They left just after dawn.Evelyn sat behind the wheel, the sky still bruised with early light, the city shrinking in her rearview. Mason rode shotgun, rifle case across his lap, and Emily was in the backseat, eyes on the road signs as they passed—silent, calculating.The file on Julian was spread open on the dash. Not much to go on. A location. A date. A single line of text:> "Subject J-009 transferred to Hollow Branch—Level Four containment. Status: dormant."Evelyn gripped the wheel tighter. “Dormant doesn’t mean dead.”“Dormant “This is it,” she said. “Hollow Branch. No one’s supposed to know this exists.”They moved on foot, rifles and sidearms ready. The path twisted through pine and stone until the ground gave way to metal—an old freight elevator, overgrown with weeds. Evelyn knelt and wiped the dust off the control panel.“Still powered,” Mason muttered. “Not abandoned.”Evelyn pressed the switch. The elevator dropped with a guttural hum, dragging them into darkness.**They
The world had narrowed to blood and silence.Evelyn knelt by Emily’s body, her hands stained red, her heart hammering against cracked ribs.She couldn't process it. Couldn't fix it.The life had drained out of Emily’s eyes—and Evelyn had been too slow to stop it.The faint metallic hum of the facility’s generators still buzzed somewhere in the walls, but everything else was dead quiet.Except the breathing.Mason’s, shallow and stunned.Her own, ragged and broken.Then—Footsteps.Heavy. Purposeful. Echoing through the ruined corridor.Evelyn’s head snapped up, hand fumbling for her sidearm even as tears blurred her vision.Out of the smoke and flickering lights came a silhouette—tall, broad-shouldered, moving with the dangerous ease of someone who didn’t need to hide.Damian Voss.He stepped into view, black coat dusted with ash, his expression unreadable. His eyes, though—those predatory amber eyes—locked straight onto Evelyn."You've made a mess," Damian said calmly, voice like gra
The woods swallowed them.Branches clawed at Evelyn’s jacket as they ran, the scent of blood and rot thickening. Every shadow seemed to twitch. Every gust of wind carried a whisper of something monstrous.Mason moved silently at her side, rifle raised, eyes sharp. Damian led the way, faster than either of them, his senses stretched razor-thin.“He’s close,” Damian snarled under his breath.The world around them felt wrong—like the air itself was holding its breath.Then—A low growl vibrates through the trees.Evelyn spun just as the first creature lunged out of the darkness.It wasn’t Julian.It was something else.Once human, maybe. Twisted now. Skin stretched and gray, bones too long, fingers ending in talon-like claws. Its mouth gaped open, filled with rows of jagged teeth.Mason fired first. The shot ripped through the thing’s chest—but it didn’t drop.It staggered, shrieked like a wounded animal, then kept coming."Silver rounds, headshots only!" Damian barked.Evelyn squeezed t
The drive north felt endless.The night was thick, the roads winding and empty, swallowed by forests that pressed close on either side like silent watchers.Mason drove, white-knuckled. Evelyn sat beside him, bandaged but tense, scanning every shadow.Damian rode in the back, a silent and seething presence, barely human.None of them spoke.Not until the headlights finally picked out a crumbling, abandoned gas station at the end of a forgotten road."This is it?" Mason asked doubtfully.Damian nodded once. "He doesn’t trust anyone. Not even me."Evelyn’s hand hovered near her gun. "Good. Because I don't trust him either."They pulled up and killed the engine.Silence swallowed them.The building was sagging and half-eaten by moss and vines. A faded sign swung in the cold wind, creaking ominously."Stay behind me," Damian said, already shifting slightly — his bones rippling under his skin, his eyes burning gold.He led them through the ruins, past the broken pumps and shattered windows
