ONYX✔️

Chapter 41

Everyone say happy birthday NobeelatMomodu cause that's the only reason y'all are getting a second update ;)

I was thankful that Thane kept his distance the rest of the day, no doubt still angered by our fight the previous night.

What did he expect? How else was I supposed to respond to an ultimatum about something as sensitive as mating? He just said it so casually, We will be mated in three days' time, like I had no choice in the matter.

The very memory of it made me angry enough to feel the Darkness bubbling inside of me, threatening to spill over like a pot of boiling water.

Maybe I was just a ticking time bomb. One wrong move, and I would explode, destroying everything in my wake.

No, no, I tell myself as I crawl into bed alone. I am not the Darkness inside of me. The book was wrong. The Moon Goddess had made a mistake, thinking the black magic was a reflection of myself.

When I awake, I'm surprised that Thane is asleep next to me. He must have came while I was sleeping, as was the case with most nights, as he typically stayed up late working.

"Good morning, mate," He says, his eyes fluttering open. "Change your mind about the Marking yet?"

"Change your mind about releasing Greyson?" I ask sweetly, and he rolls his eyes.

He sighs as he tucks my hair behind my ears. "Only bad things will happen if he is released, Onyx, I promise you that."

I shrug. We'll see about that, mate.

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Thane's promise not to let me out of his sight after my kidnapping was short-lived, as expected. He spent most of the day hidden away in his office, which was fine with me.

I spent part of the day with Greyson in the prison, to keep up appearances. It would have been suspicious if I hadn't visited him like I did every day, and I wanted to keep the illusion that everything was normal.

I went to the field of flowers, which this time, Thane ordered Leo and Jason to accompany me, which was to be expected after the last time I was left alone.

They paced, bored as I calmly continued reading the book about Gifts. I finished the section on the biological aspects of Gifts, and learned that some had a hereditary component, such as healers and Seers would typically have other healers and Seers in their bloodline.

I worried that my Gift would be hereditary, that someday, my children would struggle with the Darkness, obliterating everything in their path.

But most of the Gifts would skip generations, ensuring that no two wolves, with some exceptions, would have the same powers at the same time.

I wondered who in my lineage had been afflicted with the Darkness, and if they let it consume them, or if they chose "growth" as the Seer said. Whatever the hell that meant.

After dinner, I excused myself to bed early, claiming I felt exhausted. Nobody batted an eye, not that they really ever seemed to notice or care if I was around or not.

I put on black clothing, and snuck out of the Pack House, hoping that Thane wouldn't come to bed until late, as he usually did. The longer it took him to notice I was gone, the better.

Quietly and sneakily, I walked to the prison, avoiding anyone walking near my path. It felt like my senses had been reborn, and I felt optimistic about Greyson's escape.