جميع فصول : الفصل -الفصل 40

Aurora's POVI rolled onto my back. Then my side. Then my stomach, burying my face in the pillow, breathing in the smell of lavender and loneliness.The charm Lucas had given me sat on the nightstand, catching moonlight. I didn't touch it. I couldn't.I rolled again. After tossing and turning for almost an hour, I reached for my phone.It was almost midnight. Priya would be awake … she was always awake, scrolling through something, laughing at something, living a life I had slipped out of without meaning to.My thumb hovered over her name. Then I pressed the call button.It rang twice. Three times. I was about to hang up, about to bury the phone under my pillow and pretend I hadn't tried …"Bitch." Priya's voice was sharp and angry. "Where the fuck have you been?"I flinched. "I … I've been here. I'm sorry. I didn't call. I know you'll hate me now.""Of course I do." She laughed, but it was a sad laugh. "How could you forget me like that? How could you?"The words landed like arrows

Aurora's POVWhen I was done dressing, I walked down the stairs feeling pretty good.The green dress fit perfectly; it felt soft against my skin, falling just above my knees. My silver hair was loose, catching the light from the chandelier. I had kept the makeup minimal … just eyeliner and a pink lipstick on my lips … because I didn't want to look like I was trying too hard. Even though I was. I absolutely was. I didn't expect to see Logan waiting for me.He stood in the foyer with his back to the stairs, talking to one of the security wolves. He was dressed in a full black shirt and trousers, the fabric fitted to his shoulders and tapering at his waist. His dark hair was pushed back, showing the sharp lines of his jaw, and when he turned and saw me, his eyes travelled from my face down to my ankles and back up again; it was becoming a habit at this point. My stomach flipped. I don't know what I was thinking, but why would I think he wouldn't come with me? Besides, it was Logan we

Lucielle's POVThud.I groaned, turning onto my side and pulling my pillow over my head. The AC hummed. The room was dark, safe, quiet. I was finally asleep for the first time in days, my body exhausted from crying, from holding my mask together, from pretending the fight hadn't drained me out.Thud.I heard the sound of something slamming against my bedroom window. It was harder this time and more insistent.I opened my eyes.The room was pitch black, my blackout curtains drawn tight. The thud came again; it sounded much more urgent this time.I threw off the covers and rushed to the window, my heart hammering, my wolf stirring awake in my chest with a low warning growl. I yanked the curtains back.Jenny stood on the thin window frame, gripping the brick with one hand, pounding the glass with the other. Her high bun had fallen loose, and her eyes were wild.I shoved the window open."Fuck," she gasped, tumbling inside. She landed hard on my rug, rolling onto her back, her chest hea

Lucielle's POVAll I could hear was the ringing in my ears.I watched my friend on the ground, dying. Her dress was soaked in blood … someone else's, her own, I couldn't tell anymore. Her chest barely moved. Her lips were parted, her face grey, her silver hair matted to her forehead with sweat and vomit. She looked like a broken doll in a puddle of red.Logan moved.He caught Sera's hand before the dagger could fall again. He slammed her into the stone wall so hard the candles flickered. She didn't move after that. She slid down and sat still, her neck bent wrong, her eyes open and empty.Fear became a living thing in that room.It crawled up my spine and settled in my throat, choking me. I had seen violence before. I had smelled smoke and heard screaming and watched my world burn. But I had never seen this.Logan caught someone else by the throat.He ripped it out.Blood sprayed across the white cloth, across the candles, across his face. He didn't blink. He just moved to the next o

Lucas's POVI straightened my tie in the mirror and barely recognised myself.The suit was charcoal grey, tailored too tight across my shoulders, the collar pressing against my throat like a hand that wanted to choke me. I hated council meetings. I hated the way everyone lowered their eyes when my father walked into a room, the way they measured me and found me lacking compared to Logan, the way they smiled with too many teeth and called me the fun one like it was a compliment.But one day … maybe soon … Logan and I would rule over these packs. So I needed to learn what was expected. Even if it bored me to death.I took a deep breath and followed my father inside.The hall was massive. Stone walls, high ceilings, chandeliers that dripped crystal like frozen tears. Every Alpha, Beta, and council representative from the region was already seated at the long table, their faces arranged into polite looks.They all stood up as we walked in.The silence was absolute. They bowed their hea