Leah's POV "And now... The best bit of tonight! The children from Skagen City Orphanage want to express their gratitude by performing a dance for all of our distinguished guests tonight!" the host announced on the stage. Several children, dressed up like little angels, walked on the stage. The light dimmed, and they started to sing and dance to the music. They were so adorable. My eyes welled up. "Do you like children, Miss Lewyn?" Gean leaned toward me and asked. "Yeah." I nodded, wiping the tears off the corner of my eyes. "These kids... They're so innocent. But when they grow up, they have to put up with bullshits like Alpha Kyle and the mayor. I don't think they will stand a chance." "With our support, they'll turn out to be fine, Miss Lewyn," Gean said. "I grew up being an orphan. I'm pretty capable of dealing with bullshits." I burst into laughter. "It's nice to have you for company tonight, Gean," I said. "The pleasure is always mine, Miss Lewyn," Gean said in a tender
Leah's POV Damian? I couldn't believe what I had heard. I failed him last time, and I couldn't explain it to him, but I couldn't believe that he would do something like this. "Where is Damian right now? Let me see him!" I said to Mick. My voice was almost threatening. Mick gloated, "That's not going to happen, Miss Lewyn. You won't see Damian unless you tell me the truth. Did you kill my father?" "Alpha Mick, could you please take your hands off Miss Lewyn?" Gean stepped forward and pleaded. "We're surrounded by people." "Who the fuck are you, you filthy gigolo? Who gives you the right to fucking talk to me like this?" Mick stared at Gean and asked. "Is there a problem?" A human security guard came forward and asked me. "Is any of these two men harassing you, lady?" "No, don't worry. We're just joking around," I answered. The last thing I wanted was to get human beings involved. They always managed to make things even worse. "Really?" the security guard frowned. "I don't see
Leah's POVMick's mansion was located at Pine Creek.It looked grotesquely tacky and unnecessarily extravagant.The moment I stepped into the mansion, I knew I was in for an experience unlike any other.The first thing that caught my eye was the gaudy chandelier hanging from the high ceiling in the grand foyer. It was so large that it seemed to overpower the entire room, and its crystal droplets glinted garishly in the sunlight that streamed through the stained-glass windows.
Lucas' POVThe hall of the Pine Creek mansion was a spectacle of light, music, and color.Elegant couples swirled around the room, their fancy clothes and jewelry sparkling in the glow of the chandeliers.I was impeccably dressed in a black tuxedo, drawing admiring glances from the ladies as always.But as he made his way through the crowd, my eyes only locked on a stunning woman in jeans.She looked so hopeless and vul
Leah's POV "Where is Finn, Lucas? If you dared to hurt him..." I said as I was walking upstairs along with Lucas and Mick. "Leah, Finn isn't your possession. He's a grown-up man and he's got his own free will. Has it ever occurred to you that he might not like you? He doesn't want to be with you at all?" Lucas' voice sounded detached. I frowned and argued, "That's not possible! Finn's my best friend..." "So what's the last name of your best friend? What happened to him in the past? Why has he got genetically modified? Why does he have a phobia of soldiers? Is Sak Doyle really his brother? Have you ever thought of these questions?" Lucas asked in a stern voice. "That's for me to figure out! I can't figure it out if I can't be with him! You've taken him away from me. You've made your point. Now Jorah is back. It's time for you to return Finn to me!" Lucas couldn't conceal his disgust when he heard Finn's name over and over again. "You just don't understand, do you? Finn doesn't lov
Leah's POV Just when I was about to scream, the door behind me was pushed open by a cleaning lady. She panicked when she saw me. "I'm sorry, Lady. I thought this lavatory was empty..." she mumbled and tried to walk back. I grabbed her arms and said, "Wait, did you see something in this room just now?" "No... But the air conditioning must be malfunctioned. This lavatory is freezing. I need to call for maintenance," the lady stroked her arms and said. Coldness. Yes. Bone-chilling coldness. It was just like the time I was in the SPA room. All the lights went off and the air suddenly became cold. "Did you lock the door of this lavatory?" I asked the cleaning lady. She looked confused. "I'm so sorry, Lady. But I didn't lock this door. This door was open. That's why I thought this lavatory was empty," she replied. I bit my lips. I had enough of this kind of supernatural bullshit. My life wasn't supposed to be like those poor heroines in a ghost story. I refused to be tortured by
Leah's POV The dimly lit room was filled with the sound of shuffling cards and murmured conversation. The poker table was the centerpiece of the room, and at the moment, it was unoccupied. As I sat next to the table, Mick took the seat in front of me. The other two players took their seats as well. Lucas sat next to me and said, "Leah, I know you're in a bad mood today. And people can't win if they're in a bad mood. So why don't you let me play for you?" I didn't want to talk to him at all. But after what happened in the lavatory, I was still terrified. And it was nice to have a familiar face around, sitting next to me, supporting me physically and emotionally. I took a glance at him and said, "If you want to remain sitting next to me, be quiet." Lucas looked a bit upset, but he didn't let it out. He shifted his eyes on Mick like he was about to eat him alive. Obviously, he didn't like his wife sitting at the table, playing strip poker. Mick was dressed in a sharp suit with hi
