Chapter 3 The Alpha's Castle (Continue)

Lyra trailed after Kale without protest as her heart beat harder and harder with each foot forward, towards the very core of the castle. She could feel the walls closing in on her, the cold, hard stone moving with her; the building, like it was alive, watching her. It was a silence that felt unnatural like life had not graced the castle in centuries. But underneath the silence, there was an undercurrent of something else - something primal and untamed.

Torches provided flickering light along corridors, throwing tall dancing shadows in the walls as if there were souls trapped here, forgotten by the world that put them here. The floors were cold under her boots, and the air was thick with the damp stench of the stone. As they walked, Lyra couldn't help but look at the tapestries that hung from the walls, each depicting wolves in various stages of hunting, stalking prey, and , in some cases, battling other wolves. The creatures were sketched with a grace that hid their savagery, but Lyra could not ignore the notion that they were not simple animals; they were ancient, powerful things.

At last, they arrived at a grand, wooden door at the hall's end. Kale stopped and turned to her, his eyes softer now, but the intensity remained. "This is where you'll be sleeping for the night," he said, his voice low but not unkind. "It's not much, but it will be safe."

Lyra walked forward, his words sinking heavily into the air. She had expected the castle to be cold, perhaps unwelcoming, but this room, though bare, had a surprising warmth. The bed was big, and its thick blankets were a departure from the stone walls. A little fire crackled in the hearth throwing sparks into the air. A large window looked out into the woods, where the trees waved gently in the wind, and the flickering light cast a soft glow in the otherwise darkened room.

She stepped through the threshold, standing in the doorway for a moment, soaking in the room. It was bizarre - familiar and, in some way, comforting, but also suffocating. She was supposed to be here, at the center of this pack, a place she had not belonged. It loomed above her like a storm cloud ready to burst.

Just inside the doorway, Kale seemed to notice her hesitation. "You may rest. We have so much to talk about tomorrow, but for now, it's time for you to sleep. The ritual will commence with the moon's rising."

The words sent a shiver up Lyra's spine but she nodded tersely. "I'm not going to be a part of it," she repeated, more emphatically this time. "I'm not your bride."

Kale's gaze darkened at her words but said nothing. He just walked away, the big door slamming shut behind him. Lyra held her heart for a moment, her chest heavy by how real this thing had become. She was isolated in the wolf's den, with danger and uncertainty all around her.

But despite fear coursing through her veins, there was another feeling - a strange tugging toward the castle, toward the forest, toward the wolves themselves. Something deep inside her soul connected with this place, with the wildness that seemed to hang in the air. She couldn't put it into words, but there was no denying it. Her heart pounded, not with fear, but with a primal, magnetic hunger.

She had almost always known she would come here, that this was her fate. Part of her longed to rebel, to rip herself free from this bond. But another part - a more primal part - sensed that she had been chosen a long time before she knew about the ritual.

She dismissed the thought and focused her attention on the room again. There's no sense in brooding about things she couldn't change. For now, all she could do was stay alive until nightfall and see what the morning would hold.

As Lyra stood by the window, watching the moon rise above the forest, she couldn't help but think of the legends that were told in their village. She had heard the stories all her life-the stories of the werewolves who resided in the forest, of the alpha who was the most powerful, and of the ritual that required a human bride. She had always dismissed this as superstition, a bogeyman to scare children into obedience. But here, in the very center of the pack's domain, those stories seemed all too real.

As she gazed out among the trees, lit in an ethereal moonlight glow as they wept in the nocturnal wind. Somehow the forest begged her to draw closer. And she looked into the darkness, pressed her hand to the glass, and held her breath.

For a moment it felt as if the world outside the castle was frozen, as if she was the only living thing remaining, alone in a place between here and the other. The castle was a world unto itself - unmarred by time, unmarred by the outside world.

She was drawn from her reverie by a gentle knock on the door. The door creaked open, and there was Cassian, Kale's second-in-command, in the doorway. His imposing height filled the doorway, and his cold, piercing eyes swept across the room before landing on her.

"You are awake," Cassian said. His voice was throaty and smooth, though with an edge. "The alpha asked that you be ready for tomorrow."

Lyra, an epitome of defiance despite everything. "Prepared for what?"

Cassian's lips twisted into a thin smile, but there was no mirth in it. "The ritual," he said simply. "The alpha has his plans made. It is tradition. You have no choice, and whether you believe it or not, the road is already set."

Lyra's heart constricted at his words and, for the first time, felt a flare of fear. The ritual was real. If the alpha's words had been empty threats, they would be dead. Whether she was ready for it or not, it was happening. She always knew traditions in her village were hard to break, but this-this was a matter of a whole new system. It was much more dangerous than she had expected."

"What happens if I refuse?" she said, a touch of quiver in her strong voice.

Cassian's smile evaporated; his expression grew fierce. "You will not say no," he said softly. "And neither will Kale. Alpha and bride were connected by bonds that could not be severed by the force of will. The bloodline that binds you to him is deeper than you realize."