[Elise’s POV]Some king. I grumble inwardly, not daring to look at the bodies that line the floor. What kind of piece of shit king killed his loyal subjects?“Did you only bring me here to show me this?” I ask, feeling my stomach churn. “Because there’s no fucking way I can eat after what you just made me watch.”“Oh?” Ezekiel laughs, giving me a look that just screams amused. “That’s too bad. I’ll have someone lead you back to your room then.”“Thanks,” I snap, watching as he lifts a hand and snaps so that a butler walks in and takes my leash. “Don’t come find me again.”Standing, I follow the one who leads me away, and it is only when we are far enough away that I’m certain Ezekial won’t be able to hear or sense anything that I move.Leaping, I wrap my legs around the butler's neck and then flip, throwing him to the side but being pulled along as he holds onto my leash.“Fuck,” I growl as pain shoots through my neck. “I’m going to make you pay for that.”Since I already tried being
[Elise’s POV]I wait as Forrest continues to look from me to the bars of his cell and back. It is only when a commotion can be heard that he finally gets up and moves toward me. For a moment, I’m stunned by the fact he isn’t chained like I was, but I don’t waste too much time thinking about it.“Come on,” I huff, scooting closer to the window so that he can reach me. “I think they’ve realized that I’m gone.”I was certain that was the case, after all, if Ezekial was as capable as he claimed, he would be more than aware of what was going on in his domain.“We gotta go.”Nodding, Forrest jumps and wraps a hand around mine. Once he is secure, I start to pull, but realize that he is much heavier than I expected.“What?” I huff, drawing on the rogue strength that is slowly consuming me. “Do you eat more than three meals a day?”“Watch it, pipsqueak,” he growls. “You’re just weak.”Like hell, I was. He was just heavy, but that wasn’t going to stop me from getting him out of there. It was my
[Maverick’s POV]I sit quietly, watching as Jose speaks quietly with a woman who oozes authority and pride. Two days have already passed since our arrival in New Moon, and this woman arrived this morning. According to Jose, she would be the one who was returning mine and Ellie’s memories. Although I was still skeptical, I already settled on going through with this, especially if it would help thaw some of the tension between Serenity and me.“It’s going to be fine,” I say now, patting Serenity’s leg as she sits stiffly beside me. “And once we know more, we can hopefully end things.”“Yeah,” she whispers, though it is clear that she doesn’t really believe me. “Right.”Sighing, I get up and head over to Jose and the woman, drawing both of their attention toward me.“Hello,” I say, deciding it was the polite thing to do to introduce myself. “I’m Maverick, one of the ones you’ll be returning memories to.”“Mmmm.”The woman doesn’t say anymore as she just stares at me with dark eyes that l
[Serenity’s POV]I watch in horror as Maverick buries his head in his hands. They shake as he does so, as does his body, and before I know what I’m doing, I rush forward and grab his wrists.“Maverick!” I call as he repeats the same thing again and again. “What’s wrong? Talk to me!”It’s like he is somewhere else and not even here with me as he continues to ignore me and the world around him.“What did you do?” I demand, turning my gaze toward Gretchen. “What did you do to him?”“I didn’t do anything.” She responds. “Whatever inner battle he is having has to do with him and only him.”Fighting the urge to punch her, I turn my attention back to Maverick and pull at his wrists as hard as I can until finally, he lifts his gaze toward mine.“Maverick,” I whisper, taking in his sweat-covered skin and pale face. “You’re here.”“Serenity,” he murmurs, like he isn’t quite sure if I’m real. “You’re… Let go!”Eyes widening, I watch Maverick yank his wrists from my grasp.“Don’t,” he says, givin
[Serenity’s POV]I don’t know how long I sit there, holding Maverick as he processes what he has remembered and deals with the demons that haunt him. I don’t mind it in the slightest; instead, I’m relieved that he is so open to allowing me to share in his suffering for him. And when he finally pulls away and looks at me, I lean forward and kiss his lips, then press my forehead against his.“Feel better?” I ask, meeting his gaze.“Somewhat,” he admits. “But there is still a lot to process.”“I’m sure.”I was certain that it must be so overwhelming to have years of memories rush back to you at once and to even have one that was so damn painful. I could only wish that I could take away some of the pain he was feeling, but I couldn’t. That pain was something that he would have to live with, but I would always be here to bring him back from the darkness if he began to tumble into it.“Can I ask a question?” I say slowly, not wanting to take away from his processing, but along with the memo
[Serenity’s POV]I stare in disbelief as the seriousness of the situation hits me. We had a lead. We had an actual lead toward where to find the one who started all of this, but it wasn’t without a sacrifice.“Where is Aunt Elise?” I ask quietly. “Why wasn’t she with him?”“That,” Uncle William begins, his expression falling as hurt appears in his eyes. “The boy hasn’t fully said.”“Then make him!” I snap, moving forward and moving around the three men who stand in the middle of my room.As I move, I can hear protests, but I don’t stop; I continue to move until I find Forrest sitting in the living room, looking lost and confused. However, when he hears my approach, his gaze turns toward me, and hope flashes in his eyes.“You,” he says, jumping up and grabbing me. “You can…”He doesn’t get to finish his words before a snarl rips through the air and hands grab me, pulling me into a strong chest.“Don’t touch her,” Maverick growls, his voice dripping with venom.For a moment, Forrest doe
[Maverick’s POV]I stare down at Rosco as his face goes redder and redder with rage. Although I knew even giving my age would piss him off due to my relationship with his daughter, I didn’t want to hide anything either. Hiding things was what caused him to dislike me so much, so it was time to turn over a new leaf.“And since that is clear, should we should work on coming up with a plan to defeat Ezekial, don’t you think?”Growing quiet, I wait as everyone stares at me like I’ve grown a second head, but when Ellie’s lips twitch into a small smile and she nods, I know that she is on the same wave length as me.“I think that would be best, Samuel.”“Samuel?” Jose repeats, frowning. “Who is Samuel?”“Me,” I respond. “My name before waking up in Emerald Moon was Samuel. However, I would prefer for everyone to continue calling me Maverick, as Samuel died long ago.”As I speak, Serenity reaches out and wraps her hand around mine, causing her father to grow angrier, but she doesn’t back down
[Serenity’s POV]I stare at Uncle Jose in disbelief as his brilliant plan settles around us.Sneak in.Did he really just say that he wanted us to sneak into a blood bank and steal human blood? Was he out of his mind? Didn’t he fear getting caught and then…“What?” Uncle Jose asks, looking around at what I’m certain are mirrored looks of shock. “What’s wrong?”“You’ve gone off the deep end.” My father huffs. “There is no way in hell that we are going to steal blood from a blood bank. I’m sure that Emerald Moon’s doctor will be able to get his hand on blood.”“Aw,” Uncle Jose huffs. “You’re no fun.”“We’re trying to save the world, not land ourselves in jail.” Uncle William points out.“If you want to do that, you can do it yourself.” My father adds.“Fine,” Uncle Jose huffs, his excitement over his idea fading from his eyes. “We will do it the boring way.”“Great,” my father snaps. “I’ll go and call Tristan then.”“Great,” Uncle Jose claps. “Then I will retire to my office for a drink