Chapter 2

The roar of Ryder’s motorcycle cut through the quiet Blackfang compound as he rode through the open gates,

Eyrix slumped against his back, barely clinging to consciousness. Every bump sent pain screaming through his body, but he forced his eyes to stay open. If he blacked out now, he didn’t know if he would wake up again.

The bike came to a stop.

Hands strong, unyielding wrapped around him, lifting him off the seat. Eyrix’s feet barely touched the ground as Ryder carried him inside the largest building at the center of the compound.

The door slammed shut behind them.

Warm air replaced the cold night, thick with the scents of wolves and steel and something darkly that made Eyrix’s skin prickle.

Blackfang territory was nothing like Ironclaw’s carved stone halls. This place felt industrial and brutal, built for power, not beauty.

Ryder didn’t slow. He walked down a long corridor and shoved open a heavy metal door.

Inside was a room that made Eyrix’s stomach twist.

Chains hung from the ceiling and walls. Thick, reinforced steel, etched with runes Eyrix recognized too well—binding runes. Alpha-grade restraints. The kind used to hold dangerous prisoners… or Omegas who were meant to be broken.

Put me down, Eyrix whispered hoarsely.

Ryder ignored him. He laid him against a cold concrete pillar in the center of the room. Eyrix tried to pull away, but his body betrayed him, trembling and weak.

Ryder grabbed his wrists.

Eyrix gasped as cuffs locked around his wrists, then his ankles, chains pulling him spread-eagle against the pillar. The runes flared faintly, burning against his skin and sending a shock through his wolf.

“Stop,” Eyrix said, panic clawing into his voice. Please………

Ryder stepped back, studying him. Chained. Bleeding. Half-shifted. Beautiful. Don’t beg, Ryder said quietly. It’s a bad habit to start.

Eyrix glared at him through the pain. You said you wouldn’t kill me.

I won’t, Ryder replied. This is not killing.

What is it then?

Keeping.

Eyrix’s heart pounded. Like an animal?

Ryder tilted his head. More like a prize.

The words made Eyrix’s stomach twist.

Ryder turned and grabbed a thick leather jacket from a hook, shrugging it off. Beneath it, his body was all muscle and scars, every line of him radiating raw Alpha dominance.

Why chain me? Eyrix demanded. If you want me, why treat me like this?

Ryder walked closer, stopping just out of reach. Because you walked into my territory smelling like something that makes every wolf here want to tear you apart.

Eyrix swallowed. What?

You think I didn’t notice? Ryder said. The moment I touched you, every guard in this compound lifted their heads. They can smell you even now.

Eyrix’s breath hitched. I… I don’t smell different.

Ryder’s eyes darkened. To you.

He inhaled slowly.

The change was immediate.

Ryder stiffened. His pupils blew wide. His jaw clenched so hard Eyrix could hear his teeth grind.

What… is that? Ryder murmured.

Eyrix’s scent shifted. He felt it like a heat in his blood, a slow unfurling of something deep inside him. The air thickened, heavy and sweet and dangerously alluring.

Ryder took a sharp step back, chest heaving.

“Fuck,” he growled.

Eyrix stared at him. What’s wrong?

You, Ryder snapped.

The room filled with the low, thunderous sound of Ryder’s growl. Not a warning. A hunger.

Eyrix’s wolf whimpered inside him, curling in on itself.

What are you smelling? Eyrix asked, fear creeping into his voice.

Ryder dragged a hand down his face. I don’t know. I’ve smelled a lot of Omegas in my life. None of them do this.

Do what?

Make my wolf feel like it’s starving.

Eyrix’s heart raced. Starving?

Ryder’s gaze snapped to him, wild and burning. Like if I don’t touch you, I’m going to tear something apart.

Eyrix tugged uselessly against the chains. That’s not normal.

No, Ryder said darkly. It’s not. He took another slow breath—and his control shattered. He crossed the distance between them in a heartbeat. He stopped inches from Eyrix, gripping the chain near his wrist, knuckles white.

Don’t do that, Ryder snarled.

Do what? Eyrix whispered.

Exist.

Eyrix let out a shaky breath. I can’t turn it off.

Ryder leaned closer, inhaling again despite himself. His eyes glowed faintly silver.

Whatever you are, he said, voice rough. You’re dangerous.

Eyrix swallowed. So are you.

Ryder let out a harsh laugh. You have no idea.

Eyrix felt it then.

Ryder’s wolf.

It wasn’t just dominant. It wasn’t just powerful. It was vast.

A shadow behind Ryder’s eyes, something ancient and cold, a predator that didn’t just conquer—it devoured. Eyrix’s wolf shrank from it, pressing deep into his chest in pure instinctive fear.

You don’t want to claim me, Eyrix whispered. You just want to consume me.

Ryder froze. What did you say?

Eyrix met his gaze. Your wolf doesn’t want an Omega. It wants prey.

Something flickered in Ryder’s expression then anger.

Careful, Ryder warned. You don’t know what you’re talking about.

I do, Eyrix said softly. I can feel it.

Ryder released the chain abruptly and stepped back, breathing hard. This wasn’t supposed to happen, he muttered.

Eyrix’s heart thudded. What wasn’t?

You were supposed to be just another Omega I could keep, Ryder said. Break. Use.

And now?

And now my wolf thinks you’re something else.

What? Eyrix demanded.

Ryder looked at him with something dangerously close to awe.

“Food.”

Silence stretched between them, thick and suffocating.

You’re going to kill me, Eyrix whispered.

Ryder didn’t answer right away.

Finally, he said, I don’t know.

That scared Eyrix more than any threat.

Ryder turned sharply and walked toward the door, stopping just before he left.

Rest, he said. Heal. Try not to make the entire compound go feral with that scent of yours.

And if I can’t? Eyrix asked.

Ryder glanced back, eyes burning. Then I’ll have to decide whether to cage you… or eat you.

The door slammed shut.

Eyrix sagged against the chains, heart racing, fear creeping his body. Eat me?