-LYKOAN’S POV-Loneliness was a monstrous enemy with deadlock tendrils that sucked the sprightliness of one’s will to live. However, tonight was a special night. Years of pain and misery would finally come to an end. For I, the man known as the Lycan Diabolyn, was cursed.Nightfall arrives quickly when you've lived a long mateless life. Hours were an empty void, and the silent times that fell in between were horrendous.Tonight was the ashaze night that accompanied the igneo moon. Indeed, it was the dark hour of my demise’s big finale. After years of searching the earth for all the magical ingredients required for the Nasphyxia of Soul ritual, at last, I’ve done it.The glowing, full moon hung high in the dark sky above the sacred old reliquary temple grounds. The stars were so bright that their illumination brewed optimism within my soul.It had begun.The ancient chants of the Quinto Quintessa Witches graced my ears. The five voices blended harmoniously with the natural sounds of th
-LYKOAN’S POV-With a finger, I nudged the animal’s muzzle. No response. Apparently, she was still blacked out.“We do not know her,” Lisandre, Bernadette’s youngest daughter, replied.The circle remained unbroken. No one moved but the witches exchanged knowing glances. My nostrils flared. Although I was irate at this she-wolf, strangely, I liked her body being on mine.How odd. As I tried to elevate my back from the ground, I noticed that the blood scent disappeared. All her wounds had healed.“How do you feel?” Leah asked with concern.Tenderly pushing the wolf to rest on my legs, I managed to sit up. “I'm fine. I'm just disappointed. Now tell me how to redo this ritual.”All pairs of teal eyes widened before they looked at each other and then Bernadette glanced at me. “All the ingredients were used up, and it will be next year before the igneo moon reappears. Until then, I'm afraid you'll have to live with the circumstances.”The way she spoke hinted that she was afraid to tell me
-LYKOAN’S POV-I awoke around 7 a.m. with a snarl on my lips because of Jacques mentally yelling in my head.“Vampires are at the border!”“It’s your pack ― your problems.” I hissed and blocked the mind-link. I had bigger things on my mind.The stunning she-wolf still lay there on my chest. She slept like she had no care in the world. Yet, every fiber in my being admired her; desired her. Kudos to her. My tongue darted out to wet my dry lips.“Wake up.” I whisper-yelled.She did not stir. I used a finger to trace the outline of her pretty face. Sultan purred, begging me to stay in bed with her. No. I couldn’t. There was a lot of work to be done. In opposition, he began whimpering, which annoyed me.“I’m keeping her.” He huffed.“Don’t start with me, Sultan.” I rebuked him.Slowly, with much care, I hugged her with both arms and rolled her over. Briefly, I hovered above her. Again, lewd thoughts infested my mind to snare me in a super-enticing world like a beacon. I shook my head to ad
-LYKOAN’S POV-Sheer terror and panic overwhelmed her. Frantically, she scraped up the blue duvet sheet to wrap around her nude top. She shivered like a scared bunny. Tears trickled down, and she stared at me as though I was the demon imp, Blitzo.With a hoarse croaking voice, she hissed, “Get the hell away from me!”A pang of pain slashed my chest at her sadness and fear. I held my hand up in the air and took two steps backwards. I remained calm. “Hey, I’m not a monster.”Well, not anymore, but it’s not like she would know about my past.“Gossart. Where is he?” She cried, pressing herself into the tufted bedhead.Anger bubbled up from Sultan’s stomach. He was pissed that she was missing another guy. Howbeit, my heart was aching too.“I do not know who that person is,” I admitted, trying to keep the vexation down. “Don’t you remember what happened in the forest?”Controlling her weeping, she sniffed, wiped her eyes, and then shook her head. Seemingly in pain, her hand reached up to he
-NIA’S POV-Mate!My wolf's loud announcement jolted me out of my slumber.Mate! The blurry environment became moderately visible. Strange room.This wasn't my home.Where was I?As the light of the morning sun hit my eyes, I covered them with my hand and tried to sit up in the large bed. I turned my head to the shaded side of the room to open my eyes safely. Then the unfamiliar alluring scent hit me. This new inebriating aroma of snapdragon and lemon.Aside from that, memories began flooding my brain. Dalton, Brooke, Layton, Chase, Dad, and Mom. I gripped the sheet as grief and anger rolled over me. How did I end up here when I was chasing after Gossart? My Mom was in danger. At least, I prayed that she was alive.Sitting up in bed, an ache jabbed me right between my eyes. I brought up my hand to the spot and waited for it to subside. When it did, I surveyed the area.The large, elegant room had colored tones of light gray, blue, and black. There was an eye-catching starry night 3D c
-NIA’S POV-“Nia,” I muttered and pursed my lips with immediate regret. Maybe I should have given him a fake name.Taking up the pizza bread, I took my first bite. Delicious!“Call me Lykoan. This is your new home,” he remarked. Gosh. Despite his rugged appeal, he looked no more than a twenty-two-year-old.I choked on food and protested through three coughs. “Absolutely not.”“Is that so?” He chuckled tauntingly and gave me a hand towel.“Was the man you were talking to the Alpha?” I asked because he mentioned earlier that this was his pack.“Yes.” He sipped his coffee.I shifted uneasily in my seat and swallowed my food. “He does not want me here.”Lykoan shrugged. “Who cares?”“He's your alpha.” I cut into my bacon.“Do not worry about unimportant details like that.” He replied in a calm and collected tone.Confused at the disrespect, I inquired, “Are you his Beta?”He shook his head with eyes trained on me. He was evaluating my reactions with every small piece of information that l
