DIANA'S POV
Kael's eyes widen at the news from the guards. His grabs my hand firmly, like the news is going to harm me.
His dangerous brown eyes meet mine. "Go inside. Stay with Vivian."
He sees my confusion deepen, realizes that I have no idea where "inside" is or who Vivian even is.
"I'm sorry," he says, and then his gaze snaps hurriedly to a red-haired man passing by. "Daemon, come here."
Daemon runs to us without a second of hesitation. His eyes lock with mine, and just like the guard before him, they widen—but not in shock or fear, but in amusement.
"Take her to Vivian and tell Vivian to take very good care of her. I'll be back as soon as I can."
He's leaving?
"You can't just leave without giving me a proper explanation," I protest, looking at him with wide eyes, my heart still caught in my throat from seeing a wolf.
"Well, he can. I mean, he owns this pack after all," Daemon says sheepishly, with a boyish smirk.
Kael shoots him a look that makes him raise his hands in surrender. He then looks back at me and sighs.
"I have important things to attend to. I'll give you the answers you want when I return. Right now, you have to follow Daemon," he instructs.
I clench my jaw in defiance. Kael doesn't seem like he's going to take no for an answer, so I keep my mouth shut. I don't feel safe around here, and him wanting to leave makes me feel even more unsafe.
He stares down at our fingers, fingers I had forgotten were still intertwined. He runs his thumb over the center diamond before leaving with his guards.
"It's honestly amusing to watch Kael act like a simp because of a female," Daemon huffs, making me peel my gaze off Kael and look at him.
Same pointed ears. Just like most people here. What exactly are these people?
"And you are?" I ask, wondering why he didn't regard Kael with a title like everyone else here.
"Daemon." He flexes his brows. "The Beta. In case you're wondering, I'm 6'2, Kael's 6'1. I know the ladies love tall dudes, so I have a better chance at having you than Kael does. Anything else you want to know?"
I blink at him. "Uh, how exactly can I get out of this place?"
He bursts into laughter like I've just said something hilarious. "Well, you don't. Get out of this place. Unless you want to get killed."
He starts sauntering off, and I quickly follow him. "What do you mean by that?"
"You're joking, right?" he side-eyes me, brows furrowing. "You don't remember what happened five years ago, do you?"
I don't. Except that there's a man named Eric who is my husband... and who must be obsessed with me for some reason.
"No, I don't. I tried asking Kael, but he seems to enjoy speaking like a goddamn enigma."
Daemon stops so suddenly that I bump into him. He grabs my arm before I can fall.
I steady myself and pull my hand away.
He smiles cunningly. "I like you, Diana. You sound badass, and I love badass. If Kael hadn't claimed you, I most definitely would have."
"What are you even talking about?" I look at him blankly, and he snickers.
He takes a step closer, and when he reaches for my neck, I grab his wrist quickly, defensively—for some reason I don't even understand.
Daemon looks as shocked as I am. "Calm down, Diana. I know Kael's yours. He'd kill me if I tried anything inappropriate… but it's not like I care."
Slowly, I let go of his wrist and look away, embarrassed. What is wrong with me? Why do I keep having this sneering energy inside me?
"I'm sorry," I mutter, gazing at my palms as if an explanation might appear there.
"You don't have to apologize. Most females tend to think that when I'm around them anyway," he says, scratching his neck with one hand and sliding the other into the pocket of his faded blue jeans. "Kael left a pretty noticeable mark on your neck. That's what I was trying to show you." He starts walking.
I follow him. "What mark?"
He smirks again. "You'll see it when you look in the mirror...but don't scream when you do. He had to do it to save your life." He sighs. "He's still suffering from the effects right now, but I mean, Kael's never in his right senses when he's in love."
"Oh, Diana!" the female from the cabinet calls, standing next to a huge igloo.
"This is where I'll say goodbye," Daemon says dramatically, feigning sadness. "I know you probably have a lot of questions. Don't worry, you'll understand soon enough."
He walks backwards, smiling at me as he waves. I'm still so confused and scared, but I know I'd be rude not to wave back... so I do.
He seems satisfied. Then he spins around and walks away.
"Diana!"
I turn abruptly at the voice behind me. I suppose she's Vivian. She's smiling at me, genuinely happy to see me.
"I didn't get to introduce myself because my cousin is kind of a jerk," she says, taking my hands and shaking them. "I suppose this is how humans greet each other? I'm Vivian. Kael's cous—"
"Humans?"
Her smile brightens so much I can see her teeth—and her canines are way too canine to be human. "Isn't that what you are… or were?"
"But… I don't understand. Everyone here is human too, aren't they?"
They look human, but not fully. Kael mentioned not being human. As much as I can remember, there have always been speculations about supernaturals existing. Theories upon theories that mankind isn't the only intelligent species in existence.
I never believed it. It felt as baloney as the Big Bang theory. But here I am, standing in the Arctic, freezing, and possibly surrounded by supernatural creatures.
"I want to show you something." Vivian grabs my hand and drags me toward the igloo.
She clicks something in the air, and when we enter, it's no longer an igloo. The ceiling is very high and made of metals.
"This way," Vivian gestures to a descending staircase leading into darkness.
Each step we take down, lights from nowhere begin to glow. Bright, beautiful light highlights carvings of wolves and humans on the walls.
I swear—I nearly shit myself when I see a carving of a human shifting into a wolf.
"How is this possible?" I gasp.
"Amazing, right?" Vivian doesn't look nearly as surprised as I am. "There are a lot of wolves here with gifts. Some with art, some with illusion. That's why it was easy to build this place in less than a decade after the apocalypse."
My eyes are as wide as the moon.
"Wolves? You're a wolf?" I slow down, because it feels like my legs are made of steel.
She stops and looks at me. Her smile fades. Then, slowly, her brown eyes turn purple. I gasp and nearly collapse—but she superspeeds and catches me.
"I'm not a wolf. I am a hybrid… just like you, Diana."
She must be mad.
"You don't have to be scared."
And then, in that moment, as I stare into her purple eyes, I feel it swallow me whole. I see… I see my entire past. Everything—from the moment I'm standing by a waterfall, locked in unconsciousness for five years, to when Kael is crying while holding me and biting my neck.
I zoom through the rest of my memories to the very point I got married to… Eric.
I remember everything.
I quickly pull away from Vivian. "I am human. Eric was wrong… he sent you, didn't he?"
"No, Diana… I understand it's overwhelming to comprehend right now. But please listen. I'll explain everything."
My gaze drops to my stomach, and I gasp. "My baby? Where's my baby?"
"She's fine, Diana. Your baby is fine. You just need to calm down."
I stare at Vivian, my chest heaving. I shouldn't believe her, but I don't have any option but to calm down and hear the truth.
She stretches out her hand and smiles. "I'm glad you have your memory back."
___________
The blue ceiling is a projector of my life before.
I see him—beautiful blue eyes, clad in a purple three-piece, signing my letter of release. He'd been coming around the rehab for two years, and we'd been good friends.
I'm seventeen and he's twenty-five. I had heard he's wealthy and owns a large research organization worldwide.
I remember finding him very handsome—probably because he was the only man who ever looked at me with so much love in his eyes.
Love? That's what I thought it was—until… fast-forward to six years later. His eyes are no longer warm or loving.
I see obsession in them. Hatred. He grabs me by the hair and throws me on the bed.
I had been his experiment for months until I was rescued, by a white wolf with silver eyes.
The same man who offered me a chance at vengeance.
Kael.
I would stop at nothing to have Eric's head in my hands.