LOGINKira’s POVI didn’t want us to get caught. Not now. Not when everything felt like it was hanging by a thread. So I grabbed his arm again…gentle this time, like he might break…and moved him quietly through the back hallways. We stuck to the shadows, feet soft on the stone, until I found the exact spot I was looking for…the old crappy room in the servants’ quarters where Liana had taken me that very first day I woke up in this crazy reality. The door creaked when I pushed it open, but I shut it fast behind us and twisted the lock.The room looked exactly the same…dusty, dim, with that cranky boarding-school-style bed in the corner. I helped him sit down on the edge of it, his legs shaking like they’d forgotten how to hold him up after all those years. He sank onto the thin mattress with a groan that made my chest hurt.“Can I get you anything?” I asked, voice small. “Water? Food? Anything at all?”He cut me off before I could finish, placing a rough, calloused hand over mine. His
Kira’s POV‘He’s imprisoned for a reason,’ I thought to myself, stomach twisting. I didn’t know what he’d done, but no way was I letting some locked-up guy who looked like he’d been rotting down here for years just walk free. He was a mess…skin pale and stretched tight over bones, hair long and matted and filthy, clothes hanging in rags that smelled like damp stone and old blood. Overgrown beard and mustache completely hid most of his face, wild and tangled like a bird’s nest made of wire. What if he caused doomsday or something the second he got out? I wasn’t stupid.I stepped back fast. “I’m not stupid. There’s no way I’m—”The voice inhaled sharply, a desperate rasp cutting me off as he scrambled forward. His hands clamped around the thick iron bars with a clang that echoed down the tunnel. I jumped back with a yelp, heart shooting into my throat.The man with the overgrown beard hiding most of his face whispered, voice cracking, “Angela? Is that you?”I froze solid. My eyes
Kira’s POVThe second the heavy door clicked shut behind Adrian, my heart started racing like it wanted to jump out of my chest. I couldn’t just sit there when I could be helping outside. No way. I jumped off the bed, legs shaky but determined, and rushed to freshen up in the bathroom. Splashed cold water on my face, tied my hair back quickly and messy, then dug through the closet for something comfortable…black leggings, a soft long-sleeve top that wouldn’t snag, and sneakers I could actually run in if things went sideways. Flexibility was key for this fight. I wasn’t about to be stuck in some fancy dress while the palace was under attack.This is actually my first official war. I haven’t seen werewolves at war. Do they use drones? Bombs? Guns? Or just the old fashioned way?I needed to see.I wasn’t waiting around for Victoria like some helpless princess. I had my wolf, didn’t I? We could handle ourselves. ‘Right, Leah?’ I said confidently, reaching for her in my head.Leah jus
Adrain’s POVThe insistent knock on the door of our room yanked me right out of sleep like a hook in my gut. I groaned, low and pissed, and wrapped myself tighter around Kira. My arms locked around her waist, my leg slung over hers, like if I squeezed hard enough I could just crawl inside her skin and stay there forever. She was warm and soft and smelled like home, and for one stupid second I thought about ignoring the whole damn world.But then my head started pounding. Out of nowhere. Like someone had taken a sledgehammer to my skull and decided to keep swinging. My whole body hurt…every muscle, every bone…like I’d been chopped into pieces, stitched back together wrong, and chopped all over again. The nightmare didn’t help. Wild dogs ripping into me, teeth everywhere, blood in my mouth. And Kira… God, Kira being dragged away in chains, sold off like some prize to the highest bidder. I could still see her eyes, wide and terrified, calling my name while I couldn’t move.I exhal
Adrain’s POVThe heavy door clicked shut behind us with a soft finality that made the silence in the chamber feel even thicker. Elise stood exactly where I’d left her hours ago…still upright, eyes closed, head bowed slightly like she’d just dozed off while standing. Her arms hung loose at her sides, palms facing forward, and her breathing was so shallow I had to stare hard to see her chest move at all. She looked peaceful. Too peaceful. Like a statue someone had forgotten to wake up.Thomas stepped further in first, boots quiet on the stone. I followed, pulling the door fully closed so no one outside could hear whatever the hell this was. The room had a strange misty haze hanging in the air, soft and swirling, like someone had lit a bundle of incense and let it burn slow. The smell was faint…herbs, smoke, something earthy that made the back of my throat tighten.“What the hell…” Thomas muttered under his breath, eyes wide as he took it all in.I didn’t waste time. “Go. Wake her.”
Adrain’s POVChairs scraped immediately without hesitation as feet’s began shuffling. The elders couldn’t get out fast enough, but the guards were already moving toward the priestess. They hauled her up by the arms, her bad leg dragging worse than before. She twisted in their grip, eyes wild, voice rising one last time as they dragged her toward the doors.“You must listen to me, king Adrian Draven!” she shouted over her shoulder. “Or everything you have worked so hard to protect will be left bare! Your enemies will laugh at your corpse! Stay away from the princess…for now, at least…until I can find a way to help you! Please, Your Majesty—”Her voice cut off as the heavy doors slammed shut behind the last person. The echo bounced around the empty hall like a death knell.I slumped into my chair, the carved oak creaking under my weight. A frustrated sigh ripped out of me before I could stop it. My head fell back against the high backrest, eyes closing for just a second. The mark on
Kira’s POVDarkness pressed in from all sides, thick and suffocating, like velvet soaked in ink. I was standing in a tunnel that stretched endlessly ahead, the walls slick and shadowed, with only faint slivers of light piercing through cracks far above. My bare feet echoed softly on the cold stone
Kira’s POVThe ache hit me again, harder this time, like a fist straight to my gut. I stumbled back a step, pressing my thighs together because oh my God, everything down there was throbbing, swollen, begging for something I couldn’t even name out loud. My skin felt too tight, too hot, like I was
Adrian’s POVThe courtyard was alive with restless energy when I stormed out…over twenty warriors already shifted or mid-shift, massive wolves pacing in tight circles, ears pricked, hackles half-raised. No armor, no swords, no horses. We didn’t need them. Claws, teeth, speed, and raw pack fury were
Adrain’s POVDerek snarled angrily when we saw it.Blood on the snow.Dark red, dried into rusty streaks against the white. Not much…just drops, smeared like she’d scratched herself on a branch or fallen. My heart slammed against my ribs.A wild animal? One of the cursed beasts? Had something sunk







