Chapter Twelve: The Ones Who Hunt in Shadows
960 Words
The sound of footsteps echoed through the stairwell.
Heavy.
Fast.
Too many.
Sierra’s pulse jumped as another crash rattled the floor beneath them.
Whatever was coming upstairs wasn’t trying to stay quiet anymore.
Kaelen moved immediately.
His hand caught her wrist, pulling her gently but firmly behind him as he backed away from the broken doorway.
“Stay close to me,” he said.
The tone in his voice left no room for argument.
Sierra nodded quickly, though her heart was still racing from the kiss… and from the way he had looked at her afterward.
Like he had almost forgotten himself completely.
The bond still pulsed between them, hot and alive beneath her skin.
And Kaelen felt it too.
She could tell.
His body remained tense—not just because of the threat coming upstairs, but because being near her was becoming harder for him to control.
Another loud bang echoed from below.
Then voices.
“Third floor!”
“They’re here!”
Sierra’s stomach tightened.
“That doesn’t sound like the council.”
“It’s not,” Kaelen said darkly.
He tilted his head slightly, listening.
Then his expression hardened.
“How many enemies do you have?” Sierra whispered.
Kaelen glanced back at her.
“Too many.”
That answer wasn’t comforting.
At all.
The footsteps grew closer.
Fast enough now that Sierra could hear the cracks forming beneath the pressure of them running upstairs.
Kaelen released her wrist slowly and stepped forward.
Positioning himself between her and the door again.
Always between her and danger.
“Kaelen,” she said quietly.
His eyes flicked toward her.
“If things go wrong—”
“They won’t.”
“You can’t promise that.”
“No,” he admitted. “But I can promise they won’t touch you.”
The intensity in his voice made her chest tighten.
The bond pulsed again.
Sharp.
Deep.
His gaze dropped briefly to her lips—
Like the memory of the kiss still lingered between them too.
Then another crash shattered the moment.
The apartment door downstairs exploded open.
Wood splintered.
Men shouted.
And suddenly—
The lights in Sierra’s apartment flickered.
Once.
Twice.
Then dimmed completely.
The entire building fell silent.
Kaelen went perfectly still.
That scared her more than the noise had.
“What is it?” she whispered.
His voice dropped lower.
“They brought hunters.”
Sierra frowned. “Hunters?”
But before he could answer—
A figure appeared in the doorway.
Tall.
Dressed in black.
A silver blade strapped against his back.
Human.
At least… mostly.
His cold eyes scanned the room before settling on Kaelen.
Then Sierra.
And the moment he saw her—
Something shifted in his expression.
Interest.
“Well,” the stranger murmured. “So the rumors were true.”
Kaelen’s entire posture darkened instantly.
“You shouldn’t be here.”
The man smirked slightly.
“And yet here I am.”
Two more figures appeared behind him.
All armed.
All watching Sierra carefully.
The bond reacted instantly.
Warning.
Danger.
Sierra instinctively stepped closer to Kaelen.
His hand reached back automatically, brushing lightly against hers for half a second.
Grounding her.
Claiming her.
The stranger noticed.
“So she really is important to you,” he said softly.
Kaelen’s eyes flashed gold.
“Leave.”
The man’s smirk widened.
“You know we can’t do that.”
Sierra looked between them.
“Can someone explain who these people are?”
The stranger answered first.
“We’re the ones sent when wolves become a problem.”
Kaelen’s voice turned deadly calm.
“You should’ve stayed out of pack business.”
“Oh, this stopped being pack business the moment she started changing.”
Every eye in the room shifted to Sierra again.
She hated it.
The attention.
The curiosity.
Like they were looking at something dangerous instead of a person.
The stranger took one slow step forward.
“You don’t even know what you are yet, do you?”
Kaelen moved instantly.
A growl rumbled low in his chest.
“Another step and you lose the ability to walk away.”
The threat felt real enough to shake the room.
But the hunter didn’t stop smiling.
Instead, his gaze stayed fixed on Sierra.
“You feel it, don’t you?” he asked her quietly. “The change.”
Sierra swallowed hard.
Because she did.
More now than ever.
Her senses were sharper.
Her body stronger.
And the bond between her and Kaelen—
It felt alive.
The hunter noticed her hesitation.
“That’s what I thought.”
Kaelen’s patience snapped.
“You came here to talk?” he said coldly. “Or die?”
The air changed instantly.
Violent tension flooded the room.
The hunters shifted their stance.
Ready.
Kaelen stepped slightly in front of Sierra again.
Protective.
Dominant.
Dangerous.
And Sierra realized something then—
He wasn’t afraid for himself.
Only for her.
The hunter slowly reached for the silver blade strapped behind him.
The moment his fingers touched it—
Kaelen’s control broke.
A deep growl tore from his chest.
His eyes burned fully gold.
And for the first time—
Sierra saw claws extend from his hands completely.
Sharp.
Deadly.
Not human at all.
The room seemed to shrink around his presence.
The hunters tensed instantly.
But Sierra—
Couldn’t look away.
Because despite how dangerous he looked…
Some part of her still moved toward him instead of away.
The bond pulsed wildly.
And Kaelen felt it.
His head turned slightly toward her.
The growl softened immediately.
Just for her.
The hunter noticed that too.
And suddenly—
His expression changed.
Not fear.
Realization.
“Well,” he murmured slowly.
“This just became a lot more interesting.”
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