Chapter 4

• Emma's POV
• My whole body ached. Not that dull ache you get after a hard day—no, this was bone-deep, skin-scorched, every-breath-is-a-punishment kind of pain. I cursed the Moon Goddess for waking me up to this hell again. Couldn’t she just let me die?
• And then I felt it—fingers, rough and strong, around my wrist.
• Panic shot through me. Who was touching me? My heart raced as I forced my swollen eyes to focus. A figure hovered over me, face hidden behind a mask. I froze. Was this it? Was today my execution day? My pulse was a drumbeat in my ears as I watched him unlock the chains.
• The shackles fell with a dull clink, and the man pointed toward the door.
• Run? Is that what he meant? My brain couldn’t keep up. Every instinct I had screamed not to trust him. But then again, what was I holding on to? The warm hospitality of the Full Moon Pack? I’d rather die running than live another day as their punching bag.
• He motioned again, more frantic this time. My hesitation melted away when he hauled me up with one arm, his strength startling against my broken frame. The movement ripped a cry from my lips, my feet screaming in protest. They burned the soles of my feet yesterday. So walking wasn’t exactly in the cards.
• Before I could protest, he scooped me up like I weighed nothing and moved like a shadow through the narrow hallways. The cold air hit my skin as we emerged outside. He didn’t stop, though—not until we were deep into the woods. Then he set me down like I was something fragile.
• He pointed again, urging me to run.
• "Thank you... thank you," I cried out in relief. "I'll pay you back one day, I swear.”
• He didn’t answer. He didn’t even look back. I took off as fast as my mangled body would let me, his faint scent of pine and lavender lingering in the air.
• I silently prayed to the Moon Goddess not to abandon me again. I’d rather die out here than go back to that wretched pack.
• The pack’s border wasn’t far. I could feel it, the invisible wall that tethered me to them. If I didn’t cut ties now, they’d track me. I took a shaky breath and whispered, “I, Emma Nightingale, cut all ties with the Full Moon Pack.”
• I felt the link snap before I crossed the border. It was like a cord inside me had been severed, leaving me hollow and free all at once. And that was it—I had nothing left tying me to that pack.
• Good riddance. I wish them all pain and suffering. Alpha Damon, Andrea, and every single one of them. Well, all of them except for my savior. He was the only decent soul in that hellhole, and if it weren’t for him, I’d still be suffering there.
• I kept walking. And walking. Hours passed, and the sun beat down hard. My body ached in ways I didn’t know it could, and the thirst—God, it was unbearable. Every step felt like it could be my last.
• Eventually, my legs gave out. I collapsed onto this jagged rock, but I barely noticed the pain. My head was spinning, my vision blurry, and then everything went black.
• When I came to, I wasn’t alone. I heard voices first, laughing like hyenas. I opened my eyes just enough to see them—a group of men standing over me with these hard, cruel faces.
• “Who the fuck are you? Or better yet, what the fuck are you?” one of them sneered, waving a knife dangerously close to my face.
• I panicked. But somehow, I managed to sit up, glaring at them like I wasn’t a terrified, half-dead mess.
• “Bruce, you sure she’s not human?” one of them asked, glancing nervously at their leader.
• The leader—Bruce, apparently—laughed, this deep, condescending sound that made my skin crawl. “What the fuck would a human be doing out here in the middle of the woods at night, you idiot?”
• That’s when it hit me. It was nighttime. I’d been out there for hours, and I hadn’t even realized it.
• “So,” Bruce said, crouching down to my level. His breath reeked of stale beer. “What are you? A witch? A vampire? A werewolf?”
• My heart stopped. Hunters. They were hunters. I’ve heard of them. Humans who hate anything remotely supernatural.
• “She’s probably one of them filthy rogue wolves,” Bruce guessed, smirking. “What happened? Did your pack toss you out? Commit a crime, did you?”
• Then he kicked me. Hard. I yelped, curling up instinctively.
• “Did you?” he taunted, swinging his knife at me. I barely managed to duck, crawling away as fast as my body would let me.
• And they just laughed. Laughed like this was some kind of twisted game.
• I didn’t even see it coming when I stumbled into a hole. One second, I was crawling; the next, I was falling. The landing wasn’t pretty.
• Above me, the laughter only got louder.
• “Well, look at that,” Bruce jeered, peering down at me. “What are you gonna do now, filthy wolf? Crawl out? Show us what you’ve got.”
• I was shaking. I didn’t even have the strength to climb out, let alone fight them.
• “Get the gasoline,” Bruce barked.
• My blood ran cold. Gasoline? No. No, no, no.
• One of his goons returned with a canister, and before I could even plead, they poured it around the edges of the hole.
• “Please,” I begged. “Don’t do this.”
• Bruce smirked, pulling out a lighter. He flicked it open, the flame dancing dangerously. “Relax, sweetheart. This’ll be over quickly.”
• He dropped the lighter, and flames roared to life.
