Chapter 115 AYE The prisoner lay crumpled against the chains, his lip split and swollen, blood dripping from the corner of his mouth where Alexander’s fist had landed only moments ago. He coughed wetly, his chest rattling with every breath, but his eyes still burned with defiance. Alexander stood over
Chapter 114 FAYE I walked into the council chamber. Around the long table sat Alexander, Cole, Kyle…who looked like he’d been dragged through the pits of hell and barely stitched back together…and a few other warriors whose faces mirrored the weight in the room. Their voices hushed when I entered.
Chapter 113 Chapter 113 ALEXANDER Claim The light from the moon didn’t soothe; it scraped. It pressed through stone and iron as if the sky itself wanted in. I’d felt it coming for days… a tightening under my ribs. Adrian paced the edges of my mind with a hunger that
Chapter 112 Chapter 112 FAYE The night of the full moon in Blood Crescent was supposed to be a night of joy, unity, and tradition. Laughter rang through the clearing, wild and free, rising with the sparks of bonfires that lit up the woods in shades of orange and gold.
Chapter 111 FAYE Claim For a long moment the room felt too small for the weight of the choice he’d just thrust at me. I blinked, hearing the blood in my ears. “Me?” I asked, because the idea of spelling out someone’s punishment… deciding the shape of their days, the
Chapter 110 FAYE I sat curled on the couch in my room, my knees pulled tight against my chest, my eyes staring blankly at the far wall. The day had been a storm I couldn’t seem to step out of, and even now, wrapped in the silence of my room,
Chapter 109 FAYE Every elder, every council member shifted uneasily in their chairs. Alexander let the silence stretch for a heartbeat longer, then spoke again. “As much as this discussion is important…your concerns, your arguments…I believe it is only fair that you all see something first. Before we go any
Chapter 108 FAYE The council chamber was suffocating. The walls seemed to close in as the elders bickered back and forth, each voice dripping with judgment and suspicion. They weren’t even hiding it anymore…every sentence was laced with the same accusation: that I didn’t belong here. I sat there, listening,
Chapter 107 Chapter 107 a stood among the trees with her father again, her arms wrapped tightly around herself as though the chill in the air had seeped beneath her skin. She hated these meetings. She hated the secrecy of them, hated the way her father’s sharp eyes bore into
Chapter 105 FAYE The silence stretched for so long I thought Alexander wasn’t going to answer me at all. He sat there with his hands resting loosely on the wheel, his jaw set, his eyes fixed on the empty stretch of road ahead. I turned toward him, trying to steady
Chapter 104 Chapter 104 FAYE Claim Alexander drove in silence, his hand steady on the wheel, eyes forward like he was counting every thought in his head before speaking. It wasn’t until we were well outside Blood Crescent territory that he finally pulled the car to the side of the
Chapter 103 Chapter 103 FAYE I woke to the soft quiet of my room, the faint warmth beside me long gone. My hand instinctively reached across the bed, brushing against nothing but cool sheets. Alexander must have already gone to his office. For a moment, I just lay there, staring
Chapter 102 FAYE The water had long since cooled, but I didn’t move. I just sat there in the bathtub, knees tucked close to my chest, watching the ripples fade as I shifted slightly. My mind was too loud to let me enjoy the bath anyway. All day, the same
Chapter 101 Chapter 101 ALEXANDER My heart had broken when I saw her in that dungeon. The cold stone walls. The damp pressing in. Her figure small in that dark place. The sight was enough to carve me open from the inside out. She didn’t belong there. And I blame
Chapter 100 FAYE Claim The damp chill of the dungeon seeped into my skin the longer I sat there, the rough stone pressing into my back like it wanted to remind me where I was. My hands trembled, not from fear…at least, that’s what I told myself…but from the cold.
Chapter 99 Chapter 99 Cole’s jaw was tight as he watched the guards seize Faye by the arms, dragging her out. Without wasting another second, Cole pulled his phone from his pocket and dialed Alexander’s number. He kept his eyes fixed on the doorway where Faye had disappeared, his other
Chapter 98 I slouched a little in my chair, trying not to make it obvious that I was fighting the urge to yawn. These elders could talk about absolutely nothing for hours and still manage to make it sound like the fate of the world depended on it. I didn’t
Chapter 97 I stayed standing in Alexander’s room even after the call with my mother ended, the silence thick between us. My phone screen had already gone dark, but I still stared at it for a moment as though I could disappear into the reflection. I had lied. Boldly lied.
Chapter 96 Chapter 96 Maya sat stiffly on the stool opposite her father, her head bowed, hands folded tightly in her lap as if bracing herself for an inevitable storm. Gerald leaned against the table, arms. crossed, his eyes narrowing as he studied her. He had spoken already, but Maya
