Masuk“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
NataliaI stared at the small glass bottle in my hand in shock. Andrei had pressed it into my palm with no audience this time—no crowd to impress, no show to put on.Maybe he wasn’t being as manipulative as I’d thought. Maybe—No. I shoved the bottle into my pocket and finished helping Damon into th
NataliaThe sun was setting by the time Damon and I finally returned to Ashmoor. It was a relief to be home again, to see the familiar mossy stone walls of our pack coming into view, after yet another multi-day journey out of the territory. I hoped there wouldn’t be another one anytime soon.The twi
Andrei“Natalia…”My eyes snapped open as cold water splashed across my face, shocking me awake. I gasped and shot upright, water dripping down my neck and soaking into the blankets around me.Lilith was standing over me in the darkness, her face twisted with fury, an empty glass clutched in her sha
Natalia“Natalia, eat.”“I’m not hungry,” I lied, looking away.“You need to eat.” Andrei moved the plate closer, and the smell of perfectly roasted elk made my traitorous stomach growl. “You lost a lot of blood earlier. Your body needs protein to heal.”I finally looked up at him. He’d cleaned up s







