CHAPTER 11 - A Warning in the Dark

Something is wrong.

The thought hits me before sound or movement. Before instinct even has a name for it. My skin tightens. My pulse sharpens. The hum inside me shifts from steady to alert.

“This isn’t over,” I whisper.

Lucian’s eyes flick to mine. “You feel it too.”

I nod once. I don’t ask what *it* is. I already know.

“They’re close,” I say. “Watching.”

Lucian’s jaw tightens. “Then we move.”

I take one step

And everything explodes into motion.

Hands grab me. Rough. Fast. Silent.

I twist without thinking. My body reacts before my mind catches up. Heat surges through my veins. Gold light flashes.

A body hits the floor.

I freeze.

“What did I just do?” I whisper.

Lucian doesn’t answer. He’s already moving.

Another figure lunges. Masked. Large. Familiar in the way danger always is.

I don’t scream.

I strike.

My fist connects. The impact shocks me. Not pain. Power.

The wolf stumbles back, stunned.

“I didn’t know I could do that,” I breathe.

Lucian shouts, “Don’t think. Feel.”

I do.

Everything sharpens.

Time slows.

A blade flashes toward my side. I turn, catching the wrist. Bones crack beneath my grip.

The masked wolf cries out.

I release them and step back, shaking.

“That strength,” I whisper. “It’s not borrowed.”

Lucian’s voice cuts through the chaos. “It’s yours.”

Another attacker rushes in from behind.

I pivot. My palm slams into their chest.

Gold light erupts.

They crash backward, unmoving.

My heart pounds hard.

“They’re wolves,” I say. “They’re trained.”

“They underestimated you,” Lucian replies.

A third attacker hesitates. Fear flickers in their stance.

Good.

I grab their collar and yank the mask away.

My breath stops.

The crest on their neck is burned into my memory.

Damon’s family sigil.

My voice cracks. “Why are you wearing that?”

The wolf freezes.

Lucian steps closer, deadly calm. “Answer her.”

“They told us she was unstable,” the wolf stammers. “That she’d lost control.”

Rage flares.

“They sent you to restrain me?” I ask. “Or to kill me?”

Silence.

Lucian’s eyes darken. “That silence answers enough.”

The wolf lunges.

Lucian moves faster.

There is a sharp sound. Final. Clean.

The body falls.

I stare at Lucian, my chest tight.

“You killed him,” I whisper.

“He chose,” Lucian replies evenly. “Just like they did.”

My hands shake. Not from fear. From clarity.

“They sent them,” I say. “Damon’s family.”

Lucian doesn’t deny it.

“You don’t look surprised,” I say.

“I hoped I was wrong,” he says. “I wasn’t.”

I swallow hard.

Damon’s voice echoes in my memory. *I’ll protect you.*

“You said he loved me,” I whisper. “Was that a lie too?”

Lucian meets my gaze. “Love doesn’t always stop betrayal.”

Pain cuts deep. Quiet. Sharp.

Another sound breaks through.

More footsteps.

Lucian’s posture stiffens. “We don’t have time.”

“Time for what?” I ask.

“For denial,” he says. “For waiting.”

I shake my head. “I won’t run again.”

“I’m not asking you to run,” he says. “I’m asking you to survive.”

“By leaving?” I challenge myself.

“By choosing,” Lucian counters. “Right now.”

I laugh once, bitter. “You sound like him.”

Lucian’s expression flickers. “No. I sound like your mother.”

That stops me cold.

“She knew this would happen,” he continues. “She planned for it.”

I look down at my glowing hands.

“She knew they’d come for me,” I whisper.

“Yes.”

“And Damon?” I ask softly.

Lucian hesitates.

“He’s standing in the middle,” he says. “And the middle collapses first.”

The words settle heavy.

Another shadow moves.

Lucian steps in front of me. “Decision time.”

I clench my fists. “If I go with you”

“They’ll call you traitor,” he finishes. “They’ll hunt you.”

“And if I stay?”

“They’ll cage you,” he says. “Or break you.”

Anger burns.

“I don’t break,” I say.

Lucian’s gaze holds mine. “Then prove it.”

A voice cuts through the tension.

“Aria.”

Damon.

My chest tightens. Love and fury twist together.

He steps closer, hands raised. “I was trying to stop them.”

Lucian laughs softly. “Too late.”

Damon’s eyes flick to the fallen wolves. “This wasn’t supposed to happen.”

I stare at him.

“You didn’t stop them,” I say. “You sent them.”

“No,” he insists. “I delayed them.”

My voice shakes. “That’s not protection.”

His eyes glisten. “I was buying time.”

“For what?” I ask. “To decide how to cage me?”

Lucian steps beside me. “She’s done choosing half-truths.”

Damon’s jaw tightens. “You don’t get to take her.”

Lucian’s smile is cold. “You already lost her.”

I look at Damon one last time.

“You should have trusted me,” I said quietly.

Pain flashes across his face.

Lucian leans in, voice low and firm. “Come with me. Now.”

My heart races.

Behind me is betrayal.

Ahead is war.

I take Lucian’s hand.

The ground hums beneath my feet.

Damon’s voice cracks. “Ariaplease.”

I don’t look back.

“What happens next?” I ask Lucian.

His grip tightens.

“Everything,” he says.

And the night answers with a warning growl.