The forest reeked of blood and gunpowder. Evelyn’s breath fogged in the cold air as she ran, heart thundering like a drum against her ribs. Behind her, the screams had stopped. That was worse than hearing them.Lucian didn’t say a word. He moved ahead, his shoulders hunched, muscles coiled tight like a wolf still waiting to pounce. His scent—earth, pine, and something wild—lingered in the air as Evelyn struggled to keep up. Her legs ached, her throat burned. But she couldn’t stop. Not now.A clearing broke through the trees. The ruined husk of an old ranger station sagged beneath snow-dusted beams. Lucian jerked open the door and motioned her inside.“Won’t hold them long,” he muttered, eyes scanning the dark treeline. “But it’s something.”Inside, Evelyn collapsed against the wall, gasping. The air stank of rot and old wood. Dust stirred with every breath.Lucian’s silhouette loomed in the dark, his eyes catching what little light remained—those unmistakable predator eyes. Still glow
Julian’s words hung heavy in the cold.Help me burn it all down.Evelyn didn’t lower her gun. Her arms trembled—not from fear, but from rage. Guilt. Grief. The memory of Emily's blood on her hands.“I’m not your weapon,” she said. “And I’m not your damn ally.”Julian’s gaze softened, like he pitied her.“You still think this ends with good guys walking away clean.” He stepped closer. Lucian bared his teeth, growling low.“You weren’t created to save the world, Evelyn. You were designed to lock it up. You’re a failsafe. Nothing more.”“Then why not kill me?” she snapped. “If I’m the key to the Door, and you want it buried—kill me right now.”Julian hesitated.Something flickered in his face—something broken.“Because you’re the only one who might still choose not to open it.”Then he moved.Fast. Too fast.Lucian lunged at the same moment, claws colliding with claws in a crack of sound that sent birds scattering into the night. Evelyn dove aside, rolled, and came up firing. Silver roun
Evelyn didn’t know how long they’d been running—just that her legs wouldn’t stop shaking. Every breath scraped like glass down her throat. The forest blurred around her, trees spinning by in smears of brown and green. Lucian was ahead, always just out of reach, silent and fast like a shadow that refused to wait.She stumbled.Didn’t fall.Keep going.But her side was wet. Warm. She pressed her palm there and felt the sick, sticky heat of blood soaking through her shirt.Lucian finally slowed near a fallen tree. He crouched low, checking the air like a wild animal scenting danger, then waved her forward.Evelyn dropped beside him, gasping, the cold moss beneath her a small relief. “They’re not behind us.”“They will be,” he said without looking at her. “They always are.”She winced and shifted. Pain flared sharp through her ribs.Lucian turned. His eyes flicked to the dark stain spreading beneath her jacket. “You’re bleeding again.”“I noticed,” she muttered.“Let me see.”“I’m fine.”
Mason’s breath came in ragged gasps as he pressed his back against the wet bark of a pine tree, one hand clamped to his side where blood seeped hot and steady through his fingers. His vision blurred, pulsing with pain and adrenaline. He could hear them—boots crunching dead leaves, radios murmuring, the hounds of the Circle loose in the dark.He hadn’t meant to separate from Evelyn and Lucian. The explosion back at the ridge had knocked him off his feet, disoriented him. By the time he’d regained his bearings, they were gone, and the forest was crawling with enemies.A branch snapped too close. Mason gritted his teeth and forced himself to move, every step a white-hot spike through his ribs. He wasn’t a werewolf like Evelyn or Emily—but he was something just as stubborn: a man too loyal to quit.A soft growl rumbled in the trees to his left.“Not now,” Mason whispered. “Don’t you dare.”The growl came again—closer. He turned, raising his knife, breath hitching.But what stepped out was
