The Hollow Mark

Chapter Five – Hollow Wing

“ARIA’S POV”

Kael’s storm-gray eyes flashed in the moonlight, glowing faintly gold at the edges. His jaw was tight, and his body and arms wrapped protectively around me, holding me against his chest like a shield.

I froze, too stunned to move. His scent hit me like pine or rather steel, cutting through the blood and dirt caking my skin. My wolf stirred weakly, recognizing him instantly, clawing toward him despite the pain of his rejection still burning in my chest.

“Don’t make a sound,” he whispered in my ear, his hand still pressed over my mouth. His breath came harsh, strained, as if he had been running too.

Branches cracked in the distance. Followed by the sound of footsteps crunching heavily, too deliberate and close enough, we could hear the sound.

They were still searching.

Kael’s body pressed lower, his grip tightened around me, pulling me deeper into the shadows of the trees. His weight trapped me, heat rolling off his body as he shielded me completely. I couldn’t move. Not with his wolf so close to the surface, or with his storm-colored eyes glowing faintly as he stared past me into the night.

The pale one’s hiss slithered through the trees.

His voice is low and venomous.

“She can’t have gone far.”

The other’s growl followed.

“The mark calls to her. She won’t escape.

Now, my heart pounded so loud. Kael’s hand pressed firmly against me, holding me in silence, steady and unyielding.

Minutes stretched like hours. Finally, their steps faded, swallowed by the trees.

I gasped, jerking against him, but his arm held on to me firm.

“Quiet,” he said, his voice a growl this time. “They’ll circle back.”

My chest tightened. My skin burned everywhere his body touched mine. I thought shoving him off. Maybe to ask why he was here, saving me after shattering me before everyone.

But I couldn’t.

Not when his eyes clinged on me, glowing faintly again, as if storm and fire had collided. And I could feel the heat of his wolf so close to the surface.

He finally stood, pulling me with him. His hand never left my arm as he guided me through the woods, sharp and efficient, like he knew every path in the dark. A few times I stumbled, my legs weak, but he steadied me every time without a word.

Finally, letting go of my arm, only when the lights of the academy towers glimmed faintly ahead.

“You shouldn’t be out here,” he muttered, refusing to look at me. His tone was sharp, but I could hear the crack beneath it.

I swallowed, my throat raw. “And yet… you are here.”

His gaze snapped at mine then, hard enough to pin me in place. For a second, something flared between us, sharp and undeniable. Then it was gone, buried under his cold mask.

“Go inside, Aria,” he said. “Before they come back.”

He turned, striding off into the shadows, leaving me trembling and breathless, my chest torn between rage and a bond I could still feel.

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The next morning, I was summoned.

Whispers followed me as guards led me through the halls. We walked, past carved stone doors, into the Council chamber.

At the center sat Alpha Magnus—Kael’s father. His presence filled the room like a storm contained within walls, his broad shoulders draped in a mantle of dark fur. His sharp eyes pinned me with where I stood.

Three elders sat silently beside him, watching like hawks.

•••

“Aria Rivers,” Alpha Magnus began, his voice rolling like thunder. “Lately…”—he dragged the word—“you’ve become a subject of concern." It’s our duty”—he tilted his head toward each elder—“to watch out for our students.” He finished with a pretentious chuckle.

Then they went on to question me about my background—my mother, who had died too soon; my father, who had vanished. My answers felt fragile, like scraps of paper in a raging fire.

I caught the quick flickers of recognition in their eyes when I mentioned the rune. My instinct kicked in, sensing they already knew about the rune.

By the way, their expressions smoothed, as if hiding secrets behind a mask of authority.

Finally, Magnus leaned back, his voice final and heavy with command.

“For your safety—and ours—you will be sent to Hollow Wing. There, you will learn control.

‘Control! The word sank into my chest like ice. His tone left no space for choice.

Guards moved forward, already waiting to escort me.

I looked to the side, my eyes found Kael.

He leaned against the wall, arms crossed, his expression looking as if it had been carved from stone. But when our eyes met, he didn’t utter a word. Instead, his storm-gray gaze burned through me.

Though I couldn’t tell if it was anger. Or guilt.

••••••

They led me through a gate I had never noticed before within the school’s grounds. Hollow Wing was nothing like the academy.

The air grew colder the deeper we went, the color of the stone looked darker. Chains rattled faintly in the halls. The sound of growls echoed from unseen rooms.

It didn’t feel like a training hall. Rather a prison.

Inside the courtyard, I passed young wolves locked behind iron doors, fighting until their claws dripped red.

Their howls shook the walls. Guards circled with whips and chains, barking orders like soldiers.

“This is where all you sloppy wolves get tamed,” one of the guards muttered as he shoved me forward.

“You’ll either learn to control it… or we’ll kill it for ya,” the second one barked. Letting out a cruel, mocking laugh that echoed through the hall.

My chest tightened as I watched a boy collapse mid-shift, his wolf half-formed, howling in agony. No one moved to help him. The guards only stepped in, seizing him by the arms and dragging him off like discarded prey.

Fear coiled tight in my gut. But beneath it, I could still feel resilience burning hard within me. I could hear the harsh, metallic sound of the iron door lock behind me.

My wolf whimpered, restless, as sleep dragged me under.

I closed my eyes, and the dreams came.

Flashes of cloaked warriors stood in a circle of fire, chanting words I couldn’t understand. A sigil burned against the sky. And through the smoke, I heard a voice whisper my name.

Over and over, until I jolted awake, drenched in sweat, my heart pounding as if it wanted to escape my chest.

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Kael’s POV

I stood rigid in my father’s chamber, my jaw locked as his storm-gray eyes bored into mine.

“Father! Strangers breached the academy walls. Strangers who sought her, I snapped, my tone sharp.

“Were you in the woods last night?” Magnus asked, his voice a low rumble. “With the girl?”

My fists curled at my sides. “Yes!" I was only helping her stay alive.

Magnus’s expression hardened. “And you’re certain the bond she claims has no hold on you?”

“Do you expect me to believe that is a coincidence?”

Of course not Father! I don’t feel anything for her.” My voice cut sharp, but guilt twisted inside me as I remembered her body trembling against mine, my wolf howling in the night.

I still remembered the bond pulling at me, refusing to die even though I had rejected her.

Magnus’s gaze narrowed. “If you’re lying to me, Kael, you’ll destroy everything I’ve built. Do you understand?”

I forced my expression flat, burying the storm raging inside me.

“Yes, Father.”

He moved closer, his hand gripping my chin.

“Believe me, son, I’d never hurt a soul in this school. They all mean so much to me.

He let out a soft sigh, almost like a whispered prayer, then leaned back and turned away. His steps echoed as he walked off.

My jaw clenched so hard it ached. Sensing the hypocrisy dripping from his words.

Since I was a child, I’d known my father for what he truly was—a cunning, selfish man who would go to any length to get what he wanted.

And whatever he wanted from Aria, and whoever those strangers were, now I had a feeling now that they wouldn’t stop.

And Aria Rivers… was already in more danger than she could possibly realize.