LOGINThe night has started and Vena life is going to change. Keep reading for more. Make sure you like, comment and leave a review! See you on the next!
Vena.When the driver opened the door, cool night air rushed in. For a second I stayed seated, gathering courage I wasn’t sure I possessed.Then I stepped out.My heels touched polished marble, and my breath left me immediately. Ahead, beneath the glow of lanterns and moonlight, Miriam waited for me.She stood with two tall girls I had never seen before, both close to my age, both dressed in matching rose-gold gowns. Their dark hair was pinned in intricate braids threaded with tiny pearls, and they looked so composed, so perfectly poised, that I instantly became aware of every awkward breath I took.The moment they saw me, they bowed gently. My fingers tightened around the silver fan in my hand.“You look lovely, my dear,” Miriam said warmly, stepping forward.Her voice grounded me and she gestured to the girls.“This is Anika and Danika. Your ladies of the court tonight. They’ll escort you through the ceremony.”I nodded, trying to appear less frightened than I felt.Anika offered a
Vena.I looked down at the silver bracelet that rested on my wrist, turning my wrist slowly, watching the tiny moon charms sway and catch the evening light spilling through the tall windows. It was delicate, almost too delicate for something that had survived so much. Nikolai had once given it to Freya, and somehow it had become the only thing I had taken when I ran.The only piece of her I had managed to keep.A strange ache moved through me.Nikolai had once been interested in Freya.Vaelor had wanted Freya first.And somehow, all my life, I had always been the second choice. The thought settled heavy in my chest.“Wow,” Elena breathed as she stepped out from the bathroom, with my hair spray as she walked toward me. “That’s beautiful.”She took my wrist gently and studied the bracelet.“It looks like wolf jewelry,” she said. “Did Nikolai give this to you? Because I definitely don’t remember us buying anything this lovely when we went shopping.”I shook my head. “It belonged to my si
**18+Vena.His hand was at my throat when he turned me toward the wall.My palms braced against the cold stone as my breath came unevenly, the torn silk of my nightdress slipping to my feet, my pulse beating so hard I could feel it in my wrists.I should have fought harder. The thought flashed through me, and I felt desperate and ashamed.I should have pushed him away, should have run the moment the monster in him had returned.And yet I stood there trembling, trapped between the wall and the heat of him behind me, unable to tell where fear ended and something far more dangerous began.His breath skimmed my ear.“You never listen,” he murmured, his voice rough with that dark edge that made every word feel like a threat.I shut my eyes.“Nikolai…”His hand tightened at my throat just enough to tilt my chin and then I felt his finger over my pussy, and a moan escaped my lips“You are the most stubborn woman I have ever met.” He whispered into my ear and I shivered against his breath.Hi
Vena.I woke to a scream.My whole body jerked awake. For a second, I sat frozen in bed, my heart beating so loudly I could barely hear anything else. The room was dark except for the faint moonlight spilling through the curtains, and my first thought was Vaelor.Then the scream came again and this time, I knew the voice.Nikolai.The sound tore through the silence of the mansion, raw and deep and filled with so much pain that my body moved before my mind could stop it. I didn’t grab a robe, instead I jumped out of bed, opened my door and stepped into the dimly lit hallway.The house was too quiet around that sound.I walked faster, then slower as I reached his door. My hand hovered over the handle. Every sensible part of me told me to go back to my room, lock the door, and pretend I had heard nothing. Nikolai was dangerous when he was calm. I did not want to imagine what he could be when he was in pain.Another sound came from inside, and it sounded like a broken growl.My chest tigh
Vena.By midday my head felt fuller than the kitchen cupboards.I sat at the long table while Elena and Sasha turned what was supposed to be a simple lesson of the full moon ceremony into a full court education, and I was beginning to understand that wolves took the ceremony far more seriously than I had imagined.Elena stood several feet away in an old gown, holding a folded fan with a weird seriousness.She dipped into a graceful bow.Sasha, sitting straight-backed in a chair like some stern instructor, nodded once.“You may rise,” she said in a clipped voice.Elena rose, turned dramatically toward me, and pointed with the fan.“That,” she announced, “is how you greet the Elders.”I stared in confusion.“The Elders are seated to the left of the Alpha’s dais,” she said, “They are the oldest bloodlines in Thornmoon and hold influence second only to the Alpha. They are the only ones you are required to greet personally.”She handed me the fan and I took it awkwardly.“Now,” Elena said,
Vena.Sleep refused to come back to me.No matter how long I lay staring at the moon through the tall windows, my thoughts kept circling the dream, Freya’s smile and the ache of Nikolai’s broken promise.Eventually I gave up.I slipped out of bed, pulled a thin robe over my nightdress and tied it around my waist. The marble floor was cool beneath my bare feet as I opened my door carefully and stepped into the hallway.The mansion was quiet.At past midnight, it almost felt abandoned. I walked slowly, not really knowing where I was going.Our rooms were on the second floor. Nikolai’s study occupied much of the third, a place I had only entered once and vowed never to again, but there was another staircase I had never explored.The fourth floor.Curiosity pulled me upward.The higher I climbed, the more silent it became. I expected dust, locked doors, forgotten things, but to my surprise everything was immaculate. Miriam and the girls truly cared for every inch of this mansion, even plac
VenaI woke up with a sharp ache pressing behind my eyes.For a few long seconds, I did not move. I just lay there, staring at the pale strip of light cutting across the dark ceiling above me. Someone had opened the curtains while I slept. Only a small gap, just enough to let morning light in.My he
VenaI woke up with a dry throat and my head felt like there was someone playing drums in there. It took a few seconds for me to remember where I was. The ceilings weren't familiar and I didn't remember my bed to be this comfortable.I blinked again, slowly sitting up as memories of earlier today re
Vena.I didn't realize so much time had passed in the garden glasshouse. I had found some tools by accident.At the very back of the glasshouse, behind a row of tangled vines and a leaning wooden shelf, there was a small storage cabinet half hidden by overgrowth. It looked like it hadn’t been opened
Vena.The next time I opened my eyes, I thought I had died.I was back in my room in House Rose, the air was thick a metallic scent.For a moment, I couldn’t breathe.Then the pain hit.It was everywhere. Between my legs. Along my neck. My wrists. My thighs. My body felt split open, hollowed out and







