Chapter 8

_Aria's POV_

The next day my mother told me to go to the market to get vegetables.

I wrapped my coat tight and pulled my scarf up to my chin. It was cold. Snow still lay in patches on the ground. I wanted to stay inside. I wanted to hide. But my mother’s voice had the tired edge it always had. “Go now, Aria. We need fresh greens for tonight.” I nodded and forced a small smile. I did not tell her about last night. I did not tell her about Lucien or the wolf or the way my heart had felt like a drum.

I decided to take a longer route. I did not want to pass by Ryan’s house. I did not want to see him. I wanted distance. The longer path took me through a quieter part of town. Shops closed early here. There were alleys and old brick walls. People warned us not to walk here at night. Today it was only late morning but the place still felt empty.

My feet moved faster. My bag hung heavy on my shoulder. I kept my eyes on the ground. I kept my breath steady.

A man came toward me from the other side of the street. He looked odd. His coat was too thin for the cold. He had a hard line around his mouth. I crossed to the other side to avoid him. He crossed too. My chest tightened. I slowed my pace and walked as if I belonged here. I would not show fear. I would not let my body tell the world I was small.

He quickened. He fell into step beside me. I picked up my pace. So did he. I told myself not to look back. I told myself it was nothing.

Then his hand closed on my wrist.

It was quick. It was rough.

“Give me your money,” he snarled. “Now.”

I jerked. “Let go of me,” I said, louder than I meant to. My voice shook. "I don't have cash on me."

“You don’t have cash,” he said. “Stop lying.”

He dug something into his jacket. It was a knife. I saw the cold flash of metal. He pointed it at my throat.

My legs went weak. I stood there like a fool. I told myself to breathe. I told myself to stay calm. If I gave him money he would leave. That was how it worked in movies. That was how it had to work in real life.

“Okay,” I said. “Take my bag. Take it. Just...please don’t....”

He shoved me. The snow under my boots slipped. My bag fell and opened. Groceries spilled. I fumbled for my purse with trembling fingers.

“Hurry up,” he said. “Move.”

I reached in. My fingers felt slow. I could hear my heart. I swallowed hard and moved to the coins. The man leaned in.

Then everything exploded.

A black blur hit the man from behind. He screamed. I stumbled back. Two shapes tore at him. One was black as a storm. The other was brown like autumn earth. They threw him to the ground. Snow flew in a spray around them.

I stood frozen as the wolves worked. They were quick and terrible. The smaller man tried to scramble away. He swung a fist. The wolves were faster. They bit the knife from his hand. Fur flew. The man screamed and cursed and bled. The road darkened where his blood spilled. It spread like ink across the white snow.

My mouth went dry. My hands went numb.

Then, the black wolf folded in on itself. Fur slid back. Bones moved. The animal became a man. Lucien stood in coat and boots and hair full of snow. His eyes were fierce and wild. He looked at me for a heartbeat and I could not move. He was real. He had been the wolf.

“Aria,” he said, his voice low and urgent. “Are you all right?”

I could not answer. My throat was full of something that would not clear.

He stepped close and drew me in. He wrapped me with his arms and held me like I might break. I felt him breathe and the heat of him thawed something in my frozen chest.

“I am fine,” I whispered. I was not fine. My legs still shook.

Lucien’s jaw softened when he saw me like that. He gave a small and rough laugh. “You look like you have seen ghosts.” He brushed snow from my hair with a finger. His touch was warm and private. I felt the color rise in my face.

The brown wolf shifted then. Jack stood there where the animal had been. He was all angles and quiet strength. He looked at the injured man with no pity.

Lucien turned his head toward Jack. “Take care of him,” he said. “Make sure he does not get up. We will sort him later.”

Jack did not speak. He grabbed the man by the collar and dragged him toward the bushes at the edge of the road. His hands were hard and efficient. He shoved the man behind the dark leaves and listened to his breathing. I did not know what he would do. I felt a sick twist in my stomach at the thought of what might happen to that man.

“Don’t...please,” I said in a small voice. “Don’t hurt him. He....he could be scared. He might be dumb. He might be hungry. He does not need....”

Lucien’s smile was gentle and dangerous. He stepped closer and took my hand. His fingers were warm and strong. “Sweetheart,” he said, in that soft tone that made my knees go weak, “you do not need to worry. Jack will teach him a lesson. He will learn to think twice. He will not be left to die.”

I swallowed. My voice trembled. “Please tell him to be gentle. I don’t want blood. I don’t want....”

“You do not understand,” Lucien said, but his voice had a teasing lilt. “You worry too much for someone so young.” He traced my jawline with his thumb like a joke and then looked into my eyes. “You must know by now I will stand between you and harm. I will always be there.”

My heart pushed. I felt foolish and warm and afraid all at once. “Why are you always there?” I whispered.

Lucien’s eyes slid to the man in the bushes for a moment. Then he turned back to me. There was a half smile on his face. “Because I like to keep what I care about safe.” He said it without too much pause. Then he added in a softer voice, “Because I’d rather be the one to punch fools than watch you get hurt.”

Jack came back then. He wiped his hands on his jacket and gave the man a hard look. “He sent me,” the man whined from the bushes. His voice was thin. “Ryan sent me. He paid me to scare her. He said he wanted her shaken. He said....”

I felt the world tilt.

“Ryan?” I echoed. My body felt hollow. Ryan had been on the doorstep yesterday, begging for me to listen. Ryan had the face I had loved. Ryan had the hands that had held my hair. Ryan had been in that bed with Elena.

Ryan had sent this man.

The man tried to crawl away. Jack’s boot pressed on his shoulder. “Say it right. Who sent you?” Jack demanded.

“Ryan!” the man spat. “He paid me. He said he would give me money. He said....please, man....don’t kill me.”

Lucien stepped forward and ripped the man’s jacket. He watched the face pale and twitch. Then he looked at me.

“I followed you from your house,” he said. “I thought something would happen. I’m sorry. I did not want to frighten you. But I knew you would come this way.”

“You followed me?” I said. My words came out small.

“Yes, I did. I worry for you. I told you before I would watch you.”

My anger rose quick and hot. “Why would Ryan do this?” I asked him. “Why would he send someone to hurt me?”

Lucien’s face hardened. He did not answer right away. He pulled his coat tighter. “Because he is afraid,” he said finally. “Afraid of losing you. Afraid of what you are meant for. He wants to push you away from me by making you hate me. He wanted you to think I’m dangerous.”

I looked at him. My mouth felt dry. “I don’t believe it,” I said. “It sounds like a lie.”