Veins Of Nightfall

Beneath Blackwood

The roar shook the estate hard enough to crack glass.

Every wolf inside Blackwood froze instantly while the sound echoed through the mountains like something ancient had finally opened its eyes.

Nyx stumbled backward away from everyone.

The silver mark beneath her skin still glowed faintly against her chest.

Kael noticed first.

Then Lucas.

Then everyone else.

Fear spread across the room almost immediately.

Not dramatic.

Not loud.

Worse.

Silent fear.

The kind people tried hiding.

Hector stepped forward carefully.

"Nyx."

She flinched at the tone in his voice.

Too controlled.

Too calm.

The kind of voice people used around wounded animals they thought might bite.

Nyx wrapped her arms tightly around herself.

"What is this?"

Nobody answered fast enough.

Kael finally snapped first.

"No. We're not doing that thing again where everyone acts cryptic while the world falls apart."

Lucas muttered softly, "That does seem to be the family tradition."

Lila's eyes remained fixed on the mark beneath Nyx's skin.

"The Hollow marked her."

The words landed heavily.

Nyx's stomach twisted.

"What does that mean?"

Lila looked toward Hector before answering.

"It means the Hollow sees you."

"That's not an answer."

"It's the only one we have right now."

Nyx hated that.

She hated all of this.

The secrets.

The staring.

The fear.

And worst of all—

The fact that some small part of her felt connected to the mark.

Like it belonged there.

Thunder rolled outside again while rain slammed harder against the estate windows.

Lucas slowly approached Nyx.

Unlike the others, he didn't look afraid.

Concerned maybe.

Curious definitely.

But not afraid.

"You okay?" he asked quietly.

Nyx laughed once.

"Fantastic actually."

Lucas nodded thoughtfully. "Yeah that sounds accurate."

Kael shot him a look.

"What? Humor helps."

"Not now."

"Especially now."

Nyx almost smiled.

Almost.

Then footsteps echoed from the hallway.

Fast.

Heavy.

Everyone turned immediately.

Nox entered first carrying several old journals stacked against his chest while Azrael followed silently behind him.

Nyx noticed Azrael instantly.

Not because she wanted to.

Because her body noticed him before her mind did.

The second he stepped into the room, that strange tight feeling returned low in her chest again.

Sharp.

Warm.

Gone before she could understand it.

Nyx frowned slightly.

Azrael slowed too.

Only slightly.

But enough for her to notice.

Interesting.

Nox dropped the journals onto the dining table.

"I found references to the mark."

Every head turned toward him instantly.

Nox was different from the others.

Where Kael led with instinct and Lucas led with observation, Nox led with logic. Calm. Calculated. Quietly dangerous in a completely different way.

"What references?" Hector asked.

Nox opened one of the journals carefully.

"The crescent symbol appears repeatedly in old Hollow records." He hesitated slightly. "Mostly before massacres."

"Well that's reassuring," Lucas muttered.

Nox ignored him.

"The mark was called the Moonscar."

Nyx's pulse quickened.

"What does it do?"

"No one knows."

"Helpful."

"The wolves carrying it usually died before anyone could study it."

Silence.

Kael stepped closer toward the table immediately.

"Why?"

Nox looked directly at Nyx.

"Because the Hollow hunted them."

The room went cold.

Nyx's breathing became uneven.

Azrael finally spoke for the first time.

"Or because the pack killed them first."

Everyone looked toward him sharply.

Hector's expression darkened instantly.

"Careful."

Azrael held the Alpha's stare without backing down.

"Am I wrong?"

No one answered.

That silence said enough.

Nyx stared at them in disbelief.

"You killed people over this mark?"

Lila answered quietly.

"Long ago."

"Did they deserve it?"

Another silence.

Nyx laughed bitterly.

"Wow. That bad, huh?"

Kael moved beside her again.

Protective.

Always protective.

"You are not them."

"How do you know?"

Kael looked at her immediately.

"Because I know you."

The answer came too quickly.

Too honestly.

Nyx looked away first.

Something about the intensity in his expression unsettled her.

Not romantically.

Something deeper.

Instinctive.

Like his wolf was reacting to her before he could stop it.

Azrael noticed too.

Nyx caught him watching Kael carefully from across the room.

Then his gaze shifted back toward her.

And stayed there.

Lila noticed that too.

Nyx saw the exact second her eyes narrowed slightly.

Interesting.

Very interesting.

Before anyone could speak again, the estate lights flickered violently.

Then every candle extinguished again.

Lucas groaned softly.

"Oh come on."

Cold air swept through the dining hall despite every window being closed.

The whispers returned.

Stronger this time.

Nyx could hear them clearly now.

Moonborn.

Wake up.

Come home.

She grabbed the edge of the table instantly.

Kael noticed immediately.

"What's wrong?"

Nyx's voice shook slightly.

"It's talking again."

Hector's expression hardened.

"The Hollow?"

Nyx nodded slowly.

The whispers grew louder.

Not angry.

Hungry.

Then Selene appeared again beside the fireplace.

Silver moonlight spread across the room instantly.

This time nobody reacted with shock.

Only fear.

The Moon Goddess looked directly at Nyx.

"The veil weakens."

Nyx swallowed hard.

"What does that mean?"

"The Hollow no longer sleeps."

Nox stepped forward carefully.

"What is the Hollow really?"

Selene's glowing eyes shifted toward him.

"A wound."

The room fell silent.

"A wound between worlds," Selene continued softly. "Something ancient lives beneath it. Something hungry."

Nyx felt cold crawl through her veins.

"The thing from the roar."

Selene nodded once.

"It felt you wake."

Kael immediately stepped closer to Nyx.

Protective again.

Selene noticed.

So did Azrael.

And for the briefest second—

Nyx saw irritation flash across Azrael's face.

Gone almost instantly.

But there.

Interesting.

Selene turned back toward Nyx.

"You must not answer the Hollow when it calls."

Nyx frowned.

"What happens if I do?"

The Moon Goddess looked genuinely sad then.

"It will know where to find you."

A loud crash echoed somewhere upstairs.

Everyone jumped.

Another crash followed immediately after.

Then screaming.

Real screaming.

Hector shifted instantly into Alpha mode.

"Kael with me. Lucas secure the lower hallways. Nox stay with Lila and Eve."

Azrael moved toward the doorway too.

Hector stopped him immediately.

"Stay with Nyx."

Azrael stiffened slightly.

"So now you trust me?"

"I trust your wolf."

The answer clearly surprised him.

Nyx noticed.

Interesting again.

The screaming upstairs suddenly stopped.

Silence swallowed the estate.

Heavy.

Wrong.

Then footsteps echoed slowly across the ceiling above them.

Not running.

Dragging.

Nyx's mark burned violently beneath her skin.

Selene looked upward sharply.

"It found the house."

The footsteps stopped directly above them.

Then something whispered through the ceiling—

"Nyx."