Levi“NO!” Mom screams and tries to get in between me and the Royal Guards who all have an array of weapons. “Don’t take him. Please, don’t take my son. . . .”“There is no proof!” Dad yells too, wedging himself between me and the squad. He even dares to swat the muzzles of the guns like he’s just dealing with pesky flies. “Get those weapons away from here and get out of the pack! Do not wage a war with us because all of you will perish!”“Dad,” I say, scared for what he could get or what could happen to him if he continues with the threats. “Move away. Mom and Dad, please, just stay to the side and let me handle this.”As I lead all of them to a spot behind me, I heard the door opening, and out comes Connor and Laura. “What’s happening?” Connor asks, and I can hear the fear in his voice. “What’s going on?”“I’m being taken,” I say briefly. “Arya wishes to see me.”Lauren’s eyes widen. “But why would she ask them for a whole force? What’s wrong?”I swallow hard. I know the answer and
LeviMy heart freezes, but it’s only partly because of what Arya said. The biggest thing that’s making me hesitate right now is how the whole thing escalated into this and how I ended up here.“Are you going to imprison me?” I ask her in a low voice. “Without investigating? Without a single tangible proof that it was me who put the poison in there?”I know it’s probably a bad idea to provoke her like this and question her logic when her lover is out there dying and she’s desperate to know what happened . . . but the injustice of it all is just starting to dawn on me and I can’t help but start to question everything.“Are you going to hold a trial me?” I demand again, this time my voice getting louder and gaining more conviction. “Or would that be too slow for you? Do you want me executed and killed before your eyes for this? Is that what you want?”“What I want is for you to pay,” Arya states flatly.I exhale sharply “Pay for what? I have never done anything to Arthur. Kill me for all
Arya“Princess, the criminal is now locked up in the dungeon.”The Royal Guard bows in front of me after telling me the announcement, and I motion him to leave, not able to utter a single word because of the sinking sensation in my stomach.Did I do the right thing?I like to believe that I have. I mean, who else could have done it? Who else could have slipped that poison in that bottle when it’s only Levi who handled it? He’s the only one who could have done it.But what if he didn’t?What if he really was telling the truth?I close my eyes, rubbing my temples and trying hard to rationalize it. My mom and dad are already gone to launch an investigation about it, and I know that we will find the truth about the whole scenario. Keeping Levi in the dungeons can be just a precaution, in case it gets proven that he really did it, which I’m almost certain that he did.Almost.Breathe in, breathe out. Breathe in, breathe out. I repeat this to myself for what seems like forever, but when I s
Levi“Let me go!” I scream at the guards who all seize my arms and twist them behind my back. “I didn’t do anything wrong! Let me go!”The guards don’t listen to me. They lift me to my feet and start to take me away. I try to look at Arya but she is already sitting on her throne, not looking at me at all.“Arya!” I try to scream for her, but one guard kicks me down on my knees. Still, I want her to believe me. I need her to believe me. I feel like I could die if she thinks I’m a murderer. “Arya, I never did anything to Arthur! Please believe me. . . .”The guards hurry up, walking me down the hall with increased pace. I thought they’re going to take me to the cells where they threw me in before, but this time, they go one level lower. And another, then another.Until we reach a dark path that’s only illuminated by blinking red lights. There are no windows, and all the cells don’t have metal bars. They only have thick steel doors, blocking everything but a small window at the top.One
LeviShock reverberates through my body, but I don't step back. The contact of Arya's lips against mine is something that I have always thought about, always dreamed of when she was gone, and now that I have it, I don't know what to say or do.And maybe it's just me being carried away into the moment. Maybe it's me being stupid and taking advantage of the situation. Or maybe it's all the months of longing and dreaming for her, all the years of wishing for something to happen.Either way, I feel all the emotions inside me eroding, and I give into every single desire in my heart.Without thinking about it, I grab the back Arya's neck and pull her closer.And I deepen the kiss that we're sharing.The sensation of her lips is . . . unbelievable. My heart is beating so fast that right now it's just nothing but a quick thrum in my chest. I raise my other hand to touch her waist and pull her even closer, but I end up touching something wet and strange on her waist.Startled, I immediately pu
Arya“Nancy. . . .” Duke Basset trails off. “The young woman who helped us save Arthur before?”“Exactly,” I say. My hands are shaking from both fear and anticipation. “We have to tell her what is happening, and she has to come here herself to experience what we are experiencing. She will know something, I know she will.”Duke Basset nods, but for some reason the sound of Nancy’s name seems to put him off. “Is she . . . trustworthy? Do we have to watch out for her?” When I don’t say anything, he shakes his head. “I’m sorry. I know I’m being paranoid, but I don’t like the things that are happening. I’m old and yet I have never experienced anything like this before. Anything unfamiliar makes me nervous, I must admit. And when it comes to my boy. . . .”He trails off, and my heart clenches. I completely understand what he is saying, and I feel the same. I grew up being surrounded by different people and creatures and yet I know nothing about what is happening. I have never even heard of
