The air in the meeting hall was thick, suffocating, as if the very walls pressed down upon us, demanding submission. But I refused to yield. The weight of my decision settled in the room, a presence of its own, lingering like an inescapable reality. I clenched my fists at my sides, nails digging into my palm, grounding myself. The tension in my muscles coiled tightly, yet I stood unwavering as I lifted my chin, meeting the cold, calculating gaze of Alpha Hornet—the man who had made me toil endlessly for his son, forcing me to bear the brunt of his failures. His reaction was immediate. His face contorted, disbelief flashing first, followed by irritation, the kind that simmered beneath the surface, restrained yet unmistakable. “I choose the secret mission, Alpha,” I declared, my voice steady, unwavering. A sharp silence followed, as if the very air had been sucked out of the room. Jonathan inhaled sharply beside me. When I flicked my gaze toward him, I caught something unexpec
The moment I faced Jonathan, a wave of disgust, anger, and loathing crashed over me. But it wasn’t the kind of conflicted rage that made me question whether I had ever loved him. No—what I once felt for him had been mad, blind devotion. And now? Nothing but contempt. Yet, the irony of my heart lay elsewhere. The moment my eyes landed on Hades Wraithborn, walking into the grand hall with another woman draped on his arm, I was stunned. It felt like a slap across my face, delivered with his sheer arrogance. A silent, unspoken promise between us—broken. A wound I hadn't even acknowledged until now—ripped open. Finding a mate? Hah. If that’s what he was after, I would stay far away. As I should have from the very beginning. But then, why did this betrayal sting? Why did it twist in my chest like a knife—sharp and merciless? I had killed for this scumbag next to me. I had stained my hands with blood—my own hands—only to stand beside a man who had never deserved me. A voice pul
I could feel his heartbeat against my back. Not even an inch separated us. The moment his deep voice echoed in my ears and his broad chest became an unyielding wall behind me, the mate bond roared to life, spreading heat through my veins as if I were falling into a firepit. But unfortunately, Hades couldn’t feel it. No, I should say—fortunately. "Seems like it’s a trap, isn’t it?" His whisper brushed against my ear, his warm breath making me flinch. "Wh-What?" I stammered, turning to face him. Big mistake. I barely had a second to react before my forehead brushed against his lips. My breath hitched. My hands flew up in reflex, pressing against my burning skin, but it did nothing to cool the heat crawling up my neck. Hades blinked in surprise, clearly not expecting me to turn. His grip on the rogue’s neck loosened just enough for the bastard to lunge at me from behind. "GRR!" His claws tore through my uniform. But— "Such a nuisance." The impact was instant
His chest pressed against mine, his arms snaking around my waist. Our bodies almost collided inside the thick foliage as the muffled sound of footsteps grew closer. Two guards roamed the area, their sharp eyes scanning the darkness, desperately searching for the source of the sound I had accidentally made. I held my breath. Through the small gaps between the leaves, I could see their boots treading dangerously close. Just one more step—one wrong move—and they would see Hades’s back. “Maybe just some animals. I can’t see anyone here. No scents, either,” one of the guards muttered in frustration. “That makes sense. Who would come here when everyone is in the ballroom?” They hesitated for a moment before turning around. Only when their footsteps faded did I realize how tightly my lungs had been caged. A heavy sigh escaped my lips, and my muscles finally loosened. Then, it hit me. I was still in Hades’s grasp. I flinched. “Ah—” My voice barely made it past my throat. “Let’
Jonathan, The heavy oak doors shut behind us, enclosing the two of us in the grand yet suffocating meeting room. Before I could even catch my breath, a sharp sting exploded across my face.SLAP!My father’s palm connected with my cheek, sending a shockwave of pain through my jaw. The force of it echoed through the chamber, but the only sound that followed was my own harsh breathing. My vision blurred for a second before I clenched my fists, grounding myself."You useless fool!" His voice cut through the silence like a whip, filled with scorn. My face throbbed with the imprint of his fingers, but I refused to give him the satisfaction of seeing weakness. "Are you trying to ruin your future?" he seethed, stepping closer, his tall frame casting a shadow over me. "What did you see in that woman? I have spent years building our dominance, and you dare to defy me over a petty thing called love?" His voice dripped with disgust. "I love Carolina!" I shot back, my own rage simmering beneath
Elysia, Black hair cascaded down her waist like silk, crimson eyes, and skin that looked like a shimmering pale moon in the distant sky. I was too astonished to say something as the lady in her navy blue gown walked towards us. Her smile resembled Hades', and for certain reasons, I knew who she was. "Hades! You were supposed to dance with me and let me meet my savior! You traitor!" Hades grinned. But before answering her question, his long arm slipped behind me, holding me by my waist. "Sorry, Halia! I think I found the right person who deserves the first dance!" My eyes widened as I turned towards him with a confused, tilted head. "What's that supposed to mean?" I asked, trying to slip away from his grip around my back. But his grip tightened as he looked straight into my eyes. "Let me introduce her, Halia. This is Commander Elysia Celeriac, the woman who saved you and your little pups!" "Oh my!" Halia gasped. "That was quite rude of me." She approached me with her charmi
