All Chapters of Bound by Darkness: Shadowborn: Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

Author’s NoteThank you for stepping into the shadows with me.Shadowborn is a story that was never meant to be soft. It’s sharp-edged, tangled in blood and magic, born from the ache of being too much and not enough all at once. Therrin and Ari—two souls forced to share one body—represent what it means to fight yourself and still hope to be loved. Their journey isn’t easy. It was never meant to be.This book explores the thin line between power and surrender, light and shadow, love and control. It walks the edge of desire and danger, and it does so unapologetically. Every chapter was written with the intention to make you feel—uncomfortable, breathless, seen.If you made it to the end, I hope it left marks. The kind that haunt in the best way.There’s more coming. The story doesn’t end here—and neither does the darkness.Until then,K. Lyn LeighPrologueDarkness.Pitch black.A space void of light.That's all I see when I open my eyes.To be blind is a dangerous thing.People always

Therrin's POVI must've been running for hours. Everything was too much. One minute my cat was talking, the next he was telling me I share a body with my dead twin's soul? Yeah, I got the hell outta Dodge.Now I'm starving, tired, and honestly starting to regret this whole dramatic escape. I mean, what was my plan? Run off into the woods with no money, no shelter, and no food? Smart move, Thea. Great thinking.Maybe I should just go back. Let my coven throw me in a nuthouse. Free food, warm bed, nobody bothering me… honestly, it doesn't sound too bad.Leaning against a tree, I tried to breathe through the dizziness. That's when I smelled it—blood.Thick, metallic, sharp. The kind of scent that grabs your attention and doesn't let go.Blood is sacred to shifters. It's more than life force—it's essence. We don't bleed easily, not unless we choose to, or unless it's by a mate or family. Sharing blood is more binding than a mating bite. So when I smell it? I know something is very, very w

Ari's POVI came apart with a shattering scream. I'd never felt anything like that. And if what I felt earlier was incredible, this was something else entirely—like every nerve had caught fire and I was burning from the inside out.But stars above… he hadn't even taken a single layer off yet.And I was already out of breath, trembling from the sheer force of it all. I could barely hold myself upright. Was he torturing me? Or was this just what it felt like to finally be alive?"Come here, little one," he said, his voice gravel and heat.I tried to stand, legs unsteady, but his voice halted me. "Stay on your knees. I'm not done with you yet. I want to know if that pretty little mouth of yours is as untamed as your thoughts."The air between us thickened. I swallowed hard."Take me in. But the minute you get careless, the consequences will be real. No teeth. Not too much pressure. Tell me you understand.""I understand," I whispered. "I'll be careful.""Good girl." The way those two wor

Therrin's POVDarkness. That's all I knew. Not the quiet kind—the soothing lull of twilight or a dreamless sleep. No. This was suffocating. Choking. Writhing with whispers I didn't recognize as my own.My body trembled, paralyzed in some faraway place, but my mind—my soul—was in freefall.Ari… what have you done? I tried to call out, but no sound came. Not even in here.The mental space that used to be mine—safe, if cluttered—was now an endless void. Cracked mirrors floated in the air, suspended and slowly turning like shards of broken stars. They showed flashes of Ari's stolen moments. Her voice. Her touch. Her pleasure. My skin burned from phantom memories I didn't consent to."This is mine now," her voice echoed, sharp and wicked. She stepped out from the darkness in a copy of my body—but altered. Taller. Sharper. Feral. Her eyes gleamed silver like moonlit steel. "You gave me the chance, sister. You gave me breath."I took a step back, or tried to. The ground rippled like water an

Grimm's POVI've walked this earth for a very long time.Not in the way humans count time, with birthdays and wrinkles. No—I measure my existence in turning moons, broken pacts, and the slow, painful unraveling of truths best left buried.Tonight, as I crouch silently on the branch of an old ash tree, watching the girl curled beneath ivy-strewn fur, I feel something old stir in me. Something I thought long turned to ash.She is not just a girl.She is two souls stitched into one skin.Therrin and Ari.Two heartbeats that beat in tandem. Two minds, two hungers. One body caught between light and shadow. They think I serve them. That I was sent to help. But even I'm not certain what Nyx's endgame is. I only know one thing:The moment they met their mate, everything changed.I remember the first time I saw her.Tiny. Screaming. Eyes blind but glowing with a violet haze. Most shifter-born children are loud when they're born—but Therrin? She was too loud. Not with sound, but with energy. H