Xander's POV:My lips lifted in a lopsided grin and my eyebrow quivered, "What a change of events, Asteria. I like it."Her menacing gaze turned to Lucien as she bit out poisonously, "I want you to kill him first. I want to watch him die in front of my eyes."My head tilted to the side and I said amusingly, "Consider it a parting gift then."With that, I turned around and started to walk away. I had just taken a few steps when curiosity nudged at the back of my mind. When it got hold of me, I finally turned around and walked back to Asteria, "Do you regret it?" She did all that for Lucien, I wanted to know whether she regretted it now or not. Would she have taken a different path, and made different choices had she known that she was going to be betrayed like this?For once, her eyes saddened as she mulled over my words. Millions of emotions flashed in her eyes as she said in a broken voice, "If you are to take my heart out of me, I'm sure you'll find it brimming with billions of crack
Delilah's POV:When my eyes fluttered open, I felt a pounding headache. With a manically beating heart, I took in my surroundings and jerked up with a gasp. I was in a mansion, in Xee's room, sleeping on his bed.What the fuck happened? A moment ago, I felt like I was floating in the space. Was I drugged? And then, bit by bit, it all strung together. The shadow realm...lycans coming to rescue me...abducted by Lucien while going down the stairs...Stella, trying to give me injections...Xee, breaking the door open...Stella, plunging the syringe inside me...and then...then it was all black afterward.A shiver ran down my spine as the flashback after flashback swirled in my mind. Feeling my throat dry as the parched paper, I climbed out of bed. I stumbled sideways and gripped the side table to straighten myself.Slowly walking to the coffee table, I poured myself a glass of water and gulped it down like a fish. I clutched my heart and relished the feeling of finally being back home. My eye
Delilah's POV:I felt grogginess when I came back to my senses. My eyes snapped open and I jerked up in the bed. I was back in Xee's room. Adeline, who was sitting on the couch, rushed to me and asked worriedly, "Hey, are you okay?"The piercing headache of the morning was replaced by a mild one. I stayed like that for a long minute, slowly breathing in and breathing out as the events of the morning replayed in my mind. I glanced out the window and frowned at the soft glow of the sunset, "What time is it?"Adeline glimpsed at the wall clock before telling me, "It's almost 5 in the evening."I rubbed my temples, "Did I just sleep the whole damn day?"She brushed my hair out of my face and murmured, "After the shit you had gone through, you deserve a week's worth of sleep at the very least."She was sounding so off. I lifted my face to look at her and I surely didn't like what I saw. Dark circles, sad eyes, fake smiles, tensed shoulders. The usual brightening demeanor of my jolly friend
Delilah's POV:Panic clawed at my chest as the unsettling thought nudged at the back of my mind. It was a full moon; the night of horrors when dozens of rogues were roaming around in search of prey. What if something horrible had happened to Xee? Why else the whole pack would be filing out of the mansion with ruthlessness shining in their eyes? It must be bad.Adeline and I exchanged a worried look, none of us had any clue as to why the whole pack was howling in loss and anger. She opened her mouth to say something but I was already sprinting out of the room. Fleeing down the stairs, taking two at a time, I reached the landing and frantically looked around in search of anyone who could have information.A bunch of women were standing at the door, bare feet and in their sleeping gowns. Some were clutching their chest whereas others were gawking out the door in utter horror. For a fleeting moment, I wondered how bad it would have felt to see off your man time and time again for the war
Delilah's POV:"Who killed so many of us?" Someone said from the crowd."Who dared lay a finger on King's warriors?" Bellowed someone else."Who was behind this attack?" Asked another one."They have killed so many of our pups, this is a declaration of war!" Came a roar from somewhere behind me.Xander folded his hands behind his back and stayed quiet. He gave the families time to mourn their loved ones and other pack mates to fume in anger.Once enough time had passed and the horrific screams had subsided to breathless sobs, Xander moved forward and addressed everyone, "Last night, while we were patrolling the forest like every Full Moon, we were attacked."Shocking gasps and murmurs chorused through the crowd as they demanded answers about the attackers.I wondered who could be behind such a brutal attack. Dozens of new wolves were slaughtered along with a few lycans of King's pack. Whoever was behind this knew very well that King's warriors would be out patrolling the forest like e
Delilah's POV:I tried to sleep but I just couldn't. With a million things going on in my mind, I was unable to sleep even though I was mentally exhausted.After an hour of tossing and turning restlessly, my eyes finally fluttered close as sleep took over.Even while sleeping, my thoughts were all over the place. After only about a few hours, my eyes snapped open and the first thing I did was to hurl my arm on the other side of the mattress. Cold and empty. No signs of Xee ever returning at night.I strained my ears to hear any commotion in the washroom but it was all quiet. My stomach churned as unsettling thoughts nudged in my mind. Where was he? Did something bad happen to him? Why didn't he return yet?Sitting up, I glanced at the clock. It was 5 in the morning. As it was impossible for me to go back to sleep now that worry had taken hold of me, I rubbed my eyes and climbed out of bed. Collecting my hair at the top, I tied it in a messy bun while making my way to the balcony.My ey
Delilah's POV:Breaking the staring contest, I gave him a look of disbelief and stepped toward the door. Xee sprang forward and stood in front of me like a strong wall, blocking my way into the office where an injured man was still wriggling in pain.Thunderstorms were raging in his gray eyes as they pierced mine. The anger was pouring out of him in waves. If it had been anyone beside him, he would have ripped them apart for going against his will. But me? I was not afraid of him because I knew in my heart that this man would never hurt me no matter what.I watched the vein in his neck bulging with strain as he tried to remain under control. Exhaling heavily, he uttered sharply, "It's between me and Daniel. Please, do not interfere in this as it's not just about me, Delilah." I knew what he was referring to. It's not just about him but about his people.Placing my hands on his chest, I pushed him backward and hissed, "Then you should have kept it out of my eyes, at least."I knew that
Delilah's POV:I pressed the matter, "How can you justify such a cruel act?"He kept staring at me and then cocked his head to the side, "Just like you justify the abduction of dozens of humans over the last few months...?"I was taken aback by his words and screeched in shock, "What do you mean by that?"Daniel leaned forward and placed his elbows on his knees, "Oh, really? You have no idea what am I talking about?"I exhaled a massive breath, "Trust me, I am in no mood to play games at the moment, okay?" Glaring at him sharply, I whizzed, "So, it'll be better for you to answer what you are being asked."The muscles in his jaw twitched, "Fair enough," and then he snarled, "For the past few months, humans have been kidnapped from all over the city."My head jerked to Xee standing beside me. The shock glinting in his eyes told me that he was totally unaware of that. His fists clenched at his sides as he hissed at Daniel, "That has nothing to do with lycans or werewolves."I turned my g