Kissed By The Snowdrops

CHAPTER 9. The Midnight Challenge

Snow swallowed sound.

Cold erased breath.

And the mountain stood as silent witness to a ritual older than any kingdom—older than wolves themselves.

Stefani stood at the tall lodge window, palms pressed to the glass, watching Giovanni’s enormous wolf form vanish into the blizzard. Her chest tightened in a violent squeeze.

“This is madness,” she whispered. “This is suicide.”

A howl—low, mocking—echoed from the dark woods.

Luca.

Her pulse stuttered.

Her skin prickled with instinct she hadn’t yet learned to name.

Something inside her whispered: He’s goading him.

Another voice inside growled: He wants you shaken. He wants your fear in the air.

Her breath fogged the cold window.

The fire behind her crackled, shadows dancing across the wooden walls. But she felt none of the heat. Not when Giovanni was out there alone. Not when Luca was hunting.

Her fingers curled against the glass.

“Please come back,” she whispered.

As if summoned by her fear—

A violent thud shook the earth beneath the lodge.

Stefani jumped back.

Not thunder.

Not snow collapsing.

A landing.

Wolves.

A shape the size of a small car burst through the treeline—dark, hulking, monstrous. Snow flared around him like wings. Luca was enormous even in wolf form—black fur bristling, eyes burning a cruel, blood-red glow.

He prowled into the clearing.

Giovanni appeared opposite him—silver-gold fur glowing faintly with power, breath fogging the air like steam rising from wild fire.

Stefani’s throat tightened at the sight of him.

His wolf stance was lethal. Prepared. Controlled.

But she could see it—just beneath the golden fur.

He was holding himself back.

And Luca, sensing it, grinned—lips peeling to reveal teeth meant for killing.

The air crackled.

A challenge ritual began.

Wolves circled—massive shadows cutting through snowfall.

Giovanni growled low, vibrating the window beneath Stefani’s fingertips.

Luca responded with a snarl that scraped the night open.

Stefani felt a sharp pulse behind her eyes.

An ache.

A pull.

Like invisible threads tightening between her and Giovanni.

“No… no, not now,” she whispered.

Magic surged again—raw and untrained, heating her veins like molten metal. She clutched her stomach, breath stuttering.

Her reflection on the window flickered.

Her eyes—

A shade brighter.

A shimmer that didn’t exist before today.

Magic responding to the bond.

Her fear.

Her desperation.

Her need for Giovanni alive.

Outside, Luca lunged first.

The impact exploded snow into the air in a violent shock of white. The two wolves collided—teeth clashing, claws carving through frost.

Giovanni twisted, slamming Luca down, but the black wolf kicked up with brutal strength, throwing Giovanni off balance.

Stefani cried out, palms striking the glass.

“Fight, Giovanni! Get up!”

Her voice—not loud, not meant to carry—did something.

Giovanni jerked.

His head whipped toward the lodge.

Toward her.

His golden eyes flared brighter—like her voice struck something primal.

Luca used the momentary distraction.

He charged.

“No!” Stefani gasped.

Giovanni turned too late.

Luca slammed into his ribs—bone-crunching force—sending Giovanni skidding across the icy clearing.

Stefani felt a stab of pain in her own ribs, sharp and echoing, like her body was mirroring his.

She collapsed against the window, gasping.

Bond pain.

Her breath shook violently.

“Giovanni, get up—please—”

But Luca was already moving.

Dark. Furious.

Death charging through the snow.

Giovanni rolled, claws digging in, and pushed to all fours. But he was slower—wind knocked out, ribs likely fractured.

Luca barreled toward him like an avalanche.

Stefani slammed her fists on the window.

“STOP!”

Her scream was soaked in magic.

It tore through her chest, her throat, her hands—

And the world responded.

The window erupted in a burst of white energy—glass shattering outward like crystalline ice daggers. Snow blew back from the force. The air hummed with raw power.

Both wolves skidded to a halt.

Giovanni’s head snapped toward her.

Eyes wide.

Wolves did not widen their eyes.

But his did.

Stefani stumbled through the broken frame into the cold night, snow biting her skin, wind howling around her like living fury.

Luca’s head turned toward her slowly—predatory, thrilled.

Even in wolf form, she could feel his grin.

Stefani’s heart pounded, but she stepped further out, magic thrumming under her palms like caged lightning.

Her voice trembled, but she forced it out.

“This challenge is between you,” she said to Luca. “Not me.”

Luca lowered himself, stalking toward her—massive, eyes bright with hunger.

Giovanni snarled—a thunderous, earth-cracking sound—and jumped between them, fur bristling, teeth bared so fiercely steam rose from his muzzle.

Luca growled, circling both of them, enjoying the fear.

Stefani felt the air thicken—pressure tightening like a storm about to break.

Then—

Luca lunged.

Straight for her.

Giovanni moved faster than sight.

He collided with Luca mid-air—two massive bodies clashing like titans. Snow burst upward in a storm cloud. Teeth snapped. Claws tore.

Stefani screamed his name.

Giovanni pinned Luca.

Luca twisted free.

Giovanni lunged again—fury in every line of his body.

This wasn’t ritual anymore.

This was kill-or-die.

Stefani’s hands shook violently.

She felt herself slipping—

Not away.

But into something.

Her breath quickened.

Her vision narrowed.

Her palms burned.

Magic responding to danger.

Magic responding to him.

And when Luca managed to clamp his jaws around Giovanni’s shoulder—blood splashing across the snow—

Something inside Stefani snapped.

Pain—so sharp it nearly knocked her unconscious—flooded her body.

“No…” she gasped. “No, no, no—”

Her magic surged so violently the air warped. Snow lifted. Wind reversed direction. Her hair rose around her like dark smoke.

Giovanni’s pain became her own.

Her fear became power.

Light—soft violet and gold—spilled from her hands.

She didn’t think.

She didn’t channel.

She reacted.

“GET AWAY FROM HIM!”

Light erupted from her palms in a violent shockwave.

Luca was thrown backward—slammed into a tree with enough force to crack the trunk. Snow rained down in a shower. The black wolf groaned, stunned.

Giovanni collapsed onto his side, panting, bleeding heavily from the shoulder.

Stefani ran to him.

She fell to her knees in the snow beside his massive form, hands trembling as she touched his fur.

“Giovanni,” she whispered, voice breaking. “Look at me. Please—look at me.”

He lifted his head—slowly, painfully.

Golden eyes flicked open, and when he saw her, something in him softened. His massive muzzle nudged her hand once—weak, but deliberate.

“I’m here,” she choked out. “I’m right here.”

He let his head fall into her lap, trusting her in a way wolves almost never did.

Her blood turned molten.

She could feel the bond tightening—twisting—strengthening as if her magic was stitching itself into his very essence.

Another growl rumbled.

Luca stood again—shaking off the impact, fury blazing red in his eyes.

Snow fell silently around them as he prepared to charge.

Stefani rose to her feet—slowly, deliberately—positioning herself between Giovanni and Luca.

Her hands burned with magic she barely understood.

She met Luca’s gaze.

Her voice was low. Controlled. Terrifying.

“You will not touch him again.”

Luca snarled, lowering himself.

A warning.

A promise.

A threat.

Stefani’s eyes glowed brighter—violet laced with gold.

Not human.

Not wolf.

Something in between.

Magic crackled around her like a living storm.

“Try me,” she whispered.

Luca lunged—

And the chapter stops right there.