I stop briskly and instantly the moment I hear that deep terrifying voice that sounds quite familiar, and it makes my heart race instantly in my chest as I look around me with wide eyes.It isn't the voice that actually frightens me; what actually frightens me the most is the fact that the voice actually says the person I am carrying is his daughter.*Oh my good goddess, what the living fuck,* I think to myself as I blink rapidly before glancing at Serena's body in my arms, thinking of a quick way I can escape this terrifying situation.If this is really her father—the Vampire Lord of the vampire clan—standing behind me telling me this, then I am absolutely fucking screwed. What the hell am I supposed to explain to him about me carrying his daughter presently with the way the entire scenario is right now?I am a freaking werewolf, a member of the most dangerous and brutal and vicious pack in the supernatural world. Werewolves are known to be merciless, to be quick to kill without thin
I smile at her as I wave my hands quickly, trying to dismiss her apology."Hey, it's okay, ma'am. It's fine. I totally get it. I understand," I reply and look down at the ground.She chuckles and squats before me again, observing me intensely."You might not know this, but I have actually been watching you guys for a very long while," she says, and I snap my gaze back to look at her as she grins at me."I know how much you love and care about my daughter. That's the main reason why I am totally not against all of this, but well, I guess it is something we can talk about later while we handle this severe situation right now. Do you have any specific reason as to why the witches and wizards attacked and went for her? Did they say anything or give off any hint that revealed why they wanted her?"I scratch my fingers against my forehead and look around me. "Oh yeah, they did. They kept mentioning things like she was a threat to the world, and she is not what we think she is, and she's som
Damon's POVI remain motionless in my spot, every muscle in my body coiled tight, as I watch the tense confrontation unfold between Serena's parents. The night air is thick with unspoken threats and bitter resentment. The moon casts a pale, ghostly glow over the clearing, illuminating the raw emotions on their faces.Frederick's grip on Serena is unwavering, his stance rigid with determination, his fingers digging into her arm as if to physically restrain not just her body but her will. His imposing figure, clad in his signature dark robe, radiates dominance—an undeniable force, one that has controlled and dictated her life for too long."Let me go!" Serena's voice rings through the clearing, filled with desperation and fury. She struggles against his hold, her movements frantic, like a caged bird fighting against steel bars. "You have no right to keep me away from him!"Frederick's face hardens, his expression carved from stone. "No daughter of mine will ever be involved with a bruta
Serena's POVMy throat is raw from shouting, but I refuse to stop. "Let me go!" I scream, struggling against my father's unyielding grip. My body burns with frustration, muscles aching from the effort of trying to free myself. I wish—just for a second—that I had the strength to land a solid punch right on his arrogant face, to make him feel even a fraction of the pain he's causing me."Enough, Serena! We're going home," he commands, his voice cold and unwavering, like steel hardened by centuries of power. "This ridiculous infatuation ends tonight.""Infatuation?" I spit the word back at him. "You have no idea what this is. We have a deeper connection than anything you could understand."I whip my head around, my desperate gaze finding Damon. He slowly rises from where he had fallen on the road, dusting himself off with deliberate slowness, eyes locked onto mine with a tortured expression. He wants to come to me, I know he does. Just like I want to run into his arms and never let go. T
Damon's POVI slam the door shut behind me, the echo ringing through the empty apartment. Our apartment. The one Serena and I are supposed to share, the place where we are meant to live our lives together. Now, it feels like a hollow shell, mocking me with its silence. The air is thick with the weight of everything that has happened, and I feel like I'm suffocating in it.Frustration boils in my veins as I pace back and forth, fists clenching and unclenching. My mind replays the scene over and over again—Serena struggling against her father, the desperation in her eyes, the way she called out to me before he dragged her away. The helplessness I felt in that moment is unbearable. I should've done more. I should've fought harder. But what was I supposed to do? Start a war right there in the middle of the road? Risk losing her forever if things escalated beyond control?With a deep breath, I force myself to sit on the couch, leaning my head back. I need to calm down. I need to think. The
