Chapter 5: The Enemy Within
646 Words
The fortress did not sleep.
Long after midnight, torches still burned along the stone walls, and armed guards patrolled every corridor.
Word of the Alpha's mate had spread through Shadowfang like wildfire.
Some whispered in disbelief.
Others whispered in anger.
Lyra sat on the edge of the bed in Torin's quarters, staring at the moon through the balcony doors.
She should have been planning another escape.
Instead, her thoughts kept returning to the council chamber.
"My mate lives."
Why would he say that?
Why protect the daughter of his greatest enemy?
The questions refused to leave her mind.
A knock sounded at the door.
Before Lyra could answer, Beta Darius entered carrying a tray of food.
"I brought breakfast."
"I'm not hungry."
Darius set the tray on the table anyway.
"The Alpha said you'd say that."
Lyra rolled her eyes.
"He doesn't know me."
A faint smile crossed Darius's face.
"He knows more than you think."
She studied him carefully.
"You've followed him for years."
"I have."
"Then answer one question."
"If I can."
"Is he truly the monster everyone believes he is?"
Darius was silent for a long moment.
Finally, he answered.
"The Alpha has done terrible things."
Lyra's expression hardened.
"I knew it."
"But not always for the reasons people think."
Before she could ask another question, a loud alarm echoed throughout the fortress.
A horn blasted once.
Then again.
Then a third time.
Darius's face paled.
"We're under attack."
...
Outside the fortress...
Flames erupted near the eastern gate.
Shadowfang warriors rushed into formation as arrows rained from the surrounding hills.
"Defend the walls!"
"Protect the Alpha!"
Lyra ran to the balcony.
Her heart skipped a beat.
The attackers weren't Shadowfang.
They wore dark cloaks marked with a crimson wolf's head a symbol she had never seen before.
Explosions shook the outer wall.
Smoke filled the night.
Moments later, Torin burst into the room.
His armor was already stained with blood.
"Stay here."
Lyra folded her arms.
"No."
"This isn't a request."
"I'm not hiding while innocent people die."
"They're not your people."
"They're still people."
For the first time, Torin looked at her with something that resembled respect.
Before he could respond, another explosion rocked the fortress.
The ceiling trembled.
"We don't have time."
He handed her a sword.
"If you fight..."
She took it without hesitation.
"...don't get in my way."
A small smile touched Torin's lips.
"I was about to say the same thing."
~~~
The courtyard became a battlefield.
Lyra fought beside warriors who had tried to kill her only hours earlier.
An enemy lunged toward a frightened child.
Without thinking, Lyra intercepted him.
Steel clashed.
She disarmed the attacker and knocked him unconscious.
Nearby, Torin's massive black wolf tore through enemy lines with terrifying precision.
He was unstoppable.
Yet every few moments, his eyes searched the battlefield.
Searching for her.
Watching.
Protecting.
A hooded warrior noticed.
"So that's the mate."
He drew a silver crossbow.
The bolt shot toward Lyra.
Too fast.
Too close.
Torin shifted back into human form in the middle of the battlefield and threw himself in front of her.
The silver bolt buried itself deep in his shoulder.
He staggered.
Blood spilled across the stones.
"Torin!" Lyra cried before she could stop herself.
The battlefield fell silent for a heartbeat.
She had spoken his name.
Without hatred.
Without anger.
Only fear.
Torin looked back at her, forcing a faint smile despite the pain.
"I'm fine."
He wasn't.
The silver was already weakening him.
Across the battlefield, the hooded attacker laughed.
"The prophecy is true."
He vanished into the smoke before anyone could stop him.
Lyra caught Torin as he nearly collapsed.
His weight rested against her.
For the first time...
The ruthless Alpha was vulnerable.
And for the first time...
Lyra realized losing him terrified her far more than she was willing to admit.
- Writer
