/-Raven-/I turned around to meet those fierce amber orbs. I should have locked in, maybe I would have had a bigger chance of perfecting my escape. Or not.“Fine! You caught me!” I said dryly. Asaiah strolled to me, “Care for a walk?” “Outside the palace? Yes,” I answered. He walkd ahead without offering a response to my sarcasm. I eventually followed him.“What do we do to make this place more comfortable for you?” He asked and I stared almost blankly at him. “I don't want a situation where your movements will be restricted because you are always planning to escape.” “If you're not going to let me see Declan, I advise you stop wasting your breath because even if you keep me in chains in my room, I will never stop fighting to get back to him,” I shrugged.His steps faltered and I knew my words hit him hard. I wanted to apologize but he was my abductor, so… no thanks. “Fine then!” He said suddenly, catching me off guard. “I will let you see Declan but on one condition.” The littl
/-Raven-/“I understand you want to see him, Raven, but trust me, now is not a good time. We will see him later, just not now, please,” Tim pleaded. “Come with me to the barracks.” “Why?” I asked him. “Won't your soldiers try to hunt me?” “You once hid in the barracks and no one had any idea you were there. You can do it again. I just need to get you a costume. You stay in my room because no one else has access to it,” he said and I nodded. “Wait here…” he instructed and I nodded. “I'm serious, Raven. Don't move an inch or you're dead meat.” “I won't…” I could barely recognize my own voice as I spoke. I remained in the dark corner, waiting for him to come back. A few minutes later, I heard footsteps approaching and I assumed it was him. I was going to step out of the dark when Hannah and Lisa stopped right in front of my hiding spot. I shifted further into the dark to prevent them from seeing me. Wasn't this the Lisa that they said escaped? What was she doing with Hannah?To be
/-Eric-/“How do you feel now?” My father's voice sounded in my ears as soon as I opened my eyes. I still felt weak and my body hurt all over. “Where is she….” My voice came out hoarse and my throat hurt from the dryness. How long have I been out?“Who?” “Wife…” I croaked out. “Where she is…”“She left you,” He answered plainly. “Don't feel bad about it; she was no use anyway.” “No… no… she couldn't…” I tried to sit up but a sharp pain shot through my sides. How on earth did I even get to this position? “I told you that you don't need her!” He snapped. “You should focus more on recovering. Don't let fickle things like women bother you. You have so much life ahead of you and many women are dying to have you, son!” I didn't care if women were dying to have me. That stupid assassin of his just ruined my marriage and I wasn't going to let it slide. When I tried to talk, I broke into a hard cough that hurt my whole throat. He immediately poured me a glass of water. “Here you go,” h
/-Raven-/I don't know how long I remained on the floor but I fell asleep along the line and was awakened by knocks. I scrambled off the floor immediately in a panic. I couldn't just go and open the door for them but if they broke in, that would be more problems for me. Several thoughts ran through my mind as I thought of what to do. I needed to get rid of this stupid armour and use his bedroom window if I could. Was it barred? I couldn't exactly remember. “Who is in there?” A voice demanded harshly and my heart raced.Shit! Shit! Shit!I hurried to Declan's closet and immediately locked it. I found a place between the clothes to hide immediately. His closet smelled just like him and it made me feel sadder than ever. I heard the door burst open and I forced myself to remain in the spot where I was.“Who is in here?” I heard a masculine voice. They sounded like guards. Fuck, I'm screwed. “Someone turned the lights off.” I heard their heavy footsteps and forced myself to remain ca
/-Raven-/“This doesn't make any sense. How are you here?” I asked but she merely let outa weak muffle.Right! The tapes. On a normal day, I would have been glad to see those tapes around her mouth because she just happens to spew nonsense every time she opens her mouth, but now, I needed to know what the hell was going on. I yanked the tape off her mouth and she let out a wince. I proceeded to loosen the ropes as well. “I know it hurt. I did that on purpose,” I told her, in case she was expecting some form of apology. “Though I'm certain you wouldn't be waiting for me to apologise since she had no problem hurting Tim.”“Raven…” she called weakly. “Help me out of here… please…”“Oh, I would love to hand your ass over to the guards, but I'm also a criminal, so… no. Tell me what you're doing here. Did your bestie turn on you? You both were just discussing how to eliminate Francesca. From what I see, there was a change of plans,” I taunted. “Not… now,” she breathed weakly, struggling
/-Hannah-/“Lisa?” We immediately froze. Shit! Shit! Shit! Where the fuck did he come from? Didn't he have somewhere to be and how long has he been following us?“Lisa!” Tim's voice rang out again. Lisa and I exchanged glances. There was really nothing we could do in this situation, other than convince him to let us go. “Tim,” Lisa's voice shrank into something I couldn't recognize. “You're here?”His face remained stoic, clearly he was unimpressed with the little show she was just trying to put up. I guess she thought he would forget that she rejected him before Declan, the elders and other guards.“Please don't turn me in,” she immediately fell on her knees, surprising even me. “I was afraid of what the Alpha would do to me, that is why I lied. I didn't mean to hurt you, Tim. I swear I didn't, please don't hand me over to them,” she pleaded.“What are you doing out here? How did you break out of your cell? Did you do that to Othelia and the guards?” He demanded. Before I could
