Amelia's POV"I have known Cassius for over thirty years, Amelia, and he has not changed one bit. Not his physical appearance and certainly not character-wise. He is still the same man who cried as he cut off Sophia's head. He is a monster. And nothing he says can change that. I want you to know and understand that. I regret not trying harder to stop Sophia back then because even though this life is not what I would wish on anyone, she and those girls didn't deserve to die. I would advise you to leave now if you really want to escape because I can see that he has let his guard down now with you. You should run and never look back. You should never turn back because we don't know what he is capable of if he finds you again."Elizabeth was no longer sitting in front of me, saying those words but I could swear that it was the only thing that I could hear when I closed my eyes to sleep last night and it was the first thing that had come to my mind this morning when I opened my eyes. It f
Amelia's POVI didn't think that when Elizabeth told me that story, she was actually expecting me to lose focus of my goal but that was what I had done. I had made a full one-eighty degree and felt like the world's biggest fool. That was exactly what I had done. I had listened to how Cassius had murdered a woman that he had claimed to love and others that he believed might have aided her escape. I knew without a doubt that Sophia and those maids were just a speck in the number of people that he must have murdered over the years. I knew that he was a monster. The kind that had lost all ability to feel remorse for what he had done, the kind that would play along to whatever scenario even though he was nothing but a lying crook and a master pretender. The kind that deluded himself to believe that he was always right, that no one except him was the best, that it was either him or no one else, and instead of buckling up, I had allowed my rage to blind me. I had allowed my thirst for free
Amelia's POVLike clockwork, Dr. Goodman had tried his usual speech of how he was better than my current master and how I would enjoy a better life if I decided to give him a try. It was almost comical to see that he was basically trying to get me to abandon his best customer for nothing but equal or more suffering when the reality was that I would rather die than stay with either of them. As usual, I had ignored the nonsense that he had to say, making sure to keep him at arm's length, especially with Elena standing one step in front of me, as if ready to hit him if he tried anything funny. I almost chuckled out loud.We had spent more time than usual outside today trying to survey the area to know if there were any possible exits. There was a train station that went to the next town and a bus station not too far from the hospital. And then there were also enough cabs that lined the roads, waiting for someone to board them. Finding a means of transportation wasn't the problem, Elena
Amelia's POVMaybe it was because I needed to actually have a good night's rest again or maybe it was because I almost died, but when I opened my eyes, I saw that I was sitting in a vacuum. In a dark room that looked like the place had no beginning and no end. I called out to anyone that I believed could help me, but there was no one there. There was no one but me here and even though there was no monster in sight, I couldn't help the fear that gripped me and soon the loneliness turned to terror. I started to scream when I heard Elena's voice trying to reach out to me but couldn't see her. "Open your eyes, Amelia" the voice kept saying over and over again. I screamed, opening my eyes to see Elena watching me, her hands gripping one of mine tight as tears trickled down her eyes. I was back in my bedroom, laying on my bed. She heaved a sigh of relief when I opened my eyes and helped me sit up with my back resting against the head of the bed. I winced when I tried to turn, rememberin
Chapter 84Elena's POV"What's wrong? What's the matter?" Amelia asked me when I stopped in front of the hospital instead of going with her. I merely shook my head, giving her a vague smile. That was all I could actually do, especially because I could not tell her the truth. She had been so serious about wanting the two of us to escape that I couldn't break it to her that it would not be possible. And that Cassius would find us. Elizabeth and I were buying her time. Giving her enough time to escape the clutches of her captor. "Go on ahead, Amelia. I need to dispose of the phone so no one would track us." I answered and she furrowed her eyebrows in confusion. "I will wait." She stared around for a second before turning back to me. "I can't leave you behind." She answered, her eyes shining with an innocence that I was surprised was still there after all she had gone through at the hands of Cassius. She still had a light inside of her that I refused to allow to fade out. That was wh
Amelia's POVMy nightmares were probably one of the things I might actually look forward to if they were just dreams. But it seemed my night terrors had chosen to take a chaotic turn for the worst each and every time and I was an unwilling participant, having no choice but to watch and see how this one would end. This time, I wasn't in any classroom. I was wearing a wedding dress, standing before a huge door. There was no one in sight when I looked back at the dark empty hallway. I looked at the huge door in front of me, rather than feeling joy even though the wedding dress hinted that this was supposed to be an auspicious day. I felt nothing but bone-crushing terror, as I waited for the doors to open.After what felt like hours, the doors finally croaked and opened to reveal a crowd of people I didn't know or recognize in the hall.All of their eyes were on me but my eyes were on the person waiting for me at the end of the aisle. My eyes were on Damien as he smiled at me.But I cou
