Chapter 168
Chapter 168
Ellie POV
The forest was endless.
Cold mist clung to the trees, turning everything hazy and ill-defined. I ran through it barefoot, the earth soft and wet beneath my feet, breath coming hard, heart hammering in my chest.
Something was following me.
I could hear it-the steady rhythm of paws on earth, heavy and unhurried. A low growl echoed through the darkness, so deep it seemed to vibrate in my bones.
When I looked over my shoulder, I saw nothing but movement-a blur of gray fur and piercing blue eyes cutting through the mist.
The wolf.
It was enormous, its coat the pale color of ash, eyes burning like frozen fire. Every time I turned, it was closer. My lungs ached. My legs felt weak. I stumbled once, caught myself, and kept running.
But I was slower. So much slower.
I had no wolf. No claws, no strength, no way to fight back. Just human legs and human fear.
The growl came again, closer now. I broke through the trees into a clearing bathed in moonlight-and froze.
There was nowhere left to run.
The air shimmered faintly, the mist parting to reveal a shallow pool at the clearing’s center. The moonlight danced across its surface, pale and perfect. For a moment, I thought I saw a reflection there-my face, but not my face. My mother’s eyes staring back at me.
Then the wolf burst through the trees.
I stumbled back, breath caught in my throat. It was even larger up close-muscles rippling under its fur, teeth bared, eyes locked on me with cold intelligence. It didn’t snarl. It didn’t need to.
It stepped closer, silent, deliberate. I could feel its power, its inevitability.
“Please,” I whispered. My voice sounded small in the dark. “I don’t understand.” The wolf lunged.
I screamed-
And a shadow fell across me.
A massive black wolf crashed into the blue-eyed one, teeth sinking deep, snarls echoing like thunder. The sound was deafening, primal, filled with fury and protection.
The gray wolf fought back, claws raking, jaws snapping. But the black wolf was relentless-driven by something deeper than rage. Something personal.
They moved like a storm, tearing through the clearing, shaking the very ground. I stumbled back until my heel hit the edge of the pool. My reflection rippled and shattered in the water.
1/3
Chapter 108
+25 Bonus
When I looked up again, the gray wolf was gone. The black one stood alone in the clearing, chest heaving, fur streaked with silver moonlight. Its golden eyes-no, not gold. Amber.
Familiar.
It looked at me, and the world fell silent.
Then, just as suddenly, everything faded—
The forest, the moonlight, the sound of breathing-
Until all that was left was darkness.
I woke with a gasp.
The ceiling of my room came into focus, faint light filtering through the curtains. My skin was damp with sweat, my heart still racing.
For a long moment, I just lay there, trying to separate dream from waking. The scent
of milk and lavender filled the air, grounding me. One of the twins whimpered softly
in his crib, the sound pulling me back to myself.
I forced my breathing to slow.
It was just a dream. Just another one of those dreams.
But the image of the black wolf lingered-the way it had moved, the fury in its
defense, the flash of amber eyes.
Nolan.
I didn’t know how I knew, but I did. I could feel it in the marrow of my bones. The
wolf that had saved me was him.
The realization hit harder than I expected.
I pressed a hand to my chest, the weight of it sinking deep. Was it guilt? Fear?
Longing? I wasn’t sure anymore. Maybe all of it.
That was Nolan. Even if I didn’t recognize him, I could tell by his actions. The fierce, violent reaction to the threat could only come from him.
He was like a force of nature when he was angry, like a storm.
But, what the hell did the dream mean? What was Nolan protecting me from?
The goddess had given me dreams before, but never like this. Never so sharp, so violent, so… personal.
Was she trying to warn me? Or remind me?
I didn’t know which answer scared me more.
I managed to doze off again for a few hours, but it was restless. Every little sound
the boys made started me awake again. I was disoriented.
By morning, I still couldn’t shake it.
It was my day off. It should have been a cozy, lazy day filled with chores and cuddles with my boys.
2/3
Chapter in
+25 Bonus