Chapter 5 The Thing In The Woods

Gina's POV

The growl didn't sound human.

It didn't sound like a wolf either.

It was deeper.

Wet.

Like something rotting had learned how to breathe.

Every instinct inside me screamed to run.

Gabriel slowly moved one arm in front of me, shielding me behind him while his eyes stayed fixed on the darkness between the trees.

I hated how relieved that made me feel.

"No matter what happens," he said quietly, "stay behind me."

I almost laughed.

Stay behind him?

If the curse activated, I was probably more dangerous than whatever lurked in those woods.

But before I could argue, the creature stepped forward.

Moon Goddess.

My stomach twisted violently.

It looked almost wolf-like, but wrong in every possible way. Its limbs were too long, its gray skin stretched tightly over visible bones while black veins crawled across its body like living shadows.

Its eyes glowed pale white.

Empty.

Dead.

A sharp breath escaped me.

I had seen creatures in my life before. Rogues. Wild wolves. Even cursed beasts wandering beyond pack borders.

But never this.

Gabriel's voice lowered dangerously.

"What are you?"

The creature tilted its head unnaturally.

Then smiled.

Its mouth stretched far wider than any wolf should.

"She has awakened."

The voice sounded broken, almost like several voices speaking together.

Cold spread through my chest instantly.

It was talking about me.

Gabriel took another step forward.

"Who sent you?"

The creature ignored him completely.

Its glowing eyes stayed locked on me.

"The seal weakens…"

A violent headache suddenly slammed into my skull.

I gasped sharply, stumbling backward while strange whispers exploded inside my mind.

Blood moon. Death. Wake her.

My hands flew to my head.

"What's wrong?" Gabriel asked immediately.

The creature growled louder.

"She belongs to the moon."

Then it lunged.

Everything happened too fast.

Gabriel shifted instantly.

Bones cracked violently as his massive black wolf burst forward with terrifying speed. The force alone shook the ground beneath us.

I had heard stories about Alpha Gabriel's wolf before.

None were exaggerated.

He was enormous.

Dark fur. Silver eyes. Pure brutality.

The creature collided with him brutally, snarling as they crashed through the trees.

The sounds were horrifying.

Teeth. Claws. Growls violent enough to shake the forest.

I staggered backward, breathing hard while pain still pulsed through my skull.

The whispers wouldn't stop.

Wake her. Wake her. Wake—

"Stop," I whispered desperately.

But the voices only grew louder.

Gabriel's wolf slammed the creature against a tree hard enough to crack the trunk, yet instead of dying, the thing laughed.

Actually laughed.

Black blood dripped from its mouth as it stared toward me again.

"She cannot hide forever."

Gabriel ripped his claws across its throat viciously.

The creature screamed.

Then dissolved.

Not died.

Dissolved.

Its body turned into black smoke before vanishing completely into the night air.

Silence immediately swallowed the forest again.

I stared at the empty ground in horror.

What the hell was that?

Gabriel shifted back into human form seconds later, breathing heavily. Blood covered parts of his arms and chest, but none of it seemed to belong to him.

His eyes found mine instantly.

"Are you hurt?"

I shook my head weakly.

"No."

He moved toward me quickly.

The moment his hand touched my shoulder, the whispers stopped.

Completely.

My eyes widened.

Gabriel noticed immediately.

"What happened?"

I swallowed hard.

"You touched me."

His brows pulled together slightly.

"And?"

"The voices stopped."

Confusion flashed across his face.

"What voices?"

I stepped away from him slowly, trying to calm my breathing.

"I don't know."

And that terrified me most.

Because it was true.

Nothing about tonight made sense.

The creature knew me. The whispers reacted to me. And Gabriel somehow silenced them just by touching me.

Impossible.

Gabriel watched me carefully.

"You heard something in your head."

It wasn't a question.

I hesitated before nodding slowly.

His jaw tightened.

"Did the creature cause it?"

"I think so."

The truth felt worse sitting in my chest.

Because deep down, part of me feared the voices had already existed long before tonight.

Maybe I just never heard them clearly until now.

Gabriel glanced toward the place where the creature disappeared.

"This wasn't ordinary dark magic."

"No."

He looked back at me slowly.

"It called you awakened."

Fear crawled through my stomach again.

"I heard it."

"And?"

"And I don't know what it means."

Gabriel stayed silent for several seconds.

Then he stepped closer again.

"You're shaking."

I hadn't even realized it.

My body trembled badly now that the adrenaline was fading.

Not from cold.

Fear.

Gabriel removed his coat without hesitation before placing it carefully around my shoulders.

His scent immediately surrounded me.

Warm. Dangerous. Safe.

I hated how much I wanted to lean into it.

"You shouldn't be nice to me," I whispered tiredly.

His expression softened slightly.

"Too late."

My chest tightened painfully.

No.

This was exactly why I stayed away from people.

Because kindness made you weak.

And weak people got hurt.

"You need to leave before sunrise," I muttered.

Gabriel frowned slightly.

"You think I'm leaving you alone after tonight?"

"Yes."

"Not happening."

Frustration flashed through me.

"You saw that thing."

"I did."

"And you still want to stay near me?"

His eyes darkened slightly.

"More than before."

The answer hit me harder than it should have.

I looked away quickly.

Something was seriously wrong with this Alpha.

Most people would've run after seeing a creature crawl out of the woods speaking about seals and awakenings.

Gabriel looked even more determined instead.

A distant howl suddenly echoed across the forest.

Pack warriors.

Gabriel's expression immediately sharpened.

"They're looking for me."

Of course they were.

Their Alpha disappeared into cursed woods in the middle of the night. The entire pack was probably panicking.

"You should go," I said quietly.

This time, he didn't argue immediately.

Instead, he stared at me carefully like he was memorizing my face.

"You're hiding something."

Fear flickered through me.

"I'm not."

"You looked terrified when it spoke to you."

Because part of me recognized those whispers.

That was the truth I couldn't admit out loud.

I had heard strange things before.

Sometimes in dreams. Sometimes during full moons.

Soft voices calling my name from nowhere.

But tonight was different.

Tonight they sounded awake.

"I don't know what's happening," I admitted finally.

Gabriel's gaze softened slightly.

"Then we figure it out."

We.

The word alone felt dangerous.

There could never be a we.

Not with someone like me.

Not with someone destined to die eventually.

"You should stop trying to save me," I whispered.

He stepped closer slowly until only inches separated us.

The air between us felt heavy suddenly.

Warm.

Intense.

"You still think I need saving from you," he murmured.

"You do."

His eyes searched mine carefully.

Then his voice lowered.

"I don't think you're the curse, Gina."

My breath caught.

No one had ever said that before.

Ever.

People blamed me for everything. Feared me. Hated me.

But Gabriel looked at me like he saw something else entirely.

It scared me more than the monsters in the woods.

Because hope was dangerous too.

Another distant howl echoed closer this time.

Gabriel finally stepped back reluctantly.

"I'll return tomorrow."

"You keep saying that like it's a promise."

"It is."

Before I could answer, he turned toward the forest.

But after only a few steps, he stopped.

Without facing me, he spoke quietly.

"That creature wasn't hunting randomly tonight."

Cold slid through my chest.

Because I already knew what he was going to say.

"It was looking for you."

Then he disappeared into the darkness, leaving me alone beside Elias's body and the terrifying realization settling deep into my bones.

Something had awakened tonight.

And somehow…

It was connected to me.