Amelia's POVI sat up immediately, wiping my eyes when the door to my bedroom, back in the mansion opened, and Cassius walked in, his gaze landing on me. If he noticed that my eyes were swollen from crying my heart out over my best friend's death, he didn't seem to bother, especially when he was the person that killed her. I guess I was foolish for still expecting him to show any sign of humanity when he had proven to me time and again that he was not human and would never be. Raising his eyebrows at me, he looked around the room before he finally spoke. "Get up and start packing all of your stuff, Amelia, whatever shit is valuable to you, pack it up because we are moving." My mouth fell open in shock, the only other reaction besides bone-crushing guilt and sorrow that I had felt since I left that shitty room days ago. "Moving? To where? Where are we moving to?" I asked and when Cassius glared at me, I remembered who I was talking to. Cassius was the last person that I would ex
Amelia's POVThe entire night was filled with organized chaos. Even though I had volunteered to be a part of it, so that I could keep my mind busy, Elizabeth had ordered me to remain still because of the bruises that I had gotten. I had no remembrance of how they had gotten there but I was sure that it had been the night that I was caught by Cassius and one of his goons. The night that my best friend was murdered in cold blood. It was safe to say that I would forever remember that night with sorrow, especially because one minute, I was so certain that I was finally close to freedom, that I was finally going to have a shot at being happy, and that Elena and I would finally be able to find out what it felt like to live a normal life and the next minute, everything had come crashing down and it had become the worst night of my entire life. Clutching the purple bracelet with my other hand, I watched as everyone moved about and things were cleared as if we were preparing for an invasion
Dear wonderful readers, I cannot thank you enough for taking the time to read my book! Your support and enthusiasm mean the world to me. Without you, book one could not have been the success that it is. I am grateful to have such amazing, dedicated readers like you. It thrills me to announce that there will be a book two! I am so excited to continue this journey with you and bring you more of the characters you have grown to love (and certainly some new ones too!). I promise to keep you on the edge of your seat with even more twists and turns. Again, thank you for all that you do. I appreciate every kind word, review, and recommendation. You are the reason I write, and I cannot wait to share more of my stories with you. With love and gratitude, H.B Temilorun
EPILOGUE*Six years later Amelia's POVDreams did come true, I thought as I walked into the woods and stood far away from where my mate was playing with our daughter, Kiara, watching them with a wide smile. She was the spitting image of her father, took his hair, his eyes, everything, and even his smile. The only thing that she probably got from me was my creamy skin and I had not one complaint at all. In fact, it made me smile every time I watched the two of them bicker about something which was almost every time these days, quickly reminding them that they could settle it since they looked very much alike. She threw a punch in the air at Damien which he evaded with ease, but not too much ease that made me realize that he was actually letting her off easy. She tried again and this time that I saw that she was so close to landing a punch but he caught her hand and shook his head, squatting as he ruffled her hair. "Listen to me, Kiara, we have been over this time and again. You are
Amelia's POVI did not think that I would be able to pull this off but looking at the table now, I was proud of what I was able to achieve. The dining hall was large enough to take over fifty people and with the chairs that we added, it was large enough to take almost everybody interested in enjoying this banquet.I had learned that Damien's mother as Luna used to organize something like this and I could see how it was going to help to foster togetherness.Damien had been skeptical about allowing me to do it, quickly reminding me that I was pregnant and that I did not need to do any heavy lifting but I had made sure that it didn't matter, not when I knew that it would be something that people would remember me to, with fondness in their hearts.I felt a sense of pride when I saw everyone digging into their breakfast and having looks of approval. I turned to glance at Blair and she was wearing an equally proud smile on her face. We had done this together with the help of some maids of