Serena's POVI sink back against my bed, biting down hard on my bottom lip as my mind swirls with endless thoughts. Damon went on that rampage because of me. He did all of that just to protect me. The weight of that realization presses down on me, making it hard to breathe. My mind replays the last thing I remember before everything went dark—the brutal wizard's fists landing blow after blow, the sharp, crushing pain radiating through my body, making me feel like my bones are literally being shattered. Each strike sends shockwaves through me, the agony so intense that I almost convince myself that my body won't be able to withstand it. The memory makes me shudder, but when I shift my body slightly, I realize something shocking—every ounce of pain I felt then has completely disappeared. My injuries, the ones that had left me feeling like I was on the brink of death, are gone.I exhale shakily, trying to process what this means. Maybe my vampire abilities have healed me while I was unco
SERENA'S POVI wake up the next morning with a burning anger simmering beneath my skin. Frustration coils in my chest like a snake, tightening its grip with every breath I take. The events of yesterday replay in my mind on an endless loop—my father's controlling grip on my life, his suffocating rules, his ruthless determination to keep me away from Damon. It all fuels the fire raging inside me, a wildfire of defiance that refuses to be extinguished.Throwing the blankets off me, I swing my legs over the edge of the bed and sit up, running a shaky hand through my tangled hair. My jaw clenches as I try to will away the sharp sting of helplessness curling in my stomach. I refuse to be powerless. I refuse to let him dictate my life. With renewed determination, I yank open my wardrobe, pull on my uniform in stiff, deliberate movements, and sling my backpack over my shoulder. Every motion feels like an act of rebellion, no matter how small.Downstairs, the house is eerily silent, but the ai
SERENA'S POV*What are you thinking, Serena?*Cassidy and Luna's voices barely register in my mind as I remain trapped in my own thoughts. My bodyguard, Lucian, is an oppressive shadow behind me, his presence suffocating, a constant reminder of the cage my father has placed around me. My stomach churns with frustration, my fingers tightening around the edge of my locker as I glance toward my friends. Lowering my voice to a whisper, I murmur just loud enough for them to hear."I need to find a way to evade him," I breathe, desperation lacing my words. "There has to be some way to slip past him, even for just a few minutes."Before I can even process my next thought, a firm, unrelenting grip clasps around my wrist. My heart lurches as I snap my head up, locking eyes with Lucian's unreadable, piercing gaze."I can hear you," he states flatly, his voice devoid of any amusement. "Enhanced senses. Your whispers might as well be shouts."Damn it. A sharp pang of realization cuts through me.
DAMON'S POVI've never been this afraid in my entire immortal life.Not when I first turned and felt my humanity slipping away like sand through desperate fingers. Not during my worst hunts through pitch-black forests with nothing but instinct guiding me. Not even when I fought my way out of a vampire pit at seventeen with nothing but a broken fang and pure, undiluted rage burning through my veins like acid.This—this—is something else entirely. Something that makes my ancient blood run cold.Serena is on her knees in the middle of the ruined living room, surrounded by splintered furniture and shattered glass. Her arms are bent at unnatural, impossible angles behind her, trembling violently like leaves in a hurricane. Her head is thrown back at a painful tilt, her mouth slightly open in a silent scream, and her eyes... gods, her eyes are rolled up so far I only
SERENA'S POVThe pain is indescribable—beyond any human language's capacity to capture its essence.It's not just in my head—it is my head in its entirety. It feels like someone's driving razor-sharp claws straight into the soft tissue of my brain, methodically twisting and shredding every coherent thought, every cherished memory, every fundamental shred of who I am at my core. I can't breathe through the agony. I can't form a single rational thought.I can barely maintain a sense that I exist at all.Isabella watches me with predatory intensity, her expression twisted into a sick, delighted smile that reveals too many teeth. Her glowing crimson eyes drink in my excruciating pain like it's an exquisite feast prepared solely for her consumption. There's unmistakable hunger there. Desperate, primal need. Something infinitely deeper and more disturbing
SERENA'S POVThe air turns heavier with every breath I take. It doesn't just press on my chest—it crushes it with the weight of impending doom. Like trying to breathe through viscous tar. Thick. Suffocating. Oppressive. Every labored inhale feels like it might be the last, my lungs straining against an invisible force that seeks to silence me forever.I see it in the others too—the unmistakable strain, the slow, painful unraveling of their strength. Damon's broad shoulders sag visibly, his normally perfect stance losing the military precision that usually defines him. His once-fluid movements grow increasingly sluggish, as if he's fighting through waist-deep water, each strike requiring double the effort. Cassidy stumbles mid-swipe, her dancer's grace momentarily abandoning her as she barely dodges a vampire's yellowed claw that slices the air mere inches from her flushed face. A fraction slower and her fles
