Page 76 of A Crown Without Mercy

Sylvana motioned dismissively toward Calista and then looked at Klyn again. “Why do I need to wear the outfit?”

“It would be a politechoice.” He winked.

“Whatever. I’ll be back.”

“I’ll be waiting.”

Sylvana and Calista headed back into her chamber and Sylvana pulled out the clothing and dressed.

“Damn.” Calista walked over and ran her hands over the fine material. “I would steal this from you if I had anywhere to wear it,” she joked.

Muriel awoke feeling as though she had been beaten from head to toe. She glanced around her new home and studied the modest surroundings. The bodies of two rabbits hung from the hearth above the glowing embers, while various pelts hung from the walls and the room smelled of aged wood and smoke; the only furniture other than the bed was an old wood table, two chairs and an armoire.

Lupine walked over and sat next to her. “How do you feel?”

“Tired. My entire body hurts, and I remember nothing.” She ran her hands down her face, sat up, draped her legs over the edge of the bed, and noticed her soiled feet; it was as if she had been running barefoot through the forest. “What happened last night?”

“After you turned, we ran with our pack until dawn.”

“It’s over then?”

“Yes. Your new life begins today.”

“What’s next?”

“We will figure it out, but for now, you need to return home and allow Alaric to escort you to the ceremony, as if nothing has changed.”

“It wouldn’t feel right.” Muriel sighed.

“You don’t have a choice. If anyone discovers we have mated, the Guild will force us to stand trial. Their archaic way of thinking has withstood time and reason, and they will tighten the noose around or necks.”

“Maybe Sylvana would speak to the Acherons? She has been spending time with them.”

He laughed aloud. “Tell me you aren’t naïve enough to believe she is more to them than their next conquest?”

“I don’t know what to think? But I know she would never be someone’s whore.”

“She will be whatever they want her to be.”

“I am supposed to be helping her find information regarding her mother.”

“Muriel, you are a predator now and you need to leave your family and friends behind. Whatever you were conditioned to believe in as Nosferatu, no longer applies.”

“What do you mean?”

“Did I stump you?” he chuckled.

“It’s not funny, Lupine. How do I simply stop being Nosferatu and become the wolf?”

“You stopped being Nosferatu the moment you changed. You can’t be both. It’s not possible.”

“I’m confused, is all. It’s as if the life I have lived is already fading from my mind.”

“It’s normal and soon the wolf will take over your mind as she did your body.”

“I don’t know if I am fully prepared to walk away from everyone and everything I’ve ever known?”

“Do you want to live the rest of your life in servitude, or do you want to discover a whole new world? A world where you no longer live beneath the boots of the Acherons.”

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