Arya Tears start to run down my cheeks. I wipe it furiously and look at Gammie. “That’s not . . . that’s not good. That’s not acceptable. We have to do something about it. We can’t possibly just sit here and do nothing while he’s. . . .” Dying. I meant to say dying. It’s the truth and I can’t deny that, but it’s the hardest thing I have to say and for the life of me, I can’t voice it out. Nancy steps forward and puts her arm around me, patting me softly and whispering comforting things that I can no longer hear. “She’s right,” Duke Basset puts in. His eyes are shining and his voice is unsteady, but I can see him trying to keep it together. “Leaving him to it is just cruel and wrong. You’re a skilled sorceress from what I heard. Is there something we can do to aid him at least?” Gammie looks at him and to me, her wrinkled face contorting in thought and confusion. For a while the only sound in the room is the heart monitor, then she speaks. “There really is nothing we can do,” she
LeviDarkness is everywhere. I can't feel anything. I can't move. I'm stuck in a floating sensation that seems to be going on and on without any chance of stopping.I can't even breathe properly.There seems to be something big blocking my throat, stopping me from breathing.I try to gasp for air and I can almost feel it entering my windpipe but not quite making it. It’s more than just driving me crazy. It feels like prison. It feels like death.With every passing second, I struggle with it more and more, to the point where I can feel myself giving way. I can feel my body getting weaker and weaker, and I don’t know how long I can keep fighting this. . . .But then I feel warm air blowing on my face, and soft lips pressing on mine, breathing some air into me.And surprisingly, my body responds.The blockage in my throat vanishes as thought it’s never been there. I gasp and sit up, clasping my neck, taking deep hard breaths as I blink rapidly and try to make sense of my situation.Okay.
LeviI tighten my hands around Lauren’s throat, feeling it pulse under my touch. There’s the level of satisfaction to that that I can’t explain.It's dark and it's something that I don't even want to acknowledge, but I would be lying if I say that it doesn't feel good.As I watch her eyes grow bigger with alarm, I feel more and more determined to end it this way. With her right under my hands, trying to fight off the force of my strength around her neck.I hate her, I realize as I try my best to finish her off and get this over with forever. She might just be an accomplice to her shitty brother, but she knows what she's doing.And if tonight is proof, I would say that she's not as innocent as she pretends to be. She's perfectly capable of making choices that would fuck other people up even more. She knows what she's doing.I still want to know so many things, like how she got to copy the scent of Arya and why she needed it anyway, when I can just tell completely that she's not my mate
LeviMy heart nearly gets stuck inside my throat. I want to scream, but I find that I can’t. The pain in my chest is still much too great for that, and I hate that I’m not even sure I’m seeing the right thing.Is Lauren really here, or am I just manifesting the stupid dreams and thinking that I am seeing her?I blink rapidly to see if she is indeed there, and to my horror, the image of her smiling in the corner doesn’t vanish. She’s walking close to the bed I’m lying on, but Gammie doesn’t even move. She doesn’t even flinch. I know for a fact that she’s a very sensible old woman who can practically feel everything, so this worries me.I look at Lauren again and see that she's getting closer and closer, and as though to confuse me further, she touches the side of Gammie's shoulder.And the woman doesn't flinch.Is Lauren real right now? Because I can hear her footsteps. I can smell her scent. I can tell that she's getting closer to me and she feels very much solid right now.Could this
LeviI was locked in a constant state of dreams and uncomfortable thoughts when they were operating on me.Part of me was conscious, but a bigger part of me just wasn’t. It was constantly floating in a state of blankness and anxiety, just a mish mash of things that shouldn’t go together. Sometimes I find myself dreaming of my parents and my childhood. Sometimes I find myself dreaming of my teenage years and my short days as an Alpha.But most of the time, I was dreaming of Arya.However, when I was about to wake up, I was dreaming of something else entirely. Something that resonated with my fear, the reason why I thought about bringing down the whole arena instead of participating in the fight that Connor and Lauren wanted to see.* * *In my dream, it was nighttime, and the lights in the arena are almost blinding me. My heart is pounding so fast that I feel like it's going to give out any moment. There are so many people around us. Too many, in my opinion. And they're all looking at
