Chapter 21 Zane's — POV I honestly thought my heart had stopped the second Aria collapsed. She was so full of life just that one instant, an avenging angel glowing with eyes and power from who knew what other place, and then she was crumpling like a puppet whose strings had been cut.Kane and I moved as one, catching her before she hit the ground. Her skin was burning, almost painful to touch, but there was no way in hell I was letting go.“We need to get her inside,” Kane said, his voice tight with worry. I could feel his fear through our bond, matching my own. “NOW.”I swept her up in my arms, clutching her close to my chest as though she might shatter like glass. The pack members parted before us like water, their faces mingling awe and fear. I couldn't blame them-what we'd just witnessed was beyond anything I'd ever seen in all my years as a wolf.“Someone get the healers!” I barked as we jogged hurriedly through the pack house. “Tell them to meet us in our quarters!”Kane was r
Chapter 22 — Aria's POVOne minute I was warm and snuggly between Kane and Zane, the next I was thing I saw myself elsewhere. The air here was caustic. My lungs burned with a mixture of sulfur and something else I couldn't quite place. Red lightning crackled across a black sky, illuminating twisted landscapes that seemed to writhe and twist whenever I wasn't looking directly at it.“Welcome to the Demon Realm, little hybrid.”I turned and saw Thorne standing behind me, but he was different here. More substantial, somehow. His skin was black as obsidian now, shining, and designs of molten gold coursed over his surface like living tattoos. “Am I dreaming?” I said, my voice weird in the thick air.“In a manner of speaking,” he repeated, his fluid step closing the gap between us. His movement was liquid-like, near hypnotic. “Your consciousness is here, while your physical form is in the mortal world. It was the safest way to start your education.”“Education about what, exactly?” I tried
Chapter 23 — Kane's POVThe pre-dawn light crept through our bedroom window, casting soft shadows across our bed. I couldn't sleep, too focused on watching Aria's restless movements beside me. Every few minutes, her skin would shimmer with those strange demon markings Thorne had shown us — beautiful but terrifying patterns of gold and shadow that danced across her skin before fading away again.“No… please…” Aria mumbled, turning fitfully in her sleep. Zane shifted on her other side, his protective instincts as strong as mine even in sleep.I reached out, gently stroking her hair. “Shh, you're safe,” I whispered, even though I knew the nightmares weren't about physical danger. They were about accepting what she was becoming.God, I knew that feeling. Every wolf does — that moment when you first realize you're more than human that your body can change in ways that defy everything you thought you knew about reality. But at least we had generations of wolves before us to guide us through
Chapter 24 — Zane's POVThe dining hall was still in chaos when I dragged Vivian into our interrogation room. I've always been good at getting information out of people.“Comfortable?” I asked, using my Alpha voice.“Let's skip the part where you pretended to be loyal,” I said softly, drawing up a chair. “We both know you're not.”Vivian raised her chin, trying to look defiant. “I am loyal to what matters-keeping our bloodlines pure.”“By attempting to poison my mate?” I let my eyes shift, knowing how they glowed in the darkness.Vivian tried to look defiant, but I could smell her fear. “I won't tell you anything.”“See, that's where you're wrong.” I leaned forward, letting my eyes shift to their predator form. “You're going to tell me everything.”But as I drew closer, something made me stop. There, on her inner wrist-a marking I had never seen. Like a brand, but the design. It looked like a wolf's head with a crown, yet something was wrong about it, something vicious in the design.
