LOGINKira The darkness after the dream made me uncomfortable in a way that unsettled my body, and I kept tossing around in bed. Not like I could fight for what I want out of the hat and have people think I was crazy. The hard part of it all was wanting something for myself, which felt dangerous. Wanting something, even a tiny bit of affection, led me to Nick’s arms at the lake, and it was a messy move that I only realized the damage of after I saw him locking lips with Kayla. Who was I to even complain when I boldly made out with the alpha I claimed not to want and gave him up for my twin? I was slowly beginning to drift into a restless half-sleep when a sound echoed into my room. It was a thud, like something small and hard striking my window. I bolted upright, and once I heard the sound again, my heart just knew who it was. Another stone clashed against the glass windows, and I threw off my blankets and ran to the window, my bare feet warm on the rug. I pulled the curtain aside jus
Kira The darkness after the dream made me uncomfortable in a way that unsettled my body, and I kept tossing around in bed. Not like I could fight for what I want out of the hat and have people think I was crazy. The hard part of it all was wanting something for myself, which felt dangerous. Wanting something, even a tiny bit of affection, led me to Nick’s arms at the lake, and it was a messy move that I only realized the damage of after I saw him locking lips with Kayla. Who was I to even complain when I boldly made out with the alpha I claimed not to want and gave him up for my twin? I was slowly beginning to drift into a restless half-sleep when a sound echoed into my room. It was a thud, like something small and hard striking my window. I bolted upright, and once I heard the sound again, my heart just knew who it was. Another stone clashed against the glass windows, and I threw off my blankets and ran to the window, my bare feet warm on the rug. I pulled the curtain aside jus
NICKMatilda was silent for a long moment. He could feel her gaze on the side of his face, filled with disappointment. “You’re as stubborn as your father,” she murmured finally. “Fine. But don’t say I didn't warn you.” She turned and walked back toward the greenhouse entrance, pausing at the door. “Carrie will be joining us for breakfast tomorrow morning. Think about what I said, Nicholas. For your own sake.” Then she was gone, her footsteps fading down the corridor, leaving Nick alone among the flowers. He sat there for a while longer, the scent of camellias filling his lungs, and he plucked a petal. His mother’s words echoed in his head. Reject the twins and choose Carrie. He could not see himself rejecting Kira, whose sacrifice to leave gutted him. And not Kayla, whose desperation was too obvious to ignore. Curse or not, the bond he had with the twins was real. And yet, people like his mother had him constantly questioning everything. His mother wasn’t wrong, though. The ma
The street was a graveyard of silence.Nick stood beside his car, the driver's door still open, the cold night air biting at his face. He watched Kira walk back toward her parents' house, her steps measured and deliberate, her back straight as a blade. She did not look back. She never looked back. That was Kira—unyielding even when her heart was breaking.His chest ached with a pain that had no physical source. The bond between them pulsed weakly, like a wounded animal struggling to draw its last breath. He had felt it flicker the moment she announced she was leaving in two days. Two days. Then she would reject him, formally, before the council. The bond would begin to sever. A year of exile. A lifetime of wondering what if.The weight of it pressed down on his shoulders until he thought he might buckle.He became aware of movement beside him. Kayla was still there, standing a few feet away, still wrapped in his jacket. Her arms were crossed tight over her chest, her eyes fixed on him
KiraThe dream came without warning.One moment I was drifting in darkness, weightless and numb. The next, I was running.My bare feet slapped against cold, wet earth. The forest surrounded me—not the familiar woods of Dark Valley, but something older, darker. The trees were skeletal, their branches reaching toward a moon that hung too low in the sky, bloated and red. A blood moon.My heart hammered against my ribs. My lungs burned. I didn't know what I was running from, only that something was behind me. Something fast. Something hungry.I risked a glance over my shoulder.Red eyes. Pale skin. Fangs gleaming in the crimson light.A vampire.He moved with unnatural speed, his body a blur of shadows and malice. His lips were pulled back in a snarl, and his hands—long-fingered, clawed—reached for me. I could smell him, death and copper and something ancient that made my wolf cower.I ran faster. Branches clawed at my arms, leaving thin lines of fire. Roots caught at my feet, trying to t
Kayla Her words hung in the air between us, heavy and charged. I still couldn’t believe my ears about the old woman being a witch, but I was more concerned about how much she knew about me and my chaotic life. I had heard stories of witches, of course. Every werewolf raised in a pack knew the old tales. The covens had once ruled these lands alongside vampires and werewolves until the great war among all supernatural beings destroyed the peace, and blood magic became outlawed. It was no secret that dark witches still lurked in shadows, waiting to prey on the weak and shake up the peace. But those were stories. Legends. Things that existed in history, not in a cottage in the middle of the forest, and certainly not in the old woman who had just handed me a mug of hot tea and given me dry clothes to wear. And now that I looked closer at the woman, she looked strangely familiar. Like I’d seen her before. Now that I focused on her, she looked like the witch pretending to be a fortune te
“It’s good to know I didn't completely ruin their family.” Mom sighed heavily, dropping the last pastry box she was working on. The soft thud of the cardboard hitting the wooden table. “Kira, please stop. You were a child. What happened wasn't your fault.” A part of me wanted to say “I know,” bu
Nick hadn’t realized how fast he was running until the trees blurred into streaks of shadow and green. The river came into view, the morning light streaks flowing over it. His wolf urged him to move closer to the river, eager for answers, and the sweet vanilla scent of his mate. A day without havi
Nick’s fists hit the sandbag in a steady, savage rhythm. The gym smelled of iron, sweat, and pinewood, all emanating from the morning heat. His wolf paced beneath his skin, restless, irritated as if it needed something he couldn’t name. The impact shook up his wrist, but he didn’t stop. Like the pr
I didn't expect pain to ripple through me at the words that fell out of Kayla's mouth. As if time had stopped, the tick-tock of the wall clock was loud enough to burst my eardrums, and I could feel the walls closing in on me. My mind, trying to process those three words, was like a puzzle that rat







