I wake up Tuesday morning in the warm embrace of my mate, and the first thing I notice is the restless feeling in my limbs. I sit up, shaking out my arms and stretching my body, but it doesn’t go away.“My love, how are you feeling?” Samael’s voice is soft, and I feel his lips trail along my shoulder blades, giving me goosebumps.“Weird.” I face him with a frown, “It feels like pins and needles all over my body.”“That’s normal for the day of a werewolf’s first shift.”“So you’re saying I’m going to feel like this all day?” I exclaim dramatically, throwing myself back onto the bed with a huff.“Your body is going to go through a lot of changes tonight, it has to prepare itself,” he says calmly, running his fingers through my hair.There’s a knock at the door, and I start getting up to answer it, knowing it’s probably Heidi and Harlow here to help me get ready for the day, but Samael stops me.“Stay here, love, I’ll get it.” I sit back down and watch him open the door. My hearing is be
We land in a small clearing between snow covered trees behind the mountains that surround the city.“Wow this place is beautiful,” I say, as Samael sets me down, and I notice I’m standing on green grass. I look up, realizing the clearing is completely sheltered by branches extending from the enormous trees surrounding us.“This way you won’t have to shift in the snow,” he says brightly, rummaging through his bag and taking out a blanket I didn’t know he had packed.After he spreads it out onto the grass, I lay down, stretching out my body. It no longer feels like pins and needles are attacking my skin, but rather arrows and daggers. My bones feel like they are being squeezed to the point of combustion, and my muscles spasm when I stretch too deeply. My heart, however, remains beating calmly, and my breathing stays slow and controlled.“This tranquil tonic is pretty great,” I say lazily.“It is, but its effects can be very addicting. It is only used for medical purposes,” he informs me
The pain just stops. The fire goes out, and I feel strong and powerful. My eyes open and I see everything; the world around me is so much more vibrant and detailed. I look at Samael and my heart stops. Fucking goddess he is beautiful.I try to reach out for him but… I can’t.He takes a step toward me, “Danika, it is nice to finally meet you.” My head nuzzles into his outstretched hand, causing me to look down and finally notice I have paws. I try lifting one up so I can check out my claws but once again, I can’t.What the fuck?“*Now who’s the one without form?*” Danika chuckles. She lifts up a paw and extends her claws; I can feel it happening, but I’m not actually making it happen.This is the weirdest fucking thing I’ve ever experienced.“*How do you feel Danika?*” I ask her eagerly.“*Amazing,*” she replies, “*I’ve been waiting eighteen years for this moment. Thank you, Aurora, I know shifting was very painful for you, but I’m so grateful you went through it for me.*”“*I’d do an
Aurora is different, I don’t think she even realizes just how different. She has been a bundle of energy since she woke up late this morning, her skin is glowing with radiance, her muscles are toned, though still weak for a werewolf, and her smile is brighter than I’ve yet to see it. She even carries herself differently; before last night, she had a permanent slouch in her shoulders, always curving in on herself, trying to be as small and unnoticeable as possible… probably not even consciously aware of it. But as soon as she jumped out of bed earlier today, I noticed the change instantly; she stood straight with her head held high, making me realize just how tall she actually is, probably taller than a lot of vampires. Her new confidence radiated off her, and Danika’s presence is now impossible to miss. Aurora has the aura of an alpha. I’ve been away from her for barely half an hour and already I feel empty inside. She is with Adelaide right now, learning how to change her hair and
I don’t know how long I sit here for, lost in the dark depths of my mind, but soon a black portal opens in front of me, and Adelaide steps out followed by Aurora, who looks very different.“I did it!” she exclaims with a huge smile across her face. Her hair is no longer curly and is the same soft chocolate brown colour as her eyes.I force a smile on my face, not wanting her to sense my sadness, “It looks good, my love, but I prefer the real you.”She closes her eyes, concentrating on something and I watch as her hair changes back to the mess of curls I’ve come to love so much. When she opens her eyes, I’m greeted with stormy grey and crimson red irises.I’m proud of her progress, but I don’t miss her wince of pain as she changes herself back. “Does it hurt?”“A little,” she shrugs, “but it’s not like last time at all.”Adelaide clicks her tongue, “Remember what I said Aurora, this was simple magic for you, so the pain was minimum. The more power you use, the more it will hurt.”“I kn
The woman at the desk does a double take as we step out of Adelaide’s portal. Her jaw drops and she pushes her fiery red hair out of her face, “Holy shit, a void portal” she mutters, before rising from her chair and rushing over to greet us.Samael reaches out his hand for her to shake, and clears his throat, “Solana said you would be expecting us.”The woman freezes with her hand outstretched; her eyes roam up Samael’s body, which towers over her short frame. I watch her gulp nervously as she looks up at his face, “Y-yes, of course,” she chuckles awkwardly, “don’t usually see void portals here is all.” She blushes deeply as she shakes his hand, her eyes glued to his muscular body.Danika rears her head in jealousy, and I have to work to contain her growl; since shifting last night, she feels less like a voice in my head and more like a second presence that can easily take control of my body.“*She’s allowed to look at him,*” I mutter to her.“*Look at the heat in her face!*” she hiss