SERENA'S POV The fear around me isn’t just thick—it’s suffocating, pressing into my chest with invisible hands, making it hard to breathe. It’s not panic. It’s worse. It’s the knowing kind—the kind that seeps into your bones when your body realizes you might not survive.Vampires pour into the room like a flood let loose. Their eyes burn with frenzy, fangs gleam wet with blood, and every last one of them is locked on me. I can feel their hunger like heat against my skin. My breath catches in my throat, shallow and useless. My legs refuse to move. Every muscle in my body screams to run, to fight, to do something—but I can’t even figure out where to go. There’s nowhere safe. No space left.“Hold the line!” Damon’s voice slices through the chaos like thunder cracking the sky.And then—just like that—they’re around me.Damon, Cassidy, Luna, Brooke, Ryan, Brian—they close ranks with the kind of coordination that only comes from shared survival. It’s instinctual. Protective. Fierce. They d
SERENA'S POVThe moment Brian and Cassidy step into the living room from their hiding place, I see it in their eyes. That shimmer of gold, pulsing beneath the surface like molten metal struggling to break free, tells me everything I need to know. It's their werewolf instincts kicking in—heightened senses, sharpened awareness, primal intuition thrumming beneath human skin. We were not the only ones who felt it. That oppressive pressure in the air, like the sky itself dropped a few feet lower, crushing us beneath its invisible weight. That split-second stretch of time, how the shadows dragged just a little too long, as if something unseen pulled at them, toying with reality itself. Something is terribly, dangerously wrong.Cassidy's eyes narrow, sweeping over the large space like a blade ready to strike. Her posture shifts, muscles coiling tight beneath her skin, tense and poised like a predator se
SERENA’S POVThe warmth still lingers between us—tender, quiet, and deeply comforting.I tug my shirt over my head and smooth my hair down with a soft exhale as Damon finishes buttoning his jeans. There's a softness in his gaze, a kind of afterglow that transcends the physical—it's emotional, magnetic, and hard to look away from. We don’t need to speak. The way he reaches over and intertwines our fingers says more than a thousand whispered words ever could. We’re wrapped in something real, something deeper than desire.As we step out of the room and descend the winding spiral staircase, the low hum of laughter and conversation rises to greet us. Down in the cozy living area, Luna, Ryan, and Brooke sit huddled around a rustic wooden table, a deck of cards splayed between them like a colorful puzzle. Luna’s fingers move with elegant flair, each shuffle deliber
DAMON'S POVHer words, raw and demanding – "Give me all of you. Now." – resonate deep within the core of my being, echoing through me like a physical blow. They send a powerful tremor down my spine, a vibration that has absolutely nothing to do with the lingering, pleasant tension of bringing her to a shattering release just moments before. This is something new, something fiercely reciprocal. My gaze locks with hers, instantly captivated, drowning in the brilliant, almost feverish shine that illuminates her eyes from within. I see the deep, becoming flush staining her high cheekbones, spreading down her neck – undeniable, visceral proof of the inferno I deliberately stoked within her soul. An inferno that now rages with an almost desperate need for completion, for absolute possession. She wants me. All of me. Badly. The knowledge is a potent drug, intoxicating and overwhelmingly satisfying.A lo
DAMON'S POVI can't help it. The need claws at me, an overwhelming tide that’s been building for hours, days, maybe longer. It’s a physical ache deep in my gut, a frantic energy buzzing just beneath my skin. And now… now she’s here. Right in front of me, in my apartment, the very place my fantasies have played out a thousand times. There’s nothing between us, no watchful eyes, no imminent interruption – at least, not yet.I know this is borrowed time. A stolen moment before the world, before her father, inevitably discovers she’s gone and rips her away again. That knowledge sharpens the edge of my desire, making every second precious, potent. There’s no room for discussion, no time for hesitant talk. Action is the only language that makes sense right now.With a low growl rising in my chest, I surge forward, pinning her against the cool wood of
SERENA’S POVThe night air is cool on my skin as Damon holds me close, carrying me as though I’m the most precious thing in the world. His strong, steady arms beneath me feel reassuring, the steady rhythm of his heartbeat vibrating against my cheek as I rest my head against his chest. It’s the only sound I focus on as we finally reach the apartment, my heart pounding—not just from the run, not just from the fear, but from the overwhelming swirl of emotions inside me: relief, joy, love... hunger.Damon pushes the door open, the scent of warm takeout and something faintly herbal filling the air, but there’s something else too—a tension, thick and unspoken. Inside, his friends are sprawled across the living room, a deck of cards scattered across the table between them. Brian, Ryan, and Brooke all look up in unison, their eyes widening slightly as they take in the sight of Damon cra