CHAPTER 7: Shadows and Silver Eyes
739 Words
"The Wolves’ Den had never seemed so quiet.
Kael carried Seraphina through its expansive halls, his silver eyes faintly illuminated by the torchlight. His claws remained extended, dripping blood that splattered on the marble floors with each step. No one dared to approach them. The wolves bowed their heads and stepped aside, instinctively avoiding their Alpha’s gaze.
Seraphina stirred weakly in his arms, her lashes fluttering. “Put me down… I can walk.”
Kael didn’t slow down. “You’re bleeding from your magic. You can barely keep your eyes open.”
“I don’t need your help,” she whispered, though her voice cracked with exhaustion.
Kael’s lips curved into a dark smile, sharp and knowing. “And yet… here you are, in my arms.”
She despised how her heart fluttered at his words, but she loathed her own weakness even more. The curse throbbed inside her chest like molten chains, and every flicker of power left her feeling empty and fragile.
As Kael pushed open the door to his private Lair, the scent of pine and smoke enveloped them. The room was stark yet commanding—a massive bed draped in black furs, a table scattered with maps and weapons, and walls lined with silver sigils designed to ward off intruders.
He set her down gently on the edge of the bed and crouched before her. His claws retracted, but his hands remained stained with the crimson of those he had killed for her.
“Take off your cloak,” he commanded softly.
Seraphina hesitated, instinctively clutching the fabric tighter around herself. “Why?”
“Because you’re injured.” His tone left no room for disagreement. “And because I said so.”
The Alpha in him wasn’t asking.
Reluctantly, she loosened the ties and let the cloak slip from her shoulders. Beneath it, her tunic was torn and smeared with blood—not all of it hers—but enough to make Kael’s jaw clench. He reached for a cloth and a bowl of water, his movements surprisingly gentle as he began cleaning the blood from her arms.
“You shouldn’t have done that,” he murmured.
“What?” she breathed.
“Thrown yourself between me and that blade.” His silver eyes flicked up to meet hers, glowing like molten moonlight. “You could have died.”
“You’re the Alpha,” she replied hoarsely. “You can’t die.”
A soft, humorless laugh escaped him. “Even Alphas bleed.”
His fingers brushed over her wrist, tracing the faint scars winding up her arm like dark vines. She flinched, but he didn’t pull away.
“These aren’t from hunters,” he said quietly. It wasn’t a question.
Seraphina looked away. “No.”
“Then who hurt you?” His voice was low and dangerous.
“It doesn’t matter.”
Kael’s expression hardened. “Everything about you matters.”
Her breath caught at the intensity in his tone. He wasn’t just curious—he was possessive and protective; it sent a thrill of fear mixed with something far more dangerous through her chest.
“You can’t claim me like I’m one of your wolves,” she whispered.
Kael leaned closer, his breath brushing against her ear. “Who said you’re just one of my wolves?”
Her pulse raced in her throat as the curse stirred within her like a restless beast. She closed her eyes, trying to fight it back while the air thickened between them with magic and dominance.
Then—
A sharp knock at the door shattered the moment.
“Alpha,” called a wolf guard urgently outside. “We captured a hunter carrying a message addressed to you.”
Kael’s expression darkened further. “Bring him to the dungeons.”
“Yes, Alpha.”
As the footsteps retreated, Kael turned back to Seraphina with a sharp gaze. “Rest. I’ll handle this.”
“You think they were after me,” she said softly.
“I don’t think,” he growled fiercely. “I know.”
As he left the room, his silver eyes burned with lethal intent.
Seraphina sank back against the furs, curling her fingers into the fabric as the curse whispered again—louder this time—like a snake coiling around her soul.
And for the first time, she realized something that chilled her blood:
The curse wasn’t just hungry.
It was watching."
- Writer
