All Chapters of CLAIMING HAILEY : Chapter 171 - Chapter 180

HAILEYThe moon rode high in the sky, dropping a chill silver light across the castle grounds. I rested my arms against the railing on the balcony's edge, drawing in deep gulps of the night air. My hands grasped the railing tightly as I fought to suppress the fury simmering in my blood. Ryan was lost. Athena had cursed him. And that could mean only one thing—tonight, we hunted.Behind me, Aurora stepped forward, her golden eyes burning with determination. She had not spoken a word since the devastation in the war room, but now there was a tempest raging inside of her, quietly. Her wolf was restless, hungry for revenge."Ready?" I asked.Aurora nodded, rolling her shoulders. "More than ready."I turned and moved towards the door. We did not need an army to accomplish this. This was a personal matter. Athena had crossed a line, and she would suffer the consequences.As we strode through the castle corridors, the torches along the stone walls started to dance furiously, reacting to the s

AARON Aurora's words hung in the air, heavier than the night that lingered over us. The acrid scent of wine, fire, and turned earth filled my lungs, but all I could focus on was the weight of what she'd just said. Athena was dead. Flora was dead. Hailey had drained every bit of power from the witch and turned every spell she'd ever worked around. Including the one that kept Ryan gone. I clenched my teeth, my gaze sweeping over the faces that had assembled before me. No one spoke, not yet. Jaden, lounging with his wine, looked thoughtful. Isaiah's fingers twitched as if trying to cram the consequences into his head. Logan's face was expressionless, but I knew this had hit him hard—Flora was once his mate, though she'd been bound under Athena's magic. Jermaine was the first to wake, smoothing a hand over his hair. "So that's it?" He spoke low and quiet, his voice a rumble. "She's gone?" Aurora nodded, her golden eyes burning in the darkness of the torchlight. "I saw her life fade."

RYAN Agony. It started as a dull ache, a pressure in my ribs, then spread like wildfire throughout my entire body. It was like some thing had been wrapped around my soul—tight, choking, unyielding—and now it was being ripped away. I gasped, my head spinning, my muscles freezing as I collapsed onto the cold, wet stone beneath me. The chains that had bound me all these years clattered against the floor, and suddenly—air was mine. The spell was broken. I balled my fists, the rush of power surging back into my veins, my wolf snarling inside me, at last released after months of being suppressed and quiet. I drew in a deep breath, the stale air of my imprisonment now mixed with something else—power. A commanding, familiar, and unbreakable presence. Hailey. She did it. I let out a whoop of breathless laughter, my lips spreading in a savage grin. My mate had broken the spell. And that left only one possibility—anyone who'd placed it there was dead. Athena. I could feel it, the traces

TURTELA Night air was quiet, but there was something moving in the space around us. One moment we were sitting there, tension still thick with all that had happened, and then— I felt it. A tug deep inside me, as if an unseen string had been pulled taut and back into position. A rush of heat washed over me, as if stepping out into a frigid winter's night and into the sun. I gasped, my eyes wide with shock as my heart knew before my mind could. "Mother," I whispered. I wasn't alone. Alexia drew in a harsh breath next to me, her hold on the rim of the stone table tightening. Jermaine and Jackson both stiffened sharply, their heads snapping up at the same moment. Aaron leapt out of his chair so fast the chair scraped harshly on the floor. And then, as a group, we moved. No words were ever spoken. We all knew it—the instant she was back. We ran in, our shoes clattering in the corridors, hearts racing with a single, desperate desire. We discovered them in their room. Ryan stood his

JERMAINE There was something about the struggle that lingered in the air long after the final enemy fell. A weight, a thrum of residual power that clung to the soul like an ethereal resonance of the dead. Though Thomas's dying breath was swallowed by silence, I could sense him. Or his shadow. His anger. His desperation. His defeat. I leaned against the broken trellis, chest heaving, heart still racing from the battle. The garden rested in shambles—blossoms shattered beneath heavy heel marks, the smoldering scorch scars of Isaiah's and Kael's fury staining the once spotless paths. Death and potency clung in the air, but what had me unsettled the most was the icy stillness that came after. Jackson was cleaning blood from his sword, face unemotional. Jaden was still standing at the ready, golden eyes scanning the area, refusing to believe that it was truly finished. Our father was standing in the center, shoulders locked, staring down at the spot where Thomas once was. Those wor