Sebastian POVI trudge up the stairs, grocery in hand and a weight of despair hung heavy over my shoulders. Everything I've done this last week did nothing to help Ruby or this town. 'Claim her!' Kane whispered repeatedly in my soul. I growled, the dark anger inside me echoing through the corridor. I should claim her! She is mine, always has been! I closed my eyes as I walked up the last few steps. The power inside me swirling, banging at my chest, persisting I release it all. I had to check on Ruby then let Kane go for a run. He was too restless inside me, a burn that itched to be free. I was afraid to give him too much control but locking him away was doing more harm than good. I almost slept with Sylvia three times this past week too. She was constantly throwing herself at me, offering to help her Alpha anyway I needed. She didn't know the bond I had to Ruby though. I was an Alpha in love with someone else's mate. I wasn't an Alpha at all.Just as reached for the door knob somet
Ruby POVI had no idea how much time had passed; my mind moved in and out of consciousness, my body flaming with pain, then freezing in despair. Gabe's rejection was brutal, unwavering, and relentless inside me. I understood why many took their lives to relieve themselves of this constant torture.But I had Sebastian, the one constant good in my life. He held me often, whispered sweet nothings in my ear, poured his Alpha aura into me. My body needed him, my soul begging for the medicine he offered. When I woke, alone and achy, I missed his touch as much as Gabe's. I tried bathing in ice, but it did little to relieve the pressure inside me. I needed a reprieve, and there was only one who could offer it.I don't know what came over me, but the second I caught Sebastian's scent, he was all I could think of. His body to mine, his seed inside me; I needed him as mine. I knew it was wrong, manipulative, and cruel, but I had to use him. I had to have him before my body completely shut down.
Gabe POVLeaving the ruins of my homeland, I felt an odd sense of ease. The betrayal, the ashes of everything I once knew, it was all behind me now. My mother's dark plans were crumbling, and with the bag of gold crystal dust strapped to my back, I had the means to end this once and for all. It wasn't a flawless plan, but it didn't have to be. I'd make it work.I accepted that I'd probably never be with Ruby again. She was lost to me. I knew that. Our bond severed the moment I let her go. But that didn't mean I'd give up on saving her. I couldn't.The wasteland stretched before me like a graveyard. The earth cracked, dying patches of green fighting to survive. My pack trailed behind, moving like shadows. Lost. Silent. Finally, I stopped and turned. "Why are you still following me?"One of them, his face as empty as the land, answered, "To protect our Alpha. We're at your service."My service, I thought bitterly. As if I wasn't unraveling myself, bit by bit."Did Hailey order you to f
Sebastian POV"Are you sure about this?" My voice was tight, holding onto Ruby's hand like it was the last solid thing in a world full of chaos. She lay strapped to a long wooden table, her body tense but her gaze steady."Yes, Sebastian. I have to try. It's not just about having both eyes again, although that should be enough. There's magic in it, magic Katherine wanted. I need it back as part of me." Her one visible eye glistened with unshed tears, the red cloth still wound tightly around the other.I shook my head, the anxiety gnawing at me. "We need to get home, Ruby. We need to be at full strength. For all we know, this fog could've spread to the South, past the wall my parents thought would keep us safe.""And we will. If I get too weak, your magical dick will revive me." She winked with her one eye, smirking, but the crude joke barely registered through the knot of dread in my chest.That night. The night we finally became "one" in this timeline... it didn't feel like the momen
Ruby POVI paced the floor of the small bedroom we had been staying in the last week. The room felt suffocating, every inch of it weighed down by the heavy silence that had crept in over the last week. I paced back and forth, the floorboards beneath my feet groaning like they were mocking my frustration. This place, it reeked of torment. Even the air seemed haunted by the memories of everything that had happened here. And yet, somehow, that wasn't even our biggest problem.Two days ago, when I finally came to after Gabe's rejection, Sebastian had shown me what this town had become. The dark fog that lingered at the edges of the streets wasn't just some natural phenomenon, it was alive, pulsing with an energy I could feel under my skin. A part of me craved it, like it could fill the hollow spaces inside me, but I couldn't take it in. My magic was weak, severed along with my eye. Whether it was Gabe's rejection or losing a part of myself, I couldn't say, but the weakness left me despera
Sebastian POVI stormed out of her room, heading straight for the bar, desperate for as much liquor as my body could hold. I almost did it again, the one thing I swore I would never do. But this time... oh this time, I used my compulsion to force her to beg me. It was vile how far my inner wolf would push for submission. Goddess, the way she submitted though, how she begged for me to claim her was so damn tempting. The memory of her submission twisted something deep inside me. The way she pleaded to be claimed was intoxicating, a temptation I couldn't shake.How could I think of her like that? I didn't care that she had no choice; I craved her completely, vulnerable and on her knees before me, begging to be owned. "I thought you'd be on cloud nine now that Ruby is healed," Sylvia said, sliding another shot of the most vile drink I'd ever tasted across the bar. I needed that burn, something to quiet the wolf within me demanding total control."Yeah, I am," I muttered. But I hadn't ev
