Author's POV:“All I care about is that she is getting food inside her stomach and I'm allowing you to do whatever you feel is necessary! Just make sure her stomach isn’t empty, and that there is no possibility for anyone to say that a girl raised in the household of a Beta lacks anything in life just because her mother is not alive, and because I'm so blind that I can't serve justice between both my daughters." Tessa's jaw was basically hanging open in astonishment and shock, seeing her husband in such rare form. But the mockery and humiliation of the council meeting had left such deep scars in Orion's mind that he didn't stop, not when he was finally getting the chance to veny out his frustration. “For so many years, I have handed you the management of my household with complete blind faith, Tessa! So it's about time you fulfill the duties of that role and stop giving me reasons to be upset!” He paused for a moment, as if giving her the chance to process his words, before picki
Vienna's POV:Slowly, I peeled my eyes open, struggling against the drowsiness which had injected itself into every cell of my body. There was a dull ache in my head, but a warm, heavy hand rested on my forehead, helping with the pain. Groggy and disoriented, I turned my head slightly to the side, only to find my father’s face hovering near my bedside. The shocking sight made me jolt up in shock, despite the soreness in my body, I pushed myself to sit up, my voice cracking as I stammered, “What happened… I'm– where am I? What happened?” “Nothing, my dear… go easy on yourself.” My father said softly, adjusting the pillows behind me before sitting back in his place. “I’m here to take care of you, okay? Just eat.” He picked up a bowl of lukewarm soup from the bedside table, and brought a spoonful to my lips. I stared at him, unsure whether to obey, or recoil from this demon who had clearly stolen the face and likeness of my father to trick me into some kind of trap. Because at
Vienna's POV:Apparently, my father had been guessing all my emotions correctly so far, but he couldn't see the look of horror in my eyes. Rather, there was a gleam of satisfaction in his eyes as he confirmed. “Yes, but why do you look so surprised dear? Don't you remember? He is the one who took you to the hospital yesterday.” My mouth fell open, and before I could even form a coherent response, he had moved ahead. “Alpha Blackwood also sent flowers and jewelry as a gift for you, I'll ask one of the maids to show you everything he has sent, later. Before that! The doctor told me how careless you’ve been about your diet, young lady!So, from now on, I will be overseeing your meals, in fact, I’ll take care of everything regarding you. I have been far too lenient for too long, but from now on, everything will be under my strict observation. Do you even know how much you worried me?” Worried him? In spite of myself, I raised my gaze to meet his, as if I would find the answer wri
Vienna's POV:Asher’s panicked voice reached my ears before I could say anything more than a simple hello. This was something I hadn't heard from him, even after I caught him red handed with Gemini… when there was actually some chance of us being together. Then what was this sudden change all about?And while my thoughts were making me question all his actions, his voice knocked my ear drums once again. “Vi? Are you there?" “Yeah, I'm okay…" This was all he waited for me to speak, before the next words came tumbling out of his mouth. “Oh, I’m so happy, Vi! You know, I thought my soul had been ripped out of me, seeing you knocked out on the floor! I swear on Moon Goddess, I won't be able to survive that scene ever again. Please, Vi, I know things have been rough between us, but don’t punish yourself like this or take your anger out on food ever again, okay? ! I promise, I’ll be here to take care of you. Always.” I listened silently, trying to find the speck of sensibility whic
Author's POV:Gemini snuck out of Vienna’s room, carefully closing the door behind her without a sound.The frustration of Asher talking to, caring for and giving gifts to Vienna had ignited the fire inside her… and finally, she had managed to tame that fire a little. For now. After all, according to her, she was just doing what Vienna actually deserved. And as a good step sister, Gemini just wanted to give her full contribution in delivering the consequences of her actions to her. She tiptoed down the hallway, her heart pounding with the feeling of adventure in the middle of the night. A satisfied smile tugged at her lips as she muttered under her breath, opening the door to her room, “You must have been thinking that you have somehow won the game, and now you will snatch everything which is actually mine… my father! Asher!!! Then just wait, Vienna, and watch how I play…" With a quiet sigh, she lifted the covers and got under them, finally ready to sleep soundly despite it being
Author's POV:Asher opened the door and scanned the room briefly, before turning his determined footsteps towards the garment bag lying neatly on the small bench at the foot of her bed. He only let go of Vienna's hand to briskly unzip the bag, his eyes sparkling with eagerness. But as he grabbed the hanger and pulled out the dress, his brows shot up, mouth falling open in shock. The dress… Well, only half of the dress was still clinging to the hanger, and the rest of it had been cut brutally into scraps. Large holes and jagged cut-outs stood out as ugly scars on the delicate pink silk, as if someone had taken a pair of scissors to it in a fit of rage. It was no longer wearable or even fixable in any way, shape or form… at this point, it was barely distinguishable from a random heap of discarded scrap fabric. But no matter how shocked Asher was, Vienna was even more surprised, because she was the one who had seen it last! She had held that dress just last night… then what had ha
