Lahat ng Kabanata ng The Human mate: Marked for vengeance. : Kabanata 71 - Kabanata 80

Teya’s POVAs I pushed the heavy door to the archives, it let out a groan that felt almost like a warning—a creaky sigh, as though the very hinges were protesting my intrusion. A thick plume of dust erupted from the cracks of the old wooden frame, swirling in the dim light and settling back down like the lazy breath of a slumbering giant. I might have expected to feel a chill run through me or even a twinge of hesitation, but really? I didn’t even blink.Fear had become a luxury I could no longer afford. Not after everything that had spiraled out of control just moments ago.Not after the incident where I nearly sent Lucien crashing through a stone wall.The school's archives were tucked away in the far east wing, hiding beneath those ancient classrooms long abandoned by students and the laughter that once echoed within. There’d always been whispers that this room was off-limits, safeguarded by magical wards that prevented any unauthorized access, but honestly? That didn’t matter to

TEYA’S POVThe name wouldn’t stop echoing.Professor Marell.It chased me down the hall. Clung to my skin. Crawled beneath it like something alive.By the time I made it back to my dorm, my legs were trembling. Not from exhaustion—but from the weight of it. Of him. Of everything I thought I knew… twisting into something darker.I locked the door behind me, flipped the lights on, and didn’t even bother taking off my coat. I dropped straight to the floor. My knees hit the rug hard, but I barely felt it. My fingers moved on instinct, pulling open the satchel, scattering the files, the parchment, the half-ripped reports. I didn't care about the mess.I needed the truth.My breathing was shallow as I scanned everything again. Line by line. Memo by memo. I knew I’d seen it. I knew.And then—There.Buried in a footnote Kael had written. A research partner. Marell. A mentor. A shadowy name that had slipped past me more times than I could count.Except… it wasn’t just that.My eyes froze on

TEYA'S POVEvery part of me ached—bone-deep bruises, the sting of torn skin, and a burn in my lungs from too much running and not enough air. But none of that compared to the heavier weight pressing down on my chest.We’d survived.Barely.Lucien didn’t speak as he guided me through the moonlit corridors of the academy, his hand hovering near my back without ever quite touching. The silence between us was thick—too full of what we’d seen, what we’d felt, what could’ve happened.We didn’t go to the infirmary. That kind of attention we couldn’t afford. Instead, he led me to a tucked-away corner of the old west wing—a private dorm rarely used, nearly forgotten by most students. A place built for solitude, not comfort.He unlocked the door with a quiet click and let me step in first. It was modest: a worn bed pressed against the wall, a cluttered desk stacked with scrolls and crumpled notes, a single lamp casting soft golden light across the shadows. It felt safe. Or maybe I just wanted i

TEYA’S POVThe morning light sliced through the blinds like a blade, and I winced, turning away from it instinctively. Everything hurts.A dull ache radiated through my ribs, my shoulder throbbed where I’d slammed into the ground, and my knuckles stung from the moment I’d tried, in vain, to fight off one of the attackers. My body was a canvas of bruises, blooming in purples and deep reds, a living reminder of the ambush. But what haunted me more than the pain was how close we’d come to not making it out at all.The mattress beneath me dipped slightly, and I felt the soft press of warmth at my back. Lucien’s scent still lingered on the sheets. Earthy, grounding, with a hint of cedar and smoke. It wrapped around me like a safety net. I sat up slowly, hissing as pain stabbed through my side. A low groan escaped before I could stop it.Lucien wasn’t there anymore, but his presence still filled the room. His shirt hung over the edge of the chair, the first-aid kit still open on the night

TEYA’S POVThe mirror didn’t lie. It reflected back someone I barely recognized.The tight black dress clung to my body like sin incarnate, hugging my curves in all the places men noticed and women whispered about. My legs, long and bare, peeked out beneath the hem, smooth and deliberate. I usually hid them beneath the uniform, behind protocol and propriety. But tonight? Tonight, I wanted him to look. I wanted him distracted. I needed him to be vulnerable.I slid the silver anklet around my left ankle, the tiny charm catching the light like a wink from the devil. Every detail mattered. Every inch of me was a weapon, polished and poised. I wasn’t going in there as the broken girl with bruises and ghosts. I was going in as fire cloaked in silk.From the drawer, I pulled out the tiny glass vial—filled with a fast-acting sedative Lucien had warned me about months ago. Odorless. Tasteless. Potent enough to knock out an Alpha in under ten minutes. I tucked it into the small slit sewn inside