Isabel’s POVMargot and I froze. We pressed our bodies tightly against a rough piece of jutted wall. The patrolman’s footsteps grew louder. I covered my mouth, feeling my heart race in my chest like it was trying to escape. My entire body tensed. Each thud of the man’s boots made it clear that we were moments from being caught. The darkness around us seemed to close in, amplifying every sound.Margot crouched beside me, clutching the sack of supplies she had so bravely gathered. She held her breath, eyes wide in the dim light.We both stared at the beam of the flashlight growing brighter as it neared. The patrolman was muttering something under his breath, his tone irritated.I squeezed my eyes shut, trying to will myself invisible as the flashlight swept perilously close to our hiding spot. Suddenly, the stillness of the night shattered.“CRACK!”A huge branch fell on the already-crumbling wall. The commotion startled a flock of birds nearby. They flew off in a noisy rush. The sound
Isabel’s POVThe cottage was eerily silent after the door slammed shut, leaving Margot and me frozen in fear. We huddled together, waiting for something—anything—to happen. My heart was pounding in my chest so loudly I feared it would give us away if anyone were out there. For what felt like an eternity, we remained like that, waiting. The wind howled outside, rattling the window panes.Slowly, I dared to open one eye, then the other. The door hadn’t moved. It must’ve been the wind. Relief washed over me, but my muscles still felt tense. My nerves were frayed beyond belief.“It’s... it’s just the wind,” I whispered shakily, my voice barely above a breath.Margot exhaled sharply. Her hands were trembling as she pushed herself upright. “I thought someone had come for us.” She glanced at the door again. Her eyes were wide with lingering fear.I nodded, swallowing the lump in my throat. “Me too.” My voice sounded distant. Like I was speaking through layers of fog. My body felt heavy.I wa
Isabel’s POVMargot’s eyes narrowed in confusion. “Isa, do you think the picture is important?”I bit my lip, feeling a wave of uncertainty wash over me. That photo... It had been such a small, insignificant thing, tucked away in the old woman’s pocket. But there was something unsettling about it. A faint familiarity that I couldn’t quite place. It was like a whisper in the back of my mind, tugging at a memory just out of reach.“I don’t know,” I murmured, my fingers fidgeting with the edge of my sleeve. The cottage’s warmth suddenly felt stifling—the air thick and suffocating. Something was wrong, but I couldn’t explain why.A few seconds passed before I finally spoke again. My voice was hushed but urgent. “Margot, I think we’d better go.”Margot’s eyes widened, her expression shifting from confusion to concern. “Go? Now? Why?”I hesitated, trying to gather my thoughts. “I don’t know, it just... feels wrong.” The image of that photograph flashed in my mind again, and a cold shiver ra
Isabel’s POVWe ran desperately, our footsteps crashing through the underbrush. But I could already feel the familiar burning in my chest. My legs were heavy, my lungs struggling to keep up with the pace. Margot was pulling me along, her grip strong and determined. But I knew my physical condition couldn’t withstand this. The world blurred around me. The pounding of my heart drowned out the night’s quiet sounds.I looked at Margot, her face set with fierce determination. She didn’t deserve to be held back by me. She still had a future. A life waiting beyond these walls. I was already running on borrowed time.I made a sudden decision. I wrenched my hand free from Margot’s grasp."Isabel!" Margot shouted, her voice breaking with confusion. She stopped, trying to pull me along, her eyes wide with panic. "What are you doing?""Don’t look back, Margot!" I gasped, my voice hoarse from exertion. "Keep running. Save yourself!""No!" she cried, shaking her head. "You’ll die! I can’t—""Listen
Isabel’s POVWhen I woke up, I was somewhere unfamiliar. The first thing I noticed was the softness of the sheets beneath me, and the delicate scent of lavender filling the air. It wasn’t the hospital. Gone were the sterile white walls, the harsh lights. Instead, I found myself in what looked like a normal girl’s bedroom.I blinked, trying to process the scene around me. The wallpaper was pastel, with intricate floral patterns. A vanity stood across from the bed, covered in ornate perfume bottles and brushes. It was almost... pretty. But the sense of dread still gnawed at me, reminding me that nothing here could be trusted.I caught a glimpse of my reflection in the vanity, and that’s when I realized something was terribly wrong. I wasn’t in a hospital gown anymore. Instead, I was wearing an exquisite lace nightdress. Something you’d see on a mannequin in a luxury boutique. They had even put my wig back on, securing it perfectly to my scalp. If anything, I was grateful they’d kept
Isabel’s POVI didn’t know how long I had been locked inside that cage. The darkness was suffocating, thick and oppressive. My body, weak and stiff from being in the same curled-up position, had long since gone numb. All I could do was wait. For what, I wasn’t sure—doom, death, something worse.Time felt meaningless here. My thoughts drifted between panic and numb acceptance. I wanted to scream, to fight, but my body refused to obey. Whatever they had injected into me had stolen all control. I was nothing more than a prisoner of my own limbs.Suddenly, the cage shifted beneath me. There was a jolt, followed by the sound of heavy wheels rolling beneath. I winced as the cage bumped along, jarring my body painfully. The familiar dread began to churn in my stomach again. But all I could do was lay there, helpless.“Ouch! Watch out! You almost hit my feet!” a man’s voice snapped from outside the cage.“Fine, fine. Sorry. What’s in this one?” another one asked, his voice dripping with curio
