~ ZoraI heard those familiar sounds again. Beep. Beep. Beep.I opened my eyes and found that my eyelids were too heavy. My head ached and I had the worst bitter taste in my mouth but the air was rich with the smell of flowers. Lots of it.Looking around I quickly learned that I was in a hospital room but it was filled with flowers of different kinds, most of which were tulips and roses of different colors.I tried to recollect how I got here. For a start, the first memory that came to me was my first meeting with Mabel after which I woke up in hospice care. But I knew something else happened after that."Zora?" Someone with a voice of honey called my name. A voice I had been waiting to hear for a while now. Moving my head to the side, my gaze landed on two stormy eyes."Nox?" I said or rather tried to say but my voice came out dry and scratchy. A pinch at the back of my throat and I began to cough. In an instant, Nox poured me some water and lifted my head off so I could sip some.
~ ZoraThe moment Nox told me he fired Roman, I was too shocked to say a word, so I kicked him out of my room and went to sleep. It took me a couple of hours to get better and the moment I did, I left the hospital. At first, I felt sad as I was being escorted by my guards out of the hospital building, but when I got out, my mouth dropped open. The lands spread out before the hospital in Sector Three was now almost unrecognizable. Where there had been demarcations to keep the sick in, there was nothing now. The lands had almost been cleared of tents!Still in awe, I went to the area where loved ones usually stayed and told my guards to wait for me. They obliged and I walked half a mile ahead until I saw a hut. Getting to the door, I took a deep breath, but as I was about to knock, I heard a voice, "It's open. Come in." So I turned the knob and slowly pushed the door back. Stepping in, I closed it behind me as I took in the one room residence. The walls were made of clay and the ro
~ NoxAfter I watch my mate disappear into the woods, I turn to face my best friend. Roman had his arms crossed, staring at me with a cold gaze. The fact that he hadn't invited me into his house showed how pissed he really was at me. Well, so was I.I folded my arms, mirroring his stance and stared back. Roman's right brow peaked in question but I didn't oblige. "So you're not going to say anything?!" He deadpans."What do you want me to say, Rome?""I deserve an apology, Nox!"I remain silent. "Over twenty years of friendship, part of which I have been in service to you and you condemn me for one mistake?!"My jaw tightens as I lift a brow. "Mistake? She could have died, Roman. Do you understand what that means?"Roman's angry gaze immediately softens and his defensive stance slackens. He looks away from me in what I could assume was guilt or shame. "You could have doomed me forever. If she had died, I would have died right along with her. Up here," I pointed to my head. "I'm s
~ ZoraRoman left for The Underground while Nox and I drove back home. On the way, I reached out to my sister but didn't get any feedback from her. I immediately made my concerns known to Nox. "After you became hospitalized, I suspected that Troy might do something, so I informed her of everything and also told her I had arranged for her and your parents' extraction. They are set to leave your former pack this evening in the middle of the night." I sighed a breath of relief but I still wasn't completely at ease. I checked my phone again but still had no response from Hailey. Throughout the ride home, worrisome thoughts and assumptions about the safety of my sister and my parents plagued me. The moment we got home, I noticed people going in and out of our compound. When they saw our car, they immediately turned back with smiles, peering in through the window, smiling and waving. "What's going on?" I asked Nox."Well, you're the hottest celebrity in town. People are still bringing
~ ZoraWe were able to get about five hours of sleep before we prepared for Kirsten's funeral. I mentally said a prayer of thanks for being forced to nap as I now felt instantly better. Nox looked better as well and the bags under his eyes seemed to have reduced drastically. While we prepared, I kept mulling over the thought of him having a past love but I decided it wasn't yet time to ask. Once he was dressed, he left so Emelda could come in and help me dress. We settled for a simple black knee length gown, on black transparent thigh high stockings with a semi-large brim hat that had a dark net attached to it.We decided I wouldn't go with flashy earrings but instead of a pearl necklace, I wore a simple pendant with a crescent moon at the bottom. Soon, I was in the passenger seat of Nox's car heading to the place where the funeral would take place. My phone buzzed and I checked it to see a message from Hailey."Hey Sis."A feeling of relief and excitement floods my system and I fi
~ Tyler It was a smooth ambush. All we had to do was let Hailey and her parents stand at the rendezvous point and wait. The men were good. They took precautions and tried to wait us out but it was our territory. Eventually, they were convinced and stepped into our trap. Taking them in a fight was terribly stupid as we knew the King would send his best to extract his wife's family. So instead we laid a massive net underneath the grass and the moment they walked into it, we drew it up and shot darts of the Moonshade poison at them. It took a long while before they finally succumbed to the fatigue that was bound to set in from the effects of the poison. Once they all stopped fighting, my men released them from the net and carried them all to the dungeons. I was in the hallways of the dungeons, struggling to breathe through the pain and fatigue the poison was causing me, when Emilia received a text from Zora. She had seized Hailey's phone since the moment I agreed to work with her t
