They hop cautiously through the thick forest, eyes darting to scan every shadow and movement. It felt as though they were in motion for hours, and the evasive lock was still hidden from view."Where is it? It's supposed to be here," Maxine grumbled grudgingly, so annoyed as her eyes turned round.Alph's senses, sharp and alert, suddenly picked up something: a subtle shift in the air, a presence behind them that made his instincts bristle."Stop. Don't move." Alph's voice cut through the tension, low and commanding.Maxine froze in place, her eyes darting to him. "Why? What's wrong?”"There's something wrong with this place," Alph replied as he surveyed the ground with a suspicious eye. Before he could trace what it was, he felt something move under his feet. The earth beneath Maxine started to crack."Trap! Move!" Alph shouted. Just as the earth gave way beneath her, he plunged forward, pushing Maxine out of harm's way, only to fall into the crevice himself."Alph!" Maxine exclaimed,
"I didn't know we would get it earlier than I expected," Alph's voice suddenly pierced through her thoughts, snapping her back to the present.Maxine looked in surprise at his remark, but a small smile crept onto her face. "Yeah, we were lucky," she said, trying to shake off a little unease that had grown inside them since their tumble.Alph's eyes flickered to her, and for a second longer than necessary, she felt his gaze linger. "I have never seen you smile like that since you came back," he said seriously. "But yeah, it suits you better.”His praise caught her off guard, and the smile that came so readily now quickly fled her face. **Why should she feel embarrassed whenever Alph complimented her?** Maxine felt her cheeks grow warm again, and she quickly looked away, feigning interest in their surroundings. **He always managed to make things complicated somehow, didn't he?**She cleared her throat in a bid to rid herself of the strange, eerie sensation his words had left her with. B
She stumbled through thick undergrowth, the snapping of branches beneath her feet. Her heart raced against her chest; every beat was a reminder of a mission Leo had forced her into. The damp smell of earth filled her nostrils as she struggled to breathe, her mind clouded in fear."Brother, please, I can't do this!”She repeated the words in her head over and over, but they lost their power. She said them loud enough and begged for mercy, but Leo just wouldn't listen. He never listened.Leo was right behind her, his heavy footfalls mirroring hers, while his breaths came in short quips. He was furious, and when Leo got that angry, there was just no reason with him. "Fuck, why do I have a weak sister like you?" His voice was sharp, cutting contemptuously. "I'm giving you a chance to prove yourself to Dad, but you keep screwing it up. Are you that into Maxine, huh?"“N-no." Sarah stammered, choked by her fear. "I just don't want to do it.""Enough of your acting skills!" Leo shouted, grab
Maxine P.O.VThe ringing of the phone cut through the silent room and pulled me out of my thoughts. I reached for the screen, seeing my mother's name glowing on the display. A part of me wanted to avoid it, not to be put back into the tension in my life right now, but I could not do that to her. Swiping to answer, I listened as my mom's all-too-familiar voice greeted me so warmly, "Hello, Maxine,”A small smile tugged my lips despite the storm in my chest. "Mom, how are you?" I replied softly."I'm fine, hon. How does it go there?”I turned to Alph, who lay still sleeping. The gentle rise and fall of his chest were the only movements in the room. His back was to me; it usually was. The sight of him always stirred something in me, something stirring I could not name exactly. Complicated now, after everything that happened."Things are good, Mom. Nothing to be concerned about."Good, good," she said, her voice full of relief. "How's your brother? Alph?"I hesitated, looking at him again
Ador P.O.VThe screen flickered, casting the nearly darkened room in a dim light. My eyes were glued to the news report unfolding before me. A reporter who was still visibly in shock retold the horror events of the night: three college students were found in the woods, bloodied and delirious, with each bearing a jagged bite mark."Three students have been admitted to the hospital in a vicious attack, with suspicion that it could be a wild animal. The authorities are still in search of the creature responsible; however, the students remain in a critical condition. Strange patterns of bites have baffled experts-”I hit pause on the video, leaning closer to the footage of the bite marks. My gut coiled as I realized the distinctive punctures. These weren't random. They were calculated. Deliberate. There was only one kind of being that could make a mark like this.“This isn't right," I growled as my jaw tightened with growing anger. A year of uneasy silence shattered in one moment. I balle
Maxine P.O.V"I told you not to help me earlier." My voice was sharp as I opened the door to our room, stepping inside without waiting for him to respond. The adrenaline from the Annual Hunt was still coursing through my veins, but it wasn't just the hunt that had me on edge-it was *him*. Again."You behave like a child, Maxine. Are we not a team?" Alph followed close on his heels, his tone soft yet firm.I spun around to him, anger busting inside me. "No, we are not a team if you keep babying me. You keep rescuing me, and that is just not right. I did not come here to be rescued every five minutes by you. I came here to learn. To grow.”His brows furrowed, the confident air around him tightening. "I know you're strong, but it was just a little help. Don't make a big deal out of it."I slapped my forehead in disbelief. "*A little help?* You stepped in again when I didn't ask you to. It's like you don't trust me to handle things on my own.He stared at me, his silence slicing through t
"Why are we leaving?" Maxine whispered, her voice heavy with confusion, silent and still in the shadows as they crept towards the back gate. It was 3 a.m., and the night lay still. The guards weren't patrolling the estate this time of night, and the silence around them only seemed to include the weight that hung above.“Shh! We have to be silent," Trevor said, his head flicking round over one shoulder. His usual lightness and vivacity gave way to a weightiness, an importance which unnerved Maxine. Urgency streamed through his very movement, every tensing step of his body.“But tell me why first," Maxine insisted, her frustration evident. She wasn't one to blindly follow without understanding what was happening, especially in the dead of night with no explanation.Alph walked ahead and half-turned, his gaze catching hers in the dim light of the moon. "Just follow me, Maxine," he said, his voice steady but carrying an edge that told Maxine there was no room for argument.Maxine puckered
Alpha Ador P.O.VTension was palpable, as Relon walked confidently towards us, all his features unreadable yet serious. Time seemed to slow in the flash of an instant, and visions danced inside my head-the day he left without a word-the day he saw me talking to Miranda at that coffee shop. I have never seen him that way before. The coldness he put into his silence and Miranda's fury said it all.I would never have pegged him to return.Relon was my beta for some years. The guy made a great friend and confidant, always standing on my side whenever I needed him. He was loyal, dependable, and sharp-- a true leader in my absence. But on the day he left, I came to realize that there was more to him that I didn't know, or at least, the extent of his connection with Miranda. She and I had quite the complicated history, and in many ways, Relon was caught right in the middle of it all without my even realizing it. Now, here he stood before me, as if burdened with the weight of the world upon h