**Aria POVI woke up in my room with Noah's body pressed up close against mine. I snuggled in closer to him, grateful that for the first time since meeting Chris, there was absolutely no feeling of nausea or pain when I was around Noah.Whatever serum Henry had given me really had freed my mind from its strange turmoil. I was finally myself again, and could actually enjoy being with the man I loved. I had no idea how much longer this clarity would last, but I was sure going to relish every moment of it.Noah's eyes flickered open and he smiled when he saw me. "Good morning, beautiful," he whispered, and kissed me sweetly. "I've been dreaming about waking up next to you for so long.""Glad I'm here to fulfill your wishes, good sir," I teased, kissing him back and climbing on top of him.Things began to get steamy as we both shed our clothes and explored each other's bodies with our hands and mouths.Unfortunately Noah's phone buzzed loudly before too long, signaling the end
I screamed up to the sky with ecstasy as Noah brought me to an earth-shattering climax.I grasped the edge of the tub, steadying myself while catching my breath.Noah kissed me passionately. "Are you out of energy already, my love?" he teased.I smiled and bit his ear. "Carry me upstairs and you'll find out," I challenged my handsome companion.Noah growled happily and scooped me up into his arms, getting out of the tub and traipsing through the house to his bedroom fully nude. We were too engrossed in each other to worry about anyone seeing us, and luckily it was past midnight, so everyone in the mansion was already asleep.Noah playfully threw me onto his bed and began to kiss his way all across my dripping body.I grinned, grabbing hold of him and rolling over, pinning him beneath me."Let me take care of that for a little bit," I said playfully.I lowered my head between his legs and relished in the sound of his pleasure. He caressed my face lovingly as I pleasured
**Aria POV Two months had passed and there had been almost no sign of Chris. There were rumors that he had left Romulus on a business trip overseas, or that he had taken some time off on a private island.But I knew he was still here; I could feel him at the back of my mind. Most of the time it was quiet, and I was able to focus on my work. But whenever I thought of Noah, remembered the touch of his lips, the softness of his touch…Chris's voice would ravage my mind. Sickness and nausea would engulf my stomach, and I would feel the urge to run as far away as I could. To where? Where would I run to?'To Chris, of course,' my brain would answer, as though it was the only thing in the world that made sense.But I loved Noah! I wanted to be with Noah! This was all just the workings of Chris's dark magic...My mind went blank and I cursed. It was starting again, but this time it was stronger and more intrusive.Worried how Noah would react, fearing that he might fall straight
I leapt over the high wall and chased after Aria's scent. What had started as a light rain was now pouring down heavily, obscuring my vision, but her scent was strong enough for me to keep on her trail.I reached the edge of the forest and finally caught sight of her, clad in an alluring red dress, same as the night we had first met, and drenched to the bone. But she stood there motionless, not bothered by the cold or the rain.I edge closer silently, not wanting to alert her to my presence. She seemed to be waiting for someone. Atlas, maybe? No, if that was the case then there would be no reason for her to sneak out.A car's headlights appeared in the distance, fast approaching where Aria stood at the edge of the road. I squinted through the darkness and the rain to get a better look…When my phone suddenly began to buzz. Panicked, I almost let it slip from my fingers. I answered it quickly to prevent it from ringing."I'm a little busy right now, Diggory," I whispered into
I gazed with happiness at the face of my love. Every inch of him was perfect, as though sculpted by a deity of beauty.He looked slightly different, though.'He's perfect!'Did he always have brown eyes?'Does it matter if he does?'Something was wrong.'Everything is fine.'This person in front of me…it was not Noah.'Who is Noah?'I approached my love and he took me into his warm embrace."Welcome home," he said cheerfully. "Come inside and get warm by the fire, you must be chilly from the rain!"I followed him inside. The interior of the castle blurred around me, and suddenly I found myself before a roaring fire. My soaking dress began to dry as I allowed myself to bask in the fire's warmth.I felt strong arms wrap themselves around me from behind. I sighed in comfort and leaned in, enjoying the warmth that the body behind me provided as well."You've missed me, haven't you?" he asked playfully."Was there ever a doubt?" I posed to him teasingly.I lift
