Leah's POV
"They called it off for technical reasons?! Do you mean that if they had solved the technical reasons, they would have carried on with that project?"
Darren sighed and said, "Miss Lewyn, I really don't think we should start a debate about this..."
"It's unethical! We can't just play god like this and treat our own people like rats in the lab!" I said.
"They are not our own people, Miss Lewyn. They're rogues and outlaws..."
"They have family and friends! They settled down in Mediland and they chose to live a peaceful life. Only human beings are stupid enough to believe that one race is superior to the other I don't know wolves can be this stupid!" I said.
Darren remained silent. His indifference over this issue angered me.
I kept on going, "Think about Frank. He's a rogue. He's got five children and he used to be a gardener. Can you imagine subjecting him to some mad scientists' crazy thoughts and plans? How about Uma and Da
"Shut up, Josephine!" I urged, grabbing her shoulders."Oh, no! Leah's going to kill me! Help me, Darren! Please..." Josephine didn't finish her sentence, because I bumped her head against the floor and knocked her off."What have you done?!" Darren rushed forward and held Josephine in his arms. "You almost killed her! Her head is bleeding!""She was too noisy and I'd wanted to do that for a really long time." I shrugged.Darren was holding Josephine tightly, wiping the blood off her face with his sle
Leah's POVThe boat was swaying along the ocean waves in a tiny bay area on the far side of the dock.As I approached, I saw bodies of soldiers floating up and down next to the boat."Did you kill all of them?" I stared at Darren.He didn't answer and put Josephine, who was still unconscious, onto the berth inside the cabin.I learned sailing from my Father, who used to be a Navy Admiral when he was young. So I swiftly
Leah's POVAfter hanging up on Leo, I tried to focus on steering the wheel toward the south.If we kept heading south, we would get to Huffner Bridge. After passing that bridge, we would bid goodbye to all the chaos in Mediland and go back to civilization. Darren leaned against the mast. He intentionally kept a distance from me, which made me mad at him.I thought he would want to say something, but he didn't, which made me even madder."Don't you have to go back to the cabin and hold Josephine's hand? If she woke up and you're not there, she might cry her eyes out before killing someone again," I scorned. Darren stared into my eyes with passion and said, "Leah, you don't have to act like this. Jo's my mate. I don't have a choice but to follow the will of the Moon Goddess.""Stop looking at me like that." I turned my head away, avoiding making eye contact with him. I couldn't stay mad at him when he stared at me. "Leah..." Darren approached me and said in a soft voice. I didn't l
Jalin's POV"I hate you!" Leah climbed into the helicopter by herself, ignoring my stretching-out helpful hand.I took the blame obediently and unapologetically as always and withdrew my hand. Before I followed her into the helicopter, I looked back and saw that kid named Darren standing on the deck, wrapping a blanket around a trembling blonde girl.That must be the reason why Leah is mad. I thought to myself. She is throwing a tantrum because that sapphire-eye young man finds a new girlfriend."And I want to fire him! I don't ever want to see him again!" Leah put on a set of headsets while shouting out loud at me.I saw sparks in her eyes. She wanted to pretend to be cruel and heartless. But as always, she failed.She was just such a sweet and innocent girl that she could never be able to hurt anyone.That's why people like me exist. You know, people like me are friendly and polite all the time, but that doesn't stop
Leah's POVAs I walked into the Redwood Mansion, the first thing I noticed was the big ox head hanging at the center of the wall.I stared at the ox's head and frowned.That was the ox that took away my great-grandfather's life. I didn't know why an 83-year-old werewolf would want to fight an ox with bare hands. But I didn't know anything about our family history. My Father wouldn't tell me anything, neither did my brother Lucian."Sarcastic, isn't it?" A deep, mellow voice appeared behind me.I turned back and saw a tall, handsome man standing behind me.I hadn't seen Leo for so many years and I couldn't even recognize him.In the dimly lit corridors of the mansion, amidst the vast shelves of ancient tomes and the whispers of the ages, there strode a figure that exuded an aura of both brilliance and skepticism.Draped in a pristine white coat, Leo cut a striking figure. A pair of spectacles perched upon his
Leah's POV"What have you done to Finn?" I stood up and approached Leo. "His DNA was modified before he was even born. Are you out of your mind?!"I tried to suppress the anger in my chest, but it was pounding so hard that my chest was almost about to explode.Leo didn't avoid confronting me. He sat there, looking up straight into my eyes. I saw a mysterious smirk on the corner of his mouth."Now you're interested in my story," he said in a plain voice."I don't want to know anything about you and your sorry, miserable past, Leo. If you have really done what I thought you had done, you're nothing but a sick bastard!" I shouted at him."Keep the volume down, Leah. You can't rule this Kingdom with a hot temper like this," he said. "If the prophecy is true, you'll be the next Queen of the entire Kingdom. The first true she-wolf leader in the thousands of years of werewolf history.""What are you talking about?!" I asked in a pr
