Chapter 12 Chapter 12
Chapter 12 Chapter 12
CHAPTER TWELVE
Aveline’s POV
I didn’t turn.
Every instinct in my body screamed at me to spin around, to face whatever had just spoken, to see it with my own eyes and prove that it wasn’t just another trick clawing its way into my mind.
But I didn’t move.
Fenrir’s words were still sitting heavy in my chest.
You don’t move.
So I stayed exactly where I was.
My fingers curled tightly into the fabric of his sleeve, gripping it like it was the only thing holding me together. My heartbeat was loud—too loud—pounding against my ribs like it was trying to escape my body.
The voice had been close.
Too close.
“You shouldn’t be this calm.”
It wasn’t loud. It didn’t need to be. It slid into the silence like it belonged there, like it had always been there, waiting for the right moment to speak.
Fenrir didn’t move either.
That scared me more than if he had reacted.
Because it meant he was thinking.
And when someone like him paused, it wasn’t out of fear.
It was calculation.
“Don’t respond,” he said quietly.
I swallowed hard.
“I wasn’t planning to,” I whispered back, though my voice felt like it might betray me at any second.
A soft sound came from behind us.
Not footsteps.
Not breathing.
Something… lighter.
Like fabric brushing against stone.
“You’re both very disciplined,” the voice continued, almost amused now. “That makes this more interesting.”
My stomach twisted.
There was something wrong with the way it spoke. Not just the words—the tone. It sounded too relaxed. Too confident.
Like it wasn’t worried about us at all.
Like we were already where it wanted us to be.
“Fenrir…” I murmured, my voice barely there.
“I hear it,” he said.
“Do you see it?”
There was a brief pause.
Then, “Not clearly.”
That didn’t help.
At all.
My breathing started to pick up again before I could stop it. I forced myself to slow it down, dragging in air through my nose, holding it, letting it out slowly.
I wasn’t going to break.
Not here.
Not in front of whatever this was.
“You’re trying very hard,” the voice said again, softer this time. “It won’t help.”
My jaw tightened.
I wasn’t going to answer.
I wasn’t going to give it anything.
Silence stretched.
Then—
“Aveline.”
My heart stopped.
Everything inside me froze.
No.
No, no, no.
That voice—
That wasn’t the same voice anymore.
It had changed.
It was softer now.
Familiar.
Too familiar.
My grip on Fenrir’s sleeve tightened painfully.
“Don’t,” he said immediately, his voice sharper now. “That’s not real.”
But I had already heard it.
And I knew that voice.
“Aveline… please.”
My breath hitched.
That was my mother.
It sounded exactly like her.
Weak.
Tired.
The way she sounded when she could barely keep her eyes open.
“I’m cold…”
My vision blurred instantly.
No.
She wasn’t here.
She couldn’t be here.
“She’s not here,” Fenrir said firmly, like he could hear the thoughts racing through my head. “You know that.”
“I know,” I whispered.
But my body didn’t believe it.
Because I could hear her.
Clear as day.
“Why aren’t you coming?” the voice—her voice—whispered again. “I need you…”
My chest tightened painfully.
“I need you, Aveline.”
A tear slipped down my cheek before I could stop it.
I clenched my eyes shut.
This wasn’t real.
It wasn’t.
It couldn’t be.
But it sounded so real.
Too real.
My fingers started to shake.
“I can’t…” I breathed out, my voice breaking despite myself.
“Yes, you can,” Fenrir said immediately.
“No, you don’t understand—”
“I do.”
His voice cut through mine, firm and steady.
“That’s not her.”
I shook my head weakly.
“You don’t know that.”
“I do.”
“How?!”
The word came out sharper than I intended.
Desperate.
Because I needed him to be right.
I needed something to hold onto.
There was a brief silence.
Then he said quietly, “Because if it was her, she wouldn’t ask you to leave.”
My breath caught.
“She wouldn’t pull you away from the one thing keeping you alive right now.”
I froze.
“She wouldn’t sound like that,” he added, softer now. “She wouldn’t beg you to walk into something dangerous.”
The voice behind us went silent.
Completely.
Like it was listening.
Like it was thinking.
My heart was still racing, but something inside me shifted.
Just slightly.
Because he was right.
My mother would never—
“Aveline…”
The voice came again.
But this time—
It was wrong.
I heard it.
The difference.
It sounded like her.
But it didn’t feel like her.
There was no warmth in it.
No life.
Just something… empty.
Like a hollow imitation.
My tears stopped.
My breathing steadied.
And slowly, I opened my eyes.
“I know that’s not you,” I said quietly.
Silence.
Then—
A low, amused chuckle.
“Smart girl.”
The voice dropped the act completely.
It wasn’t my mother anymore.
Not even close.
Cold.
Sharp.
And very real.
My stomach turned.
Fenrir shifted slightly beside me.
Not away.
Closer.
Good.
That grounded me.
“You learn quickly,” the voice continued. “That’s going to make this… difficult.”
