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NOVA

"Run, Nova. You need to keep running," I told myself, forcing my legs to move faster.

It was raining cats and dogs, and the slippery, muddy road turned each step into a struggle. Yet, I wasn't allowed to stop. I didn't know where I was going; I just had to get as far away from the witches' coven as possible.

I was born a witch and raised by an abusive human father, who decided to sell me to the coven as soon as I turned sixteen years old. Some might have thought that I would have been better off living among "my kind," but they couldn't be more wrong. The coven had continuously sold my magic to the highest bidder, turning me into a slave who works to increase her masters' wealth.

It took me three years to get out of this prison—three years of practicing magic and planning my escape—but I did it. At midnight, I had finally broken the loyalty spell that kept me locked within the coven's castle walls, and now I was on the run, running toward my freedom.

The linen dark-gray robe I was wearing couldn't protect me from the rain or cold. I was soaked, freezing, and exhausted, but I grounded my teeth and commended myself to move… until my feet brought me into the middle of a dark forest.

"Relax, Nova," I muttered, taking a deep breath. "You just need to walk forward until you leave this scary place. The witches won't find you here. No witch would be dumb enough to even think of entering a dense forest in the middle of the night… Except for you, of course..." A peal of hysteric laughter tore my throat.

My shivering from the cold body began trembling even more with fright. I swallowed hard and fisted my hands while every step had become a struggle. The sudden wolf's howl nearly gave me a heart attack. Did I enter the territory of one of the packs? Or was it just a wild, lone wolf, looking for its newest prey? Tears streamed down my cheeks, but I had to get through this. Inhale, exhale, inhale, exhale... My legs became heavier, and my head started to spin. I leaned against the nearest tree and touched my forehead which now felt feverish. My weak body informed me loud and clear that I was about to reach my limit, and yet, I stood up straight and swayed a few more steps until the night around me turned into complete darkness in front of my eyes…

I collapsed.

***

I was too tired to open my eyes, but the eyelids were still too heavy to move. On the bright side, I was no longer freezing. I was surrounded by a pleasant warmth. Judging by the way my body slightly swayed from side to side, I figured I was being carried. Somehow, acknowledging that fact didn't alarm me. I felt safe. I leaned my head against the source of warmth and nuzzled it. It smelled nice. It soothed me. I reached out my hand and touched the warm wall I was leaning against.

"Oh, dearest Hecate..." I mumbled, recognizing bare skin underneath my fingertips. I struggled to open my eyes, but once I did, I saw a perfectly carved male chest, which was the source of warmth I had nuzzled before!

Panic washed over me as I slowly realized that I was in the arms of a stranger—a naked stranger at that! My head hurt enough to cloud most of my senses and distort my vision, but I still turned my head upward, trying to see his face. The morning sun blinded me, allowing me to see nothing aside from his smile, the sexiest smile I had ever seen.

"Who are you?" I muttered.

His deep chuckle vibrated through his rigid chest, sending a wave of pleasant shivers through me. "I'm your hero, love," he said, keeping that devilishly captivating smile painting his mouth.

If I had been completely sane at that moment, I would have thought that he sounded like an arrogant asshole. Unfortunately, in my still-feverish state, I found his answer charming. My lips curled up before I realized it, and with that dumb grin on my face… I fell asleep again.

***

I felt much less comfortable when I woke up again. I was lying on the cold stone ground, covered by some filthy blanket. I was barefoot but still wearing my half-torn dark-grey coven robe. My whole body ached, and I could barely lift myself to sit. Once I did, I realized that I was locked behind bars.

"Get up, witch. Time to go," a harsh voice from the man standing outside my prison cell called me. He was wearing a pair of heavy boots, combat pants, and a black tee. His mouth was curved with mockery and irritation. He waited for me to stand up, then he unlocked the bars and walked inside. As his large frame filled my cell, I froze. He cuffed my hands and then yanked my arm, pushing me out of the cell. “You'll be punished for trespassing our territory by our Alpha King,” he informed me before dragging me outside.

My frightened common sense told me not to argue with a man twice my size. I decided to seal my lips and hope that the Alpha King he mentioned turned out to be a merciful man.

A few minutes later, I was brought into a palace-like mansion, a place with long, elegant corridors with marble flooring, ornamented walls, and vaulted ceilings in the form of arches. It truly looked luxurious. No doubt that this pack must have been extremely wealthy…

"Get in," my guard grunted, pushing through the door he had just opened.

I stepped inside a spacious hall with a podium and a throne on it. A man in his fifties was sitting on that throne. His black eyes, emphasized by thick dark-brown eyebrows, sent me a cold gaze. It wasn't hard to guess that I was looking at the Alpha, and I didn't think this man was going to like me.

