VALEN’S POVMy eyes snapped open, looking up at the wooden beams in the ceiling in confusion.This was Wolkrane.I can’t be here. Not when I promised Raina to be home by 9 P.M. daily. My head pounded with hazy memories, and I missed her pleasantly cool scent so badly. With her beautiful burgundy...Oh, fuck!I bolted up from the bed, and pain exploded on my side, spasming up and down my torso. Immediately, I glanced down at the three stitches that I just accidentally ripped, blood trickling down my side and into my gray sweatpants.Angry at myself for not knowing how long I’d been asleep, I yanked the IV line from my arm.Cursing silently while gritting my teeth against the agony, I barged out of the bedroom, ignoring the trail of blood I left on the umber-weave pattern of the vinyl plank flooring.Dizzy waves swept over me as I descended the stairs, determined for someone to tell me that it was a damn nightmare. That I imagined it all.“Where is she!” I roared, bulldozing into the sm
VALEN’S POV“Raina is hurting.” Penn interjected, finishing up and discarding the cotton in a bin.“I saw the pain in her eyes when she saw Snow with your baby.” She gazed sadly at Devin and added under her breath. “I can imagine what that feels like.”My Beta averted his eyes to the side of the room, avoiding hers, suddenly unsettled as he scratched behind his ear.I blew out a hard breath. I did not care about what was up with these two. Raina was priority. The mate bond wrenched at me in a silent cry from her that only I could hear. Missing the softness of holding her hands and basking in her endearing presence, hugging, touching, gazing—I just can't go on without it.“I'm pissed too because the future hasn't changed and at some point, you'll give the dick away.” Devin aired bluntly. “How could you? After all those times you swore to me…”“I'll never cheat on Raina.” I cut in sharply, darting daggers at him.Unconvinced, he huffed. Then he spoke again, his voice quieter. "She loves
RAINA’S POVSlinking inside the Alpha suite with night vision goggles, I crept up to the king-size bed to see Valen tossing and turning in his sleep.Why wasn’t he dead yet?Moving surreptitiously to the side of the bed, I was thankful that my black leather catsuit blended well with the darkness. As quiet as ever, I held my sword tighter, angling it in a left-plow position with the long edge up.Committed to the assassination task, my blow had to be quick and precise, piercing the heart. I cannot miss this golden opportunity.Standing exactly beside the nightstand, I glanced down at the ripped muscles of his heaving chest. Grunting, his sweaty head shifted from side to side. His face twitched, and his closed eyelids flexed as he breathed jaggedly in his sleep.Cardamom and amber surrounded me, the potent scent wafted straight from the source into my nostrils. A mouthwatering scent, so maddening. Perilously beguiling. The bond beat against my chest like a bone-crushing drum. The physica
RAINA’S POVYanking my injured right hand, Valen twirled me around so that my back slammed against his hard chest. His large hand came straight for my face to rip the goggles off.The room, like my fate, suddenly got darker.“You’re not so bad without your sword now, right?” Valen said mockingly. “But you certainly aren't vanilla and innocent either.”Once he crushed the goggles, he flung it into the wall. His robust right arm circled my waist while his left hand settled above my breast, slowly traveling up to my throat. Electric sparks exploded everywhere our skin touched.“Let me tell you something, Bluebella. You've unlocked a dangerous side of Zeus that even I feared,” he whispered huskily into my ear, gripping my neck. “But since you want to keep this bratty behavior up all night, challenging me, that part of him is going to burst out of his cage.”All the while, his emeralds were fixated on mine. He dipped his head over my shoulders. My flitting eyes watched him as my heart drum
RAINA’S POVStiff as a petrified log, I couldn't scream as my world exploded in a kaleidoscope of stars. My heart thrashed a million miles a minute.The agony caught into a knot in my throat. My body tried to curl in on itself – to replicate a spider's dead dusk, but he kept my flailing limbs pinned. My body heaved.Then, Valen pulled his fangs out, licking the punctured flesh and clearing the blood. Sparks erupted. Fucking sparks shot all the way to my toes.Each lick of his tongue was like morphine. Like a kick. I basked in it. I loved it. The bond was like being controlled by an entity. It was making me want him. Dammit.My body tightened, lungs squeezed and butterflies raged uncontrollably inside of me as he flicked his sinful tongue and dragged it wetly across my sensitive flesh.Focus, Raina! Don't let him swoop you in again. This can’t go on. I must bust out of here.“I want to fuck you, overstimulate you, edge you on until you're in tears, chanting your safe word,” he crooned.
