The jarring ringtone sliced through the hazy afterglow, shattering the tranquil silence that had enveloped the couple tangled on the large plush bed.Alex stirred, his brow furrowing as he reached blindly for the offending device. The seductive lithe form shifted beside him, the sheets tangling around her lissom curves as she blinked owlishly in the dim light filtering through the heavy drapes."Speak!" Alex answered gruffly, his voice still roughened by exertion and the dregs of slumber. He stiffened almost imperceptibly when the voice on the other end relayed its message."Very well. I'll be right down."Snapping the phone shut, he turned to find the woman watching him with undisguised curiosity. Her tousled chestnut locks framed her face in an enticing disarray, and the smudged remains of her deep crimson lipstick only enhanced the wicked allure dancing in her kohl-rimmed eyes."That was Paul. My father has arrived at the manor." he supplied without any preamble.A muscle ticked in
Alex got busy with making plans to seize the power that was left vacant due to the death of President Bolting which was finally announced more than an hour ago.He immediately left for the office after seeing his father and the mysterious lady off.The ring of his cell phone sliced through the thick silence inside his office.Alex glanced down at the caller ID and a knot twisted in his gut.He motioned for his assistance to leave before answering with a curt, "Hello?""Alex." A familiar female rasped. “I just saw the news. People are going to start feeling sorry for her. You have to do something before she gains their sympathy."Alex clenched his jaw. The irritation radiating off of him at the voice of the caller was palpable but he maintained his composure. "I know. I'm worried if this sympathy takes hold, her story might start seeming believable.""Exactly!" the woman’s urgency crackled through the line. "You can't let her get out of this, Alex. I need you to call an emergency press
~Meanwhile~Rest had been a total stranger to Serena throughout that pitch-black night from hell, completely oblivious of the latest scheme her dear husband had plotted against her.Her eyes were haunted and sunken, weighed down by sheer exhaustion like a pair of concrete blocks.Her voice had cracked like a fragile leaf about to be torn apart by the wind. Desperation seeped into every ragged syllable she had uttered until this moment.The salty tears brimmed on the precipice of her thick lashes, threatening to spill over at any second. "You have to believe me," Serena pleaded, her lower lip quivering. "I'm innocent, I swear on my life I didn't do anything wrong."These words had become a haunting mantra, echoing relentlessly in the hollow corners of her mind ever since she'd been forcibly hauled into this cold, dank holding cell hours ago.A sickening wave of nausea surged over Serena as the crushing weight of those damning accusations bore down on her like a torrential storm. Each w
Serena gradually clawed back from unconsciousness until the world around her swirled into focus.The stark reality of her predicament hit her like a sledgehammer as she found herself sprawled on a hard mattress and surrounded by a ring of concerned faces.At the forefront stood Kate, her loyal companion alongside several officers whose expressions bore a tumultuous blend of emotions etched across their features."Serena, are you alright?" The question was laced with genuine worry. It was Kate's voice, tender and trembling like a frightened bird caught in a storm.Their bond was more than just between a manager and her artist, and the severity of the moment only served to solidify that connection.Serena battled against the pulsating pain that echoed inside her skull, each throb a cruel reminder of her reality. She summoned whatever strength she had left to sit upright. The movement shot electrifying jolts of agony through her body as if her very nerves were rebelling against her."You
An ominous silence fell over the sleek, black van as it pulled up to the towering courthouse.Serena's chest tightened when her gaze landed on the seething crowd that outnumbered even the ravenous one they'd escaped at the police station.An array of angry faces blended together, bound by their shared animosity and stoking one another's rage like a roaring inferno.Serena swallowed hard. She had faced her share of obsessive fans and paparazzi frenzies, but this...this was different. These were mobs vying for her blood.Her delicate fingers trembled as she clutched the door handle, steeling herself to face the barrage of hateful words that was sure to come."Just keep your head down and let us do our job." a gruff voice beside her muttered.Serena took a deep breath and gave a curt nod, stepping aside to let them lead her out onto the steps.A thunderous bellow burst from the mob, sending a wave of hateful words hurtling towards her as a barrage of venomous allegations and derogatory r
Jenkin watched in awe as the two men effortlessly dispatched his would-be attackers in a flurry of well-aimed bullets.It was over in seconds, and the disturbing silence that followed rang in his ears.The two strangers prowled towards Jenkin's crumpled vehicle with the focused intensity of apex predators.One was a mountain of a man, his sculpted face betraying no trace of emotion. The other cut an intimidating figure, though his frightening demeanor was complemented by a wicked grin.Jenkin scrambled back when the grinning man leveled his gun at the windshield. "Out of the car, Counselor. Nice and slow," he said in a voice smooth as silk.Jenkin's mouth was drier than the Sahara. He fumbled with the door latch and stepped out on trembling legs to face his unlikely saviors.Up close, the intensity in the man’s pale eyes was jarring and predatory."W-Who the hell are you people?" Jenkin managed, fighting to keep his voice steady.Killian's grin widened a fraction, though the mirth nev
