BELLA:“Welcome, students from Howlstone Academy and Frost pack, to the ultimate werewolf hunting camp experience!” The camp director, a tall man brimming with charisma, announced through the megaphone.His enthusiastic greeting was met with groans from our bus.“I wish he would stop,” Ryder muttered, prompting me to lift my head from his shoulder.The students were already filing out of the bus, so we stood and joined the line, following the crowd outside. As soon as my feet touched the campgrounds, I was struck by the sheer size of the place. I breathed in the fresh air, feeling the cool breeze that the tall trees stirred up as they swayed gently around us.I looked around, taking in the grandeur of the scene before me. The entrance was impressive, with tall, intricately designed gates that opened up to a beautifully landscaped garden. The path leading into the camp was lined with lanterns, casting a warm, inviting glow for the evening.“Wow!” I exclaimed.“You should have seen it f
Bella:“Attention campers! Attention campers!”The voice of the camp director came through the public address system in the middle of the campgrounds, followed by a siren that made me jump out of bed, my knees hitting the floor hard.For a moment, I stayed like that, covering my ears with both hands, silently cursing the man. Did he have a problem with sleep? I wondered.“Can we catch a fucking break?” Hazel groaned, throwing a pillow over her head.The siren stopped, and I pushed myself up, just as a knock came at the door. Slowly, I made my way over, rubbing my eyes, trying to wipe away the remnants of sleep. When I opened it, Kai stood there.“We wanted to be sure you guys were awake. We have to prepare for the day,” he said.My brows furrowed. The siren was loud enough to wake someone who’d been dead for a thousand years. Picking a fight would’ve been easy, but something in me chose peace. I muttered an “Okay,” then shut the door.Hazel got up, quickly making her bed, and we start
THIRD PERSON POV:“What?” they all echoed, and Hazel yanked her hand away from him as she looked him in the eyes once more, feeling nothing but visible disgust.They couldn’t imagine anything worse than that. He just had to be related to Fae.“I get it now. Riley Storm, but without the claw. How could I have been so stupid?” Hazel questioned, sharing a glance with Bella, who couldn’t tell what to feel.She wanted Hazel to be happy, but she knew that would be almost impossible with whatever this was.“I used to think things couldn’t get worse, but it just did, and...”“Wait,” Riley cut her off before she could finish. “You’re judging me for being related to Fae?” he asked.“Yes!” both girls echoed, and he raised a brow.“Fae might not have done anything to hurt you, but she’s done that to a lot of us, and the entire school hates her. She’s worse than the devil,” Bella said, and Riley swallowed hard, knowing it would be difficult to get Hazel to like him.He was genuinely interested in
THIRD PERSON POV:“No! NO!” Hazel screamed as she backed away from Riley.This wasn’t what she needed at the moment, and she couldn’t bear the thought that she was unlucky. Did the moon goddess really hate her that much? She questioned herself as she took to her heels.Bella went after her at once, but Hazel was so fast that she almost tripped.“Hazel!” Riley called out, trying to follow her, but the triplets blocked his way.“We won’t let you do that,” Finn said, his hands clenched into fists.“But she’s my mate, and—”“You cannot force yourself on her,” Ryder stated firmly.“Do we have a problem here?” Riley’s best friend, Ian, asked, standing behind Riley with a hard stare directed at the triplets.Ian had been watching for a while, and he felt the need to step up for his friend. The triplets stared at the brown-haired boy, who was about their height, but he didn’t look intimidating because they all had similar builds. So, they stood their ground. If they wanted a fight, they were
THIRD PERSON POV:“Meet me at my cabin, 609. You have only a minute to prove yourself to me.”When Riley saw the message from Hazel, something inside him reignited. He showed his friend Ian the text. They were already dressed and in line for dinner, but he didn’t feel the need to stay anymore.“You should go for it. I mean, she’s your mate, not just any random girl,” Ian said, and Riley nodded.He left the line immediately and made his way out of the food hall. Stopping at the snack shop, he bought some chocolates and snacks, then quickened his pace until he reached the cabin.He came to a halt, taking a deep breath. Before he could knock, Hazel, who had smelled him from afar, opened the door, leading him into the living space, a small room with two sofas and a small fireplace. They walked past the dining area, where a small wooden table with five seats stood, and she opened the door to the room she shared with Bella.Riley, on the other hand, admired the room, and it clicked that one
THIRD PERSON POV:Hazel awoke the next day with Riley’s head on her chest. Just looking at him, she felt her entire body heat up, and she wondered what it would feel like to have him. However, she didn’t want to seem desperate, so she only clutched her hands tightly around his bare back, caressing it.His hands wriggled under her, so she lifted her body slightly, allowing him to take out his right hand, which he ran along her cheek, then on her lips while his head rested against her shoulder. Tiredly, he let out a groan, raising his head a little and sliding until his face met hers.Their lips met gently, brushing against each other softly as his hands reached for her waist. Hazel didn’t object because her body wanted this, but she was scared of being used. Suddenly, he broke the kiss, trailing his lips down her neck to her cleavage. Just as his hands reached for the fabric of her chest, her alarm went off, startling him. He quickly kissed her again, chuckling against her lips.“That’