Ruby POVI was done with that so-called Alpha. How he pitied me, mocked me. Yes, I was an omega, craving his command over me, but so what? That was how it worked. He was my Alpha, and I was his omega. I was tired of being labeled a freak or a weak little wolf simply for feeling the way I was programmed to. If Sebastian hated that, then maybe it was best he released me from his pack. Maybe then the ache in my soul to seek out Gabe and the pull of my heart to claim Sebastian would finally rest, leaving me free to be truly on my own.The rage from Sebastian's rejection fueled me, guiding my anger and pain. I knew I was becoming bitter, and honestly, I didn't care anymore. There was no right or wrong way to feel; just simply how I felt. Right now, I felt murderous, especially towards my insensitive best friend."What are you doing?" Sebastian asked, stepping beside me. I stood at the edge of the town, eyes closed, mind at ease. I could feel the magic around me, humming like a quiet song,
Sebastian POVRuby was magnificent, a beauty that people will speak of for generations. The way her body glistened with magic, her eyes sparkled with hope. It was like she transformed right before my eyes. "That was exhausting." She sighed, plopping on the bed. We spent the entire day chasing away the dark and it was exhausting, but more fulfilling than anything I've ever done before."That was exhilarating. It felt like I've been here for months trying to push back the darkness, and in one swift moment you just erased it.""Yeah, I did." She sat up, looking over my glum expression. I was truly impressed by her. "I guess that means I'm better than you." She stood and walked towards me. That sassy attitude on a mission to torment me, but I welcomed it."I wouldn't say better, maybe close to equal." I mocked."Equal? I don't think so, little wolf." She teased. "Kane is a chump compared to Scarlet and now we both know it." 'Mark her!' Kane suddenly roared inside me. He was jumping arou
Gabe POVSebastian was ridiculous.We'd been stuck on that boat together for almost two weeks, and he was acting like it meant nothing. He barely acknowledged what happened, sweeping it under the rug as if those hot, tangled nights didn't shift something deep between us. I was pissed at him, but Ruby was back, and I couldn't stop smiling.Except it didn't feel like the three of us anymore. There was a cloud of doubt and anger Sebastian was driving between us, and it was unnerving. He was so arrogant, so righteous.The tension was thick as we traveled overland, pressing in on us until it felt like it would snap. We bickered about everything: whether my shortcut through the trees was actually a shortcut, or why Sebastian couldn't just follow my lead without a snide comment."You don't even know where you're going," Sebastian snapped, shouldering past me to take the front. His voice was sharp, but I caught the exhaustion under it."I don't have to know where I'm going. I'm trusting my gu
Gabe POVSebastian was ridiculous.We'd been stuck on that boat together for almost two weeks, and he was acting like it meant nothing. He barely acknowledged what happened, sweeping it under the rug as if those hot, tangled nights didn't shift something deep between us. I was pissed at him, but Ruby was back, and I couldn't stop smiling.Except it didn't feel like the three of us anymore. There was a cloud of doubt and anger Sebastian was driving between us, and it was unnerving. He was so arrogant, so righteous.The tension was thick as we traveled overland, pressing in on us until it felt like it would snap. We bickered about everything: whether my shortcut through the trees was actually a shortcut, or why Sebastian couldn't just follow my lead without a snide comment."You don't even know where you're going," Sebastian snapped, shouldering past me to take the front. His voice was sharp, but I caught the exhaustion under it."I don't have to know where I'm going. I'm trusting my gu
Sebastian POVThe sand crunched under our boots as we stepped onto the shore. The island was almost too perfect, like something out of a dream, with golden mountains in the distance and a faint glow in the air that made everything shimmer. The wind carried a strange, intoxicating scent, like flowers mixed with something ancient and magical.I was still on edge, pacing the beach while Gabe rummaged through the supplies we found in a small, abandoned shack near the edge of the jungle. I couldn't stop thinking about Ruby, the need to find her clawing at me."You're pacing again," Gabe's voice called out from behind me. "You're gonna wear a hole in the sand.""Shut up," I snapped, spinning around to face him. He was grinning, of course, like this was all a game. "We shouldn't even be here. You know damn well we don't have time for this."Gabe stood up, brushing sand off his pants, his teasing expression faltering for a second. "Sebastian, we're doing everything we can. You need to take a
