"Split into two!" The Vampire Queen's commanding voice echoed in my head, "We have to get the women and children in a safe place and safely guard the Luna Queen and her parents till they reach the Kingdom Borders."

It felt nice to know that she was thinking of us. Like I had said earlier, I could use all the help. My only aim was to keep my parents safe and get them to the Werewolf Kingdom before something worse happened.

But was she thinking that I would be leaving with my parents as well? I was going to stay here and fight with them.

I felt safe and assured when the Vampire Guards formed a protective circle around us. Only then, a small thought crossed my mind.

I wanted the 'real' vampires to take back the place they deserved - it was one of the ways in which the rivalry between both the kingdoms would disappear. It made me wonder; were Vampires and Werewolves enemies before Lazarus and his 'tainted' vampires came in power?

I was snapped back to reality when the guards behind us warned, "They are closing in on us. Our numbers are almost equal - we might have to call more for help."

Now a smaller circle was guiding us to the borders and my heart was thumping. No, I was not tired of all the running we were doing.

I was scared. Shitless.

For my parents, for these vampires, for myself. My mother was running next to me this entire time but all she was feeling was anticipation and optimism. Her wolf looked freaking gorgeous and I internally wished that I looked just like her, which was silly because I knew I looked entirely different, being a hybrid.

I wanted to remain just as optimistic as my mother.

"It's my faith in you, Cel. I know you won't let anything happen to us." Her words were like a balm, instilling confidence when I felt scared.

My father was still lying on her back, unconscious. I gritted my teeth while wondering what had those assholes done to him and the Vampire King to still be in such terrible conditions.

Everything was going to be fine and that was all I could assure myself.

A scream tore behind me and my head whipped around to check what was happening.

"Cynthia."

I stopped in my tracks, and then slowly turned around to find my mate standing there, looking at me with those same loving eyes with the same love brimming in them. I clenched my fists as my side, desperately wanting to ignore the tug my body felt towards him.

I was so ashamed that I was missing this bastard, already.

"What did you do, Cynthia?" He said, softly. "Why didn't you come to me even once? You jumped to conclusions."

My jaw fell and I looked at him incredulously.

My parents were a few feet behind me and were standing in between the protective circle the Vampires had made. They were away from Aiden and his ten cronies, but they were still waiting for me.

Run.

It was a command. My mother's paws immediately started moving again, and the guards left with them, respecting my decision to handle the ones in front of me. I just hoped that they reached safely within the kingdom without any obstacles in between.

It was dark around me, yet I could see Aiden's features clearly reflecting in the moonlight. It made him look handsome, but that did nothing to douse the flame that had been burning inside me.

"I jumped to conclusions?" I asked him, my tone conveying what I felt about his words, "What kind of lie can you spill about this, huh?" I pointed around me.

The guards that we had left behind were still fighting off the other vampires who had been chasing us then. Everywhere I could see that vampires were fighting each other - even the ones who had left to get the women and children to a safe place were back here.

"I told you not to go in the dungeon, didn't I?" His voice was still gentle, "I was going to tell you about them. And they are not what you think -"

"They are my parents, you asshole! What makes you think I would believe you over what they said?!" I had tried to rein in my anger, but it was rising now, "Hold your breath because I don't want to hear your lies, Aiden. I heard you then, Aiden, about how you were going to take them away from me because you knew my mother had called me."

My chest was heaving as I took in large breaths of air to calm myself down. Looking at Aiden was like remembering everything all over again; the time I spent with him, the way he charmed me all the time, his sweet gestures, the way I gave my body to him, and how I had found my parents in the cell.

My life was full of such elaborate lies that I just needed a break.

But now was not the time.

"Oh, so you were there. You heard everything."

That was all he said, and he looked deep in thought. I couldn't believe this man and whatever the fuck was going on in his head at this time. I wanted to go away from here, but I knew I was one against ten. If they wanted to catch me, they could easily do it without breaking a sweat.