**Noah POV"No!" Aria screamed. She transformed her fingers into claws and slashed at my face.Utterly bewildered, I was too stunned to move away in time, and she struck the side of my face, drawing blood and leaving behind a deep slash."Aria!" I yelled, hurt and in shock. "What the hell are you doing?"Aria stared at me, rage in her eyes. "You monster!" she growled, her eyes turning bright yellow. "You can't fool me, so stop pretending to be him."I lifted my hands up to try and calm her down. The look in her eyes was savage and out of control. Could this be what the bishop was talking about? Could she be giving in to her inner beast?"Aria," I said gently, trying to keep my voice level and calm, "I know you must be feeling confused and stressed out, but you're fine, you're safe."I inched toward her, reaching out my arms to embrace and comfort her. Her eyes softened slightly as she began to recognize me. She lowered her claws, reverting them back to normal hands."It
I landed on all fours and kept sprinting, faster than any car. The wind rushed in my ears and I could hear the padded footsteps of another wolf running close behind me. The scent told me that Noah had transformed as well and was chasing after me.Why wouldn't he leave me alone? I was not his!'He wants to control you. He knows he can't have you so he wants to imprison you. Come to me and I will protect you.'I doubled my speed, running faster than I ever had in my entire life. Soon I was out of the city and in the dark and untamed wilderness, headed towards where the voice was telling me to go.Suddenly, I was knocked aside by a large black wolf. I tumbled to the ground, shifting back into human form. The black wolf shifted back into human form as well—it looked like Noah, but the sickness the sight of him induced in me made me doubt it was him."Why won't you just leave me be?" I screamed at him. "Why are you so determined to keep us apart? Are you that jealous?""Aria, wh
"How long has he been in there?" I heard Judy's voice ask outside my room."Three days," Atlas replied. "Losing one's love to another takes its toll. Why are you even here, Judith?"Judy scoffed, her voice turning sour."Because I'm his oldest friend and I haven't heard from him in days," she said. "I've come to comfort him.""I bet you have," Atlas replied skeptically. "Well, don't hold your breath, because he won't see anyone. I'll let him know you stopped by if he comes out."I could imagine Judy's scowl as her footsteps faded down the hall. Once she was gone I could sense Atlas lean against the door. He had been doing this for days, trying to convince me to get some fresh air."Is today going to be the same as yesterday, buddy?" he asked.I didn't answer. I had no will to speak. No will to move. No will to eat or drink. All I could picture was Aria in Chris's arms; the way she gazed at him lovingly and looked at me with disgust.This was my fate for some wrong I had
"What happened to that thing?" Noah asked in panic when he regained consciousness, grabbing his gun and pointing it at where Silas had been standing."It's alright," I said gently, placing a calming hand on his arm and allowing healing energy to flow through him. "He and Selene came to...an agreement. He's gone for the time being."I thought about what Selene had said—that my life would ensure everyone's safety. Maybe this had been my calling all along.Shaking my head to clear it, I helped Noah up and hugged him tightly. "Come on, love, let's get out of here.""Wait," he said before we started to exit the damaged chamber. "Chris's body. We need to bring it with us to prove to his pack that he is dead. They might attack us if it looks like we just left."I had hoped to just leave Chris and the entire memory of the situation down here in this cavern, but Noah was right. I sighed and nodded.The two of us heaved Chris's body over our shoulders and carried him back to the surf
Chris lay before us, virtually turned to stone.Was that it? Had we finally won? It seemed so surreal that it was actually over. I helped Noah to his feet, giving him support while his wound healed. It did not seem to be that serious, so there was no reason for me to intervene."I should make sure that he's dead," Noah said. "We don't want any more surprises."I nodded in agreement. We stumbled slowly towards Chris's body. Noah tried to kneel down, but was unable to in his current state."I'll do it," I said gently, leaning him against one of the pillars before making my way to Chris.I knelt next to him and placed my fingers on his neck. His body was warm, but there was no pulse. I touched his back and felt no intake of breath. All evidence pointed to him being dead as a doorknob."He's really dead," I sighed, my eyes lingering on Chris, refusing to relax or look away.Noah seemed to still be on edge as well. "Does something not feel quite right to you?" he asked caut
The two packs met on the fields of the conservation land. Weapons were raised and wolves transformed, gnashing their fangs and growling at one another.The Hansen pack's front lines blocked the entrance to the ritual site; it looked like we were going to have to fight our way through to get to Chris, who seemed to not be present amongst his wolves."Chris is probably down in the tunnels already," I said. "We need to get past his vanguard somehow.""Well, we can't exactly open fire," Noah replied. He stepped forward and addressed the Hansen wolves in a clear and commanding voice. "I have no intention to harm any of you!" he said loudly. "I am only here for your Alpha. Let us pass."A young, ashen-haired Hansen pack member stepped forward. "Our Alpha has given us instructions to only let the woman named Aria through," he hollered.I was about to tell Noah that it was fine, that he should just stay here to make sure the Hansen pack didn't cause any problems. But he guessed my in
