CHAPTER FIVE– INTO THE WOODS

The figures vanished into the night.

One second, Liam and Kane, stood facing each other, their bodies stiff like they were ready to fight. The tension was so strong it felt like the air itself was pressing down. The next moment, their shapes slipped into the darkness, disappearing too quickly to be natural. Alice’s breath caught in her throat.

Every hunter instinct she had screamed that something wasn’t right.

Her heart pounded, but her legs were already moving before her mind told her to stop. She followed their trail into the shadows, the ground soft enough to dull her footsteps. This was exactly what she’d been trained for, moving quietly, tracking signs no one else would notice, chasing in the dark. If not for that training, she might have stayed frozen on the sidewalk, pretending nothing had happened. But she couldn’t ignore it. Her gut told her it mattered.

The trail wasn’t obvious. Just a strange ripple in the air, a faint heat in the breeze. She followed it into the woods behind town, far away from the streetlights and the safety of the road. Branches scratched at her arms, dry leaves threatened to crack under her shoes, but she pushed forward, careful as she could.

Then she heard voices.

Harsh. Low. Not fully human in the way they carried through the night.

She dropped low behind a thick oak tree, her heart thudding so loud she was sure they’d hear it. Slowly, she leaned just enough to see around the trunk.

There they were.

Liam stood in the clearing, the moon spilling over him, turning his features sharp and almost unreal. His jaw was tight, his body tense like he was holding himself back. Across from him was Kane. Slightly taller, darker, with an air that made the shadows seem to bend toward him. His smirk screamed arrogance, the dangerous kind.

“You shouldn’t be here,” Liam said, his voice low but firm. “This isn’t your place.”

Kane laughed, rough and mocking. “Place? Since when do you think you own this town, Hart? Don’t forget, you’re not the only one keeping an eye on her.”

Alice’s stomach dropped. Her?

She pressed closer to the conversation. They were talking about her.

Liam’s fists clenched as he stepped forward. “Stay away from Alice.”

Her pulse raced as he said her name.

Kane’s smile widened, sharp and taunting. “Why? Afraid she’ll see through your shiny little act? Or maybe you already know she deserves better than your lies.”

Liam’s jaw twitched. His control was slipping, Alice could tell, even from where she hid.

“You don’t know what you’re saying,” Liam said, voice tight with anger.

“Oh, but I do.” Kane’s eyes glowed faintly in the moonlight, a flash that wasn’t natural. “And she deserves a choice, don’t you think? You don’t get to decide for her.”

Alice’s chest tightened. A choice? About what?

The air between them thickened, buzzing with something more animal than human. And then it happened.

Liam struck first.

The change was so fast Alice almost couldn’t process it. His body rippled, his bones shifting, his muscles tightening. His eyes lit gold, his hands twisting into claws as he dropped lower into an animal-like stance. A growl rumbled from his chest, so raw it froze Alice’s blood.

Kane shifted just as quickly. His transformation was darker, harsher, his eyes burning crimson. His smile never faded as his teeth grew long and sharp under the silver moon.

Alice’s heart slammed against her ribs. Werewolves.

She had been trained her whole life to hunt them, to see the signs, to be ready. But nothing had prepared her for this, the boy who kissed her yesterday turning into the monster her family swore to destroy.

Immediately they burst into a huge fight.

Claws ripped at claws, teeth snapped, growls shook the ground. They moved so fast her eyes could barely follow. Liam attacked first, knocking Kane into a tree so hard the bark split. Kane hit back instantly, his claws slicing across Liam’s side.

Alice’s breath became unstable at the sight of blood.

But Liam kept going. With a furious snarl, he twisted and slammed Kane into the dirt. Kane rolled out, barely missing Liam’s snapping jaws, and kicked him back hard enough to send him stumbling.

Alice clung to the oak tree, her nails digging into the bark to keep steady. This wasn’t training nor was this practice. It was a fight to live or to die.

The sounds of slashing claws and vicious blows filled the woods. Her instincts screamed at her to run, but she couldn’t move. Her eyes were locked on the scene.

Kane’s laughter cut through the fight, sharp and cruel. “You’re weak, Liam. Always have been.”

“Better weak than a coward hiding in the dark,” Liam growled back. His voice was half human, half beast.

They collided again, rolling across the clearing, their jaws snapping close to each other’s throats like they were about to take a bite from each other. Then, with a sudden surge, Liam slammed Kane against a tree opposite Alice’s hiding spot. The ground shook as her breath ceased. For a split second, Kane’s glowing eyes seemed to lock on hers.

Her body went cold.

But before he could move toward her, Liam attacked again. Kane pushed him back, then, in an instant Kane disappeared into the night.

The shadows swallowed him, leaving behind only the sound of Liam’s heavy breathing and the heavy scent of blood.

Immediately, there was silence.

Alice pressed against the tree, her breaths shallow and fast. Her head told her to run, to pretend she hadn’t seen anything but her legs wouldn’t move. She was frozen because that was the first time she had seen a real werewolf, talk more of a face off between two.

Then Liam turned.

His golden eyes found her in the dark.

For a long second, neither of them moved. His chest rose and fell hard, his shirt torn, blood dripping down his skin, his face still partly shifted with sharp fangs glinting in the moonlight. He looked wild and scary. Not the boy who kissed her and definitely not the boy she had begun to trust.

But there was something in his gaze, something human, that kept her from running.

“Alice,” he whispered, his voice raw.

Her lips parted, but nothing came out.

Liam stepped forward, then stopped. Slowly, his claws shrank back, his breathing steadied, and the gold in his eyes faded to gray. He looked at her like she was both his hope and his downfall.

“You weren’t supposed to see this.”

Alice’s voice finally broke free, though it trembled. “Wha.. What… what are you?”

He clenched his jaw, started to speak, then shut his mouth again. Running his hand through his blood-stained hair, Liam looked unsure for the first time.

The silence was deafening as only the wind in the trees filled the gap.

Alice’s thoughts quickly went wild, her family, what she just saw, the kiss that now carried a whole new meaning. But more than anything, the truth.

Liam Hart wasn’t human.

And now she knew.