FAZER LOGIN“Do you remember what he looked like?”“It’s all a blur. Sorry.”I nodded slowly, looking around again. I spotted Max on the other side of the yard, returning to his work with a group of other males.“What’s the labor for?” I asked. “Are we building something?”“We think it’s for an army. The stone
Natalia’s POVBy the end of the first hour, my shoulders were burning and my palms had gone from sore to numb. The rock I’d been assigned to break with a heavy pickaxe was dense and black, and I was expected to break it into small pieces, then place them on a large wagon. One of those awful gray thi
A pair of figures crossed our path as we walked across the roadway. We fell into step behind them naturally, matching their pace. Neither of them looked back.The water trough was near the center of the settlement. I spotted a short line of people standing in front of it. It wasn’t running water, bu
Natalia’s POVI jerked awake with a gasp.The red sky was the same as it always was. Max was curled on his side a few feet away, still asleep, his chest rising and falling slowly. Nothing had moved. Nothing had changed.I pressed my hand flat against the ground and steadied my breathing.The vision
Natalia’s POVThe report came back the following morning. I’d hardly slept that night, which was strange for me; usually, sleep came quickly and efficiently, serving purely as a means to regain my energy for another day of hard work.But last night, I kept tossing and turning. That pull in my chest
“It’s no use!” I heard her voice call after me. “He’s already gone, you stupid bitch! He’s not who you think he is anymore! You’ll all die here!”Her words struck me somewhere deep and painful, but I kept running. We didn’t stop until the hovel was well out of sight. Only then, once we were certain
ANDREII didn’t hear the door open.I didn’t even look up when footsteps crossed the room and stopped just short of the hearth. I sat with my elbows on my knees, head in my hands, trying to breathe past the hollow ache in my chest that had been growing since morning.“You need to come with me,” Damo
NATALIAThe Green Ridge hall was grander than I expected—not in size, but in confidence. It didn’t need opulence to prove itself. The old stone walls were half-covered in rich green moss and etched with the marks of long-standing territory.Gold-framed banners of visiting packs swayed gently under h
NATALIAThe door to the storage room creaked shut, and I didn’t dare to breathe until I heard Andrei’s footsteps retreat. Even then, I stayed still for several minutes, tucked in the narrow passageway between the walls, my arms wrapped protectively around my belly.Damon’s hand rested lightly on my
It stung. Deeply.But none of that mattered. The only thing that mattered was that Natalia was alive.Lilith hadn’t stopped crying. Not when I’d pulled her from the pool. Not when she clung to my arm like her survival depended on it. Not even when we headed up to our rooms to retire for the night.B







