The night was Kaelen's closest ally, cloaking her in shadows as she navigated the crooked alleys beyond The Hollow Fang. The city hummed with restless energy, whispers of deals and deaths bleeding into the cold air. But Kaelen's mind was sharp, focused on one thing—her mission.
Marek's offer had set her path in motion, but the twins' name lingered in her thoughts like an itch she couldn't scratch. She didn't care who they were or what they wanted. Power-hungry kings were all the same—ruthless men clinging to crowns and pretending their thrones made them gods. She'd seen their type before. She knew how easily gods could bleed.
Still, something about them gnawed at her instincts.
She brushed the feeling aside.
Her next destination was the outskirts of the city, where the shadows grew thicker, and the law dared not tread. She was hunting a man named Veylan—a broker of forbidden truths, known for selling secrets to the highest bidder. If anyone knew more about the twins, it would be him.
The meeting place was an abandoned chapel, its once-sacred walls now cracked and crumbling, stained with time and sin. The moonlight leaked through shattered stained glass, casting distorted colors over the dusty floor.
Kaelen arrived first, as always. She didn't trust anyone enough to arrive second. She checked the exits, her hand resting casually on the hilt of her blade. Then she waited.
Minutes passed before footsteps echoed through the hollow space. Veylan emerged from the darkness, draped in a tattered cloak, his face hidden beneath a hood. But Kaelen recognized the slight limp in his step, the faint scent of old blood on his clothes.
"You're bold to call me here," Veylan rasped, his voice like gravel dragged across stone.
Kaelen didn't bother with pleasantries. "I need information."
Veylan chuckled, stopping a few feet away. "Information isn't free, girl."
Without warning, Kaelen's dagger flew from her hand, slicing through the air to lodge itself an inch from his head—buried deep into the rotten wood behind him.
Veylan flinched, his laughter dying in his throat.
"I wasn't asking," Kaelen said coolly, stepping forward until the space between them was suffocating. "Tell me what you know about the twin kings."
Veylan swallowed hard, his bravado crumbling under her icy gaze. "I don't know much," he stammered. "No one does. They're ghosts—rulers in the dark. They've been moving quietly for years… until recently."
Kaelen's eyes narrowed. "What changed?"
"They're searching for someone."
The words sparked a flicker of recognition deep in Kaelen's chest, but she ignored it.
"Who?"
Veylan shook his head quickly. "No one knows. But… they're desperate. Their soldiers are scattered across kingdoms, hunting for a shadow they can't catch."
Kaelen's lips twitched into a faint smirk. "Sounds like they're not as powerful as people think."
But Veylan didn't laugh. His gaze darkened, and his next words sent a chill through the air.
"Desperation doesn't make them weak. It makes them dangerous."
Before Kaelen could respond, a sudden noise shattered the tense silence—a faint rustle, barely audible, but enough to make her spin around, dagger drawn.
Figures emerged from the shadows, cloaked and masked. Not common thugs. These were trained—silent, efficient, deadly. Assassins.
Kaelen didn't hesitate.
She moved like a storm unleashed, her blade a blur of silver slicing through flesh and bone. Blood sprayed across the cracked walls, mixing with the faded remnants of forgotten prayers.
Veylan tried to flee, but Kaelen's dagger found him before he reached the door, pinning him to the ground with a scream.
She stood over him, breathing hard, her clothes soaked in blood—not all of it hers.
"Who sent them?" she demanded, pressing her boot against his chest.
Veylan coughed, spitting blood. "I don't—"
Kaelen pressed harder.
"Who?"
His eyes darted around wildly, fear overtaking him. "I don't know… but they weren't after me."
Kaelen froze.
"What?"
"They were after you," he rasped.
She stepped back, her mind racing. Assassins didn't just stumble upon meetings like this. Someone knew she was here. Someone was watching.
But why?
Before she could question him further, Veylan's body jerked violently, his eyes going wide. Blood trickled from the corner of his mouth.
Poison.
Someone had silenced him before he could say more.
Kaelen's heart didn't race. Fear wasn't in her nature. But something dark coiled in her gut—a realization she couldn't ignore.
She wasn't just hunting shadows.
The shadows were hunting her.
—
Meanwhile, miles away…
In a grand hall shrouded in flickering candlelight, the twin kings stood over a sprawling map, their sharp eyes tracing paths of conquest.
"We need her," one of them muttered, his voice low and rough like distant thunder.
His twin nodded, his gaze distant. "She's the key to finding what we've been searching for."
Neither of them knew the truth.
They weren't just looking for a weapon.
They were looking for her.
Their mate.
And fate was about to force their paths to collide.