THIRD PERSON POV:Adrenaline kicked in as Hazel was grabbed, causing her to scream, then Riley put a hand over her mouth as he rested his back against a tree. By now, she already knew it was him from his scent, causing her brows to furrow.She relaxed a bit, which made him take his hands off her, then she pulled away, turning to face him. Deep down, she was happy that he didn’t give up on her, but a part of her was angry because of the false panic attack he gave her.“I’m sorry, I couldn’t stay away from you,” he said to her, then reached for her hand.Hazel found her body becoming weak as her tough-girl attitude vanished the moment he drew her in. His hands went around her waist, pulling her closer with the box in front serving as an obstruction.Riley grabbed the box, placing it on the ground.“That’s better,” he said with a smile hanging on his face. “You look breathtaking,” he continued, causing Hazel to turn her face to the side to hide the reddening of her cheeks.Yesterday, he
THIRD PERSON POV:Hazel pulled away from Riley as she heard her name echo repeatedly from Finn.“I should get going,” she said to him, and he nodded with his hands still wrapped tightly around her.He didn’t want to let her.“I’ll be fine. The triplets take care of me very well, and Bella too.” When she said this, he shut his eyes, placing a kiss on her forehead.He knew this, but he didn’t want just that. As her mate, he wanted to be her support system, but he knew better than to push it.“Okay,” he muttered, letting her slip out of his hands.He ran his thumb over her face, wiping off the stain of tears. She held his gaze for a split second before kissing his lips.“I’ll see you at dinner,” she said, picking up the box from the ground.Then she made her way out of the bushy surrounding to the clear path where she saw Finn, who was already walking ahead of her. She hastened her pace, tapping him gently on his shoulder. This startled him, and he turned around with his arms in a defens
THIRD PERSON POV:The trio drove for hours, finally making it to the frost pack.“I was not going to Howlstone because I did not have time for their numerous security checks,” Halle said, and Hazel took out her phone, asking Bella to meet them at a restaurant.She placed her phone back into her pocket.“Bella and Finn would meet us at the restaurant. I told them Halle didn’t want to go to Howlstone,” she explained to Riley and Halle as Riley drove to a random restaurant in town.Soon, they came to a halt and stepped out of the car. Then they made their way through the sliding doors of the restaurant. They chose a booth and made themselves comfortable. Then Hazel communicated the name of the restaurant to Bella and Finn. Luckily for them, Bella and Finn were close by, and soon they walked through the front door.The cozy atmosphere of the restaurant felt at odds with the tension that hung over them all. As they approached them, Hazel felt a bit of relief, which allowed her to soften he
THIRD PERSON POV:The early morning sun crept through the curtains, casting a soft glow across the room. Hazel stirred first from her slumber, her body aching as she shifted against the cold floor. A dull, throbbing headache pounded at her temples, and when she blinked her eyes open, the events of last night felt like a hazy blur.Next to her was Riley, who groaned as he slowly opened his eyes. His hand instinctively reached for his head, as if trying to push away the pain.“Ugh, what the hell happened?” Riley mumbled, squinting at the ceiling before glancing over at Hazel with confusion etched on his face. “Why are we on the floor?”Hazel pushed herself up, groaning as the ache in her muscles intensified. Her mind felt foggy. It was a jumbled mess of fragments of last night, but as soon as her eyes fell on her spell book, which was on the floor, she remembered the spell, and the shifting table, and the wind that took them out.Her voice faltered as everything pieced together. Then sh
Third Person Pov:After a few minutes, Hazel sat up in bed as sweat clung to her skin while she stared blankly at the dark room. The thoughts of what had happened earlier still swirled through her mind, and Riley’s comforting presence next to her did little to soothe the icy knot of fear and dread settling deep in her stomach. Something about the nightmare didn’t feel right—it felt far too vivid, and too real to be just a dream. Her parents’ faces and the accusations in their voices couldn’t be figments of her imagination, and the witch in her refused to let it go.“No,” she whispered in a shaky breath.Riley’s hand rubbed soothing circles on her back. “Hazel, it was just a nightmare. It’s okay—”He tried to convince her with a sleepy voice, but Hazel shook her head sharply, pushing the covers off her body as she swung her legs over the edge of the bed.“It wasn’t just a nightmare, Riley,” she said firmly, trying to steady her voice. Her parents had never come to her, and now that the
