CHAPTER FIVE: THE WOLF IN HER DREAMS
1486 Words
The dream began with a heartbeat.
Slow.
Heavy.
Painful.
Amara could hear it echoing through the darkness.
Thump.
Thump.
Thump.
At first she thought it was her own.
Then she realized it wasn't.
This heart belonged to someone else.
Someone grieving.
Someone waiting.
Someone who had spent years searching for something they had lost.
The forest appeared around her.
Ancient trees stretched endlessly beneath a silver moon.
Mist curled around their trunks.
The air smelled of rain and pine.
And somewhere nearby, a wolf was watching.
Amara didn't run.
Not this time.
Every dream before this had ended with her fleeing through the forest.
Tonight felt different.
The fear was still there.
But curiosity had finally become stronger.
She walked forward slowly.
The mist parted.
And there he was.
The wolf.
Massive.
Silver-eyed.
Beautiful.
Its fur shimmered beneath the moonlight.
For several seconds neither moved.
The creature simply stared at her.
Not like a predator.
Not like prey.
Like someone remembering.
The realization sent a chill through her body.
The wolf knew her.
Not Amara.
Someone else.
Someone from long ago.
Then the wolf lowered its head.
A mournful sound escaped its throat.
And suddenly the forest changed.
The trees vanished.
The mist disappeared.
Amara found herself standing beside a lake.
Moonlight reflected across the water.
The surface remained perfectly still.
Too still.
As though time itself had stopped.
A woman stood at the water's edge.
Long dark hair.
Pale skin.
Sad eyes.
Elara.
Amara's breath caught.
"You."
The woman turned slowly.
For a moment it felt like looking into a mirror.
A mirror showing another life.
"You're dreaming deeper now."
Her voice sounded distant.
Almost like an echo.
"What does that mean?"
Elara smiled sadly.
"It means you're getting closer."
"Closer to what?"
The woman's eyes filled with something that looked like fear.
"The truth."
Before Amara could ask another question, a loud crack echoed through the forest.
Elara immediately looked terrified.
"The dream is changing."
"What?"
"You have to wake up."
Amara frowned.
"Why?"
Elara stepped backward.
The lake began to darken.
The moonlight disappeared.
The wolf suddenly growled.
Low.
Dangerous.
Warning.
Then a second figure appeared across the water.
A man.
Tall.
Motionless.
Watching.
His face remained hidden by darkness.
Yet the moment Amara saw him, terror exploded inside her chest.
She didn't know who he was.
But some forgotten part of her recognized him.
The stranger smiled.
And Elara screamed.
Amara woke instantly.
Her eyes flew open.
Her entire body trembled.
Rain hammered against the windows of Marrow House.
Lightning flashed outside.
The dream felt more real than ever before.
Almost like a memory.
A knock sounded at her door.
Three soft taps.
Amara sat upright.
Her heart immediately raced.
She already knew who it was.
The strange thing was that she didn't know how.
She simply knew.
The door opened.
Kael stepped inside.
His dark hair was damp from the storm.
Concern filled his eyes.
The sight of him brought an unexpected sense of relief.
Something about that realization unsettled her.
"You were calling out again."
His voice was quiet.
Gentle.
Amara looked away.
"Was I?"
Kael nodded.
"You sounded frightened."
The concern in his voice felt genuine.
Not forced.
Not polite.
Real.
He had been worried.
For her.
The realization warmed something inside her chest.
She quickly ignored it.
"You keep appearing whenever I have those dreams."
A faint smile touched his lips.
"Maybe your timing is predictable."
She laughed softly.
The sound surprised both of them.
For a moment the room felt lighter.
Normal.
Then the memory of the dream returned.
The hidden man.
Elara's scream.
The fear.
Immediately Kael noticed.
His expression darkened.
"What happened this time?"
Amara told him everything.
The lake.
Elara.
The stranger.
The smile.
Every detail.
As she spoke, Kael became increasingly tense.
His jaw tightened.
His eyes hardened.
When she finished, silence filled the room.
"You know who he is."
Kael didn't answer.
Which was answer enough.
"Kael."
Still nothing.
Frustration flared inside her.
"You keep doing that."
"Doing what?"
"Looking like you know something and refusing to tell me."
His gaze met hers.
For a brief moment she saw exhaustion there.
Pain.
Fear.
Something else she couldn't name.
"I'm trying to protect you."
The honesty caught her off guard.
Amara stared.
Neither looked away.
The storm outside faded into the background.
The room suddenly felt smaller.
Warmer.
His eyes lingered on her face.
