Lady Asma POV I was elated to see Jasmine saved! I sensed the powerful spells and the Shadow which my father used to bind her, but neither Ivan nor myself were strong enough to break it. We came close once, but his power was just too much. I was shocked, but not surprised Dragana managed to break his enchantment. After all, she was a Tribrid, and we always knew that she would be even more powerful than Dzana. Father knew that too. It is likely why he wanted her, because I was still trying to piece together as to what his plan was for her. Jasmine and Beta Artemis had left for Ramil Palace to train Dragana. Nobody asked if she would be back, and perhaps that was for the best now. I did not feel it was safe here for her or any of us, quite frankly. Something was happening, the trees were speaking to me of the darkness moving across the land. I felt it in the rivers, in the soil too. I could not shake the sense and foreboding of something terrible happening, even after Jasmine woke. In
Lady Asma POV “Are you absolutely sure???” Jasmine was asking. “With utmost certainty. I know my father’s magic anywhere. It is not something I could forget, even if I wanted to”, I said, horrified of my findings. After spending the afternoon with Alice, I have determined that she was indeed the source of the darkness and the dark magic in the pack. The pair of bracelets on her hands was pulsating with it. There was something else, something I could not identify, something more ancient and stronger, and while not directly my brother’s magic, it had somehow radiated off her. I made every effort not to reveal anything and play innocent wedding planner, not to even ask her anything about magic. The meeting we had, I directed to writing up the guest list for the wedding and planning the ceremony itself, discussing flowers, catering, colors, her dress, anything but magic. “You know, I did notice something else”, I now remembered. “When I asked her if her father, Alpha Alan would be coming
Roman POV I woke up drenched in sweat. The last few nights I dreamt of my mother, my beautiful, selfless, loving mother. The dream was always the same. She sat under the tree with blooming blue flowers by the lake and beckoned me to come to her. Every time I did it, she smiled at me, kissed me on the forehead and tried to speak. And before she could say what she wanted to; I would wake up. Every single time!!!! I did not know what the dream meant; I just knew the dreams were disturbing. As much as I loved my mother and welcomed her presence in my dreams, I was also exasperated by the fact that, somehow, I could not hear what she wanted to say. I felt it was important and every night I would go to bed. I prayed for the dream to be complete. And she would never get to speak. What is she trying to tell me??? “Mother loves us, even from the great beyond. And mother would not approve of us marrying the woman who claims to be our mate but is clearly not!!”, Caleb roared. My relationship wi
Dragana POV His lips were soft.. Commanding, yet soft and warm.. He continued to kiss me, this time gently.. My nipples rose almost on command, my juices started flowing.. “You are aroused. I can smell you...”, he was purring, obviously happy with his effect on me. I did not know what came over me. His kiss was different than Roman’s, there were sparks and excitement, but it was not the same. However, I enjoyed it very much. I loved his warmth, his strength. He felt like home, and I wanted him. Blushing, I simply nodded.. I.. “I do not know what to do...”, I said pleadingly,, looking at him, feeling his breath on me, his skin on mine. “We do not have to do anything right now. Especially not on the dirt here and with curious eyes all over the place. You deserve so much more”, he said gently in between the kisses. His lips were trailing my neck now, sucking on the spot where I knew werewolves mark their mates. This sent shivers down my spine and I pulled him in closer, wrapping my leg
Dragana POV Art’s kiss still lingered on me, as did his scent. There was something comforting about him. Did I feel sparkles? Yes, indeed. Connection – absolutely. But he was not Roman, I thought, it was not the same. “If I may interject”, I heard Aisha’s voice. “Please Aisha. Please tell me what you feel”, I said, feeling almost guilty for taking advantage of her advice whilst I still did not fully connect with her. It felt as if I were taking advantage of her, and I did not like that. I was going to apologize to her, but I needed to hear what she wanted to say first. “First of all, do not think you are taking advantage of me. I know what you are thinking, Dragana, and I know this is new to you, but both Vasilla and I are aware of your thoughts, your fears, your desires and wants at all times. I know this is new to you, but this is how shifter bonds work. Essentially, we are one, and whatever you feel, we feel. Whatever you want, we want. Whatever hurts you, hurts us. Now, do not get
Artemis POV My heart was singing!!!! She kissed me back, and I could smell her arousal earlier on. The connection was there. She wanted me!!!! “Aisha tried to reach out to me too”, Emir was musing, ever so happy with the situation, proud of himself. “And??? Did she say anything?? Were you able to talk to her?”, I asked, a little bit apprehensive about the response. I knew if I stood any chance with Dragana, her wolf had to be on board with all this, she had to accept us too. I also knew in my heart that she had feelings for Roman. I did not know how I felt about this. Part of me was jealous, extremely jealous! If he were anyone else, I’d go and kill him and rip him to shreds, right there and then, even though I knew I had no right to do so. But this was Roman, my brother from another mother, my childhood friend. And he had given me his blessing, fully knowing my feelings for her, even though I suspected he had feelings for her too. This was getting confusing and complicated. I loved R
