CHAPTER 2: The Wolf Inside
1232 Words
I woke up tied to a chair.
Not the kind of rough, desperate restraint that comes with panic or punishment, but the kind that felt... calculated. Secure. The ropes weren’t cutting into my skin, but they held me firmly in place. A strange sense of helplessness washed over me as my gaze flicked around the dimly lit room.
Elias was pacing. Again. He didn’t seem to care that I was awake. His broad chest moved with each breath, his skin glistening under the soft light of the fire crackling in the hearth. He was shirtless. That wasn’t helpful.
“Elias,” I called my voice a mix of irritation and fear. “What the hell is going on?”
His golden eyes flicked to me, his jaw tense. He didn’t stop pacing. “You’re not ready to hear the truth yet.”
“Stop treating me like I’m some i***t. What the hell did you do to me?”
He paused, finally meeting my gaze. For a second, his expression softened, like he might offer some comfort. But it disappeared quickly. His fists clenched.
“You’re dangerous,” he said, his voice low and steady. “Even to yourself.”
I shook my head. “This doesn’t make sense. I’m human. I’m not dangerous. Whatever you think I am, I’m not—”
“You’re not fully human,” he interrupted sharply. His voice dropped lower. “And you’re not just here because of an accident.”
His words hit me like a slap to the face. "What do you mean? What the hell do you mean, 'I'm not fully human'?"
He didn’t respond immediately. Instead, he turned, staring out of the cabin’s one window. The storm outside had picked up again, the wind howling like something angry.
“I don’t have time for this,” he muttered under his breath.
The ropes on my wrists loosened slightly as I tugged. I had to get out of here. I had to think. My head was spinning. But there was something more pressing. Something tugging at the back of my mind. A distant memory.
My pulse quickened.
I closed my eyes, letting my head drop forward, trying to focus. That memory—it was fuzzy at first, like a dream slipping between my fingers. But then it sharpened. I was running, fast. A blood-soaked hand, my hand, holding something... or someone. The taste of iron in my mouth. A sharp howl. A man’s voice, crying out in agony.
I gasped, my chest tightening. When I opened my eyes, Elias was still staring out the window, his back to me. But his shoulders were tense.
“Elias…” I whispered.
He turned, eyes narrowing. “What did you see?”
“I don’t know,” I said, my voice trembling. “But it felt real. It felt like it was me. Like it’s something I’ve forgotten.”
He didn’t say anything at first. Then, in a low voice, he muttered, “The memories are coming back, aren’t they?”
I stared at him, speechless.
“You don’t get to play dumb with me,” he continued, his voice cold. “I don’t have time to babysit you. Not when they’re coming for you.”
“Who?” I hissed, tugging harder at the ropes. “Who’s coming for me?”
“The wolves.”
I stopped struggling, my breath catching in my throat. “Wolves? You mean... actual wolves?”
He scoffed. “You’ve seen enough to know what I’m talking about.”
I had no idea. What was going on? Was he trying to scare me? Or was he actually telling me something I needed to hear?
“You don’t know what you’re messing with,” he growled. His eyes glowed faintly in the firelight. “They’re coming for your blood. You don’t understand what you are, or what you mean to them.”
“I’m not some... thing for them to take,” I snapped. My anger flared like a torch in my chest, a sharp, unexplainable heat. “I’m human.”
“You were,” he said, his voice grave. “But not anymore.”
I went silent, my breath unsteady. I felt something stir deep inside me, like a fire burning just beneath the surface. The air in the room shifted. Heavy. Thick with tension. The ropes weren’t holding me anymore. The need to escape, to run, to do something was overwhelming.
I jerked the chair toward the window, determined. “I don’t care if you think I’m not human. I’ll find a way out of here.”
“You’re not ready for that,” Elias said sharply. He stepped closer to me, the muscles in his arms rippling with each movement. His eyes were dangerous. Wild. “And you don’t know what you’re up against.”
“I’ll find a way,” I repeated, more forcefully this time.
He exhaled sharply, frustrated. “I didn’t want it to happen like this. I thought I had more time. But you... you’re awakening too fast.”
“Aren’t you the one who brought me here?” I growled. “You’re the one who—”
Suddenly, Elias cut me off. His entire body went rigid, his eyes snapping to the door.
“s**t,” he muttered, stepping back. “They’re here.”
I couldn’t see anything out of the window. But I could hear it—the low growl of something huge outside, a sound that didn’t belong in the forest. Not like any animal I’d ever heard before. More guttural. More dangerous.
“Stay down,” Elias ordered, his voice hard as stone. “Don’t make a sound.”
I didn’t have time to respond before the sound of scraping claws on the doorframe echoed through the cabin. My stomach churned.
What the hell is out there?
I could hear Elias’ breath getting heavier, and more strained. His body shifted, twitching slightly like it was about to explode.
He let out a low growl that made my blood run cold. “You don’t know what you’re dealing with. If you want to stay alive, do as I say.”
I didn’t have a choice. I was trapped here with him. A man who wasn’t even human. And those wolves, whatever they were—whatever they wanted from me—were closing in.
My body was shaking, my mind racing. I had to get out of here. I had to— crash!
The window exploded. Glass rained down, and I screamed as a shadow lunged through the broken pane.
Elias' transformation was swift. His body stretched and contorted, shifting, growing—until before I stood a massive black wolf, its golden eyes burning with fury.
The weight of the room shifted. I was frozen, rooted to the chair, heart hammering in my chest. The wolf—Elias—snarled, showing sharp teeth, protecting me from whatever was coming next.
I felt a tugging in my chest. A pull, deep and raw, as my vision blurred, and—
My eyes. They’re glowing.
"No," I whispered, unable to tear my gaze away.
But the last thing I saw before everything went dark was Elias' snarling face, the weight of his protection suffocating me as the darkness closed in around us.
"Naomi," he growled, his voice distorted with an unnatural sound. "They're here…”
- Writer
