Liyah's POV I breathed out in relief when he assented to the dance with his friend. Being around him was a combination of suffocation, fear, and unwarranted attraction. I blamed it on the kiss from the other time. If only he had kept his hands to himself I would still be thinking straight. To some extent I was quite disgusted with myself. Why would anyone feel this way about someone who had been treating them like shit? But I also couldn't help but notice the little things that had been happening before now. My work at the mansion had been cut down dramatically. All I had to do now was clean a few rooms occasionally and take care of Eve. It was sudden and surprising but I had no one to ask about. I was grateful for the development of course, but I couldn't help but be suspicious about the whole thing. But the most surprising thing of all was when I had been let out of a dungeon and into a small, shabby but comfortable room. At first I had assumed
Liyah's POVThe room was smaller than I had expected. Just great. If it was bigger at least I would be guaranteed a safe distance away from him. I tried to hiss as inaudibly as I could, awkwardly clutching the travel bag to my chest and I waited for him to say something.He hissed as he looked the room through. "Disgusting," He muttered under his breath. I prayed to disappear into wall when he looked in my direction. After a few agonizing moments, he finally looked away, raising his arms above his head to pull off his tie and then unbutton his shirt. My eyes widened in shock when his muscular chest came into view and without thinking I turned away to hide the blush that had spread over my face. I could feel his eyes pierce my back and I facepalmed.Why did he look so much better to me now that we had shared a kiss? I wondered, cursing myself internally. I needed to calm down and quit this weird behaviour. I only tu
Liyah's POVAfter hours of feeling exposed and uncomfortable, I finally relaxed when I heard him begin to snore lightly. He had been asleep for about an hour now. I tried to get some sleep as well but it seemed an impossible task so I gave up.As I felt him jerk sharply on the bed, I quickly drew up the duvet. I had put it down a little when he had fallen sleepy. I risked a glance at him and grimaced in surprise when I saw that he was still asleep.My frown deepened as I took in the sight of his shaky hands, his heaving chest, parted lips and the beads of sweat that stood on his forehead. I sat up in bed, observing him curiously. Was he sick or something?I saw his hands shake once more as he twisted his neck from side to side, breathing heavily. "P-please, let her be..." I heard him pant. "Let her go... please... Elle..."My brows furrowed. Elle. Who was that?As he jerked harder and twisted on the bed, I realized he was having
Liyah's POVI couldn't help but expect the worst as I stood beside the alpha in the elevator. Waking up this morning, yesterday had felt like a dream, but I could see the white t-shirt I had worn laying next to the bed on the floor. I was shocked to my bones when he had assented my coming with him to the game court, and even more so when he began to converse with him. For a while I wondered if he was in his right senses or if he somehow lost his memory the night before. And so I had been wary, picking my words carefully to avoid provoking him. But after a while, all my reservations fell away and I really began to put my all into the game. I had been scared to death the first time I beat him, I half expected him to rave and hit me across the face or something. But he only stared at me in surprise and then put in more work. And he was quite the competition.
Annalise's POVI had a gut feeling that the slight change I was noticing in Nikolai had something to do with that prisoner girl. I wondered if I was the only one who noticed that he began to talk more, maybe not a lot, but now he said at least two sentences in a day. It was strange but comforting. And whatever the reason was, I hoped it would keep being there.Sometimes I wondered if I was just overthinking or overanalyzing everything. He was still a big fat meanie to everyone, and he yelled even when it was necessary. But I knew Nikolai almost more than I knew myself, considering the fact that we grew up together. So I could definitely tell that something was different. The only other person that could see reason with my analysis was Andrew. But he had been gone on that business trip for quite a while.