I was trained, but I didn't have it in me to fight off so many highly trained vampires all at once - definitely not when along with those was my mate. He could still wield my body to do his bidding and I didn't want to be trapped in between my mind and body at such a time.

"We need to talk, Cynthia," He was insisting, "We need to talk this out. You can't let this go - you can't just leave and throw away what we have because of such a minor misunderstanding. We love each other, Cynthia."

He was not even pleading; he was talking to me calmly as if I was some petulant brat who was not understanding why things were done in which way.

"Minor misunderstanding? Are you seriously fucking out of your mind, Aiden?!" I had had enough of him and I didn't want to be here anymore. I wanted to go back to my Mom, my Papa and forget about everything I shared with this man.

Everything that disgusted me, now.

"You know what?" I steeled my posture, "I'm not doing this with you anymore. I'm done with you. You can forget that I'll ever be with you. You lied to me for months when you actually had my parents with you. Not just that, they had been treated horribly, kept as prisoners so that you could use them for your own fucking greed! I don't know what you got by doing that, but you're surely not getting me and my parents anymore!"

A sinister smirk crept up his face, "What makes you think I'm going to let you go, my love?"

A shiver crept up my spine in that moment. I saw the vampires that were standing next to him had now started to circle around me, watching me carefully like the predators they were.

For a moment, I wanted to cry for what was happening with me. I was scared because I had never been in such a situation before. I didn't even know if I would be able to ward all of them off with whatever strength I had. Then the thought of them getting hold of me frightened me even more.

I had no idea what Aiden would do to me if I didn't leave as soon as I could.

"I tried, Cynthia. I tried to calmly make you understand why leaving is a bad idea. But it seems like you've left me no other choice than to force you to come with me. Your parents are not in our hold anymore, so how do you think we'll be able to feast on the blood we want. I need your blood now, love, and I'm not letting you slip away from me so easily."

My anger had reached its limit. But I could see that my mate's cruelty knew no bounds.

It had not become a matter of me simply running away from that asshole. It was now about me protecting everyone. If he caught me, then he would have access to my blood, and I didn't know what repercussions it would have if that happened. I didn't know why these vampires had needed to drink PureBlood blood at all but I had come to the conclusion that this was behind the bifurcation between the 'tainted' vampires and the pure vampires.

"You will let me go, Aiden. If you really did love me, you will let me go back to my parents." I said, immediately regretting the tactic I used.

His eyes glinted while he replied to me, "I do love you, Cynthia, so much. But I need your blood more, and that is why I cannot let you go, my love. You'll come back with me and pay for the mess you have created, with your blood."

I wanted to cry.

My heart broke into pieces and I knew I was right to regret what I had said earlier. I couldn't believe I had let myself be charmed by this selfish bastard, even after I had been treated badly by Adrian.

I had imagined a future with this man and it killed me to think that I would have remained in the dark if my mother didn't call me. I would have mated with him, had a child with him, and then I thought how it would have been if I learnt about the truth at a later point in life.

I thanked the Moon Goddess that moment, and my mother. Thankfully, it wasn't too late for me. I had given my heart and body already and didn't want to lose more.

Now all I had to do was run away from here. The fight was hard and I prayed Adrian reached here soon. Just a look around and I knew that we were fighting a losing battle. These 'tainted' vampires had a lot of strength compared to the pure ones and were more trained. The ones I had just freed were not prepared for such a huge battle and that too with the ones who had already defeated them once before.

"I'm not going with you." I spoke, "I'd rather die than be anywhere near you, Aiden. I had never thought I would hate a person so much but you proved me so fucking wrong. You are a two faced bastard and you're not even the slightest bit ashamed of what you've done to me." I gritted out and clenched my fists at my side.

"Then you've left me with no choice, my love." His eyes hardened and a shiver crept up my spine.

