Iris' POVI led the way out of the dungeon through the trap door, signalling to Amber and her friends to keep it as quiet as possible. We got out into the backyard, spying the orchard for the slightest figure of a living thing that may announce our presence. Fortunately for us, none was in sight, except the chirping of crickets and the croaking of frogs. "Stay here," I whispered to them, removing the shower cap. "I've got to wash the dye off my hair. It's becoming damp and tangy on my head.""Why didn't you do that at the salon before leaving?" Amber queried under a mutter. " We don't have much time for all that.""Seriously?" I forced my voice to stay in tune with the chirping and croaking sounds in the orchard. "We saw your picture on the screen and we were afraid you might lose your life for something we were sure you didn't do, and you're scolding me for wasting time?""What do you mean we? Who else knew me there in the salon you visited?"I heaved softly. "Your distant cousin sa
Iris' POVKitana growled within me, activating every sense organ in my body. I tapped into her powers like a conduit ordained for ministration, allowing her take the wheels. My sight adjusted just fine to the darkness, my hearing became keener, and my fist was pumped ready for the party.The guard behind me tried to play a fast one on me with a surprise attack, but I heard every step he took, as though he was crawling all over me. He swung his hand, aiming for my head, but I ducked, and darted him a back kick in the abdomen that might have ruptured his spleen.Jackson jumped at me, with a dagger hanging over him. In a stomp, I leaped into the air above him, flashing him my violet eyes. He was spell bound by the colour of my eyes; it was an awesome experience to those who hadn't seen me in my full power. Personally, I was skeptical about what my full power would look like when I exploited it.With a descending kick against the top of his head, I smashed him into the ground between the
Monica's POV"Which way now?" I asked, livid at Amber, and eager to escape the dungeon. One of these days I'd teach her not to mess with me. She played a fast one on me, and thought she had won the round, but I must have my pound of flesh from her. If Iris hadn't come between us, I swear, I'd have gorged her eyes out with my claws."C'mon, it's this way." Iris turned left, jogging into the darkness. Being in the dungeon for hours had dimmed my sight. A minute later, we got to a trap door. I charged forward and tried to open it, but Iris stopped me. "I hear footsteps. Hold on a bit.""Are you sure?" Amber whispered. "I can't hear anything.""Keen hearing." Iris answered. "We're supernaturals, remember?" "I'll just sit back and wait while you do your thing.""I thought as much," I sniggered. "She sneered at me, and I snarled back, imagining the softest spot in her body that would be quick to penetrate. I'd make sure she bled and begged for her life before ripping her head off. "I thin
Gustav's POVI sat on the bed beside mother, cupping one of her hands in mine. Two days after the incident, and she was still comatose. Zelta had tried everything medicinal and magical, but she wouldn't budge. She remained in coma, defying all treatments.Iris. This was when I needed her the most. My mate should have been sensible enough to lend me her shoulder to lean on in my moments of crisis. The feisty female had decided to lead a wayward life, abandoning her mate because she thought she could take down anything. Fucking piece of pride!"The death of the young human wasn't necessary, Gustav." Drogo cleared his throat. "You went overboard with that.""His death was collateral damage." I replied, tucking mother's hand beside her. I rose up with a sigh and brushed past the old male to the sofa facing the bed. I want my eyes on mother. Whenever she woke up, I wanted to be the first breathing thing she saw. "Besides, she moved me to do it. Her foolishness got the better of her.""She'
Iris POVMy weary eye peeled open slowly, adjusting to the dim yellow lights of a dark room. A downsizing pain jammed by brain hard against my skull. It was as though a mill was grinding in my head.I tried to massage my temples to hurl the pain, but it was bound by something strong- something metallic. The strange restraint widenedy eyes, and... fuck! The dungeon again. I thought I'd gone past this stage with Gustav. The least I expected from him was waking up on my bed in my room.The event of the evening flashed back into my memory. I returned to the mansion from Macy's to rescue Amber an her friends, we tried to escape, we got out to find Gustav waiting fo us with an army of werewolves, Gustav and I had a fall out, he killed... The memory sparked me further awake, as I tried to jerk free from the hold. My wrists and ankles were held stiff by metal plates, including my neck. "Gustav!" I growled, foaming under my breath."How does it feel to be on the mesh?" Monica teased, hanging d
Monica's POV."What's the point of keeping it to yourself? The way I see it, we're not leaving here alive." I pushed. If what Amber was saying is the truth, I couldn't shake off the feeling that there was a bigger truth to the whole story. Yesterday, Ben was her nephew, and today, he suddenly turned out to be her son. That was a little bit incredible to me, like a thunderbolt in a hail storm cracking through the sky in a flash.The thought I couldn't shake off was why Amber refused to tell Ben she was his mother? Isn't it one of the many joys of motherhood to hear your child call you 'mother'? Why did she sweep such vital information under the carpet that long?I should have known from the color of their hair and eyes. They were both light blond and blue-eyed. I'd thought it was a dominant family trait, a character that appeared in every generation. I couldn't wiggle the truth out of her because we weren't friends. Besides, saving Ludovic was of more importance to me than fixing the p