~ Zora"What do we do?" I asked Nox after the call with Emilia ended. "You do know she's not going to let them go right?" Mabek suddenly said to my left and I jumped a little when I realized she was still there. I approached her with all seriousness and held both sides of her arms. Up close, I could see she wasn't really doing well and I couldn't tell why. I made a mental note to ask her later. "This is why we need to double cross Emilia on all fronts. You mentioned that the Alphas are coming tonight to lodge at Moonrise?""Yes my Queen." "Good. I'll need you to stealthily acquire any information about it. If it's going to be too risky and put your life in jeopardy, don't do it. Got it? " "Yes, my Queen.""Good. Now go."Mabel nodded, pulled her hood over her head and disappeared into the night. I felt Nox watching me so I turned to him. "What?""Mabel is dying."My heart skips a beat. "My Goddess! I didn't know!"Nox moves his head from side to side as if he was weighing options
~ Zora"Gwen, are you alright?" Emilia asks, concerned. "It's me, Emilia, your cousin." Just as she said that, her breathing suddenly becomes labored. "Wait a minute, why am I feeling like this?!" She said, immediately holding on to Tyler's arm. I could tell Tyler was also beginning to feel the effects of the Moonshade as well. His gaze glides to me just as I smirk in satisfaction. "We've been poisoned." Tyler states, causing Emilia to face Gwen with anger and disbelief. "What did you do to me?!"Gwen simply shrugs in response. "Don't you recognize the effects of your own poison, Emilia?" I ask with a smirk, "Or are you just content in using it to kill my kind?"Realization dawns on both Emilia and Tyler's faces as they realize the reason behind their fatigue. Emilia tries to transform into her wolf but fails. Her wolf would rear to the surface only to disappear again. "You poisoned me?!" Emilia exclaims, looking between Gwen and me and I thought I saw real fear pass through her fe
~ ZoraSeveral Months Later"Let me help you with that." My husband said, collecting a wedding present from my hand and taking it to the car. I stood in disbelief. "I'm just pregnant, you know? I'm not an invalid.Nox closed the car and gave me a shrug. "Well you have no choice." He bends down and holds my big belly before giving it a kiss. "As long as you're carrying my babies, you will do as little as possible." He came back up to kiss me and at first, I had my mouth closed refusing him entry. Then he tickles me in persistence causing me to laugh and give in. I wrapped my arms across his shoulders and leaned in deep into the kiss, letting him explore my mouth and ravish my tongue. He never ceases to amaze me with how much he could get my body to respond to his touch and make me want more and more of him. I felt a fire starting within my core and I quickly broke the kiss. Breathless, I stared at him and found him grinning to himself. "We can't continue or we'll miss the wedding."
~ Zora By the time I arrived back in Parsivia, driven by the man Roman left behind, I could see my people already in the process of packing their things. I wondered where we would go now that Emilia was getting her lands back. Once I arrived home, I sprinted out of the car and into the house. I was surprised to find that servants had begun packing as well. They bowed to me with smiles and I acknowledged them before asking about Nox. They told me he was upstairs in our bedroom so I ran up the stairs and.dashed straight for the room. The moment I came in, I found him standing at the balcony behind billowing silk curtains. He turns and finds me standing by the door and he crosses the floor to me while I do the same. By the Gods, he smelt so much stronger and looked so much better, that by the time he touched me, my body came alive like wildfire.I pulled his face in for a kiss and moaned into his mouth when his lips sent delicious warmth down my mouth and straight to my throbbing cor
~ ZoraIn a flash, Tyler steps in front of me and takes the knife in his chest. "NO!" Emilia yells and everything else happens so fast. Nox moves towards Troy and in seconds has Troy's head removed from his body.Tyler fell back on me and I had to hold him gently as I sank to my knees. Emilia rushes to his side to check his wound.Someone calls for a Healer we were told that yet they were tapped out and even Nox was spent too. Fortunately, Tyler's wound wasn't immediately fatal so he was quickly carried to one of Troy's cars. There was a pack closer to the scene which also turned out to be an ally of the Moonrise pack, we decided it was best that he was driven there for treatment.Roman offered to drive us and I had to go meet Nox, "I have to go. I need to make sure he's okay.""Go." He said but there was a certain sadness to his demeanor. "I'll watch over your family." I approached him and despite the blood he had splattered on his face from killing Troy, I kissed him on the lips.