"Sir Wraithborn! It's inappropriate! Please—!" My voice was barely audible as I tried to move away from him. Ella stirred up. No matter how much we tried to avoid the mate bond, we couldn't. The spiraling heartbeat felt like a huge fan of this situation. Hades's eyes sharpened with his lips pressing on my shoulder. "You shouldn't have run away from there! You made me worried!" Worried? He was worried about me? "I apologize!" I tightened the grip around my body. "Please don't cross the line here," I muttered, pulling myself together. My lips quivered as he grabbed my arm, pulling me toward him. "You don't seem to have any fever! Your wolf is fine. Then what happened?" I looked at him, shyness creeping onto my face. "I apologize for that sudden action—" "No!" He cut in smoothly. "It happened before as well. You seemed to lose consciousness every time I—" And I heard nothing. It was like a short circuit. I felt the world collapsing again, so closely, like it was turning u
I was confused—about the entire situation. I mean, what she wanted. If she had bestowed upon me a second chance, it could be as simple as living life in a different way. But her intentions behind my resurrection were clear and loud. She was trying to use me. But for what? And that book? Knowledge? It felt like I heard about it before. The thought churned in my mind, heavy and relentless, threatening to pull me under like a current."You okay?" Hades's voice cut through my spiraling thoughts, making me jolt slightly. My eyes snapped up, meeting his—red and magnetic, a gaze that seemed to strip me bare. The suffocating weight of his presence pressed against me, yet there was something unusual about him this time. He wrapped his suit around me, his fingers barely grazing my skin, but the warmth of his body heat lingered on the fabric. The usual arrogance and ruthlessness were missing from his expression. It was unsettling. "I am fine. I apologize!" I tried to stand up, but my kn
Carolina, I moved through the halls of the compound, my heart heavy with bitterness and a quiet fury that had been building for months. Jonathan. His name was enough to make my blood boil. He had used me, discarded me, and now he barely even spared me a glance. I wasn’t even worth the title of Luna, not that I had wanted it anymore. But that didn’t stop the anger that still simmered beneath the surface. He had rejected me, abandoned me, for power. For the same ambition that had consumed him all these years. Tonight had been different, though. Jonathan had been drunk, lost in his own arrogance, and I had used that to my advantage. My body had been my weapon, and I had used it to hurt him. It had been satisfying in a way, but it wasn’t enough. It never was. I had only ever wanted one thing: revenge. But even that felt hollow now. As I walked, my mind wasn’t focused on Jonathan anymore. I was thinking about what I’d heard earlier—a conversation that had caught my attention. It had
Carolina, The lights of the grand manor flickered like a dying flame as I stepped through the threshold, uninvited, unseen for years, but never forgotten. My heels echoed against the marble floors, the sharp rhythm slicing through the silence like a blade. I knew where he would be—where he always ended up when the world became too much for him. Drowning himself in whiskey, in bodies, in power. And tonight, I would be the ocean that pulled him under. Jonathan Hornet. Who tossed me aside once he met Elysia. He promised me that he would make me his Luna. He used me , my family and friends to get favor from them. But once I was no more useful, he forgot my existence. He used to say my name like it was a prayer. Now, it would taste like poison on his lips. I stood at the door of his private chambe, the guards already dismissed or unconscious with liquor and bribes. They had grown careless, just like him. Inside, I could hear muffled laughter, moans, the sound of ice clinking in a gl
Jonathan, The memory of her voice echoed in my skull like a mocking bell. " I am already marked, can't Alpha Jonathan sense it? Or you don't have that ability!" Those words—those sharp, venom-laced words—had silenced the entire ballroom. Every eye turned toward me, not with admiration, not with fear, but with barely concealed pity. As if I were a dethroned monarch, stripped and paraded before the wolves I once commanded. She made a fool of me. She knew that I wasn't blessed. She knew that I was only an Alpha in name and she mocked me in front of everyone. That bitch... She was supposed to kneel down, spread her legs and carry my heir. She was supposed to be my perfect slave. But instead, she threw herself onto that bastard. How dare she!!! I clenched my jaw as I stared at the broken glass on the floor. I had crushed it in my hand without realizing, shards still embedded in my palm. Blood trickled between my fingers, but the pain was nothing compared to the searing rage in m