VALEN’S POV“Slap me.”Thwack!“Again,” Theo ordered his twin, turning his other pink cheek.Thwack! Thaines smacked him, but Theo’s disbelief refused to be whacked out of him.Repetitive growls sputtered from my chest as I paced the full length of Jason’s office, raking my hands through my hair.The impish Gamma spun around to address me, “Let me get this straight.” Perplexed, he scratched his elevated brow, probing, “Your Luna beat the crap out of you? Not only did she stab you, but she also whipped your ass and ghosted you.”Not answering, I shoulder-checked him with a deadly glare of utter annoyance. The Gammas, in their sweat-soaked gym shorts, gawked at me with wide cognac brown eyes, their jaws hanging open.A bloodthirst burned in my veins, and the air conditioning at the IT Hub did nothing to cool me down. Yet, Theo dared to peeve me with his buffoonery.With slow, menacing steps, Devin walked around the hi-tech rectangular table and hit Theo upside the back of his head, fed-
VALEN’S POVA jolt of frustration ran through me. The ongoing search for Raina was long, complicated, and so painfully intricate that it hurt my brain.“This is insane,” I seethed, looking at the images on the large monitors before the Theta. “Patrol would have been able to stop Raina, but they never saw her. The magical barrier is intact. She has to be here, and I want her location now.”With one hand gripping the backrest of Jason's lofty chair and the other flattened on his office desk, I bent beside him as he nervously checked all the other video feeds from the drones. The computer trilled and beeped as his fingers worked deftly.Devin paced back and forth anxiously with his hands in his jeans pockets. “None of this makes sense. Raina is not invisible. We should have found her already. Huh? Venus is not here, and Azara hasn’t reported seeing her. Where could she have gone on foot?”“That slippery little Luna,” Theo grumbled, taking the tablet from his brother, and he slumped in hi
-RAINA'S POV- “You’ve been avoiding me,” an angry voice came from behind after I descended the glass-bifurcated stairs of the exquisite Saturn Striders Hotel. “Alpha Kain,” I acknowledged when I swung around to the six-foot man with hands crossed that made his biceps appear larger and ready to crush me for neglecting his messages. I said coolly, “I didn’t know that you were coming.” “You would if you had replied to my recent messages.” He dropped his hands to his side and his vexation toned down. The seventeen-year-old Alpha of an external pack licked his lips as his steps approached me with a cocky swagger. His nomad eyes lit up as he roamed them over my body and I took a deep breath. I was not afraid of him, but he has been one of those guys who constantly expressed an interest. “May I have the pleasure of enjoying your company or am I too late?” He stood too close to me with a taunting smirk as he gazed at my rose-mauve-coated lips. “I’ve been looking for you all evening.” He
VALEN’S POVA jolt of frustration ran through me. The ongoing search for Raina was long, complicated, and so painfully intricate that it hurt my brain.“This is insane,” I seethed, looking at the images on the large monitors before the Theta. “Patrol would have been able to stop Raina, but they never saw her. The magical barrier is intact. She has to be here, and I want her location now.”With one hand gripping the backrest of Jason's lofty chair and the other flattened on his office desk, I bent beside him as he nervously checked all the other video feeds from the drones. The computer trilled and beeped as his fingers worked deftly.Devin paced back and forth anxiously with his hands in his jeans pockets. “None of this makes sense. Raina is not invisible. We should have found her already. Huh? Venus is not here, and Azara hasn’t reported seeing her. Where could she have gone on foot?”“That slippery little Luna,” Theo grumbled, taking the tablet from his brother, and he slumped in hi
VALEN’S POV“Slap me.”Thwack!“Again,” Theo ordered his twin, turning his other pink cheek.Thwack! Thaines smacked him, but Theo’s disbelief refused to be whacked out of him.Repetitive growls sputtered from my chest as I paced the full length of Jason’s office, raking my hands through my hair.The impish Gamma spun around to address me, “Let me get this straight.” Perplexed, he scratched his elevated brow, probing, “Your Luna beat the crap out of you? Not only did she stab you, but she also whipped your ass and ghosted you.”Not answering, I shoulder-checked him with a deadly glare of utter annoyance. The Gammas, in their sweat-soaked gym shorts, gawked at me with wide cognac brown eyes, their jaws hanging open.A bloodthirst burned in my veins, and the air conditioning at the IT Hub did nothing to cool me down. Yet, Theo dared to peeve me with his buffoonery.With slow, menacing steps, Devin walked around the hi-tech rectangular table and hit Theo upside the back of his head, fed-
RAINA’S POVStiff as a petrified log, I couldn't scream as my world exploded in a kaleidoscope of stars. My heart thrashed a million miles a minute.The agony caught into a knot in my throat. My body tried to curl in on itself – to replicate a spider's dead dusk, but he kept my flailing limbs pinned. My body heaved.Then, Valen pulled his fangs out, licking the punctured flesh and clearing the blood. Sparks erupted. Fucking sparks shot all the way to my toes.Each lick of his tongue was like morphine. Like a kick. I basked in it. I loved it. The bond was like being controlled by an entity. It was making me want him. Dammit.My body tightened, lungs squeezed and butterflies raged uncontrollably inside of me as he flicked his sinful tongue and dragged it wetly across my sensitive flesh.Focus, Raina! Don't let him swoop you in again. This can’t go on. I must bust out of here.“I want to fuck you, overstimulate you, edge you on until you're in tears, chanting your safe word,” he crooned.