/-Raven-/“What do we do now?” Lisa asked me. “How would I know? We're both wanted by them,” I retorted. “Hands on your head now!” The guards ordered and I glanced at Lisa. We couldn't let these people take us in. We had to fight– I mean, I had to fight, Lisa was no good. She only knew how to look pretty and create a ruckus where none was needed. “Didn't you hear me? Get on your knees now!” He growled.“What do we do, Raven?” Lisa panicked. “They don't look very friendly.”I rolled my eyes at her. She was visibly trembling in fear now but when it was time to threaten me to stay off Declan, nothing could possibly scare her. “Keep quiet,” I hissed, my eyes darting around for anything we could use to our advantage. The guards were closing in, their heavy boots crunching against the gravel. Lisa clutched my arm, her nails digging into my skin as if holding onto me would magically make us invisible.“We surrender, okay?” I said, raising my hands slowly, palms outward. Lisa shot me a c
/-Hannah-/“What do we do now?” Lisa whispered. “Hush!” I snapped harshly. “You need to get away from us, Tim,” I told him.“What? Why?” He asked. “Because we are going to get caught with you by our side and you are going to get punished. It will be a lot easier for you to join them and pretend you were searching for intruders as well than running with us. Lisa and I will sneak to the back,” I told him.Although this situation was totally unplanned and we were cooked if we got caught, it was the easiest way to get rid of Tim. If we managed to get away, we could easily leave without glancing back to see if he was on our neck or not. Tim was reluctant at first but he couldn't deny I was right. “Fine,” he sighed. “You can do that; I'll try to keep them distracted for as long as I can.”“Thank you, Tim,” Lisa faked gratitude but I grabbed her arm and dragged her away with me. The bastard didn't deserve the gratitude of any kind. He only ended up slowing us down instead of actually be
She stood there, cloaked in the night, her eyes locked onto Declan and Raven, her nails digging into the bark of the tree she leaned against.Her lips twisted into a sneer as she watched Declan laugh, his silver eyes warm as he gazed at Raven. The sight made her stomach churn. ‘That should be me sitting there, not that irritating little assassin who refuses to die,’ she thought with a hiss. Her grip on the knife in her hand tightened. The cool steel pressed against her palm, grounding her as her thoughts spiraled into vivid images of what she could do to Raven. Cut out her tongue first so she can't scream. Then carve her pretty little face into something unrecognizable. Maybe slit her throat just enough to make her choke on her own blood before finishing her off.The knife glinted in the faint light, and she traced the edge with her thumb, imagining how it would feel slicing through Raven's flawless skin. But she stopped herself, exhaling sharply.‘No’, she reminded herself. ‘I can
/-Raven-/“Well, I thought we were going on an actual date not a cuddle session,” I mumbled, looking everywhere but him. A chuckle followed and my cheeks coloured. Francesca quickly stepped in front of me. “I'm sorry, Alpha. This is all my fault. I misinterpreted the situation and dressed her up to suit my taste. I'm sorry,” she apologized, surprising me. “Could we maybe retreat and change?”Amusement didn't just shine in his eyes, his lips were twitching as he struggled to control his laughter. “Gosh, this is so embarrassing for you,” Declan snorted and I wanted to die. Even Francesca snorted and I shot her a glare. I was ready to walk out and never show my face again but Declan caught my arm. “It's okay, Princess. There's no need to act so cute. Since you are dressed up, I might as well take you on one,” he said but it didn't ease my shame.“Maybe I should just change. You're not even strong enough to start anything outdoors or long distance. I don't even know what I was thinki
/-Raven-/I should have never underestimated her. When she said it wasn't a dress, I simply thought she was kidding but this wasn't a dress. This thing before me had me wishing she had given me a dress. Even if it was a short one. “So… try it on!” Francesca urged but I didn't dare move. Even my eyes wouldn't leave the two piece outfit. “I don't remember telling you I planned to fornicate with this man,” I blurted and she chuckled. “It's a date night. What do you think, you're going to eat and say your goodbyes?” She retorted. “Uhhmm… yes?” She skidded past me, ignoring my obvious displeasure and picked up the mini skirt, “Try this on. It has a a tiny waist so I'm certain it'll fit you perfectly.” “I'm not going naked to see Declan, Franc,” I stated. “This isn't going naked…” she defended, unbuttoning the skirt to test it around me.Since it was a button up, wearing it was relatively easy. All I had to was wrap it around me and button. She wrapped it and held both ends between
