บททั้งหมดของ Marked By Midnight : บทที่ 31 - บทที่ 40

Lunessa's POVAfter the mindlink ended, I crawled into bed, heavy with longing. I lay there, twirling the stress balls Red had given me between my fingers. Their smooth texture and rhythmic weight were oddly calming, helping me silence the ache in my chest, even if only for a little while.The days passed, each one slower than the last. Azrik called every morning without fail. But his tone was always rushed, and worn.Then, one morning, something changed. I was sure I was wide awake. Sunlight was beginning to filter through the curtains, yet the room felt colder than usual, like the warmth had been pulled from the walls.And then, I saw a flicker at first faint, like the haze of memory, but it sharpened with terrifying clarity.I saw Azrik, but not the one I knew. He looked younger, and colder. Dressed entirely in black like an assassin. His blade gleamed wetly, red droplets falling from its tip onto stone, the blood didn’t seem to faze him.Then just as suddenly as it appeared, it v

Lunessa’s POVI went to bed that night, but sleep never came. I just lay there, staring at the ceiling as shadows danced across it, my mind spiraling deeper into silence.Azrik loves me, he said it, he held me like I was the only thing in the world that mattered. He made me feel seen, safe and cherished.Was it all because I carried his child? Was I never the love, only the vessel?By the early hours of morning, a sharp jolt brought me out of my thoughts. It was the baby kicking, but this wasn’t the soft flutter I had come to expect. These were strikes, like war drums sounding from inside me. My breath hitched as I lifted my nightgown and placed a hand over my stomach.The skin moved beneath my touch violently. I blinked, and saw something that made my heart stop. Two small footprints, then three.I stared, frozen. How could that be? I couldn’t think straight through the pain. By sunrise, I’d already sent for the palace doctor.“Can we scan to see what’s going on?” I asked, trying to

Lunessa's POV I sat in my room, drawing in deep, measured breaths, trying to slow the chaos in my chest. “It’s all a lie. It’s all in my head.” I repeated it like a mantra, over and over again, until the words began to lose shape. When he finally came to my chambers, we sat for lunch. The silence between us wasn’t our usual kind, the one filled with comfort and unspoken ease. This one was different. Stiff. Like two strangers trying to remember a language they once spoke fluently. “I’m sorry I spent two months away,” Azrik said, his voice careful. “It’s okay. You’re back now,” I replied, eyes fixed on my plate. The food was warm, beautifully prepared, yet it tasted like paper in my mouth. “Did something happen while I was gone?” Where would I even begin? The visions that left me trembling in my sleep? The letter I found? Red’s constant presence? The scan showing I was carrying twins? The scrolls whispering that I was nothing more than a breeder? Too much had happened, a

Lunessa's POV She walked past me like I didn’t exist, calm and collected.She moved to Azrik’s wine rack and poured herself a drink, completely unbothered, as though this was her home.I swallowed hard, my throat like glass. Arassac was the reverse of Cassara.“Cassara?” I croaked, my voice trembling with disbelief.She rolled her eyes and let out an exaggerated sigh. “Ugh. Finally.”Her voice held no shame, or guilt. Just the irritation of someone tired of pretending.“I… I don’t understand,” I whispered, holding back my tears.‘Let me out!’ Due roared inside me, her fury shaking the walls of my mind. ‘Let me out, I’ll shred her into pieces!’‘That won’t solve anything, Due,’ I replied, barely holding her back.‘But it’ll give me the satisfaction,” she growled.I took a shaky breath, forcing myself to stand tall. “If you're really Cassara why did you pretend to be my friend? What was the game?”She didn’t answer right away. She simply sipped her wine, and turned to face me, lounging

Azrik’s POVHe continued growling. ‘Dowen, what is it?’ I asked, irritation building.His voice came low. ‘I don’t know... but something is wrong. The energy around her is dark, Azrik.’I exhaled sharply. ‘Relax. You said you haven’t been feeling her wolf, maybe when we reconnect properly, you will. This distance has thrown us all off.’‘I’m not sure we're saying the same thing,’ Dowen murmured.I shook my head and dismissed the unease clawing at the edges of my mind. She was here with me, that was all that mattered. I opened the car door for her, like I always did, and drove us back to the palace.When we stepped into my sitting room, the moonlight spilling through the glass windows, I leaned in to kiss her.But before I could touch her, Dowen surged from inside me and threw my body back, hard. I slammed against the wall with a dull thud.She hurried to my side. “Are you okay?”I forced a smile. “Yes... I’m fine. Must’ve lost my footing.”But my hands trembled as I reached out again