“Promise me you will be safe.” Hadrius’ whisper is harsh and holds a desperate, vulnerable edge to it, his eyes seeking his human’s as she kneels before him, still reeling in murky pained silence.“River-” Her eyes lift to meet his.The chains groan as his face dips towards her; he wishes to touch her one last time, for a single, blessed moment, and she hears his thought. Wordlessly, River rises on her knees and presses her brow to his, her mouth a heartbeat later. His lips whisper unspoken agony to hers as they kiss briefly, softly.The fear swells beneath his skin, threatening to tear him to shreds, and pain like no other grasps at the warlord’s heart as she draws away. “He will be violent,” Hadrius utters against the wick of her mouth. “If you can, say my name before he reaches you.”“Okay.”He hears her slamming heartbeat and it cripples him.“Promise me

The rattling sound of metallic doors creaking open is what draws the Beta’s attention away from the blank, sodden wall.He hears their approaching footsteps, the thumping of wet boots on cemented floors as they pass the numerous empty cells. The Alpha’s dungeon reeks with the stench of aged blood and pungent urine.Hadrius did not mind it for his senses had been repressed and overpowered by the thought of his human upon her departure. She must have escaped the previous night, and not long before the Alpha’s wolves had howled their battle cry and commenced their heated pursuit.Sleep deserted him all the while as he paced about the small confines of his cell, chains dragging behind him like an outspoken shadow. His mind had morphed into a stinging web of hurt, leaving him with nothing more than silent prayers to the Luna Goddess for River’s safety.Daylight is no different in the dungeon for there are no windows, his only companion

River stares vaguely at the bloodied man who stands at the door, his chest rising and falling rapidly, skin sleek with dark colors that trail rivulets down his powerful legs, blooming beneath his bare feet.Seeing him then, gripping a head that falls with a sickening, wet thump onto the floor, surrounded by myriads of dead carcasses— River realizes that Hadrius had never looked more terrifying.He is a horrific creature.And heading straight for her.The shock of his sudden presence renders her speechless and numb, unable to react as his hand shoots out like a viper and grips her wrist that rests on the table, he yanks her from her seat.Hadrius does not wait for her recovery. In one fluid motion, his arm circles her waist and he easily hauls her over his shoulder. He does not spare his brother a second glance, fearful that if he did, he would end him.The warlord does not falter as he strides out into the desolate night, consuming dar

River sits on a bare rock, eyeing the warlord stalk up and down in a flurry of anger. His rage is hot enough to roll off him in thick, stinging waves that lick at the bare skin of her legs, which scrape against the rock under her. His skin is sleek with a dancing of blood, like that of the petals of poppies - both Cain’s and his. The outburst of violence had caught her off-guard and when she had turned, Cain’s neck was embedded with a knife. The injury, although maiming, had not deterred the brother from attacking Hadrius. In the end, Hadrius had decidedly picked her up from the corner of the room, where she had crouched to prevent being crushed, and tossed her over his shoulder before storming out of the house. Now she sits on a rock, still in his shirt, watching the Beta pace out his rage. The air is thin with tension as unspoken words and insults swell on his tongue and flex his jaw. Hadrius rakes a frustrated hand through his hair, only sm

River does not notice the incandescent look on Hadrius’ face; her gaze remains fixated on Cain. He watches his brother, then her, the same punishing smile unwavering on his mouth.Hadrius walks out of the room then, leaving only the two of them.Her mind is a pool of blankness.Cain had stripped Hadrius of his skin at that moment, and now she finally understood and saw him for what he was: a wounded, abandoned, rejected man. Betrayed by his blood and heart. A Lycan reduced to the ashes of a mortal man who was just as easily vulnerable.He could not give his mate a child, and for that, she sought out his brother as an alternative.“He should have told you from the start,” Cain declares, an idle drifting intonation to his words. “Deceit in a relationship is not a relationship to begin with, and if he claims you to be his chosen mate, you deserve the truth.”River stares, a feeling of numbness growing inside her, b