Kellan walks towards us now that everyone has left. The other contestants have gone inside, except for Sage."Okay, I'm going to speak to Maze. Maybe she has a plan to figure this out. Tomorrow is Sage's event, so..." He stops and looks at us. "I'm not sure the plan for that, keep you like this, or let you shift, I'm not sure. So, Kellan stay with her, let her shift, and see it helps her focus more after." He walks off, and Sage smiles.She hugs me and steps back. "I shall leave you two to it.""Okay, so maybe Darius is right, maybe shifting will focus your mind. Maybe it won't. Maybe it will make things worse. For now, though, shift and let your wolf have a bit of time in control. Not full control.""I don't know how." I can't remember ever doing it. How do I shift?"Close your eyes, focus on Winter, feel her." I turn to look at him."You know her name?""Zeus, my wolf, said it. Stop getting distracted, focus."Nodding, I close my eyes and focus on my wolf, my body shifts and I stand
I hear Kellan whispering at me and slowly wake up."Now, before you let your mind run away with stuff, you need to eat. So breakfast."I won't even argue. I'm actually starving."You're not having breakfast with the others. Not until we talk and figure this out.""Figure what out?""Just get ready. Yori is outside and will bring you down." Smiling at me, he walks out. Getting up and ready, I walked out. Yori stood smiling at me."I'm to escort you to breakfast." He begins to walk, and I follow."What needs figuring out, Yori?" He will know."Just some things. I'm sure you can wait like thirty seconds." I laugh and nod. He's right. I can.Walking into the room, I sit down. Darius looks at me. "Are you okay?""Yes, I just need to wake up fully." I slept in. Normally, I have at least half an hour to get ready, but not today."Okay, well, everyone is going to know you have your wolf. Yesterday, you didn't get close, and everyone was too focused on their own family and packs to realise." K
As I step into the room, Sage runs to me."Are you okay?" She looks over me."Yes, why?" What happened? I look around, confused."You disappeared." I laugh at her words. "I mean it, Elara. Darius was on the warpath. He assumed you had come back and came searching all the rooms for you and Kellan. He was freaking out.""I'm fine, we weren't gone long.""Elara, you were gone for eight hours!" I stare at her. We can't have been. At the most two, it didn't feel long at all."It honestly felt like nothing.""It does when you're in your wolf form; it's easy not to realise that time passes. Just be careful. Darius was ready to kill Kellan.""I didn't know." I hadn't. They were fine today and didn't look like they had fallen out. She pulls me over, and I sit with her and the other and eat. Again, because somehow I'm starving.Everyone is staring at me. Can I sense I have my wolf?"You and Kellan ran away with each other. How cute." Callista laughs, and I don't reply because we didn't, but I g
I am considering ways to taunt Darius while breaking out of his hold. My mind isn't focused on one topic; it's all over, and Winter isn't helping with her obsessing about Hades."Is your wolf Hades?" It has to be."Focus Elara. Okay, focus on your wolf, feel Winter's strength, pull it through you, to part of your body to get free."Closing my eyes, I try and focus, and I can feel it. It's so different. I move suddenly without even realising. He groans as I throw him down and straddle him."How the hell?" He stares at me in shock. "Elara, that's not possible."I smile at him. "What isn't? You told me to break free.""Yes, break free, not throw me to the ground." He's staring at me like Kellan does before he calls me an alien."I'm not an alien!"He chuckles. "No, but you're something. You're stronger than me. Anyone else wouldn't have been able to do that. Break free, yes, but throw me down?""You said I would be stronger because my wolf isn't controlled yet." They all said it."We mea
DariusNothing. There are no signs of the person. We have Aurora, so it isn't her, but she's reluctant to tell us who it is. We need to find them. Who knows what will happen if they run into Elara and find out she has her wolf?"Close off the tunnels?" Kellan looks at me."Not even I know all the tunnels, and I can't find them without the blueprints." They have to be somewhere. They are somewhere. I glance towards William."You want me to get some men to go check your father's body for papers?""Yes, he had his connections. We didn't bury anything with him, but his most loyal men may have slipped things in with him." I need answers. I need to find all the places where the tunnels are."Okay, so when are you thinking?""Not tonight." I don't know. Why would he bury blueprints on him?"We searched every bathroom, all the pipes. There was nothing else," William speaks, and I nod. Of course, there is no more hidden in the pipes. My father wasn't a fool. 'Never hide things in the same plac
After spending an hour with Sage, I was exhausted and went to my room to sleep. It was necessary, however, as I will need to be up until after midnight for Sage's event. I seem to lose energy quickly these days now that I have my wolf back.Being alone is good. The quiet and inability to see anyone stops my mind from working and always being switched on. I feel like they were right, when my wolf was taken, I somehow lost part of me. I've never felt emotions before, not really, and that means now I'm acting like a crazy person when I do feel something."Elara." I hear him and groan, trying to go back to sleep. "You need to eat. You can't be skipping meals so close to getting your wolf back."Sitting up, I look at Darius."Don't glare at me like you're about to kill me, as you highly likely could. You're exhausted because you're not used to having the wolf in you. That also means you need to eat.""Fine, no killing you.""Can we talk?" He sits down and waits."Like I would say no, you'r
