LOGINNick’s POVThings were not normal yet, but the chaos had reduced drastically.I was scanning the area with my eyes. We had a lot of injured people, but we were pulling ourselves together.The thought of my sister filled my head, and I found it hard to concentrate.The air felt heavy and filled with tension; each of us felt it.Betsy was with him, and it put all of us on edge.“Let’s regroup”, I said, immediately raising my voice. “Let’s do a head count of those that are injured and those still strong to fight, I don’t want anyone to be unaccounted for”, I said to them.They nodded without hesitation and started doing as I ordered.One of them came up to me after a moment.“We’ve secured most of the place”, he said. “But we are still noticing some movement deeper inside the forest; it seems like his men pulled back on purpose”, the guard said.“Of course, this wasn’t a random attack but a trap”, I said firmly. “They wanted to scatter our formation and weaken us”.“This was planned very
Drake’s POVI tried to stay calm, but I couldn’t. The anger was still burning strongly inside me. It was sharp and made my chest tight, no matter how hard I tried to be calm.Nick’s hands were still on mine firmly; it was a reminder for me to think clearly before acting.“Think about this for a moment,” Nick said calmly. “You’re still quick to act. If you go rushing in like this again, we’ll be making a very big mistake”.I took a deep breath, clenching my teeth tightly as I tried to reason with him.“I know exactly what I’m doing”, I said to him. “All I can think of right now is her with him”, I said forcefully.“I want her right back, too”, Nick said softly. “That’s the reason I’m here, holding you back from acting rashly”.I took my eyes off him for a second as I scanned around the forest.The fighting was coming to an end as many of Matteo’s men were already retreating, and the volunteers from my pack were regrouping. Some tended to those who were injured, and the rest stood guard
Betsy’s POVI was trying to stay calm, but I couldn’t; no matter how hard I tried to be calm, I was still breathing fast.I was still standing in the same spot for almost an hour. I didn’t even know how long anymore.My body didn’t feel like it belonged to me anymore. The pull was still there, and it was stronger.It kept holding me in place, and I couldn’t fully understand what was going on.I tried to steady myself, but I couldn’t.My heart was pounding furiously as I placed my hand on my chest.“Why am I feeling this way?” I whispered to myself.I noticed Matteo’s eyes on me, he was staring at me intently. The way he was watching made it feel like he already expected this reaction from me.“You’re feeling it more now, right?” He asked. “The harder you fight it, the stronger it becomes”.I stared at him,
Nick’s POVDrake was filled with raw and uncontrollable anger. I saw it in the way he was trying to shift and push through me.He didn’t want to think or calculate the next move to make; he wasn’t even thinking about the consequences or what would go wrong if he moved forward. All he wanted was to rush in.I knew that’s exactly how Matteo wanted him to react.“Damn it”, I said softly as I watched him tear through some wolves that were attacking him like rags.The fight was still on, and it was getting tougher by the minute.Some of our pack members that the ropes had dragged were struggling to free themselves, some were free and fighting back the attackers.All these didn’t matter as the main damage was done.Betsy was nowhere to be found, and Drake wasn’t even thinking straight.I turned to look at him for another second as he smashed an attacker's head.“He’ll walk right into whatever trap Matteo has set for him if he keeps acting this way”, I whispered to myself.I dodged and pushe
Drake’s POVI knew it the moment it took her. I didn’t even have the time to think or know my next course of action.It just hit me as if something had been ripped from inside me. One moment I was seeing her and then the next, she disappeared completely.It felt as if something sharp pierced through my heart when I couldn’t feel her anymore. My chest tightened painfully.“Betsy”, I called loudly. “Can you hear me?” I said before I could even blink.Everything felt slow for a few seconds, the sounds around me became blurry, and all the scuffling faded into a distant sound. It took a moment for me to realize this was really happening.She was gone, everything came rushing back at once.I could see the chaos, the fighting. The forest was filled with violence. People moved very fast and aggressively, swords clashed together, and blood spewed. We had walked right into a trap and it was closing in on us.“Drake, Drake”, someone called.I turned to the direction I heard my name and it was
Betsy’s POVI dropped to my knees as the intensity of the pull reduced drastically. My breath came out in short gasps as I was trying to catch my breath. My heart was still pounding furiously in my chest.I had been pulled as if I had no control over myself.“This can’t be happening to me”, I whispered. I used my palms to wipe both my eyes, thinking I was in a dream. “Nooo”, I screamed as I tried to raise myself from the ground.I took a deep breath and mustered enough courage to raise myself from the ground. It felt like I was carrying invisible chains all over my body as a reminder.“Why can I move freely?” I whispered to myself as I pushed myself further.I tried to move again but it felt like I was being held back, I couldn’t move the way I wanted to.I turned to Matteo.“This is from you”, I screamed loudly.He stood a few steps away from me, staring at me like he had no better thing to do.He had a sly smile on his face. He seemed to be enjoying the torture he subjected me to.I
Betsy's POVDrake.I flung my arms around him and pushed myself up more quickly than I should have, before he could even approach the bed or speak.I hugged him very closely, so firmly I almost lost awareness of my ongoing frailty.“I missed you so much.” “I thought I wouldn't see you once more.”H
Betsy’s POVHaving left Nick's room, I strolled along the corridor, too many thoughts racing through my head. The talk with him had made me uneasy, the more I considered Drake's actions earlier, the more confident I became that I had to speak to him.Ignoring our relationship would not solve anythi
Betsy's POVI felt the eerie weight that had trailed us all the way from school still sitting inside the car as it stopped in front of the residence. The whole ride home had been excruciatingly silent. Drake had driven without saying a word, his eyes glued on the road as though nothing else existed
Drake's POVI just looked at Nick straight.We were silent for a few moments. Still resounding in my head were his words, and I had difficulty responding the way I typically would.The weird part was that he was not wrong. And the way he said it with that cool assurance indicated something signific







