LUXURIA.I desperately scanned through the large books on my table. My hands were trembling. My fear was getting the best of me.The glow in my eyes was becoming difficult to keep in check. It appears and disappears at will.What is wrong with me? Who can I talk to? What if I am truly a cursed one? Otherwise, how do I explain this?Everyone called me CURSED. I think I am beginning to agree with them.I couldn't tell the Alpha about this. What if he kills me because it is evident I am cursed? My curse is spreading faster now.I had to hide this as much as I could.For days now, I still haven't found a possible explanation as to what exactly triggered the curse in me. I was only able to find some herbs in a medicine book that treat acute anxiety problems.I might as well start with that first.As I feverishly flipped through the pages of an old tome, I stumbled upon a chapter titled "The Cure of Hera." The name made my heart race as it caught my attention.I skimmed through it, searchin
LUXURIA.I had scanned through every single page of the book, but the part I was interested in was nowhere to be found.I was going insane with worry.I do not have anyone to talk to about this. I felt so alone in this world. If only my mother were alive...I wiped off a tear from my eye.Whatever it was that happened to my mother was unfair to me. I was raised to suffer alone in this wicked world where no one cared.My hands trembled. I had to get hold of myself in order not to snap. I don't know what would happen if I truly allowed the full extent of this strange illness to take over me.I know I am just sick. Nothing more. I just had to find a solution to it. I only chose to call it a curse because it has tormented me even more than I could bear.I am sick. That's all it is. I had to remind myself every day.I wouldn't want to see what happens the day I let myself snap and reach the peak of whatever feeling this illness always tries to push me to.It was getting late already, and I
LUXURIA.His eyes narrowed slightly as if he was reading my thoughts. Then he broke the silence. "What do you think of becoming allies with your father's pack?"The question hit me like a blow. My stomach twisted into knots, and for a moment, I wasn't sure if I had heard him correctly. My father's pack?I blinked, trying to mask the flood of emotions that surged through me.Anger. Resentment. Pain.My father had cast me aside as if I were nothing more than a worthless burden. He hadn't cared for me, hadn't protected me. The memories of his cruelty were still raw, burning like a wound that refused to heal.My father's pack? He wanted Parthe as an ally?My breath caught in my throat. This was my chance to ruin them. To finally take revenge for all the hurt and betrayal they had inflicted upon me.I could ruin them. I could tell Parthe anything—expose their weaknesses, twist the truth, make them seem unworthy of an alliance. The words were there, just waiting to be spoken, ready to tear
ALPHA PARTHE.Fuck...The Gods...What was she doing to me?Despite the iron walls I had meticulously built around my damned heart, I found her creeping in—like a slow-burning fire that I couldn't put out, no matter how hard I tried. She was everywhere, consuming me with an intensity I hadn't anticipated, seeping into the cracks I hadn't even known existed.I was not a man made for feelings. They had no place in me, and I never thought the mate bond could tear through the cold armor I had worn my entire life. I'd overcome so much—loss, blood, betrayal—but this? This was the one battle I wasn't sure I could win. It was maddening.This was going to be my undoing.Her skin, the softness of it, was like silk beneath my fingers. Her scent—a heady mix of innocence and desire, weaving itself into my every breath. It drove me to the edge every damn time I got near her. And right now, standing before her, with that thin excuse of a dress clinging to her delicate frame, I was so close to losing
ALPHA PARTHE.I emerged from the bathroom, the cold water I had doused myself in still dripping from my skin, leaving me shivering slightly. The cold had done little to temper the heat simmering beneath my surface.I had dismissed my new obsession to leave before I did something stupid.She was my mate. I know that. But I am so scared to stain her innocence with my darkness.Maybe not now.It was a fearsome thing, this pull toward her innocence. I had spent enough time wrestling with the temptation, trying to fend off the darkness that threatened to overwhelm me.The strain on my emotions and desire was getting the best of me and it was threatening to rip me apart from inside.The door opened with a soft click as I dried out the water from my body.Only one person comes into my chamber without knocking despite my warnings."Shikta," I called, my back still turned on her, picking out something to wear.I needed some air. Otherwise, I'd die of suffocation."What brings you here?" I aske
LUXURIA.I got into my chamber, and my skin flushed with hot desire and need.The coolness of the room did nothing to soothe the heat simmering beneath my skin. I tried, I really did—sitting in the icy bathtub until my limbs shook and my teeth clattered—but it wasn't enough.My mind betrayed me. The memory of him in his chamber, the way his gaze had seared through me, how his voice had rumbled low and commanding, left a mark on me that no amount of cold water could wash away.Just the thought of him sent a pulse of need straight to my core. I hated him. I feared him. And yet... I wanted him. My body ached with a hunger I didn't know how to fight. It was maddening, this war inside me.I should have known better. I should have fought harder. But I was weak. I was falling, and I hated how much I was giving in.I shifted on the bed, trying to shake off the thoughts, but it was no use. The pulse between my legs was relentless, the slick heat gathering, making my thighs clench.My breath ca