Leah's POV"The enhancement project had started even before I was born. But not until I took charge of it did it make substantial progress. Lester is my first lab toy. He somehow managed to survive our tests, so now he was following you everywhere you go. Do you remember the shadows lurking behind you from time to time in your life? That was Lester. He was trying to kill you for revenge, but his brother Darren managed to stop him every time he was trying to attack you."What? Darren was trying to protect me all this time from his brother.I closed my eyes and saw Darren's piercing blue eyes in my mind.I heard his trembling voice in my memory -"I've done everything for you, Leah. But sometimes, I can't help but feel that nothing that I've done is good enough for you."I wanted to cry, but I knew the liquids dropping from my eyes were nothing but my own blood."My second lab toy is Finn. His mother was a whore and she was strangle
Leah's POVNo one ever told me what death feels like. Being a Lycan, we expect to live to a hundred years without a second thought about our mortality. But I tasted the bitter sting of death that fateful day.As the world spiraled into a chaotic blur, Jalin's face contorted, his voice echoing in my mind. "Do. What. You. Are. Told," he chanted, and then darkness consumed me.The next thing I knew, a deafening bang jolted me awake. Light pierced my eyes as I struggled to regain my senses. Tears blurred my vision as I gasped desperately for air, feeling the grip of enormous hands lifting me up."Leah, I'm here. You're safe with me now," a familiar voice reassured."Lu... Lucas?" I reached out, my voice weak."Yes, Leah. It's me." He held my hand, pressing a gentle kiss to it."What happened?" I asked, shaking my head, trying to piece together the fragments of my memory. As my vision cleared, I saw soldiers filling the room."Why are there soldiers on my grandfather's carpet, Lucas?" My v
Lucas' POVThe Green Point bar stank of sweat and spilled whiskey. I watched the girl's throat work as she gulped the beer, amber liquid dripping down her chin like stolen honey. Her knuckles whitened around the glass. Thirsty little thing. Starving in ways I couldn't name."Did you...enjoy the beer?" I asked."It tastes like piss, but I'm thirsty," she wiped her mouth with the back of her hand."And did you enjoy today?" The question tasted rusty. Leah's ghost perched on the barstool between us, her hollow socket accusing me.The girl's shoulders hitched first. Silent sobs shook her frame, tears plinking into her empty glass. My chest tightened - that old reflex, that ancient guilt."What's going on? Did I do something wrong?" I held her hand and asked."It's just..." Her voice cracked like autumn leaves underboot. "Feels like the first real day. Like I've been sleepwalking till now. I've never been out for a proper date like this wi
Finn's POVThe studio gates loomed like iron teeth. I stepped through, the scent of fake blood and sweat slapping me harder than the California heat. Outside, the Hills smoldered, ash staining the sky. Inside, they’d built a pantomime of apocalypse - extras in matted fur howling at a green screen, their plastic fangs glinting under klieg lights.A director barked into a headset. "Action!"A truck flipped, screeching on cables. A blonde actress spilled out, naked and screaming. From the rafters, a man in denim descended, Gatling gun roaring blanks. Extras dropped, melodramatic, as he scooped her up. Their kiss was all teeth, a parody of passion."Cut!" The director rubbed his temples.Complaints about the heat erupted - especially from the actress, who snatched a robe and cursed the air conditioner's death."Lycidas, could you try to use your tounge this time?" the director shouted.The cowboy - Lycidas - flashed a grin, all wolf
Lucas' POVThe girl looked nervous as I hauled her into the Mediland's golden throat. The mall's fluorescence carved the girl into something spectral. She hovered between racks of silk and chiffon, fingers brushing fabric like she expected it to bite. The salesgirls' laughter hung sharp in the air - hyenas circling a limping doe.To my surprise, my hearing was back. I could clearly hear what they were mumbling behind the racks. "Look at her. Poor little rat. How could someone like her end up with Alpha Lucas?" a girl whispered."Gold digger. Social climber. Boot licker...""And cock sucker!"They giggled.I silently sighed and ignored them.I looked at the girl. She looked overwhelmed. I knew she must have heard what they'd said. She lowered her head and stood there, looking lost.I walked to her."Pick something," I said."I don't need anything..." the girl looked horrified at the price tags. "Could
