[HOLLY’s Point of View]Just as Mel suggested, the three of us headed down the mountain when the first rays of sunlight reached the insides of the cave.If the situation weren’t so grave and scary, I would let her have a few days staying in the cave with us for two days while she was still severely injured. The silver chains slowed down her self-regeneration, and because she was deprived of food and water for weeks, her body started to lose muscles that she couldn’t even stand on her own without Alec helping her.[I am so sorry you have to shift to your wolf form to bring us down the mountain, Holly.] Alec’s voice in my head echoed as he secured Mel in front of him while they rode on my back. My silver fur glimmered under the soft morning sunlight.My claws dug against the earth as I slid down the scarps of the mountain. It was a good thing. I was really good with balance and was not worried that the two on my back wouldn’t fly back, so I jumped from tree to tree until we reached the
[HOLLY’s Point of View]“Shei, I know you are upset—”“Who says I am upset, Holly?” But clearly, she looked like a volcano, ready to erupt at any moment. The elders looked at Shei and waited for her to explain while Kian gave my sister-in-law a helpless look, knowing that her defiance was driven by her hatred of me. Because I tricked her and left her in that convoy when we were supposed to go to the palace.“I am waiting for your explanations and suggestions then.” I raised my chin and let her see that I still outranked her despite being the sister of the Alpha. The air was tense inside the council hall, and everyone was dropping their eyes, too scared that Sheiyan’s anger might be directed at them.But I wasn’t afraid. I was guilty of lying to her, and I would face her anger if I had to.“Isn’t it obvious?” She fumed, hitting the table with the side of her fist. Alec, who was sitting beside her, shifted in his seat as his face hardened. “If we split our forces into half and send them
[ALPHA EVANDER’s Point of View]It took me a lot of self-control not to grin.I couldn’t believe Randalf would give me my own tent for privacy. No guards, no whippings, and what I liked more about it was no silver chains around my ankles and wrists. It was small but the bed was comfortable. Above all, I could be myself whenever I was inside and that was the most important thing for now.At least they didn’t bring me back to that cursed prison pit.Randalf asked for me to go to his tent and I did. I was a leaf dancing with whatever direction the wind blows me. To know my enemy is to act like one of them. It’s the only strategy left, knowing how desperate Randalf wanted me to side with him in this war. He knew what I was capable of. He knew my skill and ability to plan and lead my people into battle. As a man who had fought and won so many wars, I was a significant ally to the Ambroses.On the other hand, I still had to be careful with Irina. Her sidelong glances and suspicious glare we
[HOLLY's Point of View]I couldn’t sleep.It was as if something beyond the territory of the Blackwood was calling me. A feeling so familiar it made me feel so restless and concerned and it was something beyond words to describe because I had never felt like this before.Even Lily was tense. I could picture her walking in circles with her eyes sharp, trying to sense something dangerous. But we were finally in the Blackwood Manor. We were at home.With soft steps, I went to the windows and opened them despite the rules that all the windows and the doors of the manor should be closed before six in the evening. I bit my lowerlip hard when the cold breeze brushed my bare skin and entered my room, almost putting the fire off my scented candles.There was a whisper in the wind. More like a melody that was familiar, and I was sure I had heard it before. I just... I just couldn’t remember when or where.“Evander.” I breathed as I looked at the mountains and closed my eyes. I let the cold bree
[HOLLY’s Point of View]My eyes widened.It was as if I had forgotten how to breathe for seconds.I looked into Mel’s copper eyes, confused and overwhelmed, but I couldn’t find the right words to say. Or ask her. I just held the pearl in the middle of the palm of my hand and let my eyes wonder at the beauty of the necklace.Something in it draws me in, and I couldn’t explain the storm of emotions swirling in my chest. The necklace was cold on my skin. Cold, dark, and heavy.“H-Holly?” Mel asked, scared that I have swallowed my tongue. “Say something, please.” Her one good eye was intense as she gazed at my face, studying every emotion in it.“H-How, Mel? How did you get it?” I asked, still breathless at the sight of the pearl.She looked at Alec first and gave her mate a small smile, and then to me. Her eyes lit with excitement and happiness. “When I got into Alec’s mansion and was about to take a bath, I found this necklace in one of the pockets of my jacket, Holly. It was as if some
[ALPHA EVANDER’s Point of View]“Misha told me you asked for my presence.”I hated being in her tent and that seductive glare she was giving me.Irina was sitting on the edge of her bed, legs crossed and hands twirling her golden braid. It was written all over her face about how much she despised this place and everything about it. As a city girl, I knew Irina must be missing the life she left after she and her father were convicted of treason against the crown and the realm.“Yes.” She answered with a flirty smile as she traced circles on the bed. I wanted to squint my eyes and let her know how it disgusted me to see her like that, but Misha had warned me. Play nice and safe, or our masks will be revealed and we will both die in this place.I waited for her to say more about why she called for me, but she stood, and my back tensed and straightened. Irina was scared of me. She wouldn’t dare seduce me, no matter how much she missed having someone on her bed.Or so I thought.I almost c
[HOLLY’s Point of View]The banging on the door suddenly sounded unreal. Then for once, I thought the noise was just from the thumping of my own heartbeat reverberating through my deafened ears. The violent winds from the mountains threw the windows of my room open. The hinges creaked threateningly as the white sheer curtains whipped against the glass panes.Mel’s small hands were painfully tight against my wrists and she was incredibly strong; it terrified me. Something was happening to her. It was as if the darkness stored inside that pearl necklace had influenced her mind when it should be her who was supposed to command the ‘thing’ to obey her bidding.The power that was stored in the pearl was too much for Melinda to control and I saw it on her face. She was asking me for help.“Mel! Just tell me what’s happening!” I asked through gritted teeth. I tried my hardest not to panic as the black completely covered her eyeball and my neck and shoulders started to feel so heavy it felt
[HOLLY’s Point of View]“What is the commotion about, Kian?”Everyone was in the sitting area with all their eyes focused on the sixty-inch-wide television screen. Shei increased the volume, and I saw so many rogues standing on the northern borders of the Snakewood Territory. I didn’t feel good this whole morning, and all I had were eggs. Other than those, I threw them up, and that’s why I had been dizzy the whole day.All the Snakewood soldiers lined up in defense positions outside and inside the gates and the wall; all were armed with razor-sharp metal claws, all strapped around their legs and paws. Some were armed with crossbows with silver arrows for it was forbidden to use guns inside the continent and within the realm.“Randalf isn’t bluffing at all. He really has thousands of Rogues with him,” Alec murmured in horror. His mouth was slightly open and his face was pale as paper when the excruciating memories of their stay in the rogue camp returned to him.Everything was shot liv