned in my stomach, making my anxiety spike.I lifted my gaze, and the moment our wolves’ eyes met, he dropped the bag he had been carrying in his mouth. His scent in wolf form was even stronger, sending a jolt through me because of this damned
It was warm and cozy. I pulled the blanket closer, refusing to open my eyes as someone poked me."Eliza, wake up. You need to take your medicine." A gentle, soothing voice spoke calmly to me. I immediately opened my eyes and sat up abruptly as the events from earlier rushed back. I should be in a forest, not in a soft bed in some unfamiliar room. The only light in the room came from a lamp on a nightstand beside where Annie was sitting."Ouch!" A sharp pain shot through my stomach from the sudden movement. I looked down at my belly and noticed I was wearing a pink nightgown."I cleaned you up and got you dressed," Annie explained, noticing the confusion on my face. "What happened to you?""Didn't William tell you?" If I was with Annie, he must've explained something."No." She lowered her head, looking sad. She seemed worried. "He brought you in late last night and asked me to take care of you and give you your medicine on time. He told me you were the one who needed to explain what h
“How did you defeat the monster?” he asked me for the tenth time, with endless patience. I refused to answer him again, but it seemed like he was willing to spend the entire day doing this.“How did you defeat the monster?” he asked again a few more times before my patience finally ran out. I decided to play along and see where this would go.“By ripping its head off, of course!” It was an obvious question since that was the only way to kill a shadow monster. He smiled, knowing he had won this round, and kept going.“And how did you manage to do that?”“By biting down hard and tearing it off, obviously!” I gave him a sarcastic smile.“I’m in no rush. Let’s try this again, shall we?”“It’s just a matter of observation, planning, and moving quickly at the right moment,” I explained before he could repeat the question. “The fight didn’t even last a minute. Monsters can be incredibly strong because they show a certain level of intelligence, adapting to our movements and learning to defend
"I think you were a little harsh on him," my wolf whispered inside me. How could she pity that idiot? She should be worried about me!"I can’t stand him!" I shouted, releasing some of the anger and pain that were consuming me. I was still in tears when the door opened again a few moments later. It was Marta, holding a tray of food in her hands."Sweetie, what happened?""Marta, please get me out of here!" I begged between sobs."Sweetheart, I can’t. I have to follow orders. Did William hurt you?""Kind of..." I didn’t want to talk about it with her. It wasn’t like she was going to take my side anyway."Well, I was told to bring you a meal and make sure you eat.""And how exactly do you expect me to eat like this?" I was lying down, my hands cuffed to the headboard. Marta walked closer and gently adjusted the pillows, allowing my head to be slightly more elevated."Sorry, this is all I can do for now." She placed the tray on the nightstand, picked up a bowl of soup, and brought the spo
Annie snuggled up beside me on the bed, searching for the right words in her mind:"I met Liam in middle school. Even though I had good grades, I wasn’t very popular. One time, I absentmindedly bumped into him, and he kindly reached out his hand to help me pick up my books from the floor. When I found out Liam was part of the music club, I signed up just to be around him, even though I wasn’t very good. We ended up becoming good friends.In our last year of middle school, Liam got it in his head that he wanted to start a band, so I supported him and helped however I could. But we were missing two members—someone who could sing well and someone who was good at playing guitar.""And Nicolas fit both requirements," I guessed."Yeah, but convincing him to join wasn’t easy. I’ve known Nicolas since we were kids, and he’s always been really reserved. When he was little, he used to come to this house to play with William. But William has always been outgoing and friendly, so as he made more
I wouldn’t be able to sleep without calling my grandma first and letting her know I was okay. I grabbed my phone, ignoring the flood of notifications coming in, and dialed her number.“Hello! Eliza, sweetheart.”“Grandma, it’s me. Sorry for spending the night out without telling you.”“Sweetheart, don’t worry. Annie told me you dozed off by accident. It’s all good! Spending time with friends is important too. But is it okay for you to call me right now? Shouldn’t you be at school?”“Grandma, I wasn’t feeling well, so I didn’t go.”“What’s wrong? Do you need anything?”“Just a stomachache. Don’t worry, Annie and her mom are taking great care of me. She even skipped school today because of me.”“Sweetheart, I’ll come pick you up.”“No need, Grandma. I’ll be fine soon, you’ll see! Can I stay here with Annie for a few days?”“Any particular reason?”“Girl stuff. Nothing important!” I lied. “Could you pack a few changes of clothes and some toiletries for me? Since my stomach is still hurti
