The first thing I noticed was the scent.
It was intoxicating, warm, dark, rich with sothing ancient and untad. It curled around like smoke, threading into my senses until I could no longer tell where it ended and I began. It wasn’t the cold stench of fear or the loud siren alarm like I was used to waking up to. No. This scent was all power, dominance, and sothing primal.
And it made my heart ache
My head throbbed as I opened my eyes, lids heavy like I’d been asleep for years. A dull pulse beat behind my temples, but I forced myself to blink through the haze. The room I found myself in was.... unfamiliar. Far too luxurious for a feral girl like
Dark velvet curtains frad tall windows that bathed the room in golden light. The walls were stone-gray, intricately carved, lined with gold accents. A chandelier glowed above like a sky full of stars, and the sheets beneath were silk—smooth and cool against my skin.
This wasn’t the academy hospital. This wasn’t punishnt.
I turned slowly, and that’s when I saw him.
Kieran.
Seated on a velvet couch, legs crossed, one arm draped over the backrest like he owned the entire world, and maybe he did. His crimson eyes were fixed on , unblinking, burning. Protective. Possessive
"Welco back to the world of the living, little wolf," he said, voice like silk laced with steel.
I stared at him for a second too long. The warmth of his scent was stronger now. I knew it had to be him.
I tried to sit up, groaning softly as pain rippled through my muscles. My body felt like it had been wrung dry and left to bake in the sun. But I needed answers. I needed to rember.
"The white room..." I whispered. "I was in the white room."
Kieran nodded once, the ghost of a smirk tugging at his lips. "You were."
My throat was dry. "You.... ca for . You defied Astrid Voss to get you out."
"I did." He stood slowly, walking toward with that sa smooth, dominant gait that made the air itself feel like it had to get out of his way.
I blinked. "But.... she gave strict orders."
"I don’t give a damn about her orders." He was close now, standing beside the bed, looking down at with those dangerous eyes. "You’re mine. No one imprisons what belongs to without my permission."
His words echoed through my mind, stirring sothing deep within ..... sothing I didn’t know how to na.
Then his voice shifted, low and curious. "Do you rember what you scribbled on the wall?"
My brows furrowed. "I.... not really. I just needed to do sothing. It was like if I didn’t move, I’d go mad. I didn’t even know what I was drawing. It was nonsense."
He shook his head. "It wasn’t nonsense."
I blinked at him.
"The symbols you drew," he continued, "were identical to the ones we found in Astrid’s secret room. The exact sa. Words written in an ancient language no one’s been able to decipher. And you..." his eyes narrowed, his voice sharpening with intrigue, "you recreated them, Lorraine. In perfect detail."
I stared at him, stunned. "That’s not possible..."
"And yet it happened."
My chest tightened. "But I don’t know that language. I’ve never even seen it before that day."
"Exactly," Kieran murmured, eyes locked on mine. "Which begs the question... why you?"
I swallowed hard. My pulse was racing. Nothing made sense. I had clawed those symbols onto the walls with raw fingers, not even knowing what they ant, not rembering doing it. But sohow, I had.
He studied in silence for a beat, then gave a low chuckle, though there was no humor in it. "You’re an interesting mystery piece, Lorraine Anderson," he said, his voice dropping. "And I can’t wait to unravel you."
I didn’t know what scared more, his words, or how much I wanted to know the truth too.
I shifted on the bed, the silk sheets rustling beneath as I tried to stand. That’s when I noticed.....
I wasn’t in my academy uniform.
I froze.
The clothes I wore were soft, far too comfortable, and far too unfamiliar. My skin felt clean, too clean. Soone had bathed .... and changed my clothes. My heart thudded in my chest, and my eyes slowly rose to find Kieran still watching from the chair, calm as ever.
"I..." I swallowed. "Who changed my clothes? Where.... are we?"
"This," he said, standing now, voice smooth as silk and twice as dangerous, "is my private suite.... in the feral dormitory." He started walking toward , slow, confident steps that made the floor feel like it shifted beneath him. "And as for your clothes..."
His gaze burned hotter as he looked over, unapologetically.
"Who else?" he asked, voice low, almost possessive. "Did you think I’d let just anyone touch what belongs to ?"
I blinked, horrified. "You changed my clothes?" My voice was breathless as I looked down at myself. "You cleaned up?"
"Yes."
My stomach dropped. "I’m not even wearing anything under this," I said quietly, tugging at the shirt. "You.... you took off my underwear?"
He tilted his head slightly and gave a nod like it was the most natural thing in the world. "I did."
I gaped at him, speechless, but he didn’t stop there.
"I saw all of you, if that is what you are wondering" he continued, each word deliberate, like a strike. He took a step closer. "Your skin, lined with scars. Your petite, perfect—" his eyes flicked to my chest before locking with mine again "—boobs."
I backed away, breath catching in my throat, until my knees hit the edge of the bed and I tumbled backward. Before I could land hard, Kieran moved fast, inhumanly fast, and caught . One arm cradled the back of my head, the other braced beside as we landed together, him hovering above now, caging in
I could feel the heat of him, the raw power simring beneath his skin. His breath ghosted across my lips, maddening and hot.
"If you’re worried I did sothing while you were unconscious," he said, voice low and dangerous, "don’t be."
His gaze didn’t waver. "It is pure cowardice to take a body when the eyes are closed."
I didn’t breathe.
"If I ever wanted you, truly wanted to have all of you, to claim all of your body...." he leaned closer, so close my heart slamd against my ribs. "You’d be wide awake. Staring into my eyes. Screaming my na." His lips brushed against my cheek, not quite a kiss, but enough to burn. "With your fingers digging into like I’m the only thing keeping you alive as I take all of you"
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