Chapter 25 — Aria's POVSomething crashed through my bedroom window making me scream. I rolled instinctively, calling forth my demon powers before I even hit the floor. Golden markings blazed across my skin as I turned to see what crashed into my room. “An assassin.”“Well, well, well,” the figure purred, darkness rolling off him like smoke. “The abomination herself.”“You crashed through my window just to call me names?” I shot back, gathering shadows in my palms. “Rude.”He moved like liquid darkness, faster than anything I'd ever seen. Even with my demon-enhanced reflexes, I barely dodged their first strike. Their claws — because yeah, they definitely had claws — sliced through the air where my throat had been.I retaliated with a blast of demon fire, but they seemed to absorb it into their own darkness. Great. So much for that trick.But as we fought, something strange started happening. Every time their darkness touched me, something inside me… resonated. Like strumming a string
Chapter 26 — Aria's POV The morning sun painted the sacred grove in shades of gold and amber as I settled onto the cool grass. Dawn was just breaking, and honestly? I would've much rather been curled up in bed between Kane and Zane. But according to Liora, this was prime time for “spiritual alignment” or whatever.“Your aspects are strongest when nature is in transition,” she'd told me yesterday, all serene and angel-like. Easy for her to say — she probably didn't need beauty sleep.I crossed my legs, trying to find a comfortable position that wouldn't leave my butt completely numb. The grove was beautiful though, I had to admit. Ancient trees formed a perfect circle around me, their leaves whispering secrets in the morning breeze.“Focus inward,” Liora's voice echoed in my memory. “Each aspect of your nature has its own consciousness, its own memory. You must learn to communicate with them all.”Right. Because apparently having five different supernatural aspects wasn't complicated
Chapter 27 — Kane's POV Even hours after Aria's display in the sacred grove, I could still feel the residual power humming through our mate bond. I decided to go to the library to get some answers. “Who is Azrael? What does he want with Aria.” The pack library was quiet at this late hour, but my mind was anything but peaceful. I searched for ancient texts and scrolls, keeping it all on my desk, their musty pages holding secrets. As I was searching, a journal caught my eyes, I picked it and opened it.“Fuck,” I muttered, running my hand through my hair as I stared at the journal in front of me. It was Aria's grandmother's — Maria Evans — and what I was reading made my blood run cold.“The blessing must be performed under the blood moon,” the elegant handwriting declared. “Only then can angelic grace overcome the darkness in the bloodline. My grandchild must be protected from HIS influence…”The way she wrote “HIS” — like she could barely bring herself to acknowledge who she meant. I
Chapter 28 — Zane's POV I felt Aria's distress explode through our mate bond before Kane's frantic message even reached me. One second I was patrolling the eastern border, the next I was on my knees from the force of her emotional pain. “What. The. Hell.”“She knows,” Kane's voice echoed in my mind. “About Azrael. Her parents. Everything. She ran.”Of course she did. Because nothing in our lives could ever be simple.I shifted immediately, my wolf form better suited for tracking. Aria's scent trail blazed like a supernatural beacon through the forest — a mixture of all five of her aspects swirling together in chaos. But when I tried to follow it, I slammed into an invisible wall.“Seriously?” I growled, shifting back to human to examine the barrier. Pure angelic energy rippled in the air, unconsciously created by Aria's distress. Even touching it sent tingles through my hand.“Remember what Liora taught us,” I thought, recalling our tracking lessons. Each supernatural type left dist
Chapter 29 — Aria's POV The pack house felt different after everything that went down. Different, but somehow safer. My body ached in places I didn't even know could ache, and my supernatural energy felt like a live wire randomly sparking inside me.“You're awake,” a familiar voice said.I turned my head to see Zane sitting beside my bed, his eyes watching me with this intense mixture of concern and relief. God, I'd run from him. From both of them. And they still showed up. Still protected me.“Hey,” I croaked, my throat feeling like I'd swallowed sandpaper.Kane appeared on my other side, holding a glass of what looked like some supernatural healing smoothie. Trust my mates to have a magical drink ready for every situation.“Drink,” Kane ordered, but there was softness in his voice. Not a demand. More like a request wrapped in pure love.The drink tasted like berries mixed with something herbal, and… was that a hint of magic? Probably. Everything in our world had a supernatural twis
Chapter 28 — Zane's POV I felt Aria's distress explode through our mate bond before Kane's frantic message even reached me. One second I was patrolling the eastern border, the next I was on my knees from the force of her emotional pain. “What. The. Hell.”“She knows,” Kane's voice echoed in my mind. “About Azrael. Her parents. Everything. She ran.”Of course she did. Because nothing in our lives could ever be simple.I shifted immediately, my wolf form better suited for tracking. Aria's scent trail blazed like a supernatural beacon through the forest — a mixture of all five of her aspects swirling together in chaos. But when I tried to follow it, I slammed into an invisible wall.“Seriously?” I growled, shifting back to human to examine the barrier. Pure angelic energy rippled in the air, unconsciously created by Aria's distress. Even touching it sent tingles through my hand.“Remember what Liora taught us,” I thought, recalling our tracking lessons. Each supernatural type left dist
