Anila POV “Anila!! Don’t you dare tell me you are still asleep!!!” My eyes shot open at the sounds of my stepmother, Claire’s, voice. She was getting louder, which meant she was getting closer. I sat up quickly with a racing heart, panic consumed me. My bedroom door swung open, and Claire stood before me. She was breathing heavily, and she had a fire in her icy blue eyes. Her long blonde curls cascaded over her shoulder. She stood with her hands on her hips and her perfect red lips pressed in a thin line. “Do you have any idea what time it is?” Claire said in a low and threatening tone. I shook my head, swallowing the lump that had formed in my throat. “It's 10 am,” she said through her teeth. “You know the rules, Anila. Nobody is to stay in bed past 9.” “My alarm didn’t go off,” I told her, tugging at my fingers nervously and keeping my attention locked on the ground. “I got home from work late last night and—” “That’s not an excuse. You must finis

Anila POV “Gina!!! Get in here and help me!” Claire yelled throughout the house to my sister. I struggled against Claire’s stronghold, trying desperately to get to the door. But every time I tried to rip my arm out of her grip, her nails would dig into my flesh. Gina was rushing down the stairs and when she saw me, her eyes grew large and round. “What the—” She began to ask. “Help me get her to her room,” Claire growled, grabbing onto my other arm and making it impossible for me to move. Gina nodded and rushed toward me, grabbing a hold of my feet, and causing me to become airborne. I screamed loudly for them to release me. I screamed for help. I screamed for Xaden. I screamed until my throat had gone raw. But it was no use. Nobody could hear me. I was all alone and as Claire said, I was never going to leave. I was never going to be free. I was a true prisoner. They took me upstairs and they threw me onto the floor in my small bedroom. I hit the hardwood with a thump

Anila POV As soon as we left the plane, a car was waiting for us. The first thing I noticed about this new place was the warm air. The second thing I noticed was that it was so dark due to it being late at night, however, the big moon and the bright stars lit up our pathway as we walked toward the car. Butterflies assaulted my stomach as I slid into the backseat of the car; Xaden was close behind me, closing the car door once we were secured inside. The driver started to pull away without a single instruction from Xaden. I leaned my head against Xaden’s shoulder, inviting him to hold me. It didn’t take him long to get the hint and soon, I was wrapped in his warm arms once again. Within 5 minutes, we were arriving at the school and my mouth dropped open at the sight of it. It was like being transported into a whole different world. It had to be the biggest university I had ever seen. The stone archway, through the buildings, led to what looked like a long cobblestone drivew

Anila POV Heat rushed to my cheeks. “Do you normally talk about these things so openly?” I asked. “In front of everybody.” Before he could respond, Harley’s voice stopped him. “Look, I don’t want any part of whatever is going on,” he said, keeping his eyes fixed on the ground. He ran his hand across the back of his neck, and I saw that his face was flushed. “Xaden is my best friend and he’s an Alpha. I don’t want to compete for something I don’t fully understand. It’s all very confusing.” Harley seemed to be the rational one of the group. He was trying not to make eye contact with me, but it was a losing battle because once in a while, his honey-colored eyes would catch my wandering gaze and he’d hold it. “Thank you, friend.” Xaden’s response was clipped, his eyes softened as he looked at Harley. The Werebear shifted uncomfortably, but he nodded in head in response to Xaden. Zach, however, was acrimonious. “This is bullshit. I’m not backing down. Just because you met he

Anila POV Professor Howl’s brows knitted together as he stared at the fog that accumulated from the crystal ball. I could tell something was wrong, but my nerves prevented me from speaking. I looked up at Xaden’s whose eyes were fixed on the quartz and his jaw tensed. The white fog swirling within the crystal ball never cleared. The room was so thick with tension, that I could cut it with a knife. I felt my nerves fray as I struggled to keep my calm. The blankness of the crystal ball put me on edge, and from the look on Xaden’s face, he was on edge as well. Professor Howl clicked his tongue, releasing the ball and allowing it to clear, before taking a deep breath and touching it again. The same exact thing happened. Fog so thick you couldn’t see a damn thing. The professor made a curious hum as he shook his head, looking at an equally perplexed Principal Rapport. It was as if they had an entire conversation with just a glance of the eyes. Great, as if I didn’t stand out e