Monica's POV"My Lord!" Jackson stalled in his movement. He turned to see Gustav standing at the entrance, frowning at him. He stood erect as a pine tree, shaken to the marrow."Out!" Gustav repeated from the door way, his tone casual, but it carried with it a vivid authoritative baritone.Jackson scuttled out of the dungeon, not before dipping his chin in a quick bow, taking with him his air of cheap pervasions. Shutting the door after him, Gustav stood formidable, looking from one pained face to the other, with his bold shoulders squared. He took a couple of short strides forward, stepping under the dim light of the dungeon to announce his undeniable presence. His parted permed hair reflected the dim glow of the yellow bulb dropping from the ceiling, covered in a band of cobwebs. He wore a black short-sleeved Polo, tucked into a blue jean, which highlighted his round biceps stretching the helms of the shirt to the ends of their elasticity. Somehow, his titanesque Greek body seeme
Gustav's POVThe terrific look on their faces was manically comical. I bet they never knew the dungeon had a secret weaponry in it. They must have thought the dungeon was nothing more than a bundle of chains at its best, or a mesh at its worst. I love it when I surprise my captives. I can't let them see what they're about to suffer. If they did, they'd prepare their body for what's to come, which would ruin all the pretty surprises.I stepped into the fairly large humid store, plastering a menacing grin on my face. The way my body charges up to torture scares the shit out of me sometimes, because I was damn good at it. I was born with the gift, and I never stopped improvising. I spied the machines and instruments in the room; some where small enough to sit on a shelf, while the others too big to sit on the shelf had their place on the ground."This will do." I snatched a drilling machine from the left wall, and dropped it on the metal table pushed to one edge of the store. "I'm not l
Monica's POVI never knew I could be this tense. My heart raced a marathon, standing beside Gustav, hands locked. We met the rest of the people outside as well. They'd been waiting for us to come out. Drogo had thrown us pieces of clothings the moment he saw us running out of the bunker. We'd brought with us few changes of garment as a contingency; only that we never foresaw the night wearing long and tragic as this. By now, the moon had reclined behind the clouds, bowing out of the podium for the sun to take its cue. The air was surprisingly chilly around me, and I welcomed the first day of the sun perching on my face in a canvass of yellow and orange. Gustav had ordered everyone to move three miles away from the area. Owing to the final battle between Iris and Laura, it was only expected of us that the bunker would collapse. It had taken on many hits already to keep it standing.Klein rushed forward to ask us about Ludovic and Iris. I was too sorry to tell him they couldn't make
Iris' POVIt felt like a very bad dream. My world shattered to tiny bits under me, caving beneath my feet. I couldn't breath, I couldn't talk; I just felt lost. Everything was happening so quickly that I forgot to breath in the bad air surrounding me. Ludovic turned to his side, resting his elbow on his hands. He cast his face the other way, spitting black blood on the dusty tile. His lengthy black hair fell over his head, covering his face from me. Placing one hand on the ground, he pushed himself to a kneeling position, backing me and groaning gravely. I saw the dagger hanging below his shoulder blade. He backed me. He didn't want me seeing him weak in the face of death. Monica and Gustav stood few inches away from us. Silently taking in the latest tragedy straddled between life and the afterlife. I heard Monica sniffle. Gustav held her close muttering few words of courage to her."I warned you all not to play hero, but you wouldn't listen. If you'd taken my offer, all this blood
Gustav's POV"Nooo!" Crude anger shot up my bones, setting me aflame. My wolf and I merged in an instance, lunging at Laura. She was too wrapped up in her warped cruel laughter that she didn't see me coming. I sank my teeth into her shoulder joint, pushing her away from Zelta. I left her in the care of Monica and Ludovic, while I took my pound of flesh from the psycho. I've always wanted to do this. Taking the back seat, I surrendered fully to my beast. Her time of retribution is now. Perhaps, she hadn't extended her tentacles to Monica, but the rest of us have suffered because of her. She'd taken too much from us. She poisoned Ludovic's mother's wine and killed Iris parents in cold blood. As if that was not enough, she made my mother's death the icing on the cake. For the sake of us, I'll gladly rip her limb from limb, and sever her head from her body."Zelta, Zelta!" Iris scooped her up, removing the dagger from her back. "You can't die now. Please, stay with us. We can't do this
