Chapter 10
Chapter 10
The blood was still wet.
I stared at the words scrawled across the frozen ground: “WE FOUND YOU.”
I backed away slowly, the dagger still clenched in my fist.
The door creaked behind me as I pushed it shut, bolting it this time, sliding every latch into place. My heart thundered-wild and relentless.
Where was Beta Zane?
He would never send someone in his place.
Unless… something bad had happened to him.
I gritted my teeth, shaking the thought away.
I wouldn’t let fear control me-not anymore.
By dawn, frost clung to the windows.
Then I heard a soft grunt, followed by a thud.
I rushed to the door, unbolted it with trembling fingers, and swung
Kael.
it open.
He collapsed at the edge of the clearing, one hand pressed to his side. His coat was torn, soaked in blood.
I ran to him and dropped to my knees. “Kael!”
He grunted, barely conscious. “Missed me?”
I laughed, despite the panic rising in my throat. “Joking in a situation like this?”
“This is nothing,” he murmured, lips twitching into a weak smile.
“Can you walk?”
“Maybe. If you hold me.”
I threw his arm over my shoulders and half-dragged, half-carried him inside. He winced with every step but didn’t complain.
Once I got him near the fire, I stripped off his coat and peeled back the blood-soaked shirt. A gash ran from his ribs down to his waist, still oozing.
“You’re lucky this didn’t puncture anything vital,” I muttered, grabbing herbs and the last of the healing salve I had left.
Kael hissed as I pressed the poultice to his skin.
“I’ve had worse,” he said through gritted teeth.
“What happened?”
He leaned his head back, his eyes fluttering shut. “The Red Fang aren’t the only ones after you. We need to inform Zane, quickly.”
4:06 pm
My heart dropped.
“Who?” I whispered. “Who are they?”
He was quiet for a long time before he answered.
“Shadowborn.” His voice was low. “They’re a group that was wiped out decades ago-or so we thought. Blood cultists. Not a pack. Not even rogues. Just… monsters pretending to be wolves. They don’t follow pack laws. They are merciless.”
My voice came out hoarse. “And they want me?”
He nodded. “You said your mother was always on the run. And she was killed by rogues.”
I nodded.
“I don’t think so,” he said.
“Why do you say that?” I furrowed my brows.
“Your mother must’ve made a deal of some sort. And now they want you in her place.”
I looked at him, confused. “A deal?” That was certainly not possible. Why would my mother ever make a deal with such a group?
Nothing made sense to me-but at least now, I knew why they were after me. It had to be related to her.
I stood slowly, the jade pendant still warm against my chest. “And what if I go against them?” “They kill every pack you’ve ever touched,” Kael said. “Silverclaw. Red Fang. All of them.”
A silence fell between us.
Anger coursed through my veins.
Kael sat up slowly, hissing with pain. “I came back because I knew they’d come for you. And I couldn’t let them.”
My eyes softened.
“You’re bleeding and barely standing,” I said, watching him.
His expression turned serious. “Listen, Alice… I know I act like I don’t care. Like I’m just a rogue with too many scars. But that night, when you told me everything? I made a promise to myself.”
I met his gaze.
He reached out, his fingers brushing my wrist.
“I won’t let them take you.”
The warmth of his touch was soothing. I felt safe and in the right hands, if only for a moment- but then the thought of Damien made me frown.
“Thank you, Kael,” I said softly.
“You don’t have to thank me. I was the one who chose to do this,” he replied.
Later that night, Kael finally drifted to sleep, his breathing slow but steady.
I sat by the fire, my eyes locked on the dagger in the corner.
I wasn’t going to run anymore.
4:06 pm DJ D
I had the power they feared. Blood they wanted. And a past they couldn’t erase.
They wanted to find me?
Fine.
Let them.
But they’d never be ready for what they found.
The wind howled outside-and this time, I didn’t flinch.
I saw a shadow pass the window.
Then another.
Then a third.
rose, my heart steady, and picked up the dagger.
I stepped toward the door and cracked it open.
And there, waiting in the snow, stood five cloaked figures.
At their center stood a man, tall and cloaked in black, with a red crest burned into his shoulder. I was neither Red Fang’s, nor Silverclaw’s.
understood immediately-they must be Shadowborn.
