Alle Kapitel von CHASING MONSTERS: Kapitel 201 – Kapitel 210

(Xavier's pov)Abel broke away from them before they reached the town.He didn’t make a show of it. One moment, he was riding beside them, eyes scanning the tree line, the next he veered off the road with a sharp pull of the reins, already angling toward the hills.“I’ll meet you there,” he said, voice low but certain. “If this lead is real, I won’t waste it.”Xavier met his gaze and nodded once. Abel knew when to trust his instincts, and Xavier trusted Abel.The space he left behind felt wrong.They rode on in silence after that, hooves thudding against hard-packed earth as the borderlands town came into view. It sat low and unassuming in the shallow valley, smoke drifting lazily from chimneys, morning light catching on windows and worn stone. Xavier knew this place. Far enough from the reach of law that disorder flourished, close enough to be useful to those who wanted to disappear. A wild, unsettled place where wolves and humans lived side by side, not in peace, but in uneasy toler

Sophie lay sprawled across the cushioned window seat in her solar, boots discarded somewhere on the rug, one hand resting possessively over the swell of her stomach as sunlight poured in through the tall glass panes. Shiloh sat opposite her on the floor, back against the wall, legs stretched out, polishing off the last of a honey pastry with zero guilt and even less restraint.If anyone expected remorse, they were in the wrong room.“I’d do it again,” Shiloh said around a mouthful, licking sugar from her thumb. “Tomorrow. Next week. I don’t care who glares at me.”Sophie huffed a laugh. “Same.”They shared a look that needed no words, the kind born of shared defiance and shared consequence. The unity festival had ended in whispers and shadows instead of triumph, Jo was gone, and the kingdom was on edge, but neither of them regretted opening that cell door.Toren had been young. Furious. Grieving in a way that hollowed a person out from the inside.He had deserved a chance to choose so

The border town burned in Jax’s memory long after he’d been pulled from it.Not the buildings. Not the screams. Not even the blood that followed.What stayed with him was the timing.One moment, he had Lucian in his sights, the old man unaware, arrogant enough to drink in a tavern like the world hadn’t already shifted beneath his feet. The next, he was drugged like a fool. Extraction protocols activated with brutal efficiency. Jax dragged out like a prized asset while others were left behind.By the time the massacre happened, he was long gone.That fact sat in his chest like a weight he couldn’t shift.He stood alone now, high above the base, staring out through reinforced glass at nothing in particular, jaw clenched so tightly it ached. He hadn’t slept. Hadn’t eaten. Hadn’t gone anywhere near the medical wing where Pandora and the child were being kept.He couldn’t.The knowledge burned too hot.Lucian.His name echoed through Jax’s head whether he wanted it to or not. The man who h

Pandora lay very still in the hospital bed, scarcely daring to breathe, as though any sudden movement might cause this moment to be taken from her.For days, she had known only fragments. Sedation that pulled her under without warning. Voices that drifted in and out of reach. Pain that came and went in waves she couldn’t follow. And always, always, the absence. The knowledge that her child had been born too early, taken straight to intensive care, surrounded by machines instead of arms.Now, for the first time, they had placed her daughter against her chest.Warm. Solid. Real.Pandora curved her arm instinctively, protectively, around the small weight pressed into her skin, her whole body trembling with the effort of holding herself together. The world narrowed to the steady rise and fall beneath her palm, to the soft sound of breath, to the fragile miracle of life that had survived despite everything.Her daughter.Tears slid silently down Pandora’s temples and into her hair.“I’m go

Sophie was sitting cross-legged on the edge of the bed, absently folding and unfolding a length of ribbon she’d found in a drawer, when she finally said it. “We should ask them.” Shiloh, stretched out beside her with her feet propped on a pillow, looked over. “Ask who?” “Betsy. And Agatha.” Shiloh’s brows lifted, then she smiled slowly. “For the wedding?” Sophie nodded, her fingers stilling. “I want them with us. Standing with me.” Shiloh rolled onto her side, suddenly more alert. “You already have me, obviously. Maid of honour. I will be deeply offended if I’m anything else.” Sophie laughed softly. “That was never in question.” “Good. Because I will cause a scene.” Sophie reached out and squeezed her hand. “I want Betsy and Agatha as bridesmaids.” Shiloh blinked once. Then, “Oh. Oh, that’s actually… perfect.” “It feels right,” Sophie said quietly. “They’ve been there for me when almost no one else was. They saw me before I was anything important.” “Before the crown,” Shilo