PAIN... That was what first attacked Kai's senses when he opened his eyes. He groaned... The area he was in was so dark that a knife could slice through it. The air felt moist... He tried to move. The pain came again, this time from his wrist and ankles. That was when he looked at himself. He was chained with silver cuffs in a standing position. His wrists were attached to the ceiling and his feet to the ground. Even the slightest movement pushed the silver cuffs to his skin, causing his flesh to sizzle. A part of his body was covered in blood, battered. Why wasn't he healing? Like a movie recap, the scenes of how he got caught came back. He winced in pain.WOLFSBANE... He could remember someone screaming for the substance. And he could also remember feeling rods on his skin and burning sensations flowing through his body. The realization hit: they poured wolfsbane on the rods and probably injected a very little quantity into him. In all his life, he had never felt such pain, su
"I want Drab to go alone into the vampire's clan." Hazel crossed her legs on the bed, turning the idea in her head. Dallan stood in front of the bed, his figure a tower above her. "You have faith in him?" Hazel asked, her eyes fixed on the wolf painting on the wall. "Do you have faith in him delivering?" "He has never failed me or the pack. I know he will do a good job." "I have an idea." Dallan sat beside her on the bed. "What is it?" "Look for someone else to go with him... Someone you can trust. That person will stop outside the border and wait for him to go in and gather information. That way, keeping tabs on each other will be very easy." "Hmm." Dallan ran the thought through his head. It sounded like a very nice plan. He nodded in affirmation. "That sounds like a great plan. I support it." Even before he spoke up, Hazel knew he would. No one had gone to bed—not even the non-wolf species in the pack—and it was almost midnight. All the events of the night had only helped H
Dallan did not see Hazel in his chambers or anywhere around the house. In alarm, he asked the guard outside the house where she'd gone. After the guard said that she went behind the house, Dallan sprinted in that direction. He didn't find her in the backyard or garden. Just as he passed through the curtain of leaves leading to the river, he heard a faint splash of water... Stealthily, he walked on the mushy side of the shore, frowning when he didn't see anyone. As he got closer, he saw a figure. It was more like a faint glint of light moving beneath the surface of the river. When the saw the shape of a fishtail, he knew it was Hazel. Dallan didn't say a word or made a sound. He quietly went to sit at the shore, smiling as she gently flapped around the river. At last, she came out of the water, her back turned to Dallan. She wore nothing on her chest and Dallan began to wish she could turn around and gift him a fine view of her breasts. It was almost like Hazel heard his thought
Dallan did exactly what Hazel suggested: go to the gate and find out the latest about his brother. They did not get anything beneficial. There wasn't any news about Drab and his partner. It wasn't like Dallan wasn't expecting newer about them, since no one knew they were leaving for the vampire clan. Hazel stayed beside Dallan at the gate. She was too nervous to sit and too agitated to stand on a spot, so she started a slow pace along the security quarters. Dallan managed to sit even though he was feeling very uncomfortable.No one said anything. Nobody wanted to break the pregnant silence hanging around the gate. Hazel continued her short pace. Just when she thought she was starting to feel better, she heard a sound, a quick prance. Before she had time to spin around and check the gate for the source of the sound, Dallan was already up with the warriors and racing for the iron barrier. The gate burst open with a force that had more than three of the warriors change into their ful
"Dallan!!!" Hazel had no idea her voice went that far. Dallan heard. And every other person around him. Hazel felt heat, pure and raw, shooting out from her body, diving for the arm she pointed out. She stumbled back, lost footing, and almost crashed to the ground, her arms pressed to both sides of her head. She screamed and rolled on the ground in agony. It lasted for some seconds. She staggered up, still holding her head, and trying to find her footing. Her eyes turned pitch black, the color of the night.At once, her feet levitated off the ground. The fight momentarily stopped. People now stared at the floating figure in confusion. Hazel looked lost, soulless. She reached out an arm and touched the wolf warrior nearest to her. His eyes turned pitch black too. Like a bot, he whirled on his feet, ran to one of the vampires, and touched him. It became a game of touch until more than fifteen vampires had dark eyes and were standing still like statues. Hazel's legs were still su
"Mermaids have almost the same hierarchy as wolves," Abe began. "Most of them are offered some certain favors because of the nature and strength of their powers.""How exactly does that work?"Abe shrugged. "It's just the same way it works for wolves. The family can go as far as pushing away the child or slaving him or her. On the contrary, Hazel had so much magical essence after her birth that the midwives were forced to keep her and the mother away from prying eyes for almost a week. They came up with an excuse. But Hazel could not hide it. Her name traveled fast amongst her people. Jealousy started."Dallan almost sighed. Even before Abe mentioned the part about jealousy, he knew that was the path the story would ply. People were simply inconsiderate and wicked."So what happened?""The strength of Hazel's power was discovered when she forcefully entered the mind of the king who was forcefully trying to take over people's properties, broke his will, and controlled him to slay his ow
