The Wolf In His Bones

Chapter 5

The room is colder today. Or maybe it’s just me. I’ve been pretending to sleep for the past ten minutes, listening to footsteps, metal scraping, and that low hum of voices outside the door. Matteo had checked on me earlier, giving me a cup of water and a soft, “Don’t panic, okay?” before leaving again.

But the air shifted the moment he entered.

I don’t have to see him to know it’s him.

The boss.

Heavy steps. Controlled. Predatory. The kind of walk that doesn’t need to be loud to command a room. My heartbeat stutters as the door closes behind him.

I sit up slowly, refusing to look scared. I can feel his gaze dragging over me, sharp enough to peel skin. Matteo was warm, familiar in a weird way.

But this man?

His presence presses on my lungs like a hand.

“Stand,” he orders.

His voice… it’s deep. Smooth. Too calm. A voice that could lull someone to sleep or terrify them awake — depending on what he wants. I push myself up, my legs shaking a little, but I hide it.

He circles me once, silent. Studying me. Hunting me with his eyes.

“You caused me… inconvenience,” he murmurs.

I swallow. “Your men kidnapped the wrong girl.”

“If that were true, you wouldn’t be here,” he snaps softly.

That tone makes the hair on my arms lift. Something in the room shifts — the air tightening, warming, spinning lightly like a storm forming around him.

He steps closer until I have to tilt my head up to see him properly. His face is… almost unreal. Sharp jaw. Cold mouth. Eyes darker than night, but with something glowing deep inside like a flicker of gold. Something wrong. Something dangerous.

“Who are you working for?” he asks.

“I told you already. I’m not working for anyone.”

He doesn’t blink. Doesn’t move. Doesn’t even breathe, I swear.

Then—

His hand snaps toward my chin, gripping it and lifting my face to his.

“Lies irritate me.”

“I’m not lying,” I whisper, refusing to break.

His thumb brushes my lower lip — not gently, more like he’s checking something. Testing something. And for a second, everything in the room trembles. The lights flicker. His jaw clenches, and the gold in his eyes burns brighter.

He releases me like my skin burned him.

“What’s your name?” he demands.

“Lila Hart.”

He studies me again, slower this time. Almost confused. Almost angry about being confused.

“Tell me yours,” I say before I can stop myself.

Matteo would probably faint hearing me talk like this, but I need to hold on to something, some kind of control.

His head tilts slightly, lips curling like he’s amused that I dare ask.

“People don’t ask me that,” he murmurs.

“I’m not people.”

Silence.

Heavy.

Crackling.

Then he steps closer, leaning in until his breath touches my ear.

“Damien Moretti.”

The name hits me like a punch to the stomach. It feels heavy. Familiar somehow. Like I’ve heard it before in a dream or a nightmare.

He pulls back, and his eyes lock on mine with a strange intensity — like he’s waiting to see something. Like he’s searching for something inside me he doesn’t understand.

But the room changes again. His pupils sharpen. His breath deepens. For a second, I swear a low growl rolls from his chest — too animal to be human. My skin prickles.

He suddenly steps away, running a hand through his hair like he’s fighting something only he can hear.

Matteo bursts into the room, breathless.

“Damien!”

Damien doesn’t look at him. Doesn’t look at me either.

His voice is low, strained, like he’s holding on by a thread.

“Get her out.”

Matteo grabs my arm gently, already pulling me, but I can’t look away from Damien.

His shoulders rise and fall too fast.

His eyes flash — not gold anymore, but something brighter, wilder.

And for a heartbeat…

his canines lengthen.

Just a fraction, but enough for my breath to vanish from my lungs.

Not human.

He’s not fully human.

Matteo drags me out as the door slams behind us, and the last thing I hear is a roar — muffled, furious, and monstrous.

A chill crawls down my spine.

What the hell is he?