Cassius POVAs usual, the conversation with my mother went nowhere. Well, almost nowhere. She was her usual self – determined, evil, selfish creature I had got to know since the day of my birth. Truth be told, I hated her. I hated her with my whole being, I hated what she’d become, I hated what she made me into. She had cornered me into this feeling, the feeling of being alone, unloved, and first and foremost a monster. A useful monster, yet still a monster. All she cared about was pure-blood succession, legacy of a kind, somebody to carry on her name, her achievements, as she called it. She was devoid of any sort of emotion, anything motherly. To her, I was a means to an end, a tool to accomplish what she always wanted. And nobody dared go against her, well not many anyway. Those that did quickly understood why she was dubbed a Bloody Queen among Lycan and other creatures alike.Yet, something bothered me seeing Myra there, especially in such a compromising position. I did not know w
Kal POVWhen Mother said everything, she was not joking. The things she shared, the things her and Thalia did, I had never assumed that was possible, especially from Thalia, the one person I trusted most, one person who had my heart. I am no stranger to it. Over the centuries, my heart has broken, many times if I were to be truthful, but none worse than the day Catherine died. I know that a part of me, the good part, died with her. She brought out Kal I sometimes did not even know existed. A compassionate, selfless, loving creature that, as of now, I had no connection to. She was my conduit, my solace, and my reason to be a better man. And when she died, and the way she died, reversed me back to the Beast I always was, the beast part of me which I was always comfortable with. I missed her. Every day, every moment, every day the sun rose, it reminded me of the reflection and the way the sun itself set into her hair.. sparkles glistened like golden chains somehow wrapped within it. She
Leo POVCassius’ phone call was exciting. He said he had planned a special date for us, and I felt as if I was walking on clouds. My stomach tightened just at the sound of his voice, and I grew weak in my knees thinking of his plump, gentle lips, his chiseled jaw, and body the Gods themselves would be jealous of. My favorite thing about him was his smile. When he smiled at me, I felt like the only person in the world. That smile reached into the depths of my soul and touched my heart. Every time I heard his voice, my stomach and chest would both flutter as if dozens of butterflies danced around it. Timing worked out great - with Mr. Locke rescheduled the dinner. I had time to have my date with Cassius.Emma’s words and files I read weighed heavily on me. However, somehow, I was willing to give Mr. Locke the benefit of the doubt. Somehow, the timing of all this seemed too perfect, and too coincidental, and I was not a man that believed in coincidence. Moreover, the voice, my inner voic
Cassius POVI wanted tonight to be perfect. I called Emma in advance to learn more about Leo’s favorite foods, what he liked to drink, even what kind of flowers he liked. I realized that they came from humble backgrounds, and I desperately did not want to be a show-off, but at the same time I wanted to give him the world – everything I had, my heart included, already belonged to him anyway. I also had a surprise help from an unexpected source. His friend Theo, who worked at the garage with him, was there when I went to see Albert and asked discretely about him. Somehow, he overheard our conversation and decided to chime in and share that Leo’s dream car was a Mercedes G63, and I decided to buy him one as a present. The car I drove tonight was Leo’s and I hope he liked it. I was going to give it to him at the end of our date as a gift – I did not want to have him apprehensive during dinner. “We do not need to throw wealth in Leo’s face, Cassius. He is not like that”, Marcus advised. I
Leo POVI had no words for what just happened. I had no explanations, no prior understanding, just the raw unbridled emotion cursing through my body, pure pleasure and euphoria. And another feeling which dominated every ounce of my being. Cassius was MINE!!! MINE ALONE!! I heard the grumble in my chest, the determination of those words. I had not spoken them as of yet, but my whole being was screaming that this was my guy, my person, and my love. MINE. And MINE ALONE! There was something that happened to me the moment he kissed me, the moment he fell on his knees. The moment of recognition of some kind, somehow, someway, I knew, without a shred of a doubt, that he was my soulmate, my everything, and the only person other than Emma that I would give my life for. The veracity of those feelings hit me unexpectedly, yet not irrationally. Right before he showed up in my life, things were different. And now, with him here, and what just happened, I found myself in a vortex of emotion, stood
Lord Alwyin POVSo.. It was true. The prophecy of Amelia’s betrayal had come to pass. My wife and I had held on all this time, and tried our very best, including extreme measures to somehow offset and change her fate. Alas, what Lord Krimus had reported was dire. Aramah was back. And not just Aramah, its Queen Witch, Verena. I felt like I was in hell, betrayed by those closest to me, namely my child. I knew that in her own mind she held justification of what had happened, justification I could not negate, given that she thought her mate Darius was dead at my hands. When I saw her last, I could sense her anger and hatred towards me. At this point, she had hated me so long, that it was likely hard to pinpoint the origin of when that had begun.Xidna was a whole other story, her demands and her threats something completely else. I knew that I failed her, and whatever she had planned for us, was entirely my own fault. In truth, I should have known better. I should have known that she wou
Emma POVMy heart was full for Leo. He had found him a man, a person to love him the way he deserved, the person to hold him, wipe his tears away when the skies go dark and cold, the person to make him laugh. He found his true love, or as the voice of my other-self within me said – his mate. Somehow, in my heart I knew this from the first time I ever saw Cassius. Everything within me screamed family, screamed recognition, screamed belonging, and the clarity hit me - as if I could see their life before them, their love and their day unfold. When Cassius called me to get advice as to how to set up a romantic date and dinner for Leo, I was only too happy to oblige. Plus, planning a romance took me away from dark thoughts about Mr. Locke, dark doubts and fears that were currently plaguing my mind. I was trying to give him the benefit of the doubt, as Leo suggested. I knew that life sometimes turns good people into bad ones. However, all that I have seen in the files could not be justifie
Emma POVThe anxiety and heat within me subsided gradually, but the sense that I felt complete, where I was discovering something new stayed with me – even in the darkness of my dream. However, I was not sure if I could call this a dream. Once Dr. Sina injected something into me, the darkness claimed me. However, I did not sleep. Fully alert as if I was awake, I started moving toward a sensual scent, a scent of pinecone and berries, a scent that was pulling me in a very specific direction. All my senses were enhanced, and I could feel everything around me.“There you are!!”, I heard the now familiar voice of the mystery man in my dreams. His strong arms were wrapped around my waist tightly, while he pulled me to him from behind. I still could not see his face, but his scent, and the sense of familiarity, sense of knowing this person, and sense of belonging were overpowering me. It felt right to be in his arms. I felt happy.His warm breath was on my neck, his soft, warm lips gently ki