The luxurious black town car was utterly silent, the tension so thick and palpable that it felt like a physical force pressing in on them from all sides. Everyone inside the luxurious vehicle was staring at Jenkins with the same intense, unwavering gaze - as if he were a lamb being sized up for slaughter. Even Sevene, who had his eyes closed in an almost meditative repose mere moments ago, was now fully awake and alert, his sharp features etched with wariness. "Do you fear death?” A deep voice belonging to the masked man echoed.His mere presence was suffocating, overbearing in a way that made the hairs on the back of Jenkins's neck prickle with primal unease. Those piercing amber eyes seemed to bore straight through him, stripping away every pretense and lie until only his deepest fears and insecurities remained exposed. Jenkins could feel that hypnotic stare searing into him, seeing straight through to the darkest corners of his soul, and he had to fight the nearly overwh
The courtroom was gripped by a heavy, expectant silence, every eye riveted on Serena Bolting's devastatingly beautiful form. Despite the tumultuous incidents leading up to this moment, her otherworldly beauty remained utterly undiminished. Her exquisite porcelain features betrayed the roiling mix of emotions she was fighting with every fiber of her being to conceal. Even amid her profound sorrow, her petite figure seemed to exude an aura of elegant defiance as she sat motionless in a random seat with her bearing regal and focused.The doors opened again to announce Jenkins’s arrival. His measured footsteps echoed through the hushed chamber like a solemn symphony as he approached Serena. His eyes were brimming with an empathetic tenderness that bordered on reverence for the fragile young woman. A weary sigh escaped his lips when he reached her side, expressing the staggering depth of suffering they had endured together during this whole ordeal. "Ms. Bolting," he began softly and
Only the monsters remained a seemingly endless horde that would continue to ravage and destroy until the entire world was little more than a barren, lifeless husk. Knox could not, would not, allow that to happen. Not after everything, not after the unfathomable sacrifices that had already been made in the pursuit of preventing such a future from coming to pass. Too much had been lost, too many lives extinguished in the fires of this onslaught. Darkness swirled around him and began coiling outwards to merge with the torrential downpour. The vortex rapidly expanded, growing in size and ferocity until it became an all-consuming maw ready to devour everything in its path. The earth itself seemed to tremble by the vortex of annihilation taking form, as if the very world were protesting the profane nature of the forces being brought to bear. The air itself seemed to warp and twist, reality buckling under the strain of the immense power being channeled. Each bolt of lightning tha
Knox simply remained there for long, excruciating moments, taking in the sight of her serene repose as if etching every line and curve into his tortured memory so he wouldn't lose even the tiniest detail.Suddenly, Serena's body was engulfed in a dazzling burst of light, with glowing tendrils extending outward to encircle Knox's form. He pulled the light within, absorbing it as if he were a hole eating the stars. It was the portion of his soul he had given Serena in both their past lives and this current one, now being reclaimed after her death. Then Knox rose to his feet with fluidity, seemingly defying the rules of gravity once the last remnants of that magnificent essence were sucked back into his form."Let us never meet again!" he intoned, his voice a discordant rasp that held no trace of anything remotely human. The words carried such weight, such profundity of power that the trembling maid instantly crumpled motionlessly to the floor. Her mind simply could not withstand the
Tears burned hot in Meredith's eyes at the brutal truth of Enzo's words. She had failed - failed utterly to protect Knox, failed to prevent this future from becoming their new reality. Deep in her soul, she could feel the ancient spirits of Queen Minerva and Princess Myra weeping bitter tears of sorrow and regret. Their sacred bloodline, their eternal legacy was now irrevocably tainted by this unraveling of fate.A choked sound somewhere between a sob and a bitter peal of laughter escaped her lips when Sahar's severed head came rolling to a stop at her feet with her dead eyes still holding a mocking glint of triumph even in death. The twisted wench had achieved her ultimate goal - to bring about the utter ruination of their legacy, the destruction of every last Cavalieri-Delgaard dynasty. All around them, the battle raged on with no end in sight, the air thick with the sights, sounds and smells of death. Killian's towering Lycan form, battered and bleeding from a thousand savage
