SERAPHINA’S POVIt's been a whole week—7 days, 168 hours of pure agony. Every single time I'd run into Artemis in the hallway, he'd look the other way, as if I were some demented cockroach scuttling about in broad daylight, acting as though I never existed. Each time I approached to talk, he'd promptly stand up and walk away, not even attempting to mask the scowl on his face.He clearly hates me.Artemis Sinclair is giving me the cold shoulder, and it hurts like hell. I have a hunch about why—perhaps it's because I stabbed him or shattered Olivia's glass globe on his head. It's a reasonable explanation – and honestly, I’d run from my crazy ass too. However, he doesn’t seem willing to give me a chance to apologize.For the rest of today, I fixate on the little gold card in my hands. Whenever it's tucked away in my pocket, I still find myself running my fingers over its rough texture. This card holds all the answers I've craved for months. Every. Single. One. I always thought hav
SERAPHINA’S POV"Can we meet?" Those are the three words I text Kamila, along with directions to the place that started it all, the very reason our stupid deal ever came to be: The Obsidian Library. The location was scribbled on the gold card, and I slipped out of the school grounds, sneaking into the lavish compound that surrounds the main building—a grand structure that towers over everything for miles. Despite its cathedral-like beauty, holding untold secrets, I find no room in me for admiration today. I don’t even feel excited.I never imagined I'd need her number, exchanged during one of our passing encounters. Yet, here I am, infinitely grateful for those two seconds I spent saving it.He knows.He knows.He knows.My lower lip is caught between my teeth as I pace frantically, hyperventilating, on the brink of full-blown panic. My heart threatens to leap out of its cage. A chaotic mix of terror, anxiety, guilt, and an overwhelming sense of sorrow holds me captive.He knows!W
SERAPHINA’S POVI'm in an ethereal world of books, stacked into an impossible number of shelves arranged in columns that go on until what looks like infinity. The inside itself is wider than my eyes can depict, with walls taller than twice of Raven Wood High stacked on top of itself. The air even smells different— that addictive woody smell that comes from the pages of the millions of books stored in here. It's all so beautiful and marvelous, a book lover's heaven. Olivia would faint more than once if she could see this right now.I slowly walk between shelves, running my hands across the dark brown, sturdy wood that holds the books, feeling its smooth lamination. Every corner is perfectly labeled, so whoever is in here can easily find what they need. Whoever maintains a place like this definitely knows what they're doing.I stop, curious, at an aisle and reach for a first edition book on "The Technicalities of Wolf Shifting." I have no interest in it, but the vibe in the room pro
SERAPHINA’S POVI make it back to school an hour later, sneaking into the school premises the same way I got out, through a small dog hole in the fence. I don't stop running until I'm bursting through the door of my dorm room, breathing fast and clutching the book to my chest.Olivia looks up at me, startled by my sudden appearance. She gets up from her bed, pulling her glasses out of the way to look at me. "Where have you been all day? School was over like 4 hours ago, Sera," she queries.I move to the center of the room, settling on the rug we have. The blood stains from before are only partially there. After hours of scrubbing, we managed to get some of it out, leaving a dull brown stain shaped like a flower on one end.I settle on it, dropping the book in front of me and looking at it, half-panicking that I actually stole a book from that place. What if I get caught? No one saw me, right? And I wanted to return it, but the door was closed when I got back.Yeah, right. Like any
KAMILA’S POVRestlessness coils through me like a venomous snake, and I gnaw on my newly manicured nails. Hours have passed since I met with Hawthrone, that insufferable wretch. The audacity she has, rejecting my generous offer as if she's above it all, above us. As if being different somehow makes her better. Superior.She thinks she knows me, but she's oblivious to the sacrifices I've made, the things I’ve done, and the load of bullshit I’ve had to endure just to secure my current position. Every ounce of respect and authority I've garnered as the Alpha princess and future Luna wasn't handed to me on a silver platter. Her self-righteousness irks me to no end. For a fleeting moment, I’d allowed myself to be moved by all that talk of justice and fairness. I allowed myself to believe we were similar, two girls fighting for their place, cut from the same cloth.How mistaken I was.I tried to educate her, to make her see that seizing opportunities and making sacrifices are the keys t
ARTEMIS’ POVI throw a few more fist blows at my half-dead punch bag, which is bleeding sand all over the floor through the rip I made in the heat of my anger. Kamila stands there, breathing hard and fast. I guess her so-called visit didn’t turn out the way she hoped. I saw it in her eyes—the way they widened each time I gave a response she wasn’t expecting, responses that pointed toward me not wanting her here. I wonder what demented expectations she had coming here after what she did. I must have burst that bubble of hers. She huffs and finally stomps out of the room, slamming the door shut behind her.Now, I can finally focus my attention on other things, more important things to distract myself. Like getting a new punching bag, for example.“That was harsh,” Jasper comments, breaking the silence once the room goes quiet. I remember that he’s still here. I've been ignoring him for the past hour, hoping he’d get the message and leave on his own. Obviously, that tactic isn't ef
SERAPHINA’S POVArtemis hasn't been to school since I confronted him, and he's apparently not taking visitors anymore. I try to reach him, but I can no longer ignore the message he's sending me loud and clear: He doesn't want to see me. I've set aside every horrific experience I've had over the past few days in an attempt to get through to him. When I fail, I lean back into my own stew of pain and guilt, wallowing in a self-pity so strong it reeks from miles away.My back still aches from the awakening. The burn marks are permanently etched into my skin, forming a tattoo-like pattern that sprawls artistically across my back, spiraling and then stopping just short of reaching my mid-back. It's as if they're mocking me, taunting me for daring to explore who I really am. Well, I've given up on that quest.I haven't touched the book since it singed and possessed my skin. I'm too frightened that this might be just the beginning of the physical pain I'll have to endure, forcing me to
ARTEMIS’ POVI've lost track of time, staring at the walls and ceilings. I've been forcing all the painful thoughts aside, deciding to feel nothing and think of nothing, numbing everything with wine and alcohol. It's not as effective as I'd like, but it's something. Maybe with time, it will get easier to drown all thoughts of her away, to resign myself to emotionless freedom and be my old self again.With time, I won't have to pathetically mope around like a wounded pup over a girl. Sera... She's the only thing that's ever made me feel something other than repulsion. She ignited an unquenchable fire inside me, alongside emotions I never thought possible. But that's history now.I take a final swig from the tall bottle of whiskey. I've heard of its effectiveness in humans, but it only tickles my gut a bit, and the burn isn't so bad. My head spins, but only slightly. Yet, I can feel the thoughts in my head arranging themselves accordingly, pushing everything regarding her to a cor