Chapter one: A stranger In town

I had returned to Grey hollow a week ago and even though the town was always quiet, the air felt different tonight. Crisp and cold, like it was carrying secrets it wasn’t supposed to. I wrapped my scarf tighter around my neck as I walked down the empty streets of Grey Hollow. The town had always been quiet—too quiet, really. Everyone was used to their own routine, too scared to break from the mold. But tonight, I felt like something had shifted, like the night itself was holding its breath.

I pulled my coat tighter and glanced up at the full moon, glowing brightly against the black sky. The town seemed different under its light, casting long shadows across the narrow streets, making the familiar feel foreign. I couldn’t shake the unease curling in my stomach, the way my heart seemed to race even though nothing was happening.

Maybe it was just my imagination. Grey Hollow was always like this: empty and sleepy, as though the town itself had never quite woken up. Nothing ever happened here. No excitement. No drama. Just the same faces, same routines, day in and day out. I should’ve been used to it by now. But something was off tonight.

As I reached the corner of Main Street, I saw him for the first time.

He stood at the edge of the woods, just where the trees thickened into darkness, leaning against an old pickup truck like he belonged there. Except he didn’t. I hadn’t seen him around before, and in a town like Grey Hollow, everyone knew everyone. Strangers stood out like neon signs, and he might as well have been glowing.

Tall and broad-shouldered, he had that rough, dangerous look about him that made you want to keep your distance, even if you couldn’t tear your eyes away. His hair was dark and messy, his jaw sharp and covered in a few days’ worth of scruff. He was dressed in a worn leather jacket and jeans, boots scuffed from what looked like years of hard use. He was staring out into the trees like they were whispering secrets to him.

I kept walking, trying not to stare, but my curiosity got the better of me. I glanced at him again, hoping to catch another glimpse, and found his eyes on me.

My heart skipped.

It wasn’t just that he was looking at me—it was how he looked at me, like he had been expecting me, like he already knew me. His gaze was intense, piercing, as if he could see right through me, straight into the parts of myself I tried to keep hidden. I had never felt so exposed, so unsettled.

I tore my eyes away, my pulse quickening. Keep walking, Lena. Just keep walking.

But my feet slowed, as if something was pulling me toward him. I didn’t know this man, and yet… I couldn’t shake the feeling that I should. The way he watched me—it was as if we shared some unspoken connection, a thread tying us together in ways I didn’t understand.

I stopped, torn between fear and something else I couldn’t name.

“You shouldn’t be out here alone.” His voice was deep, rough, like the gravel beneath my boots.

I froze. He had spoken to me. Out of all the things he could’ve said, why that? My instincts screamed at me to run, to ignore him, but my curiosity flared instead.

I turned slowly, meeting his gaze again. “It’s Grey Hollow. Nothing happens here.”

He gave a small, humorless smile, one that didn’t reach his eyes. “You’d be surprised.”

The air around us felt heavy, charged, as though something unseen was crackling between us. His words, so simple, held a warning, and for the first time in my life, I felt like Grey Hollow wasn’t as safe as I had thought. There was something under the surface, something darker, something I had never known about this place.

“Who are you?” I asked, unable to stop myself.

For a long moment, he didn’t answer, just studied me, his gaze lingering on my face, like he was debating whether or not to tell me the truth.

“Ronan,” he finally said, his voice low. “I just moved here.”

That was a lie. I could see it in the way he said it, how he glanced toward the forest before meeting my eyes again. He wasn’t new, and he definitely wasn’t just some random guy passing through. He belonged to something bigger, something more dangerous. I could feel it in my bones.

I swallowed hard. “Why here? Why Grey Hollow?”

His eyes narrowed slightly, his lips tightening into a line. “That’s a long story.”

I bit my lip, unsure what to say next. Part of me wanted to demand answers, to press him about why he was really here, why he was watching me like that. But the other part—the smarter part—told me to walk away. I didn’t know this man, and something told me that getting involved with him would only lead to trouble.

But trouble was already here, wasn’t it? I could feel it creeping in around the edges of my life, and for the first time, I wasn’t sure I could avoid it.

Before I could say anything else, Ronan pushed away from the truck, his eyes scanning the street behind me. He moved with a quiet, controlled grace, like a predator always ready to strike.

“You should go home,” he said softly, his tone leaving no room for argument. “It’s not safe out here.”

I wanted to ask why, wanted to press for more, but the look in his eyes stopped me. There was something dangerous about him, something that told me if I stayed, I’d be in over my head.

So I nodded, turned, and walked away.

But as I made my way back down the empty street, I couldn’t shake the feeling that my life had just changed forever.

And that Ronan Blackwood was at the center of it.