She pushes Victor back a pace, trying to close the door, but Victor’s hand shoots out, holding the thing open. The Alpha’s eyes are desperate, drinking in the sight of Ariadne’s bare skin.“You’re beautiful. It just feels like you’re flaunting it in front of me, what I can’t have, and you expect me to be satisfied.”“I’m not a conquest,” Ariadne says, heat crawling up her face, turning her ears red. “I’m sure you’ve seen plenty of naked Omegas with way fewer scars. Now, if you could go—”“You mean this?” Victor hums, hand shooting down, fingers tracing an old battle scar on Ariadne’s stomach. “What happened?”“I got bit while saving your life,” Ariadne whispers, electricity shooting up her spine. “Harry did that.”Victor’s eyebrow shoots up. “Really? You guys seemed all chummy the last time I saw him.”Ariadne bites her lip, sighing, giving up, setting in the water so that she can at least hide some of her nakedness. “He’s changed. We didn’t kill him because we wanted him to change, m

Ariadne’s so close, mint and vanilla scent so tantalizing. The Omega runs her hand up and down the other’s arm, fingertips dancing over the skin. Victor’s so comfortable, Ariadne’s soft blond locks ticking his face. He could stay like this forever. “I-I thought you said we should focus on finding the kids,” Victor manages. Ariadne nods. “You’re right. But we’re here, and all our family is here too. We have nothing to do until tomorrow.” This reminds Victor. “This is not a journey for the weak. It’s a six-hour hike to the summit. It’s gonna get cold, freezing cold, before it turns warm, and then so hot you want to rip your skin off.” “Your point?” Ariadne asks, pressing a kiss to his jawline. The Omega is so much like this place. Cold one second and hot the next, leaving Victor following after her in confusion, wanting something that’s being baited just in front of his face. “You don’t have to go,” Victor says, staring at the woman, so beautiful it hurts to look at her. “You can

They’re all gathered by the hearth, fire crackling softly. Ariadne reads the letter aloud for the fourth time while the rest of them try to glean the clues, though the Omega feels it’s a fruitless exercise. It reads as straightforward as they come, nothing subject to interpretation.“Listen carefully, father, or you’re all going to die. The time to strike is soon. Gordon thinks you’re both dead. His overconfidence will be his undoing. I know you’re wondering why I didn’t take the shot when I’d won the game. But we were on his territory, his assassins ready to take us all out if I’d gone through with it. At least that’s what I tell myself. Be ready; the Wolf Moon is coming. Gordon intends to invite all the remaining Pack Alpha’s in the city to join us at the Auction House. This is where you must make your resurrection, take his life and claim the black throne. It’s the only way.”Then there’s the post note from Kelly, which Ariadne reads in a different voice, so accustomed to reading h

Ariadne won’t let anyone near Kelly, snarling if they get within two feet of her. She holds the girl close to her chest, though she struggles, trying to crawl into Victor’s lap on the opposite side of the couch.“We can’t stay long,” Harry explains, hands up defensively, taking a step back. “Gordon will notice if she’s not home in a few hours.”Ariadne jerks away, a flurry of paternal instincts overruling her senses. “You’re not taking my baby anywhere. She’s staying with me.”Victor sighs. “Think logically. If Gordon realizes she’s gone, he’ll start tracking her down, and that will bring him to us.”Ariadne starts tearing up. “No, we’ll get away. We can run.”Kelly sighs, adjusting herself. She takes Ariadne’s face into her tiny hands, pressing her forehead to her chin. “You know we can’t do that. What about Asheei? We can’t just leave him.”She’s right. Ariadne’s mind races with nothing to hold on to. “Why didn’t he come too?”“That mean old man won’t let Asheei out of his sight,” K

Ariadne should have been ready for it, being doused in cold water. It’d been a beautiful, fevered dream, but it’s time to wake up now.The Omega slams the cover over the piano keys, a loud discordant noise rattling the floorboards, loose nails quaking in their sockets.“Talk.” Ariadne’s voice comes out like a blade of ice. “Now.”Victor sounds so distant, whole worlds away. “That crown is mine. I was always meant to rule this city. I’m sorry if I lead you otherwise.”He’s never planning on leaving.It was all a lie.“If?” Ariadne says acidly. “There’s no ‘if.’ It was intentional. You lied to get what you wanted from me.”“Baby, please—”“I was stupid enough to give myself to you,” Ariadne continues. “I’m not your baby. Don’t call me that.”“You can rule with me,” Victor says. “I need you.”“This life is what destroyed you,” Ariadne whispers. “Destroyed me, killed both our families.”Victor shakes his head. “It was me. I destroyed your life; my family ate yours up. I know.”Ariadne’s h