Chapter 2: Beneath the moonlight
1025 Words
The rain had stopped just before sunset. Silver moonlight spilled across the forest as Aria wandered along the narrow trail behind her grandmother's cottage, hoping the cool night air would quiet her restless thoughts.
Instead, she found him waiting. Kael stood beneath an ancient oak tree, his dark coat draped over one shoulder.i knew you'd come, he said softly. You sound very confident. I was hoping.
For the first time since they met, neither of them argued. They simply walked.
The forest was quiet except for the distant call of owls and the rustle of leaves beneath their feet.I wasn't always this man, Kael finally admitted.
Aria glanced at him. No?
There was a time I believed love made people stronger. What changed?
His expression darkened.
I watched my parents die because someone discovered they were fated mates.
Silence settled between them.
The enemy knew exactly where to hurt my father," Kael continued. They used my mother.
His voice was steady, but his eyes betrayed years of buried grief.
After that... I stopped letting anyone close enough to matter.
Aria felt something shift inside her.
The arrogant Alpha who conquered every room suddenly looked like a lonely man carrying wounds too heavy to share.
Without thinking, she reached for his hand.
He froze. No one had touched him so gently in years. Their fingers intertwined.
Neither of them spoke.They didn't need to.
The distance between them disappeared as Kael slowly brushed a loose strand of hair behind Aria's ear. His hand lingered against her cheek, warm and hesitant, as though he feared she might vanish if he moved too quickly.
She looked into his storm gray eyes.
I don't see the monster everyone talks about.
You should. I see a man who's afraid.
His breath caught. For the first time in years, Kael lowered every wall around his heart.
He leaned closer. Their foreheads touched.
The world around them disappeared.
Then...A howl shattered the silence.
Not one wolf.Dozens.Kael's eyes widened.
His wolf surged to the surface.
No... he whispered.
Figures emerged from the darkness, their glowing eyes surrounding the clearing.
A deep voice echoed through the trees.
So... the Forbidden Alpha has finally found his mate.
Kael stepped in front of Aria, his body becoming a shield.
Run, he said, never taking his eyes off the shadows.Aria's heart pounded.Not without you.
The leader stepped into the moonlight, smiling with cruel satisfaction.
We've waited twenty years for this moment. Kael's face turned pale. You..
The stranger drew a silver blade that gleamed beneath the full moon. Tonight, Alpha Blackwood.. your greatest weakness dies first.
The silver blade caught the moonlight as the stranger stepped forward.
Kael's expression hardened.
Victor.
The name escaped his lips like a curse.
Aria looked between the two men. You know him?
Victor smiled a cold, merciless smile.
I know him better than anyone.His amber eyes never left Kael. We were raised as brothers.
The wolves surrounding the clearing growled in unison.
Kael slowly shifted his stance, placing Aria behind him.
Stay close.
Victor laughed.
The mighty Forbidden Alpha..protecting someone other than himself? The legends forgot to mention that.
I won't warn you twice,Kael replied. Leave
Instead, Victor raised his silver blade.
The attack came without warning.
Three wolves lunged from the shadows.
Kael exploded into motion.
His fist slammed into the first attacker, sending him crashing into a tree. He twisted, disarming another before driving him to the ground. A third charged from behind, but Kael spun just in time, knocking him away with brutal force.
Aria had never witnessed such speed.
Such power.
Yet the attackers kept coming.Victor wasn't trying to defeat Kael.He was trying to distract him.
Kael! Aria shouted.
A wolf darted toward her from the left.
Before it reached her, Kael threw himself between them. The wolf's silver coated claws raked across his shoulder, tearing through fabric and flesh.
Blood stained his black shirt.
No! Aria cried. Kael barely reacted to the pain.
Are you hurt? She shook her head.i'm fine.
Only then did he allow himself a breath of relief.
Victor noticed.His smile widened.So it's true.
Kael glared at him.You'd sacrifice yourself for her.
Victor lowered his weapon.
I've been searching for your weakness for years.
He looked directly at Aria. I never imagined she'd walk into my trap.Before anyone could move, Victor tossed a small crystal to the ground.
It burst into thick black smoke. By the time the air cleared. Victor and his wolves were gone.
Only silence remained.Kael dropped to one knee, clutching the wound on his shoulder.
Aria hurried to him.You're bleeding.It's nothing.
It doesn't look like nothing.Ignoring his protest, she tore a strip from the edge of her sleeve and gently wrapped it around his injured shoulder. Her fingers trembled, but her touch was steady.
Kael watched her quietly.No one has ever done this for me.She tied the bandage and looked into his eyes.Maybe no one ever stayed long enough.
For a moment, neither of them spoke.
The moon shone overhead, and the forest seemed to hold its breath.
Kael reached for her hand.I've spent years believing love was a weakness.His voice was barely above a whisper.But tonight..
He paused, searching her face.when I thought I might lose you, I wasn't afraid of dying.
I was afraid I'd never get the chance to tell you how much you've come to mean to me.
Aria felt tears welling in her eyes.
Without a word, she stepped closer and rested her forehead against his.Their hearts beat in quiet rhythm.Then a sharp crack echoed through the forest.An arrow buried itself in the tree beside Kael's head.
A parchment was tied to its shaft. Kael tore it free.
His face lost all color as he read the message.Aria's voice trembled.
What is it? He handed her the note.
Three words were written in blood red ink
We have Grandma.
The note slipped from Aria's trembling fingers.
We have Grandma.
The words echoed through the silent forest.
No. she whispered, her knees threatening to give way.
Kael caught her before she fell.
His arms wrapped around her, holding her steady as tears welled in her eyes.
- Writer
