“I’m going to rip your fucking hands off if you keep holding me like a dog!” William growled and, even though he was far away from him, down the hall, Hunter could clearly hear the commotion he was causing as he was taken back to his prison cellar. “Well, if you weren’t acting like a mad dog, we might treat you differently!” Isabelle retorted, and, if it weren't for the slight tremor in her voice, anyone would think she was talking to a random prisoner, not her own mate. “What are we going to do with this boy...” Felix muttered, clearly not wanting the wolves that were moving away from them to hear his concerns “I thought this offer might make him see reason and believe us, but... If even that wasn't enough...” “Hey, I don’t want to see you with that sad puppy face.” Octavia touched his chest, with that expression that anyone could mistake for annoyance, but was actually concerned “That boy may have a whole ocean of traumas trapped inside him, but none

"Are you okay?" Corinne's murmur reached Hunter as she stroked his arm, however, as much as he wanted to, he didn't look away from where his wolves were taking William from the chair where he had been chained for the last few days, always watched over by Aiden or, mainly, by Belle. "I will be. I just need to do it.” He squeezed her hand, needing to breathe in her scent for a moment “Just... Stay with me, okay?” "Always." Corinne promised, at the same moment his cousin was finally dragged towards them, with a furious expression and deep bags under his eyes making his face even darker. “What? Has the day finally come when you have decided that you will kill and end the threat to your sovereignty?” William spat, disdainfully “Are you going to tell your cat to get your hands dirty instead of you? That’s why you brought her?” “Corinne is my mate and the Luna of this pack, so be respectful.” Hunter growled, fighting to keep his temper under control

As she ran into the forest, with her tigress so excited she was about to break free, Corinne found herself thinking about how magic was something fascinating, but also scary. All her life, she had felt those intuitions that were like a needle in her bones, warning her when something bad was about to happen or when she needed to stay alert for danger. But perhaps because a part of her had always known that it was part of the magic in her blood, Corinne had done her best to ignore it all since she was a child, burying herself deep inside until those sensations were nothing more than pale reflections of themselves, dormant and weakened. But not now. It was like something was drawing her in, but not in a good way. Like a nerve in her body had extended a long distance and was now being used to pull her closer, causing agony that she could only get rid of when she found something... Or someone. “Stop!” she shouted, jumping in front of Hunter's wolf

“Oh, my dear…” Juliet lamented at her words, with a loving smile on her face, holding her youngest with just one hand so she could get closer and caress Corinne’s face “You were always the opposite of that woman. And always use this gift the Gods gave you for good.” “It’s very recent.” Corinne lamented, “I've spent years denying this and I still haven't even used this magic to do what really matters: freeing us from Seraphina.” “No, you are wrong.” her stepmother denied it, with tears in her eyes “For years I tried to bring Eli back to me, break that spell and make things go back to the way they were before, but I never succeeded. Not until you showed up. And I thought about it again and again over the years, but I could only come to one conclusion. It wasn't just my bond of partnership with your father that brought him back. Maybe it wasn't that at all. Was you." Juliet stroked her hair “That woman thought your magic was still dormant, but she was wrong. You wer

“Seraphina!” Corinne growled, with her fangs hurting as they grew, her tigress roared with the need to attack that woman, even though she knew she couldn't do it so carelessly. “Mother!” Diego shouted, too scared by her presence for who was the favorite son “I... I was about to guide her into a trap and deliver her magic to you! I just ended up going too easy on her because I still consider her my little sister, and...” “Knowing your nature, I believe you still haven't been convinced since our last conversation, haven't you, my daughter?” Seraphina took a step closer to Corinne, completely ignoring her other child. "You disgust me. You have always disgusted me, ever since the time you took me to that infernal chamber to torture a tiger in front of me for the first time!” Corinne spat. “And you always disappointed me, worrying about inferior beings like those instead of focusing on what really mattered: your magic.” The sorceress shook her head