Nikolai's POVI hated the fact that everyone stayed out of my way today. They all did their jobs quickly and efficiently, not giving me a chance nor reason to complain or yell. All it did was irritate me. I needed some kind of outlet, some kind of release. I just needed a medium to let out all the pain I was feeling. But I couldn't find any. It was obviously because they weren't trying to be careful on this particular day.It was Elle's death anniversary. Although I had spent years trying to forget it, and hoping that I would wake up one day and not remember the date, it never went away, it just kept stinging like a fresh wound.I couldn't afford to be distracted today, I needed to secure a very important contract for the company. I had been preparing for this particular meeting for week
WARNING! TRIGGERING MATURE CONTENT!Nikolai's POVMy head swirled with thoughts of today's events as I staggered through my bedroom door. Alcohol did nothing to lighten the load on my chest nor the rage I was feeling. I buried my head in my hands as I sat at the edge of my bed. Why had I let him escape? Why did I do something so stupid?"Why did I..." I swallowed, clutching at my hair with shaky hands. I knew it could not have been helped but I couldn't help but feel so stupid about everything. My chest began to heave once more when I stared at Elle's portrait on the wall. I had failed her. I had failed once more. I let her murderer escape when he was right in front of me.I raved with anger as my thoughts went to the prisoner. I had the perfect revenge tool against Jonas right in my grasp for weeks now. And instead of taking out my revenge and making her suffer like I was supposed to, I was out here playing nice to her. I even let them convince me to
Nikolai's POVI awakened with a sore throat and a blinding headache. I looked down to see that I was still in my work clothes. No wonder I was so uncomfortable. Groaning in pain from the headache, I pulled off my trousers and undid my tie from around my neck. Sighing, I relaxed back onto the bed, placing a hand behind my head. I stretched my hand toward the dresser and popped the drawers open in search of some aspirin.My hand froze as I brought the pills to my lips. The events of last night came rushing back to me and I raked my hand through my hair. Why had I stooped so low that I had taken advantage of her when I knew she was helpless?But thinking of that only reminded me of one thing: Elle. She had been treated the exact same way. Brutally taken advance of although she was innocent.The only thing that baffled me was the fact that the girl was a virgin. From the rumors that flew around and the reports from Drew when he had spied on the Monh
EPILOGUEThe black-haired man who sat on a large ottoman fidgeting quickly sprang to his feet when he saw a middle-aged woman appear from the room directly opposite him. He had been wiping his clammy palms from time to time throughout his stay outside the room. At intervals he would shut his eyes in a silent prayer to the Goddess. His heart leaped in fear when she solemnly began to take off her gloves, and with his heart in his mouth, he waited for her to speak. But instead, her lips parted in a wide grin. "It's done. You can see them now."He raked a hand through his hair, smiling and then leaning in to accept the hug she was offering. "Jeez, Margaret. I was scared for a moment there."She only gave another chuckle. "Go on, they're waiting for you."He nodded shakily, walking into the room. His eyes first flew to the frail-looking woman laid out on the bed. She opened her eyes weakly when he walked in, smiling as she saw him. "Baby..." He whispered, quickly moving to her side. He t
Liyah's POVI tightened my arm over Nikolai's torso, leaning into him and not wanting to let go. I still felt eternally grateful to have him standing by my side alive and well. His wounds had been so bad that he had fallen unconscious for days. Margaret and I had to work day and night to treat him, mixing concoctions and applying them on him and the other man he had asked us to bring back with him. He still hadn't told us anything about the strange man. His wounds were nearly fatal, ten times worse than the ones Nikolai had sustained. I didn't know who he was but I was praying he would be okay. Nikolai chuckled and it sounded like music to my ears. It felt good to hear his laughter again. "Li, I know you love me and that you're happy to have me back, but now you've got me thinking you're planning to send me back into a coma."I laughed, loosening my hold on him. "Do you have any idea how long it's been since I touched you or even smelled your hair? Let me have my moment," I joked, pu
Nikolai's POVAs I waited with my eyes shut for a final blow that never came, it all happened at once. One second Jonas was staring at something on the other side of the garden, the next he had slumped to the floor, blood gushing from the hole in his forehead. Still in shock, I stared at Jonas' unmoving body on the floor through my heavy lids, and then I looked to the other end of the garden. That's when I saw her. Liyah dropped the gun from her hand, racing towards me in a split second. "Nikolai..." She breathed, placing a hand behind my head for support. "Drew and Annalise will be here soon, okay? I mindlinked them already. Just hold on..."I smiled, feeling my busted lip ache, but I didn't care. Liyah was here...leaning over me and smoothening out my hair. She was here...she was alive. And Jonas was dead. It felt like a dream. Everything had happened so fast, I wasn't even sure it had happened. My chest was burning, and everything was beginning to get blurry. But that was okay.