-LYKOAN’S POV-“Boss, we’re here.” Tank marched into my home gym when the morning sun was hot and high in the sky. Its yellow glow flowed through the row of floor-to-ceiling glass windows with bright natural light occupying the space.“What’s on your mind, boss?” Hogan strolled in behind him.The relatively large room was equipped with every possible workout equipment that existed. Low, modern rock music played through the surround speakers. Eyes Closed by Imagine Dragons set the right ambiance as I burned muscles on the pull-up bar.Buzzing thoughts of Nia created tension in every fiber of my being. I could barely think straight through these wretchedly frustrating days.Just because Nia was angel-like and could pass for Jessanne’s twin, making my heart pound faster, I wasn't going to fall for her. Past experience taught me a hard lesson.But, the cloying memory of having Nia in my arms drew a desire so intense that an ache registered in my groin. My shaft hardened just imagining her
-NIA’S POV-The sunset blossomed in its boldest blaze of red and gold across the sky. The forest would be dark soon, and I was scouting for a cave or something to rest for the night. A twig snapped in the distance. My wolf’s whole body jerked around.We were no longer alone.Rogues.Starr dropped the clothes in her mouth on the grassy ground and assumed a protective stance. I was not too far from the main road and stopped by the stony brook to drink water. My wolf growled at the two strangers who emerged from behind the tall trees.The bigger brown wolf halted and shifted into a bald man, no more than in his mid-twenties with ear piercings. His body was toned with little muscles and his arms and chest were covered in tattoos. My heart pounded frantically, pulsing in my ears.“Hey beautiful, we won’t cause any trouble,” the man approached, sounding out of breath. “We were on a run and heard you.” His creole eyes admired my golden fur. “Your wolf is quite unique.”The pit in my stomach
NIA’S POV-Before anyone else could react, I quickly maneuvered myself with a left roll, which positioned me on my back. With a hard tug on Vydon’s black tie, I dragged his upper body forward to loom over me just as the bullet pierced into his back.Thump.A murderous growl erupted from Lykoan. I glimpsed dark clouds in his eyes covering the burning lilacs. Clouds with thunder, dilating rapidly for that sonic boom and lightning strike.At the same time, Julius hooked his arm around the henchman and wrenched him away from the Overlord, while Beauchamp’s hands gripped down Vydon’s shoulders, veering him to sit back in his chair, and hindering him from moving.The henchman was quick to swing back, catching Julius with a cheap shot to his jaw before he drop-kicked the guy in the gut, sending him flying back. The henchman jumped on his feet, going hard at Julius.“How dare you!” Lykoan roared. It was a deep feral bellow from his partially ascended wolf.With fast movements, Julius went low
NIA’S POV-"I apologize, Lykoan. Perhaps I was out of line for assuming that you might share her with your new associate.” Vydon cockily referred to himself. “That’s what we do."Lykoan’s wolf bristled. I quickly adjusted myself on his lap and clutched him, stationing my hands on his lower back to calm Sultan down."I don't exist for your enjoyment, Vydon," I seethed through my teeth to set the record straight. “None of us do.”He waved his hand dismissively and smugly declared, "Hybrids that cross our borders are not free property. They know what it means to come to Idaho, and my pack members take full advantage of that."Horrified at the thought, my throat went dry. Why would hybrids intentionally subject themselves to the Trenchlands knowing what the Overlords would do to them?"That is a sick practice," I reproached, shaking my head as nausea crept up my throat and I squeezed Lykoan tighter."I’m blown away at how you have been hiding from us. It's so sad that I couldn't have foun
NIA’S POV-Lykoan's lilacs glowed lightly. The wolf within him sneered and snarled. He certainly did not appreciate Vydon’s eyes looming over me as his lips curled into a sinful smirk.Overlords like this one tend to flaunt their power to defend the worthiness of their positions, especially since the dominant realms frowned on their existence."Vydon, you and your man will come this way." Lykoan gestured toward the vineyard estate.Apparently, Lykoan had sniffed out that Vydon brought his henchman on the flight. A younger and bigger, blonde-haired man with silver teeth cracking through his mean scowl, jumped out of the Black Hawk chopper in black leather chaps and a gray vest.Beauchamp landed an aggressive slap on Vydon’s back so that he stumbled two steps forward, but did not fall. The Overlord ground his teeth and whipped his head to the side to glare at him.“Try it.” Beauchamp dared him, cocking a brow up with his broad form intimidating.Vydon exhaled slowly before averting his
Hello Lovelies,I though I would have been able to upload a chapter by now, but as it is, I can hardly find the time to do so.As mentioned some time ago, two relatives passed away in previous months. The first funeral will be this weekend and the second will be held the Saturday before Christmas. As such, there is a lot of preparations to do as well as to accomodate and entertain guest and visiting relatives.Therefore, I am here to apologize about the delay in chapters and kindly ask for your understanding because this month is not so merry for us.The story will resume soon.Thanks for your patience.#Much love!Virtually yours,O'Chantal.