/-Raven-/I stopped by Amelia's room to check on her. She was supposed to leave today for her village and although Declan had already prepared gifts for her, I thought it would be great to give my personal thanks to her. Knocking twice, the woman opened the door for me with a bright smile. “Hello, Raven,” she greeted. “Quite a surprise.” I returned the smile, “I'm sorry for barging in on you. It's nothing too serious. I just wanted to thank you once again.”She stepped aside, “come in.”I stepped into the room to see a long line of packed bags. “Oh,” I blurted before I could stop myself. “The Alpha has already present his gifts, I see.”“Oh, these are not from the Alpha. They are my things,” she explained and for a moment I was stunned. “Your things?” I repeated, incase I was hearing wrong. She simply shrugged as though it was no big deal. “Yeah, I will be staying here for a while.” I was speechless for almost three minutes. Staying here for a while? Since when?“I… I don't und
/-Raven-/Whether or not, he wanted to forgive me, I was going to make it right. I followed him into the room, even if he clearly didn't want to see me. “Let's talk please,” I pleaded, shutting the door behind me. Declan turned, “You really need to leave, Raven.”“Not until we resolve this. I made a mistake and I'm sorry. I shouldn't be with anyone while I still have your mark…” I was saying when his eyes suddenly darkened. Fuck! I wasn't supposed to put it like that. “Declan…”“Do you want it off?” He asked and I flinched, like he just hit me. “Huh?”“Do you want the mark off so you can be with your ex?” He asked and my chest tightened. Was he giving up on me already?“Are you…” I couldn't even get the words out as my eyes watered. “Well even if you're giving me up, that is your business. You think I went all that way, searching for a cure, a way to keep you alive, just to let one stupid mistake ruin it all?” Surprise flickered in those beautiful eyes. He clearly wasn't expecti
/-Raven-/I couldn’t breathe. Not with the thought of Declan hating me forever. The very thought of him never talking to me again crushed me. I didn't know what I would do if that happened.I hadn’t eaten, hadn’t slept—not properly. Every time I closed my eyes, all I could see was the betrayal in those silver eyes. The hurt dancing in those orbs as I lied to his face. I didn’t blame him for shutting me out. I hated myself too. But I couldn’t let things end like this. I couldn't lose him. I don't care if I have to grovel but I was going to get his forgiveness. I stood outside his door, my hand trembling as I knocked for the hundredth time. "Declan, please... let me explain." My voice cracked, the desperation leaking through.No response.“Declan, I’m not leaving until you hear me out!”Silence.I pressed my forehead against the cold door. "I’m sorry. God, I’m so sorry. Just... please. I made a mistake, but I didn't mean to hurt you, I swear. You have to know that, please…"Nothing.
Eric’s voice was soft, but there was something about it that made me uneasy. “Stay the night, Raven.”I turned away, pretending to focus on the empty glass in my hand. My chest felt tight, a war raging inside me. Why am I even here? I shouldn’t have come. I shouldn’t have answered his call.My mind slipped, unbidden, to Declan. His voice, his steady presence, the way his eyes softened when he looked at me. I swallowed hard, guilt rising like a tide. What would he think of me if he knew where I was right now?I shut my eyes, willing the thought away. This isn’t about him, I told myself. It’s about me. I’m not back with Eric. I just need time to figure everything out.That was all there is. But even then, I still felt like I was lying to myself. A part of me knew that the longer I stayed here, the most likely I was to mess things up for myself.“I can’t, Eric,” I said finally, standing. “I shouldn’t have come in the first place. I need to go.”“Raven, please.” His voice cracked, and I
/-RAVEN-/I didn't think it was possible to get any paler but he did. He was horrified to see me. At least he was smart enough to know that what he did was paramount to death. To my surprise, he immediately fell on his knees, tears clouding his eyes. I was stunned. I have only seen Eric cry once and that was several years ago when he lost his childhood friend. It was that incident that brought us closer to begin with, because I was always by his side, consoling him. “Raven please… I know I have fucked up badly but please… give me one last chance to make this right, I beg of you. That is all I am asking,” he pleaded. He legitly gripped my legs, sobbing at my feet. I didn't know how to react. I wanted him dead for sure but now, I wasn't sure anymore. “Is this some game you and your father put up?” I narrowed my eyes suspiciously at him. I wasn't going to fall for any of their tricks. “No, Raven… it's not a game. I know I messed up badly and it took being on the brink of death to
/-RAVEN-/Dinner was over in a blur with everyone just happy and wishing Declan a quick recovery, after which they began to disperse. Declan didn't move, however. His presence was like a magnetic pull I couldn’t fully ignore. Those mesmerizing silver eyes followed me intensely, unspoken words swirling within them. He didn’t ask; he commanded with a simple look, gesturing for me to help him to his room.I hesitated. Helping him always came with strings attached. But leaving him to fend for himself while still recovering wasn’t an option, and he knew it.“Fine,” I muttered, walking to his side. “But don’t get any ideas.”Declan’s lips curved into that infuriatingly cocky smile as he leaned slightly against me. “When do I ever, princess?”Princess… My skin tingled at the brief eye contact. There was just something about that name, the way it rolled smoothly off his lips that had me melting every single time.“You want an honest answer?” I asked, forcing my mind off my acting nerves.