CHAPTER 6; ECHOES OF THE UNSEEN
1017 Words
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The Moonclaw Pack had given me food, shelter, and a bed to rest in—but trust? That would take time.
Every hallway I walked through carried unfamiliar scents and wary stares. Some wolves looked at me with curiosity, others with quiet judgment. I wasn’t one of them. Not yet. Maybe not ever.
But I was healing. Slowly. Each breath I took felt less like a weight and more like a beginning.
One morning, I stepped into the east garden behind the Pack House. The air there smelled of mint and morning dew. I liked it. It reminded me of the forest trails back home—before everything fell apart.
I thought I was alone, but I wasn’t.
“You must be Arya,” came a warm, regal voice.
I turned and found myself facing two wolves I immediately recognized from portraits in the Pack House—Alpha Kedrick’s parents.
His father held himself with quiet strength, and his mother—graceful and kind-eyed—smiled at me gently.
“We’ve been hoping to meet you,” she said kindly.
I blinked. “You have?”
She nodded. “Kedrick rarely brings anyone close… You must have shaken something in him.”
“I didn’t mean to shake anything,” I murmured.
His father stepped closer, eyes narrowing—not harsh, just studying. “You carry something different. Old, perhaps even ancient. Your blood... it doesn’t lie.”
I hesitated. “What do you mean?”
“Do you know the name Silverbane?” his mother asked.
I shook my head. I’d heard it as a child in stories whispered before bed—but I never thought they were real.
“Some bloodlines don’t fade,” she said. “They wait. Hidden. And when the time is right, they wake.”
I didn’t know what to say. Their presence, surprisingly, brought comfort—not pressure. It was the first time I felt seen without suspicion.
But that warmth didn’t extend to everyone.
Later that day, as I explored the common areas, I crossed paths with *Maya*.
Tall. Stunning. Confident. Her posture screamed pride, and her eyes—possession.
“You’re the outsider,” she said, not unkindly, but not exactly warm either.
“I’m just a guest,” I replied.
“Guests don’t usually catch the eye of an Alpha,” she said with a smile that didn’t reach her eyes. “Especially not Kedrick.”
I tilted my head. “I didn’t ask for anyone’s eye.”
She stepped closer. “Still, don’t get used to being here. The pack isn’t known for patience. And neither am I.”
I didn’t answer. I didn’t need to.
That night, unable to sleep, I wandered outside for fresh air. The sky stretched wide above me, stars flickering like secrets. I walked quietly near the training ground, breathing in the scent of pine and distant fires.
Then—pain. A sharp shove. Gravel scraped my skin as I hit the ground, hard.
Voices. Footsteps. I heard someone shouting my name.
Kajik rushed to my side, their expressions filled with concern.
“Stay with us,” Kajik said softly, already calling for help.
Within minutes, I was in the healer’s quarters, the warm glow of healing stones flickering across the room.
The healer worked carefully, his fingers light as he examined my injuries.
But then, he froze.
“What is it?” someone asked—Kedrick. His voice was steady, but there was something underneath it. Worry?
The healer looked up, his brow furrowed. “She should be in far more pain... but she’s healing faster than expected. And her blood—it’s unique. Rich with power. It’s not ordinary.”
Kedrick stepped closer, eyes locked on mine. I couldn’t read his expression—was it doubt? Or wonder?
He asked, voice low but firm, “Arya… who are you, really?”
I looked away. Because even I wasn’t sure anymore.
*Maya’s POV “The Unwanted Threat”*
I knew something was off the moment whispers started fluttering through the pack house like wildfire—Kedrick had brought someone in. A she-wolf. A wounded rogue.*
At first, I didn’t care. Kedrick wasn’t the type to bring strays home, and if she was bleeding, she wouldn’t last long. But then… I heard the word that made my heart stop.
*Mate.*
I’d spent years by his side. Not officially, not as Luna, but always close. Always the one he trusted on missions, in counsel, in battle. I knew the way his eyes changed when he was curious about someone—and they had changed for her.
*Who was she? What right did she have?*
She was nothing. A bruised, broken girl found on a riverbank. Yet suddenly, she was standing where I should have been.
So I found her.
She was alone, near the eastern hall. She turned when I called her name, her expression calm—but I could smell her uncertainty. Good.
“You’ve made yourself quite at home,” I said, keeping my voice sweet. Too sweet.
“I’m just recovering,” she replied quietly.
But her eyes didn’t lower. She didn’t flinch. That irritated me more than anything.
“You should be careful,” I said, stepping closer. “This pack is loyal—to me. To Kedrick. Not to strangers. And accidents happen… especially in the training grounds.”
She didn’t say a word. Brave, or foolish—I wasn’t sure.
But she would learn.
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That night, I made sure the plan was simple. A push. A distraction. Nothing deadly, of course. Just enough to remind her she didn’t belong. That she wasn’t safe here.
But when she hit the gravel, and I saw Kajik running to her side with worry in his eyes—I knew I’d made a mistake.
Because this girl… this Arya... she wasn’t just anyone.
And now?
Now Kedrick would notice her even more.
*No. I won’t let her take him. I won’t watch him choose her.*
Not when I’ve waited this long.
Not when I’ve fought so hard.
- Writer