Gustav's POV"We have to destroy that staff." Iris announced, rising into the air to meet Laura. "Are you sure about that?" Ludovic asked. "One hundred percent. It's her life force." She pointed at the top of the staff in Laura's hand. "I'll try my best to destroy the staff. She dies, and we get to live. The bonus part is that she takes her undying army with her to wherever they came from.""What if you're wrong about that?" Ludovic had his doubts. Destroying the staff won't come that easy. Scenarios like this always ended up in tears. There was a catch to it. I could sniff it. "It's too dangerous. Please, don't try anything stupid.""You're right. I may be wrong. But I'm certain about one thing. A witch's staff is her life force. Her life is connected to that staff. That's why she never parts with it.""Iris isn't wrong." I didn't know when Zelta regained consciousness. The hit she survived really did a number on her consciousness. She supported herself with her staff, wiping off a
Monica's POVLaura was having a field's day wearing us out. The dead never died, our strength was failing, our number depleting, and the walls are crumbling. Our greatest disadvantage was that Zelta had been knocked out. By the look of things, it would take longer for the old lady to shift out of the supernatural coma. The ball of black fire Laura hauled at her swept her off her feet, snuffing the last air of luck out of us.From a corner of the bloodbath, nursing my bloodied left hind limb, I morphed back to my human form, sprawled to a pillar, stained with blood. We're all going to die, that's for sure. Claws snapped at each other, and the squeals of men carried through the chipping walls, as more men lost their lives to Laura's madness.Ludovic and Gustav were no use to us than they are to themselves. The litres of silver swimming in Ludovic's bloodstream had left him hanging on the precipice of life. In he middle of the chaos and a bruised eye, Drogo was doing one hell of a job p
Iris' POV"Stay with me, Ms Iris," Klein wheezed, breezing past the blood and claws, out of the bunker. "Don't die on me, please. Hold on a little bit longer." I attempted speaking to assure him of my existence, but the words were too heavy for my dead cords to form. The poison had completed its cycle. Every blood vessel under my skin had turned purple. I was losing control of my limbs. To the humans, paralysis was the proper term to describe my present condition.I'd lost contact with my wolf. Her howls had reduced to a tiny purr. She shrunk herself to a corner, afraid for her and myself. The pinna of her ears had dropped to the ground, her tongue a deep shade of tundra purple. She dragged her weight about, fighting to stay alive for the both of us. Her healing virtue had gone below the threshold, hitting rock bottom. Throughout the period the devil's trumpet was introduced into my system, she'd pumped all of her juice into my body to keep me alive, hoping cavalry would come. Cava
Ludovic's POV"The bunker is going to implode on us!" I grumbled loudly, facing Iris with fear etched across my face. She met my gaze with an equal amount of fear, if not greater. "What are we going to do?!" I sheathed the tremor in my voice for the sake of my mate. As the male, I had to be stronger for her. I had to be tough for the both of us."We're all going to die, but it'll hurt me to die without telling you this." She looks at me with a calm smile. Tendrils of fear hung behind the false mask, but I paid it no heed. Her bold stance in the face of death was applaudable. She cleared her throat and continued, as Laura's chants faded in the background. "My life was hopeless before you stepped into it. Pain and suffering were my constant companion until you came by and kissed them all away. I know that when I open my eyes on the other side of the divide, you'll be right there by my side, never to part again. Thank you for making the last three weeks of my life the most memorable." Sh
Iris' POVThe slurp of the blade tearing into the organs beneath Gustav's rib cage mingled with his muffled grit of his clamped teeth. Laura was on a higher pedestal of evil. Needless to say, she was evil personified. "Stop hurting him!" Monica barked through tears, jerking violently under the straps. Her sweaty naked body faultered as Laura turned the metal blade, causing gruesome damage. Blood tricked out of the corner of Gustav's mouth. All through the torture, not a whimper fell out of his mouth. He tamped agony with resilience. I'll give that to him.Hot tears washed down Monica's face. Watching your mate being tortured before you was another level of torture. I could only imagine the tremor her wolf would be going through. Raw emotions whirled out of her, hitting me like a gust of hot wind on the hottest noon of Texas summer."Please." Monica sobbed, choosing to gravel instead. Perhaps, if Laura had a sliver of humanity in her, she'd stop her ministrations on her mate."Have yo
Monica's POVIris led a series of dry laboured cough. I didn't need a witch to tell me what the smug on her face meant. Ludovic on the other hand lay limp on the bed. The tiny drops of liquid silver flowing into his veins had his mouth set into a thin line. His face was pale. The green venation of his veins stood out conspicuously under his white skin. Iris was just as bad. Maybe worse. Her lips were chapped, the flesh peeling off. Her cheekshd become hollow, revealing the peak of her cheekbones. Her tangled her was splayed under her head in tired waves. Where the hell did she get the strength to snigger at us? Rage burned my face, as I scowled at her."Is this funny to you?" I blurted. "Keep laughing at your own death for all I care."She coughed before responding. "It's my death, I'm not complaining. I welcome it with open hands. Beside, I would die knowing my own people didn't turn against me." Her voice was almost inaudible, but there was no denying the melee retort in it.Her w