INTO THE DARKNESS

The moment the shadows swallowed me, the world shifted.

I wasn’t falling.

I wasn’t being dragged.

I was being claimed.

The pull wasn’t physical—it was something deeper, something ancient and inevitable. It wrapped around my chest, pressing in, whispering secrets I couldn’t quite understand.

And for the first time, I didn’t fight it.

I let it take me.

Because somewhere deep inside me, I knew.

This was always going to happen.

Cassian’s roar shattered the air.

It was raw, violent—an animalistic sound of pure rage.

I tried to turn, to see him, but the darkness was too thick.

I couldn’t see.

Couldn’t breathe.

Then—light.

A burst of red sliced through the shadows as Cassian ripped into them, his body surging forward like an unstoppable force.

“SIENNA!”

His voice broke something in me.

Because it wasn’t just a command.

It was a plea.

The darkness fought back, tightening around me, dragging me further. But Cassian didn’t stop.

I could see him now, his eyes glowing, his power radiating off him like fire.

Then, suddenly.

He was there.

His hand snapped out, catching my wrist just before I was pulled completely under.

I gasped as heat surged through me, burning away the cold grip of the Deadwood.

Cassian’s fingers tightened, his breath ragged. “I’ve got you.”

I nodded, my chest heaving, my fingers digging into him. “Don’t let go.”

Cassian’s eyes flashed. “Never.”

With one last pull, he yanked me back into his arms.

I collapsed against him, my entire body trembling. His grip around me was solid, unyielding, like he was afraid I would disappear again.

My pulse raced.

Not just from the fear.

From him.

From the way he held me.

From the way his breath fanned against my skin as he exhaled harshly, like he’d just won a fight against death itself.

I looked up, and our faces were too close.

Cassian’s gaze burned through me. “What the hell was that?”

I swallowed hard. “I… I don’t know.”

He studied me, his grip not loosening. “It was calling you.”

I licked my lips. “I know.”

Cassian’s jaw clenched. “You weren’t fighting it.”

I flinched. Because he was right.

I hadn’t fought.

I had let it take me.

I opened my mouth, trying to explain—but I didn’t have an explanation.

Because the truth was terrifying.

The truth was…

I had wanted to go.

Cassian’s grip on me tightened. “Sienna.”

His voice was low, dangerous. But there was something else beneath it.

Something vulnerable.

I inhaled shakily. “I don’t know what’s happening to me.”

Cassian exhaled sharply. Then, before I could say anything else, he pulled me closer.

His arms wrapped fully around me, and my breath caught as my face pressed against his chest.

He was so warm.

So solid.

His heart was pounding just as fast as mine.

For a moment, neither of us spoke.

Then...

“I thought I lost you.”

The words were so quiet, I barely heard them.

But I felt them.

A shudder ran through me. My fingers curled into his shirt.

He had been afraid.

Not just for anyone.

For me.

Cassian wasn’t the kind of man who feared anything.

But I had shaken him.

Something broke in me.

I tipped my head up, meeting his gaze. His eyes—God, his eyes.

Something snapped between us.

And suddenly, I was moving.

Or maybe he was.

But somehow, our mouths met.

This time, it wasn’t fire.

It wasn’t hunger.

It was desperation.

Cassian kissed me like he was drowning, like he had come too close to losing me and was trying to reclaim me.

I let him.

I pulled him closer, my fingers tangling in his hair, my body pressing against his.

He groaned, deep and low, as his hands slid over my back, gripping tight, as if to remind himself that I was real.

We weren’t thinking.

We weren’t stopping.

Not until.

Cassian suddenly broke away, his chest heaving, his hands still tangled in my shirt.

I gasped, my lips tingling, my mind spinning.

He was shaking.

His fingers flexed against my waist.

His red eyes burned through me.

Then, his voice—raw, frustrated.

“This can’t happen.”

I blinked, my chest aching. “Why not?”

Cassian exhaled sharply. “Because I won’t survive it.”

The words slammed into me.

Because they weren’t about me.

They were about him.

Cassian had lost too much already.

And he was afraid.

Not of me.

But of losing me too.

Something inside me softened.

I lifted a hand, brushing my fingers over his cheek. He tensed, his breath hitching.

“I’m not going anywhere,” I whispered.

Cassian stared at me.

His throat worked, like he wanted to say something.

Then, suddenly, his head snapped up.

His entire body went rigid.

I froze. “Cassian?”

His eyes darkened.

And then he said the words that sent ice through my veins.

“They found us.”