ROSALIND'S POVI had to find it this time. I couldn't afford to lose sight of it again. But I had linked for just a second and it was gone. I marched straight into the dark alley, determined to find what I had been so careless to lose. I searched every corner of the alley but found nothing. Absolutely nothing but scrambling rats.It was totally dark but I could see. I could see very clearly. I left the alley, disappointed. There was only one option.The forest.It was much wider and bigger than the disgusting alley. But it was also more dangerous. I didn't have much of a choice though. There was an ominous feeling seeping from the core of the forest. I felt it and I knew I would find what I was looking for. A mixture of dread and relief was mounting in me.The river looked very silky in the darkness. I was inexplicably drawn to it.I walked toward it and looked. What I saw made me gasp.My eyes were two bright blue stars shining in the darkness. They were so bright that they turned t
ROSALIND'S POVI waited patiently till it was dark, then headed to the spot to meet River. My mind was all over the place. I needed to be sure. I just couldn't believe what I had seen in the petition room.River showed up after a while, he didn't say anything. That was good. It took everything in me not to start interrogating him at the spot, but I had to be patient, this wasn't safe anymore. Soon, we were in the territory of witches.The teleportation still had the same dizzying effect on me but I ignored it.I glared at River. Even though I didn't want to believe it, I knew that he was well aware of what his people were doing. He was their commander after all."You cool?" He asked, cleaning some dust off his black trousers. When I didn't answer, he looked up at me.Before he could say anything else, I slapped him very hard across the face.As fast as his reflexes were, he didn't see that one coming. He might have seen it but not fast enough. My hand making impact with his rough fac
ROSALIND'S POV"Well don't just stand there. Pick the box up and move!"Aunt Lily stared at me from the door like I was daft.It took me a moment to regain my senses.One moment, I was in Cillian's arms, just in front of this same shelf. The next thing, the door swung open and here she was, scolding me. Cillian had disappeared without a trace.Just before she had opened the door, my whole body was enveloped in fear. I heard her before she came in but that wouldn't have helped. It was a small room, there wasn't much space to hide. There wasn't much room for anything, really. But Cillian was gone.I resisted the urge to frantically look around the place for him. Was I hallucinating or something?No. He touched me. I could still smell his scent. That strong redwood. He had moved, and he had moved with the speed of lightning. I said a silent prayer to the goddess that Aunt Lily was too stressed to notice anything was amiss.Cillian was so fast that I didn't even see him move. He really wa
ROSALIND'S POVI don't know exactly how much time passed since River left. I just stood there trying to make sense of the whole thing'You chose the wrong side, I hope you enjoy the show'What the hell was that supposed to mean?Enjoy the show. A cold shiver ran through my spine the more I thought about it. A threat. Something was going to happen.I turned to leave and saw the stream again. The reflection of the moon was dancing softly on its surface. I tried to make sense of what had happened. The things I saw in the water, the encounter with River, this ominous feeling in my chest like something just wasn't right.I took a deep breath and reminded myself of the kind of security that was active in the pack tonight. Nothing was going to happen. He was probably bluffing, I convinced myself.After that, I went back to where I was seated to continue the festivities. A bluff won't not ruin my night.The grand finale fight was still ongoing. The fighters looked drained already. As I took
ROSALIND’S POVIt was absolutely haywire.The festival went from heartfelt dancing under the moonlight to total chaos in a fraction of a heartbeat. One second, all I wanted was to dance to the moon music all night till my lungs gave in, the next minute, Southern Paw was being attacked by an earthquake. I would have fallen on my face had it not been for Kylian catching me in time.I looked around, everyone was trying to find cover, the earth was shaking and it was shaking dangerously. People were screaming. Some of the decorations were coming down. One wolf lay face down on the ground underneath a pole that fell on him and he wasn’t moving.“You need to take cover now, Rosalind.” Kylian said hastefully.He motioned to one of the guards who ran awkwardly to where we were because of the earthquake.“Take her to safety.”“Yes, My Prince.” He nodded and threw a salute.“Can you stand, My Princess?”I nodded speechlessly. He helped me to my feet and we cautiously ran through the crowd, eve
CILLIAN'S POVThat scream sent chills down my spine. I faced Killian and the look on his face mirrored the way I felt. Rosalind.I did not know what exactly had happened but even from where I stood, I could feel the pain in her voice. Killian and I ran as fast as our feet could take us inside. I had already lost so many of my people today, if anything happened to Rosalind, I wasn’t sure I would be able to take it.The earthquake had come to an abrupt stop just before Killian had reappeared and by the way he had come, it was obvious he wanted to share what had happened with me but Rosalind in distress had thrown us both off balance. Almost all the trees in the pack had fallen and more than a few people had been crushed by them.Rosalind was on the floor in the hallway when we arrived. Her face was wet with tears, “Everybody out!” I commanded and the people hurried away from the scene. Everybody left except for the nurse.“What happened, Rosa?… talk to me.”She sobbed hard and it br