I avert my eyes again as they all leave, only looking up once I’m sure Samael is the only one sitting with me. He stands up, holding out his hand, which I take, and leads me over to the edge of the balcony. I rest my arms on the railing and look down at the sprawling city below, while Samael stands behind me, wrapping his arms around my body and holding me close to him.We stay like this for a while, and I think about Kieran’s words; it’s not Eli I feel sorry for, but rather, his wife, who will either be left to raise a baby on her own or mourn a baby on her own.I feel frustration creeping into my bones; I had the perfect plan, I was sure of all my victims, I was sure they deserved what I planned to do to them. But now, knowing the reason guards like Eli did what they did was because they were ordered to; ordered to by their Emperor… so he could find me. In a fucked-up way, I’m the reason Atwood died so brutally, I’m the reason all those girls were arrested and sent to be abused. It
I wake up before dawn, wrapped in Samael’s embrace, his fingers trailing up and down my arm in a soothing rhythm. My heart thuds rapidly in my chest, the nightmare I had still fresh and vivid in my mind. Samael holds me tightly, as if he knows I’m not ok, and I nuzzle into his body, inhaling his scent and taking deep breaths to calm down. It’s been a week since I’ve had a nightmare, and I can’t say I’ve missed them. “Did you sleep at all?” I croak, my voice heavy with tiredness.“An hour or two maybe,” he hums out.“I wish I could survive with only an hour of sleep every night,” I laugh. “It must get boring with me just snoring away beside you.”He leans down to kiss me, claiming my lips with his tenderly. “Nothing with you is boring, my love. Even holding you while you sleep fills me with so much happiness.”I feel heat rush to my cheeks at his words, I’m still in utter disbelief that this man loves me, that the Dema king of all people is my destined mate, the second half of my sou
“Eli?” I look down at his bruised, tear-streaked face, and my heart sinks into the pit of my stomach. “What happened to you?”The man in the fancy clothes laughs loudly, “I did. Well, actually, my men did.” He takes a step closer, and Samael’s hand tightens around mine, “Eli here seems to have broken one of our most serious laws; not only did he interact with a witch, but he went as far as accepting help from one.”I glare at him, “How can you even know that?” Looking down at Eli, I hiss, “You promised you wouldn’t tell anyone!” He just cries, his eyes faraway, like he’s not really paying attention to his surroundings.“Cassian, what the fuck is the meaning of this?” Samael growls dangerously, and I notice some of the men shifting uncomfortably, their eyes darting to Samael, then away quickly as if they are afraid to even look at him. Wait, he called that man Cassian… this is the fucking emperor.I grow a bit weary of the situation, and Danika’s senses go on high alert, as I take in a
“Baby, would you come here please?”Samael joins my side, immediately snaking his arm around my waist as if he has been dying to touch me this whole time. I look up at him with a warm smile, “I think you deserve a moment with the man who enjoyed what was rightfully yours.” I turn back to Gregory, who stares at me pleadingly, and smirk at him.“As you know, this is Samael Dema, the vampire king. He’s my mate, the person created just for me by the Moon Goddess, Selene. Can you believe that daddy? A king, who worships the ground I walk on.”I trail my fingers along my mark on Samael’s neck, “See this, it’s a werewolf’s mark, this let’s Samael feel everything I feel, which can be both a blessing and a burden, because he feels my rage and my pain from the things I went through here, the things you put me through.”“My king,” I place a kiss on Samael’s cheek, “take what you want from him, just keep him alive for me.”“I thought you wanted me to only drink from you?” He asks in surprise. “O
I look up at the low ceiling, relieved to see the hooks still embedded into it, they will make this much easier. While Petra is holding her bleeding leg and whimpering like a wounded animal, I walk to the shelves against the wall, and open the delicate looking box that holds their leather straps.Standing over her, I hold out my hand. “Get up,” I order, tapping my foot impatiently.Her tear-streaked face looks up at me sadly, “what happened to you Aurora? Where did my sensitive girl go?”“You destroyed her. Now get the fuck up.” I aim a kick at her leg, then drag her from the sofa, and pull her as she screams for mercy to the middle of the room, directly under the same hook I had been left dangling from many times.“You know I drill,” I say, remembering all the times I was in her position, “arms up, Petra darling.”She cries uncontrollably, lifting her shaky arms into the air, “Good girl,” I say, praising her like a child.“W-what are you going to do to me?” she whimpers, as I fasten