Not a moment later, the vampires that were circling around me slowly started closing up on me. I turned around in panic, trying to find a way out of the situation I was in but found none. They were too many and I had no help.

I sent another call to Adrian, hoping at least someone came to save me from here. I didn't even know if my parents had reached their destination or not, and I was slowly losing my sanity.

I shifted.

It was involuntary and of no use, Cynthia and Celeste shifted me as a last resort to a hopeless situation and I hoped it at least worked for a while.

My Bloodwolf was much stronger than I was in human form.

And it did.

All of them were so surprised at my sudden shift that now it was easy to attack them and catch them off guard. My mind ran by my instincts and it was more like Cynthia and Celeste getting hold of my reins.

I was standing on four paws, pounced on the nearest vampire I found, ripping his head off his body. Not even the slightest bit of remorse filled me at the thought of killing that man who had been an acquaintance all these months.

Just as fast as lightning I had beheaded two more vampires and I was slowly starting to like this taste of blood in my mouth, the satisfying snaps of the necks of those who tortured my parents and the lifeless that stared back at me.

And that was how my killing spree started. My Bloodwolf snarled, hungry for blood and I felt the need course through my veins. Soon I was warding off seven vampires who tried to get me in control while I sunk my teeth in flesh, wherever I found it. I loved the pained groans of the men who were fighting me off them now, afraid of the monster I had suddenly become. I was unstoppable, merciless, ruthless and Aiden kept watching me as if he was in awe.

His time would come too, soon.

The seven vampires were now dead, lying around me like trash and I howled for celebrating my small, but nonetheless important victory. I looked around to find the one I desperately wanted to kill...

But Aiden was nowhere to be found.

I suddenly spotted a group of vampires warring, and immediately ran towards them, thirsty for more and more blood. The vampires whom I had saved once again were now trailing behind uselessly while I went on killing vampires after vampires who came in my path and happened to be the ones who had kept my parents away from me for so many years.

My blood was singing in my veins as the taste of those vampires' blood became familiar to my tongue. I was out for revenge, killing everyone in my way and leaving them to be burned by those who were trailing behind me.

Suddenly a mighty shove caught me off guard and I lost my footing. Two sharp fangs sunk into my flesh, deep till my bone. I whined loudly, and soon the adrenaline that had been driving me started fading away. I had already lost my energy to the Healing, and now with my adrenaline leaving me, I was no longer able to gather the energy to stand up.

The vampires who were with me were now fighting off others but my vision was getting blurry.

"I would have killed you, but I need you alive, PureBlood." He laughed at me. "Where's the spirit now?" He taunted, "Come, fight with me."

But I couldn't. I couldn't move a limb and could only pray that either someone saved me, or I died somehow. I felt like my limbs were dissolving into the ground, and my whole body was going numb.

I didn't want my blood to be used by selfish bastards in any way. I needed to get up somehow, find my willpower and stop fucking whining and lying on the ground uselessly.

But he was advancing on me, and I was afraid that soon this all would be over. He would have me, my blood, and I would never see my parents again.

His smirk was still there, and I was whimpering, wanting to cry at the sudden feeling of despair that gripped me.

I was going to die.

Out of nowhere, Lazarus was taken down by a blur of black fur.

I would remember that wolf anywhere. Hope filled me again, along with the love I felt for the new creatures entering the battlefield.

Adrian. He was here. My mate was here to save me.

Oh Goddess, I loved him so much.

Another beautiful wolf was at my side in an instant and looked down at me with concern.

Oh God, I hoped she wasn't mad at me.

She affectionately rubbed her muzzle against my neck and I felt her energy seep into me. Tears pooled in my eyes as I remembered the day I first met her and she had done the same thing when she was perched on my back and we were running away from Lazarus. And then I remembered all the things she had done for me and had been my best friend when I had no one else by my side.

"Everything will be alright." She said, softly comforting me the way she used to. "Your parents are with Malcolm, Melissa, Mercy and the other healers. Don't worry about them." She mind-linked me an image of my mother in her parents' arms and I was now more relieved than ever.

