Mima’s POVI barely registered the creak of the door opening before a familiar presence invaded the space.Dylan.His tall frame filled the doorway, something was weird about him. Maybe it was in his stance or the way he kept staring at me. “What are you doing here?” My voice cracked. I hadn't expected anyone, least of all him. My hands tightened around the thin hospital blanket, trying to mask the tremble in my fingers.He stepped inside without a word, moving towards me. His gaze was locked onto mine, but something was off. His breathing was heavy. Ragged. His pupils were blown wide like he was possessed.“Dylan?” I whispered, alarm flaring in my chest.He didn’t answer. Instead, he stumbled forward and grabbed the edge of my bed for balance. “It’s happening again…” he muttered, almost to himself. “The Curse. I can’t control it.”“What?” My stomach dropped. I tried to push myself up, but pain laced through my ribs.“My estrus,” he breathed, jaw clenched. “When it hits, it burns thro
I finally got discharged from the pack clinic after four days and I went back to my normal life. Julia, the head maid, had been discharged a day before I was. My wounds were almost completely healed and I could move well without crutches. The scars were still there though and once in a while, I would feel aches and pains in my sides. After the night that Dylan came into my room, my wounds slowly started to heal by itself. My Wolf's presence even came out just a little. I could feel her. I wondered what motivated her to come out.I tried to not think that it was Dylan, because why would she come out for the one that rejected her? I sometimes spoke to her even though she never replied or gave me a sign that she was listening. I limped to my room when I felt my hair dragged and I almost fell backwards as I stumbled. I didn't need a soothsayer to tell me who I had just encountered. I turned around and there she was, Stephanie looking at me with red eyes, puffy eyes. She looked as if she
Mima's POV Zahra.What was she doing here? She told me that she was being experimented on in the—Wait. Is this what this is about? Are these experimented individuals from the pack's lab? But what is Stephanie planning to do with them? Is she planning to sell them to these sketchy men?What kind of experiments did they practice on them?My mind swirled with many unanswered questions. The men started raising their hands to point at any of the lined up people. There were 10 in total and Zahra was the 9th person. She must have not noticed me yet because she looked ahead at Stephanie, her face in a scrowl. I closed my eyes and prayed fervently in my heart that Zahra shouldn't get chosen but once again, luck wasn't on my side. The shortest of the men turned to her side and stared for a long while before pointing at her to be chosen. All eyes in the room turned to Zahra and she looked like she was about to make a scene. Oh no. She still hadn't noticed me. Stephanie smiled as the men cho
Mima's POVI peeked out of my room, heart pounding in my chest, and scanned the hallway. It was empty. Thank the goddess. This might actually work.Gripping the strap of my bag, I stepped carefully into the corridor. I had packed everything I thought I’d need, a few knives stolen from the kitchen, a pair of pliers I’d stumbled upon near the woodshed at the back of the haid maids building, and a scarf to hide my face in case anybody recognises me. The tools clanked softly as I moved, the sound amplified in the stillness of the hallway.I pulled the scarf tighter around my head as I approached the door leading outside. I should hurry before anyone realises that I am missing. I had made sure to create an alibi. I had told one of the head maids that I felt like I had contracted a contagious illness and even went through the trouble of faking a vomit. She had told me to keep myself locked in my room all day and not come out till I am better. The cool air bit at my face as I pressed onward,
Mima's POV The growl stopped suddenly, replaced by the soft click of a torch. I flinched as the beam of light hit my face, momentarily blinding me. My chest heaved, my breaths coming in shallow gasps."You're late," came a familiar voice, dry and edged with sarcasm.I blinked against the glare, my eyes adjusting to the light. The figure in front of me lowered the torch slightly, and I froze.“Zahra?”Her face came into view, thin and pale, but unmistakably hers. Relief washed over me so quickly my knees buckled, and I stumbled forward, throwing myself into her arms.“You’re still here!” I choked out, my voice muffled against her shoulder. Tears streamed freely, and I felt Zahra’s arms tighten around me, trembling.“So are you, I see you're healed better now,” she whispered, her voice breaking. “But what are you doing here, Mima? Are you insane?”I pulled back slightly, looking her in the eyes, and wiped at my tears with shaking hands. “I’m here to help you escape. I couldn’t leave you
I was successfully able to sneak back into my room without anybody noticing me. Hopefully though…I fall on my bed and let out a sigh that I have been holding all through my run here. Zahra… I hope she finds somewhere safe. The days exhaustion finally gets to me and I fall asleep. For the first time since I got here, I sleep well.I woke up to banging at my door. I suspected it to be because of Zahra's disappearance. When my door is busted open and three guards walk in with Stephanie, my suspicions are affirmed. “Seize her and take her to the dungeon” Stephanie barked out orders to the guards. I don't bother to resist as doing so wouldn't help matters.Maids from every room come out to watch me be dragged off and whispers began to flood the hallway. The cell I was thrown into was the same from last time. The only difference was that this time, I wasn't chained with silver. I was just left to sit on the dirty floor. Few hours later, Dylan and Stephanie walked into my cell. Stephanie
