Saturday
Elle’s POV
Stepping into the room, Elle noticed that Corvin was unconscious on his bed. Someone had cleaned him of most of the blood beforehand. His white sheets were unsoiled. She wondered briefly if Arya had brought him up. Then she remembered the hulking men in the living room and put her wager on them.
Doctor Cayden and Arya whispered heatedly as they stood by Corvin’s bedside. Elle stepped up timidly. They both glanced at her and then continued whispering to each other as if she wasn’t there.
“So, you think his last encounter was a wraith?” Doc
Monday Elle’s POV Over the next 24 hours, the knocks on her door were people bringing food to her and Corvin from the kitchen. But neither Corvin nor Remus awakened. She couldn’t taste the food and didn’t feel hungry. She ate what she could stomach. She slept on Corvin’s shoulder and gasped whenever he moved. She expected him to wake up at any moment. But she also knew that her expectation was far-fetched because he was still severely injured. Doctor Cayden would be by soon to look at his patient and ensure that he was getting better. Elle waited for the company impatiently. When a knock came at the door, Elle jum
Monday Elle’s POV Although the words were all single syllables, Axel could have been speaking a foreign language for all the sense it made to Elle. “The who is doing what?” Axel’s face paled, and he took in a long ragged breath before pulling his hands over the length of his face. “Arya is leading the cleansing of the mines. But that left me dealing with the business end of things, and there is a reason Corvin does this.” Elle paused very briefly to consider why the female led the fighting and not the big strong Axel. But Corvin did say she
Tuesday Elle’s POV When she went into the bedroom, it was especially quiet. Corvin’s breathing had slowed a lot. She walked up to the bed and was about to sit down when a low, threatening growl greeted her. She glanced around the room. But as she moved away from Corvin, the growling subsided. She stepped back up to the bed. Remus growled low and threatening again as she sat next to him. She closed her eyes. She wanted to connect with him on whatever level he could experience right now. Gently, she placed her hand on his chest, and Remus barked at her ferociously. “It’s me, Remus.” She whispered softly, begging
Tuesday Elle’s POV After Axel left, Elle looked Arya in the eye, fighting back the tears. “I think I mistreated you last week. I wanted to start with an apology for not believing you and…” Arya hugged her. Elle felt confused and looked to Arya for clarification. “I am so happy you are handling it so well.” Her voice was sincere but exuberant as she tightened her arms around Elle. Elle hugged her back. It felt weird to think she owed someone an apology for so long, and then she just dismissed it. That person acts like what you did was right.
Tuesday Elle’s POV Elle led Arya into the living room, and they sat down next to each other on the couch. Arya was describing what young Corvin and Remus went through together. It fascinated and horrified Elle. She felt for the lost little boy, born a lonely hero. “I want to hear the rest,” Elle told her, extremely interested. Arya chuckled. “He was quite the sight tearing through those monsters at such speed, but for everyone that he killed, there were two more attacking him. I don’t know how he did it. They piled on top of him, but he still held their attention and then held them back so that we could pick at them from behind. It was crazy. But by the end of the day, Axel, Doctor Cayden, and I were the only pack members left out of a p
Tuesday Corvin’s POV Every time Corvin defeated a wave of brutal enemies, another wave would start. He had no idea when he last rested. His fatigued body was sore and his overworked mind exhausted, while the waves of enemies were merciless and exhausting. All Corvin could remember, as he viciously destroyed another monster, were eternal bloody battles. His enemies were unending, and he had no memory before them. The bloodsoaked battlefield was a cold, barren landscape engulfed him in darkness. He had no idea how long he had been trapped in this wretched cage, but he could feel it pressing in on him. Something deep inside knew another time and place where things had been different.
Tue-Wednesday Elle’s POV Someone delivered meal trays for both breakfast and lunch. At dinner time, Axel came and took out the table that Corvin used the night they had eaten on the couch together. It was as if Axel knew every inch of their apartment. He probably did. Axel placed the tray on the table before passing out the food between them while Arya and Elle sat on the couch talking. “We call him Octavio. He was the eighth child of his parents, so seven siblings should have inherited the seat before him. Still, none survived. He has accepted the name as one indicating strength and resilience. But it’s strange. There was no reason he should have outliv
W Wednesday Corvin’s POV Men, wolves, and monsters came at Corvin with constant fervor. Even when one would fall, the enemy would not falter or even slow. They all shared that one thing. The one thing that bound them together; a nightmare family birthed in hate with the singular purpose of taking him out, making him suffer. That one thing? No matter how many men, wolves, and monsters he destroyed, new enemies surged forward to take the place of the fallen ones. His mother’s words had come so sweetly, innocently. They reminded him of the tenderness he knew as a child. No sooner had he accepted the loving, endearing feelings than his mother’s tone turned da
FridayCorvins POVElle thoughtlessly disturbed his blessed silence and insisted that she stay. He didn’t know how he would restore his beautifully restrictive defenses. Then she witnessed his fall, unbidden and unwanted.She saw him at his worst and still refused to leave. He tried to force her to leave, but she wouldn’t. He didn’t want to give in to her presence, that tiny little nagging feeling. Everything was going to be alright. Elle was here. She had kept him going in the darkest of times, and now she wanted to be with him.If she were to reject him now, it would finish off his crushed soul. He desperately did not want to give her that chance. But Remus insisted that Corvin not chase her off.
