VICTORIA I was lying in the grass reading when I heard footsteps. I knew who it was before he even spoke. "Hello, Derek," Damon's lap dog. He is sweet enough, but he will do anything to impress my brother. He so badly wants to be his next top warrior. "Miss Nash, hi, Alpha would like to see you." "What is wrong with him that he can not mindlink me this? "He said you have a block up?" "I do?" I hear Zarina giggling in the back of my mind. 'Seriously, why would you do that?' 'What? You have had me suppressed for years. Damon said it is good for me to take back a little control.' I sigh and stand up. I was putting my book in my bag. Derek reaches for my bag, no doubt to be a gentleman. "Ha, Thanks, D, but I can carry my own bag." " I know you can, but for once, let someone do something nice for you." Shocked, I hand him my bag. "Thanks, Derek, that's nice of you." "You deserve nice things." A comfortable silence falls over us as we walk to Damon's office in the

VICTORIA I woke up, and I was alone in my room. I looked out the window, and it had to be well after lunch. How come Damon never came to get me for training. I got dressed and made my way down to the kitchen. I was starving. When Hanna came in, I pulled out some lunch meat and cheese to make a sandwich. I don't know what came over me, but I grabbed her and pulled her into a bone-crushing hug. "Hey! You are choking me!" She all buts gasps. "Sorry, bad dream." "Wanna tell me about. Once I say it out loud, I feel it doesn't scare me as much anymore.""That is actually great advice coming from a ten-year-old.""I am smart like you." "I had a dream you died. I guess when I saw you, I just wanted to make sure it was only a bad dream." "Yep, just a bad dream! I am not that easy to kill, sis. I am an Alpha!" "You sure are!" I made us some sandwiches, and then we went to find Damon and see if Oliver was still in the pack. Before I fell asleep, he said something about Matice was missing

VICTORIA I don't know how long I stayed in the cabin looking through different books. I moved some werewolf law textbooks and behind them were a lot of small leather-bound journals with leather strings used to wrap around the book. I slowly opened one up, knowing what it was but not who's it was. I looked at the date in the corner at the top of the page, July 2nd, 1985. I have done some terrible things in my life. Anything to stay alive. Today I have done something I can not go back from Ezmerelda will never forgive me. I found Miguel's family and killed them all. My rage will never be forgotten in his village. They will forever fear the DIAZ witches. He will not reject my only sister. He will watch his family die. I cast him into the pits of hell, and there he will stay until he proves his love for my sister. We leave tomorrow to join Blood moon pack. Alpha Thadeous says we can pay with our bodies. I know we will be safe with Blood moon pack. They are large, and no one will suspect

VICTORIA Damon and Lucy convinced me to check out this new classic club in town; apparently, the food is binge-worthy. So says Lucy, the foodie. Axel and Lanie are meeting us there, and I am actually starting to relax, thinking less and less about my mate. Lucy looks about ready to pop, but she says she is fine. Damon has been watching her like a toddler with a knife. I watch as Lucy waddles to my closest to pick me out an outfit. "Black leather, black leather, black leather…..okay, Tori, we need to discuss your clothing choices. Do you have anything that's not black and has secret dagger compartments?" I laugh, walking over to the closet. "This one is chocolate, so not black." I push a few things aside, and there is a three-quarter-length red dress that shows entirely too much breast but judging by the look on Lucy's face, she likes this one. "Tori, this one! You have to wear this one," she gushes, looking at it. I miss non-hormonal Lucy, practical, reasonable Lucy. I sit at the

VICTORIAI wanted to make it up to Devon. Rejecting him was not my original plan, but I panicked. I really wanted him to love me for me. Not forced by the stupid mate bond. What I didn't expect was to feel so empty after he accepted. I planned a whole romantic date at my secret safe haven. I wanted to be honest. I wanted him to know who I really was, and if he chose to walk away, so be it. But when he reached over and asked me how I felt about never having children, I didn't know how to respond because no one had ever asked me that before. No one really asked me how I felt about anything. Sure they would ask my advice on how to kill someone or hack into a secure facility but how I felt about anything was never something I had faced—that easy task of just shoving it down and not feeling anything. Yet when Devon touched my hand and asked me. I was momentarily stunned before our food arrived. I didn't know what to say. I had them prepare the best seabass and garlic fried rice and vegetabl