Amara’s POVElias’ lips were hot, the crash of them blazing through every nerve ending in my body. For a split second I forgot where I was. I forgot who I was, the shame, the agony, the betrayal.And then reality hit me like a thunderclap.I pushed him away with what little strength I had left.His emerald eyes grew dark, his breath coming hard. He staggered back, as if he were not only responding to my push but battling something else altogether.“What the hell, Elias?” His mother asked. “You didn’t just kiss this dumb piece of…”“Get out of here, mom,” he said.“Elias…” she argued.“Now!” He yelled.She stared angrily at me and then at her son, panting, and exited the room. I wiped my mouth with the back of my hand, sick twisting in me. How dare he?“Never touch me again,” I hissed, poison dripping from my every word.Elias tightened his jaw, and I glanced at his
Elias’ POVBlood was everywhere.On my hands. My clothes. Seeping into the floor. I could still taste it — coppery and thick, coating my throat as if I had ingested something foul.The body at my feet no longer looked like a person. The assassin had been ripped to pieces by me. I had severed his limbs from his body. But I didn’t recall having done it.One moment, I had entered and found Amara pinned against the wall, a blade against her throat.The next…this.My chest heaved. My heartbeat was irregular and thumping in my ears.Inside of me something was still desperately clawing its way to the surface, restless. I wasn't satisfied.When I stepped forward, Amara stepped backward.Her shoulders squared as if to prepare for a renewed assault. She should have run.Instead, she remained there, hands balled into fists, her eyes flickering with something brittle.
Amara's POVI jolted awake with my heart pounding like a jackrabbit. Something felt off. I had this gut feeling that something was off. It came as a kind of nagging voice in the back of my head saying things I didn't seem to understand.I took a few slow, deep breaths and tried to tell myself it was just a bad dream, but I still felt it. It was as if my instincts were roaring at me to awaken, to take notice.Just as I stood from the couch, a voice called my name Not loud, but in my voice, inside my mind. I was pulled forward, as if by an invisible string, as if something was drawing me toward it. I walked behind it, my feet in spite of themselves.Before I knew it, I was in front of the bathroom door. My heart hammered in my chest like a blacksmith pounding metal. I raised my hand to knock but before I had the chance the door opened by itself.Inside, I discovered Elias sweating, shaking, fighting something invisible. His breath
Amara's POVI'd never looked up at the sky.Not like other folks had; stretching out wide and boundless and full of potential. My world was always broken into fragments, viewed through contradicting bars across my window or the splits in frigid stone walls that held me captive. Outside existed only in fantasy, something I'd dreamed, something I was never supposed to reach.For eighteen years, I had never been anything other than a secret. A pilfered breath in shadowed hallways. A ghost behind closed doors. A Winters by birth, but not by name. No one beyond these doors was aware of my presence.Because I was never supposed to be.I felt all that would change this night. My heart beat rose, as I thought of the possibility and the door opened. Heeling clicks, slow, stiffly, rang through the stillness. And then the voice, honey-sweet and lethal."You're actually doing this?" I heard her say. I turned to see Kamla. She stood in the doorway, with her arms folded, her smile like a knife.
Amara’s POVThe night air scorched my lungs as I gasped for breath, stumbling out of the ballroom. My heels crashed against the marble as I walked, but it barely made a sound over the echo of laughter, of whispers, of my humiliation spreading out in front of them all.How dare he say that to me? How could my father let him insult me like this? Was I only a slave to them? All he ever did was hide me. What did I ever do to him or them? I hated them. And now I hated the fact the moon goddess was cruel enough to give me a mate. One who didn't care about me or my feelings. I ran into my room, closing the door shut. His words continued to ring in my head and wouldn't stop. “I, Alpha Elias Beaumont, reject you, Amara Kings, as my mate.”“Please, stop,” I begged, crouching to the floor. “Just stop, please. It's too much.”I closed my eyes, but the words were etched into my flesh, a pain that wouldn’t go away. The mate bond ripped apart within me, one strand at a time, scorching my blood. M
