VALEN’S POV Minutes later…I was about to make some bad decisions.“I can't believe you let them convince you to take me here. Making up with Little Beauty did not mean to come down here and involve this mutt.” Zeus was growling at me for teleporting to the dungeon to unbind the damn crab-louse.On top of that, the pallid vermin sat on the floor in his typical yoga position, glaring at me with that smug smirk like I-told-you-so.“Acting like he's got nuts,” Zeus sneered, the disgust heavy in his tone. “Look at him mocking us.”There is nothing I valued more than Raina's opinion. She didn't want him dead. And yet, I was here to kill him. I had been so focused on bringing Raina out of the trial that I had forgotten all about the niggling detail that they slept together.I forgave her for it. I truly did, but now that she wanted him near her, I seriously could not allow it.A part of me had decided that the next time I came to see him, it would be to render him lifeless. I wanted to pun
RAINA’S POV Thunderstruck.Valen’s cold words stopped my heart and my brain at the same time. We were mere paces apart, but he stared down at me like a piece of gum on the sole of his shoes.I blinked at him. “What…what did you say? Are you accusing me of something?”Valen's throat bobbed. He huffed out a breath before speaking in a voice with forced calm. “Forget it. It doesn't matter, as long as you stay away from him.”“Right. This is not the kind of discussion you have in public.” Devin stepped closer to us, trying to diffuse the situation. “We’re here to strategize, not to let our frustration lead us down a road that we shouldn’t go.”“No-no-no. Repeat your words, Valen,” I demanded, hoping I had misheard every syllable.To think he could accuse me of cheating and then dismiss it without giving me the space to clear things angered me.“Best of luck, buddy,” Devin said, omitting himself from our conversation by going to the sideline.Valen stared at me, working his jaw. “I know,
VALEN’S POVUnobstructed resentment rose inside me.My eyes flicked open, and I released Raina's hands to cross mine over my chest.Our eyes pinned each other in silence.“Nothing, right?” Her brows raised in question. She didn’t blink; she just studied me closely, searching my gaze for a response.I kept my face an impassive mask so that my mate couldn't tell that I had actually picked up on the location.Raina’s brows drooped, and she sighed sadly, turning away from me to pace back and forth. The bond started to feel strained even though we were mere inches apart, only adding to my concern.“Don't keep it away from her,” Zeus warned. “You’re going to make her upset with us.”“I know how this plays out,” I practically snapped at him. "You know who's involved.”A worrying knot wrung in my chest as I watched Raina pace back towards me, looking more stressed. I couldn’t stand seeing her carry all this weight again. Maybe I should go to the temple by myself. I would bring Penn and the st
VALEN’S POVThe air-conditioned air hit me and Devin as we barged into the IT Hub, naked, sweaty, and blood-coated.The faint smell of new wires and burned coffee wafted through the coolness, but Raina’s scent dominantly drifted up my nostrils. Zeus perked up in my head, his tail wagging anxiously because he’d get to see her.As I slowly entered the space and scanned it, I couldn’t miss the tension in the room. Everyone was preoccupied, hard at work over something.On the far side of the room, Penn and Azara stood hunched over a long metal table. The five broken Ugandan stone tablets, which they pieced together, were splayed before them. Tomes. Notebooks. Scattered scrolls. Sketches. The plagioclase stone was positioned among them, and I was utterly displeased.I was certain the uneasiness stemmed from the cryptic stones. So that’s what this was about. I didn’t want Raina near them. She knew that. They all knew that, yet my mate couldn’t have stayed with her Mom for one day. Penn was
VALEN’S POVOver at Greenberry forest, the thuds on the ground slowed as the battle came to an end, and the sound of bones cracking filled the air.Snarls, barks, and roars died down, and the air rang with victorious shouts and howls.Zeus pushed back to let me take control and I shifted into my naked human form. I peered out between the needle-pointed branches, locking sight on my Beta.“Stop playing with your prey, Beta,” I growled, knowing he was wasting time.“Squish, pissy fleabag!” Devin let out a guttural snarl as he ripped the last rogue open, tearing muscle and bone apart with his bare claws. His sturdy chest heaved as blood splashed over him, trickling down his bare skin.Bodies piled. Blood pooled. Rivals pulverized.Nude warriors began hauling dead rogues to a heap for on-the-spot cremation. The gruesome sight evoked mixed feelings: pride, but also dread.A light gust of wind carried the metallic scent, whipping it around me, strong and pungent, repulsing me. A sickening t
RAINA’S POVMoonlight streamed through the open curtains, like the touch of its soft light had nudged me awake.Actually, what woke me was that dream again. The gut-wrenching scream of seeing deadly, razor-edge claws stabbed into Selene, and the raw tang of blood that raked my nostrils. It felt more vivid and real than anything else, feeling like a wound was left in my chest.I blinked my swollen eyes and brushed sleep from them. Why did the plagioclase stone still haunt me? Why won’t it give me more than these nightmares and tormenting whispers?Moon goddess, what does your death have to do with me? Why make your pain my own?I shifted away from Valen, wanting to get out of bed."Stay, Bluebella," Valen grumbled beneath me as he wrapped his arms tighter around my waist. His eyes were shut, and he was half asleep, latching onto me like his favorite teddy bear. “It's too early to be thinking that hard.”"How can you possibly know that I'm thinking too hard?" I whined, pushing his chest