ALPHA PARTHE.Fuck.This girl was certainly going to be my undoing.I watched her fragile form freeze under my stare. She was terrified. Just as she should.My gaze was pinned to her trembling form, every inch of her body betraying her fear and shame.My length strained under my briefs. It took all the self-control in me not to pounce on her and fuck her until her tender core blows hot from friction.As I sat on the stool, I saw her fear. I sensed her panic."Don't let me stop you," I said to her, and she seemed to shrink under those words.I saw the tears in her eyes. Her sobs only made my cock throb harder."Alpha... please," she whispered, her voice shaking like a fragile leaf caught in a storm. The sound of her begging was sweet, so fucking sweet it made my blood pound in my ears.She didn't even realize how much her pleas fueled the beast inside me, how they fed the hunger tugging at my restraint.I swallowed hard.I wish she'd stop crying. It only fuels whatever she thinks she's
LUXURIA.It was dawn already, and I was nervous. How would I face the Alpha after the embarrassment I put myself through last night?He had left as if nothing happened. How did he do it? How did he stay this unfeeling?I stared at my reflection in the mirror as I applied oil to my neatly braided hair. All I could see was the girl who pleasured herself in front of a man.What other shame was more than this?"Luxuria, the Alpha awaits," The guard said when I answered the door.I nodded at him, swallowing a lump in my throat. I stepped out into the cold morning, my cloak doing little to shield me from the cold outside.Alpha Parthe was already waiting. Beta Tervan and a number of other warriors were also ready to leave.The cold air bit into my skin as I approached them, but it was nothing compared to the frost that settled deep within me at the sight of Alpha Parthe. He sat atop his large black horse, his face impassive, as if last night had never happened.His coal-black eyes flicked o
SHIKTA."Aren't you even ashamed? What manner of a man are you?" I asked the fool sitting before me, totally unmoved by what I had just told him.He sat at his desk, his broad back to me, head bent over a scroll that seemed far more deserving of his attention than I ever was. My heart twisted at the indifference he displayed and the casual way he dismissed my very existence without a glance."Tervan," I called, my voice laced with frustration as I approached him. He didn't flinch, didn't even lift his head."Tervan!" I repeated, slamming a hand down on the table. Finally, he leaned back in his chair, the wooden frame creaking under his weight. He tilted his head to look at me, his expression unreadable, his eyes lazily dragging over my face."What is it now, Shikta?" he drawled, the faintest trace of a smirk tugging at the corner of his lips. "Come to cry about something again?"My nails bit into my palms as I clenched my fists. "The Alpha tried to pry into my memories today," I snapp
LUXURIA.I barged into the chamber where I stay - I forbid to ever call it my chamber because I don't belong here.The door slammed shut behind me, and I leaned heavily against it, my chest rising and falling with frantic, uneven breaths. The air in the room was thick, suffocating, as if the walls themselves had conspired to close in on me.How could he? Why would he go to such lengths?My hands trembled as I pushed myself off the door and moved toward the window. My gaze drifted to the familiar stretch of thick, green foliage outside, the trees swaying ever so slightly in the breeze. It was the same lifeless view I had grown sick of.Nobody walked there. Nobody dared to. Rorden had made sure of that.It was almost sundown. I had to prepare for my escape tonight. I couldn't stay here anymore.On my way out of Nevada's chamber, I took note of the escape route I had seen, just to be sure I etched it in my memory.It was worth the risk, even though I didn't know where that door led. The
LUXURIA."Nevada?" I called, wishing someone would wake me up from this dream."Surprised, Luxuria? I thought you'd help to see a familiar face," Rorden said with smug satisfaction, lacing his tone.My fists clenched at my side as I fought to ignore him.What was she doing here? Did this mean she was working with Rorden? Even while at the pack? My thoughts raced like wildfire, desperate to piece together an explanation.Her face softened as her teary eyes found mine. "Luxuria," she whispered, her voice trembling with an emotion I couldn't quite place. "My child."Her words hit me like a thunderclap. My child? I froze as she reached for me, her arms outstretched. My muscles tensed, every fiber of my being telling me to step back, but I stayed rooted. When her arms wrapped around me in a warm embrace, I felt a foreign comfort, like stepping into sunlight after years of shadow.It was jarring. Disorienting.I didn't know exactly how to respond to this. Nevada had never been nice to me si