Vienna's POV: I hadn’t lied when I said I had an early submission. Although I was rather desperate for any excuse to leave the miserable company, that much was true. But I wasn’t in any rush to turn in my assignment. What I really wanted to use this time for, was to find Fynn and find out if my gut feeling was right… was he really there, with me at the hospital? Or had I just imagined him there?Whatever it was, I needed to hear it from his own mouth, because my family couldn’t be trusted to tell me the truth, even if Fynn had walked into the hospital room in broad daylight, they would just simply lie to my face and say that it was some sort of shadows of my sins, trying to create hallucinations for me! This was how much I knew them.The first place I checked was the staffroom, but it was empty except for a few professors I didn’t know. The hallways were deserted too, except for a few stragglers heading to their classes as I walked through the corridors, peeking into every open cla
Vienna's POV:“Hey! Anyone there! Please open the door, I am still inside, don't lock it, the washroom isn't empty…”I called, tugging at the latch. "Hello? I'm inside! Please don't lock the door! Hello? Who is there?" A moment of silence, and then the lights went out as the switch was flipped. “Hello! I'm inside, please don't lock it! Can you hear me!”“Oh, I can hear you loud and clear. No need to shout and make my ears bleed.”My heart sank as I recognized the taunting voice. Gemini. "Gemini? Open the door. What the hell are you high on? I’m locked inside–”"That’s exactly your problem, darling Vienna!”I could practically hear the smile in her voice. “I already know you’re inside, but why would I let you out when I went to all this trouble to lock you in? Rest assured, neither will I tell anyone that you are here nor will I let them find out…”"What are you talking about?!" “Unlike poor, helpless you, I know exactly what’s going on around the campus, but apparently you mi
Author's POV:The afternoon light had faded away, and dusk was slowly creeping in. And yet, Zella hadn’t moved from her spot at all. She was sitting in the small living room of her apartment, like a statue carved out of stone. Her head was against the wall, and her eyes blankly fixed some point in the distance. Her hands lay limp in her lap, her body drained of all its energy like she had lost her purpose in life. And in a way, she really had. Because Fynn was gone… just in the span of minutes after he was sure about being able to travel on his own, he had left without any proper goodbye or show of gratitude. But she couldn't even feel anger towards that selfish man who had simply informed her about his life, back in his own world… and walked away without caring for her response. For two and a half years, she had dedicated herself to his recovery: watching over him, feeding him, tending to his wounds, making sure he was comfortable. This has become the rhythm of her life ever s
Fynn's POV:I pushed the blanket off and swung my legs over the side of the bed, feeling the cool wooden floor beneath my feet. My body no longer felt weak… and thankfully, my joints didn't betray me with every movement. I had healed. After a long struggle, I could walk without my knees buckling under me. The moment I woke up, I could feel Zella watching me. I knew when she must have come here, and also why she had been waiting expectantly in that corner.I lifted my hand to signal for her to stay seated. She sat back with a frown, but didn’t say anything. While walking towards the door, my steps steady, I gave a single glance to the cane that used to be my crutch, then moved past it without reaching for it. I think I have regained my strength by now. The chilly water that I splashed all over myself washed away the last lingering touches of sleep. It was almost fifteen minutes later that I stepped out, freshly dressed in clothes that fit me better.I felt like myself again… part
Author's POV:The village was carved into the rugged slopes of the mountain, blending completely into the landscape. A crisp wind rustled through the trees, carrying the scent of damp earth and pine, but inside one of the cottages, the morning was yet to register its presence.The girl stepped carefully through the wooden door, balancing a plate of food in her hands. She was moving absent-mindedly through the house, as if she had done this countless times before. The air inside was tinged with the scent of old wood and herbs. The cottage was simple, almost barebones. A bed occupied one side of the room, the blankets slightly disheveled, and a few pieces of basic furniture filled the remaining space: a small table, a single chair, a shelf lined with a few necessities. There was no excess, nor any personal touches inside that space. Her gaze drifted toward the bed, and the man was lying still under the covers. His breathing was slow and steady, his features softened by the presence
