THE FORBIDDEN ESCAPE

The silence of the forest was deceiving. Every rustling leaf, every labored breath, seemed too loud. Cassian moved swiftly, pulling me by the hand, his entire body coiled with suppressed fury.

I could feel the erratic pulse of the bond between us, something new and strange, strong like an invisible current, anchoring me to him.

But the sensation of being hunted was growing stronger.

They knew where we were.

They always had.

Cassian abruptly pulled me behind a thick tree, pressing his body against mine to keep us hidden.

“They're close,” he murmured, his voice low and dangerous.

I swallowed hard, feeling his warmth seep into me, but the moment was shattered by the unmistakable sound of approaching footsteps.

Cassian raised a finger to his lips, his red eyes sharp, scanning the surroundings.

That’s when I saw them.

Shadows moving between the trees, closing in on us.

An ambush.

Cassian cursed, squeezing my hand. “Run.”

“But—”

“Now.”

There was no time to hesitate.

He shoved me forward, and I ran.

Branches whipped against my skin, my feet barely touching the ground as adrenaline and raw fear propelled me forward.

Behind me, Cassian’s roar shook the night, followed by the clash of steel and the agonized cries of men.

I wanted to turn back.

Every instinct inside me screamed not to leave him alone.

But the bond between us pulsed violently, his command unwavering in my mind.

Run. Stay alive.

So I ran.

Minutes passed, my legs burning, but I didn't stop. I had no idea where I was heading—only that I needed to draw the Council’s hunters away.

Then I heard it.

A sharp whistle cutting through the air.

I ducked on instinct, just as a dart lodged itself into the tree beside me.

Shit.

I pushed harder, lungs screaming, but another dart flew toward me, this time hitting my shoulder.

The world tilted.

My legs faltered.

I collapsed to my knees, fumbling to pull the dart free, but my movements were sluggish.

They had drugged me.

Footsteps approached, deliberate and measured.

Then someone crouched before me.

“You run well, little wolf,” a deep male voice murmured.

I forced my swimming vision to focus.

The man before me was tall, broad, dressed in black leather. His amber eyes glowed under the moonlight.

He studied me with an amused smile, like I was a rebellious pup trying to escape a predator.

“Sienna,” he said my name slowly, savoring it. “Finally, we meet.”

Every fiber of my being screamed danger.

“Who are you?” My voice was slurred, the venom spreading through my veins.

His smirk deepened. “Someone who can keep you alive.”

My mind screamed at me to resist, but my body was failing me.

The last thing I saw was his fist coming toward me.

Then—darkness.

I woke up to the sensation of something warm pressed against my neck.

Cassian.

His arms were locked around me, his breathing harsh and uneven, his body tense.

I tilted my head, looking up at him, my pulse quickening at the sight of his bloodied face, his red eyes burning with something lethal.

“Cassian?” My voice came out hoarse.

He didn’t answer right away.

He just held my face, his gaze scanning every inch of me, as if making sure I was really there.

Then I saw it.

The bodies.

Blood soaked the ground, the scent thick in the air. The Council’s hunters lay slaughtered, their lifeless forms a testament to Cassian’s fury.

Cassian exhaled sharply, trying to steady himself.

But I could feel it.

He was still on the edge.

“They touched you?” His voice was low, deadly.

I shook my head. “Cassian, I’m fine. But who.”

The memory of the man with amber eyes slammed into me.

Cassian pulled me even closer, his arms iron around me.

“They’re not taking you,” he growled. “Not now. Not ever.”

My hand pressed against his chest, feeling the tension coiling beneath his skin.

He was burning with rage.

Cassian never showed fear.

But this time…

He was afraid of losing me.

I swallowed, a shiver creeping up my spine.

“Cassian… who was that man?”

He hesitated.

Then, in a voice cold as death, he whispered four words that changed everything:

“The Alpha who wants you.”

Cassian’s grip tightened around me, his body still taut with unspent fury. His red eyes glowed in the dim moonlight, the shadows curling around him, as if his rage itself had become something tangible, alive.

I swallowed, my heart pounding against my ribs.

"The Alpha who wants you."

The words hung in the air, heavy, suffocating.

I pushed against his chest, needing space, needing air, but Cassian didn’t let go—not completely.

His hands flexed against my waist, his breathing still uneven, like he was barely restraining himself from hunting that man down and tearing him apart.

“Who is he?” I managed, my voice raspier than I intended.

Cassian’s jaw clenched. “A ghost from my past.”

That wasn’t enough.

I shoved him harder, stepping back just enough to force him to look at me properly.