Evelyn hadn’t woken up.She was taken to a private hospital outside the city—off the grid. No press, no records. Her wounds were serious: internal bleeding, broken ribs, torn muscles. She’d lost a lot of blood.Mason sat by her bed, bruised and bandaged himself. He hadn’t slept much. The machines beeped steadily beside her, but she hadn’t moved.Lucian paced the hallway, silent, restless.Anika showed up on the second night. She brought clean clothes and Evelyn’s badge from the precinct. She set it quietly on the bedside table and leaned close to whisper, “You better wake up, Evie. We’re not done yet.”No response.Back in the city, Damian was already cleaning up. Suits, meetings, cameras. The press called it an “industrial explosion.” No one mentioned the Door, or Julian. That part had been erased.Behind closed doors, whispers moved fast. Some of his allies demanded answers. Others backed away, uneasy with the blood on his hands.Damian gave them a tight smile and said, “Everything
Evelyn stared into the blackness beyond the Door.It wasn’t just dark—it was heavy. Like a vacuum pressing against her chest. Something ancient, vast, and wrong stirred beyond the threshold, brushing her consciousness with the familiarity of a nightmare she’d never had—yet somehow always carried.“Close it,” Lucian growled, backing away. “Whatever’s in there, it remembers you.”She didn’t answer.Her feet edged closer.Inside the Door, the air shimmered. Shapes moved, too fast to be fully seen—like wolves made of shadow and bone. Whispers swirled around her, one voice cutting through the rest:> “E-113. Return.”She blinked. The world around her tilted. Her vision wavered—flashing images: a sterile white room, restraints biting into her wrists, her mother’s face pale with guilt, and Damian’s voice murmuring something about a key.The realization hit her hard—they didn’t just make her for this. They made her do it.Lucian grabbed her arm, grounding her. “Evelyn. You don’t belong to the
Mason’s breath came in ragged gasps as he pressed his back against the wet bark of a pine tree, one hand clamped to his side where blood seeped hot and steady through his fingers. His vision blurred, pulsing with pain and adrenaline. He could hear them—boots crunching dead leaves, radios murmuring, the hounds of the Circle loose in the dark.He hadn’t meant to separate from Evelyn and Lucian. The explosion back at the ridge had knocked him off his feet, disoriented him. By the time he’d regained his bearings, they were gone, and the forest was crawling with enemies.A branch snapped too close. Mason gritted his teeth and forced himself to move, every step a white-hot spike through his ribs. He wasn’t a werewolf like Evelyn or Emily—but he was something just as stubborn: a man too loyal to quit.A soft growl rumbled in the trees to his left.“Not now,” Mason whispered. “Don’t you dare.”The growl came again—closer. He turned, raising his knife, breath hitching.But what stepped out was
Evelyn didn’t know how long they’d been running—just that her legs wouldn’t stop shaking. Every breath scraped like glass down her throat. The forest blurred around her, trees spinning by in smears of brown and green. Lucian was ahead, always just out of reach, silent and fast like a shadow that refused to wait.She stumbled.Didn’t fall.Keep going.But her side was wet. Warm. She pressed her palm there and felt the sick, sticky heat of blood soaking through her shirt.Lucian finally slowed near a fallen tree. He crouched low, checking the air like a wild animal scenting danger, then waved her forward.Evelyn dropped beside him, gasping, the cold moss beneath her a small relief. “They’re not behind us.”“They will be,” he said without looking at her. “They always are.”She winced and shifted. Pain flared sharp through her ribs.Lucian turned. His eyes flicked to the dark stain spreading beneath her jacket. “You’re bleeding again.”“I noticed,” she muttered.“Let me see.”“I’m fine.”