Alice POV “You are weakening me. I cannot come forth!!”, I heard Rina whine in my head. I knew the bracelets were keeping her at bay, but I needed to do what I had been tasked with. How – I did not know. But what I did know was that if I did not kill him, the Dark Lord would kill me. That much was clear. Besides, my father was dying already. “Father is dying, but do you even understand what you are doing??? Do you understand the sacred bond between a parent and a child?? Especially a parent such as our father who loved you all your life, supported you???” I heard Rina whine again. She was right, her voice was getting weaker and at times I could feel her energy slip away. I did not know if she was there or not, but I dared not take my bracelets off as the little courage I had to complete my task would likely have gone away. Walking up to Roman’s office, I needed to notify him about leaving. I did not know if he would notice anything different and I prayed to all the Gods he would not
Dragana POV Art’s kisses tightened my stomach, and I could feel excitement building within me every time we kissed. I felt safe with him. It was a very different type of a kiss than Roman’s – not that I had many with him to compare. However, my body reacted very differently to them both. I knew I craved Roman with an almost animalistic desire. The soft kiss on the morning I left, while completely innocent in comparison to his previous ones, showed me once and for all that I was in love with this man, and that I wanted him. With Art, it was different. I knew I cared for him. I looked forward to seeing him every day. I purposely wore outfits and special clothes just for him. I was excited. I would think of him before I went to bed. But none of this was the fated mate bond I read so much about. I needed to do some more reading on the books I got from the Library, that much was clear. “We are different. We do not feel a mate bond until each of us finds him”, Vasilla now chimed in, noting
Beta Artemis POVAs we sat by the willowy tree in the ever-encompassing darkness, I started to feel…. Well… different, would be the best explanation. There was something here… Something an eye could not see, something that devoured your very soul. Emir whimpered, and this was strange – my wolf was a warrior, unfazed by anything. Roman was chewing on his food, looking at me strangely, his eyes flickering between him and Caleb, something happening, something he did not share. “Can you reach Caleb?”, I asked Emir and the definite answer was no. Our wolves could not communicate to one another and that was a huge red flag! I did not know what was happening. The darkness around us started moving and through the shadows I heard her voice… Faint at first, but then I felt her. I felt her calling to me, I felt her presence, her scent, her ever-present light… I opened my eyes, and there she stood before me, my beautiful Dragana, smiling at me, in flesh.It had only been moments since we left the
Roman POVWe sat down in the darkness that enveloped us. It was not like anything we had ever seen, it was permeating, ever dark, ever shadowy. It almost all felt unreal, as if we stepped into a realm unseen, something made of the darkness itself. Although I was initially reluctant to have Art join me, I was grateful for his presence, for his stoic aura and his support. Still chewing on a piece of beef jerky, I set up a temporary camp. We had moved far, and I knew we did not have a lot of time, but I needed to talk to him. Events back home did not allow us a conversation, and I needed to speak to the only other man Dragana loved. I needed to come up with a plan. Just in case. Just in case I did not make it out of here, I needed to know that he would love her as she deserved to be loved. In truth, I already knew that, but somehow, my heart was heavy, and I simply needed my friend.I knew he was restless seeing the dark waters. In truth. I was too; however, I did not want to admit it. I
Artemis POV When Dragana opened up the portal, I did not know what to expect. I knew we were going into a treacherous situation – by all accounts. What I read about the Yamuna River, coupled with what King Solomon said, did not look promising or encouraging. Surely, we were walking into danger, but none of that mattered. I loved her. I loved her with every breath I took and would gladly lay my life down for her, as I would for Roman. My connection to him was different, but there was love in my heart for him too, love, loyalty and friendship that only came from years of shared life like we had. We live in a strange world, one that to humans, at least most, would be incomprehensible. When I was young, I thought about their ways, the way they love, the way they live. I wondered what my life would be if I were born a human. I observed them, read about them, and thought to myself. Imagine having to work so hard, continuously on the verge of injury or death, struggling for most hours of you
