I can't sleep. I twist and turn in the bed, the air conditioner is working well and it's more luxury than I've ever had the chance to experience in all my years. In the pack, I slept in my parent's kitchen. My room was converted into a guest room, despite the many guest rooms we had in the house. Jane and Caleb, my now dead brother, used the room as a temporary sex house. I always cleaned it right after and it always broke my heart to see the pink walls and the wide windows. The smell of flowers wafting in from the garden below and the satin curtains, soft beneath my touch. I slept in the kitchen, on the bare floor, cleaning and taking care of my family. Now I have a room to myself, a fully furnished space with a fully functional air conditioner. I have a blanket of my own. Yet I'm finding it hard to sleep. Something in me quivers again and I feel tears about to slip out of my eyes. I blink them back and tell myself not to cry, there's no need to, but yet I feel there is a need.

The sun is shining and casting its soft rays on my back but I barely notice it."There's a limit to how much power a normal Lycan can use, right? Is hypnosis also included in the spectrum of gifts some Lycans have?"Leah groans and turns to face me with frustration in her eyes. I smile back at her, the eagerness to know more dripping off my every action and she just shakes her head before she turns back to the flowers she's caressing.It's well past dawn now. Sunlight is washing over every single inch of land as far as my eyes can see, and oddly, I like what my eyes are seeing.The Lycan King of the north has a grand home. It's wide, huge, and bustling with people. The clack of wooden sticks still drifts into my ears if I focus enough and damn the warriors are hot!They were all shirtless when we passed. They all looked at Leah with respect, and me with disdain, but that did not diminish just how appealing to the eyes they were.Leah and I are in the gardens now, the one Lyros lets he

The water is cold when I make her step into it. The bath pools have made no sense to me until now. For the past fifty years, I have lived in a steady and regular motion, my hate the only thing fueling me and my need for revenge the only thing driving me to do anything at all. I have stoked the flames and assembled my life in the chasm of ice my lands seem to love so much, but yet this little wolf, this delicate little wolf, makes me feel I might have overlooked one aspect of those plans. When I asked her to lick my shoes I had expected the refusal. I wanted it even. I would have killed her on the spot and I would have regretted it for a minute or two, after that I would have thrown the thought out of my mind and headed out to pick up the next werewolf princess to lead to her death. Most of them are unwilling brides, and their parents, almost always reluctant to let them go. They know I kill their daughters, and they know they can do nothing about it. I should have killed this lit

"Is there any reason a mutt is eating amid warriors Leah?" Her voice is like silk. "If anything, she should be crawling on her feet at least, not standing and acting like an equal to the rest of us."My heart is hammering in my chest and my skin feels slick with nervous sweat. Leah takes a bite of her drumstick before she looks up at our guest.There's nothing I can use to describe the type of unbridled beauty this lady is. Maybe it's because of the morning sun shining in through the open windows, or maybe it's because I seem to find all of them better looking than normal people, but she's pretty and I can't seem to ignore it.She was the one I was staring at earlier.Leah tilts her head to the side and I'm almost blinded by the perfect smile she flashes. "If you have a problem with her walking on her feet Lysandra, I think you can take it up with Lyros. She's his guest, and I know I can't order you around so save those words, but at least let us have our breakfast in peace."Chuckle

"You look beautiful Miss Adelaide."I feel my cheeks heat up again and I stretch out a gloved hand so Rhys can help me up. He's the blond one and so far he's the only one who has said anything to me. The stylist lady stands to one side, picking out pins from a box and taking a look at the hairdo I have chosen from time to time.The dress I chose is a simple one but as opposed to a lower bodice and skirt with excessive fabric in flair, I chose something else. Pencil fit."I can barely walk."Rhys chuckles again and I hear a happy sound escape my lips too. I'm elated. Excitement is rushing through me more pleasantly than I have experienced it before, and along with that, there's the odd feeling that I'm way in over my head.I barely know what's going on but I picked a dress that is so sophisticated. We could be going for a walk in the park to the best of my knowledge. All this would seem unnecessary if whatever Cain is keeping from me isn't worth the stress.I hear a zipping sound and