[Rosalie’s POV]“Now.”Diego’s father’s voice rings out around us along with his aura, which presses against my skin. It was clear that he was pissed over this revelation that involved his wife and his kids.“Honey,” Diego’s mother says slowly, trying her best to calm him. “Listen to me; they don’t…”“Explain!” He roars, sending waves of powerful energy crashing into us. “Right this fucking moment!”At his words, Diego’s mother cowers while Chanel tightens her hold on me, keeping me in place as his command threatens to make me kneel. Fuck, this man was strong, but his power was nothing compared to Diego’s.“Angela,” Diego’s father says slowly. “You better tell me what they’re talking about. What is this about a curse on your family?”Here it comes. I whisper inwardly, my hope rising. Once we knew exactly what it was that Diego was suffering from, we could try to do something about it.“I don’t,” Diego’s mother stammers, her eyes darting around the room. “I don’t…”“STOP LYING!” Diego’
[Rosalie’s POV]I watch in horror as Diego’s father becomes still, his blood slowly pooling around him. And what’s worse than the man just dying there, alone and cold on the ground, is the fact his own son doesn’t turn once to give him a last glance.“Diego,” I whisper, unable to believe that this creature holding me is him. “Where are you?”Reaching out, I begin to try to find Diego in the darkness, but just like the other times I tried, I can’t find him, and I can’t feel him anywhere around me.‘He’s gone.’ A deep voice rumbles in my head. ‘He was too weak.’‘No!’ I hiss, beginning to fight again despite knowing that it was futile. ‘He isn’t!’Letting out a snarl of outrage, I begin to thrash and claw, doing everything I can to break free of the one holding me.“Do something to keep your bitch in check.” Bernard snaps. “Otherwise, I will.”Grunting, what I now know is Diego’s lycan reaches up, slamming a hand into my neck, causing spots to dance in front of my eyes and my ears to st
Two souls come together, combining as one. Bringing forth a prophecy that can’t be undone. They move together with forceful thrusts, brimming with hate and lust. As their bodies begin to slowly entwine, their darkness comes forth just in time.To encase the world in darkness, to bring about the end of times.And when it is finished, there will be hell to pay.[Chanel’s POV]I stare in disbelief at the unmoving man on the ground in front of me.“Devin!” Angela wails, kneeling beside her husband and shaking him. “Devin! This isn’t funny! Stop it!”My heart breaks as I watch the scene, but I can’t quite fully find it in me to consider this reality. How was it possible that things took such a drastic turn in such a short amount of time?“Chanel!”Tearing my gaze from the scene, I watch as Giddeon rushes toward me with a look of horror on his features.“Did you find them?” I ask, though I already know the answer.If he was alone, it meant that Diego and that bastard Bernard got away, an
[Chanel’s POV]I stand on the balcony of the tallest building in the city, the place that my friends should be but aren’t, staring at the dark sky above. Lightning flashes, travelling across it while thunder rumbles, shaking the ground beneath my feet, adding to the ominous feeling that is slowly growing in my heart.“Fuck,” I sigh, wrapping my arms around me as the worry that I’ve been trying so damn hard to keep at bay threatens to come forward. “I’m sorry.”Turning, I head back inside where Anthrose and Giddeon sit with Landon and Geo. Both boys wear the same looks of forced strength that someone their age shouldn’t even be learning.“Did you get in touch?” Gideon asks me.“No,” I respond, plopping down on the couch and pinching the bridge of my nose. “No luck.”Since Rosalie’s disappearance, I was trying my damnest to get ahold of Gil, but no amount of reaching out seemed to help. Even going up to his company failed, as I was simply told that he was away on a business meeting.It
[Chanel’s POV]The next morning, I sit in the driver’s seat of my beloved truck, while Anthrose sits in the passenger seat. It is clear from his tense body and the way his hand claws at the oh shitbar that he doesn’t quite trust my driving. It is both amusing and annoying to see such a man like that, and part of me wants to drive like a bat out of hell just to tease him even more. However, I decided to be good since I didn’t want to hear his nagging the entire time we were stuck in this vehicle together.Raven Wood was a good way away from where we were staying and would take half the day to drive. Since there was no chance that we would be able to make it home after we finished speaking with Rosalie’s grandfather, we rented a hotel room, and just the thought of being alone with Anthrose in such a small place was doing all sorts of things to me.Hell, even now his warmth and his aura were invading my senses, making my heart do crazy things and my body thrum with excitement.Shit. When
[Anthrose’s POV]I reach out in an attempt to grab Chanel, but miss as she agilely leaps out of the vehicle and rushes head first into danger. Goddess, this woman truly did have a death wish since she was little, as this was how she always acted.Cursing, I pull my seatbelt off of me and climb out of the truck and extend my senses, letting the energy of the world around me take shape so that I can actually see what is happening. And as I do, I find Chanel leaping at the creature that attacked us, but she’s too slow, and the thing is easily dodging.‘Chanel!’ I roar through mindlink, watching the thing prepare to attack her as she straightens. ‘Get down!’As I speak, I move, grabbing her and pulling just as the beast tries to wrap its beak around her neck. When we hit the ground, I hold her tightly against me, well, as tightly as I can when she is in her wolf form since it just makes her that much bigger than me.‘Anthrose,’ she snaps through mindlink, her anger trickling into me. ‘Wha
[Chanel’s POV]Anthrose and I are led into the large castle that is Raven Woods Packhouse, and when we enter, all eyes come to rest on us. Each gaze holds distrust and panic, and if I had to wager, I would say that all members of this pack were already well aware of what was happening. That realization alone pisses me off because they weren’t making the rest of the area aware.“Bastard,” I grumble, my anger spiking. “Keeping secrets.”“Chanel,” Anthrose warns, his tone stern. “Mind your words while we are in another’s territory.”“Got it, old man.” I huff, rolling my eyes. “But he is.”As I speak, a laugh escapes Ulrick, but he doesn’t bother saying anything. Instead, he leads us straight to his office, and once he is seated, he motions for us to do the same.Plopping down, I throw one leg over the other and then wait for Anthrose to take his place beside me. Only once he is seated do I lean forward, placing my hands on the desk that separates me from the asshole who has kept secrets.
