ELENA’s POV I open my eyes to the soft rhythmic beeping of a heart monitor and am greeted by a magnificent dark blue skyline outside a rectangular window. It is breaking dawn.Slowly I turn my head away from the window and find myself in a private hospital room. The room is sparse but clean, and the lights had been switched off, with only blue and yellowish hues of the peeking sunlight illuminating the room. The place has a hint of a metallic tang from stainless steel in the open air and bleach wafting from the bed where I lay.I do not remember closing my eyes. Everything feels dull and hazy when I try to recollect my thoughts. I groan, think Elena, think!Then I remember, my last conscious memory was of Hunter laying next to me.Hunter!I sit up, pushing back a light grey blanket and attempt to jump off the bed only to feel a tug at my wrist.Oh.Looking down, I see a tiny IV tube poking out from

ELENA’s POV   The Sorceress tells me to leave with her but that both Ian and Helios are not to come. She orders them to stay in the cabin. Hearing this and realizing the gravity of the situation, Helios gives me an apologetic smile and for the first time, I see hesitance worming its way into his eyes. The man who laughs in the face of danger is afraid. “Be careful,” he says softly to me. I give him my most confident smile and nod. We depart immediately and the Sorceress brings me deeper and deeper into the forest. We come to a halt at the bottom of a hill and I frown, this place looks just like – “Light Paw?” I swear the Sorceress is a mind reader. I need to be careful to guard my thoughts against her. She laughs. “Silly child, I am no mind reader. Your naïve expression betrays your thoughts all too clearly.” She then points to the top of the hill. “The forest belongs to me, as does everything in it. I can

ELENA’s POV A scream tears through the night. It is Clyde’s.He has been blinded in his remaining eye and instinctively releases his hold on the gun which falls onto the floor with a thud.“YOU BITCH!” Clyde roars.He is hurt and angry, but he is no fool. He regains his composure quickly and tries to choke me. How he continues to stand is anyone’s guess and I can only thank the moon goddess that he can no longer see.With great effort, I spring away and land somewhere near the edge of the landing. I crouch in the corner and keep very quiet after that, careful not to make any sound as he swings his arms from side to side wildly, trying to feel for me.“Fool!” He speaks the word like a curse. “What have you done to my eye!?”He covers his bleeding eye with a hand, but dark red streaks still flow between his fingers and drip onto the ground. “You’ll

HUNTER’s POV Clyde is dead. And with him, his vision of tyranny and insanity for domination of another world, a world that does not belong to us, a world that should and will forever be left unharmed.It is over for him now.We had burned him at the stake and all that is left of Clyde is his charred body. I do not care what he said, there will NOT be another Clyde.At present, Elena and I stand hand in hand in the cabin before the Sorceress. Behind her, Helios and Conner stand warily, their eyes never leaving the hypnotic movements of her dark green scaly tail.“Congratulations,” she says as she looks at us with those snake-like eyes of hers. She grins and licks her lips in a curiously unpleasant manner. Her tongue is dark red.“We kept our promise, it’s your turn to keep yours,” Elena speaks up and I tug at her hand, motioning for her to stop. We know little of the Sorceress, but th

ELENA’s POV“Hello, Elena.”It is Freya. She stands at the doorway to the packhouse. Her hair which is usually never out of place is a mess and muddied locks cover one side of her eye. Her face is soiled and her once beautiful blue dress, torn and tattered.Nevertheless, she smiles when she sees me. I suck in a deep breath and fist my fingers so hard my nails create indents in my palms.“Freya.” The conversation with Hunter is still very fresh in my mind. My sister tried to kill him. And now she is back.“I thought I asked for you to leave and never come back,” Hunter’s voice calls out from the foyer. He strides over to where I stand and links his hand with mine, intertwining our fingers together.Freya gulps and tugs at her dress. Lowering her head, she whispers, “Please, forgive me for my insolence Alpha. I – I do not know what came over me to have done what