[Ayla’s POV]I stare down at the raging river below me as my feet dangle in the air. How many times have I thrown myself into that damned river to try to wake up, only to find myself back in this place? Again and again, it continued to happen, making it more and more clear that I wouldn't be able to wake up—not this time.Was this the end? Had the thing I dreaded finally happened, and that was why I couldn’t get back?As this thought hits me, I throw myself forward once more and close my eyes while the wind whips my hair around, but just like the other times, the minute my body connects with the rocks, I feel solid earth beneath me.Sighing, I lean back as a large shadow covers me and a familiar energy presses against my skin."You’re back?" I ask, lifting my gaze to meet Barren’s. "How goes it in the real world?"From what I knew, Barren had also been arrested when I was and was currently sitting in a prison cell awaiting a trial due to the murders he and I were both accused of.As f
[Ayla's POV]Fire envelopes me, attempting to lick at my skin but not doing any damage. However, even if the fire wasn't a real threat, the large beast towering over Alphonze was."No, you don't!" I hiss, lifting my arm, so a flame thrower appears. "Don't you fucking touch him!"A scream of rage escapes me as fire explodes from my outstretched hand and wraps around the beast's throat like a whip, so I can yank him back and hold him in place while Barren deals the finishing blow to his chest.Once it stops moving, I rush forward and kneel in front of Alphonze so that I can try to calm him."Hey," I murmur, reaching out and grabbing his hands. "You're alright."I wait as Alphonze's gaze flicks from me to the flames and then back. Deep within it, I can see the fear that is burying him alive and realize that it is similar to my own fear of the darkness I harbored."Alphonze," I announce more firmly, grabbing his cheeks and making him look at me. "Focus on me."As long as he could see the
[Aera’s POV]"Well?"Barren’s face is calm as he stares me down. It’s clear that he is already convinced that I will agree to his terms since he is the only one who can find Ayla since she has gone missing."Listen here," Silas snaps, shooting a glare toward Barren. "I don’t think you’re truly in any position to be bribing. I could just torture you until you’re willing to help us find my niece. We are simply giving you the courtesy of helping us freely.I bite back the laugh that wants to escape me as Barren’s smug expression falls.Ha, it served him right for trying to act so fucking cocky. He didn’t know who the fuck he was messing with."Do you think I’m afraid?" Barren suddenly asks. "Do you know who my father is?"Actually, everyone knew that Frank Holding was a dangerous leader and would do whatever was needed to have his way, but to think he would use those tactics on his own children was a bit..."Whatever you can do, I’ve probably already been through," Barren continues. "Whi
[Ayla's POV]I spin around in Barren's computer chair, trying to entertain myself until Barren returns from wherever it was that he went. I wasn't quite sure why he left so urgently after helping Alphonze, but before I could ask any questions, he disappeared."I wonder if anyone I know is sleeping," I murmur, unable to just sit around and do nothing. "Maybe he... No," I hiss, remembering the videos I saw before I became trapped here. "He probably doesn't want to see me anyway."I was sure that Aera believed I was responsible for killing his father, especially given his past prejudices, and even though somewhere in the back of my mind I wished he would believe in me, I couldn't stop the fear that he didn't."Stop doing this to yourself, Ayla," I mutter, leaning forward and placing my hands on the keyboard. "Let's search for someone to keep me entertained."After entering the code that Barren had taught me, I take in the screen and the small dots that indicate who is asleep.Once I have
[Aera’s POV]"This is just fucking great," I growl, staring down at the chains that clamp tightly around my wrists. "When I get my hands on that bastard, I’m going to kill him."After being tricked and left wrapped in vines, it was easy enough for my father’s men to arrest Silas and me. Now, we were stuck in the same fucking cell that we helped Barren escape from with the same ability suppressing cuffs, so I was damn near human."If you had better judgment from the start, we wouldn’t be here," Silas points out, remaining too fucking calm for my liking. "Tell me again why you trusted him to begin with.""Because Ayla trusted him," I respond immediately. "And since I swore I’d trust Ayla and her judgments, I let my guard down."Growing quiet, I wait as Silas processes what I’ve said."And how does Ayla know him?"For a moment, I’m not sure if he’s asking to see if I actually knew about their past, but when I don’t find any hints of ulterior motives, I realize that maybe Ayla never told
[Aera’s POV]Silas and I stand to the side while Marah sits in the middle of what I now see is a pentagon with a map in front of her while chanting something in a foreign language. Soft light radiates around her, swirling like it’s on a wheel while growing brighter and brighter.When it begins to grow brighter, a segment of it breaks off and explodes into the air, then shoots down like an arrow, landing on the map, where I can only assume Ayla is located."Here," Marah announces, placing a blood-red nail on the spot that is now burned. "Is where our girl is."I remain in place as she slowly gets to her feet and begins to bow to each candle before blowing them out. Only once she is finished, she steps out and comes to join us."Do you recognize this area?" She asks, holding the map up so we can see the burn mark that her magic created. "It isn’t either of your territories, correct?""That’s right," I confirm, feeling my anger grow even more. "That’s elementalis territory."That bastard
