NadineNadine had a strong character.It was easy for me to empathize with what she went through as a child.I had lost my parents in a tragic way, so I knew how she felt about her mother's death, and after discovering why the Anarkhia Order was hunting her, I understood her reluctance, yet I was very confused by her signals.It was only until I saw her face, Biel, that I understood what was going on.Nadine was struggling to be indifferent to us, but her walls were coming down without her realizing it. A clear sign of that process was that she was excited to argue with Biel.It was easy for her to direct her anger at the one who had hurt her first.I didn't know if it would be a pattern, but I could tell she was feeling tense and frustrated because of the conversation we had, and she redirected that tension toward Biel once she found a reason to do so.The problem was that her smell was killing me.She smells delicious, said my wolf Will.It took all my self-control to calm down and
BielWhen Nadine decided not to come down for dinner, I knew she didn't feel like dealing with us.I didn't know if it was good to have her away, although a part of me was begging to look for her.Because of our arrangement, we were comfortable with the fact that our rooms were close to Nadine's room, but I didn't trust her for a second. Nadine was daring, so she could find enough daring to run away.She wasn't fooling me.It was just a matter of Nadine looking for the magic barrier and destroying it with the snap of her fingers so she could get out of the place. And if she was as good an escape artist as she was before, she would have a certain head start on us that would make hunting her down a bit complex.“Are you okay?” asked Lion, pulling me out of my thoughts.The old man was not my favorite person at the moment.I really was annoyed with him; I couldn't believe he was part of a whole scheme to set Nadine up.I'm fine,” I said and finished eating. “I'll go to sleep.”“We need t
NadineI hated dreams, but I hated visions even more.There were times when I couldn't figure out what was a dream and what was a vision because they were so easily confused. It felt like being inside the dream of a dream and many times I had to calm myself down to come back to reality.It was the first time I woke up with my four gourds near me and mistook them as part of a dream. Unconsciously, I had to show them how I felt about them, something I had learned to hide.I had only known them for days, but I was sure that if anyone dared to touch them inappropriately, I would spontaneously combust in a disastrous way.The worst part was realizing that I had hugged Biel and that he had kissed me on the head.The gesture alone disarmed me, but the meaning of it was driving me crazy.“It's okay, Nadine,” Aris said from the other side of the bathroom door. “Come and sleep again.”I laughed.“You think it's all as easy as that,” I said, annoyed.“No, I think it's too much more complicated t
NadineSurprise turned to concern instantly.The expressions of my four mates were different, but they said the same thing.Aris tried to approach me, but I raised my hand to stop him from doing so.I knew very well that I could lose the battle with his touch; I didn't have to be a scholar to realize what was going to happen.“I don't want to be approached unless strictly necessary,” I said with determination. “I don't trust my she-wolf or myself. Right now, I'm feeling very vulnerable; that's a catastrophic situation to admit and one I must struggle with.”I was as honest as I could be and looked back at Connor.“Whatever you need to teach me so I can be friends with my she-wolf and she doesn't hate me when I control her, do it right now,” I asked in a soft voice and Connor sighed.You're a fool. I did you a favor so you could connect with your mates, but you refused out of fear. News flash alert: It doesn't matter if you're not bonded with your mates; the bastards who seek your powe
NadineI fell asleep very quickly.The problem with that was that I didn't notice when Aris came in or out of my room, so I got up a little embarrassed. I had fiddled with him; it felt like a safe thing to do; I just didn't foresee a simple joke turning into something momentous.I understood the bond we shared very well, perhaps I understood it better than they felt and that's exactly why I ran away for years, to keep them safe.You shouldn't fight the bond; you should enjoy something as beautiful as that and accept in good faith the help they are giving you. It's terrible that fear always wins, my wolf Becca said firmly.The beast was right. The problem was that I had witnessed many more things than I would have liked to know. I knew all too well what the Anarkhia Order was capable of, not to say that the Equilibrium Order was riddled with imbeciles and people like Biel believed them completely.An anchor would always be synonymous with chaos.That was why I didn't completely trust
NadineWhatever was keeping Connor busy lasted a couple more days.He didn't return to the shelter and that prompted Drago to help me with the exercises.The interaction of my she-wolf and the dragon was one to study.Becca was licking the dragon's scales while he burned anything she wanted just to make her laugh. The beasts were having much more fun than I had imagined, so much so that Aris mentioned it that night at dinner.“Your beasts seem happy to meet each other,” the vampire said and Biel laughed.“They're mates,” Drago replied. “It's obvious they're happy to be close, so it's only natural.”Aris and Biel locked eyes and I didn't like that interaction at all.“Good thing you're a millennial being who knows how to use his time,” Biel said teasingly. “The data you gave Lion was used to decode some tales. The high priest thinks they're the key to everything.”I frowned uncomprehendingly.“Can you explain to me what's going on?” I asked and Aris nodded.“I went to the herd to get s
