41. Under the Red Moon

The night feels darker, as if Marcus’s threat had snuffed out every trace of light daring to slip between the trees. Shadow is restless. His movements are tense and deliberate, like a predator stalking through hostile ground. I, on the other hand, can barely hold myself together. My thoughts spin around Marcus’s words—the looming danger now more real than ever.

“We have to leave.”

Shadow speaks without looking at me, stuffing the few things we have into a worn-out backpack we found in the cabin.

“Leave?” I say, fear and disbelief mixing in my voice. “Didn’t you say this place was safe?”

“It was. Until now.”

He zips the bag shut with force and finally turns to me. His eyes—normally warm—are as hard as steel.

“Marcus found me here. And if he could, others will too.”

“Others?”

Panic starts to claw at my chest.

“Who else is coming after us, Shadow?”

He lowers his gaze, as if the weight of the truth is too heavy to carry.

“The whole pack, Eve. They won’t stop until they bring me back. And if they can’t…”

“If they can’t what?” I push, though I dread the answer.

“They’ll eliminate you.”

His voice is barely more than a whisper, but it’s enough to make my heart stop.

“They think you’re the cause of my ‘weakness.’ Marcus isn’t the only one.”

His words land like a blow. Until now, I thought our greatest battle would be proving to the world that our love deserved to exist. But this is something else entirely. This isn’t about judgment or emotional struggle.

This is a death sentence.

“I won’t let them hurt you,” Shadow says suddenly, stepping closer. His voice softens, but his resolve does not.

“That’s why we have to keep moving. As long as they’re hunting us, we can’t stay in one place.”

“And what about you?” I ask, my voice a breath. “What happens if they catch up to you?”

“They won’t.”

His reply is swift—too swift.

I look at him, searching for a crack in his wall of confidence. But all I see is the man who has already stood against his world for me. And while that should comfort me, it only makes the fear dig deeper.

“Okay,” I whisper at last, accepting the inevitable.

“Let’s go.”

The moon hangs high when we leave the cabin. Shadow slings the backpack over his shoulder and leads me down a path barely visible through the underbrush. His steps are swift and efficient, but every few minutes he stops—to listen, to scent the air.

The forest is silent—too silent. Every twig that snaps underfoot sounds like an explosion. Every whisper of wind tightens the knot in my stomach.

“Was it always like this?” I ask after a while, trying to bridge the silence. “Life with the pack?”

Shadow doesn’t answer right away. His gaze stays on the path ahead, but I know he’s listening. At last, he sighs.

“Not always. It used to be different. There was… harmony, I guess. Everyone looked out for each other. The pack was all that mattered.”

“So what changed?”

My question is genuine—but part of me is also trying to understand the world he left behind, the one that cast him out for loving me.

“I did.”

His reply is simple, direct—and it takes my breath away.

He stops and turns to me, his face bathed in the silver light of the moon.

“When I met you, Eve, something shifted inside me. I couldn’t blindly follow the rules anymore. I couldn’t ignore what I felt—what I wanted.”

“And that made you their enemy?” I ask, sadness and anger swirling inside me at the unfairness of it all.

“It wasn’t just that.”

Shadow looks away, like the words are hard to speak.

“The pack doesn’t tolerate ‘disobedience.’ They believe that when one of us breaks the rules, we endanger everyone. And I broke the most sacred rule of all.”

“Loving a human?” I whisper.

He nods, but there’s something else in his expression—something unsaid.

“What else, Shadow?” I press, my voice steadier now.

“It’s not just that.”

He finally meets my gaze, and in his eyes is a guilt I can’t fully understand.

“When I left, I took something with me. Something they want back.”

My heart stutters. “What did you take?”

“A truth they don’t want you to know.”

Before I can respond, a sound slices through the quiet. Low. Guttural. A growl rising from the shadows of the forest. Shadow moves fast, placing himself between me and the source of the sound.

“Stay behind me,” he orders, his voice low but commanding.

“What is it?”

My heart is pounding in my ears.

“Someone who shouldn’t be here.”

The growl grows louder—and then I see it: two glowing eyes in the dark, followed by a figure emerging from between the trees. It’s a wolf, but far larger than it should be. Its black fur gleams beneath the moonlight, and its mouth hangs open, revealing rows of sharp fangs.

Shadow growls in return, a deep, threatening sound unlike anything I’ve ever heard from him. He moves like lightning, placing himself in front of the wolf as it advances.

“Go back to the pack!” Shadow shouts, his voice edged with authority.

The wolf pauses, as if considering his words. Then, without warning, it charges.

“Shadow!” I scream, my body frozen with fear.

Shadow meets the attack head-on, unwavering. His movements are fast, brutal—pure instinct. He dodges, counters, strikes. The fight is savage, relentless. I can’t fully comprehend what’s happening—but one thing is clear:

This isn’t over.