ESTELLA’S POVThirty years ago“You know what this means, I trust?” The old woman asked for the second time that night, looking at me with her bulging eyes.“Yes I do.” I answered, trying my very best not to sound irritated.She nodded and walked into the cave, I followed slowly behind her. We stopped before a big rock, it was glowing green. The only light in there beside the fire from my torch.“If you do this, there will be no going back, this spell is powerful and cannot be reversed. There will be consequences. Do you understand, girl?”“I understand.” She looked up and her pupils disappeared, she screamed incantations loudly and the rock began to glow brighter and brighter, she continued louder and the cave shook at the power of her voice.Then she stopped suddenly and looked at me with her eyes still in that manner. A cold ran through my spine but I kept my footing. I wanted this and would not back out now.“Give me your hand.” Her voice was very different now, it was high pit
ESTELLA’S POVI was back in my chambers after going for a walk when a visitor was announced to. I told the guard to let them come in and shortly, to my surprise, Malia walked into the living room.The guard refused to let her come in with her staff at first, but she was adamant, classic Malia.I waved to him that it was okay and he reluctantly let her in and left us alone.“I've come to talk, Estella.” She said, without much expression on her face.“How long has it been since you last visited, old friend? Twenty five, twenty seven years.” “I believe it's been about thirty years. You have set up the place quite nicely.” She commented, looking around.“I see you still wear your bracelet all the same and…”“I have come to talk, Estella.” She said cutting me short.“Not small talk, but real talk.”“Oh Malia. Always so uptight. When was the last time.you did anything fun, like a party or even sex?”She stared at me with a strange expression and continued;“What happened in Southern Paw wa
ROSALIND'S POV"I will not stand by this." This is just not…Councilman Arthur was saying."This is not just what, Arthur? Spit it out." Killian dared. His eyes flashing menacingly at the older man.Arthur shook his head and sat back down. He glared at the high priestess who had her normal expressionless look on. He faced the elders.They too were short of words. "I love Rosalind, she is my mate and I will marry her." Cillian said unexpectedly and for a second, I thought I would scream out. My legs shook at those words. His sheer determination alone was so sexy.Cillian held my hand in his as a way of showing that no decision made there would stop him from doing what he wanted. I almost melted from his warm touch. It took everything in me to still keep my composure and just smile when he looked at me lovingly.Killian stepped forward as well.Dear Councilman, Rosalind is betrothed to me so there's not really much you can do. I intend to marry her and I will. Not just because she won
CILLIAN'S POV She looked at me with hatred in her eyes when I walked in but said nothing.Her chains rattled. She was muttering something under her breath, a spell. But the chains neutralized everything. "What do you want?" She asked.I looked at her, at the chains and then at her palm. Suspicions were correct. I had seen the same mark on Rosa's palm earlier. A mark that appeared after she was taken by the rogues.I bent and grabbed Estella's hand."What are you…?"I brought out the silver dagger and slashed at the black mark in her palm.She winced in pain and cursed me but she was still in chains. Nothing happened. There were drops of blue blood before red blood oozed from the wound.I gave her a towel to stop the bleeding "Your days are numbered." I said.And without another word, I left the dungeon.ESTELLA'S POVThe pain from that silver cut still stung even after he left. He had broken the magical bond I formed with Rosalind to siphon her powers. I was so angry. How did he k
CILLIAN'S POVAfter some time, the sapphire stopped glowing but it was already confirmed. Rosalind was one of them. I didn't know exactly how I was feeling. The elders were all looking at me, waiting for my input on what to do next.The law was clear. Wolves with magic were abominations, they were unstable, unpredictable and very dangerous. They always went rogue. They were threats. But this was Rosalind, my Rosalind. She couldn't hurt a fly. How the hell did she have magic and I didn't know all this time? I didn't sense it or anything. Was I that blind or did she just hide it so well?So many questions were floating in my mind. It was a mix of pain, betrayal, helplessness and anger. I did not know what to do. Rosalind stood before us with the now normal looking sapphire on the table, waiting for me to say something. The elders were still murmuring and having side talks.Councilman Arthur cleared his throat and decorum returned. I knew that whatever he was going to say would not be i
