[Ivan’s POV]Was she dead? That was a damn good question. If she was here, then that was the most obvious answer. However, it was the one answer I absolutely refused to believe. There was no way in hell that she was dead. I wouldn’t fucking allow it."Ivan," Arissa whispered, "please answer my question."Something about how her voice shook as her pleading eyes met mine broke my heart. Seeing her this vulnerable was still rare and unnerved me to the very core. Especially since there was no one to kill to make her feel better. This time, it was due to a situation that neither she nor I knew how to get out of.Sucking in a breath, I prepared myself for what I was about to say. Even if she was considered dead at this point, she wouldn’t remain this way. If there was a way for me to escape, then there was a way for her to do the same."Do you trust me?" I asked, wanting to calm her before I answered."Unconditionally." She responded instantly."Then despite what I’m about to say, know that

[Arissa’s POV]"Come along." I growled, motioning for Stefan and Catori to bring the bastard elder along. "This isn’t the proper place for this."Nodding, the two men followed. Neither bothered asking me what I was up to as we made our way down the hall. Granted, I was pretty sure that they knew what I was up to anyway.Feeling my blood begin to pump, I beelined for the torture chamber that Ivan had reserved for the war criminals. In my opinion elder Theodore was no better than them."Do you know what you’re doing?" Elder Theodore demanded when I began to clamp cuffs around his wrists and ankles. "I’m an elder!""You could be the fucking moon goddess herself and I wouldn’t care." I smirked. "It won’t save you from receiving your retribution.""Close the door!" I called over my shoulder. "I don’t want anyone to overhear what is about to happen here.""No, you can’t!""I can," I countered, pulling a pair of clamps out of the tool drawer Ivan had set up. "And I will." I beamed. "You, eld

[Arissa’s POV]"Come on, beta’s daughter."Keeping my smile in place, I began to move towards Giselle as she remained unmoving. Would she attack or would she give in? I guess we were going to find out right here and now.Surging forward, I attempted to attack, causing Giselle to move to the side, but not quickly enough to avoid my claws grazing her arm. A hiss of shock escaped her and her eyes flashed with anger."Oh, looks like you’re angry.""You won’t be so cocky much longer."Letting a growl escape her, Giselle moved to attack as I dodged and twisted, slamming my elbow into her so that she stumbled forward."Uh oh." I laughed, attacking again. "Seems daddy didn’t teach you well enough. Such a shame.""You talk too much!"Excitement flared through me as Giselle attempted to attack once more. However, despite her using all her abilities, she was still no match for me. Easily dodging, I began to deal blow after blow, tearing away at her porcelain skin.With each blow, I could feel he

[Arissa’s POV]I stood aside and listened as Giselle recounted what she had told me to the others. With each new detail, elder Theodore’s face grew redder and redder. It seemed that the ridiculous elder didn’t expect her to not hold anything back."And that’s why." I announced once she was finished. "We need to go pay the Rose Woods pack in the north a visit. It seems that they don’t think much of the Fulgur or Tonitru packs. It is our responsibility to remind them. ""Here, here!" Nazhoni announced."Sounds like fun." Stefan added."Ivan would really love this." Igor grumbled.Flinching, I tried to ignore the pain that was shooting through me at the mention of my mate. Even if I knew he was okay, that didn’t make it any less painful to not have him here beside me. However, right now I needed to fix things so that when he returned, we could begin where we left off."You sure about that?"My eyes grew wide as Ivan’s voice drifted through the air. Whirling around, I found him, but not h

[Ivan’s POV] "Then will you do something about it?" The being asked. Stumbling, I found myself realizing that something didn’t quite feel right. I was used to being angry. So used to it that I was pretty damn good at controlling it, but this was different. It felt almost as if something was attempting to take over within me, something dark and almost sinister. Tilting back my head back, I let a roar of frustration escape me as I stumbled away from the being even more. What the hell was happening exactly? Lifting my hands, I took in the long black claws that were beginning to spring from my fingers and the gray hairs coming from my skin. A metallic taste filled my mouth as I doubled-over and began to heave while pain shot through me. "What…" I gasped, lifting my blurry gaze to the being. "What is this?" "Haven’t you figured it out by now?" The being chuckled. "This is the real you, Ivan. The you deep within. It is the beast that slowly grew more and more due to the anger you’ve su