Spencer's POVWhen the door to the barracks swings open, it’s as though the world itself stands still. Elder Jet grins smugly as a tall woman steps out of the building. Her movements are fluid, graceful. She must be at least six feet tall. She’s as thin as a whip and looks like she’d cut just as deep. Her hips sway from side to side as she moves, and her body is clad from head to toe in a smoky gray dress that barely seems to be made of fabric at all—it looks like liquid smoke. It’s the veil that tells me who she is, though. Once she’s fully out of the barracks, she looks at Elder Jet for just a moment before swivelling around and looking at me. She tilts her head ever so slightly, and a shiver runs down my spine. Her face is covered by a dusky gray veil that looks like it’s been embroidered with dewdrops. The veil falls all the way to the ground both in front of her and behind. Above her head are a pair of antlers that are draped with chains and gnarled vines. She takes a single
Spencer's POV“So imagine what I could do with the body parts of an unborn Lycan Prince.”The moment I hear these words pass the witch’s lips, my blood runs cold. Pure loathing runs through my veins. I ball my hands into fists and look up at the witch in pure disbelief, hardly able to comprehend what I’ve just heard. This woman—no, this monster, this demon, this blasphemous traitor to all that is good in the world—she’s not just threatening Ivy. She’s threatening my child. “You know…” I say slowly. “You know that she’s—““Pregnant, yes,” the witch confirms dismissively. “And I know the child is a boy. Lycan. Strong blood. Such an unborn infant would be incredibly useful to me. Although, you know, your poor darling mate unfortunately wouldn’t survive the process, and the child wouldn’t, either.”My breath becomes quicker and quicker, heart racing. I feel like the floor is crumbling beneath me. “You wouldn’t,” I say slowly. “You couldn’t—““Oh, but I could, Your Highness,” the witch
Ivy's POVWhen I wake up, the first thing that hits me is the taste in my mouth. It’s sweet and tacky, as though my mouth has been filled with liquid sugar. I smack my lips as I open my eyes slowly. I’m greeted by the sight of wrought iron bars over my head, and above that, a starry night sky. Details come to me in pieces. I let out a ragged cough, mouth salivating as my tongue attempts to scrub away the sweet taste. I remember fragments of memory—being kidnapped from the palace. Threats leveled against Jason. A cage. A conversation with Elder Jet. A sickly-sweet potion forced past my lips. And after that, absolutely nothing. I groan as I do my best to prop myself up onto my elbows. My vision is still somewhat blurred. Dimly, I hear the sound of clicking, then the scraping of metal. I reach my hand out towards the bars in a feeble attempt to pull myself back up to my feet. But just as my fingertips brush against the cool metal, ice-cold hands wrap around my forearm, and I suddenl
Ivy’s POVMy Alpha fiancé is having sex with my best friend, in my room, on the day I'm supposed to become his Luna.For just a moment, I stand frozen in the doorway, staring at them. My fiancé Erick is still mostly clothed, save for the dress pants bunched around his knees, and my best friend Veronica’s skirt is bunched up at the hip as he thrusts into her roughly from behind. Erick’s got one arm wrapped around her waist, and he holds her tight as he fucks her. Veronica’s eyes are squeezed shut in pleasure, and she’s clearly enjoying herself–Erick has to clamp a hand around her mouth just to keep her from moaning. And they’re fucking on my bed. Somehow that’s the biggest insult of them all. “What are you doing?” I shout, snapping out of my shock and bursting into the room. My wedding dress nearly trips me up, and my cheeks burn as I confront the pair. Erick laughs cruelly. He doesn’t even have the decency to pull out–his hips snap lazily, thrusting in and out of Veronica as she c
Ivy’’s POVI’ve spent every day since my father’s death in excruciating pain. “Please!” I sob out desperately as a Thunderclaw warrior lashes a whip against my skin. I barely register the feeling at this point, I’ve become so used to it. They’ve whipped me relentlessly every day since my wedding went so dreadfully awry. My skin is made of little pieces of cracked flesh at this point. The sticky feeling of blood coating my body is inescapable. I feel like I’m coming undone.And after what happened to my father, I don’t think I’d mind if they finish me off once and for all. The Thunderclaw warrior raises the whip again, smiling evilly. Just as it’s about to hit me, a cold voice cuts through the room.“Stop,” Erick says smoothly, striding into my dungeon cell. I’m imprisoned in my own pack house’s dungeon. As if my humiliation could become even worse. The warrior lowers the whip. “Leave us,” Erick commands.The warrior bows his head once, then leaves the dungeon.It’s just the two
Ivy’s POVI sit naked in the bathtub as the Omega maid scrubs my skin pink, staring straight ahead. It’s Veronica and Erick’s wedding day–the day they’ve chosen to solidify my final humiliation. The maid gives me one last scrub, hauls me out of the water, wraps me in a towel, and dabs rose oil onto my skin. Wordlessly, she drags me towards my miserable rotting mattress of a bed, where a lacy bra and skimpy miniskirt have been laid out for me. I stare at the clothing in shock. “Where’s the rest of it?”The maid shakes her head sadly.My stomach plummets. The maid starts to dress me, and I struggle at first, but it’s no use. When the maid is done stuffing me into my clothes–little more than underwear, really–I look into the rusty old mirror before me. As I’m distracted by the plunging scooped neckline of the bra, the maid clamps shackles around my wrists and ankles. Even though I’ve already lost touch with my inner wolf thanks to the wolfsbane, it’s not enough.Veronica never misses
