Chapter 3 – Whispers in the Den
1132 Words
The air smelled of smoke and steel when I woke up. My arm throbbed under the bandage, but it wasn’t the pain that jolted me upright,it was the silence. The kind that presses against your ears until your heartbeat feels too loud.
I looked around. A room of rough stone walls, animal pelts, and heavy shadows. I was still in Ironfang territory.
Before I could move, the door creaked open.
Atlas.
Same dark eyes. Same emotionless face.
“Awake already?” His tone was clipped, like my being conscious was somehow an inconvenience.
“I don’t sleep long,” I muttered.
He crossed the room, slow, deliberate. “You fainted from exhaustion and blood loss. You’re lucky my patrol found you.”
“Lucky,” I echoed, keeping my expression flat. “Is that what you call it?”
His gaze sharpened. “Most strays don’t survive one night out there.”
“I’m not most strays.”
That earned a small, humorless smile. “You’ll find out soon enough what you are.”
Before I could ask what that meant, the door opened again. A woman stepped in,tall, lean, dark hair tied back. She wore a medic’s apron stained with herbs and blood.
“Alpha,” she said, bowing. “She’s healing faster than expected.”
Atlas’s brow lifted. “Faster?”
“Yes,” the woman,Moon,replied. “Her wounds were deep, but they’re closing. I thought you should know.”
His gaze flicked to me. I felt the weight of it, like a hand around my throat. “What did you say your name was?”
“I didn’t.”
“Then say it now.”
“Remi.”
A long pause.
“That's all?” he pressed.
“For now.”
Something passed between us…an unspoken challenge. He didn’t push further, but I could feel the suspicion hardening in his stare.
“Get her fed,” he told Moon. “And keep an eye on her.”
He turned to leave, but I couldn’t help asking, “Do you always treat guests like prisoners?”
He stopped, hand on the doorframe. “Only when they show up half-dead at my borders, covered in blood that isn’t theirs.”
He didn’t wait for a reply.
Moon sighed when he was gone. “You should be careful with him. Atlas’s not like other Alphas.”
“I’ve noticed.”
She handed me a bowl of stew. “Eat. You’ll need your strength. The pack will want to see you.”
“The pack?”
“They don’t trust outsiders.” Moon hesitated. “Especially not Omegas.”
I clenched my fingers around the bowl. “And you think I’m one?”
She shrugged. “You smell like one. Weak. But the Alpha doesn’t seem convinced.”
“Does he ever seem convinced about anything?”
Moon chuckled softly. “You’ve got a mouth on you. Try not to use it too much. People talk.”
“I’ll keep that in mind.”
Later, when I stepped outside, dozens of eyes turned toward me. Men sharpening blades, women tending fires, children playing in the dirt,they all stopped to stare. Whispers spread like smoke.
“Who’s that?”
“Atlas brought her in.”
“She’s no ordinary stray.”
“She reeks of death.”
I kept my chin down and walked past them.
A group of warriors blocked my path near the training field. One of them—a tall man with a scar across his jaw grinned.
“Heard the Alpha’s keeping you close. You his new pet?”
“Move,” I said quietly.
He laughed. “You’ve got spirit. Dangerous thing to have around here.”
“Then maybe you should stay away.”
The grin faltered for half a second, like he hadn’t expected that. But then he leaned closer. “You talk like you’ve got power, girl. But I can smell it. You don’t have a wolf.”
The words hit harder than they should have. “You don’t know what I have.”
He tilted his head. “Maybe not. But Atlas will find out. He always does.”
I walked away before I said something reckless.
By evening, the camp quieted. I sat alone near the edge of the forest, watching the flames dance. Moon joined me again, offering bread. “You handled Kieran better than most. He’s usually worse.”
“I’ve dealt with worse.”
Her eyes softened. “Where did you come from, Remi?”
“Nowhere that matters.”
Before she could reply, footsteps crunched behind us. Atlas again…of course. He seemed to appear only when I least wanted him to.
“Moon,” he said, “leave us.”
Moon bowed and slipped away.
Atlas stood across the fire, studying me. The glow carved sharp lines across his face. “You’ve drawn attention already.”
“I didn’t ask for it.”
“You don’t have to. You breathe, people notice.”
“Should I stop breathing, then?”
His jaw tightened. “Don’t test me.”
“I wouldn't dream of it.”
He exhaled slowly, almost like he was counting to ten. “You’ll stay in the east quarters. Don’t leave the camp. Don’t speak to anyone unless spoken to. Understand?”
“Understood.”
He turned to go, but paused. “One more thing. If I find out you’re lying about who you are”
“You’ll kill me?” I said, finishing for him.
He met my eyes, expression unreadable. “If I must.”
Then he walked away, disappearing into the shadows.
I stared into the fire until the flames blurred.
Just when I thought the night was over, Kieran returned. His steps were heavy, uncertain. He stopped a few feet away, his voice low, almost afraid.
“Remi.”
I didn’t look up. “What do you want?”
He hesitated. “I remembered something. Years ago, before the southern war… I saw you. Or someone who looked just like you. You were with an Alpha… A powerful one.”
My chest went still. “You’re mistaken.”
He shook his head slowly. “No. I don’t forget faces.”
He stepped closer, eyes narrowing. “Who are you really?”
I stood, forcing my voice to stay calm. “Just another lost soul, Kieran.”
He stared at me for a long moment, then smiled,not kindly. “Then why do you smell like blood and royalty?”
Before I could answer, he turned and vanished into the dark.
And for the first time since I’d arrived, I felt the cold weight of danger settle on my spine. Because Kieran was right…he had seen me before.
And if he remembered, others would too.
- Writer
