CHAPTER 2

Elara's POV

"We need to go to the town meeting," my grandmother said, grabbing her coat.

I stared at her like she'd lost her mind.

"What? No. We need to leave. Pack our things and get out of Black Hollow. Now."

She shook her head, already heading for the door.

"Running won't help. If we run, they'll think we're guilty. We need to show our faces. Let the town see we have nothing to hide."

"Grandma, someone just threatened to kill me!" I pointed at the bloody message still dripping on our floor.

"That dead rabbit—"

"I know what I saw." Her voice was firm. "But the whole town is gathering for an emergency meeting. Three more bodies were found this morning. If we don't show up, people will talk. They'll say we're hiding something."

I wanted to argue. Wanted to scream that I didn't care what people thought. But my grandmother was already out the door, walking toward her old truck.

I had no choice but to follow.

The town hall was packed when we arrived. Every seat was taken. People stood along the walls and crowded in the doorways. The air was thick with fear and anger.

I'd never seen so many people in one place in Black Hollow. Usually, folks kept to themselves. Minded their own business. But tonight, everyone had come.

My grandmother found us a spot near the back. I kept my head down, trying not to draw attention. But I could feel people staring. Whispering.

"That's Mora's granddaughter."

"The one who lives out by the forest."

"I heard they found a body in her yard this morning."

My cheeks burned. I wanted to disappear.

The sheriff stood at the front of the room. He was a big man with gray hair and tired eyes. He raised his hands for silence.

"Alright, everyone settle down," he said. His voice was rough.

"I know you're all scared. I know you want answers. But we need to stay calm."

"Calm?" A woman stood up, her voice shaking.

"My neighbor is dead! Torn apart like an animal got to her! How are we supposed to stay calm?"

Murmurs of agreement rippled through the crowd.

"We've had four deaths in the past week," someone else shouted.

"Four! This isn't normal!"

The sheriff held up his hands again.

"I know. We're doing everything we can to—"

"You keep saying it's animal attacks!" an old man interrupted.

"But we all know what's really happening. We all know about the wolves."

The room went silent.

I looked around, confused. What did he mean

"we all know"? Know what?

The sheriff's jaw tightened.

"Now, Marcus, let's not start spreading—"

"Don't lie to us, Sheriff!" Marcus stood, pointing an accusing finger.

"You're one of them! We all know it! Your family has been wolves for generations!"

My mouth fell open. Wolves? The sheriff was a wolf?

I looked at my grandmother but she didn't seem surprised. She just sat there, her face tight and worried.

"Yes," the sheriff said quietly.

"I'm a wolf. So are about a dozen families in this town. We've lived here peacefully for over a hundred years. We've never hurt anyone."

"Then explain the bodies!" the woman shrieked.

Before the sheriff could answer, the doors at the back of the hall opened.

Everyone turned.

Kael walked in with four other people. They moved together like a unit, like soldiers. Everyone in the room seemed to shrink back as they passed.

I felt that pull again. That electric feeling that made my skin tingle and my heart race. Kael's silver eyes swept over the crowd and landed on me.

Time seemed to stop. We stared at each other across the crowded room. I couldn't breathe. Couldn't look away.

A beautiful woman with long dark hair walked beside Kael. She noticed him looking at me. Her eyes narrowed and her lips pressed into a thin line. When she looked at me, I saw pure hatred.

"Who are you?" the sheriff demanded, stepping toward Kael.

Kael finally looked away from me.

"My name is Kael Draven. I'm the Alpha of the Northern Pack. We're here hunting rogue ferals."

"Ferals?" someone asked.

"Wolves who've lost their minds," Kael explained. His voice was cold and commanding. Everyone listened when he spoke.

"They can't control their shifts. Can't think like humans anymore. They're pure instinct and hunger. Dangerous to everyone, including other wolves."

"And you think these ferals are killing our people?" the sheriff asked.

"I know they are. We've been tracking them for weeks. The trail led us here."

"Convenient," a woman beside the sheriff said. She was young, maybe in her thirties, with sharp eyes.

"Bodies only started piling up after strangers came to town."

"Bodies have been appearing in Black Hollow for years," Kael said calmly.

"Every full moon, someone dies. You know this. You've all just been pretending it wasn't happening."

Uncomfortable silence filled the room. Because he was right. I'd lived here my whole life and bodies always appeared after full moons. We just didn't talk about it.

