Ariah's POV“Are you going to kill me? Is that what the quiet place is for?” I asked the guard beside me.I had the little confidence to speak now because he wasn’t handling me roughly, his face wasn’t so stoned and he allowed me some breathing space. Despite all this, I still felt like a sheep being led to its slaughter. I thought he wasn’t even going to bother answering, but he did. He shook his head and said, “No, the quiet place isn’t a place of death, it’s just a place.” Just a place? How was that supposed to help me clear my doubts? We were under what seemed like a gigantic tunnel but I didn’t see the light at the end of it yet, if I was going to see it at all, that is. We walked on for another five minutes and out of nowhere, we burst into an opening of fantastic greenery. The grass was so green and well-trimmed, I could lie on it and feel more comfortable than in any place I’d rested my head over the past few days. There was a wooden…house? It looked like a house but also l
Ethan's POVOne thing I couldn’t deny was the fact that she was strikingly beautiful, I could see it as the full light of the moon reflected on her face. She captivated me for that particular moment, but then, she was just a rogue, a bloody rogue! There was nothing that could work between us this way, I already foresaw it. Lowell kept the meeting going while I just fell silent and into deep thought. What was I going to do with her? I couldn’t just allow her to go back and wander in the forest again, something terrible might happen to her. Worse, she might even die, no, that wasn’t an option. Would I just leave her here? Then what was she going to do? Ugh! This was so frustrating to even think about. I just watched her answer Lowell’s questions timidly, she was so innocent and meek, was that the kind of mate I wanted? All of a sudden she was making me doubt what I even wanted, how comical! “So, where did the guards that caught you that night find you?” Lowell asked.She stared up t
Ariah’s POVWhat suddenly changed?Although he hadn’t been nice to me the whole night, at least he had concealed his anger but when he came back from his brief walk, he suddenly unleashed everything. Was it the fact that I was supposed to be a rogue? Or was he still struggling to come to terms with the mate bond between us? Either way, I felt he had purposely left me out alone cause he knew there was danger lurking in the dark. His beta, Lowell was nicer and more easygoing, he talked to me freely but not once did he mention Ethan. I thought he was going to be as mean as Ethan was when I first saw them sitting together that night, but it seemed like they were the complete opposite. Ethan made me feel unwanted while Lowell’s attitude gave me hope that there might be a place for me here. But I wasn’t safe in here and I wasn’t safe out there either, I wasn’t safe anywhere! If I managed to escape again or the king, Ethan, just let me go, I was still in danger of being captured by anothe
I hunched my shoulders as I walked to the bar at the corner of the large living room and took a bottle of Whisky and drank straight from it. What was wrong with me all of a sudden? I gulped down the throat-burning liquor until Lowell walked in a minute later. “What’s up, Ethan?” He asked, staring at me questioningly. “You only drink from the bottle when something’s got your mind whirling.” He said.That was the truth, it happened every fucking time, I always seemed to forget a glass when I drank in a distressed state. “It’s nothing,” I said flatly. “You want a drink?”He shook his head, “I’m surprised you’re still drinking after we just had wine a few minutes ago.” He squinted at me. “I know what it is, it has something to do with the damn girl, doesn’t it? That’s why you acted all strangely when you came back from your walk.” “No, it has nothing to do with her.” I lied, I didn’t want to talk about her again, I didn’t want my kind to wander around her. Lowell smiled knowingly, “I
Ethan’s POVI kicked open the metal door and walked into the wooden house. A familiar scent flooded into my nostrils or I was just imagining it? When I had used this place as a grieving corner when my parents died, there was a particular scented candle I always lit. I smelt it again this time as I placed Ariah on a couch. I stared at her for a while, so innocent and beautiful, then I shook my head and closed my eyes. I checked for a pulse by placing two fingers lightly on her neck, then on her wrist. Her heartbeat was kind of normal, I wasn’t sure, the doctor had to decide. My wolf had gone crazy just because she was on the verge of dying. How was I to explain that to myself now? How was I to try and justify the fact that I didn’t want anything to do with her? This was so frustrating, a lot of shit had happened in just one fucking day and I couldn’t even recount everything as I sat there with a frown on my face. What was taking the doctor so long though? I needed to be sure she wa
Ariah's POV I felt something crawling on my skin as my mind and body were still trapped in unconsciousness, like an insect or bug. That was what I thought it was the first time, a bug, but then it was much heavier than that. It was a person’s fingers and it gave me so much comfort with the way they gently caressed my skin. I could say that it was what brought me back to full consciousness. The hand was about to let go and I don’t know when my arm shot out and grabbed it. The person froze like I felt his or her veins go stiff with surprise. Slowly, I opened my eyes, at first everything was blurry, but my vision sharpened after I blinked severally. I looked at the hand, it was a male's, when I looked up, my eyes widened with surprise to see King Ethan staring down at me impassively. Was it him? He was the one that had been caressing my cheeks so gently? It was hard to believe that it was him as we just stared at each other.Then I realized something, I was still holding his hand! I ga
Ariah’s POV The wind was relentless, as light as I was, I was sure it could sweep me completely off my feet if I were to step outside. We sat in awkward silence as the entire house seemed to rattle under the force of the violent winds. Lowell looked from Ethan to me and I did the same, Ethan just sat still, not looking at either of us as his face glowered with anger. “Well, this is an awkward night,” Lowell said, breaking the silence.“Guess what?” Ethan said to Lowell without looking at him. “What?” Lowell asked.“We have a fucking meeting tomorrow morning by 8 am!” He bellowed and Lowell shrunk away. “Yeah, damn the fucking wind,” Lowell said and shook his head sympathetically. “But you’re the king, you can go late for a start.” “I don’t go late, Lowell.” The king pointed out emphatically in a firm, hard voice. “And now you’ll have to, I blame it on the fucking wind,” Lowell repeated. “No! I blame it on her!” Ethan suddenly snapped, pointing an accusing finger at me who ha
Ariah's pov I was both excited and kind of sad for two reasons. The first being that I had found my wolf at such a crucial time. I considered the timing crucial because I needed someone by my side in this environment that seemed to become more hostile as the day went by. She even had a wonderful name, Leia, it was way more lovely than my name and I was determined to discover just what and what my wolf could do. I was sad because of the king, Ethan, I didn't want to get on his bad side. I berated myself for speaking that way to him and even Leia joined in the scolding. "Do you know something, Ariah?" She asked. "No, tell me," I said eagerly. "I've always been here with you on your crazy and adventurous journey of life." She said and a bored look came to my face. "I'd have preferred if my life had a little less danger and a little more happily ever after. Right now, I don't see things ending well for me, my first mate rejected me and locked me up. He treated me cruelly and abus