Mima's POV I sat in bed in the dead of the night tending to my wounds. I had cuts and bruises on my hands, but my face had more injuries. I dabbed on the cuts with a spirit filled Cotton wool. I winced as the cool substance came in contact with my wounds. I had looked at myself in the mirror earlier and it was a terrible sight to see.My left eye was swollen and had a blue-black colour, I had a cut on my lower lip, I had bruised cheeks from the number of slaps I received. I looked like an overused object that had been tossed aside after expiring its usefulness.I hated everything.I took out the bandage that was in my restocked first aid kit, courtesy of Julia. Madam Julia…I needed to check up on her if she was doing well. She could have also been interrogated as she had helped me earlier while I was in chains in the dungeon. I had wrapped myself up in a way that I had deemed to be good enough. I stood up from my bed and took a look outside my room window. My room was situated in
With every single day that passed, attending to the elite pack members and serving their meal as they moved into the mansion, I felt like I was losing more and more of myself. I had checked every badged person that came my way to see if I could find who entered my room nights ago but so far, I had come up with nothing.The pack had been buzzing with news of another pack that hardly showed its face. The pack meet event that the pack had been planning for weeks was almost in view and the mysterious pack had decided to attend. It must have been a big deal for the pack to want to make the event as special as possible.The large main hall was extravagantly decorated with jewels, gold, silver and accessories from around the world. Everywhere looked extremely beautiful. It must be a very big event, so I rolled the empty trolley into the kitchen. I was finally done for the day. I took a turn by the corner and finally I stood in front of Julia's room. I slowly knocked on the door and waited
Mima’s POVI stood in front of the healersitent, watching as the injured soliders where taken in one by one. Any injury too big would then require my attention.“Mima.”I turned slowly, and there he was… Dylan.His once pristine armor was cracked and bloodied, a ghost of the Alpha he used to be. His face was gaunt, eyes wild and desperate. His steps were uneven as he approached, and for the first time, I didn’t feel the familiar hate that I felt toward him. I felt… nothing.“You came back from the dead,” he said, breathless, as if seeing me alive again was too much to believe. “You came back for me.”I frowned. “I didn’t come back for you, Dylan. I came back because my mate prayed to the goddess for me to come back. I had to. For them.”His jaw tightened. “You don’t mean that. You… you still love me. I know you do. You wouldn’t have come back otherwise.” He stepped closer. “Everything we had, everything we were, it meant something. I lost my Luna. But you… you're still mine.”“No,” I
Rake's POVThe world had stopped.I couldn’t hear the cries of victory around me. I couldn’t hear the screams of my pack. I couldn’t even hear the roar of the wind as it tore across the battlefield. All I could hear was the only sound that mattered.. and it was the deafening silence in my heart.Mima.My fingers brushed her cold, lifeless face as I cradled her in my arms. Her skin was pale, the life that once burned so fiercely in her eyes now snuffed out. “Please…” I whispered, my voice barely a breath as I bent over her. “Please, Mima… don’t leave me. Not like this. Not after everything.”My wolf howled in agony, pressing against my chest as if it, too, could feel the emptiness inside of me. The loss. The endless ache. The weight of her death was too much to bear. My chest tightened, my lungs burning as I fought to hold onto the fragile hope that somehow, someway, she would open her eyes again.But as I sat there, helpless, holding her in the midst of the chaos, a sinking feeling
Mima’s POVHe was smiling.That wicked, cruel smile, aimed directly at me, as if daring me to try something, to fight back.As if he hadn’t already taken enough.Kia gasped, kicking, blue sparks fluttering weakly from his fingers. Rake’s eyes were wide, his body twitching in resistance, but he was too weak and too injured.And I was useless… lying down there not able to save the ones I loved. Is this really how it would end? Is this what all I've done will amount to? A scream tore from my lungs as I forced my body to lift from the ground even with the hole of the sword attack from Stephanie still in my chest.My hair whipped around me as they grew longer and shone brightly in their white glory. The marks on my skin began to glow brighter and brighter than they've ever shone before and my voice? It didn't sound like it was only mine.I screamed again and the earth yielded to my call like I was its owner. The sky dimmed, clouds swirling. The earth groaned beneath me.Viktor's grin falt