Leah's POV "Shut up, Mick. Shut the fuck up right now and go inside!" Lucas roared. He had always been known to be a reserved person. I had never heard him being so loud and mad at the same time. "I want to kill him! I want to kill that fucking bastard!" I roared in tremendous pain. "Leah, please, he's my cousin. Let me deal with it." Lucas said in a calm voice. "Murderer! That fucking bastard!" I screamed and I was shocked by my own voice. "Leah, if he's a murderer, he will be sentenced and punished by the law. You're not the law. So for fuck's sake, please hold your anger right now and leave the rest of it to me," Lucas said. As I collapsed into Lucas' arms, my body was wracked with sobs. Tears streamed down my face, leaving me gasping for air between sobs. Lucas held me tightly, feeling the weight of my sorrow pressing against him. My grief was palpable, heavy, and raw, and I could feel it seeping into his own being. "That sinister bastard! I should have killed him on
Leah's POVA pang ripped through my chest, sharp and unwelcome. I didn't want to know what Lycidas had done - didn't want to picture the claws, the needles, the hunger in that bastard's gaze. Darren wasn't the man I'd known anymore; he was a husk, cracked open and spilling fear. My fingers found the lock, bending the steel like it was clay, the cage door groaning as it gave way. He lunged at me, wild and blind, and I struck fast - knocked him cold with a blow that felt like betrayal. His body slumped, limp and heavy, and I hauled him into the cart, draping a cloth over him like a shroud.I shoved the cart toward the door, every nerve screaming, when a shadow blocked my path. The hotel manager, all puffed-up indignation, glared down at me. "What the fuck? Who are you?! Why are you here? Don't you know this whole floor is reserved...?"His words choked off as my fist met his jaw. He crumpled, a sack of meat, and I dragged him back inside, stuffing him into the cag
Lycidas' POVA pause, heavy with his worry. "Lycidas, don't let anyone hurt her. Protect her. The ritual has to be done."Finn's pace quickened, his throat tightening around me, and I gripped his hair harder, forcing him to take more. "Don't worry, brother. I miss you. I'll be back soon. Put Jalin on, will you?"The line shifted, and Jalin's cold "What?" slithered through.My voice turned razor-sharp. "If you dare touch my brother again, I'll pump you full of suppressant, make you a fuck toy, and toss you to the slave market. Every hole in your body will be stuffed with cocks for the every minute in the rest of your fucking life. Do you understand?"Silence. Finn gagged, his throat spasming, and the pleasure spiked through me. "I'm talking to you," I snarled into the phone."I understand, Your Highness," Jalin muttered, subdued at last. I hung up, tossing the phone aside, and turned my full attention to Finn. He sucked harder, desperate to p
Lycidas' POVThe lazy afternoon sunlight in Miami pressed against me like a lover's claw, the moon long gone but its bloody echo still staining the sky. I stepped out of the limousine, and the red carpet unfurled before me like a tongue, wet with the flash of cameras and the screams of the crowd. The hotel loomed, a glittering beast of glass and steel, its jaws wide with fans clawing at the barriers, their voices a feral hymn to my name. I was Lycidas, the Lycan Prince, a Hollywood god carved from hunger and shadow, and they worshipped me with every ragged breath.I strode forward, my boots sinking into the plush scarlet, and the air thickened with their adoration. The paparazzi swarmed, lenses glinting like predatory eyes, but I owned them all. My lips curled into a smile, sharp and deliberate, as I waved - a king acknowledging his court. The noise swelled, a tidal wave of sound, and then a voice cut through it, high and desperate."Lycidas! Lycidas!" A female
Leah's POVThe clock on my wrist ticked like a smug little bastard, each second a jab at my nerves as I stood there, plotting culinary carnage. Six hours until the Miami Mayor's Annual Seafood Charity Dinner, and I was about to turn a fancy gala into a symphony of gurgles and groans. The TV blared in the background, some chipper anchor rattling on about celebrity cars rolling up to the hotel—shiny Bentleys and Teslas, all ferrying the rich and famous to their doom. I smirked, imagining them clutching their pearls and their stomachs by night's end.I glanced over at Seth, who was practically hypnotized by Sharbo's lazy laps in the shark tank. The kid's mop of hair flopped over his eyes, and he looked like he'd rather be anywhere but here, plotting with me. I gave his shoulder a solid pat, jolting him back to reality. "It's time, Seth."He blinked at me, all wide-eyed and twitchy, then fumbled for his laptop like it was his security blanket. His fingers danc
Leah's POVThe moonlight was pouring down from the sky like cascade.I stood there, rooted, facing Darren, his eyes blazing with a storm of rage and grief that pinned me where I stood. The air hung heavy, thick with unspoken venom, prickling my scarred skin—the brands of the slave market I'd never outrun."Why are you asking this question?" Darren's voice cut through the stillness, sharp as a blade, edged with accusation.I didn't answer. Couldn't. My throat clenched tight, strangling the words beneath the weight of all we'd left unsaid.He stepped closer, his emotions bursting free like blood from a fresh wound. "Are you asking this to hurt me, Leah? Haven't I done enough for you all these years to earn your trust?"Tears spilled down my cheeks, hot and relentless, carving trails through the grime on my face. I felt nothing - no sting, no release - just the hollow rush of them falling, a betrayal of the numbness gnawing my bones.