NIA’S POV-Despite the horrific council meeting, it was a really nice day. The sun shone brightly, and the temperature was well above the average.Making our way down the stairs outside to the car, Lykoan put on his sunglasses to protect his eyes from the blinding sun. My eyebrows shot up in admiration. He appeared even cooler. I used my hand as shade as we walked under nature’s intense ball of fire."Please tell me you’re not going to become Mad Max today," I teased, and we stopped in front of the Skoda Sedan. His tall frame was large enough to block the sun currently blinding me, so I allowed my hand to come down from my eyes."I’d rather be a James Bond kind of guy, today," Lykoan replied sarcastically. He winked at me and his lips tugged upwards in a delightfully sinful smile.“Cool, because he’s my kind of guy,” I smiled, dragging my fingers along the shiny zenith gold paint job as I walked towards the passenger door."If I didn't know any better, I'd say you were more excited ab
LYKOAN’S POV-Nia chuckled nervously and asked through unsteady breaths, “What are you—are you trying to say I did magic? Because I can swear on my life that I’ve never so much as thought about it. I’m not even a witch.”“But you are elven,” Caliste strongly debated and exchanged a disturbing glance with me. “And you let her seal your powers. You owe her something. What did you trade to buy her spells?”“I-I don’t know that witch!” Nia practically screamed at her and there was a thick, death-like hush.Caliste peered at her curiously and restarted the feud.“Yet you have dealings with her. Don't you know who that nefarious witch is?”“No,” Nia averred firmly. She pursed her lips, her eyes sharpening.Jacques folded his arms, showing signs of irritation. “Neither do I, so for the love of all things holy, just be straight with us, Caliste.”The pack witch connected me with the line of her gaze. “Are you going to tell them or should I?”Too engulfed in my own analysis, I did not answer he
LYKOAN’S POV-“Well—I’ll be damned,” Tank muttered to Hogan, still in shock. “She's so scary,”“Let's not kill her momentum,” Hogan added in a low voice with his hand in the way to hamper Tank and Josh from advancing.Both of them did not move, but they were definitely pleased at the minor destruction that she had caused. In this case, Nia did not need our protection. Instead, she held the witch hostage with glowing palms burning her temples. My lips twitched, itching to smile.“Nia, let me take it from here,” I prompted for her eyes to meet mine.Still apprehensive, Nia’s messy mid-pony-haired head finally whipped up at me. Anger contorted her beautiful face into a Tasmanian devil. Her orange eyes seethed like embers, and she gritted, “The witch tried to kill me.”“Nonsense!” Jacques roared grotesquely, pointing his finger in accusation. “You attacked her.”Narrowing my eyes, I swung my head in his direction, unleashing a guttural growl in warning.“Even when she’s wrong you choose t
NIA’S POV-“We're not done yet, Alpha,” Caliste politely interjected, stopping the advancing footsteps that had made my golden ears perk up.Using my left hand, I gripped my right wrist, thrashing on my chair as I tugged and pulled, harder and harder. Yet nothing happened, only more coughing and more smoke that puffed out of my ears.My throat felt chafed, dry, and aching. Hissing from the shortness of breath, I clasped my neck, blinking my wet eyelids excessively, and I nearly passed out.My heart instantly ached for my mate. Wanting Lykoan to be at my side and make it stop. My first instinct was to scream for his assistance. However, my voice was lodged in my throat, as if some sort of imaginary block had been placed where my vocal cords were.I gripped the side of my head as a splitting headache ripped through it. The pressure built. Sweat stung my eyes like vipers. I yelped in agony. When will this terrible spell end?Then it happened.I was somewhere else, alone and petrified. I
NIA’S POV-“Nia, we invited Caliste, our pack witch.” Olsen addressed me in a cautious tone with his hazel eyes settling on mine. “To gain our trust, we require that you pass a minor test.”“Are you for real?” Lykoan scoffed. I groaned internally, reeling from the unexpected sting of that one word.“Okay.” I acquiesced with fake composure. Inside, I was freaking out. Test? What bloody test?"Excellent!" Olsen exclaimed with a nod. "I'm glad for your consent. It’s an amicable solution." He smiled, but it never touched his hazel eyes. He was hiding something.Alpha Jacques and his Beta exchanged snarky glances. He gave him a flick of the chin and T.K. moved from his spot, strolling down the table, and going towards the door. It was too late to back out without arousing more suspicion. For a piercing minute, I regretted my decision. Now, I had no choice but to see it through. To steady my heart, I forced myself to remember my initial motivation for doing this…to be acquitted of all the