~Rory~
“What the hell is Jace doing?” I grumbled under my breath. Blood pumping fast in my veins, I stepped out of the pub.
The guys told me that Jace and Paul had an argument with two other fellows in the booth next to us. ‘They are going to settle it like adults,’ were Ethan’s exact words. He was wise not to get in the middle of the situation. Four men in an alley will gather less attention than a larger crowd. I can’t really blame Ethan for trusting Paul. He had done this too many times back when we were together. He knew how to keep things on a low profile, but knowing his true identity sent gooseflesh to rise on my arms and legs.
Jace was a wild card. He never does anything without intent, but it was unclear what he wanted to get out of this one.
~Elijah~“You have been warned.” I could practically hear Jace’s smug voice in my head as I watched Rory step inside her parent’s home.Sadly, I can’t even argue with him. Nolani and Henry, who swore to serve me for eternity, sided with Jace when we were planning this night.I had word from my spy that Greco recently learned of Jace and Paul’s existence and aims to capture one of the twins. Jace would die first before bowing to the dark king, leaving Paul a defenseless prey for Greco’s spy and Tauri.Henry was still digging deeper into how Paul was given to the Lewis family. The Lewis’ had been one of the founding residents of Salvatore Hills. I came across a few of that family’s ancestors. Through time, they’ve
~Rory~ Lilacs. It hit me like a wind brought by a super typhoon. Someone was watching me from the couch. I couldn’t see in the dark, but like Elijah said, I don’t need my eyes to see what’s around me. A strong current in the air, like static energy, flickers in the dark. Two other individuals are inside this house. One stood right across from me where mom’s beige couch sat, and one was upstairs, right inside my room. The one downstairs wears the static energy. It’s my dad, or who he should be based on his scent and his silhouette that’s becoming visible as my eyes adjust to the darkness. The other’s essence, the one upstairs, glows like a bulb with a day’s life left on it. Fear had my heart galloping wildly inside my che
~Elijah~I should’ve met with Rory’s parents before I started dating her. I’ve seen them from a distance yet felt and saw nothing out of the ordinary. After Rory moved to Salvatore Hills, Tauri must have cloaked himself as Loren Grayson, but the spy… it’s another question I couldn’t put out of my head. How did I not feel his essence or his energy? There were only a few individuals powerful enough to hide from me, and most of them lived inside the castle, never setting foot in the human world.“Where is Loren Grayson?” Nolani asked. Inside the cell was another cage made of steel from the fae world. It was specially made to hold supernatural beings inside. There was a spell binding the cage together, restraining whoever was inside from using any kind of magic. It was once used to hold the untamed wolf spirit warrio
Hi loves, How are you doing these days? I won't be able to update the story today. A lot is going on in my personal life these days. One is that I'm moving out of my current residence, which is taking too much of my time and energy. I apologize for the delay, but I aim to finish Elijah and Rory's story this month. If not, the longest would be the first week of May. Thank you for understanding. x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x4.19.22
~Rory~I agreed to Andrew’s bargain - it felt strange to address him as my father anymore. Even trusting his words was formidable.He understood my inhibitions.He put the barrier around the house down so Ali could walk through. I watched Ali take Tala’s limp human body out of my room. We exchanged a few words, and I told him I’d be fine, to tell Elijah I could handle myself, and this was my way of fulfilling my promise to Tala.Ali was hesitant to leave me behind, but Tala’s essence was fading fast. She looked like the woman in my dream, but in her worse state. Her eyes were half-open; green eyes were like leaves deprived of sunlight for weeks, drained of their natural glow. Her skin was wilted from being soaked in water for a long time. I rememb
~Rory~There was no reason for me to feel any kind of resentment for Elijah about his past. He was two thousand years ahead of me. He didn’t spend it waiting for me as much as I didn’t spend my twenty-four years waiting for him to come and sweep me off of my feet. Yet I can’t push aside the pang of seeing him reach for another woman’s waist with my naked eyes.They disappeared through the crowd. Elijah took the woman to the narrow path on the side of the street.This is probably what Andrew aimed at taking me back in time, to break whatever bond Elijah and I have by toying with my emotions. Rationally, I shouldn’t follow Elijah. I shouldn’t subject myself to more jealousy when I know in my heart that Elijah loves me wholeheartedly. My feet had a mind of their own, though.
