The betrayal of the one person I wanted to trust again after a lifetime of suffering runs deep. It hurts more than I care to admit. Seeing him again now, after he blabbed my family’s dark secret all over the school, feels surreal. I want to kill him. Beat him to a pulp. Ask him why. I doubt I’ll ever be able to trust anyone again. At least, that’s what I think. All around me, my classmates are finding their magical partners. Their soulmates in the realm of magical creatures. In my withered little heart, hope begins to bloom again—that one of these creatures might be destined for me. That there might be someone who could accept me exactly as I am. Someone I might—just maybe—be able to trust after all. So far, this creature has refused to reveal itself to me. Despair is eating away at me from the inside, forcing me to take drastic action. I decide to find this creature myself. Magical partners are like mirrors. Since my soul is black and my nature is dangerous, I search in the only place I can think of that fits those criteria. The vast forest. Nothing but darkness is born there. By now, I’ve come to terms with the fact that my magical partner must be a corrupted, sinister creature. But would I actually find him or her? I have to believe I will. Otherwise, despair would devour the last piece of my heart.



Jacob has to find the one being who would love him unconditionally. He had to believe that, or he would completely fall into dispair.