Arya“Arthur,” I mutter, his name leaving my lips like a plea as I shift around in his bed. I know perfectly well that I’m sleeping, but I also know that even in this state, Arthur is still the one in my mind. My Lycan, my mate, my love. Even though I know consciously that our relationship is in jeopardy because of his choices, I still want him, and he’s still the face I long to see in my dreams.And in my dream, I see him getting dragged away by the Rogues.“No!” I yell, but in this dream world, I’m voiceless. I’m powerless. All I can do is stand there while my mate gets clawed at by the dirty outcasts. All I can do is watch while he screams for me.“Help me, Arya!” His voice rings out in the darkness of our background. “Don’t let them take me!”He holds out his hand to reach for me. I extend my arm to get him. However, he’s already too far. He’s already too close to the mouth of the dark tunnel they’re taking him to. One of the Rogues, seeing that he has his hand outstretched, kick
AryaMy mouth goes dry at the sight of Arthur.He closes the distance between us, getting on top of me and taking both of my hands before putting them over my head.His lips are urgent on mine, intent on devouring. I can feel his hardness against my thighs. His hungry mouth travels down to my neck and on my collar bones, lower down to my breasts. When his warm mouth closes over my nipple, I almost explode. He sucks it, his tongue sweeping over it until I feel feverish. I close my eyes, not even aware that he let go of my hands until he starts to squeeze my other breast.He pulls his head away from my nipple and begins to suck the other. My hips are moving on their own. I'm so wet I can feel myself dripping on the sheets.I bury my hand in his hair, moaning loudly. But he's not done with me, cause before I knew it, his lips are traveling lower again. Until his face is between my legs. Lucien grabs my thighs and pries them apart. Then he leans forward, sweeping his tongue on my wet core
AryaLike an idiot, I turn to Arthur and ask, “About what?”He laughs softly, but the humor doesn’t reach his eyes. There’s a certain hint of sadness there, combined with another emotion that I can’t really place. Either way, seeing it in his eyes is throwing me a little off balance. I want to come with him and get to the bottom of it, but at the same time, I feel like he’s so serious that I don’t want to find out what he wants to say.“Just come with me,” he says gently. “Please?”“Well, of course,” I say, glancing back at Levi who is now sleeping soundly. “Who will be watching him? He can’t stay here alone, can he?”"I'm right here," Nancy says all of a sudden, appearing seemingly out of thin air. She wedges herself into the room and immediately comes to look at Levi, adjusting something on the IV that he's connected to. "I will be watching over him for the night. You two go talk, okay?""Thank you, Nancy," Arthur says, then he turns to me with that very same smile that doesn't reac
AryaMy heart leaps with joy. It’s something that I haven’t felt in what seems like forever, and I can feel it spreading all over me like a warm ray of sunshine. A smile appears on my face, and I look at Arthur.“He’s awake,” I whisper, and even I have to notice the sheer relief in my voice. “He’s alright. He made it. . . .”Arthur smiles at me and leans over to kiss my forehead. “I know, and I’m happy. Now go talk to him okay?”I nod, and with that I go with Nancy, who suits me up with a protective layer of clothing before we go inside.They have converted the infirmary room into a real hospital room. There are machines beeping everywhere, and there are also potions emitting sweet smelling steam somewhere in the room. There are some tools laying around, but the only thing that catches my attention is Levi lying down on the bed, his pillows fluffed up to prop him up into a sitting position.His face is pale, and his hair is slicked back over his handsome face with sweat. I can tell th
Arya“What is it?” I ask Nancy with my voice shaking immensely. I get up from my seat but I feel like the ground is lurching under my feet and I feel like I’m going to fall over if I don’t have something to cling onto. Thankfully, Arthur gets up and offers his arm to me. “What’s the problem?”Nancy hesitates, and I honestly hate how angry I became just in that moment. I want to scream at her and tell her that I am not playing games around here, that if something is up, then I must know immediately because I’ve been waiting for a long time to hear about him. Besides, the only person he has right now is me. His parents are not here and the others are back at the pack. I am the only one he has. . . .“Please,” I just say in a strained voice, looking at her and wanting to get on my knees and beg and corner her at the same time. Emotions are just running high inside my chest and I want nothing more but to know. “Please, what is happening? Is Levi okay? Will he make it?”“The truth is, I do
Arthur My blood goes cold. I swallow hard, thinking of what to say, but my mouth is completely dry and my throat is closing up. I want to assure Levi that I won’t leave him here, but he’s looking at me like he’s daring me to say those words just so he could reject them completely. So instead of talking it through with him and risking any rejection, I lift him up to his knees and very carefully start to chip away at the piece of rock lodged inside his body. Thankfully, the rock is easy to chip off, as it seems to be made of hardened mud instead of actual stone. I manage to clip it down close to his body so it won’t move or damage anything inside him. He kept groaning and screaming the entire time, and I just had to close my hearing so that I wouldn’t hear it and experience the pain of seeing him go through it. When I’m done, I take him into my arms, not caring about how weird it could look or what he has to say, and it seems that he still has a lot to say. As though to prove my poi