“For you?” Fenrir asked calmly.
A pause.
Then another soft laugh.
“No,” the voice replied. “For her.”
Something cold slid down my spine.
“Why?” I asked before I could stop myself.
Silence.
Then—
“Because she matters.”
My chest tightened.
I didn’t like the way it said that.
At all.
“What do you want?” Fenrir asked.
“Right now?” the voice hummed softly. “Nothing.”
That was a lie.
I could feel it.
“Then why are you here?” I asked.
Another pause.
Longer this time.
Like it was deciding how much to say.
Then—
“To see you.”
A chill ran through me.
“That doesn’t make sense,” I said.
“It doesn’t have to.”
My fingers tightened again.
This thing was playing with us.
Testing.
Watching.
Just like Fenrir said.
“You’re not afraid anymore,” the voice noted.
I swallowed.
“I never was.”
That earned a quiet chuckle.
“Lie again.”
I clenched my jaw.
“I was afraid,” I corrected. “I’m not anymore.”
Another pause.
Then—
“Good.”
Something about that single word made my skin crawl.
Because it sounded like approval.
And I didn’t want that.
Not from whatever this was.
“You’ll need that courage,” it added softly.
“For what?” I asked.
Silence.
Then—
“For what’s coming.”
My heart skipped.
“What’s coming?” Fenrir pressed.
No answer.
The air shifted again.
That same heavy feeling pressing down around us.
Stronger this time.
Like something was changing.
Like this moment—
Was ending.
“Aveline,” the voice said one last time.
I stiffened.
But I didn’t turn.
I didn’t react.
I just stood there.
Waiting.
“You should be careful who you trust.”
My stomach dropped.
Before I could respond—
The pressure vanished.
Just like that.
Gone.
The air felt normal again.
The weight lifted.
The silence returned.
Real silence this time.
I didn’t move.
Not immediately.
Neither did Fenrir.
We both stayed still for a few seconds, like we were waiting for it to come back.
It didn’t.
Finally, he exhaled slowly.
“It’s gone,” he said.
I nodded, even though my body still felt tense.
Like it could come back at any moment.
“Did you hear everything?” I asked.
“Yes.”
I hesitated.
Then—
“It said I matter.”
“I know.”
“That doesn’t sound good.”
“No,” he agreed. “It doesn’t.”
Silence settled between us again.
But it wasn’t the same silence as before.
This one was heavier.
Full of questions.
Of things we didn’t understand.
Of things we couldn’t see yet.
I slowly released my grip on his sleeve.
My fingers felt stiff.
Cold.
Like I had been holding on for too long.
“I don’t like this,” I admitted quietly.
“Neither do I.”
“That thing—whatever it is—it’s not just trying to scare me.”
“No.”
“It’s watching.”
“Yes.”
“And it knows things.”
His jaw tightened slightly.
“Yes.”
I looked at him fully now.
“About me.”
“And me.”
That made my chest tighten.
“Fenrir…”
He met my gaze.
“Be honest with me.”
“I always am.”
“No,” I said softly. “Not always.”
A flicker of something crossed his expression.
Gone just as quickly as it appeared.
“Do you know what this is?” I asked.
A pause.
Then—
“No.”
I studied his face.
He wasn’t lying.
But he wasn’t telling me everything either.
I could feel it.
“Then we’re both in the dark,” I said.
“For now.”
I didn’t like the sound of that.
“For now?” I repeated.
His gaze shifted slightly.
Not away.
Just… thoughtful.
Like he was putting pieces together in his head.
“Things like this don’t just appear,” he said slowly. “There’s always a reason.”
“And you think that reason is me?”
“I think you’re part of it.”
That didn’t make me feel any better.
“If this is because of me—”
“It’s not just you.”
I frowned.
“What does that mean?”
He hesitated.
Just for a second.
Then—
“It means this started before you got here.”
My heart skipped.
“What?”
His expression hardened slightly.
Like he had said more than he intended to.
“Fenrir—”
Before I could finish—
A sharp sound cut through the air.
We both turned instantly.
One of the guards was running toward us.
Fast.
Too fast.
Something was wrong.
He stopped a few steps away, slightly out of breath.
“Alpha,” he said, bowing quickly.
Fenrir straightened.
“What is it?”
The guard hesitated.
Just for a second.
Then—
“There’s been an incident.”
My stomach dropped.
“What kind of incident?” Fenrir asked.
The guard’s expression tightened.
“It’s the prisoner.”
My breath caught.
Prisoner?
What prisoner?
Fenrir’s voice went colder.
“What about them?”
The guard swallowed.
Then said—
“They’re asking for her.”
Everything inside me went still.
“For who?” Fenrir asked, though I already knew.
The guard turned his head.
And looked directly at me.
“For Aveline.”
My heart stopped.
I didn’t know why.
I didn’t know how.
But one thing was suddenly very, very clear.
This wasn’t over.
Not even close.
And whatever had just been watching me—
Was still pulling the strings.