Lucas' POVThe girl's boots dragged against the restaurant's marble steps, scuffing gloss into dust. Her coat hung loose, threadbare at the elbows—a thrift-store relic in a kingdom of gold trim and crystal. I didn't blame the hostess for curling her lip.This is the human quarter of Mediland. A high-end steakhouse in the human world is supposed to be stunk of judgment."No reservations?"The hostess flicked her gaze over the girl's messy cropped hair, the grease and blood clots crusted on her hem. Her voice was polished ice. "We're full. Try the soup kitchen down the block."The girl didn't flinch. Just stared at the chandelier, jaw working like she was chewing the light itself. I leaned against the podium, leather gloves creaking. "Tell Danny I'm here.""The manager?" A laugh, sharp as broken stemware. "I'm sorry, Sir. You look like a decent gentleman, but he doesn't entertain strays."Then the doors swung open, and the scent hit me -
Leah's POVThe moment I crossed Alpha Finn’s threshold, his pets slithered in behind me. Annet and Donna - branded vipers with just enough leash to sink fangs into weaker girls.The door clicked like a trapspring. I kept scrubbing, gouging filth from floorboards until my knuckles split. Soapwater turned pink. They circled, lacquered claws glinting. Donna’s stiletto cracked across my hand."Lookit this guttermouse playing vixen," Annet crooned. "Sneaking into Alpha Lucas' chambers all night - think we're blind?" "Maybe she's graduated to bootlicker," Donna trilled. Her heel ground deeper. "C'mon, whore. Demonstrate your special talents." Blood bloomed beneath her stiletto. I bit through my lip - iron tang kept the scream caged. "Cat got your tongue?" Annet's slap snapped my head sideways. "You yowled plenty for Lucas. Think Finn’ll enjoy hearing how you serviced his brother?" "Alpha Lucas wasn't—" "Liar!" The backhand left my ears ringing. I spat crimson, kept scouring wo
Lucas' POVThe girl's hands danced. Apron strings became a lover's knot at her waist. Eggs cracked one-handed, yolks bobbing like liquid suns. I watched, transfected, as she transformed slaughter into sacrament—French toast glazed in maple, coffee dark as a sinner's heart."How did you do it?" I gestured at the golden crust.She flipped a pancake. "Alpha Finn liked his girls versatile."The first bite dissolved on my tongue—cinnamon, nutmeg, vengeance."Why do you rub your neck like that?" the girl asked."I don't know. I slept on the couch and woke up like this..."Before I finished, she circled behind me, palms hovering above my neck."May I?""Well..." I mumbled.Her touch was wildfire. Knuckles pressed the base of my skull, thumbs working knots from muscle. I groaned."Quiet," she chided, but her fingers lingered. "You're worse than dogs."I lifted up my head and howled to the ceiling
Lucas' POVDim light bled through the cracks in the door, striping the girl's face as she scrambled backward, her boots kicking over jars of pickled things that rolled like severed heads. Her eyes were wild - a rabbit's stare, all whites and panic."Don't," I hissed, slamming the door shut behind us. The lock clicked, too loud.She lunged for a rusted shovel leaning against the wall. "Stay back!" The blade trembled in her grip, but her voice didn't. "Alpha Finn's already got me cleaning piss-pots. You think I'll let his whore add to the list?"The word stung, though it shouldn't have. I'd been called worse."I'm not here to hurt you," I said, edging closer. The room was a cage, shelves cluttered with burlap sacks and broken tools. A single bulb swung above, casting jagged shadows."Right. You dragged me in here to chat?" Her gaze dropped to my chest. "Take off your shirt. I want to see your branding."I froze. I didn't have any brandi
Lucas' POVThe following day brought no respite from the chaos swirling in my mind.More slaves were sent back by Finn. No one really knew what kind of shithole he pulled them out from and no one bothered to ask. The slaves were screaming and crying in at least 20 different languages. Soldiers were mad and barking at everything. Some knuckleheads got into a fight after drinking. No one tried to stop them, but everyone was naturally betting on who the winner was. Things went south and everyone lost, which led to more rows, more fist fights, and more bets. Besides, the Huffner Bridge was, again, paralyzed because some kids set it on fire by last night's fireworks. The Commisioner of Transportation and Domestic Affairs of the Court called in one after another and pressed me if I was intentionally sabotaging the connection between the Kingdom and Mediland, which was still "hanging on a thread". Then, more slaves came in, followed by more screaming, crying, and barking.
Lucas' POVLeo's work had been meticulous, his notes filled with promises of strength and clarity. If I could find him, if I could convince him to perform the procedure, maybe—just maybe—I could reclaim what I'd lost... The connection between me and my precious Leah.But how? Finn had control over everyone, including Leo. The thought of reaching out to him felt impossible, a bridge too far.Yet, the Moon Goddess' words echoed in my mind. What you already have. What did I have? Nothing, it seemed. Except for this gnawing determination to save Leah, to protect her no matter the cost.The next morning, I found myself drawn to the Grove, the section of Mediland where Finn's maids lived. It was an unusual impulse, one that surprised even me. As I approached the small house nestled among the trees, memories flickered at the edges of my consciousness—fragments of a life I couldn't quite grasp.Through the window, I spotted the girl I met