Vivian Grey’s POV

"Why do you keep thinking someone’s trying to take me away from you!?" I snapped, voice rising, raw and furious. "No one even likes me, Zaliver! Your pack avoids me like I carry some deadly disease. They’re scared of you. Scared you’ll snap their necks if they so much as say hello. You have no reason to act like this. It makes no damn sense! I’m still shocked you even like me!"

I was breathing hard, chest heaving, the frustration spilling out before I could stop it.

His face didn’t change, but his eyes, something simmered beneath that icy surface.

"They stayed away from you because I told them to," he said evenly. "I gave them that order. Do you know why? Because the moment they saw who you really are, how gentle, how radiant, how kind you are inside and out, they’d want a piece of you. They’d want your friendship, your time. And that would mean less of you for me."

He stepped closer, the intensity in his voice rising with every word. "You underestimate how much I crave every part of you. Your voice. Your thoughts. The way your eyes light up when you’re annoyed. I want everything, your body, your pleasure, your time, your fears. All of it, Vivian. All of you."

His confession caught me off guard. My chest tightened.

I had definitely underestimated how deep his obsession went. It was oddly sweet, in a twisted way. But it also made it clear that Zaliver had demons. And I wasn’t sure love alone could silence them.

"Okay," I said, softer now, trying to keep us grounded, "but just because people like me doesn’t mean they’re trying to take me away. And I sure as hell wouldn’t leave you. You’re my mate, Zaliver. My crazy, possessive, slightly deranged mate who probably needs professional help, maybe a long vacation with a therapist or two."

His lips quirked upward, but his tone turned cold again. "That’s touching, really. But you’re getting marked, whether you agree to it or not."

My blood ran cold.

"You remember what I said before? ’Something you won’t enjoy, but I will’? Well, this is it."

I took a step back. "I won’t forgive you for this," I warned, voice trembling despite how hard I tried to keep it firm.

"I’m fine spending forever earning your forgiveness," he replied without hesitation. "Because after this, you’ll be mine. Completely. Irrevocably." He tilted his head. "Got any ideas on how I could win you over afterward? I was thinking, maybe flying in your parents for a visit? You’d like that, wouldn’t you?"

My stomach twisted. Gods, that was low.

The thought of seeing my parents again sent a pang of longing through me. But knowing he’d use them after he’d taken my choice away? That he’d bring them into a world where I was already changed?

It broke something in me.

"You can’t do this," I begged, panic finally cracking my voice. "You can’t mark me against my will. I’m not ready for this. I don’t want to change, Zaliver. Please. What’ll happen to my wolf? What if I lose her?!"

He didn’t answer right away. Instead, he began slipping off his pants with calm, deliberate movements, leaving only black underwear between him and his shift.

"I can. And I will," he said simply. "I’m sorry you don’t want this, but it’s not as bad as you think. There are perks. Immortality. Power. Me, at your side, forever. You and your wolf, she won’t be gone. Not completely. You’ll have time. A week, maybe two. Then the changes begin."

He crouched, muscles coiling, body preparing to shift.

"No. No! No! Please, don’t do this!" My voice cracked as desperation clawed its way up my throat.

Inside me, my wolf whimpered in fear. Real fear.

And for once, she agreed with me.

Run.

His body began to tremble violently.

At first, it was subtle, just a twitch in his muscles, but then it escalated. His skin rippled unnaturally, as if something powerful clawed its way to the surface from deep within. Coarse black fur surged from beneath his skin like wildfire. Bones cracked loudly, sharp and sickening, making my stomach turn as his entire frame began to morph before my eyes.

He grew larger. Taller. Leaner. The shape of him stretched unnaturally, limbs elongating until his feet had shifted into powerful paws and his hands twisted into clawed weapons. His handsome face, the face I was just yelling at, contorted and elongated, his nose and mouth forming into a sharp, menacing snout.

His thick black hair thinned out, merging with the dark fur spreading rapidly across his skull. Two pointed ears rose from his head, twitching slightly as if testing their new form. Then came another gut-wrenching crack, his ribs expanding and contracting, widening to accommodate the massive beast he was becoming.

It was terrifying. Savage. Yet, in some haunting way, beautiful.

More graceful and primal than any werewolf transformation I’d ever seen or heard of. It was raw power layered with ancient magic. The kind that whispered of bloodlines older than memory itself.

The creature rose to its full height.

Even from this distance, I could tell it was enormous. Easily larger than Zaliver’s already intimidating human frame. My heart thundered. The air around us thickened.

But then, the beast looked at me.

And I froze.

Those eyes. Those unmistakable, soul-piercing blue eyes. Zaliver’s eyes.

For a moment, they locked with mine, and I couldn’t look away. It was him.

I shook my head in disbelief, but it was no use. I couldn’t lie to myself. His eyes darkened slowly, the way the moon fades into shadow during an eclipse, blue giving way to blackness. I felt like something precious was being stolen from me.

And I ran.

I spun and bolted into the forest, heart pounding, branches slashing at my arms and legs. I didn’t even think. My body just moved, driven by pure survival.

Then the growl came.

It was so loud, so deep, it rattled through the earth and climbed straight into my bones. My knees almost buckled from the weight of it. That wasn’t just a sound. It was a command. A declaration.

Do not run, mate. I’ll be chasing you.

Visit and read more novel to help us update chapter quickly. Thank you so much!

Report chapter

Use arrow keys (or A / D) to PREV/NEXT chapter