LOGINBetty POV
"Open your mouth, Betty," Adriel says.
His voice is low, a rough command that vibrates right against my bare skin. I look up at him through my eyelashes, my heart hammering against my ribs. My arms are pinned. I try to move my hands, but the muscle memory of the restraint holds me completely still.
He dips his head down between my thighs.
I catch my breath as his warm breath hits my inner leg. He blows gently on the skin, a deliberate, agonizing tease tha
Betty’s POV"Do you think the southern Alphas will actually respect the new boundary flags, Mitchell?"I did not turn around from the stone railing.My fingers brushed across a thick stalk of purple lavender blooming from the mortar. The private courtyard of the west wing was completely altered now. The dead, grey stone walls were hidden beneath heavy green vines that pulsed with the clean, quiet energy of the silver core. The air smelled like mountain frost and fresh earth.Mitchell let out a short, dry snort behind me.The sound of his pocket knife clicking open broke the morning quiet. He was leaning his spine against the brick pillar, his long legs crossed at the ankles as he shaved a sliver of bark from a cedar block. "They will respect the flags because they do not have a choice, Betty. The vanguard has three hundred cured Lycans sitting on the ridge line. Yuna’s replacement spends his mornings checking his own pe
Adriel’s POV"Do not fix that velvet collar too tight, Robert, I need to breathe when the high court speaks."I slapped Robert’s fingers away from my throat.The grand ballroom of the northern fortress was packed from wall to wall. Thousands of unified wolves, Alphas, and Lycan lords from all eight original kingdoms stood in tight rows under the high stone arches. The air was heavy, thick with the scent of pine needles, roasted game, and the pure, suffocating presence of hundreds of alpha lines.Mitchell stood two inches to my right, his dress tunic buttoned to his jaw. He looked completely rigid, his knuckles white as he rested his palm on the hilt of his formal blade."The elders are staring at your left shoulder, Adriel," Mitchell murmured, his eyes fixed on the central dais. "They stil
Betty’s POV"Do you really think you can just walk away from the throne after what we just did on this gravel, Mitchell?"Adriel’s voice broke the silence of the courtyard.I looked down at my hands. The silver-tipped royal claws slowly slid back beneath my nails, leaving my fingertips warm. The air smelled like clean winter frost now, the stench of Audrey’s sulfur magic completely gone.Mitchell did not look up from the wet tarmac. He stayed on one knee, his palms flat against the stone, his shoulders rising and falling as he breathed. "The vanguard is yours, Adriel. I told you. I am finished playing the council’s games.""The vanguard is nothing without its commander," I said, stepping between them.Adriel flinched. He looked at me, his dark eyes tracking the wet hem of his own leather jacket wrapped around my shoulders. The hundreds of cured Lycans across the driveway remained perfectly still, thei
Betty’s POV"Get behind me, Betty, right now!" Adriel shouted.He lunged toward my right flank. His hand gripped my elbow, trying to force my weight back onto the stone porch. I did not move an inch. I snapped my arm sideways, breaking his hold with a single, sharp jerk."I told you, they are already in the thicket," I said.My voice did not sound like mine anymore. It carried a deep, dual resonance that vibrated through the limestone floorboards. The weakness that had made my skin look like chalk for a week vanished completely. A cold, blinding heat swirled in the centre of my chest.Mitchell took two paces backward, his jaw dropping as he stared at my hands. "Betty, your fingers."I lifted my palms.My skin was smooth. My bare feet were planted directly on the wet stone, but I did not feel the cold. Long, pristine claws tipped with pure silver had burst through my nails. They caught the dull light of the
Mitchell’s POV"Step back from the threshold, Audrey, or I will paint this limestone with your coven sisters."My claws were already scraping against the ruined doorframe.The weight of Betty in my arms was too light. Her head rested against my collarbone, her breathing small and shallow. Every muscle in my chest pulled tight, a hot spike of panic vibrating through my spine.Audrey did not move an inch. She stood on the wet tarmac of the driveway, her dark green silk dress rustling in the wind. Three older women stood behind her, their heavy wool coats buttoned to their chins, faces carved from stone."The mark is incomplete, Mitchell," Audrey said. Her voice carried a cold, mocking purr. "Look at her skin. She is going to rot as a chimera unless you sign the blood contract with me right now.""I do not sign papers with traitors," I spat.I shifted my weight, tucking Betty closer to my torso. Adriel stepped up t
Chapter 185: Adriel’s POV"Get your hands away from her neck, Mitchell!"I lunged forward across the cracked flagstones.The air in the foyer was burning. It smelled like scorched hair and wet copper. Mitchell did not listen to me. His jaw was fully extended. His fangs were buried deep in the side of Betty’s throat.A horrific sound ripped through the rafters. It was not a human scream. It was a jagged, wet sound that made my own Lycan slam against my ribs in absolute panic."I had to do it!" Mitchell roared as he pulled his blood-soaked mouth away. "She was rejecting us! She was going to break the bond!""Look at what you have done to her body, you idiot," I screamed.Betty hit the stone floor hard. Her spine buckled upward at an impossible angle.Thick, midnight-black fur erupted across her shoulders in violent patches. Then it snapped back into her skin, leaving raw, bleeding gasps. Her bones wer
Betty’s POV"Get on your knees, wolfless freak, or I will break your legs myself."Madeline’s voice sliced through the damp, heavy air of the Blue Claw storage pavilion. She was balanced on the balls of her patent-leather heels, her pink lips curved into a cruel, perfect line. In her manicured hand
Betty’s POV"You are nothing but a broken genetic mistake, Betty, and you will not embarrass this family at the royal ball tonight."My father slammed both of his heavy fists onto the wooden kitchen table. The wood groaned under the impact, rattling the ceramic coffee mugs and sending a splash of d
Betty’s POV"Mine!"The roar ripped through the garden, heavy enough to vibrate the gravel under my slippers. A hand slammed into Luka's chest, throwing him back two steps. He stumbled, his boots skidding across the dirt before he hit the ground.My chest tightened. Inside my head, a rhythmic, fran
Betty’s POV"You need to leave before I tear your throat out," Luka growled, his massive Lycan jaw snapping inches from Madeline's face.The three triplets scrambled backward, their heels catching on the gravel as they shoved Madeline into the passenger seat of their sports car. The engine screamed







