Page 12

12

EVE

A s Logan’s form started to shift, I was captivated, my breath held in my throat. The air around him thickened, vibrating with power as his muscles rippled, and his body began to change. His transformation was seamless, like his wolf had been at the ready. His clothes shredded as his frame expanded, bones snapping and reforming, fur bursting forth like a dark storm rolling across his skin.

I’d seen wolves shift before—Heraclid wolves, ones who wore their beast like a threat, their movements sharp and jarring, a harsh wrenching of flesh and bone. But with him, it was like watching water change shape, fluid and fierce, a dance between his human self and the wolf that lay hidden within. His eyes held steady, even as they shifted to a blazing gold, locked on to Damian with a focus so intense it seemed to shake the ground.

Logan, the alpha of Orion .

My heartbeat quickened as I watched, awe and terror grabbing hold of me by the neck.

Logan’s wolf lunged, a dark blur of fury, slamming into Damian as he finished his own shift. The impact was brutal—Damian’s wolf stumbled sideways, paws skidding across the polished floor, a shocked snarl ripping from his throat. A strange warmth jolted through my hands, tingling up my arms, and I looked down, bewildered. It was as if I’d dealt the blow myself, like my strength had somehow mingled with Logan’s, woven into the force that sent Damian sprawling.

The clash in front of me was savage, but… deeper. Logan’s wolf snapped forward, fierce and unrelenting, while Damian retaliated, his movements jagged, less controlled. The room pulsed with their power, and yet something kept tugging at my senses, drawing me back to the strange energy flickering through my body. Each strike, every brutal shove, sent ripples through me, a peculiar connection that blurred the lines between observer and participant.

Damian’s wolf snarled, his claws swiping across Logan’s face in a vicious arc. I gasped, a sharp sting flaring across my own cheek, as if his claws had raked through my skin instead. The shock of it brought me back to myself, and I inhaled sharply, shaking off the confusion.

The strange pull remained. I wasn’t a detached observer—something in me was in the fight, every sense attuned to the battle like it was part of my own flesh and blood. Each movement, each bite and dodge, crackled along me, and my pulse matched the wild, brutal dance unfolding before me.

Movement caught my eye, and I spotted Sable in the far corner, half-hidden behind an overturned table. Her face was pale, her eyes wide with horror. She looked almost… afraid. I wanted to scoff at the idea she might actually care about Damian. As Logan’s wolf knocked Damian backward with another blow, Sable’s hands flew to her mouth.

A thought wormed its way into my mind. Could it be that all this time, the hate and venom she’d spit at me… had it been jealousy? Maybe this bitter, simmering rage she held for me wasn’t just about the pack’s strange fixation on my abilities. No, it was something else. She cared for him—or at least thought she did.

It hit me. It could be that Sable hated me not just because I was the pack oracle, but because I was betrothed to Damian. I’d stood in her way, an obstacle to whatever sick affection she held for him.

Another crack sounded as Logan’s wolf lunged, pinning Damian down, and Sable flinched again. A dark satisfaction snaked through me as I watched her reaction.

They deserved each other. Damian and Sable—two souls bound by cruelty. True, Sable hadn’t ever laid a hand on me herself, but her words, her scornful looks, the sharp digs when I’d barely been holding myself together, had left wounds all the same. Sable had been there to watch me struggle, to spit out her judgment when I was at my lowest.

Logan’s wolf circled Damian’s, both wolves wounded. Their snarls filled the café, deep and resonant, vibrating through the floor. Every hair on my body stood on end, every breath matching the tension.

Logan’s wolf moved again, lunging low and swift, his body an arc of strength and precision. He collided with Damian’s wolf, slamming him back with a force that echoed in my own body .

Damian’s wolf scrambled back to his feet, shaking off the blow, his eyes narrowed with rage. He circled, low to the ground, his shoulders rolling in a menacing rhythm. Logan’s wolf was ready, his stance unyielding, head held high, each breath controlled and powerful. Damian’s wolf darted forward, snapping at Logan’s neck, but Logan evaded him, his agility so fluid it almost looked like he was dancing, weaving out of Damian’s reach, muscles rippling beneath his dark fur.

They clashed again, teeth bared, claws digging into each other as they grappled. Logan’s wolf gripped Damian’s shoulder, throwing him down and pressing his weight onto him. A fierce satisfaction thrummed through me, but Damian wasn’t giving in. With a desperate twist, he managed to wriggle free, lunging forward to rake his claws across Logan’s side.

Logan’s wolf snarled in pain, but his resolve didn’t waver. He pivoted, fangs bared, moving with ferocity, and landed a bite that made Damian stumble backward, ears flattened. Damian’s wolf shook himself, blood trickling from his shoulder. His eyes gleamed with a vicious need for retribution.

