I woke up to the crackle of firewood and the faint smell of wild herbs.
For a moment, I didn't know where I was.
The stone ceiling above me wasn't mine. The bed beneath me was too soft, too warm. The air smelled like smoke and pine and… him.
Rhydan.
Then it hit me — last night wasn't a dream.
I'd crossed into enemy territory.
Met the Alpha of the Crimson Fang Pack.
Bled in front of him.
Felt something I couldn't explain. Something I wasn't ready for.
And now I was in his home.
Unharmed.
Alive.
Claimed.
I sat up slowly, groaning as my side throbbed. The bandage was still there — clean, tight, done by a hand that had clearly done it before.
The room was dim, lit only by a fireplace and a strange glowing rune carved into the far wall. The stone walls were rough but strangely beautiful, lined with shelves of books, jars of dried plants, and weapons I didn't recognize.
Not the kind of place I imagined a bloodthirsty Alpha to live in.
It felt… lived in. Grounded. Real.
And that scared me more than the claws and howls ever could.
Because it meant he wasn't just a monster.
He was a man.
The door creaked open.
I reached for the dagger hidden under my pillow — the one I'd tucked there in case he tried something while I slept.
But it wasn't Rhydan.
It was someone else.
A woman. Tall. Dark-skinned. Eyes sharp as knives.
Her expression? Ice-cold.
"So it's true," she said, her voice low and full of venom. "He brought a human into the heart of the mountain."
I didn't move. "Who are you?"
"Liora. Pack healer. And unlike Rhydan, I don't let strange girls with secrets walk free."
"Then you must be very busy," I said dryly.
Her eyes narrowed. "Don't get clever with me, girl. You have no idea what you've walked into."
"I never claimed I did."
She stepped closer. "Do you know how many humans have made it this far? None. And if they had, they'd be bones by now. So why are you still breathing?"
"I'm starting to wonder the same thing."
Liora looked me over, her gaze lingering on my wrapped side. Her nose twitched — wolves always relied on scent. But instead of confusion, her face twisted with something else.
Fear.
Or maybe recognition?
"You're not just human," she said under her breath. "You smell like…"
But before she could finish, the door slammed open again.
Rhydan.
He looked between us — at me on the bed, at Liora standing over me — and something dark flashed in his eyes.
"Out," he said.
Liora didn't move. "She shouldn't be here."
"Out."
He didn't shout. Didn't growl. But his voice left no room for argument.
Liora gave me one last icy glare, then turned and stormed out.
Rhydan shut the door behind her and leaned against it, running a hand through his hair.
"She doesn't trust me," I said.
"She doesn't trust anyone."
"Smart woman."
He gave me a tired smile. "How do you feel?"
"Like I got tackled by a bear."
He stepped forward. "You were unconscious for a day."
"A day?" I blinked. "Why didn't you throw me out?"
"I considered it," he said. "But then you started talking in your sleep."
I stiffened. "What did I say?"
"You whispered a name," he said quietly. "Elian."
I froze.
That name hadn't passed my lips in years.
"My brother," I lied.
Rhydan raised a brow. "You're not a very good liar."
"I'm not trying to be."
He stared at me for a long time. Then said, "You've been lied to your whole life, haven't you?"
That silenced me.
"Whoever you think you are, Aeryn… you're not," he continued. "You carry something. I can feel it. Smell it. Something powerful. Something ancient."
I swallowed. "I'm not a werewolf."
"No," he agreed. "But you're not just human either."
The air between us grew heavy.
I wanted to deny it. Scream at him to shut up. Insist that I was just a girl who lost her family and came here to die.
But deep down, I knew he was right.
And that terrified me.
A knock at the door interrupted the silence.
Rhydan opened it — barely — and growled low. "What?"
A new voice answered. Male. Amused. Rough.
"You're needed, Alpha."
Rhydan stiffened. "Why?"
"There's been a challenge."
That one word made my blood run cold.
Challenge.
He turned back to me. "Stay here."
I pushed off the blanket. "What kind of challenge?"
He hesitated. "One that concerns you."
Before I could ask more, he was gone.
I didn't stay put.
Obviously.
I slipped out five minutes later, ignoring the stabbing pain in my side. The hallways were carved into the mountain, flickering with torchlight and lined with old symbols that pulsed when I passed.
I followed the sound of voices. Growling. Shouting.
Until I reached a balcony overlooking what looked like an arena — a circular pit surrounded by jagged stone and dozens of wolves.
They weren't shifted — not yet. But their eyes glowed, and their bodies pulsed with tension.
In the center stood Rhydan.
And across from him — a tall, broad-shouldered man with silver-streaked hair and a wicked smile.
"Who is that?" I whispered to no one.
Liora appeared beside me without warning. "Garrick. His Beta. And the only wolf strong enough to challenge him without getting torn apart."
I swallowed. "Why now?"
Liora didn't look at me. "Because your presence here breaks the order. Because he claimed you. Because he's weakening — and wolves don't follow weakness."
"I didn't ask to be claimed."
"That doesn't matter anymore."
In the pit, Garrick circled Rhydan like a predator. "You bring a human here," he sneered, loud enough for all to hear. "You claim her. You bleed for her. That's not strength. That's insanity."
"She is under my protection," Rhydan growled.
"She is a liability."
"She is mine," Rhydan roared.
And that one word — mine — shook the ground beneath our feet.
In a blink, claws ripped through skin.
Fangs bared.
They shifted.
Wolves. One dark as midnight. The other a blur of silver and shadow.
They clashed in a storm of snarls and blood.
I couldn't breathe.
I didn't know why my heart felt like it was being torn in half watching them fight — two monsters tearing each other apart for a reason I didn't fully understand.
But deep down, I knew this fight wasn't about power.
It was about me.
And the truth I still didn't remember.