THIRD PERSON POV:One would have thought Bella was crazy because of what she was seeing, but she was far from that. She wasn’t the only one plagued by ghosts, but no one knew this for now. While Bella was battling the ghost of Joseph Black-Moon, Hazel was in the Dusk Pack with Riley, trying to enjoy her weekend.They had spent the entire day driving from the Frost pack to his father’s mansion at a beach with a good ocean view. Finally, they got there in the evening.“My butt hurts,” Hazel groaned as soon as Riley came to a halt in the enormous mansion in front of them.Riley leaned in to kiss her cheek. “You can rest all night now, and we can do whatever we want tomorrow.”He spoke as though he hadn’t been the one driving the entire time while Hazel had done nothing but play songs, read a book, and sleep through the entire ride. They both got down from the car, and Riley took Hazel’s bag from her, grabbing her hand with his other hand, then they made their way to the front door. He sl
Bella:“What?” I asked, staring at Finn.“Is something wrong?” Finn asked, and I shook my head at once, shutting my book and getting to my feet. “Bella, is something wrong?” I felt a slight shiver as his hands grazed my skin, then I turned to face him.For a moment, I battled with my mind, wondering if I should spill what I knew to him, but if I didn’t, I would have to solve whatever this was, and I didn’t want to follow the same path I did with Fae.“He is the man from my dream last night.” The words came out of my mouth, and Finn stared with his face contorted in confusion.I sighed, then walked back to the bed.“I had a nightmare last night,” I said to him, and he sat close to me as I started narrating everything I could remember from the dream.I ended by saying, “The dream felt so real, and I have a scar from it.” I showed him the mark on my hand, and he ran his hands over it.“According to Hazel, you didn’t kill Bonnie, so why is she mad at you? She should be mad at Sebastian.”
Bella:Today was cheerful enough for most of the students at Howlstone Academy. The vibrant energy of exam prep filled the air, a relief from the tension that had shadowed the halls two weeks ago when Fae was expelled. There were no bullies lurking around to ruin the day, and for once, I didn’t have to glance over my shoulder, expecting someone to plot my demise.As usual, I walked to class with Hazel and the triplets. The sun streamed through the tall windows, casting long beams across the polished floor, but something about the brightness felt off. It was too cheerful, too perfect. As soon as we stepped into the hallway, the bell blared through the air, startling me.“That’s the bell for class,” Hazel said, her voice snapping me back to reality.“See you guys later,” I said to the triplets, giving them a quick wave as I grabbed Hazel’s hand.We made our way down the corridor, the familiar hum of conversation and footsteps filling the space. At our lockers, I grabbed the books I need
THIRD PERSON POV:CONTINUATION OF FLASH BACKAll hell was let loose when the Luna knew that the first child would be a girl, but there was nothing she could do immediately. This made her decide she would stress Evelyn out so much in order to cause a miscarriage. She started maltreating Evelyn throughout the pregnancy, but she never did this in front of Herald. She was a saint when he was around, but the moment he stepped out, the two women were at loggerheads.Herald believed that Evelyn’s constant nagging was from the effects of the pregnancy, so he provided more material things for her without waiting to hear her out each time she tried to complain to him. This continued until the Fifth month of the pregnancy when Evelyn started spotting. The stress had weighed her down so much that her body could no longer take it.She was placed on bed rest, and she feared her baby would die. That same night, she woke Herald up because she was in a lot of pain, but he didn’t believe that she would
THIRD PERSON POV:Evelyn knew that her life without Fred wasn’t going to be rosy, but she didn’t expect what her in-laws had in store for her. On her first night at the Rune pack, she asked for a room where she could be alone, but her mother-in-law laughed.“What do you think you are here for?” she questioned, and Evelyn stared at her, unsure of what she was playing at. “You just got married, and you act like you do not know what couples do on their first night together. I mean, you have done it before, so continue from…”“I didn’t sleep with Herald,” Evelyn said, but Kate didn’t care.She had achieved what she wanted, and she was certain she had secured beautiful and strong grandchildren to take over their lineage.“Lie all you want, child, but you will sleep with your husband tonight, and you both will produce an heir for this family,” she said, and then Evelyn watched the guards move her things into Herald’s chamber.Herald, on the other hand, didn’t return on time that night. The
Bella:I felt the air being knocked out of my lungs as I asked my mother the question. She hurriedly shut the door, then faced me, shaking her head.“Why would you say that, Bella?” she asked, and I shrugged.“That day in your office, when Hazel talked about things that reminded you of the past, you glanced at me. You must not like me that much, and I definitely remind you of something you want to forget,” I said, watching her shut her eyes momentarily.“I do not hate you, Bella, and I never would. Of course, you remind me of my past because you are my daughter, and I’ve had you for sixteen years plus, and—”“Mum, stop!” I cut her off, raising my tone, forcing her to fall silent.I was tired of being driven around in circles. I wanted answers.“I need to know what happened with you and Dad because it kills me every single time I think about it,” I said, and she scoffed, shaking her head.“You do not need to know everything, Bella, and it’s called the past for a reason. So, do you want