My knees gave out, and I gripped the edge of a nearby table, grounding myself, forcing air back into my lungs. The pain echoed in my ribs, a phantom ache that refused to fade.

Logan’s wolf staggered, but only for a moment. His growl deepened, resonating through me like a drumbeat. There was no hesitation, no trace of weakness. He steadied himself and charged, lunging at Damian with a renewed force.

As I hunched over, trying to steady my breath and process the strange pull connecting me to Logan, a shadow loomed beside me. I looked up to see Sable, her face tight, lips pressed into a hard line. She leaned down, close enough that I could feel the warmth of her breath.

“You should get out of here,” she hissed. “If you want to stay alive.”

I was unsure what to make of her words. Was she trying to warn me or gloat? The expression on her face was hard to read, a mix of impatience and worry—though I doubted that was for me.

I glanced back at the fight, where Logan and Damian’s wolves were locked in a fierce struggle, rolling across the café floor with claws and teeth flashing in the dim light. It was easy to see that whatever the end of this fight would be, it was coming soon.

This was my last chance to slip away, to leave and not look back.

Sable felt surreal beside me, like I’d fallen into some alternate version of reality. I searched her eyes for a hint of her motives. Her face was set, her jaw clenched. She wasn’t looking at me but at the fight.

For years, she’d been there at my lowest, watching with that same detachment as I tried to navigate life in the Heraclid pack. She hadn’t lifted a finger to help me then; she’d only added to the weight pressing down on me. She’d whispered rumors, thrown the first insults, been the quickest to remind me I was an outsider. But here she was, telling me to run.

“Why?” I asked.

“Don’t waste time asking stupid questions,” she snapped. “I don’t care what happens to you, but if you stay… we ll, if Logan wins, and you’re still here, Damian’s death won’t be the last. You know Grayson won’t let you walk away if his son dies because of you.” A bitter edge crept in as she spoke. “Don’t think you’re worth anything more than the role they assigned you. Grayson will hunt you down and bring you back. Take your last chance and leave . This is as close to freedom as you’re ever going to get. Enjoy it while you can.”

My gut twisted with suspicion. Part of me recognized the truth in her words. No matter who won this fight, there would be consequences for me. If I stayed, I’d have no control over what happened next.

I looked back to the wolves, their bodies a blur of motion, blood, and fury. Logan’s wolf had Damian pinned again, jaws snapping close to his neck. The end was closing in, an inevitability humming in the air, and Sable’s voice snapped me back to the present.

“Get out,” Sable said, and something in her tone hit my heart in a way I didn’t recognize. She was sincere. “Before it’s too late.”

The choice stretched before me, but time was running out.

With my every breath echoing in my ears, I felt the truth of Sable’s words. I knew nothing of Logan beyond what I’d seen in my visions. My whole life I had been a plaything of shifters with power. Would I now be letting Logan do to me exactly what Grayson and Damian had always done?

If I was going to survive, I had to get out of here. Alone.

Logan’s muscles were bunched and taut as he moved in for the final bite, fangs flashing toward Damian’s exposed neck. It was going to happen. Damian’ s end.

The room held its breath, a dense silence falling over the watching crowd.

I didn’t stay to watch.

Heart pounding, I turned and pushed through the sea of supernaturals, weaving between blurred faces. Someone stepped in my way, wide-eyed. I ducked under their outstretched arm and pressed forward, forcing myself through the crowd until I reached a narrow hallway and spotted a back door leading to an alley. With a final shove, I burst through the door into the cool air.

And I ran.

I didn’t stop to consider which direction to take. I just moved, one foot in front of the other, faster, pushing every thought aside as I slipped through the city, keeping to the edges of the street. I passed storefronts and empty streets, darting down narrow passageways until even the distant murmurs of the city faded to nothing.

All I could hear was my own breath, sharp and loud in my ears. The scent of asphalt and dampness filled my senses, covering up everything else—the adrenaline, the metallic tang of blood that still lingered in my nostrils. It didn’t matter where I was heading. I needed distance. Space. I needed to feel the freedom I’d fought so hard to reach.

And that’s when it hit me.

I was free.

The realization washed over me like a tidal wave, crashing into every part of me, filling my lungs with air I hadn’t been able to breathe in years. No more chains, no more invisible leash, no more Damian stalking my every move. This was the first moment I had truly been on my own, no longer bound to anyone’s will but mine. The thought filled me with a fierce sense of liberation, a wildness that made my pulse race.

This was what I’d dreamed of for as long as I could remember. At last.

I slowed my pace, staring at the road ahead, not sure where it was even leading me now—when a thought as heavy as a stone sank into my stomach. I didn’t want to believe it, that after all this time, I’d reached the one thing I’d always wanted, only to find it hollow.

I was free. Free at last.

And I felt empty.