Chapter 14: The pull between the shadows
362 Words
(Lyria’s POV)
The silence between Keal and me is heavy—thick with everything neither of us dares to say. We walk through the moonlit forest, our footsteps muffled by the damp earth. The air hums with tension, each heartbeat echoing in my ears.
Keal stops suddenly, his head tilting toward the wind. “You shouldn’t have followed me, Lyria.”
I cross my arms, refusing to look away from those cold silver eyes. “You said you were checking the borders. I didn’t realize that meant vanishing for hours without a word.”
His lips twitch, almost a smirk. “You worry too much.”
“And you don’t worry enough,” I counter sharply. “Your pack is being hunted, rogues are closing in, and you’re—what? Playing the lone hero again?”
He steps closer, so close I can feel the heat radiating off his body. “Maybe I don’t fight alone anymore,” he murmurs, voice low and rough.
The way he says it makes my chest tighten. His scent—cedar, smoke, and wild earth—wraps around me like a spell. My heart betrays me, pounding faster, even as my mind screams to move back.
“Keal…” My voice is soft, shaky. “This—whatever this is—it’s dangerous.”
He lifts a hand, fingers brushing against my jaw. The touch burns. “Everything worth having is.”
Then—
A howl slices through the air, sharp and furious. The trees shudder. Keal’s gaze hardens instantly. “They found us.”
Before I can respond, his bones shift with a sickening crack. His form explodes into fur and muscle—his wolf emerging in all its terrifying beauty, silver under the crescent moon.
This time, I feel it—the pull. A deep, electric connection between us, thrumming through the bond neither of us wants to name.
“Keal!” I shout as the shadows rush closer.
He growls, low and deadly, placing himself between me and the threat. My blood freezes, not from fear—but from the realization that whatever we are becoming… it’s already too late to turn back.
- Writer
