In a flash, Rylan is pulled away from me. I catch a glimpse of Callum murmuring something into his ear, but I’m too shaken to process the words. “Don’t move,” Callum orders, his voice cold and chilling- not in a comforting way. “If you do, he’ll come after you.”
I go rigid. I don’t want to imagine what would happen if he chased me down and caught me.
Rylan struggles in Callum’s grip. “Rylan, let Theron take over again,” he snarls, still holding him back. Thank goodness he showed up–I was seconds away from completely losing it.
“No. She’s my mate. She can’t walk away from me. I can smell another male on her. I have to mark her, prove to everyone she belongs to me. She’s mine.”
I lower my head and sniff at myself, even though I know I won’t pick up anything.
“Ria, who were you with?” Callum’s voice is steady and calm as he asks.
“I… I’m not sure. He’s the one who had a guard bring me back here. I don’t know anything else.”
Theron–Rylan–has a wild look in his eyes that only grows more unstable the longer he remains near me. And it’s not the kind of intensity that feels good.
“Rylan, who was it?” Callum can barely keep him under control now; it’s obvious that Rylan’s strength is too much for him to restrain much longer.
“Aurelia, focus! Try to remember! He must be a member of the pack,” he insists. Rylan is tearing at Callum’s arm, but the wound heals rapidly, even though it clearly hurts like hell.
I try to concentrate, but no one familiar comes to mind. I’ve lived in this pack forever, and it’s only now hitting me I’ve never seen that guy before, not even once.
–
“Actually… I don’t think I’ve ever laid eyes on him until today.”
Right then, Rylan breaks free from Callum’s grip and charges straight at me. This time, I don’t lose consciousness, but I feel the agonizing pain as his fangs pierce my neck. It’s like being attacked by a swarm of bees while scalding oil is poured over me.
He’s forcefully marking me again.
Screams echo in the background, and they sound strangely familiar. My eyes sting and overflow with tears. My back is pressed against something solid – I’m on the floor, sobbing. Those voices I hear? They’re mine.
Pain radiates through every inch of me. I can make out voices trying to reach me, but the agony drowns everything out. I feel hands on my body.
I need them to stop. Each touch feels like blades slicing into my skin, like I’m being roasted alive.
“Stop, please stop.” But no one listens. No one stops.
Theron’s POV
I want nothing more than to end my own life. I’ve hurt her. Watching her writhe on the floor in excruciating pain, something inside me begins to snap back to reality.
I step away, glancing at Callum, then back at her – at Aurelia. I can’t ignore the expression on Callum’s face. I’ve wounded the most sacred gift nature has given me.
Callum doesn’t get it. He doesn’t understand why I’m doing any of this. Nobody does. Nobody, except my father the one who orchestrated it all.
Everyone stays silent, afraid to question anything. My father is the only one who dares speak, because he’s the one pulling the strings.
I force myself not to go back to her. I can’t afford to appear weak. I won’t allow it. My father would never let me forget it if I did.
I storm into my bedroom, slamming the door behind me, only to find Selene sitting there, doing who knows what–right in the middle of the chaos she caused.
“You marked her again,” she says with a composed voice, though the undercurrent of sorrow and fury doesn’t go unnoticed. “You picked her. Again.”
“You provoked my wolf–why would you say you’d kill her?”
“I don’t think you grasp what’s happening, Theron,” she replies, rising from her seat, her gaze fixed on me as she approaches with deliberate, menacing steps. “You are not to claim her. Don’t even look at her. Don’t get close to her.” Her claws graze my jaw and trace down my neck as she emphasizes each word. “When I said I’d kill her to make you see me, I wasn’t bluffing. I refuse to be the second choice. I
won’t be invisible.”
There’s a wild, unhinged gleam in her eyes.
“Selly,” I murmur her name gently, just the way I used to when I was in her pack, trying to win her over after her mate was taken from her–snatched from life just hours before we met. “I do care about you,” I admit, and I catch the subtle way her eyes dull at my use of care instead of love. “But my wolf is still trying to take control. I swear it won’t happen again.”
“And what about her?”