RORDEN.Her palm cracked against my cheek in a stinging slap."I never chose you, and I never will! Parthe is my mate—the only man I will ever love! There is no room in my heart for a monster like you!"Her words cut deeper than they should have."You never should have done that, Luxuria," I growled, my eyes shining a bright shade of red. My wolf, Ryker, was partly in charge. My wolf, as unforgiving as I was, detested defiance with everything in him. And so did I.I let myself loose as I seized her arm, dragging her roughly back onto the bed. Her soft cries filled my ears as I pressed her down."No! Rorden!" she gasped, struggling against me, but her strength was no match for mine.Before she could process what I was trying to do, I was already on top of her, my fingers wrapping around her delicate neck as I squeezed.Her wide, tear-filled eyes locked onto mine, a blend of fear and fury swirling within them."Listen carefully, Luxuria," I hissed through clenched teeth. "The next time y
RORDEN.It was almost time.The moment I had been waiting for—the culmination of every plan, every move, every drop of blood spilled—was finally upon me. The end was here.For all my power, for all I had achieved as an AshBlood wizard, nothing compared to this. Nothing compared to the thought of Parthe kneeling before me, stripped of his pride, his strength, his so-called invincibility, begging for mercy he would never receive.I could almost taste it.He always fancied himself untouchable—powerful, fearless, the unbeatable Alpha of the North. But he had yet to meet me. Truly meet me. I was everything he was not and could never hope to be.Growing up alone in the wilds, surrounded by predators—both human and beast—had forged me into the man I am.In the brutal law of survival, I thrived. Kill or be killed, dominate or be destroyed. There was no middle ground. Everyone who had ever crossed paths with Alpha Rorden, the Blood Alpha, had come to understand this truth. They feared me, and r
ALPHA PARTHE.It was the hardest thing to do. Pretending to care when, in the real sense, I don't. Even though I had no mate anymore, I still felt like I was betraying the bond that I once had with my mate by allowing this woman to lay on my bed... The bed which I had promised my mate never to let any other woman lay on.I stared down at the woman in my arms, who was sleeping like she didn't have any care in the world.It looked like she was actually in need of this attention so much that as soon as I held her in my arms, it only took a few pats on her back to get her to fall into a deep slumber."Shikta?" I called softly, but her soft mumble was incoherent, a slurred response from a mind far too deep in slumber to process my call. I glanced at her face, slack and unguarded in sleep. The vulnerability of it—the complete lack of awareness—was almost laughable. This woman, who so boldly challenged my patience earlier, now rested in my arms as though she belonged there.But she didn't.I
ALPHA PARTHE."You should count yourself lucky we've come a long way, Urik," I growled, my anger simmering, barely contained, as I stared him down. "You've disappointed me more than I thought possible. I feel like I've betrayed my friend because of your paranoia."Urik stood before me, his lips parted, but no sound came out at first. He was scrambling for an argument, something to redeem himself.Finally, he found his voice. "You need to look beyond all this, Alpha," he urged, "What if he knew you were following him? What if he diverted his path just to throw you off?"He wasn't going to give up on this, was he?My glare darkened, and I ran my fingers through my hair in frustration, shaking my head in disbelief as I tried to shake off the obvious doubt his words stirred. "I was as careful as a hunter stalking prey, Urik. You should know better than anyone—there's no chance he saw me."There was silence. He knew the truth of my words. I was the shadow in the dark, the predator no one h
ALPHA PARTHE.Urik's words had refused to fade away since I had that triggering conversation with him. I wanted to dismiss it, but I couldn't.Just as much as I know he and Tervan hated each other, I never thought Urik would stoop so low as to make up such stories about Tervan.How could he ever suggest that Tervan might be up to something fishy against the pack? He also suggested, although without proof or enough conviction, that Tervan might know Luxuria's whereabouts.It made me laugh so hard, even though a tiny part of me was trying to betray the friendship I had shared with Tervan to believe what Urik was trying to say.Wearing this black cloak on this cold night, preparing to secretly follow Tervan, my trusted friend and Beta, to see if he was trying to betray me, seemed like a betrayal in itself. But Urik had insisted, and in order to prove him and a part of myself wrong, I agreed to trail Tervan tonight."Alpha, he's on the move." Urik mind-linked me, and I straightened up imm
LUXURIA.I had lost count of how long I'd been in this lonely hell. I hated myself. I felt like ending it all.Rorden had made me remember every single thing he made me forget, including the two times he made me betray my mate.I had cried out my eyes each time the memories came crawling in... The way he made me comply without a choice while he fucked me the way he pleased... It all made me hate myself even more for ever trusting him.All through my stay in his pack, he had refused to give me potions to take. In his words, he said, "I am preparing you for the big day ahead."What big day was he talking about? And why did I need to stay away from the potions that should help me feel better?The curse was coming back in full swing - the red flashes, the ache in my head, the uncontrollable anger, the hunger for blood and chaos... It was becoming overwhelming."Oh, Selene, please save me," I whispered as I curled myself on the bed, trying to shield myself from the pain I was feeling.My d