CHAPTER 3

CHAPTER THREE

Zyana's pov

I shot up, my heart pounding frantically against my rib cage. The room around me looked foreign; it was huge and nothing like the small comfortable old space I shared with my father. The bed beneath me was too soft, too clean, and I panicked for a minute, choking on air.

Where was I?

My fingers clutched the soft sheets as I looked around the room to find something familiar or remember something… Or someone. 

Then all the memories came rushing in my mind. The wolves, my father’s death, the chase, the river... and then him. The man—Evander.

I remembered following him after he offered me protection, but everything after that was a blur. 

I rubbed my aching temples, trying to put the pieces of all the memories together to make a sense of it. 

My body felt heavy and my head still hurt like a bitch. How long had I been out cold?

Considering the low sunlight that filtered thought the gapd in the curtain, it was still early morning, but I couldn’t be sure.

 I swung my legs out of bed and I shivered as my bare feet touched the cold floor. I touched the side of my head to feel the bandage wrapped around my head. 

I also remember falling and hitting my head.

Taking a deep breath, I looked around the room again. 

There was a small desk by the window and a chair pulled up beside it. Also there was a fireplace that looked like it hadn’t been lit in years. 

Everything seemed perfect here and my body was getting too adjusted to the comfort. 

My heart sped up again.

 I needed to get out of here. Where the hell did Evander bring me to?

I opened the door slowly, trying not to make a sound. 

The heavy wood creaked as I slipped out into the hallway. It was eerily quiet and the long corridor was lined up with portraits of people I didn’t recognize.

 I made my way downstairs, hoping to find someone familiar, maybe Evander so he could explain to me what the fuck was going on.

I reached the bottom of the stairs and peeked around the corner. Evander was sitting on a couch. But what caught my attention was what laid in front of him on the table.

My hunting knife.

My breath hitched and my fingers instinctively reached for the empty space where the knife should have been strapped to my waist. My knife was very sentimental and I didn't like the idea of anyone laying their hands on it.

Evander didn’t turn around, but somehow, he knew I was standing there.

“Good morning, I see you’re awake.”

I stood there, frozen for a second, before forcing my feet to move towards him. 

“Yeah... I am.”

 I cleared my throat. “How long was I out?”

He finally turned to face me, his sharp eyes glancing over me before gesturing for me to sit. 

“Not long. You passed out not even halfway to the Manor. You were clearly exhausted and short of blood.”

 His lips curved upwards into a smirk. I couldn’t tell if he was amused or he was just mocking me.

My cheeks flushed with embarrassment, and I dropped down onto the chair beside him, my eyes occasionally flicking to the knife on the table.

 “Sorry... I don’t really remember much after the time you told me to follow you.”

“It happens,” he said casually, but his gaze lingered on me for a moment longer before dropping to the knife. 

He lifted it slightly, holding it between his gloved fingers. 

“Interesting piece you’ve got here. Silver blade... not something a normal girl would carry around.”

I swallowed my spit loudly as I stared at my hunting knife. It felt really wrong to see it in someone else’s hands, but I couldn’t exactly rip it out of his grasp. 

“My father gave it to me,” I said with pride. 

“As a reward for completing my training. I trained in combat for years—he wanted me to be able to defend myself.”

Evander’s eyebrow rose to his forehead. He traced his gloved thumb along the edge of the blade, but he didn’t comment on it further. 

He placed it back on the table, but the way he looked at me told me he wasn’t done with his questioning.

I shifted uncomfortably, my fingers twitching desperate to grab the knife and leave. 

But instead, Evander leaned back on his seat, crossing his arms over his chest.

“You’re in my territory now,” he said smoothly, his eyes locked on mine. 

“Which means you’re under my protection. The forest is very dangerous, and what you saw last night wasn’t a normal situation.”

“Tell me about it,” I muttered, running a hand through my tangled bird nest of a hair. I wonder if he had a brush I could use.