My mind begins to go crazy again. No longer able to focus on one thing. It's drifting between things, the person acting like me. If Ethan will be here, what tonight even is.Then, of course, Winter gets involved with her obsession with Darius and Hades. As if I didn't have enough things trying to drown me from the inside out, she is also partially focused on wherever Kellan is to ensure he's close.I try to focus on something or rather anything, that isn't Darius and the closeness between us, but I fail. My mind slowly becomes obsessed with him."Kellan and I will join you to eat, then we..." I block out his words; they seem to become quieter and quieter. My hands move and pull him to me."Elara, did you hear me?" My head shakes at his words. I didn't. I was too focused on feeling him touch me. His lips move down my neck, slowly biting and sucking. My moans are quiet as I begin to strip myself.He doesn't stop me. His hands begin moving quickly and helping me until we're both naked. M
I watch as Darius walks down with Sage. Winter isn't phased by either Kellan or Darius being with Sage. I guess because she can feel the bond between Sage and Tony?"How are you feeling?" I turn and smile at Kellan."Right now, I'm feeling fine. Ask again in thirty seconds." We both laugh as he guides me down to the garden. I watch as Darius welcomes people with Sage."Your jealousy is weird." I smile at Kellan."Not weird, just Winter knows Sage isn't a threat.""And Callista, and Lyra are?" He tilts his head."I don't understand how either, so let's forget about it." I thought it was just Darius, seeing him with Lyra or Callista. Yet today proved it is Kellan as well. Which is interesting."Remember what we said?"I groan. "Yes, I remember. You have both repeated it over and over—constantly, like a record on replay."He laughs. "Remember that you won't feel a connection with everyone. You can talk to their wolves and such, though. I also know Sage wanted you to run with her and some
Asher POVI look down at Katla. She's only a few days old. After speaking with Zyra, she decided that the space in the mountains would be a retreat—a place for us to escape to, somewhere Katla could get used to what it is like to live in the Dragon Kingdom.We have spent a few days there, but not many. Apparently, she wants to be in the palace close to the others. Part of me feels like that's because they were her support while I was hiding away.It's shown her what having a family around can do. We're close, minus Aurelia. She seems to be thriving with the Bears and keeping her distance. Other than returning that day when I was going crazy and needed help, she rarely came back. We've adjusted and got used to that, however.She wants her life away from here; she wants her own life, not one that is connected to us. She should have that if she wants it."Hey."Turning, I see Elijah walk to me.He laughs slightly and takes Katla from my arms. "You look exhausted; fun night?"It's only 4
Asher POVI walk out of the room and go to where I know they will be. As I step into the office, they turn to face me.Darius shakes his head. "You should be with Zyra.""I was, but considering this is brought on by the Dragons, I should be helping." I walk further in and look at the papers."Nothing to help with," my dad shrugs. "His son is clean, Seraphine can tell. Things were explained to him. He had no idea about the arranged marriage and, to be honest, was shocked, as he apparently had a mate."So the son won't be an issue. Is that what he's saying?"Look, both Eliphas and Durnalin are in the cells, away from each other. The son has gone. Apparently, he has a whole life with his mate. His dad told him the dragons had requested their presence at events." Darius explains.It makes no sense, though. "Why? Why would the dragons want the warlocks there?" How didn't his son question it?"Apparently, because Eliphas and his son are the strongest warlocks, they invited them to make a un
Asher POVI wait and watch."Prince Asher, soon to be King, tell me something." He walks to the bars and leans against them. "Where do Warlocks belong?"My head tilts; they belong wherever they want to. I don't understand his question."See, there is no answer as we don't belong anywhere. There is the werewolf kingdom, fae, dragons and everything else. Witches and warlocks are forced to live in one of those kingdoms, with no real power."So this was all about getting power? My body is pushed back, and my eyes widen as I see King Drakon reach through the bars—his hand clamps around Eliphas' neck.I guess he's fixed, and his curse is gone. My dad and Darius drag him away, and I watch Eliphas drop to the floor, clutching his neck. The blood runs down from where King Drakon's nails dug in."We need answers; killing him won't get them." My dad turns and faces Eliphas."Apparently, this was all for power." Which still makes no sense."It wasn't just for power. We wanted our own kingdom, our
