Page 52 of The Blood Moon Oath

Good. Because this is what it feels like to truly be alive. You’ll never get this from anyone else. Not the way I can give it to you.

His words make something stir deep inside me. It’s not just the rush of the chase or the forest, or even his power beneath me—it’s the way he makes me feel like I’m not a prisoner of my past, like I’m not some weapon to be used. Here, with him, I’m just... alive.

This is your true self, Sable. Don’t ever forget it.

I don’t know how to answer him, how to capture what’s swirling inside me. So I just laugh again, the sound bubbling up from my chest like it’s too much to hold in.

It feels like the world has stopped, and in this moment, it’s just us—the power of his form beneath me, the rush of the forest, and the exhilaration of being free. For the first time in so long, I’m not thinking about the Trials, or what’s coming next. I’m not thinking about anything but the now.

For the first time in so long, I feel… alive.

Then, suddenly, Torin slows, the force of his movement tapering, his body easing into a less frenzied pace. My laughter dies in my throat, replaced by a flicker of confusion. I clutch tighter at the fur on his neck, trying to steady myself as he slows even further.

I lean forward, my breath catching, a little edge of concern seeping into me. “What’s wrong?” I ask, my voice tense, though I can feel the curiosity curling at the edges of my words.

He doesn’t answer right away, his body slowing further, his muscles tensing under me. Finally, his voice pushes through my mind, low and quiet.Someone’s approaching. A human.

I raise an eyebrow, the tension creeping back into my body. I slide off his back, stepping lightly into the snow, though I feel his presence like a shadow just behind me. “What about you?” I ask, glancing back at him.

Torin turns his head toward me, his eyes gleaming in the moonlight."I’ll cloak myself,”he voices casually.“Humans aren’t smart enough to see past magic. At least, not most of them.”

I glance over at the approaching figure, hearing the crunch of footsteps in the snow. But then Torin adds something that stops me in my tracks.

“Well, except for you.”

I swallow hard, his words hitting me like a jolt of electricity. My pulse quickens, and for a moment, I can’t help but wonder—what does he mean by that? Why canIsee past the magic? Why does it feel like I’m not as out of place in this world as I thought?

Before I can ask him anything else, the figure is closer, and I recognize him instantly.

Varek.

My stomach lurches. The sight of him pulls at something deep inside me, a mix of old memories and unresolved tension. He’s one of the few I’ve hunted with, back when everything was simpler, when I was one of them, when hunting warlocks felt like the only thing that mattered. Varek was good. He was lethal. We used to make a hell of a team, until… well, until everything started changing.

There’s a part of me that wants to bolt.

I could leave with him. It’s that simple. I could turn on my heel, follow him into the woods, and escape all of this—all of them. The men, the power, the lives they’re making me live. I could just run away with Varek and go back to the life I used to know. No more confusion, no more testing myself, no more trying to figure out what this strange pull toward Torin is. I could leave it all behind. He’s right there, close enough to touch, and the door to escape is open, ready for me to walk through.

I look at him again, and the old ache stirs inside me. There’s a sharpness to his jaw, a fire in his eyes. He hasn’t changed—he’s still that man I remember, the one I trusted, the one I knew could get me out of any bad situation.Thisworld with Torin and his brothers, this place where everything’s shifting beneath my feet, doesn’t feel as solid. But Varek? Varek feels like home. Iknowhim. I don’t need to second guess him. He’s the path back to safety. The path back to the world I understand.

The temptation to take that path is so strong, it feels like I could reach out and grab it.

I could leave. Ishouldleave.

But wait...

The thought comes unbidden, like a whisper at the back of my mind. Maybe I don’t want to leave. Not completely. Not yet.

I glance around, but it’s more than just the physical space around me. It’s Torin, standing in the shadows. I can feel him there, even though I can’t see him. He’s watching, waiting, like he always does. His presence pulls at me in ways I can’t explain. His power. His magic. The raw, untamed feeling of him—like nothing in this world is beyond his reach.

The idea of leaving this, of running back into the world I used to know, suddenly feels wrong. Not because of Varek, butbecause of what I’ve found here. I’ve felt something I’ve never felt before—alive. I’ve felt the rush of power, the connection, the way everything seems to make sense when I’m near them. The way I canfeelthe power inside me.

Is that why you can’t leave?A small voice in my head asks.Because of the magic? The power?

I can’t deny it. There’s something about this world—the chaos, the fire, the sheer unpredictability—that makes me feel like I’m finally seeing the world as it really is. It’s terrifying, but it’s also liberating. I don’t have to hide. I don’t have to pretend I’m someone I’m not. For the first time, I’m not justsurviving. I’m living.

And then there's the other part of me—the part that’salwaysbeen in control. The part that survived on instinct, on strength, on being the one who knew how to navigate the dark. Varek fits into that world perfectly. The old world. The world where I took an oath to hunt warlocks and avenge my family.

But now? This new world, this new life, it’s pulling at me in ways I can’t ignore. I’m not just a hunter anymore. I’m something more.

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