Julian’s words hung heavy in the cold.Help me burn it all down.Evelyn didn’t lower her gun. Her arms trembled—not from fear, but from rage. Guilt. Grief. The memory of Emily's blood on her hands.“I’m not your weapon,” she said. “And I’m not your damn ally.”Julian’s gaze softened, like he pitied her.“You still think this ends with good guys walking away clean.” He stepped closer. Lucian bared his teeth, growling low.“You weren’t created to save the world, Evelyn. You were designed to lock it up. You’re a failsafe. Nothing more.”“Then why not kill me?” she snapped. “If I’m the key to the Door, and you want it buried—kill me right now.”Julian hesitated.Something flickered in his face—something broken.“Because you’re the only one who might still choose not to open it.”Then he moved.Fast. Too fast.Lucian lunged at the same moment, claws colliding with claws in a crack of sound that sent birds scattering into the night. Evelyn dove aside, rolled, and came up firing. Silver roun
The forest reeked of blood and gunpowder. Evelyn’s breath fogged in the cold air as she ran, heart thundering like a drum against her ribs. Behind her, the screams had stopped. That was worse than hearing them.Lucian didn’t say a word. He moved ahead, his shoulders hunched, muscles coiled tight like a wolf still waiting to pounce. His scent—earth, pine, and something wild—lingered in the air as Evelyn struggled to keep up. Her legs ached, her throat burned. But she couldn’t stop. Not now.A clearing broke through the trees. The ruined husk of an old ranger station sagged beneath snow-dusted beams. Lucian jerked open the door and motioned her inside.“Won’t hold them long,” he muttered, eyes scanning the dark treeline. “But it’s something.”Inside, Evelyn collapsed against the wall, gasping. The air stank of rot and old wood. Dust stirred with every breath.Lucian’s silhouette loomed in the dark, his eyes catching what little light remained—those unmistakable predator eyes. Still glow
The drive north felt endless.The night was thick, the roads winding and empty, swallowed by forests that pressed close on either side like silent watchers.Mason drove, white-knuckled. Evelyn sat beside him, bandaged but tense, scanning every shadow.Damian rode in the back, a silent and seething presence, barely human.None of them spoke.Not until the headlights finally picked out a crumbling, abandoned gas station at the end of a forgotten road."This is it?" Mason asked doubtfully.Damian nodded once. "He doesn’t trust anyone. Not even me."Evelyn’s hand hovered near her gun. "Good. Because I don't trust him either."They pulled up and killed the engine.Silence swallowed them.The building was sagging and half-eaten by moss and vines. A faded sign swung in the cold wind, creaking ominously."Stay behind me," Damian said, already shifting slightly — his bones rippling under his skin, his eyes burning gold.He led them through the ruins, past the broken pumps and shattered windows
The woods swallowed them.Branches clawed at Evelyn’s jacket as they ran, the scent of blood and rot thickening. Every shadow seemed to twitch. Every gust of wind carried a whisper of something monstrous.Mason moved silently at her side, rifle raised, eyes sharp. Damian led the way, faster than either of them, his senses stretched razor-thin.“He’s close,” Damian snarled under his breath.The world around them felt wrong—like the air itself was holding its breath.Then—A low growl vibrates through the trees.Evelyn spun just as the first creature lunged out of the darkness.It wasn’t Julian.It was something else.Once human, maybe. Twisted now. Skin stretched and gray, bones too long, fingers ending in talon-like claws. Its mouth gaped open, filled with rows of jagged teeth.Mason fired first. The shot ripped through the thing’s chest—but it didn’t drop.It staggered, shrieked like a wounded animal, then kept coming."Silver rounds, headshots only!" Damian barked.Evelyn squeezed t
The world had narrowed to blood and silence.Evelyn knelt by Emily’s body, her hands stained red, her heart hammering against cracked ribs.She couldn't process it. Couldn't fix it.The life had drained out of Emily’s eyes—and Evelyn had been too slow to stop it.The faint metallic hum of the facility’s generators still buzzed somewhere in the walls, but everything else was dead quiet.Except the breathing.Mason’s, shallow and stunned.Her own, ragged and broken.Then—Footsteps.Heavy. Purposeful. Echoing through the ruined corridor.Evelyn’s head snapped up, hand fumbling for her sidearm even as tears blurred her vision.Out of the smoke and flickering lights came a silhouette—tall, broad-shouldered, moving with the dangerous ease of someone who didn’t need to hide.Damian Voss.He stepped into view, black coat dusted with ash, his expression unreadable. His eyes, though—those predatory amber eyes—locked straight onto Evelyn."You've made a mess," Damian said calmly, voice like gra