The evening settled over the pack grounds like a slow-moving fog, cloaking the stone walls of the estate in soft blue shadows. Sowhere in the distance, a howl echoed—deep, haunting, and long. It raised the hair on the back of my neck, reminding that this place, no matter how well-guarded or structured, was still a ho to monsters.
After the bruising encounter with Cian, I wanted nothing more than to sink into a hot bath and forget every pair of eyes that had watched stumble, every laugh that still echoed in my skull.
But of course, peace was not sothing this place seed keen on giving .
Inara didn’t say much as she led through one of the quieter hallways that coiled around the west wing of the pack house. The walls were lined with paintings—portraits of previous Alphas, warriors mid-battle, scenes of wolves under blood moons—and the silence was filled with the distant murmur of voices and the occasional crackling of torches.
"Why’d you stop him?" I asked finally, breaking the silence between us.
She glanced at sideways. "Because I don’t like watching soone bleed unless it’s deserved."
I winced slightly at the sting of those words, though they weren’t untrue.
"Cian doesn’t hold back," she added. "He likes to test limits. See what you’re hiding."
"I’m not hiding anything."
"Everyone’s hiding sothing," she said quietly.
We reached a small, arched door tucked at the end of the corridor. It opened to a narrow passage that I hadn’t noticed before. Cool air rushed in, carrying with it the scent of wet stone and pine.
"What is this place?"
"A quieter route to the eastern wing," she said. "You wanted to see more of the pack house, didn’t you?"
I nodded slowly.
As we walked, the muffled sound of movent filtered through the walls—shuffling feet, low voices, the creak of wooden carts. Then, faintly, the soft patter of paws on stone.
Inara stopped.
She pressed a finger to her lips and gestured to a small opening just ahead.
Curious, I stepped forward and peeked through.
Below us was what looked like an underground chamber, dimly lit by lanterns hanging from thick chains. A few wolves—still in their shifted forms—were being fed. Not scraps like the others I’d seen, but actual at, thick chunks stacked on silver platters. Attendants in pale robes moved quietly between them, setting the trays down and bowing before stepping back.
"What is this?" I whispered.
Inara’s voice was low. "The inner circle. Zain’s elite."
I watched in silence, noting how different these wolves were. Larger. Sharper. Their eyes glead unnaturally, their movents eerily synchronized.
"They look... trained," I said.
"They are," she replied. "Trained to kill. To protect. And to obey only one voice."
Zain’s.
My stomach twisted.
"So why show this?" I asked.
She looked at then, and for the first ti since we t, there was no sarcasm, no irritation—just quiet warning. "Because you need to understand what you’re dealing with. This isn’t a story, Violet. You’re in the belly of the beast."
I swallowed hard.
No matter how many sharp words I threw, or poisoned herbs I dared to slip, or clever plans I whispered in the dark... I was just one girl. One human.
And they were wolves bred for war.
"Co on," Inara said, turning. "Let’s get out of here before soone catches your scent."
But as we slipped back into the passage, I couldn’t help but feel like soone already had.
The corridor swallowed us in silence as we walked, the soft thud of our boots against stone the only sound that filled the air. I kept glancing over my shoulder, heart still hamring from what I’d just seen—the sheer size, the discipline, the cold calculation in the eyes of those wolves below.
"They don’t look like the others," I said quietly, mostly to myself.
"They’re not," Inara replied without looking back. "Zain handpicked them. So were born here. Others... were taken in after wars, trained from a young age to be loyal to nothing but the Alpha."
"How many are there?"
"Enough to make any kingdom think twice about war."
I tightened my jaw, the weight of what I’d gotten myself into starting to sink in a little deeper. And yet, despite the dread curdling in my stomach, there was sothing else beneath it too.
Curiosity.
The kind that got girls like into dangerous trouble.
As we ca back into the broader halls of the pack house, Inara turned to . "You should rest."
I gave a dry laugh. "Not sure that’s possible anymore."
She paused, eyes narrowing slightly. "You’re not going to try anything stupid again, are you?"
"I don’t know," I said, walking past her. "Depends on how stupid it feels."
Inara muttered sothing under her breath, but didn’t follow. I wasn’t sure if that was a sign she trusted or just didn’t care. Either way, I took the chance to wander a little farther than I was probably allowed.
I moved down a hallway I hadn’t seen before—narrower, older, with vines creeping in through the windows and cobwebs clinging to the corners of the ceiling. It felt quieter here. Forgotten.
And then, I felt it.
A presence.
Sothing—or soone—watching .
I turned sharply, but the hallway was empty.
Still... my skin prickled.
I stepped cautiously forward, hand brushing the stone wall for balance, until a voice cut through the silence.
"You never learn, do you?"
I spun around.
Cian.
He leaned against a pillar at the end of the hallway, arms crossed, watching with that sa infuriating smirk he wore the first ti we t. Except this ti, his eyes weren’t amused. They were curious.
And dangerous.
"Following now?" I asked.
