Jayden

I didn’t see Zane for the rest of the day. Not a whisper. Not a shadow. Not even a passing scent of that cedar-frost Alpha aura. He just stayed in his room all day.

Instead, Lucien showed up early in the afternoon with a tray of food.

“Eat,” he said, setting the tray on the desk in my room with a dramatic flourish. “And while you’re eating, let’s cover basic survival etiquette for living at Silverspire.”

He didn’t wait for me to argue.

“One,” Lucien held up a finger. “Don’t go into Zane’s room. Ever. That includes standing too close to the door and thinking about going in. The house can tell.”

I raised an eyebrow. “It can… tell?”

“This place is wired with ancient magic and it responds to the Alpha. Two—don’t touch anything glowing, floating, or whispering. Unless you want to get launched into the astral plane, or worse—another dimension where taxes still exist.”

I opened my mouth.

“Yes, that actually happened to someone,” he added before I could ask.

He paused dramatically, leaned in, and said with a grin, “And three… don’t be stupid.”

“Define stupid.”

Lucien tilted his head. “Stupid is thinking the Alpha of Silverspire is just a hot guy with a temper. He’s not. He’s a weapon. A walking storm. You wouldn’t go poking a loaded gun, would you?”

My silence said enough.

“Right.” He clapped once. “Enjoy your breakfast. You know where to find me if you need anything.”

And he was gone.

I stared at the food he brought. I hadn't eaten during his speech and my stomach started gurgling. Right, I hadn't eaten anything since I came to the city, which was two days ago.

I'm eating two days later, the goddess or whatever must really be on my side. Normally I ate once a week, and if I was lucky enough twice a week. I know you're wondering how I survived, well I can't explain that neither can I explain where I get the energy to run when I'm chased.

Luck really loves me. That's all I can say.

By 3pm, the house changed.

I could feel it in the walls, in the quiet hum that ran through the air like a current. Magic. Thick and old. The kind that pressed on your skin like a weighted blanket and made the shadows linger just a little too long.

Lucien’s words looped in my head: It responds to the Alpha.

So, of course, I stayed in my room.

For about ten minutes.

But curiosity’s a hell of a drug, and Zane’s door? It was right there. Closed, sure. But not locked. Almost like it was waiting.

Almost like it dared me. So yeah, I did the one thing he told me not to—I went to his room.

I reached the door, took a deep breath and opened it.

The room was massive, dimly lit by the setting sun pouring through the glass walls. It overlooked the cliff. No curtains. No clutter. Just shadows, stone, and power.

It smelled like him—sharp and cold, like frost on pine needles. Clean, expensive danger.

And Zane?

Awake.

Shirtless.

Lying on the edge of the bed like a goddamn forbidden statue, one arm behind his head, eyes on me like he’d been expecting this exact betrayal.

“I said not to come in here,” he said, voice low. Not loud. Not angry.

Worse. Disappointed.

“I didn’t break in,” I said, like that helped. “The door wasn’t locked.”

“Didn’t think I had to.”

I could’ve walked away right then. Could’ve said sorry, blamed the house, claimed sleepwalking. But no.

I stepped in like a complete idiot. “I just wanted to talk.”

Zane sat up slowly, fluid like a predator. The sheet slipped down his torso, revealing every carved inch of him. Abs, chest, the whole fantasy package. But that wasn’t what hit me hardest.

It was his eyes. That look—detached, intense, like he saw straight through me and didn’t like what he found.

“Talk,” he said.

I froze. Then fumbled. “This place—it feels alive. Like the walls are watching me.”

“They are,” he said. “The house is tied to me. Built with blood magic. Enchanted to respond to the Alpha’s presence. It shifts when I shift. Protect what’s mine.”

I swallowed hard. “You built all this?”

“My father did. I refined it. Strengthened the bonds. Added wards after the last assassination attempt.”

“You’ve had assassination attempts?”

He gave me a look. “I’m Alpha. Of course I have.”

The smart thing—the survivor thing—would’ve been to back away, nod respectfully, close the door.

“How long have you been living here?” I asked, inching closer.

“Why are you so interested?” He answered.

“I just want to know the person I'll be living with for the next couple of months.” Which was not entirely a lie, I wanted to know a bit more about him.

Why tho?

“I’ve lived here for the past 335 years.” He said looking me dead in the eyes.

I burst out laughing, “Then I'm probably 300 years old.”

He just stared.

“What? Are you serious?” I asked after seeing the serious look on his face.

Zane stood and walked to me, slow and certain. Every step was heavy with tension, like the room itself leaned toward him.

“Does it look like I am lying?” He said getting closer.