**Chris POVI groaned, gritting my teeth as my bones reformed for the thousandth time. My inner beast roared in anguish as it bore the weight of the most dangerous of all knowledge. I felt it pull on my soul, already trying to drag me down to the depths of hell for daring to peer into where mortals are forbidden.I got to my feet unsteadily, holding onto the ancient stone walls for balance. I could do with a rest…but I had no time to waste. The ritual needed to be completed now.I stumbled out of the chamber and called for a pack member who had stood guard outside."You there!" I called. "Ready everyone who is able to fight. We storm the Bergmann territory again; this time, our goal is the Nexus point."The wolf nodded and hurried off to spread the news to the others. I was done being careful, done playing the subtle games of espionage and stealing information. I could not afford to waste any more time trying to win over the territory for myself. That would have to come af
**Noah POV"You awake?" Aria asked softly.It was past midnight, and Aria had her head nestled on my chest. I was exhausted and my mind was numb…but I could not sleep. I guess she too was wracked with concern about the events to come."Yeah," I whispered, trailing my fingers through her dark hair. "It seems almost silly to sleep like there's nothing happening.""I know what you mean," she said thoughtfully. "Also, if I close my eyes I'm afraid my dreams will be hijacked by Selene again.""What's it like, to speak to a celestial being?" I asked, still barely able to believe such a thing was even possible."It's…unnerving and exhilarating at the same, like...like being chained to a shooting star," she whispered. "I thought it would be comforting, to have someone powerful watch over you, but it feels more like a target on my back than anything else."I kissed her forehead and rubbed her arm gently. So many times, I had vowed to her that I would protect her, stand by her—and
**Noah POV"Why did you keep all of this a secret from me?" I asked Atlas and my dad angrily.I was in bed, my body aching. Even though Aria had miraculously healed me, coming back from the dead still hurt like a b*tch. My father and Atlas had come to see me after Aria had filled them in on what had happened. She passed out in a deep sleep soon after.At first I was relieved. Then I became angry when I remembered what Aria had told me before Chris had used her to try to kill me."I am the Alpha," I fumed. "You can't just make decisions and then keep them from me!""No offense Noah, but you would have made Chris suspicious had you known what was going on," Atlas said calmly. "You're a pretty pathetic actor.""All of you shouldn't have even done anything! Chris was my battle to fight," I said."Yes, and it would have been a battle you would have lost before it even began," my father grunted. "Chris never had any intention of facing you in Damnatio Memoriae. Surely Aria expl
"Aria!" Noah yelled, rushing to my side."Don't" I screamed, pushing him away from me. "He's awake! He's going to make me kill you! You should go!""I'm not going anywhere!" Noah said firmly, coming to my aid once more.I screamed in pain as my fingers began to transform into claws against my will. I lunged forward to strike Noah across the face, but he caught my arm just in time."Noah, please," I cried, "either you run away or you have to kill me, because Chris is not going to stop and there's nothing that can break this spell."But Noah stayed, holding my claws at bay. His arms began to quiver and I felt his grip loosen. My arm broke free and was raised to attack again. I grabbed it with my own left hand, pulling it back with all my strength.Noah stumbled backward, looking slightly dazed, like he had been drugged. "What is happening?" he mumbled, swaying dangerously.My left hand began to transform as well. I felt Chris's spell strengthen, taking back control of my bo
**Aria POVI hurried away, fearing that I might attack Judy and tear her away from Noah without any mercy or regret. How dare she act so casually around him, knowing what she condemned me to, and having taken pleasure in my suffering?It was getting dark outside and the building had begun to empty. The corridors seemed almost deserted.This really was sick of Chris, to place me in such close proximity to Noah. He probably knew how Judith was cozying up to Noah, too, and that I'd have to watch."You there! Intern!" someone called dramatically. I wiped a single tear from my eye and turned around in surprise, only to see Atlas beckoning me. I approached, and he pulled me into an empty cleaning closet."Okay, so I was right!" he exclaimed excitedly. "The ritual site on Bergmann territory is a Nexus point for dark communion. I remember I sold an old map of Romulus to a collector a few years ago which marked all the ancient ritual sites in the area. That collector was Edmund Han
"Atlas, did you file the report on—" Noah paused when he saw me and Atlas. "I did not know you had company."Atlas and I were standing very close to each other as we whispered, so I did not look like just another colleague."Oh, this is not that sort of company," Atlas fumbled. "This is…""…Tessa from IT," I added quickly. Yet another name to add to my growing list. "Mr. Oasis was having some issues with his computer."Noah furrowed his brow. "Huh…I thought you were an expert with tech, Atlas," he said."I said I'm tech savvy," Atlas said. "That does not mean I'm an expert who's not in need of a real expert."As Noah took a casual step forward, his scent suddenly accosted me, wafting into the air, and I was once again ravaged by feelings of intense nausea. Chris's spell still seemed to affect my physical response to Noah's presence."You seem all set, Mr. Oasis," I said, trying not to double over with pain. "Send me those images of the issue just so I can log it in in cas