Chapter 36 Luca
I found Aria before the first bell standing by the lockers with her hair pulled into a loose ponytail and her brows knit together like she had spent the entire night overthinking. She looked up the second she sensed me and something in her expression tightened. I was not sure if it was fear, confusion, or the weight of the truth I had dropped on her yesterday like a live grenade.
I approached slowly, feeling every muscle tense in anticipation. “Can we talk?” I asked.
She hesitated before nodding. “Sure.”
We slipped into the side hallway near the science wing, empty except for a flickering light and the faint smell of old textbooks. Aria crossed her arms, leaning against the wall, studying me with those sharp eyes that always saw more than I wanted them to.
I forced myself to speak before she asked the questions I could not answer yet. “You need to stay away from the woods for a while.”
Her eyebrows shot up. “That is your opening line? Not ‘hey, how are you after the life altering information I gave you’ but ‘stay out of the woods’?”
“I am serious,” I said, softer. “It is not safe.”
“Because of…?” She searched my face for confirmation. “Because of the werewolf thing?”
I winced. “You cannot say that in public.”
“No one is here.”
“It does not matter.”
She uncrossed her arms and stepped closer, tilting her head. “Luca, you cannot drop that kind of truth on someone and then follow it up with cryptic warnings. If you want me to keep away from the woods, you need to tell me why.”
I swallowed hard. I could not tell her everything but I could give her enough to make her take the danger seriously.
“There is movement,” I said carefully. “Rogues. There are wolves without packs and have been spotted near the north ridge.”
Aria blinked slowly. “You are telling me there are more of you?”
I froze.
She took my silence as confirmation, her eyes widening with a mix of fear and fascination. “Okay, wow! This is a lot.”
“I know,” I said quietly. “And I am trying to protect and keep you safe.”
She let out a breath, her voice leveling out into something calmer, steadier. “So you think these wolves, rogues, whatever they are—would hurt me?”
“They might hurt anyone,” I said. “Rogues do not follow rules. They do not care about boundaries or humans or the consequences of being seen.”
“And you?” she asked softly. “Do you care about the consequences?”
Her question hit deeper than she probably intended. I looked away. “Every second.”
She studied me for a long moment. I wished I could read her mind the way I could read her heartbeat. Finally she nodded, slow but genuine.
“Okay,” she said. “I will stay out of the woods. But you need to talk to me. Really talk to me otherwise I am going to assume you are hiding more than you are telling.”
I opened my mouth, but before I could answer, a familiar voice whispered urgently in my mind.
Luca
It was Rafe and his tone was all grim, business, and warning. I turned my head slightly, pretending to check my phone to mask the fact that I was listening to something no human ears could hear.
Where are you?
In the treeline behind the soccer field. Rafe’s voice was low and clipped. We have a problem.
My stomach tightened. What kind?
I picked up two rogue scents. It’s fresh and less than an hour old. His frustration crackled through my mind. They are getting bold.
Of course they were. Rogues always tested the edge before crossing the line.
Did they see you? I asked urgently trying to be discreet so Aria wouldn’t notice something off.
No, but they were close. And that is not all, I also caught the scent of another school wolf near them. One of ours.
I tensed. Who?
Couldn’t tell. Rafe replied. But whoever it was was masking their trail on purpose.
That was worse than any rogue. A member of the school wolves and pack hiding activity Lying to us? Breaking pack rules? I forced my breathing steady, acutely aware that Aria was watching me, waiting, and sensing something was wrong.
Stay where you are. I told Rafe. I will meet you after school.
Be quick, though. He warned. Whatever is happening, it is building fast.
The connection faded leaving a pressure behind my ribs that felt like a storm no one else could see.
Aria touched my arm gently. “Luca? What is going on?”
I looked at her hand before lifting my eyes to hers. She was worried about me and damn it, that made everything harder.
“There is something I need to deal with,” I said. “Rafe found signs of more rogue activity.”
“So you are going into the woods,” she said, not even phrasing it as a question.
“I have to. It is my responsibility.”
She pressed her lips together. “Does this have to do with the werewolves? Your pack?”
I paused. I did not want to drag her into this more than I already had but lying would be worse.
“Yes,” I said. “Some of us are assigned to keep the peace and monitor things.”
“And someone broke the rules,” she guessed quietly. “One of your own.”
The fact that she said it so calmly made something sharp twist in my chest.
“You are getting too good at this,” I said.
“I am not good at anything right now,” she replied softly. “I am trying to understand you. That is all.”
I took a step closer, unable to help it. “I know.”
The space between us hummed again, warm and dangerous. We both remembered the kiss we once shared. The moment that changed everything long before the truth did.
I cleared my throat before I did something reckless. “Just stay away from the woods. Promise me?”
Her eyes softened. “I promise.”
Relief washed through me but it did not last. Not with rogues circling the borders and one of our own hiding their involvement. I stepped back reluctantly as students filled the hallway around us.
“I will find you later,” I said.
She nodded. “Be careful.”
I would try but the day already smelled like trouble.
AUTHOR’S NOTE:
The stakes are starting to rise fast. Luca is juggling rogue wolves, secrets inside the school pack, and the impossible task of keeping Aria safe. Aria is trying to understand a world she never knew existed, and she is doing it with more courage than she realizes. The threads are tightening, and soon they are all going to snap.
Thank you so much for your support, my lovelies😊