/-Hannah-/Sneaking around the palace with Raven's unconscious body is certainly the hardest thing we have ever done. Clearing the evidence and witnesses was going to be even harder, but it was a risk Lisa and I were willing to take. We found out about the date through one of the maids who were preparing the dessert and appetisers for the date.I knew Declan had a very strong immune system so if anything was going to work on him, we needed thrice the dose that would knock out an average wolf.Even then, it would only be effective for a few minutes then wear off. Lisa and I decided to drug the drinks with that. If Raven was lucky, it would only knock her unconscious, if not, it was death by overdose. Frankly, we were hoping that latter would be the case but the pest wasn't dead. Her heart was very much beating even though it was at an erratic pace. “How much further?” Lisa groaned behind me like we weren't treading the same path. “Stop whining like a child, Lisa. We're only halfwa
/-Hannah-/The sight of Raven striding toward us, alive and completely untouched, made my heart seize in my chest. This couldn’t be real. I had buried her—we had buried her. I watched her body disappear under the dirt, her pulse faint and fading. There was no way she could be standing here now, much less looking so... put together.Lisa’s face mirrored my own shock, her eyes wide and disbelieving. “This isn’t possible,” she whispered, her voice trembling. “Hannah, what the hell is going on?”I swallowed hard, forcing myself to snap out of the panic that threatened to paralyze me. If Raven was here, then something—or someone—had intervened. There was no logical explanation otherwise."Lisa," I hissed under my breath, "keep it together."Raven stopped a few feet away, crossing her arms as a sly smile tugged at her lips. "Well, well. Fancy seeing you two here," she said, her voice laced with mockery. "You look like you've seen a ghost.""Raven," I began, my voice steady despite the chaos
/-Raven-/I woke up in an unfamiliar environment and my heart was pounding at a rapid rate. The last thing I remembered was drinking wine with Declan and now I was here?I tried to move but I couldn't. My hands were chained above my head and I couldn't move. My legs were chained as well, and I realized I wasn't in the two-piece I was wearing anymore. My heart skipped a beat. I was now wide awake and scanning around for anything familiar. The door opened almost immediately and I feared the worst. “Well… well…” a familiar voice drawled and my breath caught in my throat as I saw Azaiah walk in. What the hell was I doing back here?“I see you're awake,” he coldly stated. There was anything but a smile on his face. He was clearly pissed over the fact that I tricked him into letting me go. “I hear that Declan is doing well now…”“You have to let me go!” I demanded. “I am not your prisoner!” “And you weren't supposed to be!” He snapped. “But you just have a way of pushing my buttons, do
/-Raven-/Getting married.I was getting married!And it wasn't to Declan!!I was visibly panicking as these women gripped me. With how respectful they were before, I didn't think they would actually go as far as forcefully prepping me against my will. I didn't want to fight them. I wasn't sure I would succeed even if I tried. And if I managed to escape them, what were the chances that I would leave this place?But I needed to stop this wedding somehow. I needed to think and think fast too. They were currently washing me up. One of girls picked up a perfumed liquid soap. “Can I see that?” I asked politely. “Why?” She asked. “It's just soap.”“I have never used it before. I need to make sure it doesn't contain anything I'm allergic to,” I told her and she handed it to me. “Just for fun, what can disrupt the initiation ceremony?” I asked and they exchanged glances. “Come on, if I am going to be your Queen, I should at least know things about you, right?” I wasn't sure they would b
/-Hannah-/Amelia crossed her arms, staring at both Lisa and I. “Fancy seeing you two back in my chambers together after coming individually to deliver your threats. What's new? Surprise me.” She leaned against her dressing table, crossing her arms as she stared at us. If I had my way, I wouldn't even be here, talking to her but I just had to. “The skin walker has taken Raven's form and she is with Declan currently,” I said plainly and her smug smile vanished. “Now that was unexpected,” she blurted. “And how do you know it is a skin walker and not just Raven?”“Because Raven is dead and buried,” Lisa blurted without thinking and I shot her a glare. She cupped her mouth, shooting me an apologetic glance. Amelia's eyes darkened as she crossed her arms. “What the hell do you mean by Raven is dead?” She demanded. I didn't say a word and Lisa didn't speak either. “Of you're not going to speak then see yourselves out of my room!” “Fine! Calm the fuck down!” I sighed. “So we kinda dr
/-Raven-/“You are sick! You have lost your damn mind!” He yelled. “I thought five hours would have been enough to come up with something more creative,” I sighed. “Why do you keep pissing me off…”“Hush! I'm sick, stop yelling,” I interrupted his ranting. “You've not even experienced half of the things I plan to do to you.”My response caught him off-guard. “Why are you so insistent on punishing me, Raven? I am trying to help you! To help you achieve your potential! Why are you making things difficult for us both?” He growled. I stared at him unapologetically. “You don't abduct someone and expect to be treated like a king, sweetheart. If you wanted me to cooperate you would have approached me politely and asked.” He palmed his face and I moved from a lying to a sitting position. “What's for breakfast?” I asked him. I skipped dinner. I was out all night.” He looked at me in disbelief and I raised a challenging brow. His shoulders sagged and I smirked inwardly.“Can I have meat