He smirked. “There are certain... security measures around the Manor. You won’t need to worry about those creatures coming back here. Not without consequence.”

I nodded, though I wasn’t sure I understood completely.

I was about to ask what those wolves really were but I kept my mouth shut.

“If you need to contact anyone,” Evander continued, reaching into his jacket pocket, “you can use this.” He pulled out a sleek phone and held it out to me. 

“You’re my guest. So... try to make yourself comfortable.”

I hesitated but eventually took the phone from him, my fingers brushing against his gloved hand as I did. 

“Thank you.” I shoved the phone into my pocket and grabbed my knife from the table, feeling better as I strapped it back onto my belt. It was safe with me.

He watched me for a second longer before standing up.

 “Lunch’s in six hours. You should join us. There are also comfortable warm clothes in the wardrobe, help yourself to them. For now, you can relax, take a warm bath and treat your head wound. Bandages are in the bathroom cabinet with everything else you will need."

Without waiting for a response, he walked out of the living room, leaving me alone with my thoughts. 

I let out a breath I didn’t realize I was holding and ran a hand over my face. 

Everything about this situation was confusing. His sudden hospitality, the wolves, the way he talked about them like they were more than just animals.

I shook my head. There was no time to overthink things. I had to stay focused. I needed answers, but for now, I had to play it safe.

---

Lunch was a very interesting affair. I entered the large dining room to find Evander seated at the head of the table. 

Two other people were seated with him—a man and a woman. The woman was strikingly beautiful, with long blonde hair and a smile that was too warm for someone in a place like this. 

The man, however, was the opposite. Dark, brooding, and suspicious, his sharp eyes immediately narrowed in on me the second I walked in.

“Zyana,” Evander greeted, nodding toward an empty seat. “Come, sit. I’d like you to meet Liam and Emily.”

Emily smiled warmly as I sat down across from her. 

“Nice to meet you, Zyana,” she said brightly. 

“Evander told us you’d be joining us, I'm really glad to see another woman in this house.”

“Nice to meet you too,” I replied, trying to sound friendly, but I couldn't be too friendly with someone I didn't know. 

Liam, on the other hand, didn’t bother with pleasantries. He didn’t take his eyes off me at all. He glared at me like I had four eyes or two heads on my neck.

“So, how did you end up here?” He said mockingly. What was with his attitudez rude much?

I closed my eyes tightly and side. I wasn't about to deal with a man with such pettiness. 

“I was being chased,” I said short.

“By wolves. Evander found me after I crossed over to the other side of the river.”

“Wolves?” Liam raised an eyebrow. “That’s what you think they were?”

A knot tightened in my stomach at his tone, but I forced myself to hold his gaze. There was no way I was going to allow him to intimidate me. I was stronger than that.

“Yes,” I said as a matter of fact.

 “They killed my father. I just barely escaped.”

Liam didn’t respond right away, but his eyes flicked over to Evander. They communicated with their eyes it seemed, like telepathy or something.

 I shifted in my seat, feeling the awkwardness and turning to Emily for help.

“Liam?” Emily interjected, her voice calm but pointed. 

“Maybe this isn’t the time for an interrogation, we are just trying to eat. Let the poor girl be.”

He grunted in response, clearly dissatisfied, but he dropped the topic. 

The rest of dinner passed in uncomfortable silence. I could feel Liam’s eyes on me the entire time, and it took everything in me not to snap at him or give him a snarky remark.

Afterward, Evander offered to take me on a walk.

 I was hesitant, but part of me wanted to dust off all the negative vibes, so I agreed. 

A walk in the park can't hurt right?

---

The forest was quiet as we walked. 

Evander didn’t say much at first, just led us through the path with his eyes scanning the woods as if he was expecting something to just jump out from there.

“So... what are you?” I finally asked, breaking the silence.

He glanced at me, a small smirk playing on his lips.

 “What do you think I am?”

“I don’t know,” I shrugged. 