ConnorThe moment I saw how Ophelia saw Nadine, I knew I was in trouble.I was proud to introduce my mate to the world; I could shout it from the rooftops if it was that easy to do; however, Nadine had an important mission so we had to be careful.The reality was that with Ophelia knowing about Nadine, the dynamic changed.She had been avoiding her due to the fact that she had sent three amparos to the council and her father was threatening to break alliances. I still didn't understand why Ophelia was so obsessed with marrying me.She had had a mate, but her mate died just before she found him, which put her in a bad position.That doesn't excuse her from being a bad woman, my wolf Will said.And he was right; it didn't excuse her, least of all when she was such a spoiled, impulsive, domineering woman.“It's a wonder you found your mate,” Ophelia said without taking her eyes off Nadine. “She's not from Lunarius; is she from one of the commons?”Nadine frowned. It was easy to detect th
NadineAs I ate breakfast at Connor's family's home in the pack, I had a vision of how the council meeting would unfold. The situation would not be very favorable for Connor, so I had to help him and for that I needed his grandmother.Rose looked at me with a frown and I nodded.With a simple gesture, I let her know that I would interfere, so I needed her help.I just hoped Connor's grandmother would help me contain the situation.I could tell by how Connor responded to counselor Joel that he had never been forceful with the council. His grandmother smiled and I felt an aura change in the room.“There's no problem,” Joel said. “We never knew you were called by the temple, so to us this information comes as a surprise.”“I'm going to make a couple of things clear,” Connor said with character. “I have followed and respected the opinions of the council because you represent the wishes of the entire pack I lead; however, the council cannot hold me accountable for my private life or contro
NadineThe day of Ophelia's death had finally arrived.Everyone in the Eclipse Pack was serious and waiting for the retinue that would bring Ophelia to Connor to carry out her final sentence. The pack council was silent at all times, which said a lot about the customs of the place.It was Aris who explained to me what would happen and the protocol that would unfold.“Because of the great damage Ophelia caused to the pack, all pack members are to report to the main square to pay honors to the Alpha's family and remember the memory of the late Alpha, Connor's father,” Aris said patiently. “After that brief symbolic ceremony, they remember what Ophelia's crimes have been and await her arrival. A retinue from the Lunarius council is to bring her to the square and hand her over to the pack honor guard, which is led by Inna. Then the people are going to loathe her; they will do it with force and violence... It's a barbaric tradition, but it's something that has been effective in keeping peo
NadineI went back to bed with the feeling of loss burning my skin.I couldn't help crying, and maybe it was that very thing that made Biel hug me silently, so I went back to sleep inside my dream. What I never imagined was waking up to an icy scream.I opened my eyes in a hurry, and when I focused properly, I saw a woman turning to ashes in front of me. Biel was up with a magic weapon in his hand, serving as a shield before me, but with a puzzled expression in his eyes.My other mates rushed into the room.“What's going on here?” asked Drago, and Aris walked over to the ashes and immediately looked at Biel.“Did you see the thief's face?” asked Aris, and I realized it was someone who had touched the grimoire.That fact gave me chills. “She was a thief, and not only that, she was one of the she-wolves who came to clean up the other night,” Biel said, looking at Connor. “You still have rats within your pack.”That sentence shook me, and I got out of bed in fear.“I dreamed about my mo
NadineConnor made the formal request to the Lunarius council to set a definite date: in three days, Ophelia would die under Rose's hands.After that, we would leave to search for the next divine object.Drago and Aris, due to their knowledge of the language of the gods, were the only ones to help me hold the grimoire while Lion, along with Ale and Rex, pulled clues from the books we had read.“I haven't found anything else,” Rex said with a frown as I carefully turned the pages of the grimoire. “It's hard to do this if we can't touch the book.”Aris and Drago locked eyes for a split second.“Magic is conscious, so we must not tempt it,” Drago said seriously. “We just have to be perceptive with the facts and legends. The key is that.”I looked at my dragon mate with a sad smile and then saw the number in the palm of my hand.I had been so focused on other things that I hadn't realized that time was running mercilessly, and if I got careless, things were going to get out of hand.Aris
