ShadowBound

~ Lena ~

There's this odd stillness that creeps in just before everything goes haywire. It settles deep in your bones, like a soft whisper, a hush right before the storm.

I should've sensed something was off the moment I stepped into the apartment. The air felt too heavy. No hum of the fridge, no smooth jazz from the record player that Josh always left spinning. Just silence-thick and eerie, buzzing against my skin like a live wire.

"Josh?" I called out, my keys still dangling from my fingers.

Nothing.

My heels clicked against the hardwood as I made my way through the loft. The space was bathed in the warm glow of golden-hour light pouring through the big windows. Our wine glasses from last night were still on the counter. His jacket draped over the couch. Everything looked normal. Perfectly lived-in.

Except for the blood.

It started with a single red droplet near the coffee table. Then another. And another.

A trail.

My stomach dropped.

I followed it, my heart racing against my ribs as if it were trying to break free. The trail led to the bedroom. The door was half-ajar. Light flickered through the crack-pale and unnatural.

That's when I heard it.

A low growl. Not quite human. Not quite animal. Something in between.

I froze.

Then the door creaked open, as if it sensed me there. As if it wanted me to peek inside.

I wish I hadn't.

Josh was sprawled on the floor. His eyes wide open. His throat torn apart. Blood everywhere-on the walls, the ceiling, soaking into the white rug we had picked out together from that fancy boutique in Brooklyn. His body still twitched, as if his soul hadn't quite left yet.

Above him, crouched like a mythical beast from an ancient tale, was a creature.

Not quite a man.

Not entirely a wolf.

Both, somehow.

Massive. Its tangled, black fur looked like it hadn't seen a brush in ages. Blood dripped from its snout, and its piercing yellow eyes locked onto mine, as if it had been waiting for me all along.

I was frozen. No scream escaped my lips. I just... stared.

Then, impossibly, it rose, towering over me. Its breath fogged the warm air of the room. And then it smiled.

It lunged.

Instinct kicked in. I turned and bolted. I slammed the bedroom door shut behind me and raced for the fire escape. The creature crashed through the door like it was made of paper. Wood splintered, metal creaked as I hurled myself out the window and onto the rusted stairs, my skin scraping raw against the steel.

I didn't stop.

Down three flights. Into the alley. A scream clawed its way up from somewhere deep inside me, a sound I didn't recognize. My lungs were on fire, but I didn't care. I didn't even think. I just ran, my heart pounding, my mind screaming-This isn't real. This can't be happening.

But it was.

I could still feel the warmth of Josh's blood on my hands.

I had no idea where I was headed until I burst onto the street, stumbling onto the sidewalk just in time to avoid a cab. People shouted around me. Someone grabbed my arm, trying to help. I think I pushed them away.

Amidst the chaos, I caught sight of it again.

Across the street, perched on the edge of a building, it watched me. Silent. Still.

Its eyes locked onto mine.

And that's when it all changed.

A sharp, searing pain shot through my skull. I fell to my knees, gasping for breath. Everything around me faded to white.

Then, the vision hit me.

It felt like plunging into ice.

I saw fire-a forest consumed by flames. I saw wolves circling a stone altar drenched in blood. And there he was-a man with silver eyes and a scar running down his chest, standing at the edge of the blaze, howling as if his very soul was being ripped apart.

Then a voice, deep and primal, echoed through the flames:

"He will come for you. And everything will burn."

I woke up in the arms of a stranger.

No, not just any stranger.

Him.

The man from my vision.

His scent enveloped me first-cedar smoke, rain, and blood. He held me as if I were something fragile yet claimed. His grip was possessive, fingers digging into my spine.

His face was stunning in a way that was almost terrifying-sharp jawline, stubble flecked with blood, eyes like steel forged in moonlight. Wild. Feral. Too perfect to be human.

"You shouldn't have seen that," he growled, his voice rough and gravelly.

I tried to fight back. Tried to scream. But he wouldn't let me.

Then, darkness took me again.

When I finally came to, I was no longer in New York.

The air here was different-earthy, damp, rich with the scent of moss and pine. My head throbbed. My wrists ached, bound with something soft yet strong-leather?