Kai's POV:I paced the room, my arms wrapped securely around Zeke’s tiny frame, patting his back in slow, steady movements. His soft breaths hit my collarbone as I rocked him gently, his small fingers curled into my shirt with a sleepy but tight grip. He had stopped crying once his tummy was filled with milk, and he was completely relaxed in my arms. But I kept moving around the room, unwilling to stop swinging him until I was sure he was truly asleep.I glanced down, watching his heavy eyelids flutter shut. His green eyes, which were so bright, so full of life… they belonged to Vienna. But everything else about him- every little detail, every movement, was Fynn. His small temper tantrums and that stubborn frown on his small forehead when he didn’t get his way with something... his way of scrunching his nose when he was just about to wake up. Even the way he clung to us when he was sleepy, as if he was afraid we would leave him alone and disappear.With a sharp pang, a deep ache sp
Vienna's POV:“Lola!”I exhaled in relief, my arms tightening around her shoulders as my best friend hugged me fiercely, as always, before peeling herself away. She craned her neck to look inside the house, eyes gleaming with curiosity."How is my baby... and what about her naughty son?" She asked, half laughing. I smiled in reply, she was definitely here to check in on Zeke's health after his fever. Instead of answering her again right away, I grabbed her wrist and tugged her inside, lowering my voice."Shh… the Supreme Alpha is on daddy duty, so it’s best not to disturb them right now."Lola gasped dramatically. "Oh really! That’s even better! Now we can focus on making you presentable!"I blinked at her, placing a hand on my hip as my eyebrows dipped into a frown. "Excuse me? And what exactly is wrong with my presentation?"By now, we had stepped into the kitchen. Lola gave me one long look, as if deciding what to say. Then, she quietly placed both hands on my shoulders and slo
Two and a half years later…Vienna's POV:Zeke’s cries echoed through every corner of the house, as if every cry from his mouth was bouncing off the walls and returning to my ears."Enna! Enna…!"Kai’s voice reached my ears in an overlapping symphony, which made my pulse quicken. "I’m coming!" I called back, hurriedly tilting the milk bottle over my hand to check the temperature, it was just right. Without wasting another second, I twisted the lid tighter and rushed out of the kitchen, my bare feet padding against the cool wooden floors. The sound of Zeke’s cries hadn’t lessened in the slightest, tugging at my heart with every desperate sob. I reached the living room in record time, coming to a halt at the doorway. Sunlight was bursting in the room, making it look more of a mess than usual. Scattered toys, baby blankets and colorful picture books were decorating every surface, along with a few half-folded clothes. Normally, the attendants would have taken care of all this right
Vienna's POV: I saw Fynn's fingers scraping against the jagged rock for a fraction of a second… just enough for hope to flare up in my chest, before it was ripped away.Because in the very next second, he fell… before I could move from my place, he had fallen. Without a sound, without even a struggle, my world had shattered. My life was teetering on the edge, and then it slipped away.It wasn't just Finn that had fallen from the cliff, I felt like someone had ripped my heart into two parts and thrown one of them, by tossing it away from the cliff.For a moment everything paused in my mind, the time, the heartbeat, the tears, the scream and then everything just went boom.The scream that was building up inside me, shaking my whole body, didn't even leave my mouth. My soul was being ripped apart, and I couldn't even open my mouth to tell anyone to make it stop, to make it hurt less or to bring him back anyhow. Not a single sound.My legs gave out beneath me, and I crashed onto my kn
Kai’s POV: A roar, unlike anything I had ever heard, tore from my throat, shaking the ground under my paws. I felt bloodlust seeping into my body, soaking every fibre of my being, taking over all the anger and grief, and pain. My brother.They had pushed my brother.The other half of my soul… the one part of my heart. They pushed my Fynn… my Fynn off the cliff.Curzon barely had time to react before I was on him. My wolf lunged with the full force of my fury. He tried to dodge, but he was too slow to escape from the Grim Reaper.I sank my teeth into his neck, tasting blood as his panicked growl turned into a gurgled gasp. His paws thrashed against me, claws scraping uselessly at my fur, but I didn’t let go.I didn't let go, even as his claws sank into my shoulder, right where Fynn had been injured. I twisted my jaw, and ripped his throat out.Curzon’s lifeless body crumpled to the ground, his eyes still wide with shock.His beta howled in rage and came at me next, but I was alread
Kai’s POV: Curzon.That bloody motherfucker! Fynn had been right… he shouldn't have been trusted, because he must have been planning this for a long time. And I was right too; only for one moment, when the thought crossed my mind that it wasn't possible for any Alpha to ignore the Supreme Alpha crossing the borders of their pack.It was all his plan! I didn't know how long this bloody snake had been disguised in the form of my friend, and how long I had been feeding him with the crucial information about my life… making all of us extremely vulnerable.Because of my one mistake of trusting a traitor.The realization made my blood boil, rage snapping through me like a whip.And as I burst into the woods whether they had cornered Vienna and Fynn, the sight before me had the power to shatter me completely.Fynn… my brother was fighting alone against twelve wolves, his body already bloodied but still keeping up with their attacks. Each time they lunged, he threw them back, his strength