I leapt over the high wall and chased after Aria's scent. What had started as a light rain was now pouring down heavily, obscuring my vision, but her scent was strong enough for me to keep on her trail.I reached the edge of the forest and finally caught sight of her, clad in an alluring red dress, same as the night we had first met, and drenched to the bone. But she stood there motionless, not bothered by the cold or the rain.I edge closer silently, not wanting to alert her to my presence. She seemed to be waiting for someone. Atlas, maybe? No, if that was the case then there would be no reason for her to sneak out.A car's headlights appeared in the distance, fast approaching where Aria stood at the edge of the road. I squinted through the darkness and the rain to get a better look…When my phone suddenly began to buzz. Panicked, I almost let it slip from my fingers. I answered it quickly to prevent it from ringing."I'm a little busy right now, Diggory," I whispered into

**Noah POV"No!" Aria screamed. She transformed her fingers into claws and slashed at my face.Utterly bewildered, I was too stunned to move away in time, and she struck the side of my face, drawing blood and leaving behind a deep slash."Aria!" I yelled, hurt and in shock. "What the hell are you doing?"Aria stared at me, rage in her eyes. "You monster!" she growled, her eyes turning bright yellow. "You can't fool me, so stop pretending to be him."I lifted my hands up to try and calm her down. The look in her eyes was savage and out of control. Could this be what the bishop was talking about? Could she be giving in to her inner beast?"Aria," I said gently, trying to keep my voice level and calm, "I know you must be feeling confused and stressed out, but you're fine, you're safe."I inched toward her, reaching out my arms to embrace and comfort her. Her eyes softened slightly as she began to recognize me. She lowered her claws, reverting them back to normal hands."It

"How long has he been in there?" I heard Judy's voice ask outside my room."Three days," Atlas replied. "Losing one's love to another takes its toll. Why are you even here, Judith?"Judy scoffed, her voice turning sour."Because I'm his oldest friend and I haven't heard from him in days," she said. "I've come to comfort him.""I bet you have," Atlas replied skeptically. "Well, don't hold your breath, because he won't see anyone. I'll let him know you stopped by if he comes out."I could imagine Judy's scowl as her footsteps faded down the hall. Once she was gone I could sense Atlas lean against the door. He had been doing this for days, trying to convince me to get some fresh air."Is today going to be the same as yesterday, buddy?" he asked.I didn't answer. I had no will to speak. No will to move. No will to eat or drink. All I could picture was Aria in Chris's arms; the way she gazed at him lovingly and looked at me with disgust.This was my fate for some wrong I had

**Chris POV"I thought I told you not to come here without an invitation, Judith," I said irritably, "and besides, aren't you supposed to be distracting your childhood sweetheart?"The blonde woman fumed and plopped herself down on my sofa. She truly was insolent."Oh, I was," she hissed, "and I would have had him falling for me hook, line, and sinker if he wasn't still hung up on Little Miss Healer! I thought you said you disrupted their mate sense—it did not look like his sense was confused at all to me!"I sighed, composing myself. "I said that I disrupted hers," I said coolly. "I held up my end of the bargain and delivered you a Noah who is single and emotionally vulnerable. Your further complaints do not interest me in the slightest.""Well it should, because if Noah is still bonded to her then he will stop at nothing to get her back," Judith pointed out."And if he comes after me then he violates Damnatio Memoriae." I shrugged. "I am not concerned about him or your fa

**Aria POVMy torment under the thumb of Chris did not cease in the months that followed. He allowed me to return to work in order to keep up appearances and not cast any more suspicion on him, but when I returned to him at night, a new round of torture would begin.He had discovered that no amount of bribery would tempt me, so he had resorted to mental and physical humiliation and abuse."This can all end, Aria," he taunted me, using his chains to squeeze and constrain me until I could barely breathe. "All you have to do is surrender and agree to be my mate, and I'll give you full control of your body back."I spat in his face since that was about all I could move on my own, which earned me more punishment.He kept a close eye on me when I was at the clinic. After all, like he had said, it would raise suspicions if I were to suddenly vanish altogether, and that would include abandoning my brand new practice. But all the while, two burly members of his pack would act as my 'b