DamianThe fire came out of nowhere. One moment I was sitting there, trying to figure out how the hell I was supposed to stop my brothers from stabbing me in the back—again—and the next, heat roared in my face.A burst of orange and red flared so close I swore it singed my eyelashes. My body reacted before my mind caught up. I shouted—not from pain, not yet—but from the raw, gut-deep fear that someone had just tried to kill me.The flames hissed like they were alive, curling toward me, swallowing the space between us faster than I could move. My heart slammed in my chest. My mind spun.Who the hell—No. Don’t pretend you don’t know. I might have an idea. A name clawed at the back of my mind, but I didn’t have the luxury of thinking it through.Because another crack split the air. A second blast, sharp and sudden, this time right near my chair. My pulse jumped with it. I jerked away so fast my seat toppled over. I braced for the explosion that never came—just the spreading, licking fir
AlinaLogan’s hand clamped lightly on my forearm, his voice low but urgent. “Alina… wait. Just wait a second.”Wait? How could I? My heart was slamming against my ribs like it wanted to break free. Every beat was louder than the last, and every nerve in my body screamed at me to move.“Where’s Damian?” My voice trembled despite my attempt to sound calm.Logan hesitated, glancing toward the hallway. “He’s in his office.”Before I could respond, a scream ripped through the air again.It wasn’t just a sound—it was sharp and raw, echoing down the walls like something alive. It clawed its way down my spine, raising every hair on my neck.I froze for a second. My legs didn’t want to move forward or back.Then another scream followed, and I felt my control snap.“Alina—” Logan’s tone was almost pleading now, his grip tightening. “Please. Don’t go. Just—”“I can’t stand here!” I yanked my arm free. My chest felt tight, my mind unable to focus on anything except that sound.“Dammit—” Logan rea
DamianI hadn’t expected her suggestion to cut so deep, but the second the words “abolishing slavery” left her lips, it was like something inside me splintered apart. My reaction wasn’t calculated; it ripped out of me raw—sharp, instinctive, defensive.And the look on her face… damn it, I hated seeing that kind of disappointment in her eyes. That quiet, hollow expression did more damage than any shouted insult ever could.I could feel the shift between us—subtle, but heavy. It was like the air had thickened, weighted down with a pressure that warned of a storm. She was staring at me as though she no longer recognized the man in front of her. Not the one she had been lying next to only hours ago, her body warm against mine.“I thought…” Her voice was soft, almost trembling, as though she wasn’t entirely sure she wanted to say the rest. “I thought this was just because of your father. I thought you hated the system too. But…” Her eyes searched mine, sharp and pained. “You actually belie
AlinaBlood trickled warm down my temple, following the curve of my cheek before slipping past my jawline and soaking into my collar. I felt the sticky trail it left, but I didn’t care. Not about the sting, not about the way it smeared when I brushed at it with the back of my hand, not about the mess Damian had just made of the room around us—shattered glass, splintered wood, papers scattered like fallen leaves.What I cared about—what tore straight through the fragile barrier I’d built inside my chest—was the look in his eyes.He was breaking.Not the kind of break that healed with a few stitches, a bandage, or a steadying breath. This wasn’t a wound you could bind or a fever you could wait out. It was the kind of fracture you heard but couldn’t see—the sound of something inside him splintering into a thousand irretrievable pieces. And I hated it. I hated standing there, useless, unable to gather the pieces, unable to put him back together the way I wanted to.I wanted to take his ha
DamianThe chants hit me first—loud, repetitive, and grating, as if each voice had been sharpened just to pierce me. They weren’t just words; they were daggers, thrown with precision and intent, sinking deep where they knew it would hurt the most. The sound vibrated through the walls and into my skull until my head pounded with the rhythm of it, my wolf pacing restlessly inside me, claws dragging across the edges of my mind like it was trying to tear its way out.I caught fragments—half phrases, angry syllables—but my blood was roaring too loud in my ears to make out everything. My pulse was in my throat, in my temples, everywhere at once. All I knew—all I knew—was that this was an ambush. A coordinated, deliberate ambush. And it was aimed at me—me, their Alpha.My fists clenched so tight my knuckles cracked, the tendons pulling like wires about to snap. My jaw locked until it ached, teeth gritting hard enough that I tasted iron on my tongue.And then… the words started to clear. They
AlinaI woke up with a pounding headache that felt like someone was trying to split my skull in half. The throbbing wasn’t sharp—it was a deep, relentless pressure, like the heartbeat of some creature lodged in my brain. My eyes refused to focus, blinking uselessly against the pale morning light streaming in from the window. Every muscle in my body felt heavy, as if someone had draped wet blankets over me in my sleep.It was the same sensation I’d been having too often lately—like I was sinking into something cold and deep, unable to break the surface. Sometimes, it even felt like I was drowning in my own body.I couldn’t keep brushing it off.Pushing myself upright took more effort than it should have. I pressed my palms hard against my temples, trying to rub the ache away. “What is wrong with me?” I muttered, my voice hoarse.No one answered, of course. Damian wasn’t here—if he were, he’d already be hovering, insisting on dragging me to the healer himself. And I couldn’t let that ha