Nicklaus POV.
Before The Attack.

Out of a sea of many faces that will gladly end me, my unbeaten heart only drops for one—Claire, my firecracker. She is standing proud and tall in the middle of the crowd. Her shoulders are pulled back. Her head is held high, her chin is pointed towards the air. She shows no fear. You would think this human girl is the true superior. She is the beauty surrounded by beasts. It amazes me.

I'm standing a great distance away, and I can see how many of the wolves, humans, and lycans alike are watching her in awe. They are fascinated by my beloved. Her stance alone screams power. Her etiquette is better than that of the princess and queen of savage beasts placed together.

The lycan queen is even watching her closely. I can tell she is impressed but at the same time threatened by Claire's defiant nature. Every time the queen's cold green eyes lock with my firecracker's—soul-snatching green eyes—, Claire holds her stare with a wicked glare of her own. Whenever the lycan queen raises her beastly eyebrow in response to Claire's actions, my firecracker raises her delicate eyebrow right back at her. She's mocking her. It's extremely entertaining.

If I know anything about the queen of savage beasts, it's that she doesn't like to be challenged, but Claire is the one who challenges even the world's most dangerous predators. Trust me, I know.

Pride beams through me. My queen fears no one or nothing.

"Look at her," says Xander, sounding extremely proud.

"There is nothing else to look at," I reply.

It's true. Claire takes the cake, every time. She's the only person who has ever hooked my sight with one glance; and I have been around for a long time, a very long time. She pierced my soul with one look. Claire has me head over heels in love with her. She's my blessing after centuries of storms. I need her more than I need blood, and that's the only thing that keeps me alive. She is the air invading my lungs.

"What is your command, sire?" asks one of my men.

They have caught up with us hours after we met up with Commander Vlad.

Apparently, the magic of the princess of savage beasts isn't that strong. We have been here for a while, watching their every move. I have seen Claire multiple times since my arrival. I've been watching from the shadows, patiently waiting for the right time to strike.

It doesn't take long to realize that they are preparing for a festival. The dog's queen is back. Of course, they are celebrating. All hail the queen of ticks and fleas. Disgusting mutt. Tonight is the night I'm going to kill that bitch. She's going to be put down once and for all.

Everything has been going according to plan, except for the fact that I almost blew our cover. It was the moment that I saw the dog's beta touching Claire, placing his filthy paws on my beloved's treasured hands. My vision was quickly tainted with red, and the next thing I knew my mind was already crushing his bones with my power. Xander came to save the day, as usual, but not before that feisty and alert beloved of mine made eye contact with me.

She's truly very attentive to be a human, strangely enough.

She didn't react. (I don't think she trusts her intuition.) The wolves standing right beside me weren't even vigilant enough to detect my presence. Stupid mutts! I was right under their noses.

I turn to face the soldier that questioned me.

"Kill them all," I demand. "Spare no one with the exception of my chosen." We still haven't told everyone that Claire is the rightful queen. I only trust a few with that piece of critical information.

"No, capture as many humans as possible," Xander pipes up. "We will need blood to regenerate. Try not to drain them. They may come in handy on our way back to the city."

The soldier turns to face me.

I nod in approval and dismiss him.

This festival of theirs has truly made this operation a piece of cake. And thanks to the smell of burnt wood, they can't even smell us. We have been keeping a great distance. I have only come close to check on my beloved.

It was easy due to my holding the power to make many dogs turn blind eyes. It has only become difficult when those savage lycans arrived. They are all idiots, except the princess of the beasts. She truly has magic. It's almost impressive. Almost! I know they don't think we would just allow their assault to slide. It's just too easy.

"It's almost too easy," says Xander, as we walk into our positions.

"I was thinking the same thing. At least one thing is certain: They don't know who Claire really is to me. They won't have allowed her to roam around so freely."

"I don't know, Nicklaus," he replies. "Why else would the dog take her? It's the only logical explanation, unless . . ."

"Unless we are missing something," I say.

Xander stops in his tracks. "When I took Claire out of the dungeon, she was acting differently. At first, it was like she was afraid of me."

I almost choke on my tongue. My firecracker is not afraid of anyone.

"I also recall her saying," Xander continues, turning around to look at the she-wolf bitch, "Mecca is interesting." He turns back to face me.

"Yeah, and I recall Claire calling her beast woman, but that still doesn't explain—"

"It does," Xander cuts me off. His eyes flash crimson. "She called the mutt by its name, Mecca."

My eyes open with a new light. "She told Claire her name? That could only mean . . ."

"That she is fond of Claire," he adds. "She possibly even likes her."

"The guards found a blanket I sent down for Claire in the mutt's cell," I point out. "I didn't think anything of it." Then it hits me. "That's how she was able to attack you. Claire must have been feeding her, sharing her rations."

