AURORA The walk back to the palace felt longer than it should have. My mind raced with everything Anton and Evelyn had told me. The revelation that Ethan was more than I thought—more dangerous, more cursed—clung to me like a second skin.I tried to steel myself, repeating over and over in my head that I needed to act normal. If Ethan suspected anything, it could all fall apart.But as I reached into the gates of the palace, my stomach turned. The place that once felt like a cage now seemed like a lair, and the predator inside it was waiting for me.Ethan was waiting in the foyer when I stepped inside. His sharp gray eyes locked onto mine instantly, and for a second, I swore I saw relief flash across his face. But it was gone just as quickly, replaced by his usual guarded expression.“Aurora,” he said, stepping forward.I froze, every muscle in my body tense.“You’re back,” he continued, his voice softer than I expected. “I was worried.”Worried? That was a first.“I’m fine,” I said q
Aurora When I woke up, my head was pounding like someone had struck me repeatedly with a hammer. Groaning, I reached for the small bottle of pills I kept on my bedside table and swallowed a couple, hoping the painkillers would soon take effect. I closed my eyes for a moment before I decided to take a bath. I dragged myself out of bed and stumbled over to the mirror, still half-asleep. As I stared at my reflection, something felt off. I blinked several times, trying to focus. My white hair strands—the ones that had always been there in small streaks—were longer. Much longer. And there were more patches of white spread throughout my hair, giving it an eerie contrast against the rest of my dark locks. I ran my fingers through it, confused. It wasn’t like this yesterday, was it? Did something happen between yesterday and today or was it because I was struck by the witch hunter? Shaking off the weird feeling, I decided it wasn’t worth dwelling on for too long. Maybe the stress from th
AURORA The next few days were hell as I tried my best to try and be normal. The day started quietly, almost too quietly. I kept to myself, wandering around my room, trying not to think too much. Too much about Ethan, too much about what I knew. Agreeing to act normal was the easy part, but actually being normal after what I had seen when my memories were back was the hard part. Ethan had killed my mother and turned her into a blood thirsty monster.He is the reason that I will never meet her again. I could never forgive him even if I wanted to. After I was done walking around, I decided to go downstairs because I did not want anyone to come upstairs looking for me. When I reached downstairs, Ethan appeared in the sitting room with a box in his hands and a small almost shy smile on his face. I froze.“What’s that?” I asked, my voice more cautious than curious.He walked closer, the box tucked under his arm like it was something fragile. “Sarah mentioned you like painting,” he said sim
AURORAThe date was set. I had been counting down to this day for a while, and it had finally arrived. It was the most dreadful day of my life. I stared at the calendar pinned on the wall of my room, the small red circle around today’s date glaring back at me. I’d scheduled the abortion in secret, not telling Ethan or anyone else. It was my body, my decision. I couldn’t risk letting him know. Not after everything I’d learned about him.I had planned that I was going to get through it alone and I had scheduled for the doctor to let it be a private event. As long as no one asked about the abortion, she promised she was going to keep her mouth shut. And I believed her. I glanced at the burner phone on the bedside table. It buzzed softly with a message, and my heart sank when I realized who was messaging me. Damian: How are you feeling?At first, I ignored it. I didn’t want to talk to him. I had distanced myself away from everyone in the family. I did not have another friend because I d
AURORAThe date was set. I had been counting down to this day for a while, and it had finally arrived. It was the most dreadful day of my life. I stared at the calendar pinned on the wall of my room, the small red circle around today’s date glaring back at me. I’d scheduled the abortion in secret, not telling Ethan or anyone else. It was my body, my decision. I couldn’t risk letting him know. Not after everything I’d learned about him.I had planned that I was going to get through it alone and I had scheduled for the doctor to let it be a private event. As long as no one asked about the abortion, she promised she was going to keep her mouth shut. And I believed her. I glanced at the burner phone on the bedside table. It buzzed softly with a message, and my heart sank when I realized who was messaging me. Damian: How are you feeling?At first, I ignored it. I didn’t want to talk to him. I had distanced myself away from everyone in the family. I did not have another friend because I d
AURORAWhen I woke up, everything felt wrong. My body ached, and my head was foggy. I blinked against the sunlight streaming through the windows, I realized I was back in my room. A drip hung above me, the faint sting of the IV in my arm confused me. What had happened to me? I knew that I had went to sleep after my surgery? Had something gone wrong?Obviously something had gone wrong. Immediately, panic gripped me. I forced my eyes open this time, and the soft sound of sniffling caught my attention. I turned my head slowly to see the doctor who’d handled my abortion standing near the bed, adjusting the drip. Her hands shook violently, and her eyes were red from crying.I wondered for a second what could be making her act this way. Did she find out that I was dying? Even if I was, I was not sure it guaranteed that type of reaction from her. “Doctor?” I croaked, my throat dry. “Are you okay?”She sniffled again, refusing to meet my gaze. Instead, she finished adjusting the drip, mutter
DAMIANThe air in my pack had been different lately. It was calmer, quieter, and for once, under my control. With my stepbrothers dead and their meddling finally over, I could breathe. I was finally free to lead without anyone undermining me, free to make decisions that were mine alone. The elders had learned to respect me because they knew that I was going to be the end to them if they tried to disrespect me. But even for the fear they had for me, the elders weren’t shy about reminding me. “The pack needs an heir,” they’d said, their voices dripping with expectation. They did not try to force me into procreating with anyone yet. I knew they wanted me to take a breeder from the pack, but I did not want to have a bastard. If not with my mate, I refused to have a baby.Also, there were other alternatives that I was planning to venture into. But I knew I was going to wait for Aurora for how ever long it took. I hadn’t told anyone yet, but I’d decided that I wasn’t going to rush into any