/-Declan-/There was just something wrong about her. I could feel it. Last night, she had been insistent on sleeping in my room but I couldn't let her. Rolfe wouldn't let me and for the first time, I agreed with him. The Raven I knew was a tease and would never admit she wanted to be in the same room with me, let alone beg to speak d the night in it. The intense pull I felt towards Raven anytime she neared me was gone. I was seriously considering Hannah's words that she was the skinwalker. But if this wasn't Raven, where was she then?This morning, before I even got the chance to open my eyes, she was at my door, knocking. She brought me breakfast and I couldn't even begin to explain how creeped out I was. “Come in,” I said dryly, stepping aside for her to enter. “I brought you food so you don't have to stress yourself out. I want us to spend the entire day together,” she said. “Spend the day together?” I repeated. That was one suggestion Raven would never make no matter how muc
She hissed in frustration. That man was just too smart for her. How could he have figured her out so soon?It took her weeks to copy Raven's voice and mannerisms, only for him to figure it out in a space of a few minutes. Pacing the room, she groaned. “I have come too far to lose him now,” she muttered under her breath.She thought hard, thinking of what she could have done wrong and then it clicked. “Fuck! I was too desperate for him! Raven literally acts like she doesn't care about his existence. Maybe I should have done that instead of throwing myself at him,” she mumbled, facepalming. How could she mess up such a perfect opportunity?But there was still a chance to make it right. Declan had no idea where Raven was and she already knew that Azaiah's men may have taken her away. All she had to do was hurt herself and let him find her, and then she would correct all the mistakes she made. Now that sounded like a very good plan. All she needed was someone to aid her with it. An
/-LISA-/I watched as Tim was brought before Amelia. My heart was pounding. I didn't know what she was going to do to him. Hell, I didn't even know if he was going to live past this minute.Why did he have to lie to me? I know we had our differences but that wasn't enough reason for him to lie about Raven's death. “I am only going to ask you this once and I expect a direct answer from you, otherwise you will be held responsible for whatever happens to you,” Amelia started but Tim didn't even look a quarter as terrified as I was. He didn't even look afraid of her. “Yes Luna,” he answered in a monotone. Since he came back from wherever they went to and Raven was allegedly killed, he has never been the same again. This time was cold and emotionless. If he was asked to stab a baby, he would do it without hesitation. With Declan under her control, it made things even worse. I didn't know this man anymore.“Where is Raven?” She asked.“Lying at the bottom of the river somewhere,” he re
/-Raven-/I don't know how it happened but it did. The chains fell off me like it was nothing and I found myself wondering if I could do that the whole time.I mean, if I could, why the hell was I stressing myself? I could have just easily freed myself before those animals got the chance to lay their hands on me. Now was not the time for that, anyways. I needed to get out of here before they realized what was happening, but where would I go?Back to Azaiah? Or just complete my mission by killing Declan? I didn't have the luxury to contemplate on that so I shifted and flew as high as I could. I left the mountains and just flew high into the sky, wondering where I was going to go. Azaiah might have treated me well but there was no guarantee that he wouldn't just hand me back to that crazy man and his son if they came asking. Something struck me by the side and I let out a painful roar but then it hit me again, and again until I stop seeing myself fly and crashed to the ground in a ma
/-LISA-/"Are you sure it was Raven you saw?" Othelia asked again, her voice filled with skepticism.I folded my arms, forcing myself to remain calm. This entire conversation was ridiculous. Francesca was grasping at straws, desperate to hold on to the idea that Raven was alive. But if she was right… no, that couldn’t happen."I know what I saw," Francesca insisted, her eyes blazing with conviction. "She walked right through that door in a red dress. She looked real, alive, but she didn’t even seem to recognize me."Othelia sighed. "Francesca, do you hear yourself? You’re telling us that Raven, Declan’s mate, the woman who was supposed to be dead, just strolled in like nothing happened? And then, what? She attacked you and disappeared?""I don’t think she attacked me," Francesca admitted. "It was more like… she was surprised to see me. I mistakenly shattered the vase and slipped out her name and she panicked. Then she hit me" She shivered. "Everything went black, but there was somethi
