Chapter 46
1277 Words
The Thing in the Dark
Hailey
The warmth of the fire vanishes instantly.
One moment I am sitting between my mates, listening to the crackling of burning wood and the quiet murmur of conversation drifting through the camp.
The next, Selene's fear slams into me so violently that my breath catches in my throat.
Wake them.
The urgency in her voice sends ice through my veins.
My pulse immediately begins racing.
Why?
The silver wolf stands rigid inside my mind.
Every muscle in her powerful body is taut.
Every instinct focused on something beyond the trees.
Beyond the darkness.
Beyond the edge of the firelight.
Because something is coming.
I am on my feet before I even realize I've moved.
The sudden movement immediately catches everyone's attention.
Kael rises first.
Rider follows.
Asher closes the tablet in his hands.
Even Zane, who had been lounging comfortably against a fallen log, is standing before I can speak.
Four warriors.
Four guardians.
Four wolves ready to protect what is theirs.
"What is it?" Kael asks.
The concern in his voice settles around me like a protective blanket.
I swallow hard.
"Selene senses something."
The atmosphere changes instantly.
No one laughs.
No one questions it.
No one dismisses my concerns.
Because they trust Selene.
And more importantly...
They trust me.
The realization sends warmth through my chest despite the growing fear.
Rider
Something is wrong.
I can feel it.
Not because of Selene.
Not because of the forest.
Because of Hailey.
The fear flowing through our bond is unlike anything I've felt from her before.
Raw.
Instinctive.
Ancient.
My wolf immediately pushes forward.
Protect.
Guard.
Defend.
The urge is so strong that I don't even think before moving closer.
Close enough that our shoulders brush.
Close enough that she knows she's not facing this alone.
Her body relaxes slightly.
Only slightly.
But I feel it.
The bond immediately responds.
Relief.
Trust.
Comfort.
The emotions settle heavily inside my chest.
Dangerous emotions.
The kind that make a male willing to do reckless things.
The kind that make a wolf willing to die protecting his mate.
Three weeks ago, Hailey was a stranger.
Now the thought of losing her feels unbearable.
Asher
I reopen the images from earlier.
The symbols.
The crown.
The markings carved into the ancient trees.
Something has been bothering me ever since we returned.
Something I couldn't quite place.
Now I finally see it.
My stomach drops.
"No."
Kael immediately turns toward me.
"What?"
I enlarge one of the photographs.
A second symbol appears beneath the Silvermoon Crown.
Partially hidden.
Almost erased by time.
But still visible.
My pulse begins racing.
The symbol is unmistakable.
A crescent moon wrapped in chains.
The old prison seal.
The symbol from the oldest legends.
The symbol used by the Moon Priests.
The symbol used to contain things.
Not protect them.
Contain them.
A chill crawls down my spine.
Because if the legends are true...
Then whatever lies beneath these mountains was never meant to be found.
Hailey
"What does it mean?"
Nobody answers immediately.
The silence tells me everything.
Whatever Asher is seeing isn't good.
Finally he looks up.
His face has gone pale.
"The seal predates every modern pack."
I stare.
"How old?"
"Thousands of years."
The words settle heavily across the camp.
Even Zane looks disturbed.
The joking disappears from his expression.
For once, there is nothing playful in his eyes.
Only concern.
"The stories claim the first Moon Priests used this symbol when they imprisoned something powerful."
My pulse quickens.
"What?"
Asher slowly shakes his head.
"We don't know."
The answer somehow feels worse.
Because an unknown monster is always more frightening than one you can name.
Kael
Movement.
Every muscle in my body locks.
Fenrir immediately rises inside me.
Alert.
Danger.
Enemy.
I slowly turn toward the treeline.
The darkness beyond the fire shifts.
Just slightly.
A shadow moving between shadows.
Gone so quickly I almost convince myself I imagined it.
Almost.
Because Rider sees it too.
The same realization flashes through our bond.
Then Asher.
Then Zane.
Something is there.
Watching us.
Again.
Hailey
I see it this time.
Standing just beyond the edge of the firelight.
A figure.
Tall.
Motionless.
Watching.
My breath catches.
The shape is too far away to identify.
Too dark.
Too still.
Yet every instinct inside me screams that whatever stands there is not human.
Not wolf.
Not normal.
The fire suddenly surges.
Silver flames explode upward.
The figure vanishes.
Gone.
As though it had never existed.
The forest falls silent once more.
My heart pounds against my ribs.
"What was that?"
Nobody answers.
Because nobody knows.
Then Selene speaks.
Her voice sounds ancient.
Terrified.
It found us.
Ice floods my veins.
What found us?
The silver wolf remains staring toward the darkness.
When she finally answers, her voice is barely a whisper.
The first prisoner.
The words steal the air from my lungs.
The first prisoner.
Not a witch.
Not a rogue.
Something older.
Something forgotten.
Something that should never have been free.
Hailey
Nobody sleeps after that.
How could we?
The brothers establish a rotating watch while the fire continues burning brightly through the night.
The mountains loom over us.
Silent.
Ancient.
Watching.
The hours drag by.
Slowly.
Painfully.
Eventually exhaustion begins winning the battle.
My body feels heavy.
My eyes burn.
The emotional strain of the day finally catching up with me.
A yawn slips free before I can stop it.
Immediately Zane smirks.
"There she is."
I groan.
"There who is?"
"The stubborn girl pretending she isn't exhausted."
"I am not exhausted."
Another yawn betrays me immediately.
Zane laughs.
The sound is warm.
Soft.
Far gentler than usual.
Without thinking, I move closer to the fire.
The next thing I know, Zane sits beside me.
Close enough that our shoulders touch.
The bond hums softly.
Warm.
Comforting.
Safe.
For several moments neither of us speaks.
The silence between us feels surprisingly easy.
Comfortable.
My eyelids grow heavier.
The fire crackles.
The forest remains dark beyond the camp.
At some point, I stop fighting sleep.
Slowly, my head falls against Zane's shoulder.
I tense instinctively.
Waiting for him to tease me.
Waiting for one of his sarcastic comments.
Instead, he becomes perfectly still.
As though he's afraid moving might wake me.
The realization makes something warm bloom inside my chest.
Carefully, he wraps an arm around my shoulders.
Protective.
Gentle.
Nothing like the reckless flirt everyone sees.
My eyes drift closed.
The bond carries a flood of emotions.
Affection.
Relief.
Protectiveness.
Love.
The emotions are so strong they nearly steal my breath.
Across the fire, Kael watches us.
A small smile touches his lips.
Asher shakes his head, though amusement lingers in his eyes.
Rider simply leans back against a log, looking far more relaxed than he has all evening.
Traitors.
Every single one of them.
A quiet chuckle vibrates through Zane's chest.
Then, so softly I almost think I imagined it, his lips brush against the top of my head.
The kiss is brief.
Tender.
Unexpected.
Yet it sends warmth flooding through the bond.
My heart melts completely.
For the first time since entering these mountains, despite the danger lurking beyond the trees and the ancient darkness awakening beneath the earth, I allow myself to relax.
To feel safe.
To feel protected.
To feel loved.
As sleep finally begins pulling me under, Selene stirs one last time.
The silver wolf stands at the edge of our bond.
Watching the mountains.
Watching the darkness.
Watching something I cannot see.
Tomorrow, she whispers.
Fear ripples through her voice.
Everything changes.
And somewhere beyond the forest...
Something waits for us.
- Writer