AURORA I sat in my office, staring blankly at the papers scattered across my desk. The anger in my chest was still simmering, but it wasn’t as explosive as it had been earlier. I knew I’d crossed the line. That much was clear. I should not have done that. I would never hurt a woman that way. Thankfully, she was just exhausted that was why she collapsed not because I caused some damage to her. I hated that I did that to her. The door burst open, and I looked up to see Kiara storming in, followed closely by Sarah. Both of them looked furious, their footsteps echoing loudly in the room. I knew I was about to be chastised, and I did not want to be. I was tired and already felt guilty enough.“What the hell were you thinking?” Kiara snapped, slamming her hands down on my desk.I leaned back in my chair, letting out a long sigh. “Kiara, not now.”“No, now, Ethan,” Sarah chimed in, her voice sharp. “What you did was unacceptable. Do you even realize how bad it was? Do you care?”“I lost my
AURORAI stared down at the pendant I had brought in frustration, then at the spell book spread open in front of me. The protection spell I’d been trying to cast all day refused to work, no matter how carefully I followed the instructions. It was like there was something missing. The electricity in the air that I had felt when I first came was gone, and now it just felt bland. Like I was reading random words from a book. “Focus,” I muttered under my breath, gripping the small pendant tightly. The words from the book swirled in my head as I tried again.The pendant remained lifeless, stubbornly resisting my efforts. By the time the sun began to set, I was exhausted and defeated. Maybe it was because I was new at this, or maybe I was just terrible at it, but the spell wasn’t happening today. I needed some rest, and then maybe I would call my father to help me with some tips on how to concentrate. With a sigh, I packed up my things, carefully tucking the book back into my satchel. “Tom
ETHANThe anger coursing through me felt like fire. Aurora had crossed yet another line by walking out after I explicitly told her she couldn’t leave. She didn’t understand boundaries, and it made my blood boil in ways no one made it boil. And worse of it all, I could not do anything about it. If it was someone else in her shoes, I would have long drained them and called it a day because no one annoyed me like that and went free. But this was Aurora.I clenched my fists, pacing my office as I tried to rein in my temper. I wanted to punish her, and make her realize the consequences of disobedience. But I couldn’t risk acting on impulse. Not yet. Aurora wasn’t just a rebellious thorn in my side, she was a key to something bigger. Something I couldn’t yet understand.After I was done with breakfast, I finally received the message I’d been waiting for. The witch I’d been trying to contact for years had agreed to meet. She arrived under heavy disguise, her hooded cloak casting shadows over
AURORA The dream came again. It was so vivid and suffocating. I was lying on the cold ground, unable to move, as three vampires hovered over me. Their fangs were exposed, red and shiny right above me and there was nothing I could do. Their snarls filled my ears. I tried to scream, to push them away, but my body wouldn’t cooperate. The first bite came, sharp and deep, and then the second, each one draining me faster than I could comprehend.I bolted upright in bed, my chest heaving as if I’d just run a marathon. Sweat clung to my skin, my heart hammering in my chest. For a moment, I gripped the sheets tightly, grounding myself in reality. I looked around, trying to see anything I could fixate on that would calm my racing heart. “It’s just a dream,” I whispered to the empty room.But it didn’t feel like one. I could feel the weight of the necklace pressed against my collarbone, still warm. It was still giving me these darn glimpses of the future and even though it terrified me knowing
DAMIAN I was pacing the length of my office, my mind filled with chaotic thoughts. Every time I thought of Aurora and of what Ethan had done, of her being trapped in that palace, I felt like my blood was boiling. I needed to get her out of there. I had to. But every option I considered led to dead ends. I could not ask my people to go to war for this. There was too much at stakes. I needed to do this the smart way, but it was like whatever smart way I thought of had too many loopholes. I might actually be stuck. I clenched my fists, trying to shake the helplessness that weighed on me. I hated this feeling. I wanted to act, to fight, to destroy anything standing between me and her, but I couldn’t risk charging in blindly. Not with Ethan being as dangerous as he was. A soft knock broke through my thoughts.“Come in,” I called, trying to sound composed even as my nerves were all over the place.The door opened, and Evelyn strode in, her heels clicking against the polished floor. Her pr
AURORAI stood at the window, my fingers trembling as I clutched the towel tightly around me. Outside, shards of my burner phone glinted on the grass below, the broken a perfect reflection of how I felt inside. Ethan hadn’t hit me. At least not yet, but the look in his eyes had been terrifying. I could not help but think back at what he did to my mother, and what he could do to me. I wondered at that moment how easy it would be for him to kill me and nothing was going to happen. No one could face him, and no one could hurt him. He had stationed himself at a very high place that he was untouchable. It was then I came to the conclusion that I couldn’t stay here. Not anymore.Grabbing my personal phone, I slipped into the bathroom and locked the door. The cold tiles beneath my feet made me shiver, but it was nothing compared to the chill in my chest. I wondered who to call. Who was going to help me, because for all I knew Ethan was downstairs preparing for ways he was going to hurt me.