/-RAVEN-/I could barely move a muscle. When talpha Timultin mentioned the whips at first, I thought he was joking. That there was no way he was actually going to sit back and let me get whipped but I was wrong. This man was as strict as he was merciless and his men couldn't afford to disobey him so I got whipped. Over and over again until I passed out. Now I woke up, I was still tied to the pillar with the pain shooting through me from all angles. How coido Eric do this to me? How do you even watch someone you claim to love go through such pain and you do nothing about it. It was cruel and wicked but he didn't obviously give two shits about that. Speak of the devil, he stroleld towards me like my suffering was a delightful sight. “What are you doing here?” I glared at him with all my might. “I'm guessing you haven't learnt your lesson yet. Else, you wouldn't be speaking to me in such a disrespectful tone,” he said. I looked at him in shock and anger. Was he being serious right
/-Amelia-/“Why do you keep staring at me?” He asked. His tone was neutral so I figure the spell was still active. “Why did you suddenly go off like that? The feast barely even started,” I asked suspiciously. “I was drugged by one of your numerous guests and I passed out. Anything else you'd like to know?” He asked. I let out a sigh. He was right. There was no way he would have known what happened while he was drugged and he never liked the idea of a feast. “There was this veiled woman I saw in your room when I came to check on you,” I started, monitoring his expression closely. There was nothing I could accuse him of because his expression remained blank. Once again, I reminded myself that he wouldn't know. There was no use being suspicious over him. “So, what now?” He asked. “Did you find her?” “No, we couldn't find her. She just sped away and I suspect that she might have been the one who drugged you,” I said. “Good to know,” he said dryly and walked towards the bathroom. I
/-Raven-/He was angry but I was angry as well. I might be in love with him but I wasn't stupid. “Did you just hit me?” I asked him. “Evade my fucking question and I will hit you again! Do you know how crazy we went looking for you? We thought something happened! And you just stroll in here acting like you nothing happened?” He yelled. I dropped my hand and stepped closer to him, staring him dead in the eye. “Listen to me carefully, because I am only going to warn you once. I don't care if you are the air that I breathe but the next time you lay your fucking hand on me again, you are going to regret it. If you have a fucking problem, you speak. Use your words, do you understand?” The iciness in my tone was unbelievable to me as well but I needed to set him right. “You fucking bitch! Hoe dare you speak to me like that, huh?” He yelled. “Who did you go out there to see? Don't even tell me you were flying because I know you weren't!” “Good for you,” I said coldly and turned away fr
/-Raven-/There was something awfully familiar about this woman but no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't place it. “Well?” She growled, stepping closer. “Where is my husband?”Husband…For some reason that word made my heart tighten in a way I didn't understand. Why should I care if he was taken? That man was flirting with me so he was hardly a good keep! He wasn't worth thinking twice about.“You're not deaf, are you?” She stepped closer, glaring at me menacingly. Woah! Someone tell this tiger that nobody wants her man. He might be hot but all I want to do is kill him. That's all!“He… he just…” “He just what?” She snapped, pushing past me to look inside the room. I glanced back and to my greatest shock, he was on the bed, passed out. At least pretended to be. I knew for sure that I couldn't waste another minute here so I took to my heels. “What have you done?!” I heard her scream and fastened my pace. I didn't know where I was headed but when I spotted the guards coming, I
/-Raven-/“I'm sorry. I know you were probably not expecting to see me but something came up last minute and the princess couldn't make it,” I told him. “I see…” he said simply. “Do you mind sharing one glass with me?” I asked, offering him a glass of champagne. “I know I'm beneath your class and you probably don't want to but if you could please…”He took the glass before I could go on with my pretend rambling. “Cheers?” I raised my glass and he clanged his glass against mine and we each took a long sip of the champagne. Gotcha!“This is really good,” I commented but before he could respond, a strange woman joined him. I tried to keep the frown away from my face. Who is she now?She began flirting with him right in front of me and I know I shouldn't care but my grip on my glass was tightening subconsciously. I hated the way seeing her smile at him. I hated watching her hands drape all over him. I hated her kissing him. And I didn't know why. Maybe it was because I hated him tha
/-Raven-/The blackouts have been frequent, coupled with horrifying nightmares that all ended with a metal stake in my heart. Not to forget the body pains I felt every time I woke up. I felt violated and I couldn't tell if it was real or not. I never fully understood it and when I told Eric about it, he said it could be a memory from the torture I went through in the IronClaw pack. Those agonizing dreams made me hate Declan Thorne and everything about him more and more. Not a day went by without me thinking of how to destroy him.It pushed me to train harder than I ever have and soon, the day was here. The day when I was finally going to put a face to the silver eyes that haunted my dreams. It was a solo mission and no one had any idea what I was doing or planning to do. IronClaw was hosting a big feast and I was going to disguise myself as one of the guests and get in. I wasn't quite sure what they were celebrating but I knew Alphas from far and near were going to be present. I