ina

gged. I focused on the throbbing pain in my head from the earlier blow and the ache in my body

he servant, Martha

ice to sound faint, barely audible throu

rtha's voice was annoyed but clos

ha's chambers," I lied, weaving another piece of lore from their own superstitious fears

didn't know the rules, but she knew the consequences of failure were severe

of the guards. They were scared. Scared of the dying Alpha, sca

d whisper. "Gareth will have our heads

icks peered in, holding a lantern. I was curled on the floor, shivering,

ce had lost its earlier contemp

ragile, cursed object that must be handled with care. We arrived at a heavily guarded wing of the manor. The

d aside. I was pushed into a spacious, luxurious bedchamber. Holly was left

of a massive four-poster

was breathtakingly handsome. He had sharp, aristocratic features, a strong jaw, and thi

a and the guards, my voice re

he ritual had made them compliant. They backed

alone with t

placed my fingers on his neck. His pulse was weak and thready. His skin was cold to the touch. This was sev

. Inside was a set of finely crafted silver needles. My one possess

. I was going to be his savior. And he

ected a needle, and prepa