His gaze was still wild, but I refused to back down.

“Cassian, I need to know,” I said, my voice firm, though my insides were still trembling. “Who is he? What does he want with me?”

Cassian exhaled sharply, dragging a bloodied hand through his dark hair.

“He’s an Alpha. Not just any Alpha—one that should have died a long time ago.” His red eyes met mine, burning. “But it seems some ghosts refuse to stay buried.”

My stomach tightened.

“If he’s after me, that means.”

Cassian nodded once. “That means he knows what you are.”

I felt sick.

I had barely begun to understand what I was, what my blood meant, and yet there were already more threats looming, more enemies drawn to me like sharks to blood.

Cassian took a step closer, his presence overpowering, his expression carved from pure steel.

“He’s not like the Council,” he said, voice low and edged with warning. “They want to use you. He…” Cassian hesitated, and something dark flickered behind his eyes. “He wants to own you.”

A cold shiver ran down my spine.

Possession.

Not like the bond between me and Cassian, something born from instinct, protection, choice.

This was different.

This was something sick, twisted—predatory.

I clenched my fists. “Then he’s going to be disappointed.”

Cassian’s lips quirked, but there was no amusement in it.

“He won’t stop,” he warned. “And neither will the Council. We need to move before either of them track us again.”

I nodded, pushing down the exhaustion, the ache still lingering in my limbs from the drugged dart. “Where?”

“There’s only one place we’ll be safe for now,” he said, turning towards the trees.

I frowned. “And that is?”

Cassian’s shoulders tensed before he spoke.

“My old pack’s ruins.”

I blinked. “The pack you lost?”

He didn’t answer.

But I already knew.

Cassian had told me little about his past, but I knew enough—his pack had been destroyed, and he had never gone back.

Yet now, he was leading me there.

Because we had nowhere else to go.

The journey was long and uneasy.

Cassian led the way through dense forests and jagged terrain, his pace relentless.

We barely spoke.

Partly because we were both too on edge, waiting for another attack.

And partly because I knew Cassian was fighting something inside him.

I could feel it through the bond.

His thoughts, usually guarded, brushed against mine in sharp bursts.

Anger. Regret. Memories he didn’t want to face.

Finally, after what felt like hours, we reached the edge of a valley.

The scent of ash and earth still clung to the place, despite the years that had passed.

Ruins stretched across the valley floor—collapsed stone structures, remains of what had once been a thriving territory.

I turned to Cassian, but he wasn’t looking at the ruins.

His gaze was fixed farther ahead, where a single, charred building still stood.

His former Alpha’s hall.

I hesitated.

I had seen Cassian angry, furious, even vengeful.

But now, standing at the edge of his past, he just looked…

Haunted.

I reached for his hand without thinking.

The moment our fingers brushed, he tensed—but didn’t pull away.

Instead, his thumb absently traced over my knuckles, grounding himself.

“This place…” His voice was quieter than I’d ever heard it.

“I know,” I murmured.

Because I felt it too.

Pain. Loss.

And underneath it all, something else.

A warning.

Cassian exhaled, regaining control. “We should keep moving.”

But just as we stepped forward.

A howl shattered the silence.

A low, deep sound, echoing through the ruins.

My blood ran cold.

Cassian’s grip on my hand tightened dangerously.

We weren’t alone.

Cassian was already moving, his body a tense, coiled shadow as he scanned the ruins.

I followed, every muscle on edge, my senses alert.

Another howl, closer this time.

Cassian cursed under his breath. “They shouldn’t be here.”

“Who?” I whispered.

He didn’t get a chance to answer.

Because out of the ruins, figures emerged.

Not assassins. Not Council hunters.

Wolves.

Their eyes glowed under the moonlight, their bodies hulking, monstrous.

They weren’t like Cassian’s former packmates.

They were something else now.

Twisted. Altered.

Like wolves who had been touched by something unnatural.

And standing at the center of them.

Was the man with amber eyes.

My stomach dropped.

He was exactly as I remembered him.

Tall, powerful, his expression one of amusement and absolute certainty.

But now, as he took a step forward, I felt it.

His power.

It wasn’t just Alpha energy.

It was something more.

Something wrong.

Cassian’s entire body vibrated with tension, his voice lethal when he finally spoke.

“You should have stayed dead, Darius.”

The amber-eyed Alpha, Darius, smiled.

“I could say the same to you, Cassian.” His gaze flicked to me, lingering. “And look at what you’ve brought me.”

His smile widened.

“The little wolf I’ve been waiting for.”