[Gil’s POV]A groan escapes my lips as the world fades in and out. Everything hurts, from the tips of my hair to my toes. I feel like I’ve been hit by a bus, but that certainly wasn’t what actually happened, right? Blinking a few times, I try to clear my vision in hopes of getting a look at where I am. I know that I can’t move; it feels like straps are laying across my body, holding me in place.“Awake?”The voice drifts toward me, mixing in with the ringing in my ears, but I’m certain that I recognize the one who is speaking's voice.“I guess the drug you were given was much stronger than expected.”“What the hell?” I growl, turning my bleary gaze in the direction the voice is coming from so that I can see the hazy outline of a person. “What is this?”“Isn’t it obvious?” The one speaking asks. “This is a kidnapping.”Kidnapping. A fucking kidnapping. Did I look like some damn kid that could be captured and held? Once whatever drug they gave me wore off, there would be hell to pay.“
[Chanel’s POV]I stare on, watching as Anthrose and the rest of his group surge forward, attacking the guards who were just sneering at me, and I can’t help but laugh at the difference in their demeanors.“Cowards,” I spit, sitting up and snapping my thumbs back into place. “Acting all high and mighty until actual danger appears.”As I speak, I grab the chains that are holding my ankles and begin to pull while ignoring the pain that shoots through me. Fuck, they were strong, but I was stronger. Soon enough, they begin to crack and then break apart, allowing me to finally get up and move to Gil’s side.“Just hang in there a bit longer, alright?” I tell him, clutching his cuff and starting to fight with it. “Then we will get you out of here and…”“No!” Gil gasps before breaking into a coughing fit. “We can’t just leave!”Frowning, I take in his words, trying to make sense of what it is that he is saying, but I don’t get to question him further before pain shoots through me and my body a
[Anthrose’s POV]The next morning we move out the minute the warm sun begins to paint the ground that we sleep on. After a quick breakfast, we head out with me leading the way since I’m the only one who can get a feel for the location that we are searching for.Together, we silently move across the island while keeping our senses alert in case of a surprise attack. However, the expected never happens, and by the time we are close to our destination, I can’t help but feel like all of this is too easy, and by the tension I feel from my companions, I know that they’re feeling the same.“Up ahead,” Sam murmurs, coming to my side. “I can see it.”Nodding, I take in the shining figure that I’m certain is the temple, noting the dark aura that radiates around it. Even from here I could tell that the things residing within were something the normal wolf wouldn’t want to approach, but given what we were fighting for, I wasn’t going to let it stop me.“Prepare yourselves.” I announce, letting my
[Anthrose’s POV]For the rest of the day, I search the island for a sign of where Chanel and Gil may be, but come up empty. And when my group can’t seem to move anymore, I have to call the search to a halt. However, that doesn’t mean that I don’t continue to keep my connection with the earth, searching while dinner is made.It’s a silent ordeal, as I’m certain that the entire group is feeling the weight of what is at hand and what we may encounter when we find the ones we are searching for. I could only assume that a fight was waiting for us, and it was because of that that I even agreed to res.Sighing, I close my eyes and let myself slip deeper into a trance, searching until I feel something press against my consciousness that snaps me to alertness as hope flares through me along with a longing that I’ve never felt before.‘Chanel,’ I whisper, not daring to truly believe that I’m feeling what I am. ‘Is that you?’For a moment, all I’m met with is silence, causing me to believe that
[Anthrose’s POV]My body screams at me, begging me to stop, to take a break, but I can’t stop moving. Behind me, I can hear noises of complaint and exhaustion escaping my companions, making it clear that they’re feeling the same thing as me. However, I can’t stop moving; I won’t stop moving; just the thought of stopping makes me so damn anxious I want to fucking destroy something. I can’t stop the feeling that if I stop looking even for a second, Chanel will vanish completely.Shivering, I try not to think of a world where she doesn’t exist somewhere. Sure, it was one thing to keep my distance and allow her to live the life that she deserves, but to even think of her not being somewhere alive and happy damn near kills me.‘Chanel.’ I call to the darkness, hoping and praying that by some miracle she will respond to me. ‘Where are you? Why aren’t you answering me?’“Anthrose.”I immediately freeze as the voice reaches me, but I realize a moment too late that it wasn’t Chanel’s voice, it
