Chapter 17: Leaving Mikalya’s P.O.V The first rays of the sun woke me up from a deep slumber, causing me to groan out in irritation. I tried to shift into a better position without opening my eyes, but found that my bed had turned into granite. The cool morning air felt good on my skin. After enduring the heat of the desert for so long, I was glad to be back in the mountains where I could once again enjoy the cold weather and ditch those god-awful skirts for good. But why was there sunlight inside my room? I brought my hand up to cover my eyes and discovered there was something grainy on them that were irritating my skin. Snapping my eyes open, I finally realized what was going on. I wasn’t back in the Himalayan mountains…I was sleeping in the desert sand with Abhay next to me. The small blanket that had been thrown over our bodies wasn’t enough to keep the cold away and Abhay’s curled up body beside me was proof enough that the temperature had dropped considerably this early in
Chapter 1: Aazadi Mink’s P.O.V I wasn't dead. Not yet. But it sure felt like it. When is a person supposed to die? I didn't know. I'm not literate. Women aren't supposed to be. At least that's what he says. Is it when we stop breathing? I don’t know…because it felt like I had been holding my breath for years, afraid that they would hear me. Is it when your heart stops beating? I don't know. Because mine stopped the moment I saw my partners set on fire in front of my own eyes. Their flesh melting from their bones…their screams echoing in the desert mercilessly for all to hear. And no one came to help. My mother had been different. She'd cared for me. Fed me. Brushed my hair. Told me I was special. That the Goddess of Wolves had created me to destroy all those who torment us. I had believed her, just as I had believed in her stories of a beautiful world outside the confines of my door, which I wasn’t allowed to open…ever. But I had made that mistake…I had opened that door…when
Chapter 2: The White Wolf Mink’s P.O.V The fresh gust of cold desert wind did nothing to soothe the ache inside my chest. Not when I could still hear them…the screams. Smoke rose in the horizon, the light of the fire glowing a bright red-gold, as it illuminated the skies. And then there were the screams…terrifyingly satisfying. “Ma…d…” Startled, I whipped around to find the source of the sound. It appeared to have been from somewhere near me, and yet, I couldn’t see anyone in the vicinity. I strained my ears, but the wind was strong. It kept sending sand everywhere. I have to cover my eyes, my mouth and even then I could feel the fine grains on my tongue. A storm was coming. “Madat….” (Help) There it was! I close my eyes tightly and move forward, up a sand hill. It seemed to be coming from somewhere down the hill… “Madat….” I climb over the sand hill, as fast as I can, opening my eyes only when I can feel the direction of the win
Chapter 3: Wanderer Mikalya’s P.O.V For nearly a century I'd roamed this Earth, wandering through different lands, watching time fly past. People changed, empires rose and fell, India gained its independence, new generations were born and the older ones died out. An endless cycle of life and death that seems to stretch on for eternity. But even though the world around me had changed so much, I was still trapped in that cold winter night from a century ago when a young girl had to not only grow up overnight, but do something that no child of fourteen should ever have to dream about. A cold night painted in deep, dark red that even the darkness couldn't hide. Screams so loud and painful that it echoed throughout the lands. And then....silence. What had hurt more than the screams was the endless silence. Silence now buried under thousands of layers of sand. No one remembers Mouri anymore, as if it never existed. The pack that I had been born into had liked to travel, liked to kill e
Chapter 4: The Foreigner Abhay’s P.O.V I took another shot of the women sewing together a brilliant bed sheet with needles and threads and then checked the photos for clarity. This was going to be the most amazing project I’d ever done for the Lifestyle Magazine. The brightness of the colors contrasted well with the whitewashed buildings and brought the women into sharp focus. My new Nikon FM2 had cost me a fortune but it was worth every dime I spent and the whole night’s wait in front of the shop. And it was lightweight and easy to carry. I still had a few longer, high resolution lenses in the duffle bag that I’d left back at the hotel, but since I was just walking through the vibrant marketplace and taking close-up shots, it was easier to carry a lightweight camera. It was about three o’ clock on a winter afternoon but the sun was beating down on all of us mercilessly, although I was the only one who seemed to be affected by it. I wiped away a bead of sweat from my brows with a
Chapter 5: Illusions Abhay’s P.O.V For a couple of seconds, I felt flabbergasted. Yes, I was a healthy male of twenty seven with a proper sexual appetite, but I’ve never imagined myself naked and in bed with any women. I was brought up with parents who had taught me that in our culture, sex before marriage was not the right way to go about it. And I’d always believed in that principle. Yes, I’ve had a couple of relationships in my life. Once when I was in high school, with a girl about three years younger than me, we had drifted apart after I left school to join college. My second relationship had been in my second year of college, with a girl in my class who had shared my enthusiasm for photography. But we too had drifted apart right after I’d landed a job at Lifestyle Magazine as an intern and she had left for Calcutta to work for The Daily Telegraph. But I’ve never had any physical relationships with either of my ex’s. We had kissed, yes, I wasn’t that much of a saint, but we h
Chapter 6: Reality Mink’s P.O.V No. NO! This cannot be happening and especially not now…not here! Ruksaar chatted on beside me without a care in the world as we both walked briskly back to our hotel. She was blissfully unaware of the torment that was going through my mind as I balled my hands into fists, my claws slicing out to pierce the delicate skin of my palm. The wounds would heal even before they were formed and I wished with all my power that my mind could work the same way. But his image was now imprinted in my mind and it’ll stay right there until the day I die. Mate. The bloody word tasted like poison in my mouth and I tried to suppress the shudder that raked through me, but to no avail. Wide almond shaped eyes the color of topaz, with more gold than brown; they were eyes of a cat. His hair had been a dark shade of brown that appeared almost black. I could picture it in the sun, however, with a brown tint to it. It would be soft to the touch- I reined back my thoughts
Chapter 7: Desert Snow Abhay’s P.O.V It was snowing. The ground was completely white. It had snowed overnight and now the tiny yellow blossoms that looked like miniature sunflowers were buried under three feet of fresh snow, their petals crushed under the heavy weight. It was going to be a long, cold year ahead and the snow has only just begun. I looked at the waterfall in front of me, untouched by the winter chill. Jharna, that was what we called it. The literal Hindi translation of a waterfall, but it just sounded right to us. It was freezing outside but I knew it would be nice and warm inside the pack house. It would also be noisy. But I liked that noise. It was welcoming. It was home. Something dropped to the ground then, at my feet. I looked down to see what it was. It was only a speck in the vast sea of snow but it stood out amongst the white. It was in the shape of a tiny drop but the warmth coming from it melted the snow a little, caused a slight dent as it was absorbed i