For some reason, the tension in the room had completely dissipated the moment Nicolas picked me up in his arms. As he carried me, I felt the warmth of his body surrounding me, and I drifted off to sleep.“I don’t think that’s the case!”“You’re not the only one who knows things now!”I woke up late at night to a heated argument right in my ears. Annie and Nicolas seemed to be debating something. I opened my eyes slightly, seeing Annie waving a record in front of the bed, while Nicolas sat at the foot of it, his back to me.“This isn’t the best album” Nicolas countered.“Actually, it is the best album” I forced myself to sit up and answered. “At least for me.”“See?” Annie flashed a triumphant smile and skipped over to me. “The lyrics are much deeper. You sounded more inspired, Lisa.”“Sorry, did we wake you?” Nicolas was no longer focused on the album debate. “We should’ve kept it down.”“I was going to wake her up anyway.” Annie dashed out of the room and came back moments later with
"This whole wolf healing thing is amazing!" Annie said, examining the spot where my wound used to be. This was my sixth day at her house, and all that remained was a faint scar.On the second day, Annie started going to class again and bringing me my assignments so I could study and do my homework at home. By the third day, I was already able to move around and take care of myself, but I decided to keep resting at her place until I was sure the wound wouldn’t reopen.Nicolas came to see me every day after school and always brought me something to eat. On the fourth day, Liam showed up too, but he didn’t stay long. For some reason, William hadn’t come to see me even once, which made me think he was either really pissed about what happened or just didn’t care."Thank you for everything!" I said to Marta as she removed the stitches.She had taken me in and cared for me like a daughter, with much more kindness than my own mother ever had. Annie was so lucky to have her."You’re amazing! I
“Auntie!” the girl shouted the moment she saw me walk through the door. She’d been reading a book and dropped it right away to run over to me. “I missed you!”“I missed you too!” I said warmly, wrapping her in a hug.“Why haven’t you come to see me these past few days?” she asked, eyes pleading.“I’ve just had a lot going on lately,” I explained. “Because of that, I’ll have to push back your piano lessons for a little while.”“What happened? Can I help you, Auntie?” I gently ran my hand through her hair. She was so innocent…“I should be asking you that. Why are you still in your pajamas? Do you know what time it is?” She was wearing light pink pajamas with little white teddy bears on them. Her hair was a total mess, like she’d just rolled out of bed.“Well, I’m not going anywhere, so why bother getting ready?” She shrugged, which made me laugh.“You’re the little princess of Siram—you can’t think like that! Whether you’re going out or not, you should always be dressed up and looking
I entered the Alpha’s house through the front door. Since I had permission to visit Caroline whenever I wanted, none of the guards dared to stop me. Obviously, I had a different goal this time.“Where’s the Alpha?” I asked a maid walking by.“Miss Eliza, if you’re here to see him, I’m afraid I can’t help you. He just went into a meeting, and I don’t know how long it’ll last.”“Where is it?” I asked her.“Miss, you can’t go in there.”“Don’t worry, I’ll just wait outside,” I said, trying to put her at ease. It seemed to work, because she led me down a hallway and pointed to a room with two guards posted outside. There was a bench in the corridor, so I sat down calmly. The guards looked at me, puzzled, but neither tried to make me leave.Drawing on Lisa’s energy, I heightened my senses to the max, identifying the scents in the room and listening closely to the conversation inside.“I don’t think what you’re doing is right! You should wait until my father gets back before discussing this
I began to wake up, a sense of peace and comfort settling in my heart. When I opened my eyes again, I was lying in the sleeping bag in the exact position I’d curled into the night before. I looked around, confused, realizing I was alone. A bit of daylight streamed into the cave, signaling that morning had arrived.“Was it all just a dream?” I asked myself as I sat up. I rubbed my eyes a couple of times, recalling the feeling of being in Phantom Lord’s arms, telling him about my pain and anguish. Could it really have just been an illusion?That scent is amazing, my wolf said calmly inside me. How could a simple dream have eased our pain like this?“Scent?” I drew on Lisa’s energy, sharpening my sense of smell, which immediately brought my attention to my own body. I wasn’t just wrapped in a towel—there was also a soft, white cloak covering me. I pulled it to my nose and inhaled deeply. It was his scent. “It wasn’t a dream…”My heart started racing, and I found myself smiling genuinely
There was a lot of commotion and whispering in the hall. I didn’t hesitate to bolt out of there before that whole mess somehow blew back on me. I was afraid they might try to pin something on me—besides, I already had way too much on my plate. Maybe I was wrong, but I didn’t want to take the risk. It felt like I’d become a magnet for trouble, like everything had collapsed on me all at once. I kicked off my sandals and gathered up the skirt of my dress. I felt like I needed to run until I felt safe.Lisa, answer me! I pleaded. She didn’t want to run with me, and I didn’t push her. I was too much of a coward to shift into my wolf form, knowing that all of Lisa’s feelings and pain would come crashing down on me the moment I did. I could barely handle my own pain—how was I supposed to carry hers, too?I abandoned my sandals the second I entered the forest. The emptiness in my heart felt like it was turning into a black hole, slowly eating me alive. I just wanted to get rid of all that neg