My blood starts to boil.

"Don't get mad, Nicklaus. Claire didn't know any better. It's in Claire's nature to help others in need. That's one characteristic that will make her a great queen."

This is why our family never loses a war. We are skilled thinkers—crafty—and Xander's mind alone is a great asset.

My red vision zeroes in on the bitch.

"I'm not mad at my beloved for helping that mutt. I'm mad at that mutt for using my beloved to get to my brother."

"Agreed," he says. His vision bleeds as well. "Speaking of which, you are going to claim Claire at once?"

My brother seems to be telling more than asking.

"My business with my beloved is my business," I respond. "You should be worrying about finding a second-chance mate and claiming her."

"Claire's safety and well-being are just as much as my concerns as they are yours, Nicklaus. The only way to truly protect her is to turn her. Claire's life will always be in jeopardy until you do so."

He's right but wrong. Claire's safety will always be in jeopardy regardless of whether she is a human or a vampire. There will always be a bounty placed on her head, may it be from either vampires, wolves, or any other supernatural creatures. At this point, no one would accept us being together. Even the hunters will be disgusted by our union. Too much damage has been done for anyone to accept our union.

Based upon my evaluation and some eavesdropping on some wolves' conversation, my little firecracker has made a name for herself. Humans and wolves speak highly of her, which means changing Claire will do more harm than good. The word will travel and an uprising by all species will start. I can't do that. To make matters worse, I don't even think that I can claim her without losing control. I may end her. My lust for her blood is strong.

Claire may have accepted our bond, but she will never accept turning into a creature that she calls a leech. Claiming Claire is just the first part of the transition. She will have to accept and acknowledge the bond completely to transition into immortality and become my true beloved.

If I know my beloved well enough and trust me I do, she will fight until her last breath, holding on to her humanity.

"If what you say is true about the mutt taking a liking to Claire, then that will make her the guest of honor," I tell him, changing the subject. The mutt will give a speech and then present a gift. That's when we shall strike."

I mind link with my men.

Hold off. I'll give you the signal when it's time to attack, I instruct.

"I thought you wanted to be on the outskirts to take Claire to safety," says Xander, raising his eyebrow.

My brother knows me all too well.

"I'm still taking her to safety, and I'm going to kill that bitch in the process."

*           *           *

Claire

Time seems to stop as the bullet travels in our direction. I can see it coming, literally coming our way. I'm in front of Mecca. Alpha Maddox is standing to my left side; King Luke to the right side of Mecca. Both of the wolves's eyes—Mecca's and Alpha Maddox's—are glowing yellow, but the lycan king's are glowing gold.

The bullet seems to curve. It's crazy that I can actually see the speeding bullet coming this way with my human eyes. It feels like hours before it actually gets closer towards us, but somehow someway I know it has only been a second. The bullet is inches away from me. It's going to hit me straight in the heart.

I feel Mecca attempt to move me out of the way, but her mate pushes her to the ground. My skin starts to tingle. My heart continues to pound rapidly, and my neck suddenly itches.

"No, I will not die like this. Stop, stop, stop!" I scream.

A bright emerald green electric light flashes, and an unknown force knocks me to my feet. The bullet falls right in front of me. Just like that. It drops.

I pick up the burning silver metal. It's hot, making my index finger feel like it's about to fall off.

"Fuck," I say, dropping the bullet. What in the world?

Instantly, the fighting begins.

"Sleep," says someone who is standing right beside me.

I turn my head to see the golden wolf bitch. She speaks, and suddenly one of the men in black that is inches away from me drops to his knees.

"That's for saving Mecca," she says to me, before shifting into her golden wolf and taking off.

How the hell did she get here that quick?

I turn back to face the crowd of chaos. Wolves are shifting. The men in black are charging. The fire behind me roars viciously, carrying the smell of burnt flesh and blood in the air.

Mecca shifts into her full-fledged wolf right before a man in black closes in on her. He knocks her, a great distance away from me, but she still manages to take him down. Her claws and massive teeth sink into his neck, ripping off his head in the process.

Ouch! I know that hurts.

The pure-white snow is now painted crimson, looking like a murder scene.

Alpha Maddox's big black wolf is fighting viciously beside Mecca. With one bite, his claws and scary sharp teeth rip off the heads of two men in black .

Yikes!

I search the crowd for anyone else I can recognize. It's hard to tell with so many wolves and men in black, killing each other off. My eyes then land on Beta Rendell, whose dark-brown—almost black—wolf jumps in midair just in time to save the she-wolf Farrah. He lunges at one of the men in black. His sharp teeth pull out the vampire's spine.

Now, that's just disgusting!