Ivy’s POV“Move!” A tall, thin werewolf barks at us as he shuffles us down the aisle.I shudder. I’m on my way to the Omega Auction with a huge group of other lowly Omegas, and I’ve never been so scared.As we move, the other Omegas glare at me, knowing full well that if not for my actions, Veronica never would’ve sent anyone to the auction. She’s hell-bent on destroying me, and doesn’t seem to care who gets caught in the crossfire. The thin werewolf in charge of escorting us finally stops shuffling us down the camped dirty Omega tunnels and stops in front of a short, stocky werewolf–the auction employee, I assume. With a grin that makes my blood run cold, the thin werewolf points at me. “Our Luna wants you to take good care of her,” he says to the stocky werewolf with a knowing glance, handing him a wad of cash.What does Veronica want to do to me?The short werewolf nods, malice gleaming in his eyes as he takes the cash and looks me up and down.The other Omegas are shuttled into
Ivy’s POVOn the day of the auction, they dress me up like a seductive lamb leading to slaughter. True to their word, they healed all my wounds externally, but I can still feel the pain under my skin.I saw myself in a mirror as I was led into the auction hall. I’m dressed in an outfit almost identical to the one they had me wearing at the wedding–a strappy bra and short skirt. My long auburn hair has been styled so it cascades down my face in soft, luxurious waves, and my makeup is heavy, shadowy and sultry. I look, objectively, beautiful. Seductive, alluring, even. But I also look far too revealing than I’m comfortable with. As I walk up onto the stage, all the Alphas in the shadowy audience seating stare at me with lustful eyes that make my skin crawl. Yet, as an Alpha-blooded she-wolf, all I feel is humiliation.My gaze lands on Veronica, arm-in-arm with Erick, seated contentedly in a side box.Scratch that. I feel nothing but humiliation and loathing. “And now,” the auctioneer
Ivy's POVWhen I wake up, the first thing that hits me is the taste in my mouth. It’s sweet and tacky, as though my mouth has been filled with liquid sugar. I smack my lips as I open my eyes slowly. I’m greeted by the sight of wrought iron bars over my head, and above that, a starry night sky. Details come to me in pieces. I let out a ragged cough, mouth salivating as my tongue attempts to scrub away the sweet taste. I remember fragments of memory—being kidnapped from the palace. Threats leveled against Jason. A cage. A conversation with Elder Jet. A sickly-sweet potion forced past my lips. And after that, absolutely nothing. I groan as I do my best to prop myself up onto my elbows. My vision is still somewhat blurred. Dimly, I hear the sound of clicking, then the scraping of metal. I reach my hand out towards the bars in a feeble attempt to pull myself back up to my feet. But just as my fingertips brush against the cool metal, ice-cold hands wrap around my forearm, and I suddenl
Spencer's POV“So imagine what I could do with the body parts of an unborn Lycan Prince.”The moment I hear these words pass the witch’s lips, my blood runs cold. Pure loathing runs through my veins. I ball my hands into fists and look up at the witch in pure disbelief, hardly able to comprehend what I’ve just heard. This woman—no, this monster, this demon, this blasphemous traitor to all that is good in the world—she’s not just threatening Ivy. She’s threatening my child. “You know…” I say slowly. “You know that she’s—““Pregnant, yes,” the witch confirms dismissively. “And I know the child is a boy. Lycan. Strong blood. Such an unborn infant would be incredibly useful to me. Although, you know, your poor darling mate unfortunately wouldn’t survive the process, and the child wouldn’t, either.”My breath becomes quicker and quicker, heart racing. I feel like the floor is crumbling beneath me. “You wouldn’t,” I say slowly. “You couldn’t—““Oh, but I could, Your Highness,” the witch
Spencer's POVWhen the door to the barracks swings open, it’s as though the world itself stands still. Elder Jet grins smugly as a tall woman steps out of the building. Her movements are fluid, graceful. She must be at least six feet tall. She’s as thin as a whip and looks like she’d cut just as deep. Her hips sway from side to side as she moves, and her body is clad from head to toe in a smoky gray dress that barely seems to be made of fabric at all—it looks like liquid smoke. It’s the veil that tells me who she is, though. Once she’s fully out of the barracks, she looks at Elder Jet for just a moment before swivelling around and looking at me. She tilts her head ever so slightly, and a shiver runs down my spine. Her face is covered by a dusky gray veil that looks like it’s been embroidered with dewdrops. The veil falls all the way to the ground both in front of her and behind. Above her head are a pair of antlers that are draped with chains and gnarled vines. She takes a single