AURORA I sat in my office, staring blankly at the papers scattered across my desk. The anger in my chest was still simmering, but it wasn’t as explosive as it had been earlier. I knew I’d crossed the line. That much was clear. I should not have done that. I would never hurt a woman that way. Thankfully, she was just exhausted that was why she collapsed not because I caused some damage to her. I hated that I did that to her. The door burst open, and I looked up to see Kiara storming in, followed closely by Sarah. Both of them looked furious, their footsteps echoing loudly in the room. I knew I was about to be chastised, and I did not want to be. I was tired and already felt guilty enough.“What the hell were you thinking?” Kiara snapped, slamming her hands down on my desk.I leaned back in my chair, letting out a long sigh. “Kiara, not now.”“No, now, Ethan,” Sarah chimed in, her voice sharp. “What you did was unacceptable. Do you even realize how bad it was? Do you care?”“I lost my
DAMIANThe air in my pack had been different lately. It was calmer, quieter, and for once, under my control. With my stepbrothers dead and their meddling finally over, I could breathe. I was finally free to lead without anyone undermining me, free to make decisions that were mine alone. The elders had learned to respect me because they knew that I was going to be the end to them if they tried to disrespect me. But even for the fear they had for me, the elders weren’t shy about reminding me. “The pack needs an heir,” they’d said, their voices dripping with expectation. They did not try to force me into procreating with anyone yet. I knew they wanted me to take a breeder from the pack, but I did not want to have a bastard. If not with my mate, I refused to have a baby.Also, there were other alternatives that I was planning to venture into. But I knew I was going to wait for Aurora for how ever long it took. I hadn’t told anyone yet, but I’d decided that I wasn’t going to rush into any
AURORAWhen I woke up, everything felt wrong. My body ached, and my head was foggy. I blinked against the sunlight streaming through the windows, I realized I was back in my room. A drip hung above me, the faint sting of the IV in my arm confused me. What had happened to me? I knew that I had went to sleep after my surgery? Had something gone wrong?Obviously something had gone wrong. Immediately, panic gripped me. I forced my eyes open this time, and the soft sound of sniffling caught my attention. I turned my head slowly to see the doctor who’d handled my abortion standing near the bed, adjusting the drip. Her hands shook violently, and her eyes were red from crying.I wondered for a second what could be making her act this way. Did she find out that I was dying? Even if I was, I was not sure it guaranteed that type of reaction from her. “Doctor?” I croaked, my throat dry. “Are you okay?”She sniffled again, refusing to meet my gaze. Instead, she finished adjusting the drip, mutter
AURORAThe date was set. I had been counting down to this day for a while, and it had finally arrived. It was the most dreadful day of my life. I stared at the calendar pinned on the wall of my room, the small red circle around today’s date glaring back at me. I’d scheduled the abortion in secret, not telling Ethan or anyone else. It was my body, my decision. I couldn’t risk letting him know. Not after everything I’d learned about him.I had planned that I was going to get through it alone and I had scheduled for the doctor to let it be a private event. As long as no one asked about the abortion, she promised she was going to keep her mouth shut. And I believed her. I glanced at the burner phone on the bedside table. It buzzed softly with a message, and my heart sank when I realized who was messaging me. Damian: How are you feeling?At first, I ignored it. I didn’t want to talk to him. I had distanced myself away from everyone in the family. I did not have another friend because I d