Ella's POVFlames licked at my skin, scorching, consuming, as shrieks of agony filled my ears. Shadowy figures danced in the inferno, their eyes malevolent red slits in the darkness.I tried to run but my feet were entombed in stone. A sinister voice echoed from the void, growing louder, reverberating inside my skull. "You cannot escape your fate...it comes for you, little Luna."I awoke with a scream, bolting upright in bed as terror clenched my heart like a vice. It took several shuddering breaths before I realized it had only been another nightmare - the same one that had plagued my sleep night after night. But the vivid dreams refused to fade come morning. If anything, they grew more terrifyingly real. What did they portend? Were they glimpses of a future the curse wished to manifest? The not knowing filled me with a profound disquiet.I rose unsteadily from the bed, the echoes of screams still ringing in my ears. I rubbed my arms, feeling chilled to the bone despite the warmth
Ella's POVI awoke slowly, clinging to the fading images of my vivid dream. I had seen Aiden, spoken to him, our surroundings shrouded in mist.His voice, his visage had been so clear, so real. I could still feel the ghostly brush of his fingers against my cheek. Had it been more than just a dream? Some mystical connection made possible by the child now growing within me? A spark of hope fluttered in my chest at the thought. If this dream was a portent of some emerging power, perhaps I could use it to reach Aiden and guide him back to us.I reached tentatively with my mind, probing the veins that linked me to my mates. Aiden's presence had retreated like the receding tide, yet I thought I detected the faintest echo of his essence resonating in the void. "Aiden?" I whispered into the stillness. For a moment I thought I heard the whisper of a reply, like a half-remembered dream. But then it faded, leaving me wondering if it had merely been my imagination conjuring phantom words.Lea s
Aiden's POVI stood before Alpha River, my body rigid with tension as I prepared to betray my own pack."You don't have to think over it." My emotions were a churning sea of anger, resentment and desperation. I knew this path was dangerous, yet my jealousy blinded me to reason. I would let nothing stand between me and Ella, not even my own flesh and blood.Alpha River regarded me with his piercing blue eyes, his scarred face unreadable. "So, I see young Aiden, you wish to propose an alliance? To what ends, I wonder?" His gravelly voice was laced with intrigue.I met his gaze unflinchingly, summoning my resolve. "I mean to make Ella mine, to take her as my mate," I declared. "But I'm afraid my...brother and father stand in my way." Bitterness tainted my words."With them, I can't have her for myself." I added.Alpha River raised a brow, leaning back in his carved wolf-throne. "So you mean the mate you told me you brought to your pack is now heavy with your brother's child?" He gave a
Ella's POvI sat comfortably on my bed, eyes closed in deep concentration as I sought to establish a mindlink with Aiden. After two days of intensive training with the pack elders, I was finally gaining control over my emerging psychic abilities. The time had come to use them to reconnect with my distant mate. Focusing my consciousness, I sent it drifting along the invisible tether that bound my soul to Aiden's. "Aiden?" I called out softly into the void. "Can you hear me, my love?"For agonising moments, only silence answered. Then, faint as a whisper, his beloved voice echoed back."Ella?" Disbelief and joy coloured his words. "How is this possible?"My heart swelled, tears of relief springing to my eyes. "My child, Jayden's child has awakened gifts within me," I explained gently. "I can speak to you through our minds now."I sensed his smile, felt his spirit wrap around mine in a tender embrace. "You never cease to amaze me," he murmured. "Even separated, you find a way back to me
Ella's POVMorning sunlight streamed through my balcony doors as I awoke, a smile already tugging at my lips. The joy of reconnecting with Aiden still bubbled within me, bright as the dawn outside.In just two days, he would be here, flesh and blood instead of just a presence in my mind.Lea stirred happily inside me, tail wagging. "Isn't it wonderful, Ella?" she barked excitedly. "Finally our mate is coming home!" "It feels like a dream," I admitted, hugging a pillow tight. "I was so afraid we'd lost him to the darkness. But somehow, through the baby's gift, we brought him back."I placed a hand over my belly bump, awash with gratitude for our unborn child. In sleepy contentment, I imagined Aiden's reaction when he learned he would be a father. I pictured his eyes lighting up with wonder and joy as he felt the bump for the first time. The sweet images kindled a warm glow inside me.A knock at the door heralded Delia, bustling in with breakfast. Her round face lit up at seeing me al
Kristy's POV"F*CK!" I slammed my fist into the wall, barely noticing the pain that splintered through my knuckles. Red rage clouded my vision, fury pulsing through me with every rapid heartbeat. "Ella. Always Ella. Even miles away, Aiden had somehow made contact with her through their damned mate bond." I chuckled bitterly, not getting why the hell Aiden pick her over me!The information clawed at my insides, threatening to tear me apart far more brutal than any physical blow."After everything, after all this time away, he still chooses her," I growled, trembling with bitterness. Lena, my wolf, stirred uneasily within me. "Kris, you must calm yourself," she cautioned, her normally fiery spirit subdued. "This jealousy will only poison us further..." she uttered but I cut her shot."Don't tell me to be calm!" I whirled on her, eyes blazing. "You know our pain, the constant torment of seeing them together while Aiden refuses to even glance our way!" Hot tears of frustration burned my
Kristy's POVI paced my chambers impatiently, awaiting word from Orion. He had promised to arrange a covert meeting between myself and the notorious Alpha River, Alpha of the Blood Moon pack. Forming an alliance with our sworn enemies turned my stomach. But I was desperate, willing to stoop to any depth to eliminate Ella and claim Aiden. With Orion's shrewd expertise, he would broker the deal and mask my involvement.A soft knock interrupted my restless pacing. I opened the door to find a hooded figure waiting silently. Orion's trademark subtlety.He had arrived. I quickly pulled him inside, warding the room against eavesdropping. Orion lowered his hood, regarding me intently with gleaming grey eyes. "The meet is set. But Alpha River is...cautious. You must go alone, with proof of your sincerity if you wish to sway him." "Meet him?" I asked, as I suppressed a growl of frustration. Alone in their den? Lunacy. But Orion's expression brooked no argument.I gulped hard. This was my o
Ella's POVI drifted in the void between dreaming and waking, seeking connection along the fragile thread that tied my soul to Aiden's. Our mindlink had been quiescent since our last intimate conversation, his energies focused on the journey home. Or so I guess.But though his spirit was beyond my reach, images still flickered at the edge of my consciousness. Brief glimpses of unfamiliar forests, a cavern lit by firelight...flashing faces wreathed in shadow. Were these Aiden's dreams I was tapping into? Or had the twisting curse infiltrated even our bond, showing me phantoms meant to mislead?I clung desperately to the flashes of sight and sound, straining to decipher meaning in the disjointed mosaic. But just as quickly, they faded, smoke through my grasping fingers. With a gasp, I jolted fully awake, heart racing. The images had vanished like mist under the harsh sun. "What was that again?" I mumbled as I rubbed my temples, struggling to hold on to any sliver, any clue that migh