Isabel’s POVMy eyes were glued to Lilith and Alistair. Every inch of me was burning with a desperate need for answers. Even with the half-mask concealing Lilith’s face, I could still make out the cruel curve of her lips, the sly gleam in her eyes. She was still as evil as ever. In fact, this was beyond anything I could have ever imagined her capable of.Lilith, cold and calculating, was always a master manipulator. But this? This was a whole new level of evil. A part of me wondered if Emerson had any idea what kind of woman he’d fallen in love with. I doubted it. He was probably still blind to her true nature. I laughed bitterly to myself. Good luck to him if he ever fell out of favor with her. She’d chew him up and spit him out without a second thought.Around me, the crowd murmured and whispered. Their voices were thick with excitement and cruelty. These people weren’t just spectators—they were complicit. They were enablers of evil, bidding on human lives like it was nothing more
Isabel’s POVI was dragged down a dimly lit corridor, the musty air thick with despair. My mind was still reeling from the auction—the vile faces, the lecherous stares, my life being sold for the price of a twisted man’s pleasure. The cage rattled as I was pushed into what they called “backstage”. The horrors it concealed were far worse than anything I’d seen on display.The sound of wailing echoed off the walls, each cry sharp and desperate, seeping into my bones. It was a symphony of suffering—girls, like me, trapped in this nightmare. The sharp crack of a whip followed by a piercing scream sliced through the air. A girl, barely older than I was, was thrown to the floor beside me. Her body crumpled, and her face was streaked with blood. I recoiled at the sight.“This is what happens to those who disobey,” the waiter from earlier said. His voice was cold and detached. His eyes swept over me as if I were nothing more than merchandise. "You are the chosen pet of that buyer, and he pr
Isabel’s POVDays passed, stretching into an unspoken eternity, and Emerson’s condition could no longer be kept from Liam and Elena.One afternoon, I was sitting by Emerson’s bed, my hand gently brushing his, when the door to the hospital room creaked open. My heart skipped a beat."Liam, Elena, what are you doing here?" I asked, my voice thick with emotion. I hadn’t expected them today, and the sight of their small faces brought a surge of overwhelming love and guilt.Eric stood behind them, his expression apologetic, his eyes soft with understanding. “They begged me, Isabel. They wouldn’t stop asking to see him... I couldn’t say no anymore.”Liam’s face was drawn, his usual bright energy dimmed with concern. Elena clung to her brother, her eyes wide with fear as they both hesitated in the doorway.Before I could say anything else, another figure appeared behind them, stepping into the room. My heart stopped for a moment as I looked up to see Emerson’s mother, Estelle, walking towards
Isabel’s POVA month had passed. One whole month, and still, no sign of life from Emerson. The machines beside his bed beeped steadily. A monotonous rhythm that I had come to know too well. A rhythm that seemed to mock the stillness of his body. I sat by his side every day, watching him, praying for some miracle—some sign that he was still there, still fighting. But each time I whispered his name, there was nothing. Nothing but the soft hum of hospital machinery.“Emerson,” I whispered, my voice trembling despite my attempts to sound steady. “Don’t you want to be with me? If you wake up, I promise we can live happily as a family of four.”I meant it, every word of it. The thought of a future with him, of raising our children together, was the only thing that kept me going. I needed him to hear me. I needed him to wake up.But Emerson remained unresponsive.He looked like a prince charming, trapped in an eternal dream—strangely peaceful. I combed his dark hair back neatly after gently
Isabel’s POVThe world blurred—shouts, chaos, the metallic scent of blood thick in my nostrils. My heartbeat pounded in my ears as I clung to Emerson, his labored breaths hot against my skin.I didn’t dare move. The slick warmth of his blood drenching me was unnerving. His chest rose and fell in erratic, shallow breaths. But then, amid the cacophony of battle, a stunned silence emerged. Orders were shouted. Weapons clicked into position. Something had changed. I forced myself to glance up from Emerson’s chest, my pulse hammering.Alistair stood frozen, his face contorted in pain. Blood dripped from his hand—the very hand that had been pointing a gun at me just seconds before. His grip slackened, and the weapon tumbled to the ground.A sniper.Alistair’s men immediately scattered, taking defensive positions, frantically searching the area. But before they could react, several of them suddenly dropped to the ground.They were convulsing violently, frothing at the mouth. One by one, the
