CHAPTER THREE
1138 Words
3: The Truth
Elena gripped the back of the chair, her knuckles white. Her breath was coming too fast, her mind struggling to process what Kieran had just told her.
“You’re connected to me.”
The words echoed in her head, twisting through her thoughts like smoke. It didn’t make sense. Nothing about this made sense.
“This is insane,” she muttered, shaking her head. “Werewolves? Dangerous rogues? And now you’re telling me that I’m somehow what? Tied to you?”
Kieran stood a few feet away, his golden eyes steady, unwavering. “Yes.”
Her nails dug into the wood of the chair. “That’s not an explanation.”
“I know.” His voice was low, careful. “But I need you to hear me out before you decide to run from this.”
Run.
The idea had been circling in her mind since the moment she opened the door to him. Maybe if she packed her things, got in her car, and drove as far away from Blackwood Forest as possible, she could pretend none of this was real.
But something inside her whispered that she’d never outrun this.
She exhaled sharply. “Fine. Talk.”
Kieran nodded and took a slow step closer. “You already know the first truth—I’m a werewolf. And so is Marcus. But what you don’t understand yet is why he sees you as a threat.”
Elena swallowed hard, ignoring the way her stomach clenched at the mention of the rogue wolf’s name. “Because I saw him?”
“That’s part of it.” Kieran hesitated for a fraction of a second before adding, “But it’s more than that. You weren’t supposed to be in those woods that night. Not just because it was dangerous, but because… you don’t belong in this world.”
A cold prickle ran down her spine.
“What does that mean?” she asked, her voice quieter now.
Kieran watched her for a long moment, as if deciding how much he should say. “It means that you’re human, Elena. You shouldn’t be able to sense us. You shouldn’t have been able to feel what you did when you saw me.”
She frowned. “Feel what?”
His lips parted, but then he hesitated again. Instead of answering directly, he asked, “What happened when you looked at me that night? When you saw me shift?”
Elena opened her mouth to reply then stopped.
She knew what he was referring to.
The moment she had locked eyes with the massive black wolf, fear should have paralyzed her. She should have screamed, run, anything. But she hadn’t.
Instead, something had settled deep inside her.
Recognition.
Not in her mind, but in her bones. In her blood.
Her body had known something before her brain could even process it.
Now, standing in front of Kieran, she felt it again. That pull, like an invisible thread stretched between them, tethering her to him.
She swallowed. “I—I don’t know.”
His gaze searched hers. “Yes, you do.”
Silence stretched between them, thick and heavy.
Elena forced herself to break it. “Why do I feel like this?”
Kieran took a deep breath, as if bracing himself. “Because you and I are bonded.”
The word sent a jolt through her, even though she didn’t fully understand it.
“Bonded?” she echoed.
“In my world, in my pack, there’s something stronger than fate, stronger than choice. It’s rare, but sometimes… a wolf finds the one person who is meant to be theirs.”
Elena felt her pulse jump. “You’re talking about soulmates.”
Kieran’s lips twitched, but there was no humor in his expression. “Something like that.”
She stared at him, searching for some sign that he was lying. But all she saw was unwavering certainty.
“No,” she said, shaking her head. “That’s not possible.”
“I thought the same thing,” Kieran admitted. “Until I saw you. Until I felt it.”
Elena backed up a step. “This is crazy.”
“I know.”
“This isn’t real.”
“It is.”
Her breathing turned shallow. “No, you’re just saying this to—”
“Elena,” Kieran interrupted, his voice dropping to a near-growl. “You feel it too. I know you do.”
She didn’t want to admit it. But the truth was, he was right.
That electric pull, the warmth that spread through her when he was near, it wasn’t normal. It wasn’t something she could explain away as adrenaline or fear.
And that terrified her more than anything else.
She ran a shaking hand through her hair. “I need to sit down.”
Kieran stepped back slightly, giving her space as she collapsed onto the couch.
She pressed her palms against her temples, trying to think.
A few days ago, her biggest concern had been capturing the perfect shot of a wolf pack. Now, she was sitting across from a werewolf who was telling her they were bonded.
Her entire world had shifted beneath her feet, and she had no idea where to go from here.
Kieran sat down across from her, his voice quieter now. “I don’t expect you to believe me right away. But you have to understand, Marcus will come for you. And if he realizes what you are to me, he’ll never stop.”
Elena looked up sharply. “Why?”
Kieran’s jaw tightened. “Because an alpha like Marcus doesn’t just want power. He wants control. And taking you away from me would be the ultimate way to break me.”
A chill ran through her. “So I’m just a pawn in this?”
Kieran’s expression hardened. “You are not a pawn. You are my—” He stopped himself, taking a slow breath. “You are important. And I will protect you.”
Elena wanted to argue. Wanted to tell him she didn’t need his protection, that she could handle herself.
But deep down, she wasn’t sure she could.
Because if Marcus really was coming for her… she had no idea how to fight back.
Silence settled between them again.
Finally, Kieran said, “There’s one more thing you need to know.”
She forced herself to meet his gaze. “What?”
His golden eyes burned with something fierce, something unyielding.
“Once a bond like this is formed… it can’t be undone.”
Elena’s breath hitched.
Her entire life, she had been free. Free to choose, free to leave, free to decide what she wanted.
But now, a single moment in the woods had changed everything.
And there was no going back.
- Writer