Mima's POVRake’s grip tightened around me as I collapsed into his arms, and for a moment, I felt like I could breathe again. But the illusion was shattered now, and Viktor’s rage was not far behind.“How dare you!” he roared. The air around us rippled with pressure as if reality itself buckled beneath his fury.A blast of dark energy shot from his palm, slamming into Rake and sending him flying from me with a sickening crunch."RAKE!" I screamed.He hit the ground hard, coughing up blood, his body limp.I felt something inside me snap.The illusion, the pain, the grief, it all faded, replaced by a white, hot fury that surged through my veins like liquid fire.Viktor turned to me with a twisted smirk. "Still so fragile, little Alpha.” He looked as if he was lost in thought and then spoke. “I thought lycans are meant to be stronger.” Then bellowed out a laughter. But I was already moving.I summoned every ounce of power I had, launching a wave of searing fire toward him. It struck hi
Mima's POV"You're lying," I whispered. My voice cracked under the weight of everything.Viktor. He must be lying… there is no way that someone related to my family would cause so much actual chaos. He isn't telling the truth. He's not my uncle, he's not related to my dad's and there's no way he shares the same blood as me.He smiled like he knew every part of me. Like he was waiting for this meeting his whole life."No, Mima," he said gently. "I never needed to lie. Not to you. I mean this is the end that determines it all so why would I need to lie? I have no reason to do something as insignificant as that.”I took a shaky step back. My heart was racing, every instinct screaming at me to fight. To burn him. But I needed answers."You look exactly like him," I said, voice hardening. "How is that possible? Even if you're brothers you don't need to look like him this much. You must be trying to fool me." I already told you that I have no time to play such phony games and we look alik
Mima’s POVWe followed the trail that they had left behind.Marks, clawed bark, blackened grass, smoke spiraling in the wind like fingers pointing the way. The packs and their warriors that we have assembled, Alpha after Alpha and warrior after warrior followed me.No one asked where we were going. They trusted me. Rake walked beside me in silence. His blade never left his hand. Beck and Zahra were already ahead, scouting. Everyone else trailed behind, a small continent of fury and fear marching toward a battlefield they hadn’t seen yet.But I had.In my dreams. In the whispers from the goddess. In the warnings carved into the bones of my losses.Still, when we arrived, it didn’t look like a war zone.It looked… empty. What the hell is going on?And in the center, maybe twenty of them? The shadow soldiers.I stiffened. “This isn’t right.”Zahra frowned. “Where’s the rest of them?”“They want us to think this is it,” Rake said. “It’s not.”I didn’t speak. I just stepped forward.Ever
Mima’s POV“Rake? Mima?” Zahra called out as I poked my head out. She rushes over to me and hugged me tightly and Beck turned in the direction that Rake was looking and saw Martin's body leaning by a tree. The hood was off so it was pretty obvious that the man was dead. Zahra turned and saw it for a second before she held me tighter. I was numb and wanted to cry but no tears were willing to come out. “I'll get the body.” Beck volunteered and walked towards where the body was. He put the hood back on and carried the body in his arms while Rake took me out of Zahra's arms and into his. “You're certain that you didn't run into anyone on your way here?” He asked and they both nodded. Rake shook his head and then signalled for Beck to start moving so we can get back to the pack.No one said a word on the walk back.Rake carried me because I was still shaking too much to walk properly. His chest was warm, but it couldn’t chase away the chill inside me.Beck walked ahead of us, Martin’s
Mima’s POVIt was strange… waking up and actually feeling stronger.Not just rested. Not just healed. Stronger.It had been three weeks since training started, and a while since Rake and I mated and somehow everything was falling into a rhythm. The packs, once strangers and even enemies, had found a weird sort of harmony in blood and sweat.Kian had leveled up so fast it was almost scary. His elemental power had gone from flickering sparks to full-out flames, literal ones and his forcefield gets stronger as more impenetrable per day.At one point, he scorched the edge of the training field and Frederick nearly had a heart attack. Ria’s speed was unmatched, and she’d been training stealth maneuvers that left even seasoned warriors blinking in confusion.And me?I wasn’t just shooting fireballs anymore. I could shoot bigger ones and I could use my powers for a longer time without feeling tired easily.Rake noticed it first.“You’re glowing,” he said bluntly one night.I snorted. “What,
Mima’s POV“I must be dreaming,” I said flatly, staring at the man walking into my office.Dylan.Of course.“What the hell is he doing here?” I muttered.‘if you're here to ask for the release of your elders, it wouldn't work. They committed a crime on our turf and our land so your begging is useless.” I said and he looked taken aback.Guess he wasn't informed about that yet then. “He says he wants to help,” Rake said from beside me, jaw tight.I let out a dry laugh. “Help? His pack slaughtered mine. Help is the last thing I’d call this. Plus, his pack is filled with disgusting and bike creatures that would do anything for power. Him included.”I said loud enough for him to hear what I thought about him.“I know.” Rake’s voice dropped. “But we need the numbers.”I hated how right he was.We had maybe two, two and a half thousand wolves tops. Kian and Ria’s intel put Viktor’s army over six thousand. Trained.I didn’t have the luxury of pride right now.Frederick stood ahead, already