Sebastian POVI stood there, my chest still heaving, heart pounding from what had just happened with Gabe. My head was a damn mess. One minute, I was imagining Ruby, our mate, the one I craved more than air, and the next... Gabe's mouth was on me, and it wasn't just some accidental slip. It was intense, primal. It felt good. Too good.But did I really want him? I rubbed the back of my neck, the mark from Ruby tingling like it always did, reminding me of what we had to focus on. I could still taste her on my lips, still feel the rush of being with her, but my body was tangled up in something else. Gabe. What the hell was that? I wasn't into men. I wasn't into him.He was just there, right? Filling in the space, the need. That had to be it. My need for Ruby had to be leaking over to him. That's all it was.I stormed from the dinner table, showering long and hard to wash away his scent on my cock, but it didn't matter. I had the images seared in my brain, the pleasure alive in my soul. I
Sebastian POVWatching Gabe was so damn sexy. I didn't want to admit how it turned me on the same way watching Ruby did. Ruby was my mate though, she was the only one I wanted. But she wasn't here, she was lost. We had to find her, but this damn mark on my neck was sending endorphins and desires through me. I needed to mate, to empty my seed and fill a hole.I fucked Gabe's mouth with everything I had. My hand ripping at his hair, dick impaling that wide throat until I burst again, filling him completely with so much cum. He was right, I was going to rut if I didn't let this all out. "Stand," I ordered then point to the chair. "Sit right there and jerk off."I took a seat in front of him, watching his hard delicious dick. I never thought about a man in this way before, but I did want him. I wanted to taste him, feel him. I sat there for a while, my hand playing with my cock as I watched him get off."Let me help, Alpha. We need more." Gabe teased me. I wanted to cave, to bend him ove
Gabe POVI just finished dinner, setting the food on the table and arranging it in a beautiful display in hopes to sway my Alpha to eat, but I knew he needed something else."You need to learn control, Alpha." I spoke softly, carefully, stepping closer to the untamed beast. Sebastian stood in the cabin, maps scattered around him as he watched the calm seas sway below us. He was losing his mind, a need to have his mate consuming him. "Gabe, get away from me!" He warned."No! I need you, she needs you." I insisted. "She's gone!" He roared out. "No, she isn't." I moved behind him, my fingers dancing along his neck, were her marked laid. "She is our mate and we can feel her. Ruby is alive, and we will find her.""I'm going fucking crazy. We have to find her. I have to have her." He growled at me, a heavy burden clear on his shoulders."You're a tangled mess, Alpha." I sighed, grabbing his hand to follow me. "You need to eat and you need a release. Well, you need your mate, but she isn'
Gabe POVFor days, we searched. We scoured the ship, flipped through ancient books, anything that could tell us what the hell had taken her. But we found nothing. And in that time, I watched Sebastian spiral. He wasn't eating. He wasn't sleeping. The darkness inside him crept closer with every hour Ruby was missing. I'd seen him like this before, on the verge of losing control, but this time felt different. This time, there was no pulling him back without her.I tried talking to him, over and over. "We'll get her back," I said, my voice breaking the silence one afternoon as we sat in the cabin, the maps spread uselessly across the table. "We just need to keep searching."He sat there, his jaw clenched so tight I thought it might snap. "What if we don't?" he muttered darkly, his eyes hollow. "What if she's already gone?""She's not," I insisted. "We'd feel it, both of us. She's alive, Sebastian.""You don't know that." His voice cracked, the first sign of weakness I'd seen in days. "Wh
Sebastian POV"Sebastian," a sweet, innocent voice called from the darkness, soft and familiar. "Sebastian," it beckoned again, and the frantic beating of my heart slowed. Warmth spread through me like a soothing balm, a brief escape from the chaos inside."Ruby! Where are you? Come to me, please," I begged, my voice breaking."I'm right here, silly." Her hand touched my face, gentle, soft, and it sent a surge of energy through me. Pure, unfiltered love coursed through my veins, and the world blurred into focus. There she was. My beautiful Ruby with long black hair, a red ribbon, and those mesmerizing brown eyes."I miss you." The words came out as a whisper, heavy with a desperation that clawed at my insides. I pulled her close, kissing her with all the longing I'd buried since she was torn from me."I've missed you too, my love," she whispered against my lips. I kept my eyes closed, not daring to open them, terrified this moment would slip away like all the others. I knew the truth,
Ruby POVThe cold water swallowed me whole, rushing over my head as the weight of the ocean dragged me deeper and deeper into its black void. My chest burned as saltwater filled my lungs, choking me with a sharp, unbearable sting. Panic flared wild and uncontrollably like a beast in my chest. The creature's tail coiled tighter around my waist, its slick, scaly skin sliding against mine, unyielding in its inhuman strength.I thrashed harder, my arms flailing in the thick, freezing water, but it was no use. The world above, the ship, the sky, my mates, they all faded into the distance, swallowed by the ocean's endless maw. Darkness pressed in from every side, the pressure increasing with every second, crushing me from all angles.This can't be happening. Not now. Not after everything.Images of Sebastian flooded my mind. His green eyes, the way they softened when he looked at me, that fierce love I finally saw within them. His touch, his kiss, the way his body felt against mine. And Gab