Page 248 of Shifting Hearts 1
Steven chuckled, deliberately provoking her. “You don’t even know who he is, Natasha. You have no idea what he looks like.”
“Then I’ll kill every Supernatural I find,” she hissed.
She stormed out, and I had to follow.
Dread hollowing my chest.
In her room she threw a tantrum, ripping and smashing anything within reach. Cass’s warning followed her like a shadow, sharp and cold.
“Good. You want to kill me, fine. Come find me then,” I spat the words at her. “Because I’m telling you now; if you start killing innocents, Morgan, you’re right, this will never work.”
She kept smashing everything in sight until there was nothing left to break. When she finally ran away for a few days, it was the same old game, skulking off, trying to punish Cassandra for not giving her what she wanted.
She was a complete mess, and I had no idea how anyone could have controlled her. She wouldn’t have been like this if she remembered who she truly was. It wasn’t her fault. I remembered the beatings, the pain she endured, and every time I thought of it, my chest ached. Anger flared whenever I heard that witch lying to her. I had to make sure my rage was aimed at the right person, not at Morgan.
Eventually, she came back. Cassandra was there, spinning her latest “brilliant” plan; wolves for her coven, as if Morgan would be impressed.
Steven was gone again, likely to disappear for another decade or two.
I never thought I could hate him like this, but the depth of my loathing surprised me. And I knew, with a cold certainty, that it wasn’t going to fade this time.
Over the next few years,I came to truly despise her. The way she slaughtered the wolves, toyed with them, kidnapped their pups, and laughed as she burned them alive sent chills down my spine. She was pure evil. Yet, none of the pups survived, and every time, a part of me felt a grim relief. Still, I knew four of them might have made it.
Her sadism multiplied by twenty, and it became nearly impossible to hold onto the memory of who she once was. Cass was the one pulling the strings, yes, but the horrors—the terror she inflicted—were all hers. Cass hadn’t ordered her to terrify them. Every act, every scream, was her own doing.
I knew I would never look at her the same way again. And now I understood why she had kept this life from me. Witnessing it would change everything I thought I knew about her.
For now, I had no choice but to endure it. Sonia had tried to reach her, over and over, but even she eventually gave up.
Rumors said Darius wanted to leave, that he had hoped Sonia would go with him, but she stayed. There was still hope for my love, someone willing to fight for her. Heaven knew I was done. I didn’t want to fight for her anymore. I didn’t know how I could look at her and not see all of this.
Two more pups had refused the change. They had bitten Cassandra, their tiny tendrils trembling in terror. She stepped back.
“Morgan, no,” I begged, tears pooling in my eyes. But a smile formed on hers, cruel and unshakable. I fell to my knees, screaming, but she didn’t even flinch. She didn’t stop.
I heard the wails of the pups as they burned. She just stared, enthralled by the fire she wielded. Cassandra had left, but Morgan lingered, as if she couldn’t tear herself away from her own masterpiece. She crouched on her haunches, a predator surveying her work, while I tried in vain to block out the sounds. My whole body shook.
“How much more am I going to be forced to witness?” I cried. “I can’t handle this, Morgan. You’ll break me. Just stop… please. Just stop.”
“You should’ve just accepted this, you stupid wolves,” she sneered, rising to her feet. “Such fragile creatures.”
She left, and I was left with the smell of burnt flesh, the charred remains of the pups overwhelming the room. Numb, I followed her.
She was right. I should have listened. Truly listened. I didn’t know how I would ever be the same after this.
NINE
JASON
Bibi and Babilon were the first pair to finally make it. Morgan had raised them to be ruthless, but even they feared her fire. She was always the dominant one.
She made me sick.
I didn’t care anymore. The beatings weren’t enough. The marks on her back, they were deserved. My Morgan had died the day the Firebird woke.
I wished I could leave, wake up, and make it all stop before I truly hated her.
The stories had always been sugar-coated, but now I understood the reason to fear her. The reason to flee when she came too close. Now I knew why, she was looking for me, wanting to kill me.
