登入Elara's POVMy head snapped up when I heard multiple footsteps thundering into the room. The voices were frantic, overlapping, calling my name. They didn't even check the bathroom. How clueless! "Where the hell is she?" Draven's voice cut through the chaos."Search everywhere!" Kael barked.I heard them moving around, opening doors, checking behind furniture. The panic in their voices made my chest tighten.I stood up from the bathtub, water dripping from my body as I wrapped a towel around myself. My legs were shaky, but I managed to walk out of the bathroom and into the bedroom.I kept my head lowered, my wet hair falling like a curtain over my face.The room went silent."Elara."Kael's voice was the first to break the stillness. I heard him rush toward me, his footsteps quick and heavy."What the hell were you thinking?" he scolded, his hands gripping my shoulders. "You shouldn't have left the bed. You're supposed to be resting."I didn't respond. I just stood there, dripping wat
Elara's POVMy head snapped up when I heard multiple footsteps thundering into the room. The voices were frantic, overlapping, calling my name. They didn't even check the bathroom. How clueless! "Where the hell is she?" Draven's voice cut through the chaos."Search everywhere!" Kael barked.I heard them moving around, opening doors, checking behind furniture. The panic in their voices made my chest tighten.I stood up from the bathtub, water dripping from my body as I wrapped a towel around myself. My legs were shaky, but I managed to walk out of the bathroom and into the bedroom.I kept my head lowered, my wet hair falling like a curtain over my face.The room went silent."Elara."Kael's voice was the first to break the stillness. I heard him rush toward me, his footsteps quick and heavy."What the hell were you thinking?" he scolded, his hands gripping my shoulders. "You shouldn't have left the bed. You're supposed to be resting."I didn't respond. I just stood there, dripping wat
Elara's POVMy head snapped up when I heard multiple footsteps thundering into the room. The voices were frantic, overlapping, calling my name. They didn't even check the bathroom. How clueless! "Where the hell is she?" Draven's voice cut through the chaos."Search everywhere!" Kael barked.I heard them moving around, opening doors, checking behind furniture. The panic in their voices made my chest tighten.I stood up from the bathtub, water dripping from my body as I wrapped a towel around myself. My legs were shaky, but I managed to walk out of the bathroom and into the bedroom.I kept my head lowered, my wet hair falling like a curtain over my face.The room went silent."Elara."Kael's voice was the first to break the stillness. I heard him rush toward me, his footsteps quick and heavy."What the hell were you thinking?" he scolded, his hands gripping my shoulders. "You shouldn't have left the bed. You're supposed to be resting."I didn't respond. I just stood there, dripping wat
Draven's POV I let out a growl, my wolf surging forward as I spun toward the door, ready to tear apart whoever had the audacity to barge in.But the words died in my throat when I saw who it was.My mother stood in the doorway, her chest rising and falling, her eyes blazing with fury and something else I couldn't quite name."You idiots," she repeated, shaking her head. "And what will happen to her here?"Kael stepped forward, his jaw tight. "Mom, why are you eavesdropping?"The words barely left his mouth before she crossed the room in three quick strides and smacked him on the back of his head."Ow!" Kael whined, rubbing the spot. "Mom, I'm not a child anymore. I'm a man of forty-one years old and a king.""Then use that 41 year old brain of yours," she snapped, glaring at him.I bit back a grin. Even as kings, we weren't immune to our mother's wrath… in private, that is.She turned to me, her expression hardening. "I'm sure I taught you both to be more discreet. As there is a thre
Draven's POVI followed Josh to his room, my jaw clenched so tight I thought my teeth might crack. Kael walked beside me, his expression unreadable, but I could feel the tension rolling off him.Josh's face was twisted in a hard frown, his shoulders stiff as he pushed open the door to his room. He didn't say a word as we stepped inside, and the silence was suffocating.When the door closed behind us, Josh turned to face us, his arms crossed over his chest. His eyes burned with a quiet fury that made my wolf stir uneasily."Why," he said, his voice low, "is my daughter's life in danger?"I exchanged a glance with Kael. We both knew this conversation was coming, but that didn't make it any easier.Kael spoke first. "There's been a situation—""Don't," Josh said sharply. "Don't you dare give me a watered-down version of whatever the hell is going on. I want the truth. All of it."I let out a slow breath and stepped forward. "We suspect Rowan has a spy in here," I said. "And he's the reas
Kael's POV I watched Lyra as she sniffed, her entire body trembling. Tears streamed down her face, leaving wet tracks on her pale cheeks. Her hands clutched the sheets so tightly her knuckles turned white."Say something?" I repeated Draven's question, my voice calm but firm. "Who gave you no choice, Lyra?"She opened her mouth, but no words came out. Her lips trembled, and more tears spilled over."Answer him," Draven growled from behind me. I could feel his hot and dangerous rage radiating through the room."I can't," Lyra whispered, her voice barely audible. "I can't speak. My daughter—she's in danger. I'm being watched.""By who?" I demanded."I don't know," she sobbed, shaking her head frantically. "But they're watching me. They said if I told anyone, if I said anything, they would kill her. They would make me watch."Draven let out a feral growl, his body tensing. I felt his wolf surge to the surface, could see his claws starting to extend."That's not good enough," Draven sna
Elara's POV I laid in bed, my body shivering, my breath came out in pants, and my tears wet my pillow. I didn't expect him to do what he did. It was hurtful, painful and the fact that he didn't care about my feelings was something I couldn't really get over. I laid there, thinking about my life t
Elara's pov"AHH!" A loud scream echoed from my lips as I staggered to the direction the force came from. The pull happened all of a sudden, and because of how unexpected it was, my stamina failed me. I struggled, planting my hands onto a nearby wall as I tried to blink back the tears that came wi
Kael's POV The moment we finally wrapped up for the day, my phone buzzed with an incoming text. I glanced at the screen and saw that it was Josh. I mean I should have expected it. Draven leaned over my shoulder, reading the message before I could even process it myself, and he snickered. "What?
Elara's POV Forty?The word echoed in my head, drowning out everything else. My ears rang like someone had struck a bell too close to my face."Forty?" I repeated, my voice barely above a whisper."Yes, sweetheart. They're both forty years old." My father reached out and gently patted my shoulder.







