Chapter 132
Chapter 132
-Unknown-
Who are you?
It was silent in my head them, but I could have sworn I heard someb*dy calling to me. Someone had
touched my mind, dug their nails in anul begged me to remember. Remember what?
Who was it Someone important. Someone precious. Someone couldn’t bear to let go of. But their voice
was gone, as had never been there. And I was left with an overwhelming feeling of loss, an all-
consuming grief that nearly drove me to tear out the heart that caused me so much pain.
Who are you?
My own memories gave no answer. There was nothing there but me. My mind was a sprawling, dark
space, devoid of light, of life. Whe am 1
“Venette” Are you awake, dear?” An unfamiliar voice coaxed me to consciousness.
Topened my eyes to see a ceiling I didn’t know. The voire called again, and lifted my head to see a
strange, pale woman peering at me from the doorway She stiled slightly when she caught my eye and
hastily entered, shutting the door behind
her.
“You slept in today, are you feeling alright?”
I sat up slowly, taking in my surroundings. I was in a room I didn’t recognize, in a lavish bed fit for a
king. Next to the bed was a stall cot, and I could see the tousled red hair of a sleeping child poking out
from under the blankets.
Who’s that? Was that me speaking? Even my hoarse voice felt unfamiliar. My throat hurt like I’d spent
the night screaming.
I put a hand to my throat. The skin there felt raw and tender to touch.
eyes looked so sad that I wanted to reach out and comfort her. “That’s
The woman looked over at the sleeping child. Her ey your son. Don’t you remember?”
“My son?” That felt right somehow. I felt a connection with the small child who slept soundly under the
covers. But the woman’s next words made me shiver slightly, for reasons I couldn’t understand.
“Caius is waiting for you downstairs. Your husband.”
1 frowned, looking down at my hands in my lap. Why did that name make my skin crawl? I rubbed my
eyes, racking my brain for information. But there was nothing
The woman perched on the bed beside me and cupped my check in her hand. “You’ve had a terrible
fever these past few days. Perhaps it has affected your memory.”
Her lips parted like she wanted to say more, but she shook her head and pulled her hand away,
straightening up and brushing her palms on her skirt. “Not to worry, they should come back to you
eventually, Would my lady like some breakfast!”
“No I struggled to speak, wrestling internally with the strange emotions that raged in my chest. “No, I
want-
I want to hold him one more time.
pressed a fist to my forehead, scrunching my eyes closed as I searched for words that wouldn’t come.
Hold who? Why was there such a painful longing within me?
“Poor thing. The woman kept her hands behind her back this time, shifting uncomfortably from one foot
to the other. “I’ll get you some water.
The woman stepped out and I was left with my thoughts. I couldn’t understand it, but something felt so
very wrong. The answer to all of my questions lay on the tip of my tongue, but when I tried to bite down
it was gone. I couldn’t bury my teeth. into anything solid.
I looked up when the woman returned, accompanied by another new stranger. This figure was a man,
white hair framing his sharp features.
The man looked at me with what could only be described as unabashed pride. He flashed me a smile,
almost smug as he strode toward me. “Ah Venette, you’re finally up”
I stiffened when he gripped my chin, peering into my eyes like he was searching for evidence of
something. With his face close to mine, he asked, “Do you know who I am?”
My eyes darted to the woman behind him. But she merely hung her head. Meeting the man’s gaze, I
gave a half-hearted answer, “Caiud My husband.”
The words felt blocky and wrong on my lips.
The man smiled broadly, planting a quick k*ss on my forehead that had me shrinking away from his
touch. “So you do remember. What a relief. You’ve been quite unmanageable over the last few days,
I’m glad to see that the fever has passed.”
“I was sick?” I leaned away from him, breathing a quiet sigh of relief when he stepped back.
“Yes,” he shook his head, berating me like one would scold a child. “You made life very difficult for
everyone, throwing things around and kicking up a fuss. But you’re better now, and have a surprise for
you.”
I corked my head to the side, eyeing him auspiciously. “What kind of surprise?”
The man, Caius, tossed his head back, flicking his hair over his shoulder. “We’re going to be executing
a traitor in three days’ time. The man is quite a celebrity among these parts. Once he’s out of the
picture, we will finally be in full control of this
Jan 20
Jand
“What did this traitor d do
Caius narrowed his eyes at me. “He questioned my rule, he conspired against me. If it weren’t for me,
he would have killed you. For that, he has to die”
I don’t know what came over me, but I was driven to know more about this alleged traitor. What had he
done to hurt me?
Caius took my hand then, and 1 forced down the compulsion to pull away. “And when he’s gone, I’ll
finally make you my true queen. You will belong to me, mind, b*dy, and soul.”
1 didn’t like the sound of that. Something in my chest howled that every part of this was wrong, wrong,
wrong. But it was his next words that stopped my heart.
“By the summer solstice, you will be my Luna, and Ignatius Armpundt will be dead”
Something in me broke. It was a violent rupture that had me hunched over and pressing my clenched
fists over my heart, Cauis drew his hand back in disgust, storming out of the room while I wept
inconsolably for a man I did not know,
-Calus-
“It’s not working” I raged, slamming my list against the wall while Haedin looked on in bemusement.
I pointed a finger at the dark-eyed vampire. “Your sister’s abilities aren’t as good as you promised! That
damned mutt way crying for her mate! I thought you said she wouldn’t remember anything!”
Hardin merely shrugged, distracted by the fabric that he twisted in his hands. He’d taken it from the This text is property of Nô/velD/rama.Org.
home of that shifter he was so interested in. It was all he had until we could to track her down.
He had been more than a little upset to learn that both her and her she-wolf lover had escaped our
ambush at the Khall
Now, he brought the fabric to his nose, inhaling deeply with eyes closed like it was some kind of
intoxicating drug. To Hardin, it probably was. The vampire executioner had always been a little
unhinged. Even without his talent with necromancy, he would still make people uncomfortab
Irritated, I lifted a blade from my pocket and lobbed it in his direction. The glinting blade wedged itself
into the wall next to his head, quivering slightly while Haedin slowly opened his eyes
“There’s no need to worry, sire,” he said lazily, tugging the blade from the wall. “Enna has only just
begun. The she wolf’s memories are gone. Now it’s time to start planting new memories. These things
take time.”
I was unconvinced. I folded my arms, baring my fangs when the vampire began carving runes into the
desk in front of him. “She still loves him.”
Maybe so,” Hardin continued nonchalantly, twisting the dagger into the smouthed wood, but those
feelings can be redirected. Have patience, Stre, it won’t be long before that she-wolf is the perfect,
obedient bride.”
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