I took a deep breath, trying to hold back the tears, and walked over to the drink table. Even though I was underage, I felt an urgent need to keep myself from crying, and since people say alcohol is good for drowning your sorrows, I figured it might do the trick. I filled my cup with punch, and just as I was about to down it, someone grabbed it out of my hand. I looked to the side and met Nicolas’s eyes. He looked like he was trying just as hard not to cry.“Does it hurt?” I asked him. I wasn’t talking about our bond—I meant his arm, which was bandaged up. Without a word, he set the cup down on the table, turned around, and walked away. I stood there, unsure of what to do. Should I follow him or give him space? “Nicolas, wait!”He heard me, but he didn’t stop. It was clear he didn’t want to talk to me. So I gave up on the idea of drinking and tried to drown my sorrows in food instead while I waited for the performances to start. Every now and then, I found myself scanning the crowd for
I passed by the hospital front desk and paid the entire bill in advance, leaving some credit for any unexpected needs. Then I slowly walked down the road as the first rays of sunlight broke over the horizon.I wandered aimlessly for a while, completely lost. I couldn’t remember where the little house Veronica had taken me to was. I reached into the pocket of my jeans, looking for the key. I was planning to track the house by its scent.“You forgot the keys!” Lisa said in my head. I smiled softly, hearing her voice in my mind again. She was right—I suddenly remembered I’d left the key on the bed and had only grabbed my wallet. I hadn’t even closed the front door.“We’re going to be okay,” I promised myself. I needed to believe that—to believe I could fix everything.“I’m starving!” she said the moment we passed by a café that had just opened. The smell in the air was irresistible. I stepped inside and picked a table to sit at.“Whoa!” the girl at the counter exclaimed when she saw me.
I sat on the bed, completely lost. I tried calling my aunt to find out how my grandma was doing, but her phone was ringing in the room next door. In the rush to help Grandma, she’d left it behind.Next thing I knew, it was almost midnight. My mom got back to me with a message. It was short but straight to the point:Mom: My friend will be there soon. Grab your stuff and go with her!Sure enough, not even five minutes later, a blue van pulled up in front of the house. A medium-built woman with long, curly black hair and dark skin stepped out. She was wearing pajamas."You’re Eliza?" she asked. I nodded slightly."Girl, what kind of mess did you get yourself into? Don’t worry, it’s gonna be okay. I’m Verônica, your mom’s friend."She held out her hand, but I couldn’t bring myself to shake it. Instead, I clutched the bag that held my Preciosa even tighter."Poor thing! I’ll help you carry your stuff, okay? Luckily, I had the perfect place lined up for you. Your mom already paid three mont
Everything in my head was just a high-pitched ringing, echoing persistently in the back of my mind. I started struggling to breathe and desperately searched for music. Lisa had abandoned me, and now Preciosa was destroyed. I was falling apart.By the time I started to get even a glimpse of what was happening around me, it was already dark.“How long have I been like this?” My head was spinning. I leaned against the bed and focused on listening for any sounds. The silence told me there was no one home. I pulled my phone out of my jeans pocket. The screen was cracked, but it still seemed to work. There was only one person who could make sense of everything that had happened.After trying over and over, I finally heard a familiar voice on the other end, and it made me want to break down and cry."Mom, it's me!" I said. "Mom, please help me!""Sweetheart, what happened?""I told Grandma about Dad, and she freaked out. I don’t know what to do. Mom..." I started crying again. The pain was j
William had dislocated Nicolas’s arm, and I couldn’t do anything about it because I couldn’t bring myself to fight against my mate. I felt awful. When I tried to help Nicolas, William grabbed my arm and dragged me along with him."William, he needs help. Please!" I begged again, but it was no use."Shut the hell up!" he shouted at me. He dragged me to his car, and as soon as he started the engine, he floored it, tires screeching."William, let me explain, please!""You bitch! Explain? What the fuck is there to explain that I didn’t see with my own eyes? You spend a week with him, and now you’re meeting up with him alone? You think you’re fooling me? You’re fucking worthless!""That’s not how it is, I—""I told you to shut the fuck up!"I couldn’t hold back the anguish and sadness in my chest. Even staying silent, I couldn’t stop myself from sobbing. William pulled over on a narrow street, out on the outskirts of the village. He was breathing heavily."William, your nose is bleeding. A