[Nivera’s POV]I looked up to see who was at the door, and a smile appeared on my lips as Celeste, Lucien’s friend walked in with a small gift bag in her hands.“Hey, how are you doing?” she asked with a broad smile.I stood up and offered a seat on the couch next to the bedroom closet. “I am okay. It’s good to see you again,” I said.“Same here. Lucien thought you would be glad to be around another woman,” she said.“He’s not wrong,” I said, smiling shyly.She slightly raised her brows in a suspicious manner. “Is it me or have you taken a liking to him already?” she inquired.I chuckled and sat beside her. “Who wouldn’t? He’s a really nice man, and he’s always so thoughtful,” I said.“Yes. I got you this by the way,” she said, giving me the gift bag.I opened it gently and was surprised when I saw what it was – a red velvety lingerie set. “What… what’s this for?” I asked.She feigned ignorance. “I don’t know. It’s just a present,” she said.“I get that, but it’s such an unusual prese
[Lucien’s POV]“Welcome, sir,” Mrs Phil said as I stepped into the living room, holding my phone in one hand and a plastic bag in the other.“Yeah, thanks. Where is Nivera?” I asked.“She should be in her room,” she replied.“That’s strange. Usually, she’d come out to welcome me once she hears the sound of my horn. Carry on with whatever you were doing,” I said and proceeded to go upstairs.“She might be sleeping. It’s best to not wake her up,” Mrs Phil hurriedly said.“My bedroom is also upstairs. Who said I was going to see her?” I calmly retorted.“Oh, I forgot,” she said, and continued with her chores.I started climbing up the stairs, and I could feel it already. Something was wrong somewhere, and during the time I went out to take care of my real estate business, something had happened which I was unaware of… at least, for now.Contrary to what I had told the housekeeper, I headed straight to Nivera’s bedroom and knocked gently on her door. She didn’t answer, but I knew she was
[Tyler’s POV]It was a whole new world, and very different from the world I had known all my life. With trees higher than those in the Crescent Pack, cars bigger and buildings larger, I just stared in awe at the whole place. It was different… way too different.Somehow, my heart had led me to this place, and I had kept on driving in every direction my heart pointed at. Perhaps, my head was right in telling me that this was a stupid thing to do, but for once in my twenty-one years on earth, I decided to follow my heart.I had lied to the elders that I was going undercover to spy on one of our neighbouring villages and had asked them to keep it a secret from the warriors and the other members of the Pack. Malia had been there to bid me farewell and she promised to spend all night and day at the temple, praying for my safe return.She didn’t want me to go; even I didn’t want to go, but we both knew. We knew that this was the only way out. Now, I only felt worried about the slave girl. So
[Lucien’s POV]I closed my eyes and opened them again. I couldn’t believe that he was right there and standing in front of me.“Good evening. I’m sorry to disturb you, but…”“Why are you here? How did you find this place?” I inquired.He looked surprised. “I’m sorry, do I know you?” he asked.“No, you don’t, and you’re lucky you don’t. Now, tell me. What are you looking for?” I asked in a hoarse voice.“I was wondering if you saw Nivera. She’s slender, has fair skin, green eyes and blonde hair,” he explained.I sneered. “I’m surprised you know those things about her. I thought she was just an ordinary cursed slave. I didn’t know you knew other ways to describe her,” I said.He clenched his fists. “Who the hell are you? I know you’re not a werewolf, but you apparently know a thing or two about me. I wasn’t too sure at first, but I am now confident that Nivera is here with you,” he attempted to walk in through the gate, but I remained firm and didn’t let him go through.“Are you out of
[Nivera’s POV]Something was going on in the house, but Lucien wouldn’t tell me what it was. I was really disturbed and although I had tried to believe that Mrs Phil had just said what she said due to her mental illness, I had a feeling that there might be more to it.I tossed and turned in my bed, but was unable to sleep. The lights were off and I had closed my eyes and pretended to be asleep, and even went as far as faking a snore when Lucien had come to bid me goodnight.Perhaps, a glass of milk would help me fall asleep, but he had forbidden me from coming downstairs in the meantime. According to him, there was a kind of renovation going on and since it was a surprise, he didn’t want me to ruin it by seeing it before it was complete. I didn’t fully believe him, but I pretended to.Just as I was about to turn on the lights and keep myself busy by reading a book, I heard footsteps… they were steady, loud and clear. It came from the room on the far end of the floor; Lucien’s room. He
[Lucien’s POV]I had checked on Nivera and she was still sleeping, so I went downstairs and Celeste was there, waiting for me.“You’re the one who asked me to come. Why did you take so long?” she snapped.“Why are you mad? It’s not like you had anything better to do anyway,” I retorted, then beckoned on her to follow after me, which she did without a word surprisingly.“Are you ready?” I asked, once we got to the basement.“You know I am,” she replied.I opened the door, and there he was, chained to an electric chair with his hands and legs bound so that he was unable to move. He had many bruises on his body and they weren’t healing quickly; that’s if they were even healing at all.Previously, his eyes had been closed, but they opened up as soon as I stepped in. He looked at me wearily and forced a smile. “You… you’re here,” he managed to say.“Isn’t that Tyler Jefferson, the Alpha of the Crescent Pack?” Celeste asked, with undeniable shock written on her face as her eyes nearly poppe
