Page 6 of Bear Love's Hidden Destiny
He grinned, stepping closer, his hands settling on my hips. “Can’t help it. You’re standing there like that, what am I supposed to do?”
“Focus,” I said, but my voice wavered as he leaned in, his lips brushing the side of my neck, warm and slow. A shiver ran through me, my hands finding his chest, fingers curling into his shirt. “Benedict, we have stuff to do.”
“Mm-hmm,” he murmured against my skin, kissing lower, along the curve of my shoulder. “Plenty of time for that.”
I laughed, pushing him back gently. “You’re impossible. Let me get dressed before you get us stuck here.”
He stepped back, his grin fading into something softer. “Alright, trouble. Get moving.”
I rolled my eyes, grabbing my clothes from the floor. “Trouble? You’re one to talk, mister secret-keeper.” I pulled on my jeans and sweater, the journal tucked into my backpack. Benedict grabbed a jacket and a flashlight, his movements quick but deliberate. As we stepped outside, he took my hand, his fingers intertwining with mine, warm and steady.
I glanced at him, raising an eyebrow. “You’re clingy now?”
He chuckled, squeezing my hand. “Just making sure you don’t run off again.”
“Fair,” I said, smiling despite the tension in my chest. The forest was dark, the fog wrapping tighter around the trees as we moved deeper into the old paths. The trail narrowed, the ground uneven under my boots, but Benedict’s hand kept me steady. The air felt heavier, pressing against my skin, and something strange stirred in my chest. It wasn’t fear, not exactly. It was awareness, like the forest was watching me, recognizing me. The trees seemed to lean closer, their branches whispering in the wind. My pulse quickened, but I kept my eyes on the path, the journal’s weight in my backpack grounding me.
We walked in silence for a while, the only sound our footsteps and the occasional rustle of leaves. Benedict’s grip on my hand tightened as the trail grew steeper, the fog so thick I could barely see ten feet ahead. “Stay close,” he said, his voice low. “This part of the forest doesn’t play nice.”
“Got it,” I said, adjusting my backpack. “What’s in the heart of Esoterra, anyway? Some kind of village? A temple?”
He glanced at me, his expression unreadable. “Something like that. You’ll see.”
“That’s not an answer,” I said, nudging his arm. “Come on, give me something.”
“It’s hard to explain,” he said, his voice softer. “It’s old, older than anything you’ve studied. Just trust me, okay?”
I nodded, but my mind was racing. The journal’s symbols, the Veilborn mark, my grandfather’s notes, they all pointed to something bigger, something alive in this forest. The pull in my chest grew stronger, like a heartbeat syncing with the land itself. I could feel it, a hum under my skin, like the forest was waking up to meet me. The trail twisted through denser trees, their trunks gnarled and ancient, their branches forming a canopy that shut out the sky. I glanced at Benedict, his face set, his eyes scanning the shadows. He was still holding my hand, his thumb brushing absently over my knuckles, and it steadied me, even as the air grew thicker.
The fog seemed to pulse, curling around us like it was alive. I tightened my grip on Benedict’s hand, my other hand resting on the journal in my backpack. “This place feels different,” I said, my voice quiet. “Like it knows we’re here.”
He looked at me, his eyes sharp. “It does. Keep moving.”
I wanted to ask more, but the weight in the air held me silent. The forest was reacting, not just to us but to me, like it was waiting for something. My chest hummed, the awareness growing sharper, and I wondered if Benedict felt it too. The traildipped into a ravine, the ground soft with moss, and I stumbled slightly, his hand catching me before I could fall.
“Careful,” he said, his voice low. “We’re almost there.”
“Almost where?” I asked, but he didn’t answer, just kept moving, pulling me along. The fog parted slightly, revealing a cluster of ancient trees, their trunks wider than I could wrap my arms around. The air was heavier here, the hum in my chest almost a vibration now, like the land was singing to me.
As we rounded a bend, the trunk of a massive tree shifted and groaned. The bark split open like skin, and two eyes blinked back at me from inside the wood.
Chapter Six
Benedict
The moment the tree’s bark split open, my bear roared to life inside me. I stepped in front of Isabella, shielding her with my body as the glowing amber eyes blinked from within the wood. This was no trick of the light. It was a sentient guardian, one of the ancient protectors of Esoterra, waking from its slumber. That only happened when the Veil itself was unstable, when something disrupted the magic holding this place together. My heart pounded, but I kept my face calm, pressing my palm against the rough bark. I murmured a grounding phrase in the old tongue, words I hadn’t spoken in years, passed down from my father. The eyes flickered, then closed, the bark knitting itself back together until the tree stood still again. But the warning was clear. The forest wasn’t sleeping anymore, and Isabella was the reason.
I turned to her, her eyes wide, the journal clutched in her hands. “We need to keep moving,” I said, my voice low but firm. “Stay close.”
“What was that?” she asked, her voice steady despite the shock on her face. “Those eyes, Benedict. That wasn’t normal.”
“No, it wasn’t,” I said, guiding her forward with a hand on her arm. “It’s a guardian. They only wake when something’s wrong. We don’t have time to talk about it now. Come on.”
She nodded, falling into step beside me, but I could see the questions burning in her eyes. The trail wound deeper into the oldest part of Esoterra, where the trees grew thicker, their roots twisting like veins under the earth. The air was heavy, thick with the scent of moss and magic. I led her toward the hidden hollow, a place even most shifters born here had never seen. My bear was on edge, senses sharp, picking up every rustle, every shift in the fog. Isabella stayed close, her flashlight beam cutting through the dark, but I could feel her tension, her curiosity driving her forward despite the danger.
We reached the entrance to the hollow, a massive pine towering over it, its roots gripping a stone structure like claws. The air felt heavier here, the Veil’s magic pulsing faintly. I pushed aside a curtain of vines, revealing a narrow tunnel carved into the rock. “This is it,” I said, glancing at her. “The heart of Esoterra. Stay behind me.”
She didn’t argue, just followed as I ducked into the tunnel, the walls closing in around us. The air inside was cool, smelling of dust and ancient earth. We emerged into a chamber, its walls covered in faded carvings, symbols that matched the ones in her journal. The space was round, maybe thirty feet across, with a low ceiling that made it feel like the forest was pressing down on us. A small altar sat in the center, half-buried under vines, a stone tablet set into its surface. Even in the dim light of our flashlights, I could see the rune etched into it, the same claw-and-flame mark that was on my tattoo, on her journal.
