Willow POV After kissing and hugging my mother and my grandmother goodbye, I stand on the front porch of my cottage while I watch them leave. They both walk around to the back of my house and shift. My mother into her extraordinary lycan and my grandmother into her silver wolf. I watch as they run off into the distance back to Lycan City. The scent of sandalwood dances around me, and I know Osiris has left the car and is standing beside me. "I want to grab a few things," I say without turning to look at him. "Did you get the answers that you were looking for?" Osiris asks. "Mmhmm," I mumble as I turn back into my cottage. I walk past all the rooms and make my way back to my bedroom in the far corner of the house. Standing inside the bedroom, I try not to think about the implications of what I was told tonight and what Petra told me. We didn't get a chance to read Osiris's tea leaves, so I have no idea if he will lead me into the light or the darkness. Without knowing my path,

Willow POV Uncle Faris is unusually quiet as we drive to my drop-off location. I haven't been alone with Uncle Faris for this long, for years. Eventually, Faris stopped communicating with me altogether unless it was about my work as his secretary. Chad became the one who would deliver my assignments. Half the time, I wasn't sure if Uncle Faris even knew what the jobs were. The longer we drive, the more uncomfortable I become in the silence between us. "Did you know?" I finally ask Faris. "Huh?" Faris responds. "Did I know what?" "Did you know that the runes on my back are meant to seal the light magic within me?" I ask. "I might have heard something about it," Uncle Faris mumbles. "Did you know that I was supposed to be raised in the light?" I continue my barrage of questions. "What is the big deal?" Faris practically screams at me. "Just have the runes removed, and it will unleash your light powers." I slap my hands on my cheeks in fake surprise. "Why didn't I think of that?"

Hello My Lovely Readers. As most of you I am a mother first and an author second. Today's update was late due to a family emergency. The emergency is one in which it will impeed my ability to update regularly for a few days. I am unsure of how long my writing will be effected. I do hope that the emergency will be resolved somewhat timely. I will do my best to try and work out an update schedule that allows me to both care for my family and provide you with the chapters that you all patiently wait for. Thank you all for being amazing readers and fans and being patient while my family navigates this chapter in our lives. Solange Daye

Willow POV The smell of Chow fills the air as the building burns behind me. I cover my mouth and run from the building as fast as possible, but my legs are weak. Blood runs down my shoulder from the bullet wound. My hands are covered in blood, and I don't know if it belongs to me or someone else. This isn't the first time my blood has been mixed with others. But this is the first time I have been so wounded that I feel lightheaded. Or maybe it is the smell of the Chow burning in the air that is making me lightheaded. As I run up the hill away from the burning office, I trip over a branch and hit the ground hard. My hands claw against the ground as I try to pull myself back upright. My gloves tear against the roots and the rocks sticking out of the earth. My shoulder and arm go limp as I reach the top of the hill. Rolling over onto my back, I look up at the stars. I try to lift my arm, but I am unable to move it. I lay on the ground, waiting for someone to find and kill

Willow POV I am not surprised to see that Celeste has run. I knew she wouldn’t hang around after what I saw in her mind. I don’t understand why she hasn’t told Osiris about what she has seen. But there is one thing I know for sure: we cannot stay here any longer. It won’t be long until Faris realizes his little mission to kill me failed. If I know him as well as I think I do, he is already on his way to my cottage. “We have to go,” I tell Osiris as I hurry to my bedroom. Quickly, I pull on some comfortable sweats and a spare pair of gloves. The pain in my shoulder is unbearable, but there is no time to lose. I slip my blood-covered combat boots onto my feet and head for the front door. But Osiris doesn’t follow me. I peek my head back into the front door and look at him as if he has lost his mind. “What part of we have to go, did you not understand?” “You need to rest,” Osiris frowns. “I will rest when I am dead,” I spit at him. “And if we don’t leave soon, that cou