"The ferals have been here longer than us," Kael continued.

"We came to stop them."

"Why should we trust you?" Marcus, the old man, stood again.

"How do we know you're not the ones doing the killing?"

The dark-haired woman next to Kael stepped forward. She was beautiful in a dangerous way.

"Kael Draven is one of the most powerful Alphas in the region. He doesn't need to sneak around killing humans. If he wanted you dead, you'd already be dead."

Her words sent chills down my spine.

"This is Vera," Kael said, gesturing to the woman.

"My Beta."

Vera's eyes found mine again. That look of hatred was even stronger now. Why did she hate me? She didn't even know me.

"The question is," the sheriff said slowly, "why are ferals suddenly targeting Black Hollow?"

"They're not," Kael said. His eyes moved back to me.

"They're targeting someone specific. Someone in this town has a scent that drives them mad. Makes them hunt."

My blood ran cold.

"Who?" someone demanded.

Kael didn't answer. But he was still looking at me. Everyone in the room followed his gaze.

Hundreds of eyes turned to stare at me.

"Her," someone whispered.

"It's her."

"I knew it," the woman who'd lost her neighbor said, pointing at me.

"Strange things have been happening around the Ashwood property for years!"

"Her mother brought the curse here," another voice added.

"And now the daughter's doing the same!"

My grandmother stood.

"That's enough! My granddaughter hasn't done anything wrong!"

"Then why are bodies showing up in your yard?" Marcus challenged.

"Yeah, why do the ferals keep going near your property?" someone else shouted.

The room erupted in angry voices. People were yelling, accusing, demanding we leave town.

I sat frozen, unable to move or speak. This couldn't be happening.

"Silence!" Kael's voice cut through the chaos like a whip.

Everyone stopped talking immediately.

Kael walked toward me. The crowd parted to let him through. He stopped right in front of where I sat, looking down at me with those silver eyes.

"Elara Ashwood is under my protection," he announced. His voice carried to every corner of the room.

"Anyone who threatens her threatens my pack. Anyone who harms her will answer to me."

Shocked silence.

"Why?" the sheriff asked quietly.

"What is she to you?"

Kael didn't answer.

Vera's face twisted with anger.

"Kael, you can't be serious. She's nothing. Just some human girl—"

"She's under my protection," Kael repeated, his voice hard as steel.

"That's all you need to know."

I stared up at him, confused and terrified. Why was he protecting me? What did he want?

The meeting descended into arguments. Some people said Kael had no authority here. Others wanted to know more about the ferals. The sheriff tried to restore order but no one was listening anymore.

I just wanted to leave. Wanted to go home and hide under my blankets and pretend none of this was real.

Then someone burst through the doors.

A young man, barely twenty, his face white with terror.

"Another body!" he screamed.

"In the town square! Right now!"

The room exploded into chaos. People rushed for the doors. My grandmother grabbed my hand and pulled me along with the crowd.

We rushed out into the cold night. The town square was just across the street. I could see a crowd already gathering around something on the ground.

As we got closer, I heard someone crying. Sobbing. Screaming.

The sheriff pushed through the crowd and then stopped. His face went gray.

"No," he whispered.

"No, no, no."

I squeezed through the people to see what everyone was staring at.

A boy lay on the ground. Maybe sixteen years old. His throat had been torn out just like the others. Blood pooled around his body.

"That's the sheriff's son," someone whispered.

The sheriff fell to his knees beside the body, his hands shaking.

"Tyler. Oh god, Tyler."

My stomach turned. This had happened while we were all in the meeting. While we were all just across the street.

Whatever was doing this was bold. Fearless.

I started to turn away, unable to look anymore. But then I saw something.

The dead boy's hand was closed around something.

Without thinking, I moved closer. I knelt beside the body, ignoring the sheriff's grief.

"What are you doing?" someone asked.

I carefully opened the boy's stiff fingers.

A photograph fell out.

My blood turned to ice.

It was a picture of me. Recent. Taken without my knowledge. I was walking to work, completely unaware someone was photographing me.

I turned the photo over with shaking hands.

Written on the back in blood were words that made my heart stop:

"She's next. Then the whole town burns."

I looked up and met Kael's eyes across the crowd. His face was grim and dark.

"We need to talk," he said quietly. "Right now.”