Later, when the house had reinforcements and guards at every door, a soft sound at the back gate caught my ear. I stepped out to the balcony and looked at the road. A car slowed outside. A man got out, looking like any man who belonged in expensive suits — Marcus’s backup. He walked the path and then stopped. He looked toward the garden and then hurried. The man carried a paper envelope. He hesitated and then lifted the flap, as if reading the name. He started to speak — but the words died in his mouth. He staggered back as if something unseen had hit him in the chest. He clutched at his collar and fell to his knees. I rushed down the stairs. The man looked at me with a face that had emptied of something important. “It—” he gasped. “The elders… the elders sent a pulse. Something in the sky. They know.” My blood went still. The city would not be silent for long. The elders had been pinged. They had been warned

chapter 51

Ariel POVThe morning after felt like the world had a different heartbeat. Even the sun seemed to come up with caution, as if it, too, had been warned. I woke with the taste of metal and cedar in my mouth — a memory leftover from Damien’s cologne or from the night’s violence. My head hummed with voices that weren’t my own, with the echo of the powder scattering like flour and with Ethan’s whisper that had crawled under my skin: They buried her with a name that will call the sky.I lay there a long time, watching the light move across the ceiling. A lot of things had happened faster than I could keep up with, and my head wanted to split them into small pieces and handle them one at a time. But pieces didn’t land like that. They landed on you like rain.Damien’s hand tightened around my waist and pulled me closer when he woke. He smelled of sleep and smoke and something dangerous. His voice, when he spoke, was slow. “We have to be smart,” he said. “Marcus found threads. The elders will

chapter 52

Ariel's Pov: A stand. The word was an armor. I could feel the wolf stir behind whatever human part of him stood between me and the world. He who had taken me into his life shouted the thought into the night, and I felt it like a drum. But I also felt something else — a small, hot ember of fear. If the elders came, they would not ask me gentle questions. They would demand that I be explained, categorized, bound. The elders loved their labels and the quiet power of knowing what to do with those who were different. Before we could make any real plan, a knock came on the front door. I held my breath. Each knock sounded like a small explosion. Marcus moved to the door, slow as a man who already knew the answer. He opened it and someone in a dark cloak stepped across the threshold. He removed his hood and the room seemed to lose a color. He was not one of my kind, not in dress or in manner. He wore the mark of the elders — a sigil I had seen in the ledger. His voice was smooth as ol

chapter 53

It had been days since the wedding. Days since Lily’s attempt to ruin everything. And yet, I couldn’t shake this strange feeling, like the world itself was holding its breath. My powers had grown stronger. I could feel it each time I closed my eyes, the pull beneath my skin, the whisper that wasn’t quite human. My mother’s presence lingered too, faint but warm, like sunlight breaking through fog. I didn’t understand why it was growing now, but part of me didn’t want to question it. For the first time, I felt alive. I raised my hand, focusing on the energy in my palm. It glowed faintly, weak, unsteady, but real. A small flame flickered into existence, bending to my will. I smiled slightly. “Better,” I whispered to myself. “You’re getting better.” “Not bad,” a familiar voice said behind me, deep and calm. I turned. Damien stood at the edge of the field, hands in his pockets, eyes fixed on me with that unreadable expression that made my heart race. His dark hair was tousled by the w

chapter 54

Ariel’pov: “What do you mean something’s coming?” I asked, stepping closer to Damien. He didn’t answer right away. His eyes were fixed on the sky, his jaw tight. “Damien?” He finally looked at me. “The air changed. Do you feel it?” I frowned. “It’s just wind.” “No.” He shook his head. “That’s not wind. That’s magic.” Before I could reply, a sharp sound echoed above us, it's was a loud caw. I looked up. “What was that?” “A raven,” he said quietly. “But not an ordinary one.” The black bird circled once, then landed on the railing beside us. Its eyes glowed faintly red, and tied to its leg was a small scroll sealed with a strange, dark symbol. My heart raced. “Damien, that symbol” He already

Chapter 55

Ariel’s POVThe room was still shaking when the last spark of golden light faded from my fingers.My chest rose and fell fast, too fast. My heartbeat felt like thunder inside me. Damien’s hands were warm on my cheeks, but even that warmth felt far away.“Ariel,” he whispered, voice rough. “Look at me.”“I… I can’t.”My voice cracked and I said with a trembling voice. “Damien, something is wrong. I can’t feel my legs.”His eyes widened—just a little—but I caught it. Damien never showed fear. Not even when fighting witches.But he was scared now.“Breathe,” he said, pulling me closer. “Slowly. Just breathe.”“I am breathing,” I snapped weakly, gripping his shirt. “I can’t stop shaking.”He held me tighter. “Your powers woke up too fast. Your body isn’t ready.”A wave of heat rolled through me. It wasn’t norma

Alle Kapitel von THE ALPHA KING'S DESPISED OMEGA : Kapitel 51 – Kapitel 56

50

chapter 51

chapter 52

chapter 53

chapter 54

Chapter 55