Chapter 2 THE STRANGER IN THE DARK

Lyra kicked at the man's chest, but he barely moved.

His hand tightened around her throat. Not enough to cut off her air, but enough to keep her down.

"You don't smell like a rogue," he said, studying her face. "But you don't smell like pack either."

Lyra struggled, heart pounding. "Let me go."

"You're... something else." His pale blue eyes narrowed. "No. You're someone else."

She scratched at his arm, but he didn't flinch. "You're hurting me!"

He leaned in, his breath cold against her skin. "What did Kael say to you?"

"How do you know his name?"

"You smell like him," the man hissed. "And I don't like competition."

He raised a clawed hand.

Lyra's heart froze.

Suddenly, a loud growl tore through the woods.

The man looked up just as a huge black wolf lunged from the trees and knocked him off her.

Lyra rolled away, gasping.

The wolf snarled, standing between her and the stranger. Its fur bristled. Its eyes glowed gold.

Kael.

It had to be him.

The stranger got to his feet, brushing off dirt. "You always were dramatic, Kael."

The wolf shifted in a flash of bones and heat. Kael stood, bare-chested, blood dripping from his shoulder.

"I told you to stay off my land," Kael growled.

The stranger smiled. "Didn't know you'd finally gotten yourself a mate."

"She's not your concern, Dagen."

Lyra stared at both of them. "Who the hell are you people?!"

Kael didn't take his eyes off Dagen. "You okay?" he asked her.

"No! I just got choked by a psycho!"

Kael's fists clenched. "I'll kill you if you touch her again."

Dagen smirked. "Please do. I'd love to see what the Moon Goddess thinks of you killing your brother."

Lyra's breath caught. "Wait! brother?"

Kael didn't answer. He lunged at Dagen, and the two men collided with a sickening crack. Fists flew. Claws slashed. Blood sprayed the leaves.

Lyra scrambled backward.

Kael slammed Dagen into a tree, then punched him hard across the jaw.

Dagen spat blood. "You're still weak. That curse is eating you alive."

Kael roared and threw Dagen to the ground.

Then Dagen vanished. Just disappeared into thin air, like smoke.

Silence followed.

Kael turned, breathing hard. His knuckles bled.

He looked at Lyra. "You okay?"

She backed away from him. "You just turned into a wolf."

Kael stayed still. "Yes."

"You... you rejected me. Said I was your mate. Then you saved me from your freaking brother?"

"I had no choice."

Lyra shook her head. "You're all crazy."

Kael took a step forward. "You're not safe out here."

"I wasn't safe with you either!"

He sighed, like he didn't have time for this. "You're coming with me."

"No, I'm not."

"Lyra, if he comes back...."

"I'll take my chances," she snapped.

Kael's eyes darkened. "I don't think you understand what you are."

"I'm nothing."

"No." His voice softened. "You're the reason everything just changed."

"Come with me." Kael said as he motioned with his hands. They walked in silence.

The deeper they went into the woods, the more Lyra noticed things. The way trees curved inward unnaturally. How the wind didn't blow here. How the silence was... wrong.

After what felt like hours, a massive iron gate came into view, half hidden by vines and fog.

Kael pressed his hand to it. Runes glowed.

The gate creaked open.

Behind it stood a fortress. Tall stone towers. Torches flickering. People, no, wolves, watched from the shadows.

"This is your home?" Lyra asked.

Kael didn't answer.

As they stepped into the courtyard, a woman approached.

Sharp features. Tall. Dark braid. Wearing leather armor. Her eyes locked on Lyra.

"You brought her here?" the woman asked.

"She was attacked."

"Should've left her," the woman said coldly. "Let the rogues finish her."

"Cira," Kael warned.

The woman turned to Lyra. "Who are you?"

"None of your business."

Cira took a step forward. "You're not pack. You're not wolf. What are you?"

Kael put an arm between them. "Enough."

"She's not welcome here."

"She's not staying," Kael said. "Just for the night."

Lyra crossed her arms. "Don't do me any favors."

Kael looked at her. "It wasn't a favour."

He led her inside his quarters.

At Kael's quarters, Lyra sat on the edge of a long wooden bench, watching Kael pace.

"You live in a damn castle," she muttered.

"Fortress," he corrected. "It protects the pack."

"I don't care."

He stopped pacing. "You should."

"You rejected me. So why am I even here?"

Kael stared at her. "Because rejecting you didn't break the bond."

Lyra's breath caught. "What? ...What bond?"

"You still feel it, don't you?"

She looked away.

He stepped closer. "That pull between us. The way your body reacts. That pain when I said the words."

"I don't want this."

"Neither do I," Kael said flatly.

Silence.

"Then why not just let me go?"

He sat across from her. "Because if I let you go, they'll find you. And they'll kill you."

"Who?"

He hesitated. "Rogues. Elder Thorne. My brother. Take your pick."

"You're not making sense."

Kael leaned forward. "There's a prophecy. About a girl born under the broken moon. The one who will break the curse or destroy us all."

"Let me guess. That's me?"

Kael nodded. "That's you."

Lyra laughed bitterly. "You've got the wrong girl."

"I wish I did."

******************

In a dark chamber beneath the fortress, five wolves stood around a table.

Cira stood at the head.

"She's dangerous," she said.

"She's his mate," one elder replied.

"She's untrained. Untested. She could be a spy."

Another elder leaned in. "Or she could be the Moon-Blessed."

"If she is, then we need her alive," said the oldest wolf. His eyes were clouded, but his voice was firm.

Cira's jaw tightened. "Or she could bring the end of everything."

***********

At Kael's room, Lyra paced now.

"Why didn't you tell me this from the start?" she asked Kael.

"Would you have believed me?"

"No," she admitted. "But I wouldn't have followed you into a death castle either."

Kael smiled, barely. "You're stronger than you look."

She glared. "Don't flirt with me."

"I wasn't."

"I'm not staying here," she said again. "You can't keep me."

"You want to die?" he asked.

"I've survived worse."

Kael stood. "Then prove it."

She frowned. "What?"

"You want to leave? You have to survive the Hunt."

"What's the Hunt?"

"Tomorrow night, you run. And the pack chases you."

Lyra blinked. "You're insane."

"If you make it to the end without getting caught, you leave."

"And if I get caught?"

"You don't want to get caught."

Outside the walls, Dagen kneels before a circle of burning stones.

Around him, twelve cloaked figures chant.

In the center: a black blade. A drop of Lyra's blood burns on its edge.

Elder Thorne lifts his head. His voice echoes across the valley.

"The Moon-Blessed has awakened. Let the Hunt begin."