The Wolf Within

Chapter Four: Lake View

The sun had barely crested over the rooftops of Willowridge, casting a golden haze through the bedroom window.

I hadn’t slept much — again — but I forced myself out of bed anyway. Today, I was determined to feel normal.

No wolves. No dreamy eyes drawing me in. No gnawing dread in my chest.

Just sun, water, and the illusion of peace.

I tied my damp hair up into a messy bun, brushing sleep from my eyes as I dug through my drawer for a swimsuit.

I found the dark green one I liked — the one that made me feel a little more like me — and tossed it onto the bed before heading to the bathroom.

I’d barely gotten the faucet turned on when Ethan’s voice floated in from the kitchen.

“Good morning gorgeous, by the way,” he called casually, “a few of my coworkers are coming to the lake today. You remember Jordan? He’s bringing his girlfriend and a couple friends.”

I froze for half a second, just long enough to catch the slight shift in his tone. He sounded too casual. I let the water run over my hands and didn’t reply right away.

More people. Strangers. Perfect.

“Cool,” I said, keeping my voice light. “The more the merrier, right?”

He walked past the bathroom doorway, shirt half-buttoned, and gave me a smile that didn’t quite reach his eyes. “Yeah. It’ll be fun.”

The drive to the lake was quiet.

Not the comfortable kind of quiet we used to share — the kind filled with easy silence and soft music playing low.

Like we were both pretending not to notice how far apart we’d drifted.

I sat with the window rolled down, the warm breeze threading through my fingers as I let my hand drift outside. The scent of early summer filled the car — damp earth, wildflowers, sun-warmed asphalt.

I breathed it in, trying to focus on anything other than the tight feeling in my chest.

Ethan tapped his fingers against the steering wheel in a loose rhythm, his eyes fixed on the road.

I stole a glance at him. He looked the same as he always did — clean-cut, calm, predictably sweet.

I turned my face toward the window and let the blur of trees and winding backroads distract me. Willowridge faded behind us, and the deeper we drove into the forest, the more I felt it: the tension in my shoulders, the dull hum under my skin that never quite went away anymore.

A few cars were already parked in the gravel lot when we pulled in.

I recognized Jordan right away — tall, loud, and always grinning like he knew the punchline to a joke no one else had heard yet.

“Hey, hey! There they are!” he called out as we stepped out of the car. “Took you lovebirds long enough.”

I smiled politely and grabbed the bag from the backseat, slinging it over my shoulder.

Jordan came over and clapped Ethan on the back, then turned to me with a mock-serious expression.

“Serena. Always a pleasure. I don’t know how you’ve managed to put up with this guy for so long. You two are basically a married couple at this point.”

I let out a short laugh, but it didn’t quite reach my eyes. “Don’t jinx it.”

Ethan chuckled beside me, but I could feel the stiffness in his posture.

Jordan gestured toward the picnic table where a cooler and a speaker were already set up.

“Come on, we’ve got drinks, snacks, and music. And hey, this is my girlfriend, Kayla .”

A petite brunette with a sunny smile waved at me from where she sat cross-legged on a blanket.

“Hi! It’s so nice to finally meet you.”

“You too,” I said with a smile, sizing her up in a single glance. Kayla seemed harmless. Friendly. No threat.

“And Kayla,” Jordan went on, “invited a few of her friends. Hope that’s cool. The more the merrier, right?”

I nodded, but my stomach tightened a little. Something about the way he said it… I couldn’t explain why it bothered me. Maybe I was just being paranoid.

As if on cue, a group of girls emerged from the trail leading down to the lake, chatting and laughing. I picked up their scents before I even saw their faces — floral perfumes, coconut sunscreen, the faint tang of lake water and shampoo.

But one scent stood out.

It was subtle. Soft and powdery at first, almost cloying. But beneath it was something warmer. Muskier. Sweet… and sharp, like ripe fruit left out just a little too long.

My instincts stirred, a flicker of warning I couldn’t quite place.

I turned my head toward the source and saw her.

Tall. Blonde. Pretty in that effortless, i********:-filtered kind of way. She laughed at something Kayla said and tossed her hair over her shoulder, eyes scanning the group — then landing, briefly, on Ethan.

He smiled at her.

Just for a second.

It meant nothing. It couldn’t have meant anything.. right?

The sun warmed my skin as I lay back on the beach towel, the spine of my paperback resting lightly against my thumb. The sound of the lake lapping against the shore was soft, rhythmic—almost like breathing.

I could hear Ethan’s voice in the distance, laughing as he and Jordan tried to outdo each other skipping stones across the water.

It was peaceful.

I turned another page, letting the familiar comfort of the story pull me under. No thoughts about instincts. No strange scents. No shadows from my past. Just the breeze, the sun, and—

There it was again.

That same scent. Sweet, powdery, warm like honey left in the sun too long. It drifted in on the wind like a whisper, subtle enough that I could almost pretend I imagined it.

Almost.

I sat up slightly, squinting toward the lake as if I could spot the source of a feeling.

“Hey girl!” Kayla’s voice cut through the air like a clap, cheerful and effortless.

I turned as she approached, her short legs kicking up little clouds of sand with every step. She looked beach-ready, glowing in her bikini top and linen wrap, and she had a girl trailing just behind her— tall, with wavy blonde hair and a perfect kind of smile that immediately made something cold twist in my stomach.

“This is Jade,” Kayla said, grinning. “She’s been hanging out with us the past couple weekends. Thought it was about time she met everyone.”

I forced a polite smile. “Nice to meet you.”

Jade gave a little wave, her smile easy and confident.

“Hey! I think I’ve seen you before… do you work at that little bookstore in town?”

“Yeah,” I said slowly, the scent growing stronger now, wrapping around me like a warning I wasn’t allowed to say out loud. “Probably.”

She tilted her head. “I love that place. It smells like old paper and coffee.”

I nodded, my heart suddenly beating too hard in my chest. That was it. That’s why the scent was familiar. She had been in the store.

It meant nothing.

It had to mean nothing.

Still, I couldn’t help the flicker of unease as Jade sat down beside Kayla like she belonged there. Like she’d always been here.

And Ethan—he didn’t even glance over.

That should’ve made me feel better.

But it didn’t.