As soon as the doctor gave me the all-clear, I moved Mia back to my territory. Josef and the missing warriors are nowhere to be seen, but I know he’s already at Mikhail’s side. His father claimed not to know why he became a traitor, while Maxim thinks Mikhail fed on Josef’s insecurities. How the fuck would he have done that, though? How long has he been placed here as a spy? Giovanni begged to see her, to see both of us but I declined; it’s his fucking fault she’s in this position. I warned him that it wouldn’t be wise to antagonize Mikhail, but did he listen? This has now escalated the war in my territory and I know the only way to end it would be by killing Mikhail. However, as much as I want to put all the blame on Giovanni, I know this is more my fault than his. I placed Josef with her, I trusted him to protect her, and I’m the one who made sure he was constantly at her side. I’m the one who made her trust him. /“He hid it all well, old friend. Don’t blame yourself,”/ Knox say

There must be a mistake, there’s no way the Goddess could have blessed me with someone as understanding as Mia. Surely I am dreaming, right? Why is she not running away after I told her about everything that happened to me? Why is she not looking at me with disgust clear in her big brown eyes, but instead looking at me as if I’m precious to her?Does she love me? How…?“Nikolaos?” she snaps me out of my thoughts and I remember that I brought her to the bathroom. She was feeling self-conscious about possibly not being clean, so I decided to do it myself.“Why don’t you go get in the shower so long? I’ll join you soon,” I say, walking to the open space and regulating the water for her. She gives me an odd look but slips out of her bra and panties and steps under the water. Even with her scars, she’s still so beautiful. I can’t believe what she’s suffered under that fucker Mikhail and her father, but I’ll be sure to get revenge in her name.I unbuckle my jeans and step out of them befo

I clench my jaw tight while Dr. Lilah is doing her check-up. I’ve not said a word since I’ve been in her office, and she’s asked me more than once if I’m okay. Ever since Star has returned, I’m starting to see more of what I couldn’t back then. For starters, I’m still apprehensive about Maxim, but I know I can trust him. Dr. Lilah on the other hand…there’s something majorly off about her. “Well, everything seems to be in order, Alpha. Her vitals look good, and the baby is healthy; the only thing I am not too happy about is the lack of sleep,” she says while looking at Nikolaos and me from across the desk. “It’s getting better,” I say, wringing my dress in my lap. “It’s been really difficult to stay asleep lately.” Dr. Lilah nods while Nikolaos takes my hand in his and gives it a little squeeze. Whenever I go to sleep now, I see Mikhail’s face looming over me, raising a knife above his head and stabbing me repeatedly. I usually wake up screaming and thrashing around until Nikolaos m

I let Nikolaos lead me to the bedroom where we’re to spend our last night together. He told me he was leaving to get Maxim back since he got proof Mikhail took him, but I didn’t expect it to be so soon.I should have known, though. “You’re angry,” he says as I stand with my back to him. I feel him walking closer to me, but he doesn’t try to touch me.“No, not angry,” I sigh, wrapping my arms around my waist. “Just…scared.”He moves closer to me and puts his hands on my hips before placing a kiss on the nape of my neck. “Nothing will happen to me, Mia-”I spin around to face him. “You don’t know that! You have no idea how Mikhail…how dirty he plays when there’s something he wants!”Nikolaos looks at me with a taut expression, then he raises a hand to cup my cheek. “Nothing will happen to me, I promise on my life. I have something to fight for now, something to come home to. Why would I throw it away?” he says, then his hand lowers and goes to the back of my neck.“Please trust me when

The second I stepped out of Bastien’s penthouse and into my SUV, I let the Nikolaos that Mia loves fall away. There’s no room for him on this mission; if I’m going to get Maxim back, I’ll need to shed myself of any warmth and compassion.I knew it was Maxim’s finger Mikhail had sent to me because I know my Beta. Moreover, the finger wasn’t just cut off, it was bitten off by a sharp pair of teeth - Mikhail’s no doubt. The trap is as clear as day, and I’ll let him believe I’m dumb enough to do this rescue mission.It’s different this time; there’ll be no playing around or taunting. I have something to fight for and he’s shown me on more than one occasion that this war will only end with his death.We’ve driven through various territories throughout the day, and it’s close to midnight when we finally arrive a few miles outside of his border. Dressed in black and armed with weapons to fight our own kind if we’re unable to shift.We park the SUV in the woods and walk the rest of the way; m