Chapter 27 — Kane's POV Even hours after Aria's display in the sacred grove, I could still feel the residual power humming through our mate bond. I decided to go to the library to get some answers. “Who is Azrael? What does he want with Aria.” The pack library was quiet at this late hour, but my mind was anything but peaceful. I searched for ancient texts and scrolls, keeping it all on my desk, their musty pages holding secrets. As I was searching, a journal caught my eyes, I picked it and opened it.“Fuck,” I muttered, running my hand through my hair as I stared at the journal in front of me. It was Aria's grandmother's — Maria Evans — and what I was reading made my blood run cold.“The blessing must be performed under the blood moon,” the elegant handwriting declared. “Only then can angelic grace overcome the darkness in the bloodline. My grandchild must be protected from HIS influence…”The way she wrote “HIS” — like she could barely bring herself to acknowledge who she meant. I
Chapter 26 — Aria's POV The morning sun painted the sacred grove in shades of gold and amber as I settled onto the cool grass. Dawn was just breaking, and honestly? I would've much rather been curled up in bed between Kane and Zane. But according to Liora, this was prime time for “spiritual alignment” or whatever.“Your aspects are strongest when nature is in transition,” she'd told me yesterday, all serene and angel-like. Easy for her to say — she probably didn't need beauty sleep.I crossed my legs, trying to find a comfortable position that wouldn't leave my butt completely numb. The grove was beautiful though, I had to admit. Ancient trees formed a perfect circle around me, their leaves whispering secrets in the morning breeze.“Focus inward,” Liora's voice echoed in my memory. “Each aspect of your nature has its own consciousness, its own memory. You must learn to communicate with them all.”Right. Because apparently having five different supernatural aspects wasn't complicated
Chapter 25 — Aria's POVSomething crashed through my bedroom window making me scream. I rolled instinctively, calling forth my demon powers before I even hit the floor. Golden markings blazed across my skin as I turned to see what crashed into my room. “An assassin.”“Well, well, well,” the figure purred, darkness rolling off him like smoke. “The abomination herself.”“You crashed through my window just to call me names?” I shot back, gathering shadows in my palms. “Rude.”He moved like liquid darkness, faster than anything I'd ever seen. Even with my demon-enhanced reflexes, I barely dodged their first strike. Their claws — because yeah, they definitely had claws — sliced through the air where my throat had been.I retaliated with a blast of demon fire, but they seemed to absorb it into their own darkness. Great. So much for that trick.But as we fought, something strange started happening. Every time their darkness touched me, something inside me… resonated. Like strumming a string
Chapter 24 — Zane's POVThe dining hall was still in chaos when I dragged Vivian into our interrogation room. I've always been good at getting information out of people.“Comfortable?” I asked, using my Alpha voice.“Let's skip the part where you pretended to be loyal,” I said softly, drawing up a chair. “We both know you're not.”Vivian raised her chin, trying to look defiant. “I am loyal to what matters-keeping our bloodlines pure.”“By attempting to poison my mate?” I let my eyes shift, knowing how they glowed in the darkness.Vivian tried to look defiant, but I could smell her fear. “I won't tell you anything.”“See, that's where you're wrong.” I leaned forward, letting my eyes shift to their predator form. “You're going to tell me everything.”But as I drew closer, something made me stop. There, on her inner wrist-a marking I had never seen. Like a brand, but the design. It looked like a wolf's head with a crown, yet something was wrong about it, something vicious in the design.
Chapter 23 — Kane's POVThe pre-dawn light crept through our bedroom window, casting soft shadows across our bed. I couldn't sleep, too focused on watching Aria's restless movements beside me. Every few minutes, her skin would shimmer with those strange demon markings Thorne had shown us — beautiful but terrifying patterns of gold and shadow that danced across her skin before fading away again.“No… please…” Aria mumbled, turning fitfully in her sleep. Zane shifted on her other side, his protective instincts as strong as mine even in sleep.I reached out, gently stroking her hair. “Shh, you're safe,” I whispered, even though I knew the nightmares weren't about physical danger. They were about accepting what she was becoming.God, I knew that feeling. Every wolf does — that moment when you first realize you're more than human that your body can change in ways that defy everything you thought you knew about reality. But at least we had generations of wolves before us to guide us through
Chapter 22 — Aria's POVOne minute I was warm and snuggly between Kane and Zane, the next I was thing I saw myself elsewhere. The air here was caustic. My lungs burned with a mixture of sulfur and something else I couldn't quite place. Red lightning crackled across a black sky, illuminating twisted landscapes that seemed to writhe and twist whenever I wasn't looking directly at it.“Welcome to the Demon Realm, little hybrid.”I turned and saw Thorne standing behind me, but he was different here. More substantial, somehow. His skin was black as obsidian now, shining, and designs of molten gold coursed over his surface like living tattoos. “Am I dreaming?” I said, my voice weird in the thick air.“In a manner of speaking,” he repeated, his fluid step closing the gap between us. His movement was liquid-like, near hypnotic. “Your consciousness is here, while your physical form is in the mortal world. It was the safest way to start your education.”“Education about what, exactly?” I tried
Chapter 21 Zane's — POV I honestly thought my heart had stopped the second Aria collapsed. She was so full of life just that one instant, an avenging angel glowing with eyes and power from who knew what other place, and then she was crumpling like a puppet whose strings had been cut.Kane and I moved as one, catching her before she hit the ground. Her skin was burning, almost painful to touch, but there was no way in hell I was letting go.“We need to get her inside,” Kane said, his voice tight with worry. I could feel his fear through our bond, matching my own. “NOW.”I swept her up in my arms, clutching her close to my chest as though she might shatter like glass. The pack members parted before us like water, their faces mingling awe and fear. I couldn't blame them-what we'd just witnessed was beyond anything I'd ever seen in all my years as a wolf.“Someone get the healers!” I barked as we jogged hurriedly through the pack house. “Tell them to meet us in our quarters!”Kane was r