Cain grabs onto my waist and kisses me, hauling me up and plastering me against him. His voice is a rough husk in my ear as he whispers āYou did it, Adelaide.ā Tears run down my eyes and he hugs me, holding my body to his as I sob into his chest. I donāt think I'd believe what just happened if someone told me it would a few months ago. All I wanted was to be free and run off to hell knows where, but I'm glad for what I did. Now I know I have parents, parents who loved me and a mother who would have done anything for me. Iām not just the pack omega destined to be maltreated and beaten for all of her life. The suffering I went through changed me. It gave me tougher skin and with the power of my heritage⦠I've just won back my kingdom. Freedom is mine if I want it. Freedom, and power, and love, if I want any of it, and all of it, and I do. I really do. I kiss Cain again, just to cement the fact that we are a thing now. Weāre more than a thing. Iām wearing his ring. Heās as much
Lyros is no longer the all-powerful Lycan lording his majesty over the weak populace. We are powerful in our own right now.And in the face of real power, the Lycan king can only do one thing, cower, like a coward.Lyros attempts to run but almost like he knows itās futile thereās no spirit in it. Lycan speed might have given him a chance, but running was just one final way of making a dash for his life.I flash and slam Lyros with my sword, the blade slapping the side of his face and drawing blood as he tumbles to the ground. I lean down and whisper close to his ear,āI donāt intend to kill you Lord Lyros.āI feel his heartbeat intensify as my words graze his ears but I continue confidently, āI intend to make you pay for all youāve done. For the young girls you plucked from weak werewolf packs, only to kill them after torturing them, their dreams ended and hopes cut short because of your wickedness. I intend to make you pay for the cities youāve attacked, the people you have killed,
I rip through the fabric of space as I burn.I feel the Lycanās flame coursing through my being and it sets me on fire with the force of a supernova. I feel the strength of a thousand stars in me. The flames lick at my dress, burning it short and tattered, turning me into a version these men see, but which they donāt see at all.I wonder how many times Lyros has looked at me and seen nothing but skin. Nothing but clothes in pieces, flesh for the taking, a body to be claimed, and a mind to have fun with.I wonder how many times heās seen skin and ignored the fire that rages in my heart. Ignored the love I have for the simple things. Ignored the fact that I am more than just skin and flesh, that I am heart and brains and emotion. That I am not his plaything.I am a Queen, and this Kingdom is mine.I kill the King beyond the border first. The battle with him takes less than an hour.In my hand is a sword hot as flame and solid as diamond. Rafie attacks me next so I slay him too.Raymel
We all stand in wait for her.Me, Rafie, Alizadeh, and Galan, all four Lycan kings, we wait for a weak omega female and something hollow rings in my chest. It was stupid to think I could find love.Even before the truth of Elaraās betrayal was revealed to me, I already knew. I already knew something was wrong with my heart and that I couldn't love properly anymore.I should have left it out of the cards, left love to those foolish enough to crave it but instead, I had to go ahead and try to keep her. Adelaide made me imagine something hot and exciting between us, something fiery and passionate, but at the end of the day, sheās expendable.Sheās always been. Only I matter.A kingdom rests on my shoulders.āIs she on her way?āRafieās voice grates against my nerves but I nod. Iām not angry at him anymore. Heās doing what I didn't have the strength to do.Galan chortles where he stands and I feel my hands clench. I should kill him for using his trickster magic on me, but he saved my life
āHow sweet.āCainās hand stops immediately and my foggy brain canāt even make sense of whatās happening. Has Cain taken me to the point of release this morning? Yes.Iām worried I might be a horndog.I turn to see Safira leaning on the doorframe. Her dress is so pretty, it drapes over her body like liquid and damn, I almost forgot how pretty she was.She smirks as her eyes meet mine, āShould I leave?ā Cain answers sweetly before I can and his reply makes me chuckle. He goes āYes please.āSafiraās hand twitches and a pillow launches itself at the back of Cainās head. I let it hit and burst into subdued chuckles when he lets out a slight āoof.āSafirs sighs and shakes her head āYou have a meeting in like six minutes. Will you be down?āCain smirks lazily and shrugs. Safiraās gaze darts to me and she fixes me with an inquisitive stare, āWill he be down?āI nod because despite how much I want him to stay with me and kiss me silly, heās already explained to me how things are here.He has
Diane visits me one last time in my dreams. She smiles at me and though my heart breaks, I smile back at her.I know this is the end. This is the last time I will see her, and as we stand on the sandy beach, our eyes locked on each other and the resemblance undeniable, I let her embrace me as a mother would her child, and I cry so bad my heart feels like itās going to break.Diane kisses my forehead and wipes my tears, āYouāre stronger than your pain my love. You know that right?āI want to nod. I desperately want to nod. The moment I saw Cain, the reality of what had happened to me seemed to come crashing down on me. The moment I saw Lyros instead of him, saw flashes of me and him behind my closed eyes each time I blinkedā¦.. How do I live with that?How do I live with the knowledge of all the things I did with the man I hate? A man who used me?I wish I could forget.āThis is fire Adelaide,ā I clutch Diane closer as she pats my hair down, tears still streaming down my cheeks āLike g