Amelia’s POV“How about this one?” Elena asked, her eyes bright as she held up a black sleeveless blouse and a skirt that was probably going to stop mid-thigh, her eyes bright with excitement. “Nope,” I answered, my eyes fixed on the television as I chewed away yet another bag of chips. My appetite had returned with a vengeance after the last couple of weeks that had consisted of vomiting spells and zero appetite. Elizabeth had said that it was because I had passed the first trimester of pregnancy and was now in my second. “Okay, this one is perfect. Why don’t you wear this one?” She came to stand in front of me, holding up a short blue dress that was probably as lovely as the rest but I was not interested, the same with all of the other options that she had chosen for me. I already knew what I was going to wear from the beginning, since the moment she entered the room and told me that I was going out with her and that it was going to be in thirty minutes. “Oh come on, Amelia, so w
Damien's POVI knew that Amelia would probably roll her eyes if I said this to her but she was hands down the most beautiful woman that I had laid eyes on. Perhaps it was the mating bond speaking but it didn't matter. I was hopelessly irrevocably in love with her. She sat beside me, the first aid box on her lap, and opened her hand for me to give her my bruised knuckles. I fought the urge to tumble her on the bed and kiss her senselessly because she looked less than pleased at my injuries even though they didn't hurt and would heal on their own. "It was nothing serious," I said again. When I had told her the first time, she had raised her eyebrows at me in a scolding fashion. It would have looked really threatening if I was not a big bad werewolf that was probably two times her size and towered over most people in the pack, including her. I stifled my amusement at how adorable she was because I knew that she would not appreciate that sort of thing. "I heard you the first time, Al
Amelia's POVThe silence in the kitchen was deafening and the entire atmosphere was very tense after my statement. I was well aware that if I did not do so something to diffuse this, things were going to escalate beyond measure but I had had enough of Nikki, from her passive-aggressive behavior to hurting people like they were not human beings and looking at others from beneath her nose like she was higher than every one of them. Her momentary shock at my statement was quick to fade and she pulled her arm away from my grasp and frowned at me. "Oh and what do we have here? So you really think that just because people have accepted you that you can go around calling yourself Luna and expect people to do what you want? I rolled my eyes, almost chuckling to myself.She continued, "It seems that you have forgotten your place, have you not? You are a slave like her, perhaps that is why you feel so strongly that I am teaching her a lesson." "You bitch!" Elena roared and tried to reach he
Amelia's POVIt had been one month since I moved back to the pack. There was a calendar in the bedroom which I marked every day once I woke up and when I did today, the smile on my face widened as I circled the date. One whole month had passed since I returned with Damien. It had been one month since Cassius was finally defeated.It had been a whole month and even though I had had a couple of nightmares between now and then, whenever I woke up, it was with Damien by my side, holding me tight and reminding me that I was no longer stuck back in that mansion. That I was no longer a slave to a vampire lord that was obsessed with me. That I was no longer living in bondage but free. Being Luna was wonderful here. Everyone had been nothing but so pleasant and supportive, allowing me to ease into the role at my own pace, no matter how slow that was. I was still adjusting to being a very important member of the pack and fortunately, my mate was the most patient and wonderful teacher one coul
Amelia's POVAs the girl, whose name I still did not know but whose face I would never forget wrapped her hands around Damien's neck and pulled him in for an intimate hug, all I could think about was the way she had been with me when I first came to the pack. The very first time that I had fled from Cassius and the words that she had said to me when everyone else had been nothing but caring."Oh? You don't want to know what I know about you? You don't want to know that I know how you were Cassius' slave for many years before you were brought here? You don't want to know how I know that you were not just a slave, but one used solely for sex?"We both know that you don't deserve him, sweetheart. So why are you still here, ruining my plans and making life difficult for everybody?" "Why? We both know that you are nothing but trash. And have you heard where the trash gets one ounce of happiness?" Her words still hurt every time I remembered them but now that I was mated to Damien and ha
Amelia's POV Bliss. I didn't know any other words that could adequately describe how I was feeling and bliss seemed to encapsulate all of my emotions being around Damien these past few days. It was nothing but bliss. It made me wonder if I was no longer dreaming and if this was just a really long dream that I was going to wake up from soon. "Am I dreaming?" I asked him as he cut an apple and fed me a piece. We were having a mini picnic in the woods and for the first time since I was forced to move to this new city, I didn't feel wary about being outside. I didn't feel a strange sense of panic thinking that this happiness could be snatched away from me at any time. The bane of my entire existence was dead and every time I remembered that he would no longer be able to trouble us again, I could not contain my joy. Finally, I would have a shot at happiness. Finally, I could begin life anew and start a family just like I had always wanted with the man that I loved wholeheartedly. I