A girl runs around the corner from the kitchen, her blonde hair askew. When she spots us, she opens her mouth preparing to scream. I use my speed to run to her, clamping a hand over her mouth, and stopping her from making a sound.She looks up at me with wide fearful eyes, and I realize she looks to be about my age… none of Gregory and Petra’s children are that old yet.“Are you…” I don’t know what her situation is, or why she is here, but I get the feeling it’s not good. “Do you need help?” I ask her, hoping she will trust me even though she has no reason to.My hand is still tight over her mouth, so she nods slowly. I glance back at Samael who just shrugs. Fuck. I wasn’t anticipating this.“I’m going to remove my hand, but if you make a sound, I will make you regret it,” I warn her.“*Goddess, Aurora, threatening her won’t make her trust you any easier,*” Danika scolds me.“*I don’t know who she is, what if I don’t want her to trust me?*” I argue back.Danika sighs, “*she’s just a s
Goddess, it feels like someone is banging on my head with a hammer. I groan as I stretch out my body, refusing to open my eyes. Last night is a blur; after our bath Samael and I stayed up drinking with Adrian, Dimitri, and Kieran. I ended up proving my superior strength to all of them in arm wrestling matches. No one could beat me, even when Adrian and Dimitri teamed up against me; I was still stronger. Which in turn, made me pretty damn cocky and I ended up chugging the last bottle of vodka to prove how tough I was, only to end up puking all over the kitchen floor. I think Samael cut me off after that. “I’ve let you sleep as long as I could, but it’s time to get up, my love,” Samael’s smooth voice whispers quietly in my ear.“What time is it?” I mumble, curling myself up under the soft blankets.“Mid-morning,” he replies, and my eyes fly open.“Oh shit.” I jump out of bed, and run across the room to gather my clothes, feeling Samael’s gaze linger on my naked body. Once I’m dressed,
The room goes quiet, the only sound is his blood dripping onto the floor. I stand up, looking down at the two dead bodies slumped over in their chairs, and a smile forms on my face. That was a lot more emotional than I expected it to be but also quite enjoyable. Holding their lives in my hands made me feel invincible, and I know that is wrong, but I’m excited to do it again tomorrow.I notice my shirt is covered in blood, so I remove it, turning to face Samael, who’s dark eyes are filled with a burning desire for me. It seems he found it enjoyable as well, judging by the bulge in his pants.“Take your clothes off,” I order him, and he obeys so quickly he’s a blur. I lick my lips as he leans his naked body back into the cushions, one arm stretched across the back of the sofa, the other gripping his enormous cock, sliding it up and down his length like he’s getting it ready for me.I remove the rest of my clothes, loving the way his eyes follow every move I make, roaming over my naked b
I slip my elemental dagger out from its holster around my upper thigh and its sleek blade glints ominously in the dim light. When Dr. Maddox sees the weapon in my hand, his struggle against the ropes becomes desperate; he throws his weight against them with all his strength as if he thinks he has a chance of escaping. Well… who am I to say he can’t at least try?Without warning, I raise my fist, and bring it down on his right kneecap with enough strength to shatter the bone. The doctors piercing screams echo throughout the room, high-pitched and ending in a long, drawn-out wail.I walk behind his chair, and untie his ropes, he doesn’t even realize what I am doing until they fall to the floor. He looks up at me with teary and bloody eyes as I circle back around to face him.“I think that’s enough. Don’t you think you’ve had enough?” I say in a gentle tone.He sniffles, nodding hopefully. I smile at him, “Ok, go on.” Taking a step back, I motion for him to get up. “The stairs are just
I stare down at the now lifeless body I’m straddling, a slight sense of satisfaction filling me. I let out a long sigh, “that’s better.” I barely pay attention to Dr. Maddox’s wailing cries as I soak in the feeling of taking the life of one of the men who took mine. Memories of long, dark nights in the freezing dungeon come back to me, maybe I can finally move forward from the horrors of my time there. Though I guess only time will tell; my nightmares may have lessened since finding Samael, but what if getting revenge and having my mate is not enough to bury the years of built up trauma? What if I never truly get the pieces of myself back… back from the Stallards, back from that dungeon, back from the inn where I was defiled for the first time. What if I stay trapped in all those places, never able to move away from it all, never able to let go… My breathing hitches as memories flood my mind, destroying the cage I built for them while I was rotting in the dungeon, and leaving me gas
Theodoric finally notices he’s not our only prisoner and stares in confusion to his right, “D-dr. Maddox?” he stutters out. Aurora changes her position, so she is still sitting on me, but facing her helpless prey, her back resting against my chest, and we watch as Dr. Maddox begins to regain consciousness. Theodoric’s eyes roam from the doctor to Aurora and I, confusion written all over his face. “What is this about? Why have you taken us here!” he screams, his face turning white and his body shaking with fear. Aurora ignores him, still watching Dr. Maddox, whose eyes are slowly opening, “Wha- where am I?” he mutters to himself. Then his eyes snap open and he takes in his situation, looking down at the ropes binding him to the chair, glancing at Theodoric, then setting his eyes on me. “You!” he exclaims, staring at me with a mixture of anger and distress. I just give him a smile, and he finally looks at Aurora. “Is this the so-called friend you said wanted to see me?” He struggles