[Alphonze’s POV]Benny rolls me up to the front door and then lifts a finger to ring the bell. At first, it doesn’t seem like anyone is going to come, but then Corinna appears, looking confused by my sudden appearance."Alphonze?" She says, raising her brows. "What brings you here?""I came to see your brother," I explain. "Is he home?""Of course, please come in."Nodding, I motion for Benny to grab my chair and roll it in while Corinna disappears to find Barren."I don’t know how you roped me into doing this," he mutters once he’s sure we are alone. "Aera is going to kill me.""I’ll handle him," I counter. "Anyway, I don’t even know where that boy has gotten off to.""He’s probably busy trying to find the one responsible for your father’s death."Nodding, I try to ignore the sudden pang of pain I feel. Due to the corruption that was taking place around me, I didn’t have the time to try to mourn the loss of my father. Even if he wasn’t much of a parental figure, he was still the man
[Aera’s POV]"Could you please drive faster? I know you’re old, but do you seriously have to drive like a grandpa?""I’m going as fast as the car will take us," Silas snaps, shooting me a glare in the rearview mirror. "If you’d like, you can fucking run there if I’m not going at the speed you want.""Man, I feel bad for Ayla," Marah sighs from the front passenger seat. "She is going to have to put up with both of you for the rest of her life."At her words, I shoot a glare but don’t bother responding.I turn my focus out of the window beside me and take in the scenery as it flies by. How long have we been driving now? An hour? Maybe two?‘More like thirty minutes,’ Rayze counters. ‘Your sense of time is horrible.’‘Shut up.’Each minute felt like a fucking eternity when I knew that Barren could be doing anything to Ayla. I needed to get to her and see with my own eyes that she was fine."This is as far as we go," Silas announces, pulling the car to the side of the road and cutting it
[Aera’s POV]9 months Late"Mmm, Aera, right there."Ayla’s voice echoes around me, spurring my movements even more. Knowing she was enjoying what I was doing to her was all the encouragement I needed."Ah!" she gasps, leaning more into the chair in front of her. "Not so hard."Chuckling, I lean forward and nip at her ear, earning myself a small whimper and a shiver of delight."Sorry, you’re just really tense," I chuckle, lightening my massage.Since the triplets were due any day now, the doctor suggested that I help Ayla relax however I could, and since she requested a massage, I was more than willing to oblige. This was the least that I could do, given what she was about to go through. I knew childbirth was hard with just one child, but I couldn’t even imagine what it would be like with three."Why’d you stop?"Cursing, I look down to find Ayla’s big green eyes staring up at me, but I barely register them as I take in her huge belly.Smiling, I let my hands slide down her shoulders
[Celia’s POV] I stare up into Alphonze’s dark, unreadable eyes while trying to figure out exactly what I was feeling. Was I just caught by surprise because he suddenly appeared, and that was why I suddenly felt jittery and my heart was racing? Right, that had to be it; there couldn’t be anything else. I was already horrible at social events due to being afraid of the judgmental eyes of others, especially when they compared me to my perfect twin sister. So to suddenly be alone with a man twice my age and handsome as hell, of course, I would feel weird. "S-sorry," I stammer, deciding that the only correct way to handle this was to run as quickly as I could. "I should…" "Wait," Alphonze hisses, holding up an arm as I attempt to sneak past him. "Just… wait a second." Frowning, I try to remain calm and not shove his arm away. As the heir of an alpha, I was strong, and my strength would easily be on par with Alphonze's, especially since he just regained his strength and power thanks to
[Alphonze’s POV]I stand to the side, watching as everyone present for the evening enjoys themselves, laughing, dancing, and being merry. It had been a while since I had attended something like this, so it was taking a bit to get used to it again.The last time I came to a full moon ball was when I found Gloria. It was the day my whole life changed for the better and then for the worst.Immediately, memories of that day began to come crashing into me, from the falling of autumn leaves to the sounds of crickets that chirped around us. I was only twenty-one then and forced to attend the ball, so I found somewhere to hide to avoid being bothered until it was time to leave.Back then, I hated social events and only wanted to focus on my alpha duties, as I had just taken over for my father.After having my heart ripped out of my chest by Hana, I didn’t want a damn thing to do with things like love and mates. That was another reason I didn’t want to be at this damned ball: I risked finding