• I backed into the corner of the hole, trembling. The heat was unbearable. This was it. After everything, this was how I was going to die—burned alive in some godforsaken hole in the middle of nowhere.
• But then, something changed.
• There was a scream. Not mine—a guttural, blood-curdling scream from above.
• I looked up and saw Bruce stumble back, looking like he had just seen a ghost.
• “You…” he stuttered, pointing at someone behind him. “You’re the fucking hybrid. Finally showed up, huh? I’ve been hunting you for months.”
• “Well,” came a deep, commanding voice, “now I’m here.”
• I couldn’t see him, not at first. But Bruce lunged, and in the blink of an eye—snap—his head was gone. Just gone. It landed in the hole with me, rolling to a stop near my feet.
• I screamed, wiping at the blood splattered on my face.
• And then I heard footsteps. Slow, deliberate.
• When I looked up, I saw him.
• He was stunning. Tall, muscular, with piercing green eyes and a face so perfect it didn’t seem real.
• He looked at me, and I swear, for a second, the world stopped.
• Then, just like that, he turned to leave.
• “Wait!” I shouted, panic lacing my voice. The fire was creeping closer. “Please, help me! Don’t leave me here!”
• He paused but didn’t turn around.
• “Please!” I cried desperately.“I’ll die if you don’t help!”
• Finally, he turned and then crouched at the edge of the hole with an unreadable expression.
• “Why?” he asked nonchalantly as if the flames weren’t creeping closer with every second. “Why should I help you?”
• “Because… I’m going to die if you don’t!” my voice shook as the fire licked dangerously close to me.
• He didn’t budge. Instead, he smirked—this dark, infuriating smirk—and pulled a cigarette from his pocket. Calmly, he lit it, taking a slow drag as if we had all the time in the world. “Why should I care?”
• I stared at him, incredulous. What the hell was wrong with this guy? He was maddening.
• And then I noticed it—the flames didn’t hurt him, as it burned around his feet. He stood there, completely unaffected. What was he?
• Yes, Bruce had called him a hybrid. That must be it. I’d heard whispers about them before—dangerous, powerful creatures. But seeing one in person was something else entirely.
• “Please…” I begged, tears spilling freely now. “Help me, please!”
• “Give me one good reason.
• “Because I don't wanna die.”
• “Not my problem.”
• “Please, I beg you.”
• He exhaled a long puff of smoke, tilting his head as if he were debating whether or not I was worth the trouble. “If I help you,” he drawled, “what’s in it for me?”
• “Anything!” I choked out. “I’ll do anything!”
• His eyes glinted with amusement. “Really?”
• “Yes! Anything!”
• He paused, letting the moment stretch unbearably long, before finally nodding. “Alright then. You’ll be my servant.”
• “What?” I sputtered.
• “You said you’d do anything,” he taunted.
• I opened my mouth to protest but couldn’t find the words. The last thing I wanted was to trade one form of servitude for another. I’d just escaped the Full Moon Pack—I wasn’t about to sign myself over to someone else. But… I didn’t have a choice.
• He watched me with a raised brow, clearly enjoying my internal struggle. “I guess you’ve made your decision,” he drew a sigh, standing as if ready to leave.
• “Wait!” I screamed, my voice breaking as the flames caught the hem of my gown. “I accept! I accept! Just help me!”
• Before I could say another word, he was in the hole with me, moving so fast I barely saw him. One moment I was staring at certain death, and the next, I was cradled in his arms, away from the fire.
• He smirked down at me, his hold firm but oddly gentle. “See? That wasn’t so hard.”
• I blinked up at him, stunned. Up close, he was even more breathtaking. The most handsome man I’d ever seen, with piercing green eyes and a perfectly sculpted face that seemed unreal.
• “Thank you,” I whispered softly.
• “You’re welcome?”
• “Emma. My name is Emma,” I said, still trying to process what just happened.
• Under the weight of his stare, I felt small, vulnerable.
• “Put me down,” I snapped, trying to muster some dignity.
• He laughed—a dark, rich sound that sent shivers down my spine. “Not a chance. You’re mine now, Emma.”
• My name on his lips felt like a brand.
• “And who the hell are you?” I asked, glaring up at him.
• “Leo,” his eyes locked onto
• mine and then darkened. His smile faded as his gaze roamed over my body, something like anger and concern flickering in his expression.
• “What happened to you?” His voice was low and harsh, almost a growl. “Who did this?” A rumble shot out of his chest, startling me.
• Why did he care?
• His words sent a chill down my spine, and I found myself frozen, unable to speak.
• “Whoever did this to you will pay,” he added darkly.
• I couldn’t tear my eyes away from him. There was something about him that made me feel both small and protected at the same time. Something about the way he looked at me made my heart stutter. It wasn’t just fear or gratitude—it was something far more dangerous.
• "Shh, it will be alright. Now sleep."
• Immediately the words left his lips, my eyes began to droop. I tried to fight it, but I couldn't... I felt sleepy, and then finally, darkness.