Chapter four: The Rescue At The Fence

Kadence didn't take his car.

The moment that sharp spike of terror sliced through his chest, his human mind lost control. His wolf ripped forward, taking over his body in a violent, agonizing shift that shattered his leather dress shoes and tore through his bespoke suit jacket.

A massive, slate-gray wolf with glowing golden eyes burst through the glass doors of the Alpha study, vaulting over the stone balcony and hitting the courtyard at a full sprint.

HOLD ON, his wolf roared into the mental ether, paws pounding furiously against the dirt. WE ARE COMING.

Trees blurred into dark streaks as he pushed his body past its physical limits, tearing through five miles of thick forest and crossing the pack boundary in minutes. His chest burned, but the ghost of her fear in his blood was a whip driving him faster.

He cleared the tree line behind The Velvet Hide just as a guttural, feral growl echoed down the dark alleyway.

Through the shadows, Kadence saw it: a rogue wolf, bloated with wild dark magic and feral hunger, cornering Asha against the chain-link fence. Her jacket was shredded, her face pale with absolute terror, her small hands raised in a futile attempt to shield herself.

Something inside Kadence snapped, a dark, ancient instinct deeper than his rules, deeper than his pride, deeper than his trauma.

The rogue opened its jaws, lunging for her throat.

Kadence launched his six-hundred-pound frame through the air like a cannonball.

He slammed into the rogue mid-leap, the sheer force of the collision rattling the brick walls of the alley. Bones crunched. The rogue let out an agonizing shriek as Kadence dragged it down, his jaws snapping shut over the beast's shoulder, ripping blood and matted fur into the air.

Asha scrambled backward against the fence, her breath hitching in a harsh, ragged sob.

Her mind couldn't process what she was seeing. Two gigantic, monstrous wolves were tearing each other apart right in front of her. The sound of their snarls vibrated through the metal wire behind her back, horrifying and deafening.

The rogue thrashed, raking its sharp claws across Kadence’s ribs, leaving deep, bloody gashes. But Kadence didn't even flinch. Driven by pure, unadulterated territorial rage, he lifted the rogue by its neck, slammed it repeatedly into the brick wall until the concrete cracked, and threw it into the far dumpster with a sickening crash.

The rogue whimpered, scrambled to its feet, and bolted into the dark woods, bleeding profusely.

Silence descended on the alley, heavy and suffocating.

Asha sat frozen in the dirt, her chest heaving, tears tracking through the dust on her cheeks.

The giant slate-gray beast turned around slowly. His flanks were bloodied, his massive chest rising and falling, his snout dripping with dark red.

He took a slow, heavy step toward her.

Asha pressed herself flat against the fence, her heart pounding violently against her ribs. "S-stay back," she whispered, her voice trembling violently. "Please..."

The wolf stopped. He lowered his massive head, his nostrils flaring as he took in her scent, pine needles, crushed lilies, and honey, under a thick layer of terror.

Slowly, right before her wide, disbelieving eyes, the massive creature began to change.

His bones cracked and shifted, folding in on themselves. The thick gray fur retracted into skin. The terrifying beast vanished, leaving behind the towering, broad-shouldered man in the ruined suit.

Kadence stood under the dim flicker of the remaining alley light, bleeding from his ribs, his irises fading from glowing amber back to a dark, conflicted gold.

Asha’s jaw dropped. Her mind reeled, completely short-circuiting.

He... he turned into a wolf. The giant monster... was him.

"You," she breathed, her voice barely a squeak.

Kadence didn't look at his own wounds. He stepped forward, his expression dark and tight, and reached down to grab her arm.

"We're leaving. Now."

The touch of his hand burned against her skin, a jolt of liquid heat that sent a shockwave straight to her core. The sudden intensity of it broke Asha out of her shock, replacing her terror with a white-hot flash of pure rage.

She yanked her arm back with all her strength, slapping his hand away.

"Don't touch me!" she screamed, her eyes blazing as she scrambled to her feet, backing away from him. "Stay the hell away from me!"

Kadence frowned, taken aback by the fury in her voice. "Asha, listen to me."

"How do you know my name?!" she demanded, her voice shaking with rage and adrenaline. "What are you?! What was that thing?! What kind of sick, twisted freak are you?!"

Kadence’s jaw locked. He stepped into her space, his sheer height towering over her, his Alpha aura pressing down on the alleyway like a heavy iron blanket.

"I just saved your life," Kadence said, his voice dangerously low. "If I hadn't come, that rogue would have torn you to pieces."

"I didn't ask you to come!" Asha spat back, tears of frustration spilling over her lashes, though she didn't step down an inch. "You walked into my job four hours ago, looked at me like I was dirt, said those insane words to me, and broke something inside my head! And now you show up as a bloody monster and expect me to just get in your car?!"

Kadence stared at her, genuinely stunned by her fierce defiance. Most humans bowed or fainted under an Alpha's aura. She was standing in a ruined jacket, bruised and terrified, yelling in his face.

"You are in danger here," Kadence gritted out, grabbing her wrist before she could pull away again. His grip was an iron band, firm, unyielding, but careful not to break her fragile human skin. "That creature wasn't a random stray. It was hunting you. And until I figure out why, you are coming with me."

"I am not going anywhere with you, you arrogant bastard!" Asha yelled, striking his chest with her free hand. "Let me go!"

Her fist hit his bloodied ribs, right over his open wounds.

Kadence winced, a sharp hiss escaping his teeth, but he didn't let go. Without another word, he stepped in close, swept his arm around her waist, and hoisted her effortlessly over his shoulder like a sack of flour.

"Put me down!" Asha shrieked, kicking her legs and pounding her fists against his solid, muscular back. "Help! Somebody help!"

"Save your breath," Kadence growled, turning on his heel and walking toward the main road where Ronan was pulling up in a black SUV. "No one in this city can hear you. And no one can save you from me."