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"Maybe she was forbidden to?" Seraphina wondered aloud.

She turned away, pushing deeper into the castle's labyrinth of corridors. The nautical-tinged breeze suggested they were indeed somewhere by water, and from the little she'd glimpsed through windows, somewhere remote. The wealth on display was staggering—genuine oil paintings, antique furniture that belonged in museums, and fixtures that gleamed with what seemed to be real gold.

Wherever she was, whoever had brought her here commanded resources far beyond anything she could comprehend. The thought made her stomach tighten with unease. What did they want with an astronomer who'd suddenly developed bizarre psychic abilities? And how had they known to take her just as her life had spiraled into chaos?

Seraphina paused at a tall, arched window overlooking a courtyard below. Manicured gardens stretched toward cliffs that dropped steeply to the sea. Beautiful and remote—a gilded cage.

"I need to find a working phone," she decided. "Or a boat. Or someone who'll actually tell me what's going on."

The castle's silence seemed to mock her determination as she pressed onward, her scientific mind struggling against the growing realization that she might have stumbled into something far beyond the realm of rational explanation.

She turned, and headed down another corridor. She hesitated at a set of double doors at the corridor's end, their surfaces inlaid with silver constellations rendered with scientific precision. She adjusted her grip on the candlestick and pushed the doors open.

Her breath caught. The enormous circular space that greeted her wasn't just a room—it was an astronomer's paradise.

"Oh my god," she whispered, momentarily forgetting her predicament.

The observatory stretched before her like something from a dream. A massive telescope—larger than any university model she'd ever worked with—dominated the center, its brass fittings gleaming in the dim light. The cylindrical room rose three stories high, ending in what appeared to be a retractable dome ceiling currently closed against the early evening sky. Smaller telescopes of various designs stood at intervals around the perimeter, each one more beautiful than the last.

Seraphina moved forward, candlestick temporarily forgotten in her hand, drawn by the gravitational pull of equipment she'd only seen in professional journals and historical texts.

"The refractor alone must be worth millions," she murmured, running her fingertips reverently along the brass tube of the central telescope.

Star charts and celestial maps lined the walls, expertly rendered and framed in dark wood. A control panel stood near what must be the dome mechanism—complicated enough that she couldn't immediately decipher its operation. She studied the array of switches and dials, her analytical mind already attempting to decode their functions.

"If I could just get this open," she said, her fingers hovering over what appeared to be the main controls, "the view would be incredible from this height, especially away from city light pollution."

"The third lever opens the eastern quadrant. The fourth, the western." A deep voice reverberated through the observatory.

Seraphina whirled around, the candlestick instinctively raised as a weapon, her heart pounding in her chest.

A man stood in the doorway, his powerful frame silhouetted against the corridor light. As he stepped forward, recognition hit her like a physical blow.

It was him—the stranger from the beach, the one who'd spoken to her before she'd discovered her home had been broken into. The one who'd mentioned "Luna powers." Seraphina backed up against the control panel, her knuckles white around the candlestick.

His features came into sharper focus as he advanced—the strong jawline accentuated by a neatly trimmed beard, the striking gray eyes that seemed to hold centuries of knowledge, and dark gray hair styled meticulously. Tattoos peeked from beneath the rolled sleeves of his white shirt, intricate designs wrapping around his muscled forearms.

He carried himself with the confident ease of someone who knew his own power and didn't need to flaunt it. Every movement suggested controlled strength like a predator comfortable in his territory.

Another memory flashed through Seraphina's mind—wasn't this the same man from her visions?

"You," she breathed, studying him. "Beach guy. Luna powers guy." She swallowed hard, raising the candlestick higher. "Kidnapper guy?"

Something sparked in his gray eyes, something that almost looked like amusement. He moved with casual grace toward one of the smaller telescopes, adjusting its focus with practiced hands.

"Are you the one who brought me here?" Seraphina pressed, fighting to keep her voice steady. "What is this place? And what do you want with me?"

His gaze lifted from the telescope to meet hers. The air between them seemed to crackle with unspoken energy. But he said nothing. He just continued to stare at her with an expression that oddly resembled longing.

SIX

ORION

Four centuries of ruling a pack, and he'd never encountered anyone who dared threaten him with a candlestick. The woman had spirit.

He moved with casual grace toward one of the smaller telescopes, adjusting its focus with practiced hands. The brass instrument felt cool beneath his fingers, a familiar comfort in this suddenly unfamiliar situation.

His gaze lifted from the telescope to meet hers when she pressed him for answers. The air between him and Seraphina seemed to crackle with electricity. But he remained silent for a moment, mesmerized by the fierce green of her eyes, and the way her black hair caught the dying sunlight filtering through the dome above them.