“Maybe a god on earth or something, but you are definitely weird and so are you friends. Like, who the hell calls someone human?”

Evander chuckled, but before he could answer, the bushes rustled, and I froze.

“They’re here,” he whispered and my head began to beat really fast. Round two of Zyana versus WOLVES? WHAT DID I DO TO THEM?

A group of wolves emerged from the trees, their eyes glowing in the darkness. 

They were the same. Same as the ones that had chased me. The ones that killed my father.

I felt a surge of anger course through me, my hand tightening around the hilt of my knife. 

“These are the bastards that killed my poor father! That—”

“I know,” Evander said, his voice really calm for someone that just saw a bunch of wolves in front of him. 

“Stay behind me.”

No fucking way was I going to be the damsel in distress.

I unsheathed my knife and charged at the wolves with everything I got. My father had trained me for this. I knew how to fight. I knew how to survive.

In a blur of motion, I took down the first wolf with a swift slash to its throat. 

Blood sprayed from it's wounds and it collapsed at my feet. 

I stared at its now fading eyes. Before I could make sense of what it really was, the next one lunged at me, teeth bared and claws extended.

 I sidestepped, narrowly avoiding its teeth, and retaliated with a swift kick to its side, sending it crashing into a tree.

 It yelped in pain, giving me just enough time to gain my stance. 

 Evander knew better than to interfere with a fight of vengeance.

 This was my fight now. 

The remaining wolves circled me, their eyes glinting with a mix of hunger. I could see their muscles tense as they prepared to pounce.

 "Zyana, watch out!" Evander shouted, but I didn't need his warning. I was already on the move.

 The next wolf lunged. I pivoted on my heel, slashing with my knife just as it leaped at me. 

The blade connected with its flank, and it howled, rolling in the dirt, but I couldn't stop to see if it was dead.

 Another wolf sprang at me from the left, and I ducked, feeling its hot breath against my neck. I turned, my instincts kicking in as I brought my knife up and drove it into the wolf's side. 

"Three down!" I shouted, adrenaline surging through me, mixing with my fury. 

"Where's the rest?" 

As if in answer, two more wolves emerged from the wood, their eyes fixed on me with a predatory gleam. I could do this, I could end this once and for all.

 I lunged at the first one, ducking under its jaws and aiming for its throat. 

I drove my knife deep into its neck, and yanked it out as I spun to face the last wolf, which was now hesitating. But I wasn't going to let that happen. 

With everything I had, I charged at it, and just as it turned to flee, I slashed my knife across its side. 

It staggered but it kept on running. 

"Don't you dare run away!"

I chased after it and jumped on its back. The last wolf howled in pain, but I stabbed it a few times on its neck before it went limp. 

I stood up, panting heavily as I took in the carcasses around me. Thos ebastards had nothing on me. 

I turned to Evander, who stood a few steps behind, his eyes wide with surprise. 

"You took them down by yourself," he said with genuine admiration in his voice. 

I wiped the sweat from my brow, trying to catch my breath. 

"They were trying to kill me, of course I had to kill them first" I replied, trying to keep my tone steady despite the tremor of after shock of adrenaline. 

Evander nodded, his expression shifting to one of understanding. 

"You fought bravely. I've trained with many fighters, but that was something else."

"Ya, I learnt from the best. He was very brave. I could never match up to him."

" I think you did just fine."

I smiled at him, silently thanking him for believing in me. 

" Let's get you cleaned up, shall we?" 

I nodded, knowing fully well I stink of sweat, blood and wet dog. 

The phone buzzed in my pocket and I pulled it out to see a message notification from an unknown person. 

Curious me, I opened the message and I stiffened. 

" leave while you still can..."

Was this some sick prank? 

My suspicions immediately went to Liam. Of course it had to be him. Who else knew I was here and who else didn't like my presence even if he didn't even know who I was. 

I shoved the phone back into my pocket and sighed. 

The things I've been through... Gosh!