WINTER'S POV"The Vordrak Lycan, or aren't they the hunters that were spoken about by the Bwegbonyu, or whatever they're called, hunters mentioned?"Nodding, I said. "They are. They're the purest Lycans, and communicating through letters and possessing it is one of the things they do best.""And now the people at the party are possessed?" Rafael tilted his brows."Possibly," I mumbled. "I sensed power flowing out of the letter and out of the room." Waving the paper with me, I shook my head. Despite the content written on it, it felt empty, almost like I was holding an ordinary paper rather than something that was once coated with black magic."Then how do we know since you're not so sure?" He asked."The only way to know for sure is to have a peek at what's going on in the party." I stepped towards the door, and Rafael clutched my hand, halting me."Won't that be dangerous?" He questioned.For a few seconds, I saw concern in his eyes until it vanished, and he let his hand fall from mi
WINTER'S POVA sigh escaped my lips as I lingered in the shadows longer than intended. My eyes narrowed, and I instinctively clutched the necklace around my neck, twisting and chanting out of habit.Closing my eyes tightly as the figure continued towards me, I licked my lips nervously as sudden unease enveloped me. I shouldn't have been afraid, but I was. It wasn't the fear of being unable to fight what was coming toward me; it was the fear of the unknown.Maybe I shouldn't have asked us to separate.Puffing out a breath as the figure approached, whispers filtered through the air. "Winter," came the eerie voice, sending shivers down my spine. I gritted my teeth, trying my best to cancel out the voice, but no matter what I did, it only grew louder. "Winter!""No," I muttered, covering my ears, but it was no use."Winter!""Fucking show yourself!" a growl escaped my lips, and I jumped out of the shadows, slipping my dagger from the belt around my waist and pointing it at the person. "Ra
WINTER'S POVAs if slamming me into the wall wasn't enough, he gripped me by the throat."Let go of me; I command you!" I yelled. My eyes locked onto Rafael's, and he smirked, "Oh, you expect me to obey that, don't you?""Too bad I answer to no one. Even if I did, not to a weakling!" He snarled.Refusing to back down, I said through gritted teeth, "Let go of me.""I refuse!" He barked, shoving me into the wall again.Rafael growled, and his eyes narrowed at me. "I'm going to kill you. I've wanted to do that for a long time, ever since I set my eyes on you, and I'm glad I'll have the opportunity to do so now."He wasn't bluffing. I knew that. He gave me a murderous glare, and I did my best not to shudder as fear wrapped its hands tightly around my heart.The fury radiating off him was unlike anything I had felt before, and it made me tremble slightly, even though I tried my best to hide the fright within me from him."Are you saying your last prayer yet? I'm kind enough to let you have
RAFAEL POVRage.That was all I could feel within me as my temperature spiked higher than usual.I knew it wasn't abnormal because I had gone into this phase so many times and could barely remember all that happened whenever I came to, but this time seemed different. I was aware of everything. If anything, my senses seemed heightened more than ever before, and I wondered what the reason was because it had never been like this.My eyes stayed fixed on Winter, who was still watching me like I had gone crazy—or maybe I had—because I didn't move from the spot I was in. Not because I desired not to, but because of Winter. I believed that. Her scent was what was keeping me immobile, and at the moment, the urge to tug her into me and fulfill the current desire within me filled me. But I resisted. At least, I tried to.Gritting my teeth, she stepped closer, peering into my eyes, and frowned. "Are you going to remain that way, or do I need to perform another spell to free you from the possessi
RAFAEL POVAfter a while, I stood up from the ground, and we continued searching for the possessed souls. Although Naomi said I had been possessed, I didn't think so. Everything that had happened to me a few seconds ago had been because of Winter.Her nearness was starting to drive me crazy, but I was trying my best to keep myself in check. I didn't want to do anything to scare her further. Currently, she was keeping her distance, ignoring my questions, and even when I called her name, she pretended not to hear. And whenever she decided to speak, it was all directed at Naomi as if I didn't exist.I knew I shouldn't be bothered by all the things she was doing. I had vowed never to be, but now it seemed all I wanted was to speak to Winter. I wanted to ask her if she was mad at me because I had grabbed her neck and also discuss the vision.As we arrived at a crossroad again, like before, Naomi gazed at me and asked, "Are we supposed to separate again?""I don't think..." I began, but Win
WINTER POVPerhaps I had spoken too soon about him keeping himself alive. Everything went wrong almost immediately.My hunch about the direction I had taken was correct; there were more possessed souls than I had anticipated. As soon as we reached the door, it swung wide open without any effort from me."What the hell?!" Rafael growled, rushing towards me, but I shoved him aside. "Don't fucking get in my way!" I snapped, my eyes fixed on the werewolves and humans walking disorderly toward us."And get yourself killed?!" He gritted.I chanced a glance at him, seeing daggers in his glare before looking back at the possessed souls."I am not getting myself killed," I said, trying to find a solution. "Please let me think."But whether Rafael heard me or not, he didn't care. He continued, "You should have done all your thinking back there. What is the purpose of coming here to start thinking of how to attack them?!"Ignoring him, I placed both my palms on the wall beside me, trying to draw
WINTER'S POVRafael returned a little while later. Instead of bringing Naomi along, as he had promised, he arrived alone, prompting me to raise an eyebrow. "Where's Naomi? I thought you were going to fetch her.""I couldn't," he grunted, his face etched with a frown as his gaze darted around."What do you mean you couldn't?" I inquired, rising to my feet."I couldn't because Naomi is..." He hesitated, struggling perhaps to find the right words."Is she possessed?" I interjected, completing his sentence, to which he nodded."Oh my goodness," I murmured. It seemed that our separation was exacerbating the situation. First, it was Rafael, and now, Naomi. I couldn't help but wonder who might be next. Perhaps even me."It's more than just possession, Winter," Rafael said, his voice brimming with seriousness. Abruptly, he turned towards me. "You have to tell me if there's any spell other than the one you're using to create a potion."I began shaking my head, causing Rafael's glare to intensi
RAFAEL POV"It's my fault," Naomi sniffed.I paced back and forth, pausing only to glance at Winter's unconscious form before resuming my agitated circuit. And minutes had stretched into eternity since Winter had blacked out. Meanwhile, normalcy had returned. The spell had been too potent, and I knew that pushing her to this extent was a mistake. The blame rested partly on my shoulders; if I hadn't encouraged her to aid Naomi, she wouldn't now be lying on the bed, contorted in pain.If she hadn't acted, Naomi might have perished. That was a fate I wouldn't dare entertain."I am so sorry!" Naomi's voice quivered. "It is my fault, Rafael. Will she live?""You might want to lower your voice," intervened a brunette. Her eyes assessed me critically before settling on Naomi. "This isn't your doing. Winter took every step she could to safeguard us. All we can do now is hope for her swift recovery."She continued attending to Winter, her focus shifting from Naomi, who remained unconvinced.Na