Chapter 9
1075 Words
The forest swallowed sound. Even the storm seemed to hold its breath as Seraphina ran, her boots pounding the earth in perfect rhythm with the hammer of her pulse. Her magic coiled tight in her veins, aching to break free.
Ahead, a shadow blurred between the trees—massive, fast, deadly. Darius, in his wolf form, was a storm of muscle and golden fur, his growl vibrating through the night like distant thunder.
She nearly slammed into him when he stopped abruptly at the edge of a ravine. He shifted mid-motion, landing on two feet, rain streaming down his bare torso like molten silver. His claws hadn’t retracted, and his eyes were still molten gold when they cut to hers.
“They’ve masked the trail,” he growled, voice rough. “I can’t scent Kaelen past this point.”
Seraphina crouched, brushing her fingers over the wet earth. Her magic pulsed, spreading like ink through water. The energy was wrong here—tainted. “Wards,” she said. “Layered ones. They knew we’d come.”
Darius’s jaw clenched. “Then we tear them apart.”
She looked up sharply. “It’s not that simple”.
The words died in her throat as the air shifted.
Not the storm. Not the wind. Something else. Something colder.
Her head snapped up. “Darius—”
A scream ripped through the night.
Not human. Not wolf. Something in between.
And then they came.
Figures erupted from the tree line, shapes blurred by shadow and speed—wolves, but wrong. Twisted. Their eyes glowed a sickly violet, their mouths frothing with black spittle. Collars of rune-etched iron gleamed around their throats.
Bound wolves.
Seraphina’s blood ran cold.
“Coven magic,” she whispered.
Darius’s growl shook the earth. “Kill them.”
The first one lunged.
The world exploded into chaos.
Darius met the attack head-on, his claws slicing through flesh with bone-cracking force. Blood sprayed, steaming against the rain. He pivoted, grabbed the wolf by the throat, and slammed it into a tree so hard the trunk splintered.
Another came from the side. He didn’t even look—just spun, using the first wolf’s body as a shield before ripping its spine free in one brutal motion.
Seraphina didn’t have time to be horrified. A third wolf barreled toward her, jaws snapping. She flung up her hand, magic roaring through her veins. Lightning arced from her fingertips, striking the wolf mid-leap. It convulsed, bones cracking, before collapsing in a smoking heap.
“Behind you!” Darius bellowed.
She whirled just as claws raked the air where her throat had been. She ducked, rolled, came up on one knee with a dagger in her fist. The blade sank into the wolf’s chest, magic sparking from the steel. It howled, a sound that curdled her blood, before it went still.
Another came. And another. They were everywhere—shadows with teeth, circling, snarling, their eyes glowing with that same unnatural light.
“Why aren’t they dying?!” she shouted as the first wolf she’d downed started to twitch, its broken limbs jerking grotesquely.
“Because they’re bound!” Darius roared, ripping a head clean off. “You have to destroy the collar!”
She cursed under her breath and flung a blast of fire at the wolf she’d stabbed. The collar shattered with a metallic scream, and the creature went limp, truly dead this time.
“Darius—there’s too many!”
“I’m not leaving without him!” His voice was a snarl, wild and unyielding.
She spun, cutting down another wolf, the rain turning red around her boots. Her magic was burning hot now, eating at her from the inside. Every spell left her weaker, slower. If this kept up—
Something slammed into her from behind. She hit the ground hard, mud filling her mouth, her dagger flying from her grip. Claws dug into her shoulders, hot breath fanning her neck.
She screamed, twisting, but the weight was crushing. The wolf’s jaws opened wide—
And then it was gone.
Darius tore it off her like it weighed nothing, his claws punching through its ribcage. He yanked it back and flung it aside, eyes blazing with fury as they locked on hers.
“Stay with me,” he snarled, yanking her to her feet.
His hand lingered a fraction too long on her waist, his body pressed to hers for a heartbeat—hard, hot, alive. She felt the rumble of his chest against her ribs, the storm in his breath, the raw need thrumming beneath the rage.
Her pulse spiked so violently it almost drowned out the howls around them.
Then another wolf lunged, and the moment shattered.
The fight dragged on like a nightmare. Blood and rain. Steel and magic. The ground was slick with bodies, some still twitching, collars sparking with broken wards.
And then—silence.
Seraphina’s chest heaved as she staggered, mud and blood smeared down her arms. Her magic crackled weakly, dim now, spent. “Are they—”
“Dead.” Darius’s voice was a low growl. He stood among the c*****e like a god of war, his body a canvas of blood and rain, chest rising and falling with every breath. His claws dripped crimson. His hair clung to his face, wild and feral.
She should look away. Should think of Kaelen. Should move.
But she couldn’t.
His eyes found hers in the dark, and something passed between them—something sharp and dangerous and undeniable.
He stepped toward her. Slow. Deliberate.
Her heart slammed against her ribs.
“Darius—”
His hand came up, fingers brushing the curve of her jaw, leaving a streak of blood on her skin. “You’re hurt,” he rasped.
“I’m fine.” Her voice trembled, betraying her.
“You’re bleeding.”
“It’s nothing.”
His thumb skimmed the edge of her lip, smearing crimson like war paint. “You’re shaking.”
Because of the fight. Because of him. Because every nerve in her body was screaming for something she swore she’d never want again.
“Darius,” she said again, but softer this time.
His breath ghosted her cheek, hot despite the cold rain. “Tell me to stop.”
She should. God, she should.
But the word wouldn’t come.
Her silence was all the answer he needed.
His mouth crashed onto hers.
The world went white.
- Writer
