LOGINZANERion’s eyes widen, flicking between Selene and me. “He could have an entire army by now,” he says slowly, his voice heavy with realization. “Do you think he could have infiltrated witch covens?” I ask Selene. “I doubt it,” she seems thoughtful. “He did the last time, didn’t he?” Rion watches Selene’s reaction closely. “Yes,” she confirms, “but that was centuries ago.The coven I lived with before taught us that witches have evolved. They’ve learned from generations of mistakes. These days, it's much harder to deceive a witch with magic.” “If he got a witch alone?” Rion asks. She shakes her head, before continuing.“Even if Khaíros waited on their borders, witches never leave their covens alone anymore, they are always in groups. And if one doesn’t sense the trickery, the others will.” Despite her reassurances, we do not relax. “Lone witches?” I question her. “Hopefully, they’re impervious.” She says quickly, though she sounds more doubtful now. Rion’s gaze la
ZANE Never in my life have I wanted to kill someone as much as I do right now. That witch has gone too damn far. I do not know what she did to Ly, but I do know Lyra is not herself. And it has everything to do with those silver chains around her wrists. How the hell did I not notice them before? I did not even feel them when she was pounding her fists against my back on the walk home… but now that I see how deeply they are embedded in her flesh. How does she bear it? The silver is searing into her skin—and she hasn’t said a word. Is it because she can’t? Or is she numb to the pain? That witch put something in those bands. They are manipulating Lyra’s behaviour, that much is certain. But does that mean Lyra is trapped in her own mind? Is she aware of her actions? Of what she is saying? Is she conscious in her mind? Gods, for her sake, I hope not. I exhale slowly as I make my way down the stairs. She was so convincing… the hatred in her eyes, the sharpness in her words, th
LYRA I’m bawling into Ellie’s arms. Fuck, I still can’t stop crying. I wept when I walked into my room to find all the windows locked and warriors stationed beneath every fucking window. I sobbed with I took a shower, washing away all the gunk and dirt from the last day. I wailed while I got dressed in long comfy fluffy pj’s. Now I’m sitting beside Ellie on the edge of the bed, and soaking through her shirt. The tears simply won’t stop. Her voice is soft and soothing as she whispers over and over that it’s going to be okay. That no one will force me into anything. Zane won’t force anything on me. But her words only make me sob harder. Because they’re so fucking wrong. I want Zane to force me. I want him to slam that door open and demand that I be with him. Order me to tell him that I love him. Because, goddess, I do. And I hate myself for the venom I spat at him. For the way I shoved him away when all I wanted was to bury myself in his arms. My mind had screame
ZANE Lyra’s wracked sobs are still echoing in my head as I sit at the new desk in my office. Even now, after she locked herself in her room—locked herself away from me—I can still hear them ringing in my mind. And gods, she is this crushed because I forced her to come back to me. I never even wanted to hear her cry, but knowing that I caused her this much pain? That hurts more than anything I have ever experienced. It started on the run back. I shifted her to my chest, cradling her, and hoping it would calm her. Instead, she fought harder. Like being near me burned her, so I had no choice but to haul her back over my shoulder. Once she realised she would not escape my grip, her body started shaking with those gut-wrenching sobs. It continued the whole way home. And when we arrived? The second her feet hit the tiles of the staircase, she bolted straight for the front door. If I had not caught her, she would already be gone. I thought we were making progress. I thought
ZANE My paws barely touch the earth as I tear through the forest. I don’t even know how far behind Rion and the warriors are. The afternoon sun shines through the trees. The light hits the dark grey fog racing through the air at my side. The only one keeping pace with my every step. Selene. We approach the cabin and everything looks precisely as little Aaron showed us in his juice. The surrounding trees, the mountain, the entire valley. The child’s layout was unnervingly perfect. As we finally reach the cabin, my heart stops. The exterior shows no signs of Lyra or Aurora. Nothing but the choking reek of wolfsbane saturating the place. I search frantically, sniffing every corner. My wolf claws at the ground but there is no trail. Not even a scent to follow. At last, Rion and the warriors join me in searching the area. But it is useless, the wolfsbane has wiped everything clean. Selene materializes from the dark fog. Her sharp hazel gaze scans the outside of the cabin before mo
LYRA Did Zane… no. Not possible. He wouldn’t. Fated mates… They simply don’t reject each other. It just does not happen. I have never even met someone who rejected their fated mate. Obviously I've heard stories where it happened, but still, that's all they were. Stories. And even in those rumours, there were always extreme circumstances. One woman rejected a guy because he was a mass murder. Another was mated to a human trafficker. Or the very romantic notion... the wolf was already in love with someone else. Holy fuck. No. Zane's not in love with me. And even-on the very off chance that Zane rejected her- Maria still had no right to do this to me. Striking some sort of deal with Aurora, of all people? To what? Get rid of me? Kill me? It's fucked up. Besides, according to Aurora's timeline, Maria had to have made the deal before the full moon. Before she even knew for certain that Zane was her mate. Even if the manipulative bitch of a witch approached her, Maria could have
ZANE The morning light feels wrong, Something in my gut twists, as Lyra consumes my thoughts once again. The way she looked at last night’s gathering. Her family. Damn it… she has probably left with them. Closing my eyes, my thoughts spiral back to the office… Her eyes. Her face. Her moans. Her
LYRAI wake up alone, the morning sun stabbing through the blinds, and my head immediately groans in protest. Great. Just great. The last thing I want is to relive… that moment. My stomach twists as memories of last night flashes through my mind, and I wish - wish - I could crawl under the covers a
LYRA Elara gasps. “Oh. My. Gods.” I raise a brow in the mirror, but I already know what she’s reacting to. Because I look dangerous. The long black dress clings to every curve like it was custom-melted onto my skin. The thin straps barely hold it up, and the back dips so low I might as well
LyraMy breath catches. “What?”His eyes drop, just for a second, then lifts again, almost daring me to lie. The fabric of the thong snaps against me again. By now, I know I’m dripping on his counter.Big hands move to my lace bra, fingers softly brushing over the fabric until he finds my perked