I found myself in a cabin. Rustic. Dark wood surrounded me. A fire crackled in the stone hearth, casting flickering shadows on the walls.

And there he was. Sitting across from me in a leather chair, looking every bit like a king on his throne. Just watching me.

"You're awake," he said.

No kidding.

I shot him a glare. "Where the hell am I?"

His lips curled slightly, not quite a smile. "Safe. For now."

"Safe?" I hissed, tugging at my restraints. "You kidnapped me, you psychotic jerk! My fiancé is dead, and..."

"He was weak," he interrupted.

The room went silent.

My blood turned to ice. "What did you just say?"

His stare was as cold as ice. "He wouldn't have protected you. He didn't even sense the rogue that was after you."

"Rogue?" I spat. "That thing was a monster!"

"And so am I," he replied softly, almost with a hint of sadness.

I couldn't tear my eyes away from him. Every instinct in me screamed to run. But there was another part-deep down, twisted and buried-that felt drawn to something ancient, dark, and oddly familiar.

"Who are you?" I asked, my voice barely above a whisper.

He stood up, moving toward me with a grace that was both terrifying and mesmerizing, like a predator in human form. He crouched down, his fingers brushing against my ankle where the leather strap held me captive.

"My name is Kieran Blackmoon. Alpha of the Blackmoon Pack. And you..." His voice dropped to a whisper. "You're mine."

I recoiled in shock. "No way."

His eyes flashed a brilliant gold. "You carry the mark of the phantom wolf. I felt it the moment I touched you."

"Get away from me," I whispered, my heart racing.

But he didn't step back.

Instead, he reached out-and touched the side of my neck. I gasped as a strange warmth surged beneath my skin, a mix of fire and static all at once.

There was a mark there. I could feel it. Raised. Burning. Not a bruise. Not a cut.

Something older.

"Your wolf woke the moment the blood touched the floor," he murmured.

I tried to pull away, but he held me tight, and that fire in his eyes felt... familiar.

I remembered the vision. The silver eyes. The altar. The fire.

Him.

Kieran.

"You've been seeing things," he said, his voice rumbling like thunder in a bottle. "Haven't you?"

"How do you..."

"There's a spirit inside you. A phantom. It's bonded to your soul. It's what saved you."

I shook my head. "This is insane. I'm not... I'm not one of you."

"No," he agreed. "You're something worse."

I didn't want to believe him. I wanted to scream that he was crazy, delusional. But I couldn't deny what I'd seen. What I'd felt. The mark on my skin. The way the world twisted every time I looked at him.

"You murdered Josh," I whispered. "I saw you."

"No," he said, standing. "You saw the rogue. He was sent to kill you."

"Why?"

"Because of what you are."

"And what the hell is that?"

His gaze pierced me. "The key to saving us all. Or destroying everything."

The door burst open.

Another man strode in. Tall, blonde, a scar running down one cheek. Smiling like he owned the place.

"Alpha," he said, glancing at me. "The council's gathered. They're demanding to know why you brought a human here."

"She's not just human," Kieran replied.

The newcomer's eyes flicked to me. Something cold shimmered beneath his smile.

"She smells like trouble."

Kieran didn't even flinch. "She's mine."

And just like that, the atmosphere shifted.

It grew thicker. Hotter. Charged with an unspoken tension.

The man-Rafe, as I would find out later-nodded and walked away. But I noticed the tension in his shoulders, the way he sized up Kieran like a wolf assessing a rival.

Once the door clicked shut, Kieran turned back to me. "They'll come for you. Others. Rogues. Traitors. You're not safe out there."

"And I'm safe here?" I shot back.

"With me?" His voice was a mix of gentle and threatening. "Always."

I hated how those words seeped into my skin like ink. I loathed how his scent made my head spin. I resented that a part of me-deep down, instinctively-trusted him.

"You can't keep me here."

His smile was intentional. "Just watch me."

Then he walked out, leaving me trapped in an unfamiliar cabin, at the heart of a world I couldn't begin to understand.

And the most unsettling part?

A part of me longed to follow.