VALENTINA
The hollow of life is full of sorrows and painful memories; at least, that is what I am experiencing.
In the very darkest part of my soul lie those buried memories I thought I had walked past, but the sudden glimpse of something stirred all of it once more.
It's weird, though. Apart from all my living memories, I also possess a memory of myself that I had never lived. It's quite intriguing for me to feel as though I had lived it when I didn't. What is happening to me? Am I losing my senses?
I looked around myself, surrounded by my life's experiences, except for one that had somehow managed to send me to this darkest hollow of my soul I never realized existed.
It's a completely new place to me. Strange, cold, and sort of unbelievable.
I don't see Kira here, though, and suddenly her absence froze my blood.
“Kira?” I called for her, only for my voice to echo through the hollow.
“Kira, can you listen to
VALENTINAThe stench of damp stone and burning herbs clogged my lungs, so thick it was as if the walls themselves exhaled rot. My wrists screamed where silver shackles dug into my skin, marking blisters, searing them apart and eating into flesh with every slight movement.The chains bit harder every time I struggled, mocking me with their strength. The cold floor beneath me was sticky with blood, mine and maybe others’. I couldn’t tell anymore.The disgusting smell of old pee and vomit was heavy in the air, yet it couldn't bother me anymore.My head tilted forward, strands of hair clinging to my sweat-slick face.Suddenly, a cold slap of iced water across my cheeks, shocking my eyes open…“Wake up, precious granddaughter...”The voice slithered into me like poison, smooth yet dripping with malice… Simon, my grandfather.The man I thought had been long buried beneath the earth, the man I had
VICTOR“Papa…”The word was a whisper at first, fragile even and trembling. And I know this voice—Valentina, my daughter.“Papa, please…” Then it came again, this time louder, more desperate.“Val?” I looked around in the darkness. The darkness was suffocating, pressing on my soul too hard.It's a place so unfamiliar.“Papa…” Her voice echoed within me again, and finally, I saw her. My little girl.But she wasn’t standing in sunlight with that stubborn smile she always carried—no. She was on her knees, silver chains clamped around her wrists, her hair tangled and damp with tears.“Papa…” Her hands reached for me; her face was pale, lips trembling. Her eyes—they looked deadened, the spark in them dimming.I moved toward her, but the ground beneath me cracked and crumbled away, pulling me back into the abyss. I fought to reach her, my arms straining—but the more I tried, the farther she slipped away.“Papa!” Her scream tore through me. “Don’t let him take me again—”“VAL!” And then… not
ANDRES“Valentina!” My voice tore from my throat into the world surrounded by smoke and fire.Amidst the mist, I beheld her—bare feet upon the cracked stone, silver chains subtly marking her wrists. Her gaze was expansive, glistening with unshed tears, her lips quivering as though she longed to speak my name, yet didn't dare. Looming behind her, shadows gathered—wolves with eyes that faintly resembled dying embers.I ran. The ground beneath me crumbled, but I didn’t care. My lungs burned, my muscles screamed, yet the distance between us never closed.“Don’t leave me,” I choked out.She smiled—it was faint, almost sad—and whispered words I couldn’t hear.Then suddenly she stepped back, thrusting into the darkness. Her eyes fluttered with tears. Her hands stretched toward me, but before I could reach, black smoke emerged from the shadow and pulled her back, swallowing her whole.
ATLASThe moment I realised the chains rattling behind me weren’t mine, a sharp pulse of dread stabbed through my chest. My hands were shaking as I shoved open the pack hall doors, the cold stone floor failing miserably to calm me down.I had thought I was smart. That I could “help” Carmella and Sienna, that following their plan would bring me closer to Valentina, once more, and it would fix everything. And now… now I felt my stomach twist in nausea.And so—I had kidnapped Valentina.And not for justice, not for protection, but for nothing except a twisted promise of approval.Her absence hit me like a hammer the instant the dungeon door closed. No defiant smirk, no piercing eyes. Nothing... Just a silent echo in my mind where her heartbeat should have been. I staggered against the wall, hand pressed to my forehead, my heart hammering in my chest like it would tear free.“She’s alive,” I mutte
VALENTINAThe cold, damp stone floor pressed against my skin, carrying the scent of mold, rust, and a subtle sweetness that I found unsettling. It was a fragrance reminiscent of the walls within slaughterhouses.My lashes felt heavy as I pried my eyes open.Bars… Chains… A single torch sputtering against the wall, its flame coughing as if it were struggling to breathe. Shadows pooled in the corners, thick and watching.The memory flashed across my mind in broken pieces—Atlas’s voice behind me, the hard grip around my waist, the sudden tilt of the world, the sting in my neck like a viper’s kiss… A soft groan escaped my lips; that sting, it's like a sharp needle poking there…However, one thought made my heart flip as I glanced within my mind…‘Kira?’ I searched for my wolf, but silence was all that embraced me.Cold dread rushed down my spine, reminding of the time when I
ANDRESAlthough the voting had concluded, a sense of tension lingered within the council hall.No alliance, no unified front, and a room full of wolves who thought themselves cunning enough to mask their hostility.Valentina stood beside me, her chin high, defiance radiating from her in sharp, beautiful edges. She didn’t flinch under the stares, didn’t bow her head in defeat. She stood like a queen—my queen.It seemed likely that she was engaged in a serious conversation with her wolf. Although I had not heard the words exchanged, I had observed how her posture stiffened in response.Even now, as the banners overhead swayed with the draft, she looked carved from something unbreakable. But then her head tilted—ever so slightly. Her gaze slid toward the shadowed rafters above the council chamber, and a faint crease formed between her brows.I stepped closer. “What is it?” I murmured, observing the silent spa