Chapter 24 – The Wolves Within

I couldn't breathe. My chest was locked in a vice, and my head spun like I'd been thrown off a cliff. What I had just seen couldn't be real. Couldn't. Be. Real.

But it was.

Ethan and Luca—their limbs twisting, bones cracking, skin rippling like waves. Flesh torn apart and reshaped until they weren't even human anymore. Monsters. Wolves.

The sound of it alone was enough to make my stomach lurch—a sick symphony of snapping joints and guttural growls. My back slammed against the rough bark of a tree, and I was frozen, wide-eyed, as the chaos unfolded.

My brain short-circuited.

Run.

The command sparked in my head, but my legs refused to move. The forest roared with growls and the violent crash of bodies colliding. Leaves scattered into the air, branches snapping like brittle bones.

Then Luca's eyes—those eyes that had always gleamed with some dark, knowing fire—flashed golden through the mayhem. Ethan's massive form barreled into him, snarling, and they clashed with the force of a freight train. Fur tangled, teeth snapped, claws raked through flesh.

They weren't brothers anymore. They were beasts. Rivals.

Somehow, that primal brutality knocked the paralysis loose from my body. My breath returned in sharp, ragged gasps, and instinct took over.

I bolted.

Branches whipped my face, snagging my clothes. The forest blurred as my feet pounded the uneven ground. Roots clawed at my sneakers, trying to trip me up, but adrenaline kept me upright. I didn't dare look back—didn't want to see if they were chasing me.

The only thing I knew was that I had to get the hell out of there.

My lungs burned as I broke through the dense trees and stumbled into a clearing by the stream. The rush of water was sharp in my ears, grounding me. I collapsed onto the bank, gulping in air, shaking like a leaf in a storm.

Water. I needed water.

I plunged my trembling hands into the icy current, splashing it over my face. The cold stung, but it wasn't enough to jolt me out of this nightmare.

Because this wasn't a nightmare.

It was real.

Werewolves.

Ethan, the guy I trusted, the guy I—God, I didn't even know anymore—was a freaking werewolf. And Luca? The guy who'd spent weeks tormenting me, confusing me, messing with my head?

Also a werewolf.

My heart slammed against my ribs. I wanted to throw up.

What did that make me? Some kind of joke? Their prey?

The snapping of a twig behind me shattered my spiraling thoughts. My head whipped around, heart lodged in my throat. I expected to see them—Ethan, Luca, or, God forbid, both.

But it was Kimmy.

She burst through the trees, Nick right behind her. Their faces were pale, eyes wide with panic.

"Quinn!" Kimmy skidded to a stop and dropped to her knees beside me. Her hands gripped my arms like I might vanish into thin air. "Are you okay? What happened?"

Nick knelt down, his usual cocky smirk replaced by grim determination. "We need to get you out of here. Now."

My voice came out raw, shaking. "They—Ethan and Luca—they turned into wolves. " My throat clenched around the words. "Right in front of me."

Kimmy paled. Her eyes flicked to Nick, who gave her a sharp look.

Oh God. They knew.

"You knew?" My voice cracked. "You knew this whole time, didn't you?"

Kimmy looked like she wanted to crawl under a rock. "Quinn, it's not what you think—"

"Not what I think?" I shot to my feet, fury igniting in my veins. "What the hell am I supposed to think?"

Nick held up his hands, his voice steady. "We can't tell you. "It's complicated."

"Complicated?!" I practically screamed, my rage finally boiling over. "I just saw two guys transform into wolves and nearly tear each other apart, and you're telling me it's complicated? I believe I deserve the truth."

Kimmy bit her lip; guilt spread across her face. "We did not want to drag you into this, Quinn. It is dangerous."

I laughed bitterly, without humor. "Dangerous? "I believe I am already in the middle of it, don't you?"

Nick sighed and rubbed the back of his neck. "Alright, fine. Hey, Ethan and Luca... They are not just werewolves. They are part of something much larger—a pack, a family legacy. It is ancient. And now you're a part of it as well."

I blinked, my stomach dropping. "What do you mean I'm 'part of it'? I'm not one of them."

Kimmy hesitated, glancing at Nick again before speaking. "No, but you're… connected to them. In more ways than you know."

"What the hell does that mean?"

Nick opened his mouth to explain, but before he could say anything, a low growl cut through the air, sending a chill down my spine. My heart jumped, and I spun around to see… nothing. Every hair on my body stood on end.

Nick's jaw clenched. "Move," he ordered.

We ran.

My legs screamed in protest, but fear kept me moving. The growl echoed behind us, closer now. My mind raced with every worst-case scenario imaginable. Was it Luca? Ethan? Both?

Branches clawed at us as we tore through the woods. The forest seemed alive, watching, waiting. The shadows twisted and shifted, and I felt like I was being hunted.

My foot caught on a root, and I went down hard. Pain shot through my knee, but Nick hauled me back to my feet without breaking stride.

"Come on," he growled.

We burst out of the trees onto a narrow dirt path. Kimmy skidded to a stop, chest heaving. "Nick," she gasped, "we can't outrun it."

Nick's eyes darkened. "I know."

My stomach plummeted. "It? What does that mean?"

Before anyone could answer, a blur of misted black fur and muscle exploded from the treeline.