Kai sighed and closed his eyes. Even before now, he had always known that things will be out in the open. He did not expect it to be this soon... "Well, that answers my question," Dallan said, folding his hands across his chest. "From the neutral look on your face and your inability to speak, I know you probably lied about Hazel having powers." "Dal, I did not lie, okay?" Kai tried to sit up. He hissed in pain. Dallan was by his side in a second. "I told you to stay put. Stop moving." Concern flashed across Dallan's eyes. "How are you feeling now? Should I tell Abe to get you more pain-killing potions?" "I think I am fine," Kai said. He gave up his attempt to sit up. "Dallan, I want you to understand something. Whatever I do—we do (Abe and I)—it is for your good, to keep you safe in all aspects. I never meant to hide it from you. In fact, I wasn't aware she had powers in the beginning. I was just as confused as you were." They made eye contact."It was later on I found out about her
Hazel knew she was as light as a feather even before scooting off the bed. When her feet touched the floor, she felt a reasonable amount of energy—energy enough for her to get to the balcony. The room was getting very stuffy. She could not make up to three steps. Light as a feather, she wobbled, her body falling sideways to meet the floor. "Hazel!"She saw a shadow move, a familiar scent reaching out to her. At once, she relaxed. With Dallan's speed, she knew she would not meet the floor. And she did not. Hazel was in Dallan's arms even before she had time to process the fall. Dallan cradled her close, carrying her bridal style. "Where are you going?" "Balcony," Hazel managed to say. "I am feeling quite hot." Dallan kissed her forehead and checked her temperature at the same time. "You feel normal, baby. I don't want you catching a cold." "Just stay with me and I won't."Dallan carried her to the balcony. Abe packed his things and left after seeing that he would not be given a
"You're mutating." Hazel forced her eyes from the tears of joy the pack members were sharing on each other's shoulders. "What does that mean?" "It means that you're going to be a half-wolf soon." Hazel frowned. "What does that mean?" "It means that you will get some of the abilities of wolves. That includes their lifespan, their ability to heal even though it won't be as quick as theirs, and their sex craving. The child in you will make sure of that." "So I will become a wolf?!" "Nah, just their abilities. You won't be able to change into a full wolf. That's why it's called mutating." "Wow. Does that mean that I will live for so long?" "Yes, you will. You will have Dallan's specie's lifespan—which is a wolf. Before that baby in you is delivered, your body would have completely adjusted to a lot of things. Everything will double: your craving for food and sex, your anger and moods, your baby bump, etc. During your fourth month, your baby bump may look like you are ripe for del
Hazel knew exactly what she was doing. Clara was the main reason Hazel brought out all the pack members in the first place. This way, it wouldn't seem like Clara was the main suspect all along. When Hazel touched her, she didn't know what to expect. Whenever she tried getting into someone's mind, it was like being sucked into a hole, going at a speed unfathomable to mortals. Hazel always accessed all the information with such speed. It always came as a surprise—even to her—how she managed to access a person's entire life in seconds.Hazel paused. First, it was darkness, then voice overlapping. She saw Clara's parents carrying her as a baby... The other memories after that were happy ones. Hazel flipped through her entire childhood, accessing all the information as it came. Hazel saw—or watched—how Clara found herself in the pack, the welcome arms Dallan gave her, and the building of their relationship. Hazel was also forced to go through the pictures of Clara's many adventures wit
The men went back to the position they were in.Dallan and his men retreated, while Agra and his men moved back to the gate. In the middle was Reve trying to calm them down. He looked sincerely lost. "Are you on their side now?!" Agra spat at his nephew. "What have they given you?!" "Uncle, no. They didn't give me anything." Reve sighed. "Okay, they did. They treated me." "The hell they should! They inflicted the injury!" "And we shouldn't have given a fuck, but we did!" Dallan countered. The men on his side started murmuring in agreement. Agra's men picked up the argument moments later. "Where is Laura?" Agra yelled above the noise. His question brought back silence. "Where the fuck is my daughter?" "HERE." Kai stepped forward with Laura. Behind him were Hazel, Abe, and Clara who looked scared to her bones. Agra did not move. He eyed Laura for a moment. He did not need any more explanation. The mark on Laura's neck said everything. "You jumped into a mating ceremony without
