Episode 5

Nadia 

The car rumbled with movement for what felt like forever. Then, finally, it stopped.

I heard the crunch of gravel under boots. 

And then the trunk popped open.

Greg's shadow loomed over me and when his face appeared above mine, there was no remorse or fear. Just… indifference.

He bent down, grabbed me by the arms, and dragged me out like luggage. The gravel and sticks bit into my back as I was pulled deeper into the woods.

Then, he dropped me. I landed in damp soil. It smelled like decay.

Greg stood over me for a moment. I saw the faint outline of his face in the moonlight.

“At least nobody will look for you and even if they do? We never met,” With that, he turned and walked away without hesitation, leaving me there to die.

I stared up at the sky, the edges of my vision blurring. Everything was fading to black.

I had no self-healing ability or an inner wolf to save me. Nature would take what Greg left behind.

Tears dropped from my eyes, and my lips trembled with one last whisoered desire.

“I don’t want to die…”

Just then, I heard footsteps.They were getting closer and I could feel the vibrations in the ground.

“Help…” I croaked out with effort. It came out broken. I tried again. “Please…”

There were more footsteps and then a sudden quiet. Had I been abandoned? Did they not hear me?

Just when I was already losing hope, strong arms scooped me up in a princess carry. I was pressed against a broad, warm chest, the scent of pine, smoke, and something wild and electric wrapped around me.

My vision allowed me one last look at the world but I was too weak to scream for help.

I would know those red eyes anywhere, that allure for danger. That bloodthirst.

But my vision was dimming finally giving in to the exhaustion. 

“Mate.” That was the last word I heard, then darkness.

~

Women screaming for help.

Children crying.

Blood everywhere.

 I bolted upright and cried out as my head exploded in a dizzying pain.

I was panting, realizing that it had only been a dream that the infamous Varic the terrible known for his crimson eyes would save me much less call me his mate.

“You shouldn’t move,” a low, husky voice said.

I froze. Slowly, I turned my head and let out a small cry of panic.

A man was sitting in a dark wooden chair by the fire, watching me. 

He was big and muscled like a soldier. He stood slowly and stepped toward me, and the fire’s glow finally touched his face. 

My breath caught in my throat.

It hadn’t been a dream…

No. No!

  

Ren eyes like hot metal. A scar across one brow. A reputation I knew too well. Too close to home. A history that had haunted every wolf tale whispered across the territories.

Varic, The terrible.

My pulse spiked, and I scrambled backward on the bed instinctively, ignoring the pain ripping through my skull. He noticed but remained unfazed. His eyes narrowed slightly with something I couldn't identify. 

“So, you know who I am,” he said quietly.

“Good,” he finished and turned back to his seat.

Stories flooded my mind. Stories of the Alpha who tore down enemy packs. Who refused the Council’s rule. Who vanished into the woods and came back with stronger powers without a source.

“Wh-why…” My voice trembled. “Why did you…?”

“You were dying,” he said simply, folding his arms across his chest. “I smelled your blood in the woods. You called out for help.”

My mouth thinned as the bits of memory flickered through me.

I swallowed hard. 

Something sharp passed through his gaze. A ghost of emotion too fast to catch.

“I was supposed to kill you,” he said bluntly, stepping closer to the fire, and away from me. “You crossed into my land. That alone is reason enough. But worse…” He tilted his head, watching me. “I smelled Greg on you. You’re his wife.”

My heart sank. He knew Greg?

I was supposed to be on my knees, face on the floor in fear but something about him…

“So why didn’t you?” I asked, stunning myself with courage I have never had.

He was silent for a moment, then looked away toward the window.

“Because you’re just like me” His eyes found mine again. “Your pain needs no curtains.”

Something inside me twisted. I looked down at my hands, weak and useless. 

“I don’t want your pity,” I snapped, the remnants of the fear curdling into something bitter. “I don’t want your help. I’ll go back.”

“To what?” Varic’s voice cut in, low and harsh now. “To the man who tried to bury you in the dirt?”

I flinched.

“You’re dangerous. Everyone knows what you are. I’d rather take my chances with the monsters I know than stay here with one I don’t.” 

He hardly exhaled or inhaled. Hardly made foot sounds, but when he moved with lightning speed towards me, his figure towering over me in an instant, I didn’t flinch.“You think I’m your biggest threat?” 

A dark chuckle escaped his lips while My spine stiffened.

“I don’t care,” I said, stubborn and scared. “There’s nothing anybody else can do to me. I just want to go home.”

He gave me a long, grim look. “Home to meadow pack?” He asked and my brows furrowed.

How did he know my pack name? 

A stiffness overcame his face as he looked at me with pity “you didn’t know,” he asked with a shocking concern.

I blinked. “What are you talking about?”

His voice dropped as he explained. “Meadow pack. Five years ago… someone wiped them off the face of this earth.”

My breathing halted. “What?”

“They're gone,” he said flatly. “Your parents. Your bloodline. All of them. Greg killed them.”

What?

“You're fucking kidding.”

*I'm certainly not.” He looked at his fingers.