He pushed off the wall and walked slowly toward . "You’re not exactly subtle. You move like soone looking for trouble."
"Maybe I am."
He tilted his head. "That’s bold for soone who nearly got ripped apart a few hours ago."
"You an by you?" I smiled sweetly. "Don’t worry. I’ve added you to my list."
Cian chuckled. "Do you even know what you’re doing here, Violet?"
The use of my na made stiffen. "Do you?"
He stepped closer, too close. I had to tilt my chin up just to hold his gaze. "Zain might have reasons for keeping you alive, but I’m not bound by those."
"Oh?" I smirked. "Is that jealousy I hear?"
Cian didn’t flinch, but I saw sothing flicker in his eyes. "You’re playing a dangerous ga. Don’t assu the rest of us will hesitate like he does."
He turned then, walking past and disappearing into the shadows.
But not before I caught what he muttered under his breath:
"Even the Alpha has limits."
I stood there for a mont, breath caught sowhere between my lungs and my throat.
The more I learned about this place, the more I realized...
There were wolves in every shadow.
And not all of them were under Zain’s leash.
By the ti I made it back to my room, my legs felt like they’d been stitched together with lead.
The corridors were quieter now, lit only by soft flickers of torchlight and the occasional echo of distant howls that reminded just where I was—and how far from safety I’d wandered. The shadows seed thicker tonight, like they were hiding more than just darkness. Like they were watching .
I slipped inside and shut the door behind , locking it with trembling fingers even though I knew if soone wanted to get in, a piece of wood wouldn’t stop them.
I sank onto the edge of the bed and stared at my hands.
Cian’s words echoed in my head.
Even the Alpha has limits.
What the hell did that an?
Did he think Zain was losing control? Was that a warning—or a threat?
And why did the idea of Zain losing control send a shiver down my spine that wasn’t entirely fear?
I laid back slowly, letting the thin blanket pull over . The mattress was soft, but sleep didn’t co. My mind was racing—every mory of today stitching itself together into a ssy, jagged collage of danger, hunger, and far too many staring eyes.
The soldiers I fed. The wolves in the pit. Zain’s command to dance. His voice in my ear, breath hot on my neck.
Then Cian. That cold, knowing gaze. The way he looked at like he already knew I was going to burn.
I turned to my side and stared at the wall, the candle flickering on the nightstand until it eventually gave up and died.
I hated it here.
I hated the power gas. The hierarchy. The way they all treated like sothing between a curiosity and a threat.
But most of all, I hated how my body reacted when Zain got too close. How my skin rembered the heat of his palm, how his voice settled in my chest long after he was gone.
I closed my eyes tight.
No more of that.
I’m here to survive.
To get close.
To find a weakness.
To make him pay.
But even as I repeated the words in my head like a prayer, sleep crept over slowly—pulling under before I could finish the thought.
And sowhere, in the depths of sleep, I heard it again.
That sa voice, low and full of gravel, whispering in my mind like a curse.
"You’re mine, whether you like it or not."
I didn’t know if it was a dream.
Or sothing much, much worse.
By the ti I made it back to my room, my legs felt like they’d been stitched together with lead.
The corridors were quieter now, lit only by soft flickers of torchlight and the occasional echo of distant howls that reminded just where I was—and how far from safety I’d wandered. The shadows seed thicker tonight, like they were hiding more than just darkness. Like they were watching .
I slipped inside and shut the door behind , locking it with trembling fingers even though I knew if soone wanted to get in, a piece of wood wouldn’t stop them.
I sank onto the edge of the bed and stared at my hands.
Cian’s words echoed in my head.
Even the Alpha has limits.
What the hell did that an?
Did he think Zain was losing control? Was that a warning—or a threat?
And why did the idea of Zain losing control send a shiver down my spine that wasn’t entirely fear?
I laid back slowly, letting the thin blanket pull over . The mattress was soft, but sleep didn’t co. My mind was racing—every mory of today stitching itself together into a ssy, jagged collage of danger, hunger, and far too many staring eyes.
The soldiers I fed. The wolves in the pit. Zain’s command to dance. His voice in my ear, breath hot on my neck.
Then Cian. That cold, knowing gaze. The way he looked at like he already knew I was going to burn.
I turned to my side and stared at the wall, the candle flickering on the nightstand until it eventually gave up and died.
I hated it here.
I hated the power gas. The hierarchy. The way they all treated like sothing between a curiosity and a threat.
But most of all, I hated how my body reacted when Zain got too close. How my skin rembered the heat of his palm, how his voice settled in my chest long after he was gone.
I closed my eyes tight.
No more of that.
I’m here to survive.
To get close.
To find a weakness.
To make him pay.
But even as I repeated the words in my head like a prayer, sleep crept over slowly—pulling under before I could finish the thought.
And sowhere, in the depths of sleep, I heard it again.
That sa voice, low and full of gravel, whispering in my mind like a curse.
"You’re mine, whether you like it or not."
I didn’t know if it was a dream.
Or sothing much, much worse.
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