Elias’ POVThe doors flung open, with two men dragging Amara in. They held her arms as if she were nothing more than a sack of potatoes. She didn't struggle and I wondered what had happened. She looked bloodied and her head bowed. They threw on the floor, and she slowly rose struggling to hold her weight up with her hands. “What is the meaning of this?” Alpha Charles commanded. Amara struggled to raise her head, with her hair falling down her face. She didn't bother to fight like she expected the worst to happen. Something in me tightened as I watched her tremble. I didn't want to see her like this, yet but I had refused her as my mate. “She killed Kamla!” One of the men said. Loud gasps flowed in the room. “No, that can't be,” I heard someone whisper. “It's true. She killed her sister,” the second bodyguard added. “I…I didn't do it,” Amala stuttered. “Please…I swear, I didn't...you have to believe me.”“Shut her up,” Gamma Rawl ordered and Alpha Charles raised his hand. “Wh
Amara's POVI couldn't scream. I was taken from my pack and made a prisoner in his own pack. For the first time I heard my father defend me. It made me feel happy even if it was for a moment. He had never taken me as his daughter all these years. I knew he didn't want to lose his last heir, but it was still better than not having him say a word in my favour. The men threw me into the cell and I crashed to the floor hitting my body hard. I groaned and lifted my face only to feel a sickening fist land on my face. “Murderer,” he spat and I coughed. The blood choked in my throat and I let it out. I wanted to argue, to prove my innocence, but I didn't. What was the point? “What a loser?” The voice continued. “You had to kill your sister because you were dumped. Pathetic bitch!” The next thing I felt was his hand pulling my hair, making me yelp. I struggled and his hand smacked me. I was doomed. There was no one going to save me. When he lifted his fist, I gasped, closing my eyes
Elias’ POVI barely returned to my room when my legs failed me, and I fell against the edge of my bed, sweating profusely, my chest heaving as if I had just raced a long distance. My hands gripped my head, but nothing could stop the searing pain that was bouncing inside my brain.The rejection hadn’t worked.I could still feel her.Amara.My mind called. Her name was a wound I could not mend.Each time I reached for her, something within me shifted, the bond mate tightening, refusing to let go. I could still feel her blood on my lips, hear the fury of her voice, that wheeze whispering spurn around me. I tried.And almost died.I tore off my sweat-soaked shirt, pacing the room. I could feel my skin burning, the unnatural, hot fire refusing to disappear in spite of all the fresh air it got. There was electricity in my veins, something lurking just under my skin.And the worst?Every time I blinked, I saw her.Not the Amara in that dungeon, bruised and battered. But a different, stronge
Amara's POVI jolted awake with my heart pounding like a jackrabbit. Something felt off. I had this gut feeling that something was off. It came as a kind of nagging voice in the back of my head saying things I didn't seem to understand.I took a few slow, deep breaths and tried to tell myself it was just a bad dream, but I still felt it. It was as if my instincts were roaring at me to awaken, to take notice.Just as I stood from the couch, a voice called my name Not loud, but in my voice, inside my mind. I was pulled forward, as if by an invisible string, as if something was drawing me toward it. I walked behind it, my feet in spite of themselves.Before I knew it, I was in front of the bathroom door. My heart hammered in my chest like a blacksmith pounding metal. I raised my hand to knock but before I had the chance the door opened by itself.Inside, I discovered Elias sweating, shaking, fighting something invisible. His breath
Elias’ POVBlood was everywhere.On my hands. My clothes. Seeping into the floor. I could still taste it — coppery and thick, coating my throat as if I had ingested something foul.The body at my feet no longer looked like a person. The assassin had been ripped to pieces by me. I had severed his limbs from his body. But I didn’t recall having done it.One moment, I had entered and found Amara pinned against the wall, a blade against her throat.The next…this.My chest heaved. My heartbeat was irregular and thumping in my ears.Inside of me something was still desperately clawing its way to the surface, restless. I wasn't satisfied.When I stepped forward, Amara stepped backward.Her shoulders squared as if to prepare for a renewed assault. She should have run.Instead, she remained there, hands balled into fists, her eyes flickering with something brittle.