~Rory~The rational thing to do was step away from the things causing us pain. Yet I choose to stay and wait with Henry.The bitterness in my chest was comparable to drinking kale juice. But I fought the urge to run.There was a reason Andrew wanted me to see this, and I wanted to know what it was, no matter how painful it might be. Also, I kept in mind that this was Elijah’s past; I am his present and his future. If Andrew aims to break us apart or persuade me to change what I feel for Elijah, he must do more than this stunt.When Elijah stepped out of the house, he patted Henry’s shoulder, who merely rolled his eyes in return.“I’m busy,” Elijah murmured, running his fingers through his hair, l
~Rory~My eyes filled, my chest ached, and my head spun from all the things happening around me. How could this be possible?Weak on the knees, I leaned my back on the closed door for support.“The mate bond is absolute, Eli,” she replied, eyes brimming with mist. “In this world, it is. But there are ways to sever our bond.”Burned by her words, Elijah dropped his hand to his side, staring at Agata as if she said the world would come to an end tomorrow. “In this world?” he repeated. “You mean one of us has to die? Is that it?”She nodded a yes; a tear rolled down her cheek as she lowered her gaze to his chest. I understand why she can’t look him in the eyes. His pain was o
“Jace…” “Sh…” I cooed, kissing her quivering lips. Her cheeks were wet from crying. I wiped it away with my thumb as our lips grew frantic, unwilling to pull apart. Her kiss was different. It wasn’t of love but of sadness, of fear. Fear of what? I do not know. “I love you, Aurora,” I said, cupping her face. “I will come back.” “There must be another way….” She whimpered, pinching her eyes close, setting her hand above mine. “You know there isn’t. Plus, I get to be the hero in this story.” She shook her head. An outcry followed, and she was snatched away from me. “No!” I pushed up from the bed, sweat rolling down my skin. Running my fingers through my drenched hair, I exhaled the emotions brought by that dream. This night was different. Usually, it would end with me telling Aurora I would come back. Now I am boasting about being a hero? What the hell does that even mean? A dream about Aurora was another sleepless night for me. The full moon made me restless. I shouldn’t have taken
~Elijah~Henry sighed. “Can you at least pretend that you’re listening to what I’m saying?”We are on our way back from inspecting the western border of Sapiro. The peace in the kingdom was monotonous, but boring is better than war. Last month, there was a conflict between the Lockwood pack of the west woodland and the Riverstone pack of the northern woodland. Alpha Lockwood believed that the members of the Riverstone packs were crossing the border to hunt for food. And Alpha Riverstone was throwing the same accusation towards the Lockwood pack. They could hunt in each other’s territory, but they had to ask for permission from the other pack.We did an investigation, and it turned out that Alpha Lockwood’s firstborn son had been sneaking out to meet Alpha Riverstone’s youngest daughter in secret. Both teenage wolves were afraid their parents would disagree with their blooming romance. They recently found out they were mates.Lockwood and Riverstone had a century-long rivalry. And it w
~Rory~For weeks, I’ve been dreaming of a boy with gray eyes, dark brown curls, and a snooty smirk. He was playing on the beach, sitting on the sand. His trousers were wet from the waves hitting his leg on the side, hands and toes were covered in sand... his cheeks too. He kept rubbing the back of his hands on his cheeks, leaving traces of wet sand there.He looked up and met my eyes, smiling brightly. Those gray eyes twinkled as his eyes narrowed to slits. He dropped the shells he was playing with and raised those tiny hands, opening and closing, asking to be picked up. When I didn’t, his lips quivered, eyes widened as a saucer, clouded with tears. His cry was so loud that I woke up from my sleep, discovering I was alone in our bed.Looking on Elijah’s side, a red rose lay on his pillow, weighing down a paper folded in half.The sun hasn’t risen yet, but he told me he’d be out the entire day to check the western border of Sapiro, accompanied by Henry.I reached for the rose, sniffing
~Rory~ I refused to live in the castle. It was aesthetically beautiful but a constant reminder of what I lost when I stepped inside its vicinity. The council disagreed with my choice, but Elijah was adamant about giving me what I wanted. We compromised on building our home close to the castle. Surrounded by trees in the clearing ten minutes away from the citadel, they turned it into a keep, a fortress, yet I got to design how our house would look like. It was inspired by Elijah’s estate in Salvatore hills. The place where Elijah and I had been the happiest. I am happy to be with him, truly, and I could never ask for more. But life as royalty was not as glamorous as I thought it would be. As the crowned princess, responsibilities weighed upon my shoulder even in my sleep. It’s different from working a nine-to-five job where day-offs and holidays are offered. In fact, rest has become a foreign word in this household. Elijah was always out. He spends more time with his council, meeting