ESTELLA'S POVI was bound in silver chains, I couldn't save myself, couldn't defend myself against these pigs, I could do absolutely nothing as I stood before people eager for me to die. I had never been more powerless in my entire life.But I knew what to do. The key was the princess that they loved. The prophesied link. Irony and poetry mixed in one. It was so ironic that I didn't even know when I burst out laughing until I noticed that the noise had died down completely.My laughter usually had that effect on others. But to think of it, I was going to die but my niece whose magic I siphoned to do the things I did, gets to just watch and do nothing?That was insane. They needed to know how powerful she was. It was time for these pigs to know the real truth. It was time for them to hear it.I stole a glance at the prince. All the blood had disappeared from his face, his eyes were wide open, staring at me in disbelief. He would never believe me. I had to keep speaking. I was going to
KILLIAN'S POVI didn't remember much from what happened before I got to the hospital.I had felt someone by my side throughout the period when I was unconscious, taking care of me, humming to themselves. Always quiet and caring. It was all a bit weird, I knew I was unconscious, and I knew I had to wake up, I just didn't seem to have enough strength to do so. I could feel people around me and I could vaguely hear what was going on around, like conversations and monitor beeps and footsteps. My wolf could detect people's presence but it just couldn't jolt me up.I tried everyday for what seemed like eternity but I couldn't, so I did the only thing I could;Wait.The time spent waiting gave me an avenue to think, to go through everything that had happened over and over again, to spend time with myself and try to see something I hadn't been able to before.I had tried to replay the events of the fight in my head but most of the time, it was all blurry and unclear. My own thoughts and memo
CILLIAN'S POVI watched Killian fall face down. There was blood, and he wasn't moving.My chest caught fire and I went full primal again. The rage I felt was like none other. I combed through the enemies, crushing them in numbers. Estella was my target but she was surrounded by too many people.She opened a portal and disappeared into it. Oh no you don't. I leapt over the crowd and chased after her but the portal was already closing slowly. The witches swamped around me, attacking from all angles. Casting spells and poking me with weapons. My necklace glowed brighter and brighter.I couldn't take it anymore. I roared with everything in me and I felt a great surge of energy encapsulate me and then…Boom.There was a big blast. When I looked around, all the rogues were on the ground. Dead.I ran to that portal, it was almost closed but I could still get in.I turned and saw Killian, still in the same position and not moving. I looked at the portal again, and I jumped in. I grabbed the
KILLIAN’S POV“This is wrong, your highnesses, you cannot lead a war from the frontlines. It is never done. As the only offsprings of your father, you are the heirs to the throne. It is just too risky!”Councilman Gordon kept on whining like a baby.“And if we refuse to heed your advice, are any of you going to stop us from fighting for our pack?”The silent murmurs came to a stop. The councilmen in the Great Hall, devoured by their selfish interests, were looking for a way to stop Cillian and I from leading the battle. Typical fools.“My prince, you just need to understand,” Arthur began in his sweet tongue.“I know that both of you are seasoned warriors and your prowess remains a thing of awe in Southern Paw, your father made sure of that. But if anything should happen to the heirs of the throne while fighting, even for the right cause, it will pose an enormous problem for the pack. That is what my councilmen are looking to avoid. Unless maybe one of you has a child that we are not
CILLIAN’S POVI sat at the council meeting as we deliberated on the next step with the councilmen of the pack. It had been almost two days since Bast was taken and up till that point, there still had not been any development whatsoever on what to do. I wondered how Rosalind would be feeling. I started to fantasize but shook it off immediately. There were serious matters arising, I needed to focusAcross the long table from me was Killian. He just sat there with a straight face. Probably with his mind already made up for what he was going to do when the time was right. “...But they could harm the little boy, it's risky.” I heard Councilman Gabe say. Probably a reply to someone's comment. I was not paying full attention, my mind also was troubled with thoughts of what the high priestess had said before. Many things didn't make sense at this point.“That's true. Although it could just be a bluff, these creatures still have to be taken care of nonetheless.” Said Councilman Arthur.I coul
ESTELLA’S POVI was back in my chambers after going for a walk when a visitor was announced to. I told the guard to let them come in and shortly, to my surprise, Malia walked into the living room.The guard refused to let her come in with her staff at first, but she was adamant, classic Malia.I waved to him that it was okay and he reluctantly let her in and left us alone.“I've come to talk, Estella.” She said, without much expression on her face.“How long has it been since you last visited, old friend? Twenty five, twenty seven years.” “I believe it's been about thirty years. You have set up the place quite nicely.” She commented, looking around.“I see you still wear your bracelet all the same and…”“I have come to talk, Estella.” She said cutting me short.“Not small talk, but real talk.”“Oh Malia. Always so uptight. When was the last time.you did anything fun, like a party or even sex?”She stared at me with a strange expression and continued;“What happened in Southern Paw wa