CHAPTER 1: The Moonlit Chase

The forest is alive with the whisper of leaves and the distant call of night birds. The moon, a sliver of silver, casts an ethereal glow over the ancient woods. But beneath its light, something darker stirs.

I have always felt an unusual attachment to the woods surrounding my small town of Cedar Ridge. Growing up, I used to spend hours in it, lost in its hidden paths, listening to the quiet murmurs of the trees as they soothed my troubled mind. Today, though, it feels different; it's as if the woods are holding their breath, waiting for something to happen.

"Nevaeh! Come on!" Ruby's voice cuts through my reverie as she calls from the edge of the clearing. I break out of it and quicken up my pace, crunching the dried leaves with my feet.

"I'm coming, I'm coming" I call back, although my mind is still half-lost in the depths of the forest. When I reach her, we continue on toward the town's annual Autumn Festival. It is a big deal in Cedar Ridge, something to celebrate the harvest before winter sets in.

Ruby looks at me, that knowing smile twisting on her face. "You're thinking about the woods again, aren't you?"

I shrug. "I can't help it. It feels like… like they're calling to me. Is that weird?"

She shakes her head, her blonde curls bouncing. "Not weird. Maybe a little spooky, but it's Cedar Ridge. This whole place is spooky."

I laugh, but the unease in my chest lingers. "You're probably right. I just have this feeling that something's coming."

"Whatever it is, it better wait until after the festival. I have been looking forward to those caramel apples all year" Ruby teases lightly.

We make our way into town where the festival is in full swing. The streets are lined with stalls selling everything from handmade crafts to warm cider. Laughter and music fill the air, but even amidst all of this, I can't seem to shake off this feeling of being watched.

"Hey, are you okay?" Ruby asks, noticing just how distracted I am.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Just a little tired, I guess" I force a smile. 

Ruby doesn't push it any further, tugging me toward a caramel apple stand. As we take a bite of the sugary treats, I attempt to shake off the tension, but the air seems to be electric with anticipation, my skin prickling.

As I went through the festival, there was an old woman standing by one of the booths. The face was wrinkled, covered with a hood so that no part of it showed. Her eyes met mine, and for a second, everything else disappeared.

"Beware of the night, child" a hoarse, raspy voice whispered from that old lady, shivering my spine. "The shadows are hungry."

I blink, and she's gone. Great, just great. I look around, and Ruby hasn't noticed anything out of the ordinary.

"Did you see that old woman?" I ask, my voice not even.

Ruby frowns. "What old woman? Nev, perhaps you really do need some rest."

Shaking my head, I try to dismiss it. "Yeah, maybe."

But as the evening wears on, that feeling of unease only increases. And by the time Ruby and I call it a night, the moon sits high in the sky, casting eerie shadows along the path leading back towards the woods.

"I'll walk you home" she offers, but I wave her off.

"It's cool. I'm going to cut through the woods. It's faster" I say, though the thought of the dark forest makes my stomach twist.

"Okay, but be careful, alright?" Ruby gives me a quick hug. "I’ll see you tomorrow."

I nod, gesturing for her to go ahead into the night. Taking another deep breath, I turn and step into the woods, the overgrown path tugging me deeper into darkness.

With every step, a feeling of unease strengthened. It was as if the trees huddled together, closing in on me, their branches like skeletal fingers. There was a thick scent of pine and earth, yet beneath, something else entirely, metallic, like blood. Chills ran down my spine as I clutched the hem of my dress, instantly regretting letting my parents force us to live so far out from society. It really annoys me so much whenever I think about it. 

Suddenly, a low, menacing growl ripples through the trees, halting me in my tracks. Every muscle in my body tenses, my heartbeat thundering in my chest as I frantically scan the thick shadows. The air feels suffocating, the dense darkness swallowing everything in its path, leaving only the skeletal outlines of trees that seem to close in around me.

Then, out of the corner of my eye, something shifts—just a flash, but it's enough. Something large, hulking, moving too fast for me to process. My breath catches, panic clawing up my throat like icy fingers. I’m not alone.

I could barely react before a massive figure emerged from the shadows, obstructing my path. He looms over me, towering with an almost unnatural presence. The raw power emanating from him presses down on me, making my knees weak. His eyes—burning a deep, molten amber—lock onto mine, and the world constricts to just us. The name forms in my mind, sharp and terrifying.

Kane.

The Cursed Alpha. The one spoken of by the town only in hushed and fearful whispers. Said to be more beast than man, a monster doomed to devour all that stands in his path.

The moment his eyes find mine, the air shifts. Time freezes, it seems, and the forest holds its breath. Kane takes one deliberate step closer, and my heart stumbles, stuck between terror and… something else. Something I can't name but draws me to him, against all reason.

"Who are you?" His voice is deep and dark, like the rumble of thunder, as it vibrates through my bones and seems to travel down my spine.