Spencer's POVGod’s wrath. The words ricochet through my brain as Elder Jet pulls away from me suddenly. I reach out to try and apprehend him. I need to take him in, need to make him pay, need to find a way to get to Ivy before he can hurt her—But as Elder Jet begins to vanish into the surrounding crowd, before I get the chance to hurry after him, a pair of massive transformed werewolves move to block my path. I bare my fangs and them and growl before craning my neck to try and catch a glimpse of Elder Jet beyond me. He’s still doing his best to move through the crowd, still slightly weakened from me tackling him to the ground earlier. Those old bones must be brittle. The occasional Lycan warrior tries to apprehend him on sight, but every time one tries, more transformed werewolf rebels move to surround him. “Let me get to Elder Jet, and I just might let you live,” I snarl at the two werewolves. “We’d lay down our lives for Elder Jet,” one of the rebel werewolves replies. His vo
Spencer's POVAs I throw the lifeless body of yet another transformed soldier off of me, I can feel myself trying to formulate a plan. I try to remember what I can about the effects of these potions. The strength, the size, the bloodlust—all of this is familiar. But there was another side effect to the potions, as well. Something that Elder Jet never wanted us to know about. The potions will inevitably drive those who have taken them mad. I disentangle myself from my latest round of combat and quickly mind link Gamma Everly. ‘We need to wait them out,’ I tell her. ‘They’ll start to slip eventually! We just need to make it until then.’‘Look around, Your Highness,’ Gamma Everly warns. ‘They’re tearing through our forces like it’s nothing. Do you really think they can stall? We’ve been through a lot.’‘We’ll just have to do the best I can, then,’ I reply, looking around restlessly. Gamma Everly’s voice leaves my mind, but she rejoins the link a moment later. ‘Do you remember Ivy an
Spencer's POVAs the painful ringing slowly begins to fade away from my ears, all around me, Elder Jet’s werewolf rebels are starting to shift. I look around uncertainly, doing my best to keep my bearings despite my extreme disorientation. I thought I’d seen the worst of these transformations before, the first time I’d encountered Elder Jet’s blasphemous witches brews. But as it turns out, what I’d seen then is nothing compared to what I’m seeing now. Before, all I’d seen was the twisting of skin, the subtle shifting of muscle and bone. It was unnatural, but seemed confined to the realm of reality, at least. Now, though, as I gaze upon the rebels’ hideously contorted bodies, the transformation is even more disturbing to bear witness to. It’s as though their bodies are exploding from the inside out. The sound of bones crunching fills the air, and I can actually see bone and muscle sliding along the surface, pulling the skin taut in places. They look like the exaggerated villains fro
Spencer's POV“You don’t have any ground to stand on, Your Highness.”Elder Jet spits out the words Your Highness, sneering as they pass his lips. He looks around at his forces, the assembled rebel werewolves, and seems proud of the group he’s created. I look around at them, too. What I see makes my heart sink. None of the rebels look particularly convinced by anything Alpha Leo is saying. In fact, as his words wash over him, their expressions contort and twist into anger. I can see it on their faces—they no longer think he’s one of them. They’ve seen him switch sides, and rather than follow in his footsteps, they're prepared to resent him for it. ‘Stand down,’ I tell Alpha Leo. ‘I’ll handle it from here.’‘They’ll be killed!’ Alpha Leo protests. He doesn’t look at me, but I can see the pain in his eyes. I feel for him. They’re his people, and he’s the one who sent them into Elder Jet’s arms. Alpha Leo let them get led astray, and now they’ll have to pay for it with their lives. I
Spencer's POV“You’re the traitor, Elder Jet.” Alpha Leo is staring Elder Jet down with a vicious, furious glare. There’s betrayal in his eyes, too, and I realize just how painful this must be for him. I remember what I know about him. That his father died when he was quite young. That Elder Jet took him in, stepped up. Elder Jet became his father, in a sense. Alpha Leo has quite possibly been more poisoned than anyone else. And he was able to break out of it. It must feel like the world is crashing down around him. I can’t sympathize, but it’s always good to pay attention to the emotional state of those closest to me. To cue into their patterns and behaviours. To be able to tell if they’re going to snap. Alpha Leo curls his hands into tight fists as his gaze remains locked on Elder Jet like a fuse. His mouth opens and closes several times, and just as I’m about to step in and pull him away from Elder Jet myself, he finally begins to speak. “I recognize quite a lot of you,” Al
Spencer's POV“Elder Jet!”My roar cuts across the battlefield like a hurricane. I don’t even realize that I’m doing it, but my Lycan Aura rolls off of me in droves, sending every single werewolf except for Elder Jet to their knees. I narrow my eyes at him. Elder Jet remains standing, smiling smugly. A ripple of unease shoots through me. He should be on his knees by now, unable to resist the power of my Lycan Aura, but it doesn’t seem to be working on him. I set my jaw and march towards him. There’s iron in my posture and ice in my veins. I don’t care what sort of blasphemous witch’s magic Elder Jet is using to fortify him—the rest of his forces are now out of commission, and in a fight between him and I, I’d be the obvious winner. “Where’s Ivy?” I snarl at Elder Jet. Elder Jet lets out a wicked chuckle. “Oh, she’s not far,” he replies. “But if you want to see her alive ever again, you’ll kindly refrain from killing me.”The anger washes over me in a sudden, white-hot burst. It ta