CLAIMED BY THREE

Chapter20

Aurenya’s POV

They didn’t come again.

That was the worst part.

Not silence.

Control.

Like whatever made it had decided we were already aware.

Rhydan moved first. “We’re leaving. Now.”

Kaelor didn’t argue this time. He was already at the door, checking outside through the c***k before pushing it wider.

Draven stayed where he was.

Watching me.

Not the others.

Me.

I hated that more than anything.

“I can walk,” I said quietly, pushing myself up.

My legs didn’t fully agree at first.

Rhydan reached out instinctively. “Don’t push yourself—”

“I said I can walk.”

He stopped.

Not because I sounded strong.

Because I didn’t.

And that was exactly why I had to.

The older man—the one who said he helped with the seal—stepped aside slightly as Kaelor motioned for us to move.

His eyes stayed on me a second longer than comfortable.

Like he was waiting for something to happen.

Like he already knew it would.

We moved out of the room fast.

The house wasn’t small.

It wasn’t warm either.

Everything felt too clean. Too structured. Like a place built to hold secrets, not people.

The corridor stretched longer than it should’ve.

My steps echoed softly.

Too loudly.

Rhydan stayed close to my left.

Kaelor ahead.

Draven behind.

I could feel him there without turning.

That presence again.

Constant.

Measured.

Like a pressure on my back I couldn’t shake off.

We reached a wider hall when it happened.

The air changed first.

Subtle.

Then colder.

I stopped walking without meaning to.

Kaelor noticed immediately. “Don’t stop.”

But I wasn’t listening anymore.

Because I felt it.

That same pull.

Not pain this time.

Recognition.

My chest tightened slightly.

“…It’s here,” I whispered.

Rhydan’s head snapped toward me. “What is?”

I didn’t get to answer.

The lights flickered.

Once.

Twice.

Then steadied.

But something was already wrong.

The older man behind us sighed quietly. “Too fast.”

Draven’s voice sharpened slightly. “Where?”

The man didn’t answer immediately.

Then—

“Inside the house.”

A beat of silence.

Then everything moved at once.

Kaelor pulled me back slightly. “Stay behind me.”

Rhydan stepped forward. “Show yourself.”

Nothing responded.

But I could feel it now.

Not outside.

Not far.

Closer.

Like it had slipped in with us the moment we entered.

My breath tightened.

The bond.

It wasn’t just reacting anymore.

It was pulling.

Softly.

Like a thread being tightened from the inside of my chest.

I pressed a hand there without thinking.

Rhydan noticed. “Aurenya?”

“I can feel it,” I whispered.

Draven’s eyes narrowed. “Feel what?”

I swallowed.

“…It’s not outside,” I said slowly. “It’s in the house with us.”

A pause.

Then Kaelor’s voice dropped. “Everyone spread—”

Too late.

The temperature dipped sharply.

And the lights went out.

Complete darkness.

For a second, I couldn’t even hear breathing.

Then—

a voice.

Not loud.

Right behind me.

“Aurenya…”

My entire body froze.

I didn’t move.

I couldn’t.

Rhydan reacted instantly, grabbing my arm and pulling me back—

But something else pulled harder.

Not physical.

Inside.

My chest tightened sharply.

A familiar pressure bloomed under my skin like something waking up under layers of sleep.

“No…” I whispered.

Kaelor’s voice cut through the dark. “Don’t engage it.”

Draven didn’t speak.

I could feel him moving though.

Slow.

Calculating.

The voice came again.

Closer.

“You can feel me now… can’t you?”

My breath shook slightly.

Rhydan pulled me further back. “Don’t answer it.”

But my body wasn’t listening to him anymore.

It was listening to the bond.

That pull inside me deepened.

Like it was responding to the voice.

Recognizing it.

A sharp pain flickered through my chest.

I gasped slightly.

Kaelor noticed instantly. “It’s syncing with her.”

Rhydan swore under his breath. “Stop it—whatever you’re doing—stop it!”

But I wasn’t doing anything.

That was the problem.

Something inside me was reacting without permission.

The darkness shifted.

Not visually.

Spatially.

Like something had moved closer without moving at all.

Then—

light.

Not from the house.

From me.

A faint, unstable glow spread across my chest beneath my hand.

Rhydan froze. “What the hell is that?”

I stared down.

My breathing uneven.

It wasn’t healing.

It wasn’t power.

It felt like… awareness.

Like something inside me was answering back.

The voice in the dark spoke again.

Satisfied.

“There you are.”

Kaelor’s voice turned sharp. “Break it—now.”

Draven finally spoke.

Quiet.

Dangerously calm.

“No.”

Silence.

Even the darkness seemed to hesitate.

Kaelor turned. “What do you mean no?”

Draven’s gaze was fixed on me.

“It’s not attacking,” he said.

A pause.

“It’s connecting.”

My breath caught slightly.

Rhydan tightened his grip. “That’s not better.”

But Draven didn’t look away.

“It is,” he said.

The glow inside me pulsed once.

Soft.

Then steadier.

And the voice in the dark—

didn’t sound like it was trying to take me anymore.

It sounded like it had finally found me.