Friday Elle’s POV It took several hours before she could finish resolving the conflict between the Alphas, and as intense as it got, she really enjoyed the debate. It reminded her of her friends in high school and how they would come to her to settle fights. Though, she hoped that was the extent of settling alpha disputes for a while. It wasn’t long before the new shirt and tea arrived. Doctor Cayden came. But Octavio refused to be evaluated despite the efforts made to arrange care. They ate dinner and drank wine as they vehemently discussed each person’s perspective. Elle did not appreciate the wine brought into it. But the debate slowly went from a passionate argument to an ardent discussion.
FridayElle’s POVAfter finding out that Fiel and Octavio were fighting, Elle groaned and indicated he should lead the way. She followed him to the dining hall, where Fiel and Octavio were in each other’s faces with their snarling betas behind them. They both barred their teeth in aggressive growls.“It is evident that it was necessary,” Octavio spoke in low menacing tones as he pressed aggressively towards Fiel.Fiel wasn’t about to back down.“It appears that you are the one who truly needs to be placed in the shackles you speak of.”His accent was especially pronounced ri
FridayElle’s POV The arrival of Aza SkerpTand was the next day, and Arya dressed Elle in a brightly colored wrap with abstractly embroidered edges. She also wore colorful beaded bracelets and necklaces. Arya explained that it was the traditional clothing of their people and would be seen as a sign of respect.Elle knew Luna Skerptand was a formidable member of the council. Axel and Arya had only glazed over her despite Aza being the only female. So Elle was surprised to see her traveling without an alpha.Instead, she had two beautiful women at her side. All four of them were tall and sleek. Their features were perfectly carved stone
ThursdayElle’s POVKnocking on Corvin’s door, she called out to him. “Corvin! Remus! I need to have a word with you guys. Can I please come in?”There was no response. She pushed the door gently, and it opened into a pitch-black room. Before Corvin woke up, Remus kept a light on, at least.She took a quick tentative step into the darkness, deeply aware that she wouldn’t see a monster until it clutched her in its maniacal grip. She tried to ignore the dark whisperings of her mind about what could be in there, hidden within the menacing shadows. The door behind her opened.Elle swung around with her pulse pounding in her chest. Corvin stood at
ThursdayElle’s POV Before going into Alpha PataDiamante’s room, Elle saw Corvin haunting the halls and looking like a long-dead apparition, shadows fed by lack of color. His dark eyes peered out from the blackness of shadows, emphasized by the paleness of his skin—a stalking monster lurking in his gloom. When she left the playful festivities in Alpha PataDiamante’s room, she expected to see Corvin, but he was gone. Briefly, she considered going up to their apartment. But quickly decided against it because she was still angry with him. Besides, she had a ton of other things to do.Her first stop would be the kitchen. With
ThursdayElle’s POVWhen Arya came back to get Elle ready, she explained that Corvin was ‘not feeling well.’ Apparently, it was why he said and acted so callously. But Elle already knew that he wasn’t well. Her confirmation only made Elle feel more gloomy. Should she have been kinder, more understanding?As Arya did her make-up, she spoke about how Corvin was not ready to face the council. Elle secretly knew that. But it filled her with an unhappy apprehension to know she was still without him in this matter.When Elle met Fiel at the airport, he flirted heavily with a petite blonde as his men gathered all the bags. She waited for him to finish talking to her. Then Elle sauntered over, cheerfully greeting hi
ThursdayCorvin’s POVDespite laying in bed all night, Corvin couldn’t will himself to go to sleep. Then, the awful dreams would return. He let so many people down. Would he be eternally stuck paying for his sins this time if he went back?It was so damn tempting to never speak to anyone again. The fewer people he let in, the fewer people he would hurt. And he would save his own ruined heart just a little.What was worse, Remus blamed Corvin for Elle not being here. He didn’t say it outright, but he wouldn’t stop whining about her absence. How would Corvin ever be able to sleep with all that racket in his own head?
Thursday-Friday Corvin’s POV Remus wouldn’t stop howling and trying to push forward. Corvin struggled to hold him back. Never before had Remus struggled for control like he did when he was around Elle, especially when he sensed her distress. After Corvin reacted so harshly, Remus had pushed until he agreed to come in here, show his appreciation for what she had done, and apologize. He had done that. It was the right thing to do anyway, and he knew it. So why was she upset now? He heard her sniffle and the crack in her voice and when she turned around, her eyes were wet and puffy. Remus attempted to surge forward again. ‘I have to help