~Rory~The moment my eyes fluttered open and saw the familiar gray ceiling of Elijah’s room, tears brimmed in my eyes.I feel the same old me, but not. The fear in my chest deepened as the seconds ticked by. I’m alive. Jace’s plan worked.I pushed myself from the bed, hearing footsteps echoing through the hallway. Not a second later, Elijah barged into his room, hair disheveled and eyes wide with worry and relief in equal measure.“Rory…” he breathed out, eyes clouding as he ran to my side.“Elijah…” I buried my face in his chest as he cradled my body, murmuring how grateful he was that I was alive, worried, and much he loved me.Words are not enough to voice out my happiness. My throat was tight, with emotions storming inside me.We are alive, Elijah and I. We survived the ritual and that damn prophecy.“Cara mia,” Elijah cupped my face, leaning to press his lips against mine.His kiss did it if his touch wasn’t enough to convince me how alive we were. The familiar taste of him. The
~Elijah~“Do you want to have children?” Rory asked, glancing up at me with those big brown eyes. Her cheeks were flushed from our previous coupling, hair wild from my tugging and pulling. The warmth of her naked body entangled with mine was heaven under the silk sheets.“Children?” I repeated my thumb, drawing circles on the small of her back. “Plural?”She hummed a yes, circling the crown of my nipple. She knew it was my tickle spot, but she loved tickling me. I caught her fingers and playfully bit them.“Yeah.” She giggled, squirming. “Being an only child is sometimes lonely.”I honestly wouldn’t know. I didn’t actually have a normal childhood. King Emilian was kind and did everything to give me what a child my age must have. But circumstances didn’t allow him to be a father like he did with Greco and Orme. He was forced to take me out of Lira to protect me.I relished the way she talked about the future. A glow in her eyes only appears when she doesn’t worry about the prophecy or
~Rory~Tayen and Jace were just leaving with reinforcements when we arrived at Salvatore Hills. After bringing them up-to-date on what happened with Elijah, we had to devise a new plan in under ten minutes.They were keeping Elijah on the estate’s west side ruins. It was the highest part of the land and the best spot to see the eclipse at its peak.Even if Henry, Tayen, and Nolani knew this place like the back of their hands, planning this attack was difficult. We cannot be overconfident with the advantage we have.Jace and Henry did a quick sweep of the area, taking details on the number of the enemies waiting for us to come. Meca was with them. She was Agata’s witch friend and Greco’s mistress. Our best guess is that she’s the reason Greco was able to survive the Lycan venom he attained two thousand years ago. She has grown stronger, is what Henry told us. She also cast the warding in Greco’s room; hence, the witch we have to unbind Elijah from.About thirty vampires were guarding t
~Rory~“What do you mean he was taken?” I threw my hands in the air.After Elijah vanished from my grasp, I called Henry, Nolani, and Ali into Greco’s room.I told Ali what had happened after he left. There wasn’t so much to tell, anyway. He literally just disappeared, as if he suddenly harnessed Ali’s disappearing act and did the trick on me.We’ve turned the room inside out. Nolani and Henry went to the other quarters to see if there was a witch’s hex bag or any clue that might lead us to where Elijah went but came out bereft of answers.“It’s the only explanation I have right now,” Ali murmured dejectedly. The three of them looked tired and shaken. They have been in the heart of the war, and Elijah’s disappearance clearly imposes a toll on their morale.“But how can someone as powerful as Elijah be taken with no trace?” I asked, desperate to know where he was.We’ve completed the mate bond, but I can’t feel him or reach him. Our bond was supposed to be stronger than ever, which mea
~Rory~Something is happening to me. There was an unfamiliar, simmering energy inside me.Like a spring suddenly appeared somewhere in my core, an endless energy flow blossoming into a beautiful sensation that enticed my body to wake up from a deep sleep.It was exhilarating.“Open your eyes, cara mia,” Elijah’s melodic voice floated in my thoughts. “Please… come back to me... I love you.”I searched for the will to do as he asked. His pain was excruciating. He was in agony, and I wanted to ease his torment away.Forcing my body to move, I squeezed my eyelids and obliged them to part. The bright light blinded me. The war’s outcry brought me back to where, how, and why I felt so much pain in my body. Greco. Recollection of what happened before I lost consciousness flooded my brain.Like an image that suddenly made sense, my pupils adjusted to focus on the man holding me.Elijah smiled down at me. His eyes were wild with a mixture of emotions, cheeks drenched with tears and crimson liqu