The Wolf’s Oath

The forest beyond Blackwood felt different after the attack—like it had grown teeth.

The trees were taller, darker, their branches twisting into clawed fingers that scraped at the morning sky. Every sound made my nerves spike. A crow’s cry. A snapping branch. The rush of water somewhere in the distance.

Kade walked ahead of me, silent, his strides long and sure. He didn’t glance back to see if I kept up. He didn’t need to. The bond tugged at me like an invisible chain, dragging me in his wake no matter how much I wanted to slow, to breathe, to think.

“Why are we out here?” I asked finally, breath puffing in the cold air.

His voice rolled back to me, gravel and command. “Because the walls of Blackwood won’t protect you forever. If you want to survive, you’ll learn to fight in the wild.”

A bitter laugh escaped me before I could stop it. “You mean I’ll learn to survive you.”

He stopped so suddenly that I nearly walked into him. When he turned, his golden eyes burned brighter than the sunlight piercing through the canopy.

“You think I’m the enemy?” His voice was low, dangerous, as if the answer mattered more than I knew.

My throat tightened. “Aren’t you?”

The silence between us was a snare, taut and ready to snap. His jaw clenched, a muscle ticking hard in his cheek. Then, without warning, he grabbed my wrist and pressed my palm flat against his chest.

His heartbeat thundered beneath my skin. Strong. Relentless. Alive.

“This,” he growled, “beats for you now. Even if I want to fight it. Even if you want to deny it. You are mine, Lena. That means my enemies are yours. My fight is yours. And you will not survive it if you keep pretending you’re human.”

Heat surged through me, unwelcome and overwhelming. My body wanted to lean into him, to sink into the rough heat of his skin, to believe the bond meant safety. But my mind screamed no.

I yanked my hand back. “I didn’t ask for this.”

His smile was sharp, dangerous. “Neither did I.”

Then he turned, striding deeper into the forest, leaving me trembling in the shadow of his words.

Hours later, we reached the river. It roared between jagged rocks, fast and merciless, the water dark as spilled ink.

Kade stood at the edge, scanning the opposite bank. “Ronan’s rogues cross here.” His voice carried over the water. “You’ll learn to scent them. Track them. Kill them if you must.”

My stomach twisted. Kill them. The way he said it—like it was inevitable.

“What if I can’t?” I asked, my voice barely audible over the rush of the river.

He turned his head, eyes glinting gold. “Then you’ll die.”

The words should have chilled me. Instead, they ignited something raw. A flicker of defiance. A spark of rage.

“Then teach me,” I said, lifting my chin. “Don’t just throw me into the fire. Teach me to survive it.”

For a heartbeat, his expression softened, like he hadn’t expected me to ask. Then the wolf in him returned, sharp and merciless.

“Strip.”

The word cracked like a whip.

My eyes widened. “What?”

“You’ll swim the river.” He stepped closer, the air vibrating with his presence. “Clothes will weigh you down. And if you sink—” His mouth curved in a slow, dangerous smirk. “—I’ll decide if you’re worth pulling out.”

Heat flared across my face, fury and something darker tangled together. The bond pulsed hard, dragging my pulse into a sprint.

“You’re insane,” I snapped.

“Survival is insanity.” He tilted his head, eyes burning. “Or haven’t you realized that yet?”

The river roared louder, as if daring me.

And for the first time, I wondered if maybe the Alpha wasn’t just training me. Maybe he was remaking me.

The river’s roar swallowed everything—my heartbeat, my fear, even the sound of Kade’s breathing beside me.

The water churned black and violent between the banks, a living beast with jaws wide open. Cold mist clung to my skin, prickling goosebumps along my arms. My stomach knotted.

“You’re serious,” I whispered, though I already knew the answer.

Kade’s golden eyes locked on me, merciless and unblinking. “The wild doesn’t care if you’re ready. It only cares if you survive.”

I hugged my arms around myself, the bond burning hot under my skin. He wanted me to strip, to step into that river half-bare and half-broken, with death waiting in the current. It wasn’t just about swimming. It was about surrender. About trust.

“No.” The word tore from my throat before I could stop it. “You don’t get to demand this. You don’t get to decide how far I go.”

His jaw flexed. For a moment, I thought he’d snap, unleash the Alpha in him that never asked—only took. But instead, he stepped closer, his heat searing through the mist until his chest nearly brushed mine.

“You think this is about me,” he said, his voice low, dangerous. “It isn’t. It’s about whether you’ll drown when the world comes for your blood. If you can’t even face water, Lena—how will you face teeth?”

The words sank deep, colder than the river itself. My throat closed.

I hated him for being right.

My hands trembled as I peeled off my jacket, then my boots. The ground bit at my bare feet, sharp stones pressing into my skin. I forced myself not to look at him, not to see the dark satisfaction gleaming in his eyes.

When I stood at the edge in nothing but my thin shirt and pants, the river seemed to grow louder, as if it could taste my fear.

Kade’s voice cut through the roar. “Jump.”

I clenched my fists. Closed my eyes. And stepped off the bank.

The water hit like knives.

It dragged me under instantly, icy claws ripping at my chest. My lungs seized. Panic exploded in my skull. I kicked, thrashed, clawed for the surface, but the current shoved me down, spun me end over end.

No air. No light. Just darkness and the pounding scream of my own heartbeat.

Then—hands.

Strong, burning hands.

Kade’s arm wrapped around my waist, hauling me up with brutal strength. My head broke the surface and I gasped, choking, sputtering river water from my lungs. His chest was a wall of heat against my back, his voice a growl in my ear.

“Breathe.”

I coughed, dragged in air, half-choked on it, and then we were moving. He cut through the water like a blade, dragging me with him, his grip unrelenting. Every stroke was power. Every pull was survival.

When we hit the opposite bank, he shoved me forward, forcing me to claw my way up the rocks on trembling limbs. I collapsed on the grass, hacking water, my body shaking so hard my teeth clattered.

Kade climbed out behind me, dripping river from his hair, his chest gleaming with wet heat. He crouched beside me, his shadow swallowing mine.

“You panicked.”

I looked up, still gasping, still burning, my lips trembling from cold and rage. “I almost drowned.”

His hand gripped my chin, forcing me to meet his molten gaze. “But you didn’t.” His thumb brushed the pulse hammering in my throat. “Because I was there.”

The words seared deeper than the water. They tangled with the bond, hot and unbearable, until my skin ached where he touched me.

“I don’t want to need you,” I whispered, the truth ripping free before I could stop it.

His eyes softened, just for a heartbeat, before the wolf swallowed it whole. “You already do.”

The bond surged like wildfire, dragging me toward him. My body leaned before I could stop it, drawn into his gravity. His lips hovered over mine, close enough that the heat of his breath shivered across my skin.

“Say it,” he murmured. “Say you feel it.”

I swallowed hard, fighting the pull, the hunger, the truth.

But the river had stripped me bare, and silence was its own confession.

Kade’s mouth curved in a dark, victorious smirk. He pulled back, slow, deliberate, leaving me trembling on the bank, hollow and aching.

“Lesson one,” he said, rising to his feet, his voice echoing with Alpha command. “You’re mine in the water. You’re mine in the wild. And before long—you’ll be mine everywhere.”