And she became painfully aware of how close he was standing.
Close enough to touch.
Close enough to make her heartbeat betray her.
The silence stretched.
Neither seemed willing to break it.
Then Kael spoke softly.
"You should try to sleep."
Amara laughed.
"After that dream?"
A faint smile appeared.
"I'll stay until you do."
The words stunned her.
"You don't have to."
"I know."
Something shifted between them.
Subtle.
Dangerous.
The kind of change neither could pretend not to notice anymore.
The following morning, Amara escaped to the library.
If she stayed around Kael much longer, she was going to lose her ability to think.
And she desperately needed her ability to think.
Lyra immediately noticed something.
"You look different."
Amara groaned.
"Please don't."
The librarian grinned.
"You spent time with Kael."
It wasn't a question.
Amara hated that.
"Why does everyone know everything in this town?"
"We don't."
Lyra leaned forward.
"We just know Kael."
That caught Amara's attention.
"What does that mean?"
The smile disappeared.
Something thoughtful entered Lyra's eyes.
"I've known him most of my life."
"And?"
"He hasn't looked at anyone the way he looks at you."
Amara's heart betrayed her immediately.
The reaction didn't go unnoticed.
Lyra's grin returned.
"Oh."
"Stop."
"Oh, this is wonderful."
"Lyra."
The librarian laughed.
Then suddenly became serious.
"Just be careful."
Amara frowned.
"About what?"
"His heart."
The answer surprised her.
Not because she'd expected something else.
Because she hadn't expected someone to worry about Kael.
Lyra looked toward the window.
"He never recovered after Elara."
The words lingered.
Heavy.
Painful.
Amara found herself thinking about them long after Lyra returned to work.
That evening Rowan found her leaving the library.
The Beta looked unusually irritated.
"You're impossible."
Amara blinked.
"What did I do now?"
"You make my Alpha nervous."
She nearly choked.
"What?"
Rowan folded his arms.
"He spent twenty years being emotionally unavailable."
Amara stared.
"Emotionally unavailable?"
"Then you arrived."
The Beta sighed dramatically.
"And suddenly he's standing outside your house at midnight."
For the first time, Amara laughed so hard she nearly doubled over.
The image was ridiculous.
Yet strangely sweet.
Rowan watched her carefully.
Then his expression softened.
"Just don't break him."
The statement shocked her.
Because beneath the sarcasm, Rowan genuinely cared.
Before she could respond, a loud howl echoed from the forest.
Every trace of humor vanished.
Rowan immediately turned serious.
The sound hadn't been natural.
It sounded like a warning.
Night fell quickly.
The forest beyond Hollowmere seemed darker than usual.
Amara stood on the porch of Marrow House staring into the trees.
The howl still echoed in her mind.
A familiar voice spoke behind her.
"You shouldn't be out here alone."
She smiled before turning around.
Kael.
Again.
Somehow he always appeared when she needed him.
That realization was becoming dangerous.
"You really need a new opening line."
A faint smile touched his lips.
"I'll work on it."
They stood together in silence.
Watching the forest.
Watching the darkness.
Watching each other when the other wasn't looking.
Eventually Kael spoke.
"You don't trust me."
The statement surprised her.
"I do."
"No."
His gaze remained fixed on the trees.
"You want to."
Amara couldn't deny it.
Because he was right.
Part of her trusted him completely.
Another part knew he was hiding something important.
The conflict frustrated her.
Kael looked down at her.
His expression softer than she'd ever seen.
"I wish things were different."
The honesty caught her off guard.
"Different how?"
For a moment he didn't answer.
Then:
"I wish you had come here under better circumstances."
The sadness in his voice hurt.
Far more than it should have.
Amara stepped closer.
Without thinking.
Without planning.
Just instinct.
Kael froze.
The distance between them disappeared.
Neither looked away.
Neither spoke.
The tension that had been building for weeks suddenly became impossible to ignore.
Amara could hear her heartbeat.
Could hear his breathing.
Could feel the pull drawing them toward one another.
Then—
A twig snapped inside the forest.
Both turned instantly.
Someone was there.
Watching.
The feeling was overwhelming.
Kael immediately stepped in front of her.
Protective.
Dangerous.
Alpha.
The warmth of the moment vanished.
Replaced by fear.
And somewhere deep inside the trees, hidden eyes watched them disappear into the night.
Eyes belonging to a man with a scar across his face.
A man who smiled as he whispered one chilling sentence:
"She's beginning to remember."
And for the first time in twenty years...
He was afraid.
- Writer
