Mag-log inDamon’s POVThe first night without Thea was the hardest. I didn't expect it to be. I had spent years as a warrior. I had spent months away from home during campaigns. I had slept on battlefields, in forests, and beneath skies filled with enemies waiting for the right moment to attack. But none of those moments compared to walking past my daughter's room and seeing the empty bed. I stood in the doorway longer than I should have.Her little blanket was still folded where Aurora had placed it that morning. A small toy sat near the edge of the bed, abandoned because Thea had decided something else was more interesting. A normal thing. A simple thing. And somehow, it hurt more than any wound I had ever received. Aurora found me there. She didn't say anything at first. She simply walked beside me and leaned against the doorframe."You're thinking about bringing her back."I looked at her. "Is it that obvious?" She gave me a small smile. "To me? Yes." I looked back into the room. "I know
Claire’s POVThe moment the darkness touched the horizon, I knew. My magic screamed and my bones ached for a disbursement of it. I had spent my entire life sensing things others couldn't. Not because I was stronger. Not because I was more powerful. Because I listened. Magic had a voice. The earth had a voice.The moon had a voice. And tonight… The world was screaming. I stood in the gardens of West Haven, watching the sky change. The stars had disappeared. The air felt heavy. Wrong. My hand tightened around the stone railing. "No..."The word left me before I could stop it. Kent immediately noticed. He always did. After all these years, he knew every expression, every breath, every silence."What is it?"I didn't answer immediately. Because saying it aloud would make it real. But he already knew. His face changed."Claire."I turned toward him. "Lucian." The name alone carried weight. Kent's expression hardened instantly. "Where?""Veiled Valley." a Silence filled the air. Then the de
Damon’s POVThe gates of Veiled Valley closed behind the vehicle carrying my daughter, and for the first time in years, the castle felt too large. I had fought armies that stretched farther than my eyes could see. I had stood across battlefields covered in blood and ash. I had faced creatures born from darkness and looked death in the eyes without hesitation.But watching Thea leave with the people I trusted most was different. There was no enemy to strike. No sword to raise. No battle to win. Only the unbearable knowledge that protecting her meant letting her go. Aurora stood beside me, silent. I knew she felt the same emptiness.The bond between us had always been powerful, but there were moments when words weren't needed. I could feel her emotions as clearly as my own. The worry she refused to show. The ache she tried to hide. The part of her that wanted to run after the vehicle and bring our daughter back into her arms.I understood because I felt the same. But we were not only pa
Damon’s POVThe words stayed with me long after the warrior left. The symbol of the Moon God. Lucian wanted us to know he was coming. He wasn’t hiding anymore.That was what frightened me most. A hidden enemy could be hunted. A hidden enemy could be found. But Lucian wanted us to see him. He wanted us waiting. Preparing. Afraid.I stood beside Aurora at the balcony overlooking Veiled Valley. Normally, the sight would have taken my breath away. The kingdom was beautiful.The people had rebuilt. Children played in the streets again. Families sat together in the courtyards. The sounds of life had returned. But now…The land itself was changing. The mountains beyond the valley were darker than they should have been. The wind carried something unnatural. Something dark and ancient. Aurora’s hand tightened around mine. “The rivers.”I looked at her. She was staring toward the north. “They’re changing.”Even if the warrior had not said anything we would still have felt it. The rivers, The a
Lucian’s POVFor the first time in centuries…I was afraid.Not of death.Death had never frightened me.I had watched civilizations rise and crumble beneath my feet. I had seen kings beg, warriors fall, and entire kingdoms disappear into the dust of history.Death was nothing.But this…This was different.I had lost control.Not over the world.Not yet.Over him. Damon.I stood in the darkness beneath the earth, staring at the invisible thread that connected us.A thread I had once believed belonged to me. A connection I had carefully nurtured. His anger. His guilt. His fear. Those were my doors.I had entered through them. I had whispered into every wound. Pouring salt in the open wound and making it burn. Every doubt.Every moment where he questioned whether he was truly a protector or merely a monster wearing a crown.I had almost reached him. Almost. Then she had taken his hand. Aurora. I closed my fist.The shadows around me reacted instantly, twisting violently through the chamber.I h
Lucian's POVI reached for him again. Just as I had every day since Hagetha's fall. I slipped into the darkness where I had found him before, expecting the same cracks in his soul. The fear. The guilt. The self-loathing. The delicious uncertainty that made him so easy to influence. Nothing.I frowned. “No…” That wasn't right. I reached deeper, letting my shadow stretch across the invisible thread that connected us."Damon." Silence. He should have heard me. He always heard me. I pressed harder. Instead of fear… I found warmth. A heartbeat. Not mine. Not his. Hers. Aurora.The moment I brushed against their bond, silver light burst through the darkness like lightning. I jerked back instinctively. The light didn't burn my flesh. It burned something far deeper. My connection. Again. I reached toward him. Again the silver light answered.I caught fragments. Not memories. Feelings. Her forehead resting against mine. Her hand over my heart. Her voice… "You will never face him alone."The wo
Damon's POV: I looked at this silver-eyed beauty. My head clouded. I wasn't sure what I must have drunk to make me feel this way. I'd had a single whiskey. It occurred to me, I may have been drugged. My eyes went wide with the realization. Before I could stand up and go speak with my beta abou
We danced together, after refilling my glass. We laughed and jumped to the beat. I could feel wandering eyes on me, so I looked around. I did not see anyone. The hair on the back of my neck stood on end. It was not unpleasant but made me hyper-aware of being watched by someone. I glanced aroun
An hour later, I was standing in front of her full-length mirror. I had a short tight fighting black dress that ended mid-thigh, a slit on the side went to my hip. Black heels. My brown hair she had dried and picked out, letting my natural curls come out resting down my back. She did my make-up in
"Well..." She said, "Why can't Thomas help you study? I bet he could help you relax too?" she said with a wink. I rolled my eyes. "He says he is fine waiting until I get into college. He says sex is not the most important thing to him. "He says that, but he's been waiting almost 3 years for you. E







