CHAPTER 1: The Crash
It was past midnight, and the road wound like a coiled serpent through the mountains. I gripped the steering wheel tighter than necessary, my knuckles pale against the black leather. My phone buzzed again in the passenger seat. Another text from Lila.
LILA: You’re being naive. Again.
I didn’t respond. I didn’t need to. The argument was still ringing in my ears—our usual back-and-forth, only louder this time. Biology vs. psychology. Trauma vs. blood. Nature vs. nurture. She always thought everything came down to control. I believed in choice. Science. Logic.
Until the thing stepped onto the road.
At first, I thought it was a deer. I even tapped the brakes gently, used to them wandering this far out. But then it raised its head—and its eyes… glowed.
Not like a reflection. Not like headlights. They burned.
“What the hell—”
I swerved. Tires screamed. Metal tore against the rock. The world tilted and spun. I remember screaming, glass bursting, branches snapping, a horrible crunch—
Then silence.
Not black. Not darkness. Just... blank.
I gasped and sat up heart racing. My fingers clawed at the sheets beneath me—rough linen, not mine. I wasn’t in a hospital. The room smelled like wood smoke and something sharp, metallic. The air was cold. Too cold. My body should’ve ached from the crash. I should’ve been broken. Instead, I felt... whole.
The cabin was dim, lit only by the soft glow of firelight. I scanned the space—stone fireplace, worn armchair, a wall of books, and a small kitchen tucked into the corner. Nothing modern. No TV. No clock. No phone.
My heart stuttered.
“Hello?” I called out.
No answer.
My legs swung over the edge of the bed, shaky but steady. Barefoot. My clothes were different—cotton shirt, loose sweats, no blood. No bruises. No bandages.
Panic surged. I stumbled toward the door, yanking it open, but the moment the cold wind slapped my face, I heard it.
A low growl.
I turned—and froze.
He stood in the doorway across the room, tall and bare-chested, shadows coiling around him like smoke. His hair was dark and messy. His skin was tanned, marked with faint scars. And his eyes—those eyes—
Gold. Burning.
Like the thing on the road.
“Stay back,” I snapped, grabbing the nearest thing I could find—a fire poker. It shook in my grip.
He didn’t move. “You shouldn’t be up.”
“You kidn*pped me.”
“You would’ve died if I hadn’t dragged you out of that wreck.”
“You left me unconscious in a cabin like some psycho lumberjack!”
His head tilted slightly, annoyed. “You were unconscious because your body was healing. Fast. Too fast for a human.”
“I’m calling the police.”
“There’s no signal here.”
“Don’t care. I’ll scream.”
“No one would hear you.”
“Are you threatening me?”
“I’m warning you.” His tone dropped like a stone. “If you leave this cabin before you understand what’s happening to you, you will die.”
The fire poker wobbled in my hands. My breath steamed in the cold air. “Why would I believe anything you say?”
“Because I watched your bones re-knit themselves in under six hours. Because I heard your heartbeat change. Because I know what’s inside you.”
“What are you even talking about?”
He stared at me, jaw clenched. “You’re not fully human.”
My laugh was more bark than breath. “Okay. Got it. You’re insane.”
I made for the door again.
“Naomi,” he said.
I froze. “How do you know my name?”
He didn’t answer.
I didn’t wait.
I yanked the door open and ran.
Snow crunched underfoot, biting into my bare skin. The forest loomed, black trees towering like sentinels. The wind screamed through the branches, but I didn’t stop. I couldn’t. My brain was screaming at me to run, even as my lungs begged me to stop.
Branches lashed at my arms. Rocks tore into my soles. I kept going.
Until the pain hit.
It slammed into my gut like a punch, dropping me to my knees. My vision blurred. My hands dug into the snow. My back arched as something twisted deep inside my spine.
I screamed.
It wasn’t normal pain. It was primal—like my skin was too tight like something was trying to break out.
“Make it stop,” I whispered. “Please—”
Another spasm. My nails raked the ground. My jaw snapped shut to hold back another cry. I couldn’t breathe. Couldn’t move. My muscles spasmed uncontrollably like my own body was rejecting me.
Suddenly, hands were on me—rough, warm. Holding me down.
“Don’t fight it,” he said.
“Get away—”
“I said don’t.”
I twisted under him, half-wild, half-terrified. My hands clawed at his arms. His body pinned mine to the forest floor.
“What’s happening to me?” I choked out.
“You’re shifting.”
“I’m what?”
He leaned in close, his voice low, like thunder.
“You’re not human,” he growled. “Not anymore.”