Isabel’s POVMy wrists ached from the tight ropes binding my hands behind my back as I was shoved forward. The rough ground beneath my boots felt unsteady, my knees weak with exhaustion. The air smelled of blood, gunpowder, and sweat. The night was still alive with distant gunfire, but here, in the heart of the enemy’s grasp, there was only the sound of my ragged breathing and Alistair’s mocking laughter.“Stop resisting, Emerson,” he drawled, his voice filled with smug amusement. “You’re in over your head. Oh—look who finally decided to join us.”Emerson was holding back several opponents, bruised and bloodied from the fight. His head snapped up at Alistair’s words.He turned, and when his eyes landed on me, something in his face shifted. Shock, then rage, then a devastating kind of fear. He lunged forward, but a guard was faster. A rifle butt slammed into Emerson’s ribs. The sickening crack echoed in the night, and he crumpled to the ground, gasping for air."Emerson!" I screamed,
Isabel’s POVAt first, Emerson and I managed to escape the building, slipping into the shadows like ghosts. The night was thick around us, swallowing our hurried footsteps as we navigated through the wreckage of Alistair’s camp. The distant gunfire and shouts of battle echoed behind us. But just as we reached the edge of the compound, the world seemed to shift.From the darkness, figures emerged—silent and predatory, their weapons gleaming under the pale moonlight. They moved like shadows given form, their presence an unspoken promise of violence. My breath caught in my throat as a dozen, no, more than two dozen enemies surrounded us, blocking every escape route. The sheer hatred in their eyes sent an involuntary shiver down my spine. These weren’t just guards; they were fanatics, men who thrived in the chaos of bloodshed and terror.Emerson moved instinctively, stepping in front of me, gun raised. “Stay close,” he murmured, barely audible over the wind. I nodded, steadying my grip
Sebastian/Elias’ POVScarlet’s scream echoed through the dimly lit room, raw with disbelief and fury. “You’re lying!” she spat, her eyes blazing with denial. The restraints binding her wrists rattled as she struggled, but I didn’t move to stop her. There was no point—her fight wasn’t with me. It was with the truth.I let out a slow breath, pulling a small, timeworn pocket watch from my coat. The silver casing had dulled over the years, but the engraved initials remained clear. I clicked it open and held it out to her, revealing a faded family photograph inside.“My father gave this to me before he died,” I said evenly, my voice softer than before. “He cared about you, Scarlet. No matter what you believe, you were never forgotten.”Her breath hitched. For a moment, the fire in her eyes flickered, replaced by something rawer—uncertainty. “How could it be?” she murmured, barely more than a whisper.All the pieces had finally clicked into place as Scarlet unraveled her story. The tangled
Scarlet’s POVTelling my story, I was flung back into the past. Lost in the grip of memories that had never truly left me. The present moment faded, and I found myself reliving those painful years. As vivid and raw as the day they had happened.I had been young, hopeful, foolish. Despite the years of neglect, I had still wanted my parents' love. But when I overheard them denying my very existence, something inside me snapped.Disheartened, I had returned to the countryside, burying myself in my studies. Medicine became my refuge, my salvation. I dedicated myself to understanding the human body—not just how to heal it, but how to manipulate it, how to break it. My hands, once weak and trembling from years of frustration, became steady, precise instruments of control.The first time I killed a lab mouse, something dark and exhilarating bloomed inside me. Power. The ability to decide whether something lived or died. The ability to take control of what had always been out of my grasp.
Elias’ POVI watched from the shadows as Isabel and Emerson disappeared into the night, their figures swallowed by the chaos of battle outside. I clenched my fists and tried to push down the sharp, aching weight that settled in my gut.Maybe it had been foolish to think I ever stood a chance with Isabel. Emerson had always been the one she turned to in the end. The one she trusted in the heat of battle. The one she looked at with that fierce determination in her eyes. And me? I was just a shadow lingering on the edges of her world, never quite stepping into the light.A slow clap echoed through the dimly lit room."Are you just going to let them go?" Scarlet’s voice slithered through the shadows like a snake.I turned away from the exit, my expression unreadable as I faced the woman bound to the chair before me. Her wrists were tied behind her back, her face partially obscured by strands of disheveled hair. Even restrained, she exuded a sickening confidence, her smirk unwavering.I m
Isabel’s POVI had to stop Margot.There was no time to think, no time to call for backup—just raw instinct and the desperate need to prevent her from making a terrible mistake. My boots pounded against the forest floor as I sprinted after her, weaving through the pine trees in pursuit. I knew why she was doing this. I understood the desperate, reckless pull of wanting to save someone you love. But charging straight into enemy territory? Alone? It was suicide.“No!” I hissed under my breath, pushing my legs harder.Margot moved swiftly, her figure barely a shadow in the dim light. She reached the edge of the enemy’s perimeter and, without hesitation, hoisted herself up onto a low window ledge. She pulled her body through with practiced agility. She was inside before I could even call her name.Damn it.I skidded to a halt near the building, pressing myself against the rough exterior. The compound was crawling with patrols. My heart pounded as I scanned the area, calculating the be