Chapter 115 Aria
I stopped mid-step, my sneaker hovering just above the uneven patch of dirt behind the abandoned shed. For a second, I told myself it was nothing but nothing about the way the earth echoed back at me felt normal.
“Did you hear that?” I asked.
Sienna paused a few feet ahead and turned. “Hear what?”
Instead of answering, I lowered my foot and pressed down again and the same hollow thud sounded again. Behind us, Max straightened from where he’d been leaning near the trees.
“Okay, I don’t like that look. That look means something’s about to go very wrong.”
I crouched, brushing my fingers across the surface of the dirt. At first glance, it looked ordinary, just another patch of ground blending into everything else around the shed but the longer I stared, the more it started to feel off. The soil here was looser and looked recently disturbed.
“This wasn’t here before,” I noticed.
Sienna dropped into a crouch beside me. “You’re right,” she murmured, running her fingers over the edge of the patch. “Someone has covered something up.”
Max exhaled slowly behind us. “That sentence has never once led to anything good.”
I barely heard him as I pushed more dirt aside and a faint scent rose from beneath the soil. “Help me,” I motioned.
Sienna didn’t hesitate. Together, we cleared the surface and something solid came into view beneath the dirt. It was a flat panel of wood carefully placed.
Max stepped closer, all traces of humor gone. “That is definitely not natural.”
I wiped my hands against my jeans, my heart pounding. “It’s a cover.”
“For what?” he asked.
Sienna didn’t answer. She had already found the edge of the panel. “Stand back,” she said.
I shifted back just enough to give her space as she pried the wood loose. It lifted with a low creak and darkness opened beneath it. The smell hit harder this time. I leaned forward before I could stop myself, my eyes adjusting slowly to what was hidden below.
And then I saw it.
Rows of knives lined up with precision and crossbows stacked beside them. Ammunition were packed in tight rows as long cases arranged with care, their contents obvious even without opening them.
My breath caught in my throat. “Oh my God.”
Max swore under his breath. “That’s not a stash. That’s an armoury.”
Sienna’s face was drained of all colour as her eyes moved over everything inside.
“You recognize it,” I semi-asked.
“Yeah.”
“From your family?”
“Yes.”
I forced myself to keep looking, even as my thoughts struggled to keep up. “Why would they hide this here? This is practically inside town.”
“Because it’s perfect,” Sienna said quietly. “Close enough to move quickly and well hidden enough not to draw attention.”
Max crossed his arms, his expression darkening. “So they’ve been planning this.”
“Not just planning,” she corrected. “Preparing.”
My stomach twisted. “For what?”
“For the attack,” I answered.
My thoughts spiraled, one realization crashing into the next. If this existed, there had to be more. If they’d hidden weapons this close to town, then everything Sienna had warned us about wasn’t just possible. It was already happening.
“How many of these are there?” I asked.
Sienna shook her head. “I don’t know. But if there’s one, there are others.”
Max dragged a hand down his face. “That’s not comforting.”
I pushed myself to my feet. “They could hit anywhere,” I said. “Anytime.”
“That’s the idea,” Sienna replied.
I turned on her before I could stop myself. “And you didn’t think to tell us this sooner?”
Her expression showed worry. “I didn’t know where they were placing them. I told you what I could.”
“You told me after everything already started falling apart.”
She flinched. “I’m trying to fix it.”
“By dragging us deeper into it?” My voice rose. “Because that’s exactly what this feels like.”
Max stepped between us. “Okay, maybe we don’t do this right now ot while we’re standing over a hidden weapons cache.”
I exhaled sharply forcing myself to step back. He wasn’t wrong. Arguing wouldn’t change anything and wouldn’t make this disappear.
“We need to tell Luca,” I said.
Sienna started. “If you do that—”
“I am doing that,” I cut in. “He needs to know.”
Her gaze flicked to the cache, then back to me. “If the pack finds this, they won’t wait. They’ll go on the offensive.”
“They should,” Max muttered. “Considering someone built a murder bunker five minutes from town.”
“You don’t understand,” Sienna said. “That’s what my family wants. They want the wolves to react first. It gives them a reason to escalate.”
“So what are we supposed to do? Nothing?”
“No,” she said quickly. “We just have to be careful.”
“Carefulness isn’t going to stop this.”
Max glanced between us. “We’re wasting time.”
He was right. I looked back at the open cache, my mind racing. Leaving it here felt dangerous and touching it was worse.
“They’re already inside Silverpine,” I said quietly.
Sienna nodded once. “Yes.”
“And they’re ready.”
“Yes.”
I swallowed, my gaze lingering on the darkness beneath the panel. It would be so easy for everything to fall apart now.
“We can’t let them use this,” I said.
Max raised an eyebrow. “And how do you plan on doing that?”
Before I could answer, a sound cut through the air. Sienna’s head snapped toward the trees, her body going completely still. “Did you hear that?”
“Yeah,” I whispered.
Max took a slow step back, his eyes scanning the shadows. “Please tell me that’s not—”
Sienna moved instantly, grabbing the wooden panel and sliding it back into place with quick, practiced movements. “We need to go now.”
“We’re not alone,” Max said under his breath.
My pulse roared in my ears as I turned toward the path leading back to town. I glanced over my shoulder and saw a figure standing just beyond the trees.
My breath caught. “Sienna—”
She turned instantly but the figure was already gone.