Chapter Five: Bound by blood.

Pain exploded along Sage’s throat as claws raked across her skin. She twisted at the last second, barely avoiding a fatal strike. The rogue’s breath was rancid, its eyes glowing with unnatural hunger.

Kieran was still behind her, too far to reach in time.

She had no choice.

Summoning the last of her strength, she dropped low and lunged.

Her claws sank deep into the rogue’s gut, and she twisted, ripping through sinew and flesh. The creature shrieked, black blood splattering across her skin. It staggered, but it wasn’t done yet.

Sage gasped, feeling her own blood drip down her neck. Too slow. Too weak.

The rogue recovered unnaturally fast, its head snapping toward her. It crouched, ready to lunge again—

Then Kieran’s body slammed into it from the side, sending them both crashing into the dirt.

A blur of fangs and claws. A feral snarl.

Then, suddenly—silence.

Kieran’s chest rose and fell rapidly as he stood over the now-lifeless body. His golden eyes, still glowing with the remnants of his shift, locked onto her.

“Are you okay?” His voice was sharp, urgent.

Sage wiped at her throat. The wound was shallow—more blood than damage—but the pain was enough to make her hands tremble.

“I’m fine,” she rasped. “You?”

Kieran exhaled, rolling his shoulders. “Been better.”

They stood there for a moment, panting, the scent of blood thick in the air. The bodies of the two dead rogues lay motionless at their feet, their unnatural stench clinging to the clearing.

Sage forced herself to focus. “This isn’t normal. Rogues don’t act like this. They don’t move like this.”

Kieran’s jaw tightened. “I know.”

Something was very, very wrong.

---

A Troubling Revelation

They couldn’t leave the bodies behind. If the Silverfang patrols found them here, the fragile truce between the packs would shatter.

“We have to move them,” Sage said. “Somewhere no one will find them.”

Kieran hesitated, then nodded. Together, they worked in silence, dragging the corpses deeper into the forest. The black blood smeared over their hands burned like acid, making Sage’s stomach churn.

Finally, after what felt like an eternity, they buried the bodies beneath layers of rock and dirt.

Kieran wiped his forehead. “This is only a temporary solution.”

Sage sighed. “I know.”

The night stretched on, thick with unease. Every rustling leaf made Sage’s heart pound, every distant howl sent a shiver down her spine.

Kieran was watching her. “You’re bleeding.”

She touched her neck, wincing. “It’s not bad. I'll heal”

Kieran frowned, stepping closer. His fingers brushed over her collarbone, his warmth seeping into her skin. “You’re still losing blood.”

Sage swallowed hard, refusing to acknowledge the way her pulse jumped at his touch.

“I’ll survive.”

His gaze lingered on her for a moment longer before he sighed. “Stubborn as hell.”

A ghost of a smirk touched her lips. “And you’re not?”

His lips parted like he was about to argue—but then his expression shifted.

Serious. Dark.

“This thing we’re caught in…” His voice was low. “It’s going to get worse.”

Sage knew he was right.

For the first time, it felt like their packs—their entire world—was standing on the edge of something catastrophic.

She should walk away. She should go back to Silverfang territory and pretend none of this had happened.

But she wouldn’t.

She couldn’t.

“Then we figure it out,” she said firmly. “Together.”

Kieran’s golden eyes locked onto hers. “That’s dangerous, Thornwood.”

She gave him a tired smile. “Since when has that stopped me?”

For a brief moment, his lips quirked in amusement. Then, before she could say anything else—

A sharp howl split the night.

Her blood ran cold.

That wasn’t a rogue.

That was Silverfang.

Ronan’s patrol.

Kieran stiffened beside her. “You have to go. Now.”

Sage’s breath caught. “But—”

His fingers brushed against hers—a fleeting, wordless moment of hesitation.

Then he shoved her back toward Silverfang territory.

“Run.”

She ran. Behind her, the howls grew louder. And then—just as she reached the treeline—a deafening snarl.

She whipped around just in time to see Kieran’s body hitting the ground, three Silverfang warriors pinning him down.

Her betrothed—Ronan—stood over him, teeth bared.

“You’re trespassing, Nightclaw,” Ronan growled, his voice cold as ice.

Sage’s heart stopped.

Before she could move, before she could scream—

Ronan raised his claws.

And slashed them down.