Leah's POVI remained silent. Father killed his son. Justice was almost done.Al Cosa continued, "And my son Tommy... He was burned alive in an elevator. Forensic team said his charred, deformed body burned so badly that... they needed tweezers to collect him."Two fat tears carved paths through his ashen stubble. I mirrored his grief - shoulders curling inward, breath catching - as the incinerator roared to life behind him. Its hunger vibrated in my molars."They found nail marks," he whispered. "Inside the elevator door. My boy...my Tommy clawed iron hot metal until his fingers..." A wet choke. "You know what fire does to lungs before death comes?"I let my own eyes glisten. "Mr. Cosa, I...""You're about to find out."I pretended to be horrified. "Mr. Cosa, I'm...""Sorry?" The wheelchair lurched forward. "You shoved my Tony off a balcony! Trapped Tommy in that metal coffin!" Spittle hit my cheek. "And now you're standing he
Leah's POVThe neon sign above the night club buzzed like a dying wasp, its crimson glow pooling on the asphalt as I shoved through the club's sticky doors. Smoke clung to the air—cheap cigars and cheaper desperation - and there he was, slumped at the bar like a discarded marionette. Liam's fingers curled around a whiskey glass, his knuckles whitening with each swallow as if he could drown the words we'd never said.I slid onto the stool beside him, the leather sighing under my weight. "You look like someone pissed in your bourbon," I said, nodding at the bartender for my usual gin.Liam didn't turn. "Would've improved the taste." His voice was sandpaper rough, but the corner of his mouth twitched. Classic Liam - even half-drunk and brooding, he couldn't resist the bait.We drank in silence for three songs, the bass thumping like a defective heartbeat. When he finally spoke, it was to the smudged mirror behind the bar. "You shouldn't be here. You do
Leah's POVI turned my head, meeting Darren's gaze, those eyes still hungry, still pleading. "I know," I said, quiet, a sad twist to my lips.But knowing wasn't enough. Love wasn't enough - not when the howls kept calling, not when my scars ran deeper than my skin. I rolled onto my side, facing the window, the moon's bloody glow spilling over us both.The full moon hung there, swollen and silver, its light bleeding through the broken window and washing over the bed. I stared at it, unblinking, the pale glow clawing at something inside me - something feral, something I couldn't bury no matter how hard I tried. The air thickened, heavy with the salt of the sea and the weight of the night, and then I heard it - a low, guttural sound drifting through the dark. A howl. Distant, but unmistakable. Then another, and another, until the night was alive with their calls, a chorus of primal hunger that sent a shiver down my spine.My heart kicked against my ribs, the
Leah's POVThe sun bled out over the coastal city as Darren gunned the motorcycle through the weaving crowds, the traffic shuttling around us like a frantic pulse. I clung to him, my helmet pressing into his back, my arms locked tight around his waist, feeling the heat of his body sear through me. The sky was a mess of red and orange, spilling over the buildings like a wound, and the sea's salty stink mixed with the exhaust choking the air. Last night clawed at my mind—his hands, his mouth, his desperation sinking into me after years of waiting. We'd fucked all night, a brutal, beautiful collision that tore past every fantasy I'd nursed in the dark. It played over and over in my head, a sad, desperate reel I couldn't stop watching—every thrust, every whispered curse, every moment I'd surrendered to him. Thinking of it, I tightened my grip, my fingers digging into his leather jacket like I could claw the memory into permanence.He pulled the bike to a stop by the sea, t