Other people stood on both sides of the hall; most of them wore combat clothes, and most of their gazes mirrored their king's attitude. My lips twisted, forming an awkward kind of smile as I looked at all of them, but the thing that hit me back was their hostility, which washed over me like a wave of chilliness. My guard grabbed my arm and dragged me closer to the podium.

"Alpha Luther, this is the witch that dared to trespass on our—"

The slam of an opening door cut off his voice, and everyone's attention was drawn to the three men who barged inside. One of them, a brunette, looking like the younger and more handsome version of the king, walked forward. He was flanked by two others—a blonde guy with the face of an angel and a dangerous gleam in his eyes, and an intimidating, bulky guy with long hair tied in a ponytail. "Father, rogues attacked our borders, and yet you waste your time bullying a frightened girl?!" the brunette exclaimed.

"With all due respect, Prince Tyrion, a witch from the coven can be much more dangerous than a bunch of rogues," said the dark-blonde man in his forties, standing next to the king.

I looked at my ragged robe and inwardly sighed. Even in my battered state, my specific coven's type of linen clothing must have appeared like an evil marking in their eyes.

Prince Tyrion looked me up and down, and I gulped, feeling his gaze piercing right through me. "She is scared and sick," he said as if those two seconds were enough for him to judge my condition. Then he glared at the man who spoke before. "If you think that she stands as a threat to this kingdom, then perhaps you are not fit to hold your position, Beta Morris."

"Tyrion!" the king yelled. "There should be a limit to your impertinence!"

Prince Tyrion scoffed. "Impertinence? I'm merely stating the facts." Then he snapped his fingers, and on his signal, two warriors entered the room, helping the third, wounded one by letting him lean his weight on their shoulders.

The third warrior had a long cut on his leg; the injury seemed infected. I looked at his pale face and sweaty forehead. I knew that the man had to be in great pain; I'd seen this type of injury many times, treating them when I'd been working for the coven.

"Those rogues injured one of our warriors that guarded our borders. This is a far more urgent problem than dealing with a teenage witch," Prince Tyrion stated curtly.

Beta Morris cleared his throat. "I can see your point, Prince…" Then he turned to the Alpha King. "Then I suggest we just send this witch back to the coven."

"No!" I burst out, instantly getting everyone's attention. I tried to swallow my fear and faced all the hostile gazes. "P-please… don't send me back there." My heart sped up to a hectic rate. I knew I had to figure out something fast! I looked at the wounded warrior and pointed at him with my trembling hand. "I can heal him!" I exclaimed before looking straight at the Alpha King.

My confident announcement made the room fill up with soft muttering and mocking chuckles. Yet, Prince Tyrion and those who came with him seemed to be more than curious about my proposal.

"Healers are rare," the blonde, angel-like guy said. "Are you certain that you can heal him?" His voice was as smooth as the sweetest balm for my frightened heart. That and his captivating features made me blink and stare at him in a daze. Why did he sound so strangely familiar? Once he realized what kind of effect he had on me, his lips curved into a pleased smirk. "Can you heal him?" he repeated.

I finally snapped out of my bewilderment and nodded nervously. "Yes. I can do it here and now."

Prince Tyrion chuckled. "No need for that." Then he turned to his father. "I'm taking that girl and the patient to my office. If she truly heals him, I think it'll be only fair to grant her the right to stay in our territory's capital, Grand Lunaville," he claimed.

More commotion rose inside the hall. Alpha Luthor frowned and glared at his son, but Prince Tyrion didn't seem bothered by the king's discontent. "Tyrion, I am still the Alpha, and I make decisions!" Alpha King's eyes blazed red. "I'm warning you!" he hissed, but his son only smirked, and turned around, gesturing at me to follow him as he left the hall.

Surprisingly, no one dared stop us. Five minutes later, I was inside the Prince's office examining the injured warrior's leg while the Prince and two of his friends curiously observed my every move. I took a deep breath and touched the wound, pouring my magic into it and watching it disappear.

"This is amazing!" the bulky guy with the ponytail exclaimed, looking at me with the same kind of awe my patient had in his eyes.

Prince Tyrion snorted. "Well, it looks like you've found yourself a new home, little witch."

I heaved a deep sigh of relief. I finally earned my freedom—the freedom I used to dream about every night while I was in the coven. I collapsed to my knees, smiling and crying at the same time. The angel-like blonde grinned at me and helped me stand.

"Well done, love," he said, his voice once again melting me from the inside. "What's your name?"

"I'm Nova," I muttered, wiping the tears from my eyes.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Nova. I'm Felix, the future Beta of this pack," he said with a devilish smile. "Welcome to Grand Lunaville."