Asher POVI'm anxious. It's been two days since the curse was lifted, and I'm glad to be back to normal. All that is at risk, though. Tonight, I have to be close to whoever is pretending to be King Drakon. That then risks it happening again, and if it does, will it start slow again or begin where it was removed?I've noticed Elijah, Storm, and Aurelia are quiet. Whatever was done has worn them out, which I didn't want."Are you ready?" Zyra hugs me, and I nod. I'm not. We need answers and to figure out who it is."Be careful, okay?" I don't like that I'm not going to be there."It's you who needs to be careful. You will be in a confined space with him. If anything goes wrong." She looks at me worriedly.Wrapping my arms around her, I smile. "I'll be fine; once he's in the cell, he can't do anything." I kissed her and gave her a final hug before walking away.Getting to the cells, I sit in one and wait. I'm hoping the plan works. If we can get him in the cell, then his magic and power
Asher POVI can see Zyra is struggling, and I don’t blame her either. She just found out her brother is missing.“Look, when Seraphine checked trying to find out the issue with him, she saw King Drakon, but it wasn’t him. Whoever it was is who we believe Cursed Asher.” My mum grasps her hands and smiles. “We’ve got people tracking down where your brother really is. There’s a reason for this, and it’s you, Zyra. Seraphine could sense the curses were put on Asher and Elijah to try and push you to return home.”Zyra looks around the room and seems increasingly worried. “What about Ryker? Is he okay? Does he know?” She waits, and I don’t know the answer to that.“I’m sorry, we don’t know. You need to stay here, Zyra. We have a plan, and we’re hoping Seraphine can uncover more when the person comes here.”She nods and sits, looking lost.“We are expecting Seraphine to return late tonight or early tomorrow. If they can’t fix the issue, then we will keep working to.” My mum smiles and hugs h
Asher POVAfter about an hour of sitting in the cell with Zyra, I ordered her to leave. I wanted to spend time with her, but she shouldn't have been sitting in the cells with me.So, I've been alone for hours, waiting to find out their plan. They hadn't thought this through. I need to leave the cell to go to the room. As soon as I step out of this cell, it will come back. Then what?I'm willing to agree to anything right now if it gets me out of this cell and back with Zyra. The footsteps have me standing, and I watch my dad and Darius walk towards me."What's your plan? How am I to do this?" They haven't thought it through."You need to shift." Darius looks at me.I laugh at him. Is that some kind of joke? "You want me to shift, so that what? I can kill people easier?"My dad sighs and steps forward. "Please do as you're told. You won't understand why we're saying you can shift, but shift. Into your wolf, not dragon."Of course, I won't understand; they haven't explained it to me. If
Elijah POVI sit in the office; Seraphine has left. She's meeting her family halfway in the hopes they have something that can help. Merfolk are powerful creatures with extraordinary abilities.Curses and such are something they specialise in."We're going to request that King Drakon attend a celebration for Zyra's pregnancy. It means we can get what we need and figure out who it is and what their aim is." My dad looks at me, and he makes it sound so simple. This isn't simple."He's going to ask why Asher isn't present, then what?" We can't lie and hide him. "It will look suspicious.""Not if Zyra invites him, she won't know, remember. She can invite him, and whoever is portraying King Drakon won't suspect anything. We're going to be honest and explain something is wrong with Asher, and he's not well."So we're not hiding the issue."He could be in the cell for weeks, so we've had things moved down there for him. The plan is later to test how he is with someone in the cell with him. T
Asher POVI watch as Elijah glares at everyone and backs up more."Elijah, we need to know." My mum steps towards him."I saw him once, just once! You all need to focus on Asher, not me! He's the one that is cursed, not me!" He shouts and steps back. He backs into my dad, and he grabs Elijah as Seraphine steps forward and grips his head.His screams echo around the cells, and it's all over just as quickly as it starts. His body falls to the floor, and he cradles his head."Well?" Darius looks at Seraphine."You're going to need a warlock, or I'll need to contact my family and see if they have something to clear the curses." Her words make me look towards Elijah. So, he is also cursed."Asher's curse is to make him push everyone out and make him think he has a mad wolf so that Zyra leaves. Elijah's was to hate Asher, likely to intensify it." Seraphine smiles slightly. "There's no mate, Elijah. The curse is what's stopping us from having a baby. There's no third mate." Her words have hi
Asher POVNo one speaks, likely because they know what I said is the truth. I need to die; there is nothing they can do to change that."Explain the process, what happened, how it started, when it happens." Darius pulls a chair over and sits outside the cell.I laugh. "Why do I need to talk? Why do I need to explain? You're proving you believe me by keeping me locked in here and being too afraid to come near your own son."Nothing I say can change that."Asher, I'm not opening the cell because I don't trust you to try and run. So explain it to me, tell me how it's progressed, and let's be sure that is what is happening." He waits, and I watch my mum, Elijah, and dad sit with him."It began with whispers. The words were barely audible, but I heard whispers in my ear. They got louder and began to sound like words. Whispers were one thing, but then I began to see people dead and my wolf above them." It was a warning to me to hide, to push them away, and not let them close to me."When do