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Aisling
I’m sitting on the edge of my bed, legs crossed at the ankles, when a shadow shifts at the window. My heart doesn’t skip, doesn’t leap—it hammers hard against my ribs.
But it isn’t anyone threatening.
It’s just Luka—climbing in like he isn’t a giant.
The glass pane creaks open and Luka’s form emerges, all lean muscle and reckless grace as he hoists himself over the sill. He’s wearing a white t-shirt and linen pants, barefoot, without anything else on him. Through the thin fabric of his shirt, I can see every dark tattoo…including the tree of life on his back, still healing.
It’s like he’s put my mark on himself.
It shouldn’t turn me on like it does.
“Damn it, Luka, you shouldn’t be here,” I hiss, glancing toward the door even though I know it’s locked from the inside and out. He lands with a soft thud on the carpet, giving me that half-smirk that’s both infuriating and entirely too appealing. “You want to hear what I’ve got to say,” he says.
I raise my finger to my lips. “Just…keep it quiet, okay?”
He nods.
“Got news about the Pit,” he says, brushing off his hands like he’s just finished a casual stroll instead of breaking into a sacred temple.
“Spit it out then,” I tell him, arms folded.
“Entrance is underneath us,” he says, eyes scanning the room before settling back on me. “Basement of the temple. That’s where Lianna does her dirty work.”
“Figures.” I stand up, taking a step closer. “So what? You planning to waltz down there during one of her rituals?”
“Something like that.” He tilts his head, studying me. “Some of the others, they’re not drinking her poison anymore. They’re ready for change.”
“Change?” I can’t help but scoff. “It’s going to take more time than just that. It’s why I didn’t want you to come—“
“But I’m here, and we’re doing this,” he says. “And I have other news.”
I raise my eyebrows.
“You were right,” he says. “Your friends are being kept there. I talked to Lark tonight.”
My jaw drops, my eyes going wide. “Luka…what? Tell me everything.”
We sit down and he recounts every detail of the night’s events—being brought to the temple, how they dragged out the omegas naked like cattle. I wince when I hear about it all, about Lark.
“Lianna has let them near me, but…they aren’t ever allowed to speak. It’s inhumane.” I shake my head. “But she’s safe?”
“For now,” Luka says, nodding. “She’s with someone I came out to the island with—Isaiah. I think he’s an ally.”
“But you don’t know.”
Luka frowns. “My intuition is usually spot on, but of course…no, I’m not completely certain. We’ll get her out of here soon though. We’ll get all of the omegas out.”
I chew on my lip. “This is all moving too fast.”
“I would say it’s not moving fast enough.”
“You’re talking about overthrowing the High Priestess. That’s not just change, that’s a damn revolution.”
“Isn’t that what we need?” His voice drops to a whisper, but it’s fierce, filled with a fire that I can’t deny stirs something in me. “You’ve been planting seeds, Aisling. Doubt. Hope. There’s momentum building.”
“Hope,” I repeat, letting the word roll around my tongue like it’s something foreign.
