CHAPTER TWO: THE BLOOD BETWEEN US
1011 Words
Kael couldn’t sleep.
Even hours after escorting Seraphine to the chamber, his body was restless, his thoughts clawing like his wolf behind his eyes. He sat on the edge of his bed, shirtless, back damp with sweat. The scent of her still lingered on his skin, snow and fire, blood and danger.
She was a paradox, an impossibility, a threat, a temptation.
His wolf, ever the beast of instinct, wasn’t afraid. It was drawn to her.
That was the part that scared him most.
Just down the hall, Seraphine lay awake as well, staring at the curved wooden beams above her. The room was quaint, spartan, but warm. Nothing like the cold marble tombs she was used to in her mother’s court.
Her mother.
Seraphine flinched at the thought.
Blood Queen Velara had ruled the Crimson Realms with an iron fang. She raised Seraphine as a weapon, not a daughter. But when Seraphine’s wolf began to manifest at thirteen, a legacy from her father, a rogue werewolf Alpha Velara had nearly killed her.
She wasn’t supposed to exist. A hybrid. An abomination.
And yet she did.
She survived.
And now she was here.
In the heart of werewolf territory.
Under the protection of the one Alpha who might help her unlock the truth of her origin and the reason her dreams always led her to him.
Kael.
She had seen him a dozen times in visions. Golden-eyed, Fierce, Lonely.
Always standing on the edge of some great war.
Was he the beginning of her fate? Or the end?
By morning, Veilwood was cloaked in fog. A low mist blanketed the grounds, curling around trees like silk.
Kael stood at the training field behind the stronghold, sweat glistening across his chest as he moved through his combat drills. His claws slashed through the air in precise arcs, breath controlled, body fluid, a predator in motion.
From the terrace above, Seraphine watched him, one hand resting on the railing.
“He trains like he’s trying to silence something inside,” came a voice beside her.
She turned.
A woman stood there tall, muscular, her dark curls braided back, eyes sharp as blades.
“Let me guess, Seraphine said dryly, Beta?”
The woman chuckled. “No, I’m Freya His sister.”
Seraphine blinked, Oh!
Freya smirked, “Didn’t think Alphas had siblings?”
Didn’t think they kept vampires alive under their roof either.
Touché.
Freya stepped forward, her expression guarded. Kael isn’t like most Alphas; he listens to the voices others ignore. That’s what makes him dangerous.
Dangerous? Seraphine raised a brow, or powerful?
Both.
There was silence for a moment.
“Why are you really here, Seraphine? Freya asked.”
Seraphine’s lips parted, but no words came out.
She didn’t know if she could trust her yet, Or anyone here.
So instead, she turned her gaze back to Kael and whispered, To find what was taken from me.
Later that afternoon, Kael summoned her to the war room, a circular chamber with an ancient map etched into the stone floor, the borders of the supernatural realms pulsing faintly with magic.
He stood by the window when she entered, arms folded, jaw tense.
You’re not just a lost hybrid, he said without turning. You came here for something. I want to know what.
Seraphine met his eyes. I told you, I’m searching for the truth.
What truth?
“My father, she said quietly.” I want to know who he was.
Kael frowned. You don’t know?
All I have is a name, and the last place he was seen was Veilwood.
Kael turned to face her, expression unreadable. What was the name?
Thorne.
The silence was immediate, heavy.
Kael’s breath caught in his throat, his fingers curled into fists.
“My father’s name was Darius Thorne, she added.”
Kael took a step back. Darius was my father.
Seraphine’s heart stuttered, that’s not possible.
“He died fifteen years ago, Kael said, voice cold. In a vampire ambush.
Seraphine staggered, my mother said he left her. Disappeared. She never told me how he died.
Kael’s eyes darkened. If you’re telling the truth, that makes us…
No, she interrupted sharply. We’re not siblings, I’m sure.
Kael narrowed his eyes. Then, what are we?
The air between them crackled again, heavy with unspoken things.
Seraphine’s voice dropped, Connected.
That night, Seraphine stood barefoot in the center of the forest clearing just beyond the stronghold, moonlight bathing her in silver. Her senses tingled; something was watching.
“I know you’re there,” she whispered.
A figure stepped from the shadows. Not Kael. Not pack.
This one wore armor etched with blood runes, his skin pale, his eyes crimson.
A vampire knight.
I told you not to come, Seraphine said, heart hammering.
You’re taking too long, my lady, he said. The Queen grows restless.
She can rot in her throne, Seraphine spat. I’m not going back.
She gave you life.
She caged it.
The knight’s lips curled. Then, I suppose we do this the hard way.
A silver dagger appeared in his hand.
Before he could lunge, a snarl split the air.
Kael crashed into the knight, claws slashing, teeth bared. The two rolled across the forest floor in a flurry of fury and steel. Seraphine watched in horror and awe as Kael fought like a beast unleashed.
When the knight finally fled, bleeding and limping into the trees, Kael turned on Seraphine, eyes blazing.
“You brought danger to my pack,” he growled.
“I didn’t ask him to come,” she snapped back.
Kael took a step toward her, chest heaving. You could’ve told me.
And you would’ve believed me?
They were inches apart now, breathing hard, hearts racing.
“Tell me now, he said,” voice low.
“I’m not your enemy, Kael,” Seraphine whispered. But something’s coming, something worse than either of us has faced. And we’re at the center of it.
Kael stared at her.
His wolf, for once, was silent.
Only one word burned through his thoughts.
Fate.
- Writer
