CHAPTER 3 THE BEAST IN THE DARK
966 Words
Cold.
That was the first thing Aria felt when consciousness returned.
Cold air brushed against her skin. Damp earth pressed beneath her palms. The scent of wet leaves and wild pine filled her lungs as she sucked in a shaky breath.
She wasn’t in the packhouse.
Memory crashed into her like a wave.
The ceremony.
The bond.
The rejection.
Damon’s voice.
Her chest tightened painfully, and for a moment she wished she had never woken up.
A low sound vibrated through the ground near her.
A growl.
Aria’s eyes flew open.
It was still night. The forest around her was dark, lit only by thin streams of moonlight slipping through the branches above. Mist curled along the forest floor like ghostly fingers.
And she was not alone.
Across from her, barely ten steps away, stood a massive figure.
At first, her mind refused to understand what she was seeing.
It was too big to be a wolf.
Too wild to be human.
The creature stood on two legs, tall and broad, covered in dark silver fur that shimmered under the moonlight. Long claws dug into the earth. Its chest rose and fell with slow, controlled breaths.
But it was the eyes that froze her blood.
Glowing silver.
Intelligent.
Watching her.
Aria’s breath came out in a broken whisper. “Please…”
She tried to crawl backward, but her body felt weak and heavy. Her chest still ached from the rejection, as if something inside her had been torn apart and left bleeding.
The creature tilted its head slightly.
Studying her.
Not attacking.
Not moving.
Just… watching.
Her heart pounded wildly. Any normal wolf would have lunged by now. This thing simply stood there as if deciding something important.
Then, slowly, it stepped forward.
Aria squeezed her eyes shut, waiting for pain.
Waiting for claws.
Waiting to die.
But instead—
Warmth.
A large, heavy weight settled over her.
She gasped and opened her eyes.
A thick fur cloak covered her body.
The creature had removed it from its own shoulders and placed it over her.
Her mind struggled to understand.
Why would a beast do that?
Her vision blurred again, exhaustion dragging her down.
The last thing she saw before darkness claimed her once more…
Was the creature stepping back into the shadows.
Guarding her.
When Aria woke again, sunlight filtered through tall glass windows.
She blinked slowly.
This was not the forest.
She lay on a large, soft bed covered in dark furs. The air was warm, scented with herbs and something unfamiliar but comforting. Stone walls surrounded her, carved with strange symbols she didn’t recognize.
Panic shot through her.
She sat up too quickly, and dizziness forced her back down.
A door creaked open.
Aria’s head snapped toward the sound.
A woman entered the room.
She was tall, dressed in dark leather clothing, her silver hair braided down her back. Her eyes were sharp, but not unkind.
“You’re awake,” the woman said calmly.
Aria’s voice trembled. “W-where am I?”
“Safe.”
That wasn’t an answer.
The woman walked closer, placing a wooden cup on the table beside the bed. “Drink. It will help with the pain.”
Aria touched her chest instinctively.
The pain from the rejection was still there, dull but constant.
“What is this place?” she asked again.
The woman studied her for a moment before replying.
“You are in the Lycan Kingdom.”
Aria frowned. “Lycan?”
She had heard the word only in old stories.
Ancient creatures. Stronger than werewolves. Almost extinct.
Myths told to scare pups.
“They’re not real,” she whispered.
The woman’s lips twitched slightly. “You were carried here by one.”
Aria’s breath caught.
The silver eyes in the forest.
The beast.
“That was… a Lycan?”
“Yes.”
“Why didn’t it kill me?”
The woman held her gaze.
“Because you are important to him.”
Aria shook her head weakly. “You’re mistaken. I’m no one.”
A deep voice spoke from the doorway.
“She is far from no one.”
Aria’s heart skipped.
She turned slowly.
And her breath left her lungs.
A man stood there.
Tall.
Broad-shouldered.
Dressed in black leather and fur.
His silver hair fell loosely around his face, and his eyes…
His eyes were the same glowing silver she had seen in the forest.
Power radiated from him so strongly that the air felt heavier.
He stepped into the room with slow, confident strides.
Every instinct inside Aria screamed that this man was dangerous.
Not like Damon.
This was a different kind of danger.
Ancient.
Dominant.
Terrifying.
He stopped beside her bed, looking down at her as if she were something precious and fragile.
Something to be protected.
“Do you know who I am?” he asked.
Aria swallowed. “No…”
He held her gaze.
“I am Kael Draven.”
The name meant nothing to her.
But the way the woman beside her lowered her head instantly told Aria everything she needed to know.
This man was powerful here.
Very powerful.
He continued.
“King of the Lycans.”
Aria’s mind went blank.
King?
Her fingers gripped the fur blanket tightly.
“This isn’t possible,” she whispered.
Kael’s eyes softened slightly as he looked at her.
“It is,” he said quietly. “And you, Aria Nightshade…”
He leaned a little closer.
“…are the reason I left my throne and entered your forest last night.”
Her heart began to race again.
Confusion. Fear. Something else she couldn’t name.
“Why?” she asked.
His silver eyes never left hers.
“Because,” he said in a low, steady voice, “you are mine.”
- Writer
