AlmaraThe rising sun painted the sky in fiery hues as I made my way down the familiar path towards Noah's house. The large house on the hill exuded an air of tranquility that always put me at ease. Their daily meetings were a cherished routine, a sanctuary from the whirlwind of everyday life.As I entered Noah's home, a warm embrace of cinnamon and wood greeted my senses. As always, there was also the underlying scent of paint. The cozy living room, with its plush armchairs and shelves lined with well-loved books, felt like a haven from the outside world.Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to enjoy it as much as I usually would. My headaches were becoming more frequent, an unwelcome symptom of being pregnant. Today was no exception; the familiar throb started to pulsate behind my eyes.Noah, sensing my discomfort before I could even say anything as he so often did, moved with a graceful urgency. With a gentle smile, he offered to brew a medicinal tea, an elixir he'd perfected over the year
ArthurAs the sun began its descent on the city, a sense of unease settled upon Arthur's heart. The evening air seemed to grow colder, carrying with it a disquieting hush that echoed through the empty rooms of his home.Almara hadn't returned as she always did. Panic took root, gnawing at his insides, as the minutes stretched into hours, each one etching deeper lines of worry onto his face. He had tried so many times to reach out via the mate bond, but there had been no answer.The only solace he had was that he could feel she was alive. But he should have been able to feel so much
AlmaraI had no idea how long I'd been in this cellar. There were no windows. There were no clocks. It could have only been a day. It could have been multiple days. Noah didn't exactly keep a firm schedule when it came to feeding me.But whatever he was feeding me was keeping Lily quiet. I hadn't heard her voice ever since I'd woken up down here. I wasn't sure how that was even possible. I had tried so hard to shift, but nothing had happened.All I could do was pray to the Moon Goddess that everything would work out. That me and the baby would get saved. That Arthur would somehow fi
My breaths came in shallow, measured waves, my hand resting gently on the mound of my swollen belly. The room was quiet, save for the soft rustling of crisp white sheets.I felt it, a subtle ripple of sensation, the unmistakable sign that the moment I'd been waiting for was drawing near. I couldn't believe it was finally happening and that my dream had turned into a nightmare.I was having contractions. They were still playing a gentle rhythm, a distant promise that soon my world would transform. I'd prepared for this, read all the books, attended the classes, yet no amount of knowledge could completely dispel the mixture of relief and fear that now surged within
ArthurArthur is downright distraught. He hasn’t been able to focus at all. It has been three days since Almara has gone missing and Noah never returned home. He’s completely sure that Noah had something to do with her disappearance, but no one has found anything on where he could have taken her.It’s like they just vanished off the face of the earth. He wasn’t sure what else he could do. He had followed every single lead that his pack had come up with and it had all led to a dead end.
Almara I wasn’t sure how she had done it, but the nurse had been able to mimic the sterile, antiseptic scent of a hospital room. The smell seemed to intensify as my contractions grew closer and closer together. The rhythmic tightening of my abdomen was a relentless reminder of the impending moment when life would irrevocably change.The nurse's calm voice sliced through the tension, her words a mixture of reassurance and warning. Active labor loomed, a thundercloud on the horizon, ready to unleash its storm at any given moment.Noah, his face a whirlwind of emotions, stood vigil by my side. His eyes sparkled with a mixture of joy, trepidation, and something
Noah Noah's mind had become a twisted labyrinth, a maelstrom of obsession and delusion. The light in the cellar flickered, casting eerie shadows on the walls, illuminating Almara's pained expression. He hated seeing her like this. Perhaps he should have just ordered the C-section.Noah had lost track of time, consumed by his manic pursuit of claiming the love of his life. His once well-kempt appearance had given way to wild, unkempt hair and sunken, bloodshot eyes. He had barely eaten or slept, sustained only by the fire of his obsession.He could no longer hear that voice in his head. The one that told him something was wrong. It had been gone for days now. Noah
ArthurArthur slammed the journal down onto Noah’s desk. Despite all the information in there, there hadn’t been mention of where he was keeping Almara. Arthur hadn’t really expected that to be in the journal since he was pretty sure it was a type of torture, but the hope had been there all the same.Perhaps it had been foolish, but Arthur just couldn’t help it. He missed Almara so much and he was desperate to find her. He needed her and the baby home and safe. Foolish hope was all that he had left.A sound by the window had his head snapping toward it. It ha