Two guards rushed forward, grabbing me by either of my arms and lifting me while the king watched on."Are you the reason for this disagreement between my sons?" He asked, narrowing his gaze on me. "What do you think you are doing by coming into my kingdom and stirring discord?""King Nigel, this woman is a nuisance and a threat. You need to do away with her immediately." Veronica announced, acting weakly. "She is trying to seduce your son.""Seduce my son?" King Nigel repeated eyeing Veronica. "Do you think that the Prince's are so easily swayed?""N-no, of course not." Veronica stammered, her eyes widening. "I am just saying that this woman needs to be done away with.""Veronica!" Roland hissed, his voice dripping with disbelief. "Are you insane?"For a moment, Veronica doesn't speak as she takes him in with a look of disbelief and disgust."Don't tell me that you've fallen for this tramp too!"Eyes widening, Roland immediately looked to Elias as if worried that he would snap again d

"GET OFF ME!" I screamed as my hands found the Lycan's chest and shoved.Surprise flashed across the creature's face as the force of my shove sent it flying backwards into a wall. Taking advantage of its momentary distraction, I hurried to my feet and braced myself before it moved forward, ready to attack again.As the creature lunged towards me, my body went into autopilot, easily catching the creature by its arms and twisting with a force that easily snapped its wrists. Snarling, it backed away before moving forward again, only for me to easily manage to dodge the attack before wrapping an arm around its neck and squeezing.Growling, the lycan tried to break free of my hold, but I was much stronger than it, and without the use of its hands, the creature was at a disadvantage. Heaving, I tightened my hold, crushing its windpipe, causing it to fight back harder. With a final heave, I felt the creature's neck bones snap before all movement ceased and the lycan became limp. Letting go, I

"Valerie," Roland whispered, coming up behind me. "When I say run, I need you to run and not stop until you're in the safety of the castle.""What?" I hissed, keeping my eyes fixed on the string of lycans that were making their way towards us. "What about you and Derrick?""We are trained warriors." He reminded me. "You, however, are not, and you would only be a hindrance sticking around here."I opened my mouth to retort, but I knew deep down that Roland was right. If I were to be stubborn and stick around, I would truly be a hindrance. Derrick and Roland wouldn't be able to focus all their attention on fighting the lycan if they had to pay attention to protecting me as well."Why don't the both of you run with me?" I asked instead; I just couldn't stomach the idea of leaving them both here to fight off the beasts.Roland chuckled. "What kind of solider would I be if I fled in the face of danger?""He's right, Valerie." Derrick added. "As soldiers, we have sworn our lives to King Nige

"HEY!"Twirling, I found Elias rushing out of the room after me, his face fixed in a look of confusion."What do you want?" I asked, trying to hide my shock. "Did you need something else with me?""Thinking on it..." Elias began looking slightly uncomfortable. "It may be better if you stayed in my quarters for the time being.""What?" This time, I was unable to mask my shock as his words sank in. "Me, stay with you?"Elias nodded. "There have been two lycan attacks now on the palace. Don't forget, you are a danger magnet.""Yes, yes, I attract danger." I muttered, forgetting for a second what was being said. "Wait...."I needed to focus here. Just moments ago, he was being cold towards me, but now he suddenly wanted me to stay with him. What exactly was going on here?"This isn't up for debate." Elias huffed as the prior look of discomfort disappeared and his usual mask of indifference took its place. "Go collect your things and be back within an hour.""Sure." It wasn't like I could a

The feeling of something hard pressing against my legs roused me from my exhausted sleep. Outside, the sounds of military drills being run could be heard, indicating that it was morning. In the current world of darkness that I resided in, these sounds alone were the only thing that helped me determine it was morning.Sighing, I shifted, trying to turn to face Elias, who was still sound asleep behind me. How I had managed to sleep the entire night with this gorgeous man beside me was beyond me. Then again, it was probably because of the exercise we did before bed or the lycan attack beforehand. Either way, I slept soundly.Letting a small smile play on my lips, I allowed myself to examine Elias' sleeping form. When the man was sound asleep, he looked innocent. With the usual frown gone, he looked ten years younger, and without his normal arrogant look, he was actually approachable.As I continued to take him in, a strand of hair fell loose from the others and covered one of his closed e