All Chapters of MARKED : Chapter 31 - Chapter 40

Elizabeth's POVThe library had always been a safe haven for me. A place of solitude and quiet, where the weight of reality seemed to lessen, even if just a little. But today, it felt different. Haley's absence left a hollow space that I couldn't fill no matter how hard I tried. My mind, however, was not entirely on the library's quiet halls or the books that needed sorting.Prav's lifeless eyes haunted me. The memory of his pale, bloodless body flashed in my mind every time I blinked. I shook my head, trying to shake off the image as I entered the last few pieces of data for the day. It didn't work. The lingering sadness and unease from last night clung to me like a second skin.When the final book was shelved and the library stood locked and silent behind me, I realized how late it had gotten. Normally, I left before dark, but I'd been so caught up in work-and, truthfully, trying to keep my mind occupied-that I hadn't noticed how quickly the night had fallen.The streets of New Orle

"Yes, I like it. It's beautiful," I said, staring at the painting in front of me. The moon, the sun, and the stars seemed to meld together in a cosmic dance, their edges blending into a celestial harmony that felt eternal. Damon stood beside me, his presence as quiet and commanding as the night depicted in his work. He tilted his head slightly, his enigmatic smile softening his angular features. "The moon can be beautiful, yes. But it can also be a curse." "A curse?" I frowned, shifting my gaze from the painting to him. "What do you mean?" His dark eyes bore into mine, an unreadable intensity behind them. "A legend once said that some are slaves to the moon, while others are slaves to the sun. Nature has its balance, but balance comes with chains." I blinked, trying to make sense of his cryptic words. "How can someone be a slave to the moon?" Instead of answering, Damon's gaze flicked back to the painting, his lips curling slightly as if the answer were obvious but he didn't

Unfortunately, Chloe and Vanessa didn't take Philosophy. They found it boring or draining as Vanessa would say.So currently I was by myself, but the words on the board blurred together, my mind refusing to focus as Mr. Lanister droned on about existentialism. Normally, I loved philosophy-it made me think, made me question things-but today, it was impossible to concentrate. My fingers tapped anxiously against my notebook as my thoughts spiraled back to the murder, to the lies everyone was so eager to believe. An animal attack? That was bullshit. The cops knew it, Vanessa, Chloe, and I knew it. And yet, no one was asking questions. No one seemed to care that a student was drained of blood right outside campus. I gritted my teeth, gripping my pen tighter. How could they all just pretend like nothing happened? The door creaked open. I barely registered it at first, but then, something made me look up-an odd feeling, a shift in the air, a presence. And my heart stopped. "Damon?" The

ELIZABETH'S POVI narrowed my eyes at Damon, crossing my arms. "What do you mean you're looking for answers too?" He smirked, leaning against the lamppost like he had all the time in the world. "I mean exactly that, sweetheart. You're not the only one curious about what's happening in this city." My heart pounded, frustration bubbling to the surface. "How could you possibly know what I'm looking for?" Damon tilted his head slightly, his blue eyes glinting under the campus lights. "Let's just say... we're on the same side. But unlike you, I know when to back off." I scoffed. "Oh, please. You don't even know what I'm trying to find out." His smirk widened, his voice dropping into something almost amused. "Oh, but I do. You want to know why people are dying. You want the truth, but you have no idea what you're actually dealing with." A chill ran down my spine. How the hell did he know that? It was one thing for Vanessa and Chloe to be in this with me-we were all there that ni

Morning light filtered through Vanessa's grandmother's small but cozy cottage, but it did nothing to warm the cold dread sitting in my chest. My mind felt heavy, a whirlwind of thoughts swirling so fast that I couldn't settle on just one.I shouldn't be here.That thought alone made me sick.I wasn't supposed to exist in this present? I had come from another world? Another realm? How? Why? And if I hadn't crossed over, would those people still be alive? Bodies turning up dead-was it all because of me?Vanessa must've sensed where my thoughts were going because she reached out and squeezed my hand. "Hey, don't start blaming yourself," she said softly.I swallowed hard. "If I hadn't crossed over, maybe people wouldn't be dying." My voice cracked.Rachel, who had been watching us both closely, leaned forward in her chair. "You don't know that," she said. "And blaming yourself for what's already happened won't help you now. The important thing is that you both stay safe. The supernatural