[Chanel’s POV]I look around me, taking in the stone walls around me, noting how they’re cracking, allowing vines to grow through them while my intrusive thoughts try to get the better of me. They’re screaming things like what if this place were to collapse. What if you find yourself at a dead end? What if you run out of air? It’s irritating as fuck, and even though I keep telling them to shut up, they just won’t.“Hey,” I call to Tyson, who leads the way in hopes of distracting myself. “Are you certain that we are going in the right direction?”Since he was the one to choose our path and take the lead, I could only hope that he somehow could track the way out of this place, but what if he was just leading us deeper into this underground labyrinth?“Hey,” I repeat when he doesn’t respond to me. “I’m talking to you.”Frustration growing, I move forward and grab his shoulder, forcing him to turn and look at me, but I’m not met with the same gaze that I was used to. Instead, I’m met with
[Anthrose’s POV]We spend the rest of the day searching for any sign of Chanel or Tyson, but all we come up with is nothing. It’s almost like neither of them existed or were somehow spirited away from earth.“We should rest.” Henry, one of Ulrick’s warriors, suggests later that evening. “We will be useless in helping them if we are exhausted.”“Are you saying that this little bit of action exhausts you?” I demand. “If that's the case, you are more than welcome to rest, but I’m going to keep searching.”“But, sir…”“I said I was going to keep searching!” I growl, not giving two fucks if I came across as argumentative or defiant. “There’s no fucking way that I’m going to stop until I find her.”Even though only a couple of hours had passed, I couldn’t help but feel like days, even weeks, had already gone by without Chanel’s presence. It was fucking maddening, and I was beginning to feel like a crazy man. How the hell did I manage to stay away from her for so many years in the past?No.
[Chanel’s POV]I watch as the crevice above me grows farther and farther away until my body is hitting the wolf beneath me, who takes most of the impact. Together, we lay there, watching as the ground slowly begins to close once more, eliminating the little bit of light around us until we are plunged into darkness.Snapping out of it, I jump up and then look to the wolf beside me, taking him in while wondering what exactly he was thinking. And once I shift back into my human form, I wait as he stares at me.“What?” I demand, my annoyance flaring. “Don’t look at me like that.”Letting out what sounds almost like a huff of annoyance, he begins to shift until Tyson is lying on the ground in the wolf’s place.“What?” He asks as I narrow my gaze. “Why are you looking at me like that?”Why? Because he was the reason we were here right now. He wasn’t paying attention to where he was going when he saved me.“Do I really need to answer that?” I sigh, beginning to look around, taking in the tun
[Chanel’s POV]“Right.”I give Anthrose one last look before turning my gaze toward the creatures that are slowly making their way toward us. They’re different from the beasts that we’ve encountered until this point, but they’re also the same.These look almost like worms, but they have legs and buglike faces. I guess if I had to compare them to anything, it would be centipedes. Just watching them move gave me the heebie jeebies, but I wasn’t about to let them stop me from getting to what I wanted.Giving Anthrose one last look, I begin to shift, and once I’m in my wolf form, I move, surging forward and attacking the creepy crawly closest to me. When we clash, it immediately attempts to roll its body around me, but I leap out of the way.Landing on top of it, I watch as the rest of our group joins in the fray, beginning our first official battle since arriving on the island.‘Don’t get yourself killed.’Anthrose's voice reverberates in my mind, causing my heart to race and giving me t
[Anthrose’s POV]I don’t speak as Chanel’s question flows over me, settling into the deepest pits of my soul along with the loathing and disgust that I’ve felt since the day the thing she is asking about happened, and as much as I would like to say, I know that I can’t.“The plague.” I respond instead, deciding that was a good enough explanation. “It affected my eyes.”“You’re lying.”Chanel’s response is firm, and I know that due to our bond, there was just no way that I would be able to get away with lying to her.“How did it really happen?”How? That was an easy fucking response, but again, I knew that if I were to speak it out loud, then there was a good chance it would dig out the skeletons that I was trying so hard to not think about anymore.“Anthrose,” Chanel’s voice drifts through my muddled thoughts. “You can tell me anything. You know that, right?”I did. But this was something that didn’t only involve me. It also involved her, and I knew if I were to open up about it, then