Chapter 3

Morning light came through the tall windows in thin gray strips. Sienna woke before the alarm she had not set. For a moment she stayed still, listening. The house was quiet. No city traffic. No hospital monitors. Only the distant creak of wood and the low rush of wind in the trees.

The bond sat under her ribs the same way it had the night before. Steady. Uninvited.

She rose, washed, and dressed in the clothes someone had left folded on the chair. Simple black pants. A soft gray sweater. Everything fit. She did not ask how.

A soft knock sounded at the door.

“Come in.”

Mara entered with a tray and set it on the low table near the window. Coffee. Toast. Fruit. No smile. No small talk.

“Breakfast,” Mara said. “The Alpha will meet you in the study at nine. Formal introduction to the inner circle is at seven this evening. Wear the dress hanging in the closet. It’s been approved.”

Sienna nodded. “Thank you.”

Mara left without another word. The door closed with the same quiet finality as the night before.

Sienna ate because her body needed it. The coffee was strong. The toast was plain. She finished half of both and left the rest. Then she walked the length of the east wing, testing the doors. Most opened into empty rooms. One led to a small library with shelves that stopped halfway up the walls. Another opened onto a narrow balcony that overlooked the rear grounds. The forest pressed close. Dark pines. Wet earth. No fence she could see.

She stayed outside only long enough to feel the cold air on her face. Then she went back in and found the study at nine.

Darian stood behind a wide desk. He wore a dark shirt with the sleeves rolled once. Papers were stacked in neat piles. He looked up when she entered but did not invite her to sit.

“Your sister is home,” he said. “The lawyer confirmed the paperwork this morning. The company shares transfer next week. You’ll sign those as well.”

Sienna kept her hands at her sides. “All right.”

He studied her for a moment. The bond stirred, a low pull that made the space between them feel smaller than the room allowed.

“You’ll have limited access to the main floors during the day,” he continued. “The kitchens are open if you need anything. The training grounds and the lower perimeter are off-limits without an escort. Elias will handle any requests. Do not approach the patrols on your own.”

“Understood.”

He nodded once. “That’s all for now.”

She turned to leave. His voice stopped her at the door.

“Sienna.”

She looked back.

“The bond doesn’t change the terms,” he said. “One year. Then you’re free to go. Don’t make this harder than it needs to be.”

She held his gaze. “I wasn’t planning to.”

She left before the silence could stretch.

The rest of the morning passed in quiet exploration. She found a side corridor that led to a glassed-in walkway overlooking a small courtyard. Rain had started again, soft and steady. She stood there longer than she meant to, watching the water collect on the stone. The bond remained a constant low pressure. Not painful. Just present. Like a second pulse she had not asked for.

At midday a young woman brought a simple meal to her rooms. No conversation. Sienna ate alone and then tried to read one of the books from the small library. The words refused to settle. She set the book down and paced instead. Short steps. Turning at the same points. The same pattern Darian had sensed the night before, though she did not know that.

By late afternoon the rain had slowed. Mara returned with the dress. Deep green. Simple lines. No excess. Sienna put it on without comment. It fit as precisely as the morning clothes had.

At six-thirty Mara escorted her downstairs.

The formal room was already occupied. Six people stood near the long windows. All of them turned when Sienna entered. Their attention was not hostile. It was assessing. Measured. The kind of look that catalogued strengths and weaknesses in the same breath.

Darian stood slightly apart. He wore a black jacket now. The bond tightened the moment their eyes met. He did not look away.

Elias was the first to step forward. “Sienna Vale. Welcome to Blackwood.”

The introductions were brief. Names. Positions. A Beta. Two senior enforcers. The pack’s financial officer. A woman who handled external relations. No one offered a hand. No one smiled more than was required.

Darian spoke last. “She is under the protection of the contract and of this pack for the next year. Treat her accordingly.”

A few nods. One of the enforcers glanced between them, then looked away. The bond carried a faint ripple of curiosity that was not Sienna’s own. She kept her face still.

The gathering lasted less than twenty minutes. Drinks were offered and mostly refused. Conversation stayed surface-level and careful. When Darian dismissed them, the room emptied quickly. Only Elias remained for a moment longer.

“The outer markers are quiet,” he told Darian. “No movement from the rival lines.”

Darian gave a short nod. Elias left.

Sienna and Darian stood alone in the formal room. The windows showed the darkening forest. Rain still traced thin lines down the glass.

“You handled that well,” he said.

“I didn’t do anything.”

“You didn’t flinch. That’s enough for now.”

She turned toward the door. “Is that all?”

He was quiet for a beat. Then: “There’s a path behind the east wing. It stays inside the inner perimeter. You can walk it if you need air. Don’t go past the stone markers.”

She nodded once and left.

The path was easy to find. Stone underfoot. Trees close on both sides. The air smelled of wet pine and cold earth. Sienna walked until the lights of the house were only a distant glow through the branches. The bond remained, quieter here but still present. She stopped at the first stone marker and rested her hand against the rough surface.

Behind her, a branch snapped.

She turned. The path was empty. The trees were still. Only the soft drip of water from the leaves.

Then a low shape moved between the trunks. Not close. Just visible enough to register as something that did not belong to the ordinary dark.

Sienna’s breath caught. She took one step back toward the house.

The shape did not follow. It simply watched for a moment longer, then melted deeper into the trees.

She did not run. She walked. Steady. Controlled. The way she had walked into the conference room the day before. When she reached the east wing door, she closed it firmly behind her and stood in the hallway until her pulse slowed.

Upstairs, she locked her own door and sat on the edge of the bed. The green dress still fit perfectly. The bond still sat under her ribs. Outside, the forest held its secrets.

She did not know if the shape had been pack or something else.

She only knew that the year had just become longer.