Aiden winces as he adjusts himself on the uncomfortable hospital bed. The doctors have put his foot in a bulky cast now. I sit beside him, my hands fidgeting uncontrollably as waves of concern wash over me. “How are you feeling?” I ask softly. I reach out a hand to take his, but I hesitate. I can’
My heart drops. Some part of me had wondered absently if Aiden’s family might have something to do with all of this, but to have Aiden say it truly confirmed how far things have spiraled. “Do you think they would do something like this?” I ask at last. “I mean, I know they don’t approve of me, b
I can’t help but feel touched despite their clumsy delivery. Their awkwardness and stilted conversation with Aiden betray their genuine concern for him. It warms my heart to see them come to their teammate’s side in his time of need. One evening, Aiden is admitted to the hospital, his childhood
Aiden swallows hard and nods. “Oh? What are you considering?” He says. His voice is rough and low, and it sends a shiver down my spine. “Well,” I say, my voice playful, “I know you can’t move very much. You probably won’t be able to touch me. But…” I trail off meaningfully. Aiden is hanging on to
The moment I step into the locker room, I’m struck by the heavy atmosphere in the air. The usual banter and camaraderie of the pre-game space is completely absent. Instead, there is a palpable sense of unease. As expected, morale in the room is low. For a moment, I feel a pang of awkwardness at en
‘I know you can help them. Please, Carol, work your magic. You’re their best shot at victory.’ I rub my forehead. As much as I appreciate his faith, I feel as though all I can do is disappoint. I already tried to encourage them. I’m not sure how anything I say could affect them at this point. Stil
“You are the Statford Freeze, with or without Aiden,” I remind them. “You’ve risen to fame. You’ve made it to the semifinals. Has all of that growth been for nothing?” I hear a quiet chorus of “no” in response to my words. A passionate smile pulls at my lips. “Then show them,” I challenge. “Show
The moment I open the door, I hear Aiden calling out to me from the living room. I rush in with a giddy expression on my face — one that Aiden is wearing, too. He looks in surprisingly high spirits considering he hasn’t been well enough to move far from the couch. “You brought champagne,” he says
I chuckled as I held back tears.“Sorry,” I murmured, trying to pull back, but she held me tighter.“I’ve missed you like crazy,” she breathed. “How’s life in the empire? I’ve been keeping tabs on you in the media. Seems you are kicking ass as the queen.”Since the inauguration ceremony last year, I
She flinched away for a moment, afraid that the darkness might hurt him, but I had faith that it wouldn’t because it was under her control now and the light in her wouldn’t be dim for the darkness.“It’s okay,” I assured her, bringing Caleb even closer into her view. She stared at him with admiratio
EpilogueAiden’s POV“She still won’t come out of her room?” Fiona asked, staring at the closed suite door with a frown. “It’s been a week since she killed her sister…”“She’s scared,” I told her, cradling Caleb in my arms. “Raelyn’s darkness is inside of her and she’s worried that she’s going to do
She was quiet for a moment while the Queen continued to bark orders in the background. The dark tendrils only seemed to grow more agitated with each passing moment.“Please, call the tendrils off and—”“I can’t,” she said quickly. “They don’t listen to me anymore… they listen to her more than they l
I wanted to believe that there was still good in Raelyn. That the darkness hadn’t taken over completely. I grabbed her arm, and I brought my gaze to meet hers; I wasn’t sure if my powers would work on her, but I had to try. I channeled her mind and when I found a connection, I realized it was weak,
Carol’s POVI used my powers to fight off the guards, using my mind manipulation to make them fight one another and using some of the spells I was taught to ward them off. I’ve practiced with mind manipulation a lot so I was able to do it quickly. I soon had some of them at least turning against the
“It’s not personal darling,” she said, waving off his concern. “It’s strictly business.”“Was any of it real?” He asked, shaking his head with disgust written all over his face. “Did you ever love me?”She let out a bitter laugh.“Love?” She scoffed. “Please… There’s no room for love when I have a n
My entire body went cold when I saw what they were running from. Clouds of darkness snaked through the ground, slithering like snakes. I could feel the cold darkness and the chilling aura that penetrated it.In the distance, I squinted at the figures standing in the center of the town.The Queen.St
Carol’s POV“You promised you’d help me buy a ring for Fiona,” Oliver said as he leaned against the doorframe of my suite. I had just finished changing Caleb’s dirty typer for the 5(th) time this hour when Oliver decided to bless me with his visit.Collectively, we’ve been in the Empire for 2 months