[Nivera’s POV]I stirred in my sleep, sweating profusely even though the air conditioner was on as I was busy having a terrible nightmare; one in which Lucien was the devil and I was being taken advantage of by him.“You’ll forget about what happened here tonight. You’ll only remember falling asleep after having dinner,” he said to me, and like that, I woke up with a start.I sat on the bed immediately my eyes flew open and began to gasp for air as the nightmare kept replaying in my head. Why had it all seemed like it was so real when it had only been something I had dreamed about?I muttered a prayer to the Moon Goddess, then stood up and walked over to the window where I stood for several minutes, watching as the moon slowly disappeared into the sky, giving way for the sun to come out as morning was already upon us.I don’t know how long I had slept, but it sure didn’t seem like a long time as my legs were sore and my body ached all over. Perhaps, I hadn’t slept in the right positio
[Lucien’s POV]I gulped down the remaining glass of Martell and proceeded to open the next bottle, when Celeste reached out her hand to stop me from drinking.“Enough already. What’s this? Your fourth bottle?” she inquired, with an element of distaste in her voice.I snapped her hand off mine and proceeded to open the bottle. “Fifth, and no, I am not stopping when I haven’t gotten drunk yet. I need to get drunk till I can barely keep my eyes open, fall asleep and forget about the ache in my heart for a little while,” I said, drinking it directly from the bottle, already feeling too weak in my hands to pour the alcohol into a glass.“Lucien, drinking won’t change anything. You’re going to wake up in the morning and feel the pain all over again, so what’s the use?” she asked.“I should be asking you that question, Celeste. What’s the use of you telling me to stop drinking when it’s not affecting you or me in any way? It’s not like my livers would get all damaged from drinking. We both k
[Nivera’s POV]Six months had passed since Tyler had died and our lives had taken a turn for the best. I no longer had nightmares because I knew he was never coming back, and I got to spend the rest of eternity with the only man that had ever shown me love, even when I didn’t deserve it.“You’re deserving of much more than my love,” Lucien said, planting a kiss on my lips as he rested his head on my thighs, as though he could read my thoughts.I smiled, running my fingers through his hair, as my eyes scanned the beach, wondering where the kids were.“Mum, dad, look what we found!” Luca and Lucille chorused, running towards us with their hands full of shells.Lucien sat up, and we both stared at Lucille in disbelief.“Mum? Dad?” Lucien asked, surprised, even though I nudged him not to say anything.She fiddled with her fingers nervously. “Is… is it okay if I call you guys that?” she asked, wide-eyed.“Of course, we’re your parents after all. We’re just… we’re just shocked becauseit’s
[Lucien’s POV]There was fury evident in my eyes, and even the ever-so courageous Tyler knew he was about to taste my wrath, as I charged towards him with my claws out and fangs bared, ready to tear him limb from limb before my rage could reignite.“Stay away from me,” Tyler barked, and nodded at his people who had been staring the whole time to come to his rescue.“For Alpha Tyler,” his most trusted warrior yelled, but the people looked away.“How many have died? How many more will die? We just managed to start getting our lives back together, but for some reason, our very own dear Alpha wants us to risk our lives for him. Hell no! I have children and I must stay alive to protect them,” the Gamma stated.The crowd murmured in agreement with her statement.“Once I get out of this, each one of you would die in the most painful manner, I promise you that!” Tyler raged.Elder Gaius laughed. “That won’t be possible. Thanks to the witch, Jocelyn, we now have our separate lives and identiti
[Lucien’s POV]It had always bothered me… how people asked who my son bore resemblance to even when Nivera and I walked down the streets together, but the fact that Luca wasn’t biologically my son hadn’t hurt me like the way it did today. It hurt worse to see the smirk on Tyler’s face and he seemed extremely excited. Why wouldn’t he? No matter what I do, he’ll always be Luca’s father.“Careful now, do you think Luca here would forgive you for getting rid of his true father?” I heard Jocelyn’s voice ask, and I looked up to see her holding Luca tightly by his hand.Instantly, I became numb and stopped dealing Tyler with blows, as I staggered towards where he was and ran my hands all over him to make sure he was okay.“What are you doing here, big guy? Are you fine?” I asked him.“Yeah. Mummy followed after you when you left and some ladies came to forcefully take Uncle Ryle and myself,” he explained.Suddenly, I heard footsteps behind me, and before I could turn around, I was injected w
