LOGINI walked the horse quickly through the deep snow until we reached the dark, freezing tree line. The castle walls loomed high and silent behind me. No alarm bells rang. No shouts echoed in the courtyard. They had no idea I was gone.I grabbed the horse's mane and pulled myself up onto its bare back.I looked back at the dark towers of the keep one last time."Enjoy your cursed mate, Warlord," I whispered to the freezing wind. "By the time you break the magic, I will be a thousand miles away."I kicked my heels hard into the horse's sides.The horse surged forward, galloping fast into the thick, snowy forest. The freezing wind whipped my hair around my face. I rode hard for several miles, pushing the horse through the deep snow. I put as much distance between myself and the castle as I possibly could.I planned to ride south. I would find mercenaries. I would send a message to Cillian telling him that if he ever tried to find me, I would cut my own arm and make his precious Omega bleed.
[Selene’s POV]The royal suite was completely silent.I stood in the center of the large room. I wore dark leather pants and a heavy black jacket. I had tied my blonde hair back tightly so it would not get in my way. A small leather bag rested at my feet. Inside the bag, I had packed a sharp hunting knife, a thick pair of gloves, and three heavy pouches of Eastern gold I had stolen.I walked over to the massive bed. I looked down at the shape hidden under the thick fur blankets. I had arranged the extra pillows carefully. From the doorway, it looked exactly like a person sleeping on their side. If a guard opened the small viewing slot to check on me, he would think I was safely in bed.I smiled. The plan was absolutely perfect.I turned around and began to pace across the stone floor. The fire in the hearth was dying, but I did not put more wood on the coals. I wanted the room to grow cold and dark.I thought about King Cillian. The great Warlord of the North was probably sitting in h
[Elian’s POV]The fire burned low in the hearth of the Warlord’s bedchamber.I sat on the edge of the large mattress. Cillian knelt on the hard stone floor right in front of me. He did not wear his heavy battle armor tonight. He wore a simple, dark linen shirt. His massive hands hovered nervously near my throat. His thick fingers were completely steady, but his breathing was rough and uneven.He carefully tilted my chin up to look at my neck.The dark bruises from the invisible hand were fading. They were mostly an ugly, sickly yellow color now, wrapping tightly around my collarbone.Cillian stared at the marks. His jaw locked so tightly that the muscle in his cheek actually ticked. He blamed himself entirely. He had grabbed Selene’s throat in the Eastern basement, and her sympathetic blood magic had forced my body to take the brutal damage. He pulled his hand back quickly and looked down at the floor, unable to meet my eyes."It doesn't hurt anymore," I told him. My voice was quiet b
[Martha’s POV]Sleep refused to come.I lay in my small bed near the kitchens, staring at the dark ceiling. I turned onto my left side, then my right, but my old bones ached with a restless, nervous energy. I finally gave up. I threw the heavy wool blankets off my legs and sat up. I tied my thick robe tightly around my waist and stepped out into the quiet castle.I needed to walk. I needed to move my feet to stop my mind from racing.The stone corridors were freezing this late at night, but I did not care. My heart was entirely consumed with worry. I thought about Elian. He was finally out of that horrible bed, and the bruising on his throat was starting to turn a dull, healing yellow. But he was not truly safe. The dark magic connecting his life to that evil woman upstairs was a knife hanging directly over his head. Every time he took a breath, I wondered if it would be his last.And then my thoughts turned to Gaius.My chest tightened. Gaius was not a young man. He was a healer. He
[Selene’s POV]I walked across the floor of the royal suite. I turned at the large bed, walked to the heavy wooden door, and turned around again. My legs ached, but I could not stop moving. The walls of the room felt like they were shrinking.I reached up and touched my own throat. My fingers pressed against the dark bruises Cillian had left on my skin. A sharp pain shot down my neck, but I ignored it. I pressed harder, using the pain to keep my mind sharp.Hours ago, I sat in hot water and thought I had the perfect plan. I had sent the little maid, Clara, down to the kitchens. I told her to spread rumors about the King hiding while the rogue Alpha did his dirty work in the catacombs. I wanted Kaelen to hear the gossip. I wanted the rogue to get angry, to feel used, and to point his broadsword at Cillian's throat.It was a smart plan. It was meant to make the two Alphas fight each other.But the longer I stayed locked in this room, the more my confidence cracked.I stopped pacing and
[Kaelen’s POV]We walked into the absolute dark.The fourth tunnel was entirely different from the rest of the foundation. It was tighter, colder, and completely silent. The only sound in the deep earth was the heavy, dragging footsteps of the frail scholars behind me. My iron broadsword was drawn, held loosely in my right hand as my eyes scanned the shadows for ancient traps.The air down here was a weapon. The magical silver dust was so thick it looked like a heavy winter fog coating the jagged rocks. It stuck to my dark leather armor and settled heavily on my shoulders.I looked back over my shoulder. The four old men were struggling to keep up. They were bent over, their chests heaving as they desperately tried to pull the thin, freezing air through their oil-soaked linen masks. They were completely exhausted. These were men who lived their entire lives inside warm libraries, reading paper and drinking hot tea. Now, they were trapped in a collapsing maze, completely relying on a f
My ribs ached before I opened my eyes. That was how every morning started. Pain. A dull, steady ache burned on my left side where Alpha Thorne had kicked me two days ago. My crime? I hadn't scrubbed the blood out of the training mats quick enough. It wasn't just that my ribs ached. The screaming
[Cillian’s POV]Bong. Bong. Bong.The heavy iron bells of the Blackwood chapel did not sound like a celebration. To my ears, they sounded like a funeral dirge, tolling for the death of my soul.I stood at the high altar, dressed in ceremonial armor polished to a blinding silver shine. The great hall
The solid rock cracked under his fist, sending a shower of dust to the floor. The force of it snapped something back into place inside my head. Raw, pure fear cut through the fever haze. I pulled my hand back, pressing it tightly against my chest. What am I doing? I thought, panic cutting throug
Several people screamed. I slapped both hands over my mouth to keep from making a sound, biting down on my own palm so hard I tasted blood. My heart was beating so fast against my sore ribs that I thought my chest was going to split open. Panic. Blind, total, animal panic. My body got hot fast.







