Chapter 5

The next morning, Kade showed up at my cabin just as the sun was breaking through the clouds. His expression was unreadable, half serious, half something softer I wasn’t used to seeing.

“We’re going into the forest,” he said. “I’m going to teach you how to move through pack territory without drawing attention.”

I blinked. “Why?”

“Because you need to understand their world if you want to survive in it. If you want to be part of this.”

We moved in silence at first, the trees closing around us like they were alive, watching our every step. Kade pointed out scents, sounds, signs hidden in the underbrush, things I never noticed before.

“Pack members hunt silently,” he explained. “No shifting, no growling. Just respect for the balance.”

Then he stopped and turned to me. “Try to follow my lead.”

I nodded, trying to mimic his careful, deliberate steps. But then, before I knew it, his hand was on my arm, pinning me gently against a tree.

My breath hitched, heart hammering against my ribs.

His face was inches from mine, eyes dark and intense.

“Good,” he murmured, voice low. “You’re learning.”

That moment burned into my skin, a quiet promise wrapped in the wild.

The forest felt alive in a way I’d never experienced before. Every rustle of leaves, every distant birdcall seemed like a message I wasn’t quite ready to understand. Kade’s lessons were more than just survival skills, they were a bridge into a world I’d only glimpsed in dreams and shadows.

As we walked deeper into the woods, he told me stories about the pack, its history, its rules, the battles fought and blood spilled to keep the balance. I listened, fascinated and terrified all at once.

“You’re not just some human,” Kade said quietly. “There’s something in your blood. Something old.”

I stopped, heart skipping. “What do you mean?”

He looked away, jaw tight. “Your grandmother. She was part of this world too. You carry her blood, and the power that comes with it.”

The weight of his words pressed down on me like the thick canopy above. Suddenly, everything made more sense, the dreams, the wolf, the pull I’d felt from the moment I set foot in Shadowpine.

I wasn’t just lost in the forest anymore. I was coming home.

Kade’s words hung in the air, heavy like the scent of pine after rain. My grandmother’s blood, how had I never known? It explained the strange dreams, the connection to the wolf, the way my skin prickled when I was near the forest.

I felt a mix of fear and something else, hope, maybe. Like a door had cracked open, and I was standing on the edge of something vast and unknown.

Kade watched me carefully, his usual coldness softened by something almost gentle. “You’re stronger than you think, Shea. But you have to believe it too.”

That night, lying in my cabin, I felt the change stir inside me. A warmth that wasn’t just from the fire, but from something deeper, something wild and ancient waking up.

I closed my eyes and let the sensations wash over me. For the first time, I didn’t feel like an outsider.

I felt like I belonged.

The nights in Shadowpine grew colder, the moon hanging heavy and full above the pines. I could feel the pull every evening, like a thread tugging at my soul, drawing me out of bed, into the wild.

Kade had told me about the “Moon Vows,” the ancient ceremony where mates promised each other loyalty under the full moon. The thought of it felt both terrifying and thrilling. Part of me wanted to run, to deny everything stirring inside, but another part craved it, like I was finally waking up.

One evening, under a sky lit with silver, Kade took my hand. His touch was firm, grounding me.

“We’ll try something,” he said softly.

We walked to the edge of the forest where the moonlight spilled over the trees. The air was electric, alive.

Then, almost without thinking, I let out a howl, raw, shaky, and full of emotion. Kade joined me, his voice deep and steady, wrapping around mine like a shield.

For the first time, I didn’t feel alone.

I felt claimed.

I felt home.

After that first howl, things changed. The pack noticed. I noticed. Eyes followed me differently, sometimes with curiosity, sometimes with suspicion.

At the café, Maggie gave me a small, knowing smile. Ronan nodded once as he passed by. Even Luna Marisol’s cold stare felt a little less sharp.

Kade stayed close, but not too close. Like he was watching a fire that might either warm him or burn him.

One night, as the moon dipped low and the forest settled into silence, I caught Kade talking quietly with his father, Alpha Titus. Their words were clipped, filled with tension I didn’t understand.

Later, Kade pulled me aside. “They’re watching you,” he said. “Not everyone trusts you yet.”

My throat went dry. “Why not?!”

“Because you’re different. Because you’re human.”

His voice was low but fierce. “But you’re mine, I won’t let them forget it.”

The rain had eased, leaving the streets shiny and full of shifting shadows. I was heading back from Maggie’s café, clutching my camera like a lifeline, when I saw him, Kade Rivera, standing under a streetlamp, his silhouette cutting sharp against the mist.

Our eyes met, and I felt a jolt that was more than just the static crackling between us. It was like recognition, like he’d been waiting for me all along.

He stepped forward, close enough that I could feel the heat radiating off him despite the chill.

“This town,” he said, voice low and serious, “isn’t built for people like us.”

I swallowed, trying to keep my heart from racing. “Then why do you keep coming back to me?”

He hesitated, then reached out, his fingers brushing mine. Sparks shot through me, and my camera in my hand short-circuited, the screen flickering to black.

Kade’s lips curved into a rare, almost shy smile. “Because I’ve been dreaming of you.”

For a moment, everything else faded, the rain, the town, the rules.

It was just us.

Something wild, something forbidden, was pulling us together.