Chapter 16 Run With The Wolf

• Branches snapped beneath our feet as we ran — deeper into the black heart of Mooncrest Forest. The night seemed alive, the shadows shifting with a thousand unseen eyes, every rustle of leaves or snap of twigs threatening to betray us. My chest heaved, lungs burning, as I tried to keep pace with Lucien, whose grip on my hand was iron-strong, unyielding.
• The forest was a living thing. Shadows stretched and twisted under the cold moonlight, and every flicker of movement could have been a hunter from the Council, waiting for the perfect moment to strike. Owls hooted, unseen, and somewhere, water trickled over moss-covered stones. But even nature itself seemed to hold its breath as we pressed on, as if the forest itself understood the danger trailing us.
• Lucien’s hand was warm around mine, a tether in the darkness. His breath came in ragged bursts, but his stride never faltered. The moonlight caught his hair in silver streaks, casting him as some kind of ethereal predator, impossible to ignore.