The sky had turned a soft gray, painted with streaks of peach as the sun began its descent behind the lake. The gentle rustling of wind through the trees whispered against the glass walls of the penthouse, and the koi pond shimmered with scattered reflections of the dying light. Hades lay beside me, his arm slung protectively across my waist, the remnants of our shared warmth still lingering on our skin. My fingers trailed along his collarbone, tracing the faint lines of old battles that lived quietly on his body. He looked peaceful—more peaceful than I had seen him in a long time. His dark lashes rested against his cheeks, his expression soft in sleep, like a child who had found momentary safety. But I knew what lay ahead. I had to return to my pack, to my father, and to the mess Jonathan had created in my absence. And I had to do it without Hades.I couldn't tell him that I was ordered to be executed... If he knew that this had been happening behind his back, he would kill Jonat
" I want to have a baby after everything settles down!" I whispered in his arms. The soft rustle of leaves outside the open window carried the scent of night-blooming jasmine, folding into the air between us like an unspoken promise. The moonlight filtered through sheer curtains, casting gentle shadows over Hades’s features. He looked so peaceful, so human, so mine in that moment that my heart clenched in a way I hadn’t expected. His hand caressed my waist, firm and warm, anchoring me to the present. “Do you mean it?” he asked after a long moment, voice quiet, hesitant, almost boyish in its vulnerability. “About the baby?” I nodded without hesitation, brushing a stray strand of hair from his forehead. “I do. With every piece of me. I have forgotten about those nonexistent past. But now I am here with you, with Ruby and my father, I want to be happy and have my own family. A proper family!” He exhaled slowly and pulled me closer, pressing my hand to his chest where I could feel
I hadn't told Hades about the verdict that Jonathan announced. I knew the man lacked spine, but behind him, it was Luna Astoria who was clearly pulling the strings. Her influence had grown insidiously, and now it was starting to threaten everything I had built—everything I had bled for. But as much as I wanted to face that battle, today wasn’t about the pack or the politics.Today was about the strain in my relationship with Hades. That silent tension that hummed in the air whenever our eyes met but neither of us spoke the words buried beneath the surface. He didn’t want to talk about the past. And I didn’t want to force it out of him. But I also couldn’t let this chasm grow wider. We had already lost too much in our previous life. I wouldn’t let silence steal what we still had left.After lunch with his parents—an unexpectedly warm and light-hearted affair—I excused myself and made my way toward the penthouse he had built near the lakeside. Hades had once called it his place of solit
The Wraithborn Pack had not changed much over, though I saw it now with different eyes. Its stone walls still stood tall, carved with ancient symbols of power and legacy, but the air was different. It wasn’t suffocating as it once had been—not bitter, nor judging. It had been still cheerful and peaceful. Despite having some uneasy feeling, related to that night, I started feeling close to the Pack. Maybe I was marked by the Alpha of the Pack. The sense of longing wasn't frail. I walked along the marble path, hands clasped behind my back. The garden was awake with life. Roses bloomed red like secrets kept too long, and silver ivy curled against the wrought iron arches. I hadn't talked to Hades about the conflict between us. He left soon after we spent some time together. He was really busy with handling everything that he left unfinished when we went to the human world. My Man is really hardworking. "Elysia."The voice was familiar, but it lacked the pride I once associated with h
Elysia,In my previous life perceptive, Hades and I were sworn enemies who were ready to kill. However, after learning the truth about his nature, it was clear that my Blood sword wasn't enough to kill him. And even if he killed me out of spite, it was completely understandable and acceptable. He wasn't nothing to me in my previous life. It was me who killed him, and I had no rights to hold such a grudge.But I felt so heartbroken after remembering the child I raised inside me. I knew that he had his reasons, but I started grieving for the baby that would never exist in this life. The ache was quiet, nestled somewhere deep, but it was persistent—like the residue of a love song that never finished."Elysia!"Dad's voice brought me back to the house. Hades left soon after I fell asleep... Or I pretended to fall asleep last night. He apologized precisely, thinking I was sleeping. But I couldn't, because my emotions were rollercoasters—too steep, too fast. I was torn between anger, confus
The silence weighed heavy in the room. My chest rose and fell with shallow breaths as I knelt beside the bed, head lowered, fists clenched. The storm inside my head refused to calm. I had betrayed her. No matter the reasoning, the truth could never be buried. The blade had come from me. From Carlos. From the ones who had sworn to protect her.And she didn’t even know. She didn't even get the chance to see who stabbed her from behind.Our target was to destroy her heart. Serene said once her heart would be corrupted, we wouldn't be able to stop her. So we did what we were supposed to do.Or so I thought.The guilt hollowed me from the inside. It wrapped around my ribs like a serpent, squeezing, choking, taunting me with her soft breaths that lingered behind me.She was alive. She was breathing. But she wouldn’t be when the truth surfaced. And yet I couldn’t tear myself away.I stayed there, frozen, as each second dragged like an eternity. My vision blurred. The pain of it—what we did,