ARIAI sat on the bed and felt my wolf stir inside me. She was angry; she even snarled at me as if she was trying to prove that she wasn't weak.‘I don't think you are weak,’ I said to her. ‘You were always my strength, even if I didn't have my own. I would never say that you are weak.’I meant every word. That was one of many reasons I didn't want to believe Cybele, but what if she was right? What if I was going to die if I didn't get rid of this unknown part of me? The truth was that I knew nothing about magic, and it was better to ask someone who practiced magic on a daily basis. That was why I called Nova as soon as Cybele left, and we decided to meet at the familiar coffee shop near Grand Lunaville's hospital.As we sat down and took the first few sips of liquid caffeine, I told her everything that happened during the official meeting and about the conversation I had with Cybele afterward."Cybele really is a bitch!" Nova growled once I finished my story. "I used to be afraid of
TYRIONAria was sleeping soundly in my arms. Her breath and the touch of her delicate fingers on my burning skin constantly teased my nerves. I did not doubt that she was made for me, just like I didn't have any doubts that my feelings for her wouldn't change if she became weak and fragile. Yet, I could understand why she hated to lose the strength that helped her save herself and many innocents. Now I had to prove that if she lost the ability to protect her people, then I would protect them.I moved my mate's head onto the pillow and reluctantly lifted myself from the bed. I missed her touch already, and I could tell she felt the same since she frowned in her sleep. I chuckled and covered her with sheets, but then leaned down and kissed her sweet lips, just to steal another second of closeness."You're leaving," she murmured sleepily when I was getting dressed.I turned around to watch her stretching on the bed. The sole sight of her body arching and her head tilted back made me hard
ARIAThe last twenty-four hours felt odd. Once Tyrion left the room in the morning, some unknown force began to pressure my insides and fill me with anxiety. At first, I told myself I was overreacting, but each hour that passed only made me feel more crumbled on the inside. The squeeze in my chest became worse when I went to Tyrion's office to eat lunch with him. He took me to the patio where our dishes were served, but the air around us felt anything but pleasant. I caught Tyrion's gaze once or twice, and each time I sensed an unknown coldness in his eyes. I asked him if he was mad at me for some reason, but he denied it, awkwardly turning his severe expression into a tense smile. Things became even stranger when I asked him about his meeting with Aziz, and he avoided answering my question. I tried to ignore it once more, telling myself that perhaps he was tired, but why did it feel like a sudden lack of trust?Once our awkward lunch was over, Tyrion announced that he had to inspect
TYRIONA few hours earlierThe second Aria left, I couldn't get rid of the feeling that I had made a grave mistake. At first, I told myself that my uncertainty came from guilt. I had been trying to avoid Aria the entire day before she left. If there truly was a connection between Aria and the witch, I could only make things worse. The precautions I took now felt heavy in my heart because I knew that I wasn't there for Aria when she needed me.Now she was on the way to the coven's headquarters, and all the doubts I had concerning the ritual had doubled. As long as I can remember, the witches in the coven had always despised our race. The more I was surprised when their official delegation decided to show up at my palace after we informed them of finding a few dead witches close to our territory. They offered no help in finding the murderous witch, but they were greatly concerned about Aria and the magic she inherited from her warlock grandfather. Even if everything they said sounded ge
ARIA My head was pounding so painfully that I struggled to lift my eyelids. Then I felt my body moving… or rather I was being moved. Once I partially regained my focus, I saw two male guards holding me by my arms with my bare feet dragging across the floor. They were taking me somewhere while I could do nothing to stop them or protest. I looked at my clothes; I still had my shirt and jeans on, but had they taken my star-shaped talisman? I hoped they hadn't... I tried to summon my strength, but I couldn't. I tried reaching out to Aziz through the mind link, but that only caused another wave of pain to pierce through my skull. I was even unable to hold my head in one, steady position, which made me frantically wonder what the hell was in the water I had drunk?! The guards didn't seem to notice that I regained consciousness. Not that it mattered since I wasn't strong enough to kill a fly—or move my limbs at all—let alone fight two bulky human magic practitioners. As I managed to lift m
TYRION "OK, so now what do we do?" A nervous chuckle escaped Felix's throat as he stared at the coven's massive front gate. The gate was too thick to ram through and definitely too high to jump. Everything around the gate seemed ominous and strangely quiet. It was almost midnight, and thick clouds above our heads seemed to triple the darkness. I strengthened all my senses but still couldn't hear or smell anyone. I knew the witches could camouflage themselves, but I still should be able to sense weak traces of their bodies' warmth. Yet, I sensed nothing. Zane stepped closer and ran his fingers across the steel surface before looking at me. "We could try to blast it," he said. Felix huffed. "Seriously?! Have you packed explosives into the car?! Because I don't remember putting Semtex in the trunk just in case!" Harriet sighed, pushing Felix and Zane aside. "Stand back, kids. Granny needs to work some magic." She stepped toward the gate, closed her eyes, and stretched out her hands.
ARIA He came for me. I was unable to describe all the emotions I felt when I heard his voice and then when he saved me from falling. It felt surreal, as if I had woken up from a nightmare. Even now, when I walked beside him close enough to smell his scent and feel his body heat, I had to pinch myself to tell the difference between the dream and reality. "I don't know how long I was wandering inside that trap... I walked from one door to another but couldn't find the way out. I heard screams and groans, but I didn't know where the sounds were coming from. It was horrifying," I admitted. Tyrion grabbed my hand. "I should have known sooner. I will never forgive myself for believing that Cybele could cure you." He lowered his head, but I pulled up his chin with my hand. "I also wanted to believe her, but it seems that she was so desperate to protect her coven from the dark witch that she would stop at nothing." I smiled bitterly, remembering her words. "Unluckily for Cybele, the dark w
ARIANo. I refused to believe Felix, Harriet, or Tyrion died, and I would never believe a murderous witch who said so. I reached out to Tyrion using the mind link and prayed that he would answer.‘Aria, we're all right. Wait there, and we'll find a way to get to you,’ Tyrion said.I sighed in relief, but I couldn't obey him. ‘I'm going after the witch. She is going to the other part of the castle. Try to get there," I told him.‘Aria don't!’ I heard his angry voice through the link, but I chose to ignore him. My eyes were already on the witch, who had just run inside the other building joined by the covered bridge.I darted after her, driven by rage and hatred. The witch's black cape floated behind her as she turned into another corridor. I was almost catching up with her, but then she ran into something that used to be a ballroom. Now, its roof was ripped off and the marble chessboard-like floor was covered by rocks. Then I noticed a large hexagram inside a circle with magical symbol