RAINA’S POVYanking my injured right hand, Valen twirled me around so that my back slammed against his hard chest. His large hand came straight for my face to rip the goggles off.The room, like my fate, suddenly got darker.“You’re not so bad without your sword now, right?” Valen said mockingly. “But you certainly aren't vanilla and innocent either.”Once he crushed the goggles, he flung it into the wall. His robust right arm circled my waist while his left hand settled above my breast, slowly traveling up to my throat. Electric sparks exploded everywhere our skin touched.“Let me tell you something, Bluebella. You've unlocked a dangerous side of Zeus that even I feared,” he whispered huskily into my ear, gripping my neck. “But since you want to keep this bratty behavior up all night, challenging me, that part of him is going to burst out of his cage.”All the while, his emeralds were fixated on mine. He dipped his head over my shoulders. My flitting eyes watched him as my heart drum
RAINA’S POVSlinking inside the Alpha suite with night vision goggles, I crept up to the king-size bed to see Valen tossing and turning in his sleep.Why wasn’t he dead yet?Moving surreptitiously to the side of the bed, I was thankful that my black leather catsuit blended well with the darkness. As quiet as ever, I held my sword tighter, angling it in a left-plow position with the long edge up.Committed to the assassination task, my blow had to be quick and precise, piercing the heart. I cannot miss this golden opportunity.Standing exactly beside the nightstand, I glanced down at the ripped muscles of his heaving chest. Grunting, his sweaty head shifted from side to side. His face twitched, and his closed eyelids flexed as he breathed jaggedly in his sleep.Cardamom and amber surrounded me, the potent scent wafted straight from the source into my nostrils. A mouthwatering scent, so maddening. Perilously beguiling. The bond beat against my chest like a bone-crushing drum. The physica
VALEN’S POV“Raina is hurting.” Penn interjected, finishing up and discarding the cotton in a bin.“I saw the pain in her eyes when she saw Snow with your baby.” She gazed sadly at Devin and added under her breath. “I can imagine what that feels like.”My Beta averted his eyes to the side of the room, avoiding hers, suddenly unsettled as he scratched behind his ear.I blew out a hard breath. I did not care about what was up with these two. Raina was priority. The mate bond wrenched at me in a silent cry from her that only I could hear. Missing the softness of holding her hands and basking in her endearing presence, hugging, touching, gazing—I just can't go on without it.“I'm pissed too because the future hasn't changed and at some point, you'll give the dick away.” Devin aired bluntly. “How could you? After all those times you swore to me…”“I'll never cheat on Raina.” I cut in sharply, darting daggers at him.Unconvinced, he huffed. Then he spoke again, his voice quieter. "She loves
VALEN’S POVMy eyes snapped open, looking up at the wooden beams in the ceiling in confusion.This was Wolkrane.I can’t be here. Not when I promised Raina to be home by 9 P.M. daily. My head pounded with hazy memories, and I missed her pleasantly cool scent so badly. With her beautiful burgundy...Oh, fuck!I bolted up from the bed, and pain exploded on my side, spasming up and down my torso. Immediately, I glanced down at the three stitches that I just accidentally ripped, blood trickling down my side and into my gray sweatpants.Angry at myself for not knowing how long I’d been asleep, I yanked the IV line from my arm.Cursing silently while gritting my teeth against the agony, I barged out of the bedroom, ignoring the trail of blood I left on the umber-weave pattern of the vinyl plank flooring.Dizzy waves swept over me as I descended the stairs, determined for someone to tell me that it was a damn nightmare. That I imagined it all.“Where is she!” I roared, bulldozing into the sm
RAINA’S POV“Kókkino, I don't know,” Gustav replied with understanding in a low voice. His words lingered, heavy with an edge of doubt. “The sword should have taken his life.”I swallowed hard and confessed dejectedly, “I wanted to believe him, but he can’t be the real Valen.”Gustav hummed thoughtfully and moved to the foot of the bed to remove my shoes.Flashes of the harrowing hurt in the last Valen’s eyes made my forlorn heart sink deeper and deeper. It seemed nearly genuine, yet it was not. It was a mask to get me to lower my guard. I was glad that I didn’t let the bond derail the mission this time.My eyes trailed to my guardian, and I expressed, “The timekeepers were so cruel. This is my ninth trial, and if he's not my Valen, he'll kill me again. As an anomaly, they've cursed me to die over and over.”“Then I will protect you,” Gustav swore, putting down my shoes at the bedside while his gaze met mine. The sincerity and promise were clear in his voice.“How long do you think I
RAINA’S POV I lingered behind Gustav as we arrived by teleportation at a sprawling lakeside manor. With urgency, he stalked off down a corridor that cut straight through the house. I broke off into a little jog to keep up with his large strides. Walking by his side, I felt curious and apprehensive about where he had taken me. Warm tones guided me through the great hall. Feeling antsy, my head pirouetted in the unfamiliar environment. Gaping archways revealed sitting rooms, recreational rooms, a grand dining room, and others. Each was filled with soothing terra cotta tones from walls painted in red earth color. “Nice safe house,” I remarked as he led me up the winding stairs, overwhelmed by the sheer size of it.Layers of vintage finds, painted artwork, and houseplants created a classical, inviting effect across the spaces. Together with white and green accents, the wall's reddish tone produced a muted color scheme that brought a diverse range of furniture pieces in a harmoniously b