LOGINI straightened up. My heart was pounding. I looked around the room and for a single, disorienting moment, I had no idea where I was. The black stone walls, the red sky beyond the window, the dead air of this place—none of it felt right. None of it felt like mine. I felt like a man who had woken up m
Andrei’s POVThe collar of my shirt was pissing me off.I had fastened it twice already and it still insisted on sitting crooked, pulling too tight on the left side. I undid it a third time and redid it, slower, watching my hands in the mirror rather than my own face. My reflection had been botherin
Natalia’s POVHe didn’t hesitate.The moment I swung the rod toward him, his hand shot out and closed around my wrist like a vise. My arm wrenched sideways, and I felt the bones grind together under his grip, and the rod fell. It clattered somewhere on the stone floor, rolling away into the darkness
Andrei’s POVThe room was warm. The bed was soft and plush, the pillows made of feathers and velvet. Everything smelled familiar, the kind of scent that you recognize from a past life but can never put a finger on its source.Home.The woman was laying next to me, just as she always did. Amber hair
But I would do it, because the alternative was my children going through whatever came next, and that was not something I was willing to consider.I wasn’t certain yet. That was the only reason I was still trying so hard now. Because there was still a small part of me that thought that there must be
Natalia’s POVThey came for me after what felt like a full day. I say felt like because it really could have been any amount of time, or none at all. But someone did bring me some slop to eat at some point, so that had to have meant that at least a full cycle had passed.I was on my feet before the
NataliaThe next morning, Jane was miraculously cleared for discharge. She had no injuries, all thanks to the man who had saved her from the lake. In fact, she had even slept like a baby all night, not even waking up once with a nightmare from the trauma.All she could talk about from the moment she
Natalia & AndreiNataliaI’d suspected it was coming, but hearing Lilith announce her pregnancy out loud like that was different. The words echoed across the gardens, followed by enthusiastic applause and cheers from the crowd, but it all sounded muffled to me—like I was underwater.My eyes immediat
Lilith & NataliaLilithThe rogues I’d paid to eliminate Natalia had failed. Again. Not only had they failed, but their leader was dead now, the rest had scattered, and Natalia was back home safe and sound.All thanks to Andrei.He had dropped everything to search for her. For three days, he had tor
“Going somewhere?” Marcus stood over me, breathing heavily. Blood was streaking down one side of his face, and his stolen suit jacket was ripped.I scrambled backward, but he was faster. His hand closed around my throat, hauling me to my feet.“Enough!” he bellowed toward the fighting. “Everyone sto