“Tabloids say you're 35 years old.” I responded sounding unsure.

“Don't believe things in the human world. They only know what we tell them.”

I stared at him with wide eyes.

“You're that old?”

He winced. “I still look younger than most of your humans who are barely past 60.”

I couldn't argue, man was built like a Greek sculpture.

“How did you survive?”

“You know so little about my world sweetheart. Why didn't you go to the library when you had the time?”

I just looked at his well sculpted face, with his golden hair falling just past his shoulders.

Instead, I whispered, “You’re not what I expected.”

“Neither are you,” he said softly as his nose flared.

We were inches apart now. Too close. The kind of close that crackled with danger. My pulse stuttered. I didn’t move. Couldn’t.

His hand lifted and barely touched my jaw, leaning like he was about to kiss me. And I closed my eyes…

He stepped back.

Quick. Decisive. Like he’d broken a rule by letting it go that far.

“Go,” he said. “Before I change my mind.”

I hesitated. My mouth opened. Nothing came out.

So I left.

The door shut behind me like a final warning.

***

Lucien found me twenty minutes later, curled on a velvet couch in the lounge, reading a book I got from the library. It was a book about the history of the wolves.

He tossed a bottle of water at my chest and dropped beside me. “Let me guess. You opened the door.”

I didn’t answer.

He smirked. “That’s Zane’s version of a test.”

“Great. Did I pass or fail?”

Lucien considered. “You passed… in a very Jayden kind of way.”

“Which means?”

“Which means he didn’t eat you alive. Yet.”

He stretched out like a cat, arms behind his head.

“You wanna survive the week? And even a month. You need context. Silverspire isn’t just a pack, it is the oldest bloodline on the continent and the largest pack in nocturne city and its surrounding. Our magic’s older than the mountains. And Zane’s not just any ordinary Alpha. He's a legacy.”

“He told me he was 335 years old. He’s lying right?”

“I'm 308.” Lucien answered instead.

I turned to him slowly. So it was true after all.

“And the house?”

“Older than Zane. It's built on sacred ground. Designed to protect. Every wall, every stone, every damn teacup is enchanted. Zane just renovates every decade.”

“And Nocturne City?” I asked.

“Neutral ground,” he said. “Both packs can stay or pass through it. Ours and Graywoods.”

“Graywoods?”

Lucien made a face. “Our lovely neighbors. Led by Alpha Dorian. Less classy, more bite. They don’t like Zane. Think he’s too cold. Too powerful.”

“He kind of is.”

Lucien grinned. “Exactly. That’s the problem.”

“And the club?”

“One of the Alpha's many businesses, he owns a lot of business in the human world outside Nocturne City.”

“If the pack structure is as the ones I read, there should be a Luna. Where's your Luna?”

“Not my story to tell.” He said, raising his hands up.

“And Omega? That's what you guys referred to me as, right?”

“An Omega is the weakest member in the pack because they're late shifters but after shifting they are granted special abilities.”

“So they all shifted?” I asked.

“Not all of them. Only a few.

“What…”

“That's enough for today. Get some rest, it'll be a long night. Bye kiddo, I'm off to bed.

I couldn't bring myself to sleep not after finding out I was living with two ancient creatures.

What have I gotten myself into?

***

By nightfall, we were back at the club.

Lucien handed me a small earpiece. “You're on assistant duty. Follow me, carry things, don’t touch anything cursed.”

I clipped it on. “What counts as cursed?”

“Anything that purrs when it’s not alive.”

Noted.

Inside, the energy was different. Sharper. Bigger.

Glamoured humans brushed shoulders with shifters everywhere. And at the top—like some untouchable king—Zane sat in the VIP balcony.

Watching.

Glass in hand. Shadows behind him. Motionless and intense, like he didn’t need to move to command attention.

Our eyes met.

Only for a second.

But it was enough.

Enough to short-circuit every coherent thought in my brain. Enough to root me to the floor like I belonged here.

He didn’t smile.

But he didn’t look away either.

“Eyes in front, Jayden,” Lucien said dryly. “You’re working now.”

I blinked and tore my gaze away.

Right. Focus.

I followed Lucien as he moved from room to room—checking lighting spells, managing staff rotations, translating magical contracts with words I didn’t understand but wrote down anyway.

Sometime around midnight, a man tried to flirt with me. Lucien shut it down in two words.

“He's Zane’s,” he said casually.

I choked on air. “I’m not—!”

But the man was already gone, disappearing into the crowd like mist.

I glared at Lucien.

He just winked. “There are lines not to be crossed, Jayden.”

“I'm not anybody's, know this and know peace.” I said and left him.