LUCIANThe door thumps shut behind us and the suite goes quiet in that weird way big rooms do. It’s like the air is waiting to see who speaks first. Leah doesn’t speak. She just looks at me. No, not even looks, she studies. There’s a kind of mischief in her eyes, and some heat too. Trouble for me, definitely. I love it.I feel Fenrir lifts his head inside my chest. Finally. He’s been dragged from sleep by a scent he can’t resist, stubborn thing. “Mate,” he growls lustfully. Leah steps backward slowly, drawing me with her like there’s a hook in my ribs. “Take off your jacket,” she says softly and I don’t think, I just obey. The fabric slides down my shoulders to wrists. It’s like I’ve been waiting my whole life to be given a simple order. What an irony, a Lycan Alpha taking orders. I shake the thought off my mind as the corner of her mouth tilts up. Goddess, I’m already gone.“Boots,” she murmurs.I kick them off, clumsily, because her eyes are on me and every part of me can’t help bu
LEAHThe paper is heavy in my hand and I’m still staring at it as I feel Queen Reyna’s eyes on me, her frame towering over mine.“You shouldn’t be going through my council papers, Leah.”Her voice is cool, but there’s a bite under it. I can feel the tension from the whole Vince situation radiating off of her. Goddess, a lot must be going through her head right now. Who knows if the council would even blame her for not being a competent leader? Because obviously, all they know how to do is point accusing fingers. Wait… am I getting worried for the Queen of all faes? Or am I worried about my mother. I shake the lingering question away from my mind as she takes the letter from me before I can even think about moving, slipping it into her desk drawer. “What was it?” I ask, my voice coming out sharper than I meant.“Nothing you need to concern yourself with, Leah. It's council business.” Her words land like a door slamming in my face. I swallow hard, my mouth dry. “Fine. I didn’t exactl
LUCIANThe scent of blood lingers in my nose long after I’ve left the council chamber. It’s not just Vince’s blood, though there was enough of that to choke the air, it’s the smell of confusion and panic. Fear has its own scent, and once it’s in your lungs, it doesn’t leave.I used to think the enemy was Vince or at least, using Vince. But now that Vince is also a victim, who's the enemy?I should’ve gone straight back to Leah. Should’ve told her something, anything, to stop the questions I saw in her eyes earlier. But I didn’t, I couldn’t. Not yet.Instead, I went to the west wing where Vince was found. The guards are still here, sweeping the corridors, checking shadows, sniffing at the air like they expect the thing that attacked him to still be nearby. Idiots.The floor is clean now, almost too clean. They’ve scrubbed away every trace of blood, or even signs of a struggle, erasing all leads or evidence. The air reeks heavily of disinfectant. These nutjobs, how the hell am I suppose
LEAH The days start blurring together, and I spend most of them with Queen Reyna now. And it's not because things with Lucian are terrible, not exactly, but because it’s easier this way. It's easier to stay busy, easier to avoid the way his eyes have been holding something back lately. There’s a wall between us. It's thin enough to see through, but it's also thick enough to stop me from touching him.Queen Reyna and I are also still awkward, there’s no pretending otherwise. We’re not the kind of mother and daughter who fall into each other’s arms after years apart. We circle around each other instead. She gives me pieces of herself, little bits of her past, like broken glass she’s afraid I’ll cut myself on. I offer pieces back, though mine are smaller, and safer. We’re both learning about each other one conversation at a time.But at least she’s here, and she’s patient. That’s something. Today, we’re in one of the training courts behind her office. It’s quiet except for the low whist
LUCIANThe sun is dropping low when I get a message from Theron. Found something. That’s all it says. No explanation, no details. I leave the council archives without a word to anyone, my boots hitting the stone steps fast, and my chest tight. This could be the first real lead since the portal incident.Leah’s back in our suite, resting after her training with her mother. It still feels weird to call Queen Reyna her mother. But if they're going to get close anytime soon. I have to do my part. She looked drained when I left, her hair’s damp with sweat, eyes heavy but stubborn. She still doesn’t know I’ve kept working on the case in the background. I tell myself it’s to protect her from stress. Truth is, I’m not ready to see her face if the trail leads nowhere.Theron’s waiting for me in the shadow of a old bell tower. Perks of having a tracker wolf as your brother, and Beta. He's just too good. Sometimes I wish he was born first, he deserves to be Alpha, more than I do. All I know how
LEAHI’m in a forest, but I’m not just standing there, the trees, the wind, the river… they all feel like they belong to me. The forest itself feels like it's breathing. My bare feet sink into damp mud, the air is thick with the scent of green leaves and rain, though no clouds hang above me. I lift my hand and the air surprisingly swirls, warm and slow, brushing against my hair gently. It feels like I'm the one controlling it. A soundless vibration rises in my chest, making the ground tremble, roots coiling upward, and weaving around my ankles. I turn my palm, and a stream of water arches from nowhere, coiling through my fingers. It feels just right.What the hell?Suddenly I feel something deeper moving inside me. My bones bend, and break, an excruciating pain surging through my whole body. My skin burns as ut ripples and shreds into pieces. Suddenly, I'm on fours.My senses are heightened beyond reasoning, and I see clearer than I ever have. My eyes catche a strange glint on my bod