LOGINIrene’s POV My mind ran endlessly throughout the night until daybreak.And even then, I still couldn’t decide which death was easier—obeying Sharina… or telling the Lycan Prince the truth.So throughout the day, I avoided both of them.I couldn’t even tell my mother about this new complication. At this rate, I’d end up giving her high blood pressure.Somehow, I had to find a way through both disasters.As I carried on with my normal duties around the palace, whispers spread that the King and Sharina’s mating ceremony would happen in a few days.My chest tightened.That manipulator didn't deserve to be the queen. And every time I heard about it again, guilt twisted painfully inside me.I knew the truth.Yet I was still doing nothing.I was about to abandon another friend.Emily.God… I had never felt this mentally scattered and exhausted before.The dark circles under my eyes alone were enough to tell anyone I hadn’t slept all night.My mother didn’t question me much. She already ass
Irene’s POV “Ms Sharina found this hidden in your room.”My stomach dropped.“It’s not what you think…” I said quickly. “I can explain…”Another slap landed before I could finish.My head snapped sideways again.Heat flooded my face as my nose burned painfully.“Mum…”“I’m trying!” her voice cracked suddenly. “I’m trying so hard to keep you alive in this palace, but you keep putting yourself in danger!”“I wasn’t her accomplice,” I whispered desperately.She let out a bitter scoff through her tears.“Who would believe you?” she snapped. “The maid involved is dead. She’s no longer here to defend you or prove your innocence.”My chest tightened painfully.The thing on her phone was a picture of the secret communication book between me and the maid who was dead now.Executed for murdering a guard.But the truth was far uglier than what the palace knew.The guard had raped her.Some of the other guards knew too, but none of them helped her.They protected their friend instead.She carrie
Emily’s POV With Sharina temporarily defeated, Irene followed me into my room.“Thank you,” she said quietly as she unpacked my luggage.“I should be the one thanking you instead,” I replied, turning slightly so she could help with the zipper at the back of my dress.“You can stay in my room if you’re not ready to face your mother yet,” I suggested, though I wasn’t even sure if that made sense.I just knew Sharina and her mother would definitely be on her neck for now.Irene exhaled softly as she pulled down the zipper.“I can’t always avoid her. She’s still my mother, you know…”Her voice suddenly trailed off.Her fingers had brushed against my lower back, right where the strange mark was.I stiffened instantly.Then quickly stepped away from her touch and turned to face her.“Is that a tattoo?” she asked, meeting my gaze.My throat tightened.“It’s nothing,” I said too quickly, reaching to pull the zipper back up again.Irene was still staring.“It’s beautiful,” she added.That cau
Malric’s POV The moment the study doors shut, I turned to Sarah and Lucien immediately.“There’s a problem,” I said.Both of them frowned, waiting for me to continue.“I don’t think the disappearance of pups during Moon Ascendance years ago was a coincidence.”Lucien’s brows pulled together. “Why would you think that? The overcrowding and chaos back then explained most of it.”“And ever since children were banned from attending, the cases reduced drastically,” Sarah added.“So I believed too,” I said calmly. “But now… I think that was exactly what someone wanted us to believe.”“Who?” Sarah’s voice sharpened.“Whoever was behind it.”I rounded the desk but leaned against it instead of sitting.Then I told them everything I had learned about Emily, including the inconsistencies surrounding the months she had gone missing.“Those three months,” I said finally. “Where was she?”Neither of them spoke.“Another similar case happened years ago involving the son of an Alpha family,” I conti
Emily’s POV Ruth and Darius stood with their beta and gamma, all of them bowed low.Sophia waved at me, and I lifted my hand in return through the glass barrier as Malric began pulling away.Lucien’s car followed closely behind.Malric’s fingers tightened slightly around the steering wheel, the leather creaking faintly under his grip. There had never been anything relaxed about the way he drove.His coat lay forgotten in the backseat the moment he slid behind the wheel.He wasn’t dressed like a king of a supernatural kingdom. He rarely did. But everything about him still screamed power and authority.A dark fitted shirt clung to his frame, the sleeves rolled to his elbows, revealing forearms lined with veins and quiet strength.There was something about him. Something steady.Something that made it hard to believe anything could truly shake him.Aside from my mother… it was with Malric that I had felt this kind of inexplicable security.Like I could endure anything as long as he was
Emily’s POV I wanted to tell Malric about the boy. About Princie from my dreams.“There’s this boy…” I started softly, but the rest of the words died in my throat.Because suddenly, I remembered something.The dream hadn’t felt like mine.It had felt like Sharina’s.I went still.Confusion swirled violently inside me.Why would I be dreaming about her when I had never even known her?My thoughts abruptly paused.Then something else hit me.Unless…Unless I had once lived in the palace too.My pulse quickened slightly.And if that was true… then I needed to find out myself first before saying anything out loud.Especially with Sarah already convinced I was nothing but trouble and chaos in Malric’s life.“Emily?”Malric’s voice suddenly broke through my spiraling thoughts.I blinked.The frown on his face was deep enough to make my chest tighten.If I hadn’t known him this closely already, I probably would have been terrified right now.“What?” I managed quietly.His eyes narrowed slig
Emily’s POV “I… I don’t have any…mark.”Even as the words left my mouth, I knew how stupid they sounded. My heart was pounding too hard to think or lie properly.He frowned.“I saw the crescent mark on your back, Emily. I remember asking you about it once.” His eyes searched mine. “Why did you lie
Emily’s POV “I see your legs… come outside.”The voice was soft. Familiar.I turned sharply, and froze. A young boy stood outside a curtain, calling for a little girl to come out of her hiding place.He was tall, and oddly handsome in a way I didn’t understand. His grey eyes caught mine, and somet
Malric’s POV I’d gone the wrong way.The river stretched before me, wide, restless, its current raging under the night sky.A rough breath left my chest.I turned to find another path…then stopped.I felt the dark energy coming again.Closer and faster.Damn it!I tightened my hold on Emily, pulli
Malric’s POV This was one creature I'd feared, and now I stood face to face with it.A nightwalker.It loomed before me, radiating victory.I'd read about its insane speed, so I knew exactly what was at stake.I sharpened my sight, straining to see in the total darkness.The beast slid its long bl