[Tyler’s POV]It was an open arena, just within the estate. I paced around in full-blown panic. I didn’t mean to, but somehow, I was afraid. The vampire had been the first person to ever win me in a fight, and till date, I could never forget about how he had mercilessly tortured me and had only let me go because of Nivera.A whiff of her scent caught my nose, and I turned around. Malia was standing right behind me, wearing a flowing red dress, with a worried look written on her face.“Greetings, Alpha Tyler,” she said, with a small bow.“What do you want?” I retorted in a low growl.“I just… I just wanted to wish you good luck,” she said.“You’ve done that now. You may go,” I told her.She didn’t leave, but just kept staring at me. “Must you engage in this fight? It’s been several years and we just started having peace. Can’t you just not fight the vampire?” she asked.I knew it came from a place of concern, but I was infuriated by her words. “Why? Do you also think that I won’t be ab
[Lucien’s POV]I just got off the phone with one of the surgeons and was informed that the date of Celeste’s surgery had been fixed and all the preparations to ensure the surgery was successful had been put in place.A smile spread across my lips as I skipped up the stairs and knocked on her door gently, waiting for her to usher me in. I could perceive that she and Ryle were inside, and unless they were making out or something, they should have answered and opened the door already.“Hello, I know you’re in there. Can I come in?” I asked.What seemed like ages passed, and there was still no response, so I simply just opened the door and walked in.To my surprise, Celeste laid on the bed, looking like a completely different person. No, it wasn’t just the ugly third degree burn scars that still looked hideous despite all the treatments she had undergone, including steadily taking her potions. She looked older, and wrinkles were slowly starting to show on her face, particularly on her for
[Tyler’s POV]“How is my precious Carl Washington doing today?” Jocelyn asked as she stepped into the study room. I had been expecting her presence after seeing the terrestrial ball she called a portal dancing next to the door.I shrugged. “I’ll never get used to that name,” I said.“It’s okay. I can just call you Tyler if you’re more comfortable with that. It’s not like the authorities are always present to monitor everything we have to say,” she explained, then sat down on a stool beside me and eyed the map I had been working on.A month ago, all the documents had been processed and finalised, and I had been able to move to New Orleans with my family, as well as the other members of the Crescent Pack who had also acquired new identities.The estate I had been able to acquire was more than enough to house the remaining members of our Pack, and slowly, we had been adapting to the human way of life and maintaining our territory.In the near future, we were going to transform more human
[Nivera’s POV]“Let me fucking go. Do you even know who I am and what I can do? I’m a fucking hybrid, you psychopath,” I said, as the stranger with the familiar hand grabbed my arms and forced me to go with him.“Oh, shut up. You’re nothing without that useless vampire, and guess what? He’s no more. I’ve gotten rid of him, and you’re mine now,” he said.“Bold of you to assume that you can easily get rid of Lucien O’Hara. And I don’t belong to you. I am no one’s property,” I said to him.He pushed me to the ground, making me fall to my knees, so that I now knelt before him, after which he began to drag me by the hair and kick me for no reason. I didn’t know why, but at that point, I was unable to make use of any of my hybrid abilities despite how hard I tried to.“What did you do to me? Why am I so weak? Why can’t I use my abilities?” I asked, trying to break free from whatever was holding me back.Even in the dim light, I could see a smirk appear on his face. “You should stop trying s
[Tyler’s POV]Meeting with the witch, Celeste, had made me understand how I could save the lives of the people I had left. If the other werewolf communities could find a way to go through my Palace gates, it meant that we were not safe even in the Palace that was expected to be a safe haven.When she spoke about Lucien, the vampire whose face still haunted me in my dreams from time-to-time, I remembered the world I had gone to when I was in search of Nivera. It was a whole different world, beyond the knowledge of any of my werewolf counterparts, and it got me thinking. If I could get my people to that world, they would be safe.Since it appeared that they were mostly humans, nothing was stopping us from migrating there and pretending to be one of them, while we were werewolves in secret. I had no idea on how to go about it, but it seemed to be the only way out for all of us.I couldn’t just let the Crescent Pack go extinct like that. I needed to do something, anything at all, to save
[Lucien’s POV]I was stroking Luca’s hair as we watched an episode of his favourite cartoon while Nivera made Mac and cheese in the kitchen. All of a sudden, I began to perceive smoke; like something was burning.“Babe, are you on the phone? Check on the food. I think it’s getting burnt,” I yelled from the living room.“The food is all right, but I can also perceive…”“Lucien! Nivera! Help!” It was Ryle’s voice and it came up from his bedroom upstairs. Luca and I exchanged glances and Nivera dashed out of the kitchen, looking as confused as I was.“What’s wrong?” she asked.“I don’t know, but let’s find out,” I said, then told Luca to keep on watching the cartoon while his mum and I went upstairs to see what was going on.The door to Ryle’s room was wide open and the smell of smoke grew even stronger. Words cannot explain the horrid sight I met once we both stepped in, which registered a kind of shock in my brain, and I knew instantly that I would never get over the painful look on Ce