Chapter 5 | The Monster In My Room

SIENNA

I saw it.

Two red dots glowing in the mirror. Not lights but….Eyes. My breath caught. I froze as every muscle locked up at once. The eyes were behind me, in the darkest corner near the balcony doors. They burned like embers and locked on me.

I spun around so fast I almost lost my balance and fell. My back hit the headboard with a thud. “Who’s there?”

A shadow moved. Slow. Deliberate. Suddenly, someone stepped out of the darkness. My stomach dropped. It was him. Cassian Nightbane.

 The man from the road. Daxtor’s best friend. The same sharp jaw, the same messy dark hair falling over his forehead. But tonight and right now- he looked different. He was wilder. 

His shirt was unbuttoned at the top, sleeves rolled up, and his whole body was tense, like a wire pulled too tight. Those eyes… they were still glowing faintly red, fading slowly as he stared at me.

“You,” I whispered, voice shaking. My eyes widened in horror.

He didn’t speak at first. Just watched me with this intense, dangerous look that made my skin crawl and my pulse race at the same time. His hands were clenched into fists at his sides.

“Stop looking at me like that,” he finally growled. His voice was low and rough, almost angry.

“Like what?” I snapped, even though my hands were trembling. I pressed them into the mattress to hide it. “Like- you’re the thing that attacked me on the road? Like you’re some kind of-”

“I didn’t attack you.”

He took one step closer. I moved back until I was pressed against the pillows.

“Then what the hell are you?” My voice cracked. “I saw you. You jumped on the car. You… you changed. Your eyes were red-just like now. What are y-you? Some kind of monster?”

His jaw tightened. For a second I thought he might actually answer. Instead his expression hardened and my throat tightened. 

“You don’t know what you’re talking about, Sienna. Go back to your city and forget tonight ever happened.”

“I can’t forget.” I whispered louder than I meant to. “There was a wolf-huge, not normal- and then you were there. How did you kill it? Why were your eyes glowing? Tell me!”

He laughed, but there was no humor in it. Just bitterness and his eyes were hollow, glaring at me. “You think you want answers? Trust me, you don’t. The less you know, the safer you’ll be.”

“Safer from what? From you?” I slid off the bed. My legs were shaking but I refused to stay trapped there. “You’ve always hated me. Always been cruel. And now this? You show up in my room in the middle of the night with monster eyes and expect me to just pretend nothing happened?”

Cassian’s breathing got heavier. His chest rose and fell fast. He looked like he was fighting something inside himself. His hands flexed open and closed. “You have no idea what you do to me,” he muttered, almost to himself.

“What?” 

“Nothing. Forget it.”

I tried to move toward the door. My bare feet were silent on the wooden floor. If I could just get past him, scream for Dax or someone-  “Don’t,” he warned.

The moment he said that, I ran anyway. I darted left, aiming for the space between him and the wall. For half a second I thought I’d make it but…. Then his hand shot out and caught my wrist.

The second his skin touched mine, everything changed.

A rush of heat shot up my arm and straight into my chest. It wasn’t just fear. It was something deeper, pulling at me like an invisible rope tightening around my heart. A sudden electric wave shot through my body and a frightening gasp escaped my lips. 

My knees went weak. I gasped. What the fuck was this? What was happening- Cassian made a low sound in his throat- like a groan mixed with a growl. His fingers tightened instinctively.

For a moment we both just stood there, staring at each other. His red eyes flickered brighter. I could feel his pulse hammering through his grip, matching mine. The air between us felt different. Heavy. Like the whole world had narrowed down to his hand on my wrist.

It terrified me. I should have screamed for Daxtor but the fear wouldn’t let me do anything. “You’re hurting me…” I whispered, voice barely there. Tears stung my eyes and I could feel my whole body trembling. His grip on me was bone snapping tight and I winced. 

Cassian blinked. The red in his eyes dimmed fast. He looked down at his hand like it belonged to someone else, then dropped my wrist like my skin had burned him.

“Fuck,” he breathed. He stepped back, running both hands through his hair. For the first time ever, he looked shaken. Really shaken. The cold, mean Cassian I knew was gone. In his place was someone who looked almost… scared of himself. “I didn’t mean- Shit, Sienna, I-”

He couldn’t even finish the sentence.

I pulled my wrist against my chest, breathing fast and uneven. It did hurt badly, but the fear was worse. The pull I’d felt when he touched me… what was that? Why did my body react like that to him?

Cassian backed toward the balcony doors. His shoulders were rigid. “Stay away from me,” he said hoarsely. “For both our sakes. Don’t look for answers. Don’t ask questions. Just… stay the hell away.”

Then he turned, yanked the doors open, and climbed out onto the balcony like it was nothing. One second he was there, the next he was gone- dropping down into the night without a sound.

I stood there frozen, heart still racing. My legs gave out and I sank to the floor beside the bed, hugging my knees. Tears came hot and fast. I couldn’t stop shaking. That touch… those eyes… the way he looked at me like he both hated me and needed me at the same time. None of it made sense.

I should not have come here. Maybe, this was all his plan to scare me and make me leave. What did I do to him- The door to my room burst open.

“Sienna?” Dax’s voice cut through the dark. He flipped on the main light and froze when he saw me on the floor. “What the hell happened? You’re crying. Are you hurt?”

He immediately rushed over to him kneeling on the floor. I looked up at him, lips trembling. “Hey, talk to me. Was someone here? I thought I heard voices.”

I opened my mouth, but what could I even say? That Cassian had been in my room? That he had glowing red eyes and I felt something impossible when he touched me? That I was scared of him but also… drawn to him?

“I… I don’t know,” I whispered, fresh tears spilling over. “There was someone. I think… I think I’m losing my mind, Dax.” He reached out gently and put a hand on my shoulder. Unlike Cassian’s grip, he was warm and careful. 

“You’re safe now. I’ve got you. Just breathe, okay?”

But even as he said it, I couldn’t stop replaying the moment Cassian’s skin met mine. That pull. That heat. The way he looked at me right before he ran. And the worst part? Deep down, some insane part of me didn’t want him to stay away.

I buried my face in my hands and cried harder.

Dax pulled me into a hug, murmuring something comforting, but my mind was somewhere else- out there in the night with the monster who was my brother’s best friend.

What was Cassian Nightbane? And why did I feel like I was already caught in his trap? What was going on? And I was scared of what was going to happen.