A Heart Bound In Shadows

Chapter 9

Jace

The tires of the black SUV crunched softly against the thick gravel as we drove through the enormous wrought-iron gates of the packhouse. Hidden deep within the forest, the three-story stone villa was modern yet built like a fortress. It was our true home. Here, human rules meant nothing. Only the laws of the pack mattered.

I brought the car to a stop in front of the wide staircase leading to the entrance and immediately glanced over my shoulder.

Exhaustion, the shock of everything she had endured, and the powerful painkillers Dr. Miller had given her had finally taken their toll.

Willow was fast asleep.

Her head rested against Lexi's shoulder, her face pale, but at least her features had relaxed. Her breathing had become steady, although the dark bruise beneath her eye and her split lip still told the story of the horrors she had suffered, even in sleep.

She looked so fragile against the enormous leather seat, as though the slightest breeze could shatter her into a thousand pieces.

"She's asleep," Lexi whispered, gently stroking the girl's black hair. "It's like she hasn't slept properly in days."

"She probably hasn't," I growled as I climbed out of the car.

I opened the back door, and Lexi carefully shifted Willow toward me.

No matter how gently I tried to move her, Willow let out a soft sigh in her sleep when I lifted her into my arms. Instinctively, she buried her face against my neck, her fingers clutching my shirt even while unconscious.

She was far too light.

The rage I had felt in the medical room had hardened into something cold and merciless.

Whoever had done this to her was a dead man.

He just didn't know it yet.

"Caleb, get the door," I ordered.

Zane and Caleb hurried ahead, throwing open the villa's massive double oak doors.

The ground floor of the packhouse was never quiet.

Since it was early afternoon, the enormous open-plan living room and kitchen were filled with pack members. A few warriors lounged on the couches watching television, while others stood around the kitchen island, talking.

But the moment I crossed the threshold with Willow in my arms, every sound died.

Dozens of eyes turned toward us.

A werewolf's sense of smell was merciless.

Before they even saw the girl in my arms, they caught the scent of fresh blood, medication, and the unmistakable presence of a human.

The older warriors immediately rose to their feet, their bodies going rigid.

A human inside the innermost sanctuary of the packhouse was an absolute taboo.

Whispers began spreading through the room.

"A human..."

"What did Jace bring here?"

"She's bleeding..."

My wolf rumbled deep inside my chest.

I didn't care that these people were my family. I didn't care that they were warriors.

At that moment, anyone who dared take even a single step closer became a threat in my eyes.

My green eyes instantly began to glow, and a deep, resonating Alpha growl tore from my throat, vibrating through the walls.

The effect was immediate.

My Alpha aura spread throughout the room like a thick, suffocating wave.

Every pack member who had dared whisper fell silent.

They lowered their heads, fixed their gazes on the floor, and instinctively exposed their throats in submission.

Not a single one dared meet my eyes.

"Silence!" Zane hissed at those standing nearby, reinforcing my authority.

Before I could head toward the stairs, the sound of heavy, purposeful footsteps echoed from the upper gallery.

I looked up.

My father, Marcus, the pack's current Alpha, stood at the top of the staircase beside my mother, Elena.

My father was a tall, broad-shouldered man whose mere presence commanded respect.

When his gaze landed on me, then shifted to the peacefully sleeping, bleeding human girl in my arms, his jaw tightened.

They descended the stairs slowly and deliberately, stopping directly in front of me.

"Jace," my father said, his deep voice echoing through the silent room. "What is the meaning of this? Why have you brought a human onto our territory? You know the law."

Instinctively, I tightened my hold on Willow.

She stirred in her sleep, her relaxed face twisting into a brief grimace of pain as pressure shifted onto her injured leg, before she went limp again.

"She's hurt," I replied, my voice every bit as hard and uncompromising as his.

I refused to back down.

Not even for him.

"She needs protection."

"A human?" My father raised an eyebrow, but suspicion had already entered his eyes.

He could feel my aura.

He could sense the possessive, almost feral protective instinct burning around me.

"You should have left her at school or taken her to a human hospital. This is a packhouse, Jace. Not a shelter for mortals."

"She's not just some mortal!"

Anger flared inside me, and my wolf surged toward the surface again.

"Father, she... she's mine. And no one, I repeat, no one is sending her away from here. Not even if you don't like it."

The silence that followed was so profound that even a speck of dust hitting the floor might have been heard.

The pack members watched with bated breath as their future Alpha openly defied the current one over a human girl.

My father's eyes flashed yellow in response to the challenge.

But before the tension could erupt into something far worse, my mother stepped forward.

Elena gently placed her hand on her husband's arm to calm him, then turned toward me.

There was no anger in her eyes.

Only the deep, understanding attention of a mother who already knew more than she was saying.

Her gaze traveled over me, taking in my tense muscles, before lingering on Willow's pale, bruised face and split lip.

As Luna, my mother could sense the energy connecting me to this girl.

"Jace," she said, her voice gentle but firm. "Is she badly hurt?"

"Yes," I answered, my tone softening slightly. "Someone's beating her at home. There's a massive bruise on her leg, and she can barely walk. Dr. Miller treated her. He gave her a sedative and painkillers. I couldn't take her home. If I take her back there, they'll kill her."

My mother nodded slowly before turning to my father.

"Marcus. Let him. Our son has found his mate. Or at least the person fate intended for him. You can see it."

My father stared into my eyes for several long, tense seconds.

Wolf faced wolf in a silent battle of wills.

But eventually, he saw the determination burning inside me.

I would rather fight the entire pack than let Willow go.

My father slowly exhaled, and the Alpha tension surrounding him began to ease.

"Take her to the east wing," he finally said with a heavy sigh. "The quietest guest rooms are there. But Jace... when she wakes up, we need to talk. The safety of the pack still comes first."

"Thank you," I replied with a brief nod.

I didn't wait another second.

I stepped around my parents and started climbing the wide oak staircase.

Lexi immediately followed, hurrying ahead to open the doors for me.

The east wing was a secluded, exceptionally quiet part of the villa, overlooking the dense pine forest.

Lexi pushed open the door at the very end of the hallway.

The room was enormous, decorated in warm pastel colors, with thick carpets and a massive king-sized bed standing in the center.

It was dark and peaceful.

Exactly what I had promised her.

I slowly approached the bed and lowered Willow onto the soft blankets with extreme care, making sure not to put any pressure on her injured leg.

The moment I pulled my arms away, she made a tiny, unhappy sound and curled into herself inside her oversized sweater.

Lexi quickly stepped forward and removed the girl's worn, torn sneakers before pulling a soft, warm blanket over her, all the way up to her neck.

"I'll bring her some clean clothes and water for when she wakes up," my sister whispered. "You stay here with her."

I nodded.

Lexi quietly left the room, closing the door softly behind her.

And then I was alone with Willow in the dim light.

I sat on the edge of the bed, as far away from her as possible so I wouldn't disturb her sleep, yet close enough to hear her heartbeat.

For several long minutes, I simply watched the steady rise and fall of her chest.

Slowly, I reached out and carefully brushed a stray strand of black hair away from her face with my fingertips, making sure not to touch any of her bruises.

"You're safe, Willow," I whispered into the quiet room. "I swear the darkness will never follow you here again."

For the first time, my wolf finally settled inside me.

She was here.

Close to me.

And the moment she woke up and told me the name she was so desperately trying to hide...

I would go out there and wipe that man off the face of the earth.