[Aera's POV]Soft music drifts toward me as I stand to the side of the large ballroom, waiting for my date to arrive.Despite all the chaos that had been happening in our world, Silas and Alphonze insisted that we have a small, intimate gathering for the full moon as a way to relax and unwind after all the headache of cleaning up Barren's mess.That's why I was forced into an uncomfortable black tux with a purple vest beneath it and a white button-up beneath that and made to wait while Ayla was dolled up by Isabella and Celia."You look like someone killed your puppy," Alphonze chuckles, coming over to join me. "Try to loosen up, will ya?"As he speaks, I take him in while still thinking that this is some type of alternate universe.Never in my wildest imagination did I ever think that my brother would be returned to the man he was before his accident, but here he was, standing in front of me, dressed in a white button-down with the sleeves pulled up so his strong, lean muscles could
[Ayla's POV]The next day, I sit in the passenger seat of Aera's car, staring at Crimsone Tides Estate while fighting the urge to run away. When I entered that building, I'd be making the toughest decision of my life, and I wasn't exactly sure if I was ready.Beside me, Aera remains silent while holding my hand, so that soothing warmth radiates through me, but it doesn't do a thing to calm my nerves."We can go back," he offers, breaking the silence that has settled around us. "You don't have to do this so soon; you can...""No," I sigh, giving him a small smile. "This needs to be done. You didn't see him there. He's suffering, and despite making some ridiculous choices due to being tricked by my mother, he doesn't deserve to live like that."After much deliberation, I decided to grant my father's wish and put him out of his misery.To live your life trapped by the curse was no way to live, and as his daughter, I had an obligation to grant his request."Come on," I continue, gently pu
[Aera's POV]I watch as Ayla turns around so that her ass is almost in my face while she begins to undo my pants and free my dick.From my point of view, I can see everything from her perfectly shaved pussy to her glistening lips and her throbbing clit, which is just begging for me to please it.However, with my hands cuffed above my fucking head, I couldn't do anything but continue to stare while she slowly took me between her lips so she could begin attacking my tip with her tongue."Fuck," I hiss, lifting my hips so she would swallow more of me. "That feels so fucking good."Giggling, she continues her attack while beginning to slide her body across mine until her thighs rest on either side of my face.'Eat me,' she growls through mindlink while wrapping a hand around my shaft and the other around my balls so she could drive me even crazier.Not needing to be told twice, I dip my tongue between her folds and begin to glide it up and down her clit while using my teeth to nip at her
[Aera’s POV]I remain in place, staring down at Ayla, who is fast asleep, as her face twists into a look of pain. I can’t help but wonder what exactly it is that she is going through there in the dream plain, where I can’t protect her. Did she find her father, and the result wasn’t what she expected? I wouldn’t know until she awoke and told me.Feeling utterly useless, I turn my gaze to Vince and begin to take him in. When Ayla introduced us, I pretended to not know him, but I remembered the great alpha he once was. To see him like this was painful, but it was proof that even the mightiest could fall, and when they did, they fell hard."I’m sorry," I murmur, feeling somewhat responsible for his condition.Maybe if all of us realized the corruption that was going on back then, this wouldn’t have happened, but we were all blinded, and in the end, we only realized when things were too late."Mmm."I snap my gaze away from Vince to find Ayla beginning to stir.Her bright green eyes slowly
[Ayla's POV]I stand in front of Crimson Tides Estate while my stomach churns and my heart races. Even though this place had always been my home, I wasn't back here for something pleasant.After mine and Celia's discussion, I made the choice to come home and see the man that haunted my dreams and try to see if I could help him.Of course, I had to wait a few days so that Brian and Gwen could be sure that everything was alright, and when I was released, Aera came to fetch me after I explained to him what I wanted to do."Ready?" He asks now, after a moment too long of standing in place. "Or have you changed your mind?""I haven't," I respond, snapping my gaze to the window of my father's room. "This is something that needs to be done.""And what if he is a hopeless cause?" Aera continues to push. "What do you plan to do then?""I'll figure that out when the time comes," I sigh, beginning to move."Welcome back," Aunt Lennox beams when we enter the estate. "I'm so happy you're alright."
[Ayla’s POV]I sit alone in a bed, staring at the door in front of me, while the soft beeping of machines fills the silence around me. One had multiple little beeps as it was monitoring the baby's heartbeats, while the slow and steady one was my own.After dealing with the elders, I was rushed into the temple and taken to their medical wing so that Brian and Gwen could do a thorough examination on me and the babies to make sure that everything was fine after the ordeal I went through.Despite my protests, in the end I lost out and found myself bedbound.Sighing, I lean back and close my eyes, thinking maybe I could try to get some sleep, only to find that the noise makes it damn near impossible.Huffing, I snapped them open and turned my attention toward the small monitor that showed the babies heartbeats. I found myself taking comfort in the fact that their hearts beat strongly, as they should.It was the only reassurance I had right now, given the fact that Gwen had to go back to Cr