Dallan had no plan to move until Agra did or said something. So they stood facing each other, each one suppressing the desire to rush forward and wreak havoc.At last, after it seemed Agra had had enough of the silence, the vampire king spoke up, "Where is my daughter? Where is my nephew?" Even in the darkness, Dallan could see as far as the stretch of men behind Agra. "It was nice of you to visit," Dallan said, keeping a straight face. "I sincerely hope your injuries are completely healed. My apologies for the last time." "Give me my daughter and nephew." Dallan understood that Agra was on the verge of losing it, and he wanted to test the vampire king's patience a bit. "What if I say no?" "Dallan, I did not come here to drag words with you. Bring them out... or..." "Or what, Agra?" "Or you won't like the state of your pack." Agra narrowed his eyes to slits. Distaste was clearly written in the way his brows were knitted. Dallan wasn't done. "Your nephew, Reve, is resting at t
Something was going to happen. Hazel felt it as she sat at the front of the mansion, her eyes scanning the gate. Beside her sat Dallan, his hand holding a shawl around her shoulders. "You should get some rest." "I don't feel sleepy." Hazel shrugged. "I rested enough in the afternoon.""I need you in a perfect state of health. I don't want anything happening to you or our baby." He leaned closer to caress her stomach. Hazel smiled. Dallan was already obsessed with the child in her. She wondered how it was going to be after she gave birth. "I'm fine, Dal. By the way, it would be impossible to sleep with all that's on the ground.""Everything will be fine." "I know. I just want everything to be alright without too many sacrifices. I am scared of losing to win." Dallan took a moment to digest her words. Their concern was almost mutual. He was also scared of losing, scared of seeing people die to achieve victory. "Everything will be fine. Hazel, go to bed. I will take over from here
"Who are the spies?" Drab asked in a rush to prevent Reve from falling asleep before divulging the information. "Reve, keep your eyes open! Who are the spies? Please, tell me." The vampire's sight blurred. "I don't know her name... I've collected some paperwork from her in the past. I also know that she has an accomplice—I think a female accomplice; I'm not too sure. And I know that she holds a high position in the pack, a position of honour." Drab digested the information as fast as he could. "Can you give facial descriptions? Reve, talk to me!" "I... my brain feels mushy now... I need to sleep." Reve's voice sounded weak. He was almost slurring now. Slowly, as his eyelids shit close, he let out another sentence, "Be safe, my uncle might be here tomorrow." Drab did the next thing that came into his mind. "Abe!! Abe!!" He ran into the sitting room to see the warlock crouched beside Jake, checking the boy's vitals. "What is happening?" "Reve... Can we wake him up?" Drab demande
Drab rested on the windowsill with his arms crossed over his chest and his eyes resting on the vampire who was sleeping soundly.Something was soothing in the way the vampire slept, his chest heaving rhythmically. Carefully monitoring his features, Drab realized that he looked a lot like Laura. With finely shaped brows and long lashes, the vamp could contest for one of the most beautiful men Drab had ever seen. Drab chuckled softly. He was calling a man beautiful. Well, most of the vampire's features were feminine save for the neatly-trimmed beards on his face and chin. The unconscious man stirred. Drab tensed. "Argh..." The grunt pushed Drab closer. The vampire's face was contoured in pain, his breath coming out in gasps. He seemed weak. Whatever Abe gave him really accomplished the desired result. "Water..." Drab was already at the door when he heard the request. He looked around. Yes, there was a bottle of water on the center table—it seemed to have been intentionally put
Hazel stood at the window, overlooking the gate. Yes, the men were ready. They had mounted men with weapons at the gate, and around the fence—every ten feet—was one warrior, fully armed to the teeth. "They will come," she said quietly, her eyes following the tension around the pack. "They will come for their people. I don't know when, but they will." She knew Dallan was right behind her. "And if they do, we will be ready. Right?" "Exactly," Hazel smirked. "We will be here waiting for them." She turned to him. "We need to start working on other things." Dallan frowned as she shrugged off her robe and started putting on a white gown. "Other things like what, baby?" "Mating ceremony.""Huh? Do you want us to do our mating ceremony amid this crisis?" "Nah, not us." Hazel's smile sent a wave of thrill into him. "I was talking about the new lovers." "Kai and Laura?" "Exactly." "Wow." Dallan did not expect that. "Is that the plan?" "Yes, that is the plan. Getting Kai's mate is no
Hazel quietly let herself in. Dallan was still in the shower. She could hear the rush of water and feel the steam emanating from the bathroom. Silently, she took off her clothes, slipped them off her ankles, and walked in. Dallan's back was turned to her but she knew he was aware of her presence.Softly, with a smile, she hugged him from behind. An audible exhale escaped Dallan. His muscled back turned to her, and he spoke softly, "Baby..." Hazel allowed the warmth of the water to massage her scalp, wet her hair, and run in drops from her hair to her back and ass. "Hmm? You okay?" "I'm okay now." Dallan exhaled again before turning to her and hugging her tightly. Out of habit, his nose nuzzled her hair, breathing in her scent. "You feel so warm," he murmured. Hazel's arms around his neck became tighter. "I do feel warm nowadays." "You should. It's the baby." He went on his knees before her and kissed her stomach. With the shower dropping hot on them, he looked up, his hair sli