Farrah turns into a big light-grey wolf of her own. She rushes over towards another massive wolf of the same color. The enormous creature is already fighting off three men in black by itself. I assume it's her father from the way she's rushing to his rescue even though it's not like he needs it.

I can now see why the Wilde wolves are legends among the werewolves. He exceeds beyond expectations. He moves so fast. (I'm not sure how my human eyes are actually detecting him.) One minute he's ripping off one of the vampires's head, the next second his big wolf claws dig into a vampire's stomach and snatch their intestines out in the process. It sort of reminds me of the video of our world leaders being killed that I used to watch in school. The only difference is his torture lasts only a second, and his kills are clean and well executed.

Jeepers freaking creepers! This wolf is the true monster.

My heart starts to race and the fire sizzles behind me. The hair on the back of my neck stands, and a sudden eerie feeling rushes through me. Something inside me is begging me to turn around.

Call me crazy, but I follow my inner intuition. And that's when I see him. My eyes zoom in on Nicklaus. It's truly amazing how we are standing on a ground full of blood-smeared snow, falling trees, and dead bodies while the man behind the attack is still untouched. He doesn't even have a scratch. He is wearing a black sweatshirt, some black combat pants, matching black combat boots, and a black beanie.

Gosh, this man is dressed to kill and take hearts. Literally.

One minute he's far away, and the next he is already right in front of me. However, the king of vampire kings isn't the only king who appears out of nowhere. The lycan king roars, howling directly beside me.

Come on, how the hell do these lycans keep doing that?

Everything goes in slow motion again before my very eyes. The lycan king shifts into an enormous and scary silver-haired wolf. His fur is mesmerizing, almost hypnotic to look at. He jumps into the air, seconds away from pouncing on top of Nicklaus.

My heart drops for only a second, then my instincts once again take over.

"No, stop!" I shout.

Bright emerald-green electric light flashes once more, and an unknown force stops him in midair. And before my mind has time to truly process what the hell just happened, I feel a gentle hand being placed on my shoulder. An electric current zaps inside me, sparking me all the way down to the center of my core. I feel like I'm on fire, burning. The burning hot sensation speeds through my windpipe and then bursts out of my lungs. The wind rushes around me as I place my face against a rock-hard surface. The chill of the midnight air seeps into my bones. I'm being cradled and rocked, the wind breezeing through my hair. My skin still sizzles—Zap, zap, zap— chilling, cracking sizzles. It feels so good. I release a moan.

I'm cold but at the same time so warm, feeling extremely safe and secure. The shouts and screams from the crowd and the smell of blood, fire, and fear are all starting to go away. It's quiet, very quiet. I know for a fact I'm no longer standing where I was a second ago. I know for a fact I'm being ushered and carried away from the pack house. I know for a fact I'm not with a human, werewolf, or lycan. I know that I'm with him. He is holding me close to his chest. No one's touch has this sort of impact on me. The skin‑to‑skin contact makes me feel extremely hot and bubble on the inside, yet so cold and damn near freezing on the outside. I know it's him.

The wind stops rushing.

"Firecracker," says my one and only ass-kissing king. "Open your eyes," he says, his voice cracking in between words.

I'm too afraid to see him again. I still don't want to look into his soul‑piercing silver-cerulean eyes. I'm petrified to see those thick long eyelashes and his carefully carved heart-shaped lips. I'm terrified that I might want to kiss him and taste him again. I didn't realize how much I actually missed him.

I squeeze my eyes tighter. They are practically glued shut.

"Open your eyes, Claire," he says again.

This time he is commanding me to do so, but my eyes won't lift. Nope, I'm not looking at him.

Seconds later, I feel those beautiful heart-shaped lips smashing into my own.

Oh gosh. I moan. Magic pricks, seeps, travels and then rushes through my bones. And with a single taste of his tongue—boom!—the fire burns; the ice freezes. Together our lips and tongues feel frozen ice solid but hot as hell. I'm suffocating and gasping for air inside my mind.

His fingers travel through my hair at the same exact time as my fingers travel through his silky pitch-black hair. This is exactly what I was so afraid of. His kiss and his touch are enough to take over my mind. He's completely brainwashing me, with effortless pressure. He won—Nicklaus has completely taken my mind, body, and soul.

"Claire," his husky voice whispers, as he bites down onto my bottom lip. "Open your eyes now."

My eyes open, and as expected his eyes pierce straight into my soul like gray silver instead of their usual shade of cerulean blue. They seem to be watery as though he was crying, but I don't see a single tear. Regardless, they still place their invisible hooks inside my soul and snatch it out of my body. Then it enters his body, and he takes it as his own. We have become one.

In that moment I know that this vampire is my own. He belongs to me. I'm his beloved. Of that, I'm sure.

  <🌑>
Early update 😉 Please don't forget to hit that golden star ⭐️ comment and follow.