I collapsed to my knees, staring at my father's dead body lying on his throne. Draven was standing next to me. He leaned down and put his hand on my shoulder.
"Are you all right?" he asked.
"I… I don't know…" I muttered, "Are you?"
I felt all sorts of emotions, some of which I was unable to name, and I could understand if Draven felt frustrated because, in the end, he couldn't avenge his father with his own hands. When I lifted my eyes to meet his, I saw anger and relief mixed in his expression.
"Someone must have hated him even more than I did." He stretched his lips into a thin line.
"Randall D'Apolito ruined a lot of lives. He finally pissed off someone powerful enough to kill him." I shrugged, trying to act as if looking at my father's corpse meant nothing to me.
"At least he can't hurt you anymore." Draven gave me a warm smile and reached out his hand to help me stand.
I took his hand, pushing away my uneasiness and
"Don't listen to him, Lilith!" Draven's voice violently pierced the air between me and Sariel. "He may not write those texts to you, but it doesn't mean he's telling the truth now!"I sighed angrily, hearing his tone, and closed my eyes. One punch he got from Sariel wasn't nearly enough for what he did to me. Nonetheless, he was right. How could I be certain that Sariel wasn't lying to me, just like Draven did?"Look at me, Lilith." Sariel gently lifted my chin. "Look at me and you'll know that I'm not lying."I opened my eyes to meet his beautiful grey pupils, filled with longing and pain. I carefully examined his expression, enjoying the view, I didn't realize I missed so much. The depth of his sight seemed more profound than before. The shield protecting his emotions that I had once seen was gone as if he could no longer hide anything from me. This powerful man looked vulnerable standing before me."I won't ever lie to you. I won't hide anything from y
I was told that Draven should recover in a day. The cut he received from Sariel was quite deep, but it was meant to make him unable to fight, not to kill him in an instant. Of course, it would have been deadly for a regular wolf, but it was way not enough for a strong Alpha whose healing process started immediately after his flesh had been torn.Even defeated, Draven kept his position in the pack. Sariel couldn't care less about becoming the werewolves' leader. Besides, I doubt he ever had their complete loyalty. Certainly, it didn't make Draven's position any less complicated, and I bet his dreams of becoming a king would have to wait for a while. Nonetheless, the Moon Hill Pack deserved to rule over the entire north and south, and that automatically made Draven the leader of the werewolf race.The fact that Alpha Randall D'Apolito had been killed by some unknown creature was hidden from the majority of the packs' members. Only a few knew the truth. Sariel, Leo, Beta
I needed a moment to process Leo's words. I was so preoccupied with everything around that I never asked Leo or Sariel what had happened when they'd lost communication and how they had managed to get to Greystoneville. I looked at Sariel. His eyes were blazing red, and his expression was completely different than when his eyes were on me."How much time do we have before they'll enter the town?" he asked, gritting his teeth.Leo replied immediately, "Three hours tops."Sariel reached for my hand and pulled me to stand close beside him. "Draven should speed up his healing. We'd need all of his dogs ready. Call the meeting in fifteen," he said in a firm tone.Leo nodded and quickly dashed to execute Sariel's order. He watched Leo disappear into the corridor, silently processing the situation before turning my way.He cupped my face in his hands and locked his eyes on me. "I want you to stay out of this fight."I stroked his hands on my face an
Hybrid. This one word bounced inside my mind as I tried to grasp the meaning of it. There was no reliable information about creatures being a mix of werewolf and vampire. According to the legends, there was a tiny possibility of a child of a vampire and a werewolf being born, but no records were found to prove that. To give us any information, Leo read the notes that Doctor Will Duarte provided after examining the body of one of the degenerates.Will found many similarities between them and vampire commoners, which could suggest that the one creating the degenerates had to be a vampire noble or at least have a lot of noble genes. At the same time, their insatiable hunger could only be compared to those who were born to live with a commoner vampire's bite: the vampire degenerates. The hybrid degenerates didn't have fangs but massive jaws with sharp teeth. Their claws also resembled those of wolves rather than blade-like vampire claws. They were all at least 6.7 feet tall, with
The monster standing right before me lowered its massive jaw, exposing its blade-like teeth. My ten-inch knife was still stuck in its chest, but it didn't seem to weaken it at all. Its breath felt burning hot against my face as it tried to sink its teeth into my flesh. I ducked and pulled out my knife, cutting the monster wide open.It let out an awful howl, making my ears ring. I jumped to the side, dodging the sharp claws trying to reach me. That creature was fast, and its movements were more agile than those of an average wolf. Risking getting into the range of its claws, I swung my knife across its stomach and then leaned back, avoiding the hit, but my moves weren't swift enough. Four of its claws pierced my flesh right below my ribs. I screamed in pain and raised my head to meet the pair of monster's vicious eyes. I could have sworn that it seemed to be enjoying my suffering. Its jaws were getting closer, preparing to tear my skin, flesh, and insides apart. It was the on
As soon as we crossed the Greystoneville borders, I heard of the first attacks already starting in the northern part of the town. Leo was there with two battalions to repel the degenerates. So far they succeeded in keeping the enemy right outside the borders, but the hybrids' numbers were increasing by the minute.Sariel was relentless about keeping me close to him. I had to assure him that I wasn't going to do anything reckless and that I treasured my life enough not to make any rash decisions. The only time I was allowed to leave his side was when Patrick came to tell me that he had something for me."Your King must sincerely trust you," I snorted as Patrick led me to the car."Why do you say that?" he asked."He didn't want me to pee alone, but the moment you showed up, he just let me go to do whatever." I gave him a suspicious glance.He burst out laughing and then replied, "Yes, you can say that he trusts me. He wouldn't allow anyone near you
"Lilith!" The voice calling my name was full of fright and anger. "Damn it, Lilith! Open your eyes!" My eyelids were heavy. I felt as if I had lost control over my body. It was terrifying. Yet, the voice commanded me relentlessly. "Lilith! Stay with me! Open your eyes!" As the voice cried out my name, my senses began coming back to me, starting with the pain, an excruciating pain. I couldn't breathe. Every second of being conscious felt like hell. My mouth twisted in a silent scream, making me pull up my eyelids. The image I saw was blurry, but then I recognized a few people bending down, looking at me, and Sariel, who held me in his arms while kneeling on the ground. I saw him sigh as I focused my eyes on him. Supporting my weight on his knees, he used one of his claws to cut his other hand and made the blood flow directly to my mouth. I swallowed it, feeling the thick drops burn while falling down my throat. "That's it, Lilith… Drink it and stay wit
I stared at the world outside as if I was looking at it for the first time. It seemed different, more vivid, more intense. I recognized the view quickly: I was looking at the central fountain and garden of the Palace. I didn't have a view like that while I was living in the chamber of the east wing. Judging by that, I concluded that I must have been placed in the main building… Considering that I had to die to get here, it felt bittersweet.I stayed exposed to the sunlight for some time, waiting to experience any kind of tickling or itching as a sign of sunburn, but that didn't happen. Then I took a closer look at my hands. My skin was pale and perfectly even. Excited about discovering the new me, I rushed to the wall mirror in the corner of the chamber. I focused on my reflection and gasped.I looked similar yet differentas if every single detail of me had become more saturated and exposed. My black hair glowed with a raven-like hue, forming a silky surfa