Nikolai's POVI could feel the heavy swelling in my right eye as I slowly regained consciousness. I knew I had only been knocked out for a few minutes but I could feel my head spinning. I clutched at the grass, trying to pull myself to my feet but my hands were too shaky. I fell back heavily onto the grass, expelling sharp breaths as my chest started to burn. A piercing scream made me look in the direction of the sound and I looked up to see Jonas digging his fangs into the other man's side. I gasped in shock, trying once more to stand to my feet. I had almost forgotten that the man called Gabriel had come to my rescue. As I tried to crawl over there, I saw Jonas ram his fists into Gabriel's face...over and over again until he finally stilled, his damaged face buried into grass as he fell from Jonas' grip.No, no, no."No!" I yelled, grabbing Jonas' attention to me. As long as he was yet to snap his neck off his shoulders, there was still hope. Maybe he could be saved. Jonas swung ar
Liyah's POVI counted my steps as Barbara and I circled each other, everything I had learned during training resurfacing in my head. I knew she was waiting for the perfect chance to strike, but for now she wanted to stall, make me wait before she came at me. I knew she was confident...the glint in her eyes and the way she was walking calmly as though she were strolling told me she was. And I knew it was because she didn't think I stood a chance against her. She didn't know I had a wolf now. That, was my advantage. She was confident enough that she thought I would be dead in a heartbeat. But she wanted to take her time, taunt me and toss me around before she could really enjoy tearing me into pieces. Which was why I played along. Since she didn't know I was a full werewolf now, why tell her? I would only wait. Wait for her to make a mistake. Then I would play my hand. "Oh, step sister, this will have to be the most interesting thing that has happened in this pack for a long time," S
Nikolai's POV'Nikolai?' My heart skipped a beat when Anna's voice filled my head in a mindlink. I stopped in my tracks, my breath caught in my throat, praying silently that she was about to deliver good news.'I can hear you Anna, what's up? Did you…' I paused, not knowing what exactly to ask. My insides churned as I waited for her response.'We've found Liyah, she's alright.' I felt my heart muscles loosen at the sound of those words, my clenched fists relaxed and I heaved a sigh of relief. Thank the goddess. Liyah was alive. She was safe. Everything would be alright now. 'Okay. That's very good.' I breathed'Drew says our soldiers have already rounded more than half of the Monhowl pack, a lot are dead and the few who are wounded are surrendering.' She sounded in my ears.I scoffed. So these were the best fighters of Monhowl. Pathetic.'Okay. I'll need you to help him gather all the prisoners, maybe into their dungeon or something then wait for my command.' I said and broke the m
Liyah's POVAs I sprinted out of the dungeons, I checked for any sign of life in the cells I passed, but there was no one present. I knew that most times Nanny Maria was either in the cells or in the servant quarters depending on which mood Mira was in. I needed to find her. She was the only member of this pack that I cared about. As I made my way up the passages where I knew she usually was, I prayed that she was still alive and well. I could feel the blood pump in my ears as I kicked the door down and stepped in. My heart fell. The room was empty. No, no. Where else could she be? "Maria!" I yelled into the deserted room. But there was no one around. My head spinning with different thoughts, I held onto the door to steady myself. Maria was alive. She is alive. And I was going to find her. I repeated the mantra in my head until I began to feel better. As I walked out the door, I heard someone sniff. I froze in my steps. It was short and ever so light. But I was sure I heard somethi
Nikolai's POVAnna held my hand in a light squeeze as we waited for Drew to arrive. He had already mindlinked us saying that he was close by. I nodded at her, understanding all she was trying to communicate to me. But I knew I would not be able to relax until Liyah was standing unharmed by my side. I signaled the pack to hide in the shadows as we heard footsteps approaching.Anna and I did the same. A few seconds later, a figure clad in a cloak slipped into the courtyard. My wolf growled but I held back. We needed to be calculative. As soon as he was in the middle of the hall, I stepped out. The spy staggered back in shock. As he made to escape, Drew pushed at him from behind, dealing him with a deathly blow before he could recover from the shock. As I walked toward the man who lay on the floor squirming and begging, I shifted to my elbow. He played a huge part in Liyah's abduction. He was part of the reason why she was not here with me. Kicking him up in the air, I held him forward
Drew's POVFear gripped my insides as I walked out of the study. I couldn't help but continuously blame myself. Why did we leave them both alone? We should have been around, at least we would have been able to stop them before they went too far. But we didn't. And now Nikolai would not stop blaming himself for everything. We were all at fault...we should have been more watchful. If a spy had slipped into our territory unnoticed, it was because we had all let our guard down whilst making preparations for the wedding and the engagement party. I tried to hold myself steady, looking in Nikolai's direction every now and then to make sure he was okay. I couldn't imagine how he must be feeling. As we halted at the entrance of the hall where he had ordered every single pack member to assemble, Nikolai stepped forward. He had already masked his expression as that of anger, and I marveled at how well he was keeping it together."A couple of minutes ago, I found out that my would-be Luna has be