My mouth opens, but no words come out. My voice is stolen by the intensity of his gaze, by the electricity crackling between us. I can't think, can’t breathe. Suddenly, his hand shoots out, his grip like iron as it wraps around my neck. The contact is instant and violent—a scorching pain rips through me, and I gasp, doubling over.

In that moment, a voice echoes in my head, soft yet commanding.

“Mate…” The purring of my wolf is loud, as her presence flooding me momentarily seizes control.

The word hits me like a freight train, stealing the air in my lungs. My mind reels, scrambling to make sense of it. Kane's eyes shoot open wide as well; shock is a mirror in his expression. Neither of us budges, held captive in the gravity of what just transpired. But before any further reaction, the moonlight breaks through the canopy above, bathing us both in its silvery glow.

Kane abruptly lets me go, his features twisting into a grimace of pain. A guttural snarl escapes his lips as he goes down on his knees, his body contorting in some weird manner. The sound that bursts through his throat is a howl that comes straight from the very depth of his bones, sending shivers down my spine and shaking the ground on which I stand.

I stumble backward, shaking, my feet hardly finding purchase as I watch in terror. His body bulges outwards, his clothes tearing at the seams as dark fur bursts from his skin. His fingers twist into claws and his jaw elongates as massive fangs emerge.

My brain can't concentrate as a nightmare becomes real before my eyes. What's happening? This isn't supposed to happen. There is no rhyme, no reason. The man in front of me is turning into a monster, one with power and fury directed at me.

"Run" The word is distorted, guttural, since Kane growls it, but I'm frozen in place, legs paralyzed as the brain goes haywire in my skull.

Another howl splits the air, louder, more terrifying than before. His eyes, glowing red now, flick toward me—predatory, dangerous.

"Now!" he roars; the voice vibrates through the night with deadly authority.

That snaps me out of it. My body kicks into survival mode, and before I can even think, I'm running through the woods. The world becomes a blur of trees and shadows as my heart hammers against my ribs. Fear shoots me forward, every step marked by the desperate need to flee. Fire in my legs burns, and somehow, I push harder and can run faster than I ever have in my life.

It feels unreal—like I’m trapped in one of those horror movies, you watch in a cinema with friends, giggling uneasily and making bets that one of you will scream. But this is not a movie; it is real. The cursed alpha—the beast—is after me. And if he catches me, I won’t make it out alive.

I tell myself, this must be some kind of dream. It has to be, right? There is just no way in hell this could be happening, no way my mate I just met for the first time in my entire life turns into some grotesque beast trying to kill me.

Ha! What a funny and twisted nightmare it was. I bet all this crazy nonsense would just wither away soon. If only someone would wake me up so I can snap out of this. 

But the pounding of my heart, the sting of branches slashing against my skin—it’s all too real.

I checked to see if I could connect with my wolf so that we could shift to be faster, but I didn't feel her presence anymore. Actually, it was almost like she had never been there.

Wow. Just when she finally decided to make her big appearance, she decided to make a stupid claim and abandon me. What a coward!

At least, I wouldn't be the only one who'd get eaten…

My lungs burned, my legs shrieking for relief, but I couldn't stop. I won't. The forest around me stretches over an eternity, a maze of shadows, but then, there, in the distance, light. My heart leaps. I'm close. A few more miles, and I'd be free of this cursed place.

Just when there's a flare of hope, it's torn away. My foot catches on something—a root, a log, I don’t know—and I crash to the ground, hard. Pain explodes through my body as I hit the dirt, face-first, the wind knocked from my lungs.

For a moment, I can't move, can't breathe. I can only hear those thunderous footsteps closing in, the earth shaking with every one of his monstrous strides.

I need to get up. I need to keep running. But my body refuses to listen, my muscles quivering with terror, my mind blank.

"Moon Goddess, please," I whisper, "give me strength."

Deep within me, I know if Kane catches up to me, no amount of strength will matter.

A blaze of pain shot up my leg, but there was no time to wallow in it. Pushing myself up, I barely managed to scramble to my feet when a snarl tore through the night closer than ever.

I turned just in time to see him.

Kane or whatever he had become-was a monstrous wolf form. His amber eyes, now red and unrecognizable, locked on me. He moved with a predator's grace, each step deliberate, deadly. My body screamed for me to run, but I couldn't. My legs were jelly, frozen in terror.

Kane's chest heaved, his breaths labored, and his claws extended, shining in the thin moonlight as he neared. The growls rumbled through his chest and into the woods, echoing deep in my bones.

"You shouldn't have stopped running" his voice rasped, barely human.

I took some shaky crawls back, feeling my heart hammering in my chest, but it was too late. His arm swung forward with terrifying speed. His claws gleamed in the air, arcing toward me, and all I could do was watch, my breath caught in my throat.

In that final moment, time slowed. The world dimmed, the trees came into shadowy silhouettes, and everything within my vision began to darken. My body gave up, and my knees buckled.

This was it. I'm going to be killed by my mate… 

The last thing I saw was Kane, his claw raised above me, ready to strike.

"AHHH!!!" I screamed with all the strength left I could muster.

Then everything went black.