Chapter 6: The midnight warning
630 Words
Midnight Warning
The moon hung heavy over the fortress, its pale light spilling across the stone courtyard. Serena stood at her window, unable to sleep. The air here was different and filled with the bite of pine and something darker, sharper, that stirred at the edges of her instincts.
She thought of the council, of the way some eyes had slid over her as though she was a shadow instead of a person. The way Kael’s presence at her side had been both a shield and a chain.
A soft sound broke the stillness a scuff of leather on stone.
She froze, listening.
Another step, closer this time, in the hallway outside her chamber. She turned from the window, her bare feet silent on the rug, and reached for the robe draped over the back of a chair. Wrapping it around herself, she moved to the door, pressing her ear against the wood.
Nothing.
She told herself to ignore it, to go back to bed. But the silence felt… wrong.
She eased the door open a c***k. The hallway beyond was dimly lit by wall torches, shadows stretching long along the flagstones.
That was when she saw it.
A strip of cloth dark and ragged was nailed to her door at eye level.
She pulled it free, the nail fell softly to the floor, and turned the fabric over in her hands. It wasn’t just cloth it was a scrap of fur, matted and smelling faintly of iron. Blood.
Something was stitched into it, crude and uneven, in red thread that looked disturbingly fresh:
Leave. Or bleed.
Her stomach tightened.
“You shouldn’t be wandering alone at night.”
The voice came from behind her, deep and quiet. She spun, the fur scrap clutched in her fist. Kael stood at the end of the hall, shadows cutting across his face.
He walked toward her, slow, deliberate, his gaze flicking briefly to the thing in her hand. When he stopped in front of her, his eyes were darker than she’d ever seen them.
“Who gave you that?”
“I don’t know,” she said. “But it was nailed to my door.” She held it out to him, and for a moment, his fingers brushed hers as he took it. The contact was short, but it left a trail of heat across her skin.
He studied the message, his jaw tightening. “This is wolf work,” he said finally. “Someone wants you gone.”
Serena met his gaze, searching for any sign of surprise. There was none.
“You don’t look shocked,” she said.
“I’m not.” His voice was flat, but there was something else beneath it. “I told you this place will eat you alive if you let it. Whoever did this just decided to skip the subtle warnings.”
“So what now?” she asked. “Do I pack my things and save you the trouble?”
The corner of his mouth twitched, but it wasn’t a smile. “No. You stay. You hold your ground. Because the moment you run, they win. And I don’t lose to anyone .”
He stepped past her then, toward her chamber door, his scent a mix of pine, smoke, and something darker brushing over her senses. “Lock your door tonight,” he said without looking back. “And don’t open it for anyone but me.”
When she closed the door behind her, she leaned against it, her heart still pounding.
The scrap of fur was gone Kael had taken it with him. But the words were burned into her mind, clear as the night sky outside.
Leave. Or bleed. Her mind kept wondering who could have sent this message….
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