“That’s not something you need to worry about,” I reply. “She’s tied to me, yes, but I owe her nothing. I won’t be swayed.”
I force my wolf deeper into the recesses of my mind to stop him from taking the reins again. A faint pang of guilt tugs at me, but in the end, Selene is the one who makes sense. Whether my wolf accepts
it or not.
“You’re certain?” she asks, her voice soft, her eyes searching mine with vulnerability. I can’t help but feel
sorry for her. She’s left with no one, no mate–while my heart, despite my efforts to control it, beats for someone else.
Aurelia’s POV
Time gradually slows around me until everything grinds to a halt. Darkness surrounds me, but the voices remain–faint whispers of sympathy and sorrow fill the void.
I try to open my eyes, to move, to react–but nothing responds.
“There’s no point in fighting it here,” a voice says. I glance around, but the blackness offers no clues.
“You must see with your mind, not your eyes,” it explains. I struggle to grasp what that means.
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Then I sense something–an unmistakable presence. It’s difficult to define, but I haven’t felt it in ages.
“I know who you are,” I say, though it feels like the words come without me actually speaking.
Suddenly, my eyes snap open. Standing before me is… someone. I blink several times, trying to bring the image into focus.
For a brief moment, my sense of smell sharpens. It’s him–the enigmatic stranger. His scent becomes stronger, distinct: rosemary, peppermint, and a hint of orange. The combination is intoxicating, something I can’t seem to get enough of. I inhale deeply, drawn by the desire to be nearer and take in
more of it.
He notices I’m awake, pausing his actions and lifting his gaze to meet mine. Despite my efforts, I can’t make out much of his face; a dark hood conceals most of his features. I manage to grab hold of him just as he tries to retreat.
“Who are you?” My voice is faint, drained, and barely audible.
“Get some rest,” he replies gently.
My eyes widen in surprise. That voice–I recognize it. He’s the same guard I encountered earlier.
“Are you…” My thoughts spiral, racing uncontrollably. “A pack guard?” As I reach up to pull back his hood, he reacts swiftly, slipping away and exiting the room before I can touch him. His speed is unnatural–almost inhuman. Shaking my head, I wonder if the medication they gave me earlier is still messing with my mind. It just doesn’t seem possible.
I hurry after him, needing to know if what I saw was real. But when I open the door, the hallway is com pletely empty.
“You’re out of bed,” says a voice behind me. I turn to see one of the elder pack doctors, appearing to be
in his seventies at least.
“I just…” His expression doesn’t invite trust, so I hold back what I was about to say. “Yes, I’m feeling a bit better,” I lie.
He smiles and informs me I’m free to leave. I nod, not wasting a second before heading out. If anyone could give me answers without reporting me, it would be Ma’am Nola. She has a reputation for understanding strange, unexplainable things–much like what I’m experiencing now.
As I make my way to her quarters, I keep glancing over my shoulder. A part of me just knows- something isn’t right.
Stepping into her area of the pack house, I find it as immaculate as ever. “Mom?” I call softly, spotting her reclining comfortably in a chair.
She lifts her head, first smiling at me–only for her expression to quickly shift to fury as she leaps up and comes at me, slipper in hand.
“I told you to let me know when you’re leaving the pack!” Whack. “Do you have any idea-” Whack “— how worried I’ve been?” Those hits are definitely going to leave marks.
“You don’t even know any of it!”
Eventually, her anger fades and she settles down. I can’t bring myself to tell her the whole truth about where I’ve been. I know it would break her, so I keep it to myself.
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“Nolie, I met someone,” I admit, watching how her face lights up.
Encouraged, I go on. “He… I…” She waits patiently, silently urging me to continue. “But I haven’t actually
met him.”
“Aurelia,” she says with a sigh, “you’re going to have to make a little more sense if you want me to understand.”
I inhale deeply, then let the air out slowly.
“That guy… I’m pretty sure he’s not from our pack. He leaves his scent on me sometimes. Tonight, I saw him again, and then–just like that–he vanished. Mom, I swear I’m not imagining things. He was right there, and then he just wasn’t.”
Before I can say anything more, she places a hand over my mouth, her expression suddenly filled with
terror.