NadineDrago's kiss was gentle.It was exquisite and delicious.Drago was everything I needed at that moment.His lips were touching me as if he was afraid, as if testing the ground to know it properly and not overstep my boundaries, which was the best stimulant of all. That, somehow, seemed very tender to me, and so I indulged myself in extending the exploration.There was nothing to interrupt us, and I simply gave myself over to passion.Drago's mouth was a treasure for me; his lips were the chest, and his feelings were the crown jewel I wanted to touch. I had a compelling need to know everything Drago felt because of all that he was transmitting to me in each slow movement of our intertwined tongues.I knew he adored me, but with the bond, that love would settle in forever.I moved closer to Drago, promising to take this to another point, and that's how I ended up sitting on his legs as we extended a kiss that meant everything to both of us.He was giving every ounce of love he fel
NadineI looked at Aris without understanding what was going on and watched as he raised his eyebrows, surprised by the decision Connor had made. I didn't understand exactly if he was telling me to show my power in front of all these people or what exactly was going to happen.It's nothing like that, Aris said.I squeezed Connor's hand, and his response was to put his arm around my shoulders protectively, as if to get his point across.The worst part was seeing Ophelia's terrified expression.She was a beautiful and stunning woman, a woman who could have had a steady partner very well despite not having a mate. However, I could understand her frustration and suffering. The reality was that I would not know what I would be capable of if one of my mates died; however, harming others at the cost of that was well within my limits.I hoped not to challenge my limits in that way.“Condemnation granted,” said the council leader. “It will be enforced on such terms as the affected family sees
ConnorThe evidence against Ophelia was heartbreaking.The bears sent to the herd everything they collected from her hideout, which turned out to date back years, many more years than I would have guessed. It was amazing what this woman was hiding. It felt like Pandora's box had been opened and a storm was about to break.And that was a minimal description, from a human story, to simplify the shit that had to be studied from that evidence. Every bit of power used in each of the objects she hid had to be analyzed, but the confirming evidence of my family's death was videos of the failed spells she tried to cast.That left me bad, so bad that my grandmother went to see what was wrong with me, and it was Nadine, as beautiful as she could be, who helped me confront the situation.I had no choice but to sit my grandmother down gently to break the news to her.“What's wrong, Connor?” My grandmother asked with a frown, as if she knew what was going to happen.Nadine at that point squeezed my
Nadine“Nadine, wake up!” exclaimed Biel in a hurry.I awoke to find my shadows filling the room like a cocoon of protection to the point of completely isolating us from the rest of the world. I frowned and then saw Biel standing beside me, looking in the direction of the door.His worried expression set me on edge.“What's going on?” I asked him.“There are strangers who have tried to enter the house,” Biel said and I looked at him sleepily, not quite understanding the situation. “More people have come to Raptart, and these ones are indeed well trained, unlike the rogues you caught. I guess your shadows sensed the danger and that's why they have isolated us, but we must help the wolves in the pack and Drago. It smells of dark magic.”Biel's words set me on edge.Please, shadows, show me what's going on outside, I whispered patiently.Biel watched as the shadows retreated, leaving only a small, almost transparent gray layer that let everything into the hallway. Inna was fighting like
ConnorI didn't like to get away from Nadine.I would take a trip south of Lunarius, right on the border with the Chozora Forest, original home of the bear shifters. They weren't our best friends, but they were decent neighbors who didn't get involved in anyone else's business.That's why I was surprised that Ophelia had enough connections to take refuge in that forest.“We have the meeting in a few minutes,” Drago said. “I've known the lead generation of family bears for millennia. They all deal directly with me when they go to Dragis.”“Do you think they will cooperate?” I asked, and Drago nodded.“They will,” said the high priest.Lion had decided to come with us as the authority of the Equilibrium Order, along with Jackson, who was the highest-ranking guardian after Biel.While the order did not act directly in the cooperation policies of the autonomous territories, it could intervene if it created conflict in the region or suspected alliances of anarchists.Soon the bears arrived
NadineWe let more than five hours go by until the fucker in the interrogation room started screaming. That was like music to my ears, and then I got up from the waiting room we were sitting in and Aris grabbed my hand.“Let him scream for another hour; its desperation will make him talk from the door,” the vampire said and I smiled at him. “If he really has people kidnapped as he says, he will scream very loudly.”I nodded, and to my surprise, Biel entered the room where I was waiting with my other mates. He walked with difficulty, as if the magical blow still really hurt him.“What the hell are you doing here?” I asked him annoyed.Biel's relief at seeing me jolted me, but I kept my stance fixed and unwavering.Seconds later, Samir ran up to where we were standing swearing.“I told him he shouldn't come here; he has to lie down right away; he's not fit to walk yet,” Samir said and I crossed my arms.Biel looked at him with annoyance, as if hearing him say those words was a damn prob