Chapter Seventeen Jenna's POVThe chambers that the alpha had informed me of is unlike anything I have seen before. The bedding is made of the softest linen, and the walls are decorated with more paintings that draw my attention.This painting is of a really gorgeous woman with blue eyes and dark hair. The painting depicts her in a wheat field, her hair billowing against the wind and her perfect lips slightly parted as she gazes into the distance.I wonder what she was looking at and who she was to the alpha. She didn't share any physical qualities with him, which ruled out the possibility of her being a sister.“Is everything to your liking?” The question interrupts my thoughts.“Everything looks okay.* I answer with a polite smile. The maid nods politely in return. “Very well. I will be in the west wing should you need anything.”“What's your name?”“You can call me Veronica.” She smiles again. “Veronica, my name is Jenna.” I reply, my gaze shifting back to the strange woman's p
Chapter EighteenJenna's POV“Tell me more. Tell me everything.” I urge Veronica, eager to hear the rest of the story. “I will.” Veronica assures. Now more comfortable in my presence, she goes to lean against the wall but encourages me to take the bed. I sit gingerly at the edge of the bed, marvelling at its softness. “When humans first started living here, everything was perfect. In order for them to be accepting of us, we had to be accepting of them…”“They tried to understand our ways, and we tried to understand theirs. But when they drew a line on how we fed, everything changed. They began to see us as higher animals who fed off of animals and sometimes human blood.”Veronica looks down at her hands, and her expression morphs into that of anger. “They began to take recordings of everything we did, and and sold them for large sums of money.”“What?” I splutter. “They began to make money of you like you all were some sort of circus animal?”Veronica nodded. “And they invited more
Chapter NineteenJenna's POV“What do you mean by it's your turn to feed him? Do you do so against your wishes?”Veronica shakes her head sadly but does not say anything after that. “You don't have to give your blood to someone if you do not want to. That's completely wrong, and barbaric. I am a wolve too, and where we come from, my alpha—I mean, the head of the pack—does not drink the blood of anyone, not even that of an animal. I didn't even knew that it was common practice.”“The alpha just likes it. And it makes him stronger, more formidable. Everyone believes that it is the reason he's lived beyond natural years.”“I do not hate to feed our alpha. Veronica looks up at me earnestly.” You have to believe that. “I just hate the uncertainty about one's fate that comes with doing so.”“What do you mean by the uncertainty of one's fate?” I ask, my brows furrowed in confusion.I remember how I had found him this morning, after I had been tended to by the maids. Zephyr had his lips clam
Chapter TwentyJack's POV “We will do everything we can to bring her back.”“Thank you, Alpha.” The woman utters gratefully. “I am so glad that you have decided to do this for her. Like you, I am also certain that she didn't know what she was doing.”I don't say anything to that, as we both begin the journey again, trying to catch up with the others who have waited at the borders so everyone could cross together. As I make my way towards the bone totems and ashes, the memories of the first time Papa had brought me here flood me. ‘This is the pack border, son. You're never to cross it, except when there's war and you need to lead your people out or when there's a collective hunt. Within these borders lay security and safety, but outside of them, nothing is really guaranteed.’‘Papa, are you saying it's not safe out there? Even though I'm the son of an alpha?’‘Even more unsafe for you because you're the son of the Alpha. You might not know your enemies because you're too young, but
Chapter Twenty OneJenna's POV“What do you think she did?” I counter. I would no longer cower in the face of intimidation or perceived danger.Zephyr chuckles and gets up, moving languidly towards me. I watch him, trying not to let my fear show. Had I ratted out Veronica as a result of what I'd said? “Certain affairs within my pack should remain confidential. I cannot remember telling you about…” Zephyr's voice peters out as he searches for the best word to describe his bloodsucking habit. “....my feeding habit.”I begin to shake my head at the alpha. “Veronica would never tell me something that I had seen with my own eyes when I had gotten here. Don't you remember the first night when I was brought here? When I had found you feeding off of that port woman? Veronica hadn't needed to tell anything; you'd let out your own secret through your own actions of your own accord.”Zephyr smiles, looking impressed and irritated at the same time. “You are a smart one. But I am way older an
Chapter Twenty-twoJenna's POVI run blindly through the narrow passageway, with no idea where I'm headed, the loud thuds of footsteps alerting me of the dangers behind me. I need to make it out of here alive. I cannot watch Zephyr kill Veronica. I will never be a witness to that. My heartbeat thrums as I continue to run, Zephyr's men hot on my heels, reminding me of the night in the forest, when I had first been chased by my abductors. Wasn't it somehow ironical that the very man who had saved me now poised a danger to my life? Could I really trust anyone out here? “Hey girl! Stop, we won't harm you.” The men scream. But I pay them no mind, continuing to run until the light that spills through a large door causes hope to bloom.I could make it out alive. I am going to. But as soon as the thought creeps in, large hands grip my shoulders and drag me back with enormous force so that I land flat on my butt with a groan. As I rub my sore derriere, I look up to find Zephyr looking dow
Chapter Twenty-ThreeVeronica's POV“We should let her go. She has done nothing wrong.”“We are not holding her captive.”“We both know she will never make it out of the labyrinth on her own.”Zephyr turns to regard me, eyes filled with curiosity and something akin to jealousy.“What are you proposing, Vee?”“We have to help her. You did so when she was in the forest. It won't hurt to do it again.”Zephyr moves away from the window where he's been standing for the last hour, entertained by Jenna's futile efforts to make it out of the labyrinth.“I don't want her to leave... At least not yet.”“Why? Why would you want her to stay here? You understand that she is a guest, and she has to remain here of her own choosing?”“That's why we have to give her reasons to stay.” Zephyr responds with a smile, looking utterly pleased with himself.I shake my head disapprovingly at him.“I'm not voting for deception any more. She doesn't even trust us anymore... Let's not do that.”“Then, find a bet
Chapter Twenty-fourJenna's POV“You don't have to cry. If you come with me, I can help.” The familiar voice causes me to tense up and for tears to cease.“You are deceitful. How can I trust the things you say?”I turn to eye Veronica, who looks at me with nothing but regret and kindness in the depths of her eyes.“I understand that it is wrong to lie. But you must understand that you are a stranger here, and we needed to be sure that we could trust you.”“Did he actually even feed off of you, or was that a lie too?”“We take turns feeding the alpha; I didn't lie about that. But he would never have harmed me.” A blush coats her cheeks at her words, and she looks down in an attempt to hide her reddened cheeks. ”At least not in the way you thought.”“I really don't care about you or your alpha anymore. I want to get out of here. You said you could help me—maybe help me get out of here.”“It's pretty simple. The only way out is to follow the paths where the fireflies are.”“What do you m