~ ZoraIn shock, she grabs his wrist trying to get his hand off her neck as he slowly lifts her off her feet but he wouldn't budge. "Hey!" Tyler said running in but was soon stopped by about half a dozen wolvescoming out of nowhere, almost surrounding him and snarling at him to go no further.“It’s a damn ambush!” Roman mutters, stepping back while staring at something from afar. I look in time to see wolves coming out of the woods around us. They surround Nox, Roman and the other lycan soldiers. "What are you doing?!" Emilia chokes out from Tyler's grip. I could see the fear and the disbelief in her features as she looks at the man who once meant something to her.. "You dare come here barking orders at me? Who are you to believe you can be a ruler over me?"Emilia fumbles for words, clearly speechless! Her face suddenly became red as her eyes slid to mine. “Help me, please!”"Zora, get away from there right now!" Nox mindlinked me and I see him walking towards me despite wolves sn
~ Zora"I can't do that!" I immediately responded. "I can't kill Nox!"Troy gave me a sympathetic look that was meant to be mocking. "I guess your sister will have to die then." He said and turned to leave. Behind me Hailey coughed and I had to make a decision in a split second. "Wait!" Troy stopped in his tracks and half turned. "Yes?" He drawled with a malicious grin. I used that moment to try and invade his mind but I was instantly met with a blinding white light followed by a great pain hammering through my head. I cry out in pain as a result,, falling to my knees and holding my head in my hands!Troy’s laughter echoed towards me as he came closer. “I knew you would do that! Now, ain’t that a bitch?!” He chuckled. “You think I’d be dumb enough to come down here without fortifying my mind and that of my men against your power? Come on, Zora. You should give me more credit than that.”My head continues to hurt as if an electric current just passed through it. “What you just expe
~ Zora"Zora, wake up!" A groan escapes me when I feel hands on my face and open my eyes. My vision goes blurry at first seeing a warped figure above me but when I blink a few times, a person's face comes into view."Mom?" I ask. "Yes dear." She said, stroking my hair. I immediately went still. The last time my mother had stroked my hair, I was eight and had fallen terribly sick. It was an illness that lasted months and was part of the reason we quickly went broke. My mother noticed my unease with her affection so she stopped, retracting her hand from my hair. Behind her was darkness that I was unfamiliar with and around us and around us was a smell so bad, I had to sit up. Doing that caused the worst headache I had ever had. A pounding ache assaulted my head and began to pulse in my right eye.Another groan, yet I chose to look around. "Where are we?" I asked.My mother shushed me gently and whispered, "We are in a cell."At her words, I instantly became very alert. "A cell? How
~ TylerI shouldn't have but I had already started counting the days until I would see Zora again. Our last encounter had left a bitter taste in my soul and my spirit, corrupting my nights and leaving me sleepless. The harsh words that poured from my lips and became the stones that I threw at her now played over and over again in my head like a bad soap opera. I knew if I truly wanted to have peace, then I needed to see Zora again and beg her forgiveness.This was why I was a little bit excited when the guards came to drag me out of my cell to an unknown place. I was so riddled with thoughts of seeing Zora again that when I was brought into an office which had only Emilia, Nox, and his second in command, I automatically searched for her. "Where's Zora?" I asked as the guards worked on adjusting my chains so I could sit in a chair next to Emilia. Nox was seated while Roman stood and I noticed how both men looked sad and angry at the same time, as if something terrible had happened.
~ NoxWhen Elsa died, it felt like a part of me had died with her too. Before her, I was in a funk, dealing with the consequences of having a cruel father and a depressed mother. Growing up, Roman was the 'ray of sunshine' who didn't let me stay entirely in the dark and when Elsa came, she totally brought me into the light. She made me feel entirely vulnerable with my guard down. She was a girl I'd do anything for, including fighting my demons and conquering my fear of letting another human into my heart. Everything was fine until the curse took her and she died with her hand in mine. That was when I began to freefall into the deepest darkness I had ever been in and put up layers and layers of protection around my heart.And then Zora came along and began to chip away. She was a woman with a hammer breaking through my shield until she got to the last layer. Elsa. It was a layer I wasn't ready to bring down, not when death hung over her head. Now I find myself wishing she'd walk t
~ ZoraI woke up to the rhythm of my own heart beating and when I opened my eyes and looked around, I couldn't help the frustrated sigh that left my mouth when I realized I was in a hospital again. "Zora?" A familiar voice called and I turned my head to the right to see Nox sitting in a chair close to me. "Thank the gods, you're awake." He said, taking my hand in his. Although, I felt sparks tingling up my arms, they felt more like an inconvenience rather than something enjoyable. "What happened? How did I get here?" I asked, racking my head for my last memory. "You don't remember?" I shook my head. "The last thing I remember was…" I pause, suddenly remembering myself drowning. "... dying…and then you pulled me out."Nox met my gaze and I suddenly felt a mixture of guilt and relief emanating from him. "You saved my life." I concluded. “Thank you.”Nox responds by taking my hand to his lips and kissing it repeatedly and it should affect me in a positive light but the more I look