MasukAUTHOR'S POVRiven came through the door without knocking which was the standard. Dorian was going to react before but changed his mind upon seeing who it was. Riven set the folder he was carrying on the corner of the desk. He stood and put his hands on his waist.Dorian looked up from what he was reading. "What?" "Father wants to meet tonight." He announced. "All of us." "About the investigation?" "What else if not that?" He snorted. "Regardless, he didn't specify. Just said it was important." Riven put his hands in his pockets. "And he doesn't want Ezra there."Dorian set his pen down. "He was specific about that," Riven continued. "He wants to have conclusions before anything gets to Ezra. If Ezra sees us meeting without him and figures out we're keeping something back...he might misunderstand the situation." "Yeah, he will be upset." "He will be more than upset for sure."Dorian looked out the window. The sun was already shifting with the city settli
EZRA'S POVCole's face on the screen looked the same as it always did but only that this time around, he was wearing a treatment mask. "You look exhausted." He spoke first. "And so do you." "But at least my level of exhaustion doesn't look like I am fully prepared to drop dead at any moment from now and bid this sinful world goodbye." "Oh please, enough with the exaggeration." I reached out for a pillow so I could comfort my position well. "Ezraaaa..." He leaned closer to his camera. "I hate that I am not really there with you because then you wouldn't be able to keep lying to my face like this. Something is happening. I can see it in your eyes. When did you last sleep properly? Have you been having nightmares again?" "I sleep fine, thank you. There is nothing to worry about. How is the training going? You mentioned that Coach was talking about the eastern fixtures last time you..." "Don't do that." "Do what?" "Change the subject by asking abou
EZRA'S POVCaius had laid out my clothes before I was fully awake. I stood in the middle of the room in yesterday's shirt and looked at the selection on the bed, feeling the specific weight of a morning that had been decided for me before I got to it. "Come here," he said gently and I just followed his voice. He worked quietly, straightening my collar, adjusting the fit of my jacket with so much precision he applied to everything he cared about. His eyes moved across my face the way they did when he was running an assessment he wasn't going to announce. I just stared. He rubbed his thumb on the space between my brows. "Stop thinking so hard." "I'm not–" "Yes, you are, Ez." He smoothed the lapel and stepped back to look at me. "I can feel it. It's coming off you in waves."I looked out the window. "I'm fine." "No, you're not and that's what I don't like, darling." He put a hand on my jaw and turned my face toward him. "Listen to me, you're not fine. You're terrif
AUTHOR'S POV "You rarely come over to our place, Hale. What are you doing here?" Lucien spoke this time around. Hale looked at the family, especially the quad. He couldn't identify who was who and he considered it annoying having to ask them because he knew they wouldn't give him the answer he was looking for. Although Hale had come in late, he was still able to pick up a few words which was the suspicion he was asking about. "I am here to see Ezra." "Ezra? Why? What happened?" Riven's expression had turned cold. Hale shrugged. "It's nothing much. I would just like to speak to him in regards to today." Caius pushed himself forward. "Don't tell me you are already suspecting him?"Hale didn't reply. "He has absolutely nothing to do with this situation." "I never said he had anything to do though. You are jumping to conclusions right here. It really bothers me that I don't know who is who amongst you but that isn't much of a problem." Hale answered. "So why d
LUCIEN'S POVI turned to the manager. "You're in charge and for today, I need the clubhouse to be closed really quick." I said and picked my jacket from the arm of the chair. "What time do you prefer?" "Probably nine p.m. Inform the customers." "Alright sir." As I walked to the entrance, I had to pause and look at him, "And when you get home, don't fail to message me so I can know you're home." I added and he smiled after giving me a slight nod. I exited the place. He was a human and for some weird reason, I felt like something terrible was going to happen soon. But then just because a human being was found dead in her apartment didn't mean the rest of the humans were in trouble, right? That is, if the killer isn't just a vampire or any other creature. Or it could have just been an individual issue. But the main question was how did Ezra get tied up in all of this? Caius had already informed us that they were at home and I knew Ezra was overwhelmed at this po
CAIUS'S POV "That would be all. I will send the formula in by tomorrow." I said to one of my assistants as I signed off on a paper and stepped out while taking off my lab coat. I had been in there for several hours now and to say the process wasn't exhausting would mean I was lying to myself. Contrary to other opinions, being vampires didn't shield us from getting frustrated and tired of things. "What is the latest news?" I asked the other assistant who was following me carefully from behind with her heels clicking against the tiled floor and her face glued to the screen. She was a new additional member to my side and was getting to understand how things worked on my side. She looked up and repositioned her glasses. "I don't know if you'd be interested in reading this news." She showed me the screen of her iPad and I paused, collecting it from her to take a better look. "A young woman was murdered in her home and according to reports, it's been at least three to four days sin
CAELEN’S POVIf they died, so would I.My fingers gripped my phone tighter, my brows furrowed as I listened to the person on the other end of the call.“We're already looking at other options, Mr Lopezㅡ”“How long do they have if we're not able to find a suitable match?” I cut him off, my voice gru
DORIAN'S POVThe first thing I noticed was the door slightly ajar.My ears perked up and I frowned slightly. Ezra was usually very careful about his privacy and his door was always shut. Always.The first thought that blared in my head was that something had happened to him.So, I knocked gently, w
EZRA'S POV My heart felt like it was going to fall out of my chest.I had planned this for months. Years even. But now, as the time loomed even closer, I started feeling myself get cold feet.What would happen if I failed and they caught me? Caelan would never trust me again. Would they kill me? I
EZRA'S POV20 YEARS LATERI hated Wednesdays.I don't think I needed to say much. I simply hated the day. Not in the way everyone seemed to dread Mondays, I hated Wednesdays the way you hated something that had never once surprised you. Something that arrives on schedule, takes what it needs and le







