The force of the blow snaps my head to the side. A metallic taste fills my mouth, followed by a searing heat that blossoms across my cheekbone. Pain radiates through my skull. Beside me, Marlowe grunts. Her breath comes in short, sharp gasps as a wolf in human form relentlessly pummels her, demanding information about the Council, Leigh, the vampires—anything they need to know before Zeus officially declares war on Corona come sunrise.
The wolves’ frustration grows with each unanswered question. Their snarls echo in the vast darkness of the tent inside the Aurora Desert. But we remain silent. We need to hold out until Leigh meets with Zeus at dawn. Then, this nightmare will end.
A wolf guard’s claws dig into my scalp as he wrenches my head back. “Do you have a death wish?” he growls. His hot, fetid breath washes over my face. I taste bile.
I bare my teeth in a bloody grin. “Do you?” I taunt, my words slurred by my swollen jaw. I memorize my torturer’s face: his wide-set mouth and crooked teeth. Once free, he’ll be the first one I find.
Marlowe laughs before taking another hit. Her head flies sideways, and I wince.
The guard’s eyes narrow maliciously. “You know what will break you? Your little queen’s surrender. Zeus promised us that he’d give her to us as a reward after Alden marries her, securing the throne for Lua.” My bound hands clench into fists as he continues, “We’ll break her, make her scream, and beg until she’s nothing but an empty shell. And you’ll get to watch—force you to witness her degradation. You’ll see the light fade from her eyes and know you can’t stop it.”
A fire ignites inside me so intense it threatens to consume me. I strain against my bonds until my muscles burn, but I’m helplessly stuck. I force a laugh instead, choosing defiance where physical resistance fails me. They have no idea what they’re up against, no concept of the sheer power and determination that fuels Leigh’s every move. They won’t break her. She’ll fight tooth and nail before that day comes. Still, the image he’s painting is visceral enough to make my blood boil.
“Think that’s funny?” the guard snarls.
“No, what’s funny is your fa?—”
The blow comes, swift and brutal. I grit my teeth, refusing to give him the satisfaction of a groan.
Alden rises from his seat, where he’s been watching the guard beat me for the last thirty minutes, with a bored expression on his scarred face. “Enough of this. Prepare to bring them to the bridge. Let them see Leigh fail, and maybe they’ll learn to cooperate.”
As he drifts past me, I spit blood at his feet.Fucking coward.
Alden frowns, grabs me by the hair, and yanks me close, whispering, “Behave.”
I glare at him as he releases me, my voice filled with venom. “She trusted you.”
Alden’s laughter curls my upper lip. I jerk forward, but my guard grips the back of my neck with a vice-like hold and forces me to my knees. My eyes sting from the pain.
As I kneel there, I hold on to the flickering promise of a future where Leigh and I can be together. Where our world finds peace. I envision a future where people accept our relationship despite our different backgrounds, where we can be an example of what Corona could be like if Nebula and Epsilon stop fighting long enough to learn to coexist harmoniously. Leigh would be my wife, not Alden’s or anyone else’s.
She drives me nuts with her secrets, but her heart is pure, and it fucking belongs to me.
I refuse to let my life end before she tells me she loves me because I know she does. It’s a distant dream, threatened by each brutal blow from the wolves. Their relentless assault aims to break me, but I refuse to let go of that vision.
I cling to that dream like a lifeline, knowing that if I lose sight of it, I’ll be lost forever in this sea of pain. So, I hold on. I persevere. I keep that flame alive in my heart, no matter the agony.
Ultimately, this dream is all I have left, and I won’t let the wolves take it from me.
The sun risesin the east, its warm rays offering no solace as I cross the Charon Bridge to meet Zeus. Each step upon the ancient stone feels foreboding, like crossing the Death River into Hell itself. If I become Zeus’s prisoner, I’ll beg for Hell itself. If I don’t get Wilder back, I’ll crave death. Andif Alden betrayed me, absolutelynothingwill stand in my way. Did he not believe me about Desiree? Or did I underestimate his loyalty to his brother? It’s my word against Zeus’s, after all.
My friends and Eddo’s Blades flank me, their stances poised for battle, a silent promise that I won’t face the wolves’ wrath alone. The city’s innocent inhabitants who didn’t flee last night, including the Erinye sisters, hide behind closed doors. Ry is in position, in a building in East Aurora, ready to take down the wolves with his long-range rifle if negotiations go sideways.
Across the bridge, the wolves gather, some in human form, others as animals. Their heavy breathing mingles with the gentle lapping of the Cora River below, the only sounds in the morning silence. Even the birds refrain from their usual dawn chorus.
I lock eyes with Alden across the bridge. His expression is inscrutable, revealing nothing of his true intentions. My gaze shifts to his brother, Zeus, who is two inches shorter but no less imposing. His eyes are calculating beneath the hooded expression obscures his face. This is the man who orchestratedthe vampire attack on Tanith just to secure Alden’s cooperation. Saliva fills my mouth as disgust rises within me.
Such a monster doesn’t deserve to sit on my throne—a throne he’d stain with the same cruelty he inflicted on his own family.
“Glorious morning, isn’t it?” Zeus asks with false sincerity.
I force a smile. “You are here at the wrong time of year. I’m afraid summer has our best sunrises.”
Zeus quirks a brow. “Well, it is good that you are about to surrender your throne to us so I can visit whenever I want.”
I laugh. Surrendering to this pitiful excuse for a man is a joke. My fingers twitch to summon my magic, urging me to show him how unwilling I am to bend my knee. But I still have faith that Alden will ally with me.
Zeus looks behind me. “Are those useless numbers meant to intimidate me?”