I had other vampires at my side, guarding me, and I somehow shifted back with whatever energy I had left in me. I snuggled more into Liana and suppressed the urge to cry for what was happening around me.

But I wanted that large black wolf to cuddle.

The large black wolf was ferociously attacking Lazarus. Through the numbness, Adrian still managed to create a chaos of feelings within me. I hoped he wasn't hurt; I prayed that he won over him so that we could go back to my parents soon. It was weird and different for everyone to see vampires and werewolves side by side, battling a common enemy.

I wanted to be there with Adrian, and fight alongside him to make sure he wasn't hurt at all. But then the Vampire Queen joined him in taking Lazarus down and suddenly I started feeling a lot better. I was relieved that he wasn't alone anymore, and suddenly I could see that we were winning.

The spirits were high, and Adrian was ready to devour Lazarus inch by inch. The Vampire Queen was just as thirsty for him, and I could see the glint in both of their eyes which showed how they wanted for Lazarus's life to end.

Adrian and the Queen fought in perfect synchronization which was a delight to watch. Lazarus was slowly growing desperate and tired; he looked around for help but everyone was busy fighting off others and he was left alone to deal with two high order species.

A last blow to his gut was Adrian sent Lazarus down on the ground, struggling to stay alive, let alone stand up and fight again. Adrian pounced on top of his body, and I could see that Lazarus was frightened, watching his life end in front of him.

"Alpha King Adrian," the Vampire Queen called out and everyone turned towards her, "I know he had wronged us all and we all are thirsty for his blood. I immensely appreciate the help you offered to us, but I would like to be the one to kill him," a slow victorious smile crept up her face, "And of course, with the help of your Luna Queen." She nodded towards my barely covered body that was snuggled into Ana, Liana's wolf.

Adrian was happy with the decision and he was right in front of me in another moment. He looked just as eager to be with me as I felt on the inside, hope blooming in my chest.

I loved him, even after everything that happened to us.

He crushed his lips to mine, and I was home. If I hadn't been so number, I wouldn't have let him pull away from me so quickly.

I was limp in his arms, but he was holding me as tightly as if I would immediately slip from his hold if he loosened his hold on me. I was a puddle in his arms and I felt extremely comforted right there.

"I was so scared, Moon. Nothing can prepare me to ever lose you - and now that I was so close, I don't want to let you go. Please, tell me you're alright." He spoke against my mouth, his forehead pressed against mine.

Yes.

In some movements that I couldn't comprehend, I was suddenly clothed and standing in front of Lazarus who was brought to his knees and was held by both arms by two vampires. It was easy to see that he had no fight left in him – well, neither did I.

"We wouldn't have been here without you, Luna Queen. You freed us, called the wolves for help, and have restored the rightful rule in our Kingdom. I hope that someday I can elaborate and explain to you the entire story so that we could convey the extent of the gratitude we feel for you."

There were cheers and howls all around us, the air filled with strong emotions of happiness, victory and freedom. Every eye was on me and all of them were full of pride.

I suddenly felt shy. All the attention I was getting was flattering, especially the pride that surged in Adrian's chest. I felt giddy that finally all of this was over and I could at least have some semblance of a peaceful life. I could start over with my parents, get some space from this world so I could finally figure what I wanted and then live my life the way I wanted to.

"The prophecy was right and we are saved. We can live peacefully because of you, and that is why we want you to burn the body of this abomination while I behead him." She said.

Again. What was the prophecy?

Adrian was supporting me the entire time it took for the process, both physically and emotionally. I watched him Lazarus scream in pain, and then watched fascinated as his body began to burn away.

I tried not to remember the good times, and that was the hardest.

And then, my mind came back to one person and I realized that someone was missing. My eyes widened in panic and I was stricken with fear – how could I fucking forget him?

And then I blurted out. "Where's Aiden?"