The sight of everyone she loved fighting for their very existence against such overwhelming odds...it was a blade twisting in Meredith's heart.A searing agony lanced through her and she knew Enzo was injured. It was the effect of a mate bond whether fated or chosen. She stumbled, gasping for air as she clutched at her chest. The pain was almost beyond endurance… like a molten lance of agony that threatened to bring her to her knees. Tears burned in her eyes and her sight blurred as the true gravity of their situation hit her like a battering ram. Any wound inflicted by these abominations was fatal. Their claws, fangs, and very essence were imbued with a poison that corrupted all it touched.“Is there no way?” Her mind reeled like ashes on the wind as another spasm of anguish gripped her in its merciless talons. “Is there no way to save them all? To avert this future I've foreseen?”Her body trembled violently and her legs threatened to give out beneath her as she watched her love
Meredith drew on her newly regained powers and unleashed a torrent of energy at the beasts. The demons recoiled, shrieking in fury and anguish as magic seared their rotting flesh. The stench of burning meat filled the air, mingling with the miasma that clung to the creatures.Meredith maintained the onslaught, driving them back through the shattered doorway with relentless determination.Next, she sealed the room with an impenetrable barrier when the last of the abominations stumbled back into the hall, wailing in pain and wrath.She turned to face the trembling girl. "Stay here if you wish to live, child," Meredith instructed. "This madness needs to cease, and soon, before it swallows us all."Then she swept from the chamber and out into the chaos that had engulfed the estate's once-clean halls. The hallway ahead was a nightmare come true, with claw marks on the walls, bloody paintings, and the crushed bodies of fallen defenders strewn over the floor like discarded objects.Meredi
Meredith's heart thundered against her ribcage as she paced the length of Knox and Serena's bedroom suite. Her footfalls echoed with a hollow resonance that belied the emptiness gnawing at her very soul.The incessant rattling and banging against the thick oak door grew more insistent with each passing moment in a cacophony of destruction that served as a reminder of the hellish forces laying siege to their home. Beyond that rapidly crumbling barrier, chaos ruled in an unholy storm of violence that threatened to devour all Meredith held dear.Shrieks of unimaginable agony intermingled with roars. Each haunting wail, each guttural bellow, sent a fresh wave of anguish coursing through Meredith's immortal frame. How many had already fallen? The question burned in her mind like acid, eating away at what little composure she managed to maintain. How many brave warriors, loyal protectors of the estate had lost their lives under the claws of these abominations? The faces of those she had
"I'm the only woman alive now who can give you an heir, bear you children to carry on your bloodline..." Her words were a hushed whisper. "I am your rightful mate at long last. We were always meant to be together as one, you and I. Two halves of the same whole."She sniffled again as a fresh wave of tears spilled forth. "You should have accepted my request earlier, when I simply wanted to enjoy one night with my betrothed...to bask in the warmth of your embrace, as is my right as your—"Her words died on her lips when Knox suddenly closed the distance and wrapped his hand around her slender throat in a grip, wrenching her forward until her feet left the ground. Then he slammed her head back against the stone wall with brutal force to crack her skull. Sirona let out a pained, wheezing laugh as she stared up at him with wild, unfocused eyes. A thin trickle of crimson seeped from the corner of her mouth, tracing a macabre path down her chin."You...you wouldn't dare..." she choked out
Knox felt as if the entire world had collapsed around him, with a devastating blast of despair and despair threatening to break what little remained of his damaged psyche into a million shattered fragments. The sheer, all-consuming agony that had lanced through him was unlike anything he'd ever experienced before. It that it defied description… as though every nerve ending in his immortal body had been set ablaze and doused in acid simultaneously.The air became heavy and oppressive as the full impact of what had happened started to sink in, and the cold stone of the dungeon walls seemed to close in around him.Knox simply couldn't - no, he utterly refused with every fiber of his being to accept the cruel reality that his worst fears had been realized in the most brutal and decisive way imaginable. Serena. His beautiful, precious mate...the very radiant light in his darkness...she was gone. Why? The question kept coming back to him, echoing through the vast emptiness of his head, e
The huge double doors to the dungeon at one of Knox's estates slid open, revealing his towering figure. An oppressive air accompanied him, making it feel as if the very atmosphere held its breath in his presence. Dark tendrils like mist swirled around him, and his eyes that was always cold, blazed with a fury that made them appear even icier than usual. His mind was still reeling from the hateful words Serena had hurled at him in the car earlier, and in a moment of desperation, he had teleported himself here.Knox despised himself for losing control and slapping Serena in a moment of anger. He couldn’t forgive himself, especially when the thought crossed his mind that perhaps Sirona had found a way to bypass his restraint meant to keep her in check, and had gotten into Serena’s mind. More than half of him believed the venomous words Serena had spoken weren't hers but were instead Sirona’s doing. This belief drove him to the dungeon, determined to confirm his theory.His eyes lan