Page 53 of Fated Wolf's Destiny

The first lunge comes fast, but not fast enough. My body reacts on instinct, twisting as my wolf surges to the surface. The air around me crackles, colors flashing in a maelstrom of power.Lightning and shadow collide, swirling as the shift overtakes me. There’s no pain, no awkward transition—just a rush of energy, primal and unrelenting.

One second, I’m human. The next, I’m wolf.

The cabin warps in my sharpened senses, every creak of the floorboards and movement of the mutants amplified. My paws scrape against the wooden planks as I lower my body, a growl rumbling deep in my chest. To my left, Lucas has shifted too, his wolf a bit leaner and smaller, but deadly, nonetheless.

The mutant who lunged stumbles back, startled by the sudden transformation. But it’s too late. Lucas leaps first—a flash of predatory grace—a blur of fur and teeth. I’m right behind him, barreling into the leader with the full weight of my body.

The fight is chaotic, claws and teeth flashing in the dim light. The mutants are strong, but their attacks are wild, uncoordinated. They fight like loners, like scavengers. Lucas and I fight like the pack we are—relentless and precise.

The leader snaps at me, his fangs grazing my shoulder, but I twist away, slamming my weight into his side. He yelps, stumbling into the wall. Lucas takes down another mutant, his jaws closing around its foreleg with a sickening crunch.

A sharp scream cuts through the cacophony, and I whip around to see Bella standing against the fireplace, her eyes wide but fierce. She’s holding a heavy iron poker, her grip steady despite the chaos around her.

One of the mutants lunges at her, its eyes wild with desperation. A snarl tears from my throat, but before I can reach her, Bella steps into the attack. She swings the poker in a brutal arc, connecting with the mutant’s skull. The crack echoes through the cabin, and the mutant crumples to the ground.

My heart pounds as I watch her, a mixture of pride and terror surging through me. She’s fearless, but she’s human—for now.The glow in her eyes says otherwise, flickering with the latent power of her wolf, but it’s not enough. Not yet.

Another mutant breaks from Lucas and rushes toward her. Time slows, my vision tunneling as I leap toward her. Bella doesn’t flinch. She raises the poker again, but I reach the mutant first, my jaws clamping around its throat and yanking it away from her. The taste of blood floods my mouth as I shake it viciously, tossing it to the side.

The cabin falls silent except for the heavy breathing of those of us left standing. With his teeth bared, Lucas towers over the last mutant left alive who’s on the floor, daring it to move. It doesn’t.

Bella looks at me, her chest heaving, the poker still gripped in her hands. Her eyes meet mine. For a moment, I think she might shift, but the glow fades, leaving her trembling and still human.

“Ryder…” she whispers, her voice raw.

I shift back, the maelstrom of energy swirling around me as I regain my human form. I step toward her, my hand reaching out to brush a stray hair from her face. “I knew I should have left you at the lodge,” I mutter, my voice rough but steady.

Her hand trembles as she reaches for mine. “That wouldn’t have worked, and you know it. I’m fine by the way. You?”

I try not to grin, but I can’t help it. She might have been safer back at the lodge, but that will never be her way… our way.

“You did well,” I say, the words catching in my throat.

“I didn’t have much choice, you’re my mate. Besides, you aren’t invincible, you know.”

My lips twitch despite myself. “Don’t let Lucas hear you say that.”

The humor is short-lived. The cabin is silent now, the Crimson Claw, at least those we confronted in the cabin, are defeated, but the air hums with unresolved tension. Bella steps closer, her fingers brushing the wound on my shoulder.

Lucas shifts back too, his grin as sharp as ever. “Damn, Bella, you’ve got more fight in you than half the pack.”

“This isn’t over,” she whispers.

“No,” I agree, my gaze sweeping the room and looking at our mutant prisoner cowering before my brother. “It’s just beginning.”

And in the distance, a howl cuts through the night—haunting, echoing, and far too close.

CHAPTER 20

RYDER

The Nightshade Pack’s meeting hall is cold and echoing, the stone walls and high ceilings lending a sense of gravity to the gathering. The Elders sit in a semicircle, their expressions a mixture of skepticism and unease. I have called the pack together to meet in the great hall and not the Elders’ council chamber. They’ve always been slow to change—centuries of tradition will do that to a group—but tonight feels different. Tonight, they’re staring down the edge of extinction, and I’m telling them we are going to take a leap of faith.

The room hums with tension, the Elders and the rest of the pack murmuring amongst themselves. Bella sits at the far end of the hall, her posture stiff but proud. I can feel her eyes on me, burning with defiance and something deeper. She won’t beg for acceptance, but the stakes are written all over her face. She needs this—needs them to see her the way I do.

Lucas speaks up from where he leans casually against the wall, his arms crossed. “You’re all so caught up in the past you can’t see the future staring you in the face. Bella’s exactly what we need right now. She’s smart, brave, and she may haveinformation about the Crimson Claw that might give us the edge we’ve been missing. Don’t let your pride blind you.”

Elder Cal clears his throat, his pale eyes narrowing. “And what happens when her human side gets in the way? When she falters because she doesn’t understand what it means to be fully wolf?”

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