Dragana POV“Regina Dominum???? You are not the Luna Queen yet, Alice!!!” I heard a strong booming voice of Alpha King Jonathan as strong as a command almost, his eyes piercing and blazing at her. I could tell he was none the more pleased with her invoking the ancient rite. “My son has not marked you, nor mated you from what I can tell from your scent… You do smell… well.. different… in some way, that I must admit… But you do not smell of my blood!!! You do not smell of Spieta line!!” he now all but growled, his hazel eyes turning almost crimson. I had never seen him that mad, nor did I know that his eyes had such a deadly hue to it. He looked quite intimidating, in fact.“Ah… ah.. no matter old timer”, Alice snickered.. “Roman and I will be mated and marked in no time, as soon as he is back from whatever idiotic and self-serving trip this betrayer, this murderer sent him to. In fact, how do we know that she is not planning to overtake the pack itself???? She must have sent Roman to h
Dragana POVGamma Aldar’s wife, Rose, looked bewildered and her face was a river of tears. A petite brunette with beautiful, amber-colored eyes, she held his body as if it were a baby, her sobs piercing my very soul. I knew they were fated mates, and I knew they had children. In fact, I remember delivering one of their sons many years ago, a chubby blonde boy with his mother’s eyes. I could not imagine or fathom the pain she was going through, and my heart went out to her. I was still in shock that somehow the dead man’s hand had the piece of my dress, covered in blood, but that was not my main concern. It should have been.“IT WAS HER!!!! SHE KILLED HIM!”, came the screeching voice of Alice, storming with purpose from a corner of the circle, her eyes flaming with fury, her hand outstretched and pointed at me. Everybody’s eyes turned toward me, confused and insecure, doubt in their eyes, yet nobody said anything. Rose lifted her eyes up to me, puffy and red, looking between me and Ali
Dragana POVMy aunt and her husband excused themselves to go meet with their children. It was just yesterday that they all arrived, and I was excited about meeting my relatives. I understood most favored a witch gene, although a couple of them were hybrids, so we had a lot to discuss. Fluttering emotions were overcoming me every time I thought of them. Having a family also made me feel stronger, and an anchor if you will, albeit a little insecure. For somebody who did not even know I had a family, I now swam in family relationships, magic, lovers and everything in between. My whole world had been tossed upside down and I was still adjusting to it.My great-grandfather, the sage of old times, looked at me with tenderness. “My sweet child…. A new day, a new dawn is coming into your life… The question you need to ask yourself, is are you going to allow it to control you… Or will you step up and control it?”, he asked, as we made way toward the packhouse. My stomach was grumbling, and I o
Dragana POVWatching both of them getting ready to go to Yamuna, to risk their lives for Jasmine, tightened my heart and nearly made me breathless. The weight of what I asked of them weighed heavy on me, and while I appreciated their bravado and their honor in making sure that I understood that none of this was my fault, none my responsibility, deep down I knew better. I also knew that no matter what, I could not choose between them. I knew in my heart that I loved Roman, in spite of all the past, in spite of fear that he would never see me as an equal, never see me as somebody worthy. Many years of solitude within the pack, many years of cold shoulder and downright emotional abuse, did not disappear simply because he confessed his love. I did not know if they ever would and if I ever would fully make peace with this. However, right now, at this moment, as we stood there, on the cusp of change and on the cusp of their departure, I could not allow such a burden to be placed on either o
Roman POV“Yamuna River…..” I heard Solomon’s strong voice echoing around our odd gathered group, snapping me from my thoughts of my night with Dragana and her revelation of truly being my mate. I was ecstatic and apprehensive all at the same time, as even though Aisha and Caleb had acknowledged and recognized each other, Dragana did not accept me, nor did we mate, nor was she marked. I did not know how to feel about it all, but one thing was certain. At least I was not crazy, well, not as crazy as everyone thought anyway. I knew I had seen the beautiful white wolf; Caleb and I knew she was our mate. What sorcery Alice was playing at and why to fake mate bond, I did not know. Both Dragana and I also thought that perhaps there would be a possibility of her being an unwilling victim of a larger force at play. We had a plan. A plan I was going to discuss with Art and Gamma Aldar when I returned. Dragana had promised to discuss this with Solomon and the Slavic Coven, her uncle, Lord Samue
Roman POVWe made an odd crowd standing under the blue-blooming tree. Dragana, Lady Asma, Lord Samuel, King Solomon, Art, and I. Odd crowd indeed. It was the early morning hours and we only had two days left until we had to return with the Blessed Blade, the only way to save Lady Jasmine from certain death. Dragana stood there stoically in a white gown that in the morning sun made her look etheric. Her silver, sparkling eyes stood out more than usual and I could see a gentle smile whenever she gazed at Art or myself. I had a lot of emotions raging within me, a lot that I was trying to understand after my night with her.Flashback*****************I had to know. I had to ask her, even though somehow, inexplicably, even though she claimed I meant nothing to her, I could feel that she was lying. I knew that her body melted into mine as I had into her, a feeling unlike any other in my life. I knew she felt it, I knew she felt some type of a deeper connection. I could see I had put her on