“Good. Now make this happen.” Without a goodbye, Sheila smashed the phone down onto the cradle. She hoped that old healer – what was his name again? – heard the smash right in his ear. Satisfied that her threat had been taken seriously, Sheila lifted the phone again and made her second call of the
Aria’s POV I wanted to help Caleb, but I wouldn’t be able to do that if I was dead. Glancing at Montgomery, he seemed torn. Matt, however, was already stepping forward. Grabbing me by the arm, he yanked me toward the doorway. “What are you waiting for?” Matt grumbled. He stayed with me as we p
“This is your fault, you know,” said one of the old healers. I recognized him as one of my most vocal dissenters. His name was Carl. “If you would have just given up your claim to that formula, we’d all be spared this inconvenience.” This inconvenience was a threat against my life. Once more, I
Aria’s POV “Isn’t there a television in here?” Carl asked. One of the other healers gestured to a boxy television in the opposite corner. “Turn that on. Let’s see what the news has to say about this.” The other healer obliged. Moving to the television, he flicked it on. The first channel he foun
A crowd had quickly gathered outside of the hospital, of both reporters and regular people alike. All of them were gathering around were a series of microphones were being set up right in front of the doors. Lucian and Silas were both standing there, far enough away from the microphones to speak l
Aria’s POV Once again, I was caught off-guard by how good of a man Lucian was. Not for the first time, he had come to Dr. A’s rescue. If only he had done the same for me when I was Aria, but he could not see my qualities as Aria as easily as he could Dr. A’s. It made me proud and gave me heartac
Aria’s POV “My life has been wonderful enough,” Caleb continued. “I was honored to give everything for the security and fortune of my pack, but I am an old man. I’m done fighting now. This body is giving up on me and I want to listen to and respect what it’s saying.” “I understand,” I told him,
“That defense will be considered,” Lucian said, glaring. “That’s not the one I spoke with,” Silas said. “Tell them, Carl,” the younger Healer said. “Tell them I was only going along with it.” “Shut up, you,” Carl snapped, giving the younger Healer a harsh shove. The man skidded sideways, pushi
Lucian’s POV“Of course not,” I said at once, a bitterness rising up within me.Trusting Sheila had been the worst decision of my life. Not only had I been complicit in ruining Travis’s life, but I’d also allowed Sheila to come between Aria and I, enough to help destroy our marriage. I couldn’t blam
Looking past her, I motioned toward Ben, my Beta. “Take her away, Beta. I want her in lockup until the time for a trial can be arrange.”“A trial?” Sheila gasped.“Yes,” I said, looking at her. “You will face punishment for your crimes. I will personally see to that.”“But, Lucian –”“Do not say any
Lucian’s POV“I want the truth, Sheila,” I demanded.The longer Sheila looked at me, the more her wide-eyed nervous gaze shifted into one of fury. “You trust him over me?”“Give me a reason not to.”In the past, I had let my guilt over having introduced Sheila to Travis to fully critique her story.
Lucian’s POVWithout another word, Sheila pushed past Dr. A and her assistant and burst into the hallway.“Sheila!” I called after her, both annoyed and confused by her outburst. Must she act so erratically?I followed her into the hallway, with Dr. A and her assistant in tow.Sheila was halfway to
Lucian’s POVWhile I didn’t agree with Sheila that Aria should be totally forgotten, I could acknowledge, at least to myself, that my clinging onto the past wasn’t healthy. So, after installing a lock on Aria’s old bedroom door, I resolved to keep it locked and not visit it again.Every time I had s
She slammed the door to her room loud enough to echo through the hallways.Sighing, I wondered if I had any hope of detangling myself from Sheila and this guilt without marrying her.At this point, I just didn’t know.Aria’s POVPiper was on break and Cathy was in a different section of the hospital
Lucian’s POVAs I watched, Sheila’s entire demeanor shifted, from happy and curious to increasingly upset and alarmed.“That’s Aria’s room,” she said.“Yes,” I replied, seeing no need to hide it.“Why were you in Aria’s room?”It wasn’t any of her business, but I knew I couldn’t just say that to She
Weak with heartsickness, I peeled back the cover of the diary and began to read a later chapter, from nearer the end of our marriage.Dear Diary,Tomorrow is Lucian’s birthday. While he’s never been much for celebrating, I still want to do something special for him. With hope, maybe this will start
Aria’s POVAt work, Cathy, Piper, and I gather in the office that morning over coffee. At my insistence, Cathy didn’t bring the newspaper with my photo on it, but to my dismay, Piper already had one. I believed she was fully ready to frame it and hang it behind her desk.“You know that my identity i