Chapter 2 Burning Eyes

The cold air and the scent of damp earth welcomed Aria as consciousness slowly returned to her. Her head throbbed. Her eyelids felt heavy, but she forced them open despite the pain.

The first thing she saw was a rough wooden ceiling. Thin smoke drifted lazily from a fire pit nearby, yet there was no warmth in the room only pressure. The air itself felt heavier, thicker, like something unseen was pressing down on her.

She tried to sit up, but her limbs were bound. Coarse rope dug into her wrists and ankles, leaving red welts. Aria scanned the room. It was simple, but sturdy dark stone walls, shuttered windows, and a single heavy door.

Footsteps approached. Heavy. Deliberate. A scent arrived before the figure did forest, earth, and cold metal. The door creaked open.

Kael stepped in, towering and silent, his silver eyes devoid of warmth. There was no trace of the man she'd met in the woods only tension and hate.

He walked toward her slowly, every step tightening the air around them.

"You're finally awake," he said, his voice rough like steel scraped against stone.

Aria lifted her chin. "Who are you really? What do you want from me?"

Kael narrowed his eyes. "You don't know who I am, but your father does."

She blinked. "My father? You mean Gerrard? He's my adoptive father. I don't know who my real parents are."

Kael let out a cold laugh bitter, sharp.

"Of course he didn't tell you. Why would he be honest with the girl he used as penance for his sins?"

Aria froze. "What are you talking about?"

Kael's eyes burned with a rage that felt ancient. "Gerrard killed my father. Our Alpha. The leader of our pack. He was everything to us. And Gerrard butchered him."

His fists clenched. Muscles tensed. Aria's breath caught in her throat.

"I don't know anything about that," she whispered. "But I had nothing to do with it."

"You have his blood," Kael spat, stepping close until his face was inches from hers. "And that's enough. I swore that anyone Gerrard protected child, heir, or pawn would pay the price."

Aria bit her lip, refusing to look away. His silver eyes weren't reflecting moonlight they were glowing with years of pain.

"So what now?" she asked, her voice cold. "You're going to kill me? Here? Like a coward?"

Kael flinched. The word struck deeper than a blade, but he didn't retaliate.

"I could," he said. "But I won't give you an easy death. First, you'll learn what loss feels like. What pain really is."

Aria tried to still her trembling. She knew resisting now would be futile. She had to endure. To wait. To find the truth.

"I won't apologize for something I didn't do," she said, her voice steady.

Kael said nothing. For a moment, something flickered in his eyes hesitation, maybe even doubt. But it was gone as quickly as it came. He turned and walked toward the door.

"You're staying here. I'll decide your fate later."

The door slammed shut behind him, leaving Aria alone in the silence. But beyond the fear and confusion, one truth became clear she was now part of their world. A world of grudges, blood, and buried secrets. And Kael, with his burning silver gaze, was the most dangerous piece of all.

Beyond the locked door, Rowan stood still, fighting the turmoil inside him. He stepped forward, stopping beside the man he once called best friend and now called Alpha.

"Kael," he whispered. "Let her go. She's innocent."

Kael turned slowly, his eyes like the dead of night void of warmth or mercy.

"And you," he said, voice low and heavy, "are my Beta and my friend. But that doesn't mean you get to defend our enemy."

"She's not the enemy," Rowan said firmly. "She's just a human. You know that."

Kael remained silent, then waved to the guards flanking the door.

"No one goes in that room without my permission. Not even the Beta."

The guards nodded without hesitation. Rowan clenched his jaw, eyes locked on the door that separated Aria from freedom.

He tried once more. Lowering his voice, speaking not as Beta but as a friend.

"Kael... please. You know this isn't right."

But only silence answered him. Silence and a look that gave no room for mercy. Aria remained locked inside. And that night, Rowan realized something convincing a wolf whose heart had frozen over was harder than facing the entire pack alone.

Far away, Gerrard stood in front of his ruined home. The once sturdy wooden door now hung by a single hinge, groaning in the night wind. His heart sank.

"Aria?" he called out, voice hoarse with fear. No answer.

He searched the house room by room empty. Panic settled deep in his bones. Then he saw it. A slip of paper pinned to the back room's doorframe with a rusted dagger.

He pulled it free. Jagged handwriting greeted him. "If you want your daughter alive, come to my cabin and surrender yourself. -Kael, the new Alpha."

Gerrard's eyes widened. His hand trembled as he crushed the paper in his fist. "Damn it..."

He'd known this day would come. Just not so soon. He'd stayed away from the packs, hidden in peace, for Aria's sake. For a quiet life she never even knew she'd been given. But now she'd been taken. Sacrificed for a war she didn't start. For blood she didn't understand.

Gerrard took a deep breath. There was no choice. For Aria, he would return. To the world he left behind. To Kael's cabin. To the den of a new Alpha even if it meant his own death.

Inside the stone tower, Aria curled up in a cold corner. The walls offered no comfort. Her body ached, but it was the uncertainty that truly hurt. What would they do to her? Why was she involved at all? The sky outside was pitch-black. Midnight hung like a curse.

Creek!

The door opened. Aria flinched. Kael stepped in, his face a storm of shadows.

He said nothing as he strode forward and tore the ropes from her wrists. The moment she was free, she bolted toward the door, but Kael grabbed her arm. And then it happened.

A jolt, deep and hot, surged through them both. Kael froze. His breath hitched. His eyes widened.

"...No," he whispered. "Impossible."

He stepped back, staring at Aria not with fury, but with shock.

The silence thickened. Aria felt it too. Her heart raced, her chest burned. Her body locked in place, eyes fixed on the man she barely knew.

"What... what did you do to me?" she whispered.

Kael didn't answer. He just stared at her, as if seeing a ghost from another life. Or perhaps something fated. Inside Kael, a single word echoed. Mate.