Amara’s POVElias’ lips were hot, the crash of them blazing through every nerve ending in my body. For a split second I forgot where I was. I forgot who I was, the shame, the agony, the betrayal.And then reality hit me like a thunderclap.I pushed him away with what little strength I had left.His emerald eyes grew dark, his breath coming hard. He staggered back, as if he were not only responding to my push but battling something else altogether.“What the hell, Elias?” His mother asked. “You didn’t just kiss this dumb piece of…”“Get out of here, mom,” he said.“Elias…” she argued.“Now!” He yelled.She stared angrily at me and then at her son, panting, and exited the room. I wiped my mouth with the back of my hand, sick twisting in me. How dare he?“Never touch me again,” I hissed, poison dripping from my every word.Elias tightened his jaw, and I glanced at his
Elias' POV"She is poison, Elias. She needs to be eliminated."That was my mother, Luna Ingrid. She had so much hate for Amara. "Mom," I called. "No…enough. She hurt you. She killed your mate. No one toys with my son's emotions," my mother continued. I listened to my mother, and realized I had done worse to Amara. "Mom…" I called again. "No, your fiancée's funeral is tonight. Both the packs are coming. They need answers and I want one too," she said. "Will you just let me talk?" I asked, looking at her. She sighed, and breathed out. "Fine. What is it?" She asked. "I think there must have been something wrong. Amara is my mate," I confessed. She looked at me like I had grown horns. "Have you gone mad? Didn't you reject her in fron
Amara's POVI was still here, alive and a prisoner. I hate it. If I ever got my hands on Luther, I would….Do nothing.My mind reminded me of my limits. I looked around, at the prison walls. It was cold and wet. My dried blood filled my nose. It was dull and my wolf howled. How much longer?How much more before something inside of me just…broke?I licked my dry lips, wetting them with my saliva a little. I was thirsty and my throat felt dry. I was starving and my body ached from my wounds. They were healing slowly because my wolf was hurt. And worst of all, perhaps? I was suicidal. The thought lingered around me like an anchor below the water, keeping me down lower than anything in my body could.I compelled my fingers to my chest, over my heart, where the mate bond throbbed like an infected wound. Elias. His name was venom in my veins. I hated him. I needed to be free of him. The urge burned me bright, wild with desperation. I ached to reject him. Here. Now. I clenched my
Elias’ POVI barely returned to my room when my legs failed me, and I fell against the edge of my bed, sweating profusely, my chest heaving as if I had just raced a long distance. My hands gripped my head, but nothing could stop the searing pain that was bouncing inside my brain.The rejection hadn’t worked.I could still feel her.Amara.My mind called. Her name was a wound I could not mend.Each time I reached for her, something within me shifted, the bond mate tightening, refusing to let go. I could still feel her blood on my lips, hear the fury of her voice, that wheeze whispering spurn around me. I tried.And almost died.I tore off my sweat-soaked shirt, pacing the room. I could feel my skin burning, the unnatural, hot fire refusing to disappear in spite of all the fresh air it got. There was electricity in my veins, something lurking just under my skin.And the worst?Every time I blinked, I saw her.Not the Amara in that dungeon, bruised and battered. But a different, stronge
Amara's POVI couldn't scream. I was taken from my pack and made a prisoner in his own pack. For the first time I heard my father defend me. It made me feel happy even if it was for a moment. He had never taken me as his daughter all these years. I knew he didn't want to lose his last heir, but it was still better than not having him say a word in my favour. The men threw me into the cell and I crashed to the floor hitting my body hard. I groaned and lifted my face only to feel a sickening fist land on my face. “Murderer,” he spat and I coughed. The blood choked in my throat and I let it out. I wanted to argue, to prove my innocence, but I didn't. What was the point? “What a loser?” The voice continued. “You had to kill your sister because you were dumped. Pathetic bitch!” The next thing I felt was his hand pulling my hair, making me yelp. I struggled and his hand smacked me. I was doomed. There was no one going to save me. When he lifted his fist, I gasped, closing my eyes
Elias’ POVThe doors flung open, with two men dragging Amara in. They held her arms as if she were nothing more than a sack of potatoes. She didn't struggle and I wondered what had happened. She looked bloodied and her head bowed. They threw on the floor, and she slowly rose struggling to hold her weight up with her hands. “What is the meaning of this?” Alpha Charles commanded. Amara struggled to raise her head, with her hair falling down her face. She didn't bother to fight like she expected the worst to happen. Something in me tightened as I watched her tremble. I didn't want to see her like this, yet but I had refused her as my mate. “She killed Kamla!” One of the men said. Loud gasps flowed in the room. “No, that can't be,” I heard someone whisper. “It's true. She killed her sister,” the second bodyguard added. “I…I didn't do it,” Amala stuttered. “Please…I swear, I didn't...you have to believe me.”“Shut her up,” Gamma Rawl ordered and Alpha Charles raised his hand. “Wh
Amara’s POVThe night air scorched my lungs as I gasped for breath, stumbling out of the ballroom. My heels crashed against the marble as I walked, but it barely made a sound over the echo of laughter, of whispers, of my humiliation spreading out in front of them all.How dare he say that to me? How could my father let him insult me like this? Was I only a slave to them? All he ever did was hide me. What did I ever do to him or them? I hated them. And now I hated the fact the moon goddess was cruel enough to give me a mate. One who didn't care about me or my feelings. I ran into my room, closing the door shut. His words continued to ring in my head and wouldn't stop. “I, Alpha Elias Beaumont, reject you, Amara Kings, as my mate.”“Please, stop,” I begged, crouching to the floor. “Just stop, please. It's too much.”I closed my eyes, but the words were etched into my flesh, a pain that wouldn’t go away. The mate bond ripped apart within me, one strand at a time, scorching my blood. M