Two Days
Before the Full Moon
Age 22
The city
swallowed me whole again, its noise and chaos a stark contrast to the eerie
quiet of Silverfang Manor's grounds. New York City buzzed with life—cars
honking, voices shouting, the grind of a subway beneath my feet as Kael and I
stepped off the bus in Brooklyn. The rain had followed us from the manor, a
steady drizzle that soaked through my jacket, but I barely noticed. My focus
was razor-sharp, my wolf on edge, her senses straining for any hint of danger.
The pendant at my throat pulsed softly, its warmth a constant reminder of the
power I'd unleashed—and the target it made me.
Kael
walked beside me, his posture tense, his green eyes scanning the crowded
street. His arm was bandaged from the creature's claws, but he moved like it
didn't bother him, his dagger tucked into his belt beneath his jacket. "The
warehouse is a few blocks from here," he said, his voice low, barely audible
over the city's din. "It's one of the Mafia Leader's fronts—a shipping company
that moves more than just cargo. I've seen his men there, but we need to be
careful. They'll sense us if we get too close."
I
nodded, my heart pounding as we wove through the crowd, my wolf growling softly
at the press of bodies. The city smelled of wet pavement, exhaust, and the
faint tang of fear—mine, maybe, or someone else's. I couldn't tell anymore. The
blood oath tugged at me, a faint pull toward Darius, who'd stayed behind to
handle pack business and reinforce the manor's defenses. I hated that I missed
his steady presence, hated that I felt the bond so keenly now, but I pushed the
thought aside. I didn't have time for distractions—not with the full moon so
close.
We
turned down a narrower street, the buildings growing shabbier, their brick
facades stained with grime and time. The warehouse loomed at the end of the
block, a squat, gray structure with boarded-up windows and a rusted sign that
read Harbor Freight Co. The air around it felt heavy, charged
with something dark, unnatural, and my wolf snarled, her hackles rising. The
pendant flared, its light faint but steady, and I heard my mother's voice
again, a whisper in the back of my mind: Be careful, my brave girl.
"Kael,"
I said, my voice low as we ducked into an alley across from the warehouse.
"Something's off. I can feel it."
He
nodded, his eyes glowing faintly gold as his own wolf stirred. "I feel it too,"
he said, his voice a growl. "Dark magic. They're using it to mask their
presence—probably to hide from the pack. Stay close, and don't let your guard
down."
We
crouched behind a dumpster, the stench of rotting garbage mixing with the rain,
and watched the warehouse. A few men moved outside, their movements too
precise, too predatory to be human. Wolves, but not pack—not ours. Their scents
were wrong, tinged with something bitter, something that made my wolf snarl
louder. One of them carried a crate, its surface etched with runes that glowed
faintly red, and my stomach twisted. Whatever was in there, it wasn't cargo.
"They're
preparing for the full moon," Kael whispered, his hand tightening on his
dagger. "Those runes—they're for a ritual. If they're using dark magic, they
might be trying to summon something, or bind something. Maybe even the
pendant's power."
I
touched the pendant, its warmth spreading through me, and felt a surge of
anger. They'd killed my mother for this, hunted me for this, and now they were
planning to use it for some twisted ritual? "We need to stop them," I said, my
voice firm despite the fear clawing at my chest. "Before the full moon."
Kael
nodded, but his expression was grim. "We can't take them head-on," he said.
"There are too many, and we don't know how deep this goes. We need to get
inside, find out what they're planning, and get out. Then we can come back with
Darius and the pack."
I wanted
to argue, to storm the warehouse and tear it apart with my bare hands, but I
knew he was right. I wasn't strong enough—not yet. "Fine," I said, my voice
tight. "But we need to move fast. I don't like how this feels."
We
waited until the men disappeared inside, then darted across the street,
sticking to the shadows as the rain masked our footsteps. The warehouse's side
door was rusted, its lock broken, and Kael pushed it open with a soft creak,
his dagger at the ready. The air inside was thick with the scent of oil, metal,
and something darker—blood, old and stale, mixed with the sharp tang of magic.
My wolf growled, her senses on high alert, and the pendant pulsed, its light
brighter now, casting faint shadows on the concrete floor.
The
warehouse was a maze of crates and machinery, the dim light filtering through
cracked windows high above. Voices echoed from deeper inside, low and guttural,
speaking in a language I didn't understand but could feel—a language of power,
of darkness. Kael motioned for me to follow, and we crept forward, keeping low,
our movements silent.
We
reached a stack of crates near the center of the warehouse, and I peered around
the edge, my breath catching at what I saw. A circle had been carved into the
concrete, its edges glowing with those same red runes, and in the center stood
a man I didn't recognize—but I knew, instinctively, who he was. The Mafia
Leader. He was tall, broad-shouldered, with hair as black as night and eyes
that glowed an unnatural silver. His presence was suffocating, a weight that
pressed against my chest, and my wolf whimpered, torn between fear and fury.
He stood
over a table covered in maps and artifacts, a silver bowl at its center filled
with a dark, shimmering liquid. His men surrounded him, their eyes glowing with
the same silver light, and I realized with a jolt that they weren't just
wolves—they were bound to him, their wolves corrupted by whatever magic he
wielded. The pendant burned against my skin, its light flaring, and I heard my
mother's voice again, sharp and urgent: He sees you.
The
Mafia Leader's head snapped up, his silver eyes locking onto mine through the
crates, and my blood ran cold. "There you are," he said, his voice a low,
resonant growl that echoed through the warehouse. "I've been waiting for you,
Liora Kane."
Kael
grabbed my arm, yanking me back, but it was too late. The men moved, their
movements unnaturally fast, their claws extending as they closed in. My wolf
surged forward, my claws and canines lengthening, but I fought to keep her in
check, knowing I couldn't take them all. "Run!" Kael shouted, shoving me toward
the door as he turned to face them, his dagger flashing.
I
stumbled, my heart pounding, but I didn't run—not yet. The pendant flared
again, its light bursting outward in a wave of silver fire, and the men closest
to us screamed, their bodies recoiling as the light burned through them. The
Mafia Leader didn't flinch, his silver eyes narrowing as he raised a hand, a
pulse of dark energy slamming into me, knocking me to the ground.
Pain
exploded in my chest, the blood oath pulling tight as I felt Darius's alarm
from miles away. My vision blurred, but I forced myself to my feet, grabbing
Kael's arm as he fought off another man. "We have to go!" I shouted, my voice
raw, and he nodded, blood dripping from a cut on his cheek.
We ran,
the warehouse's walls blurring around us as the Mafia Leader's laughter
followed, cold and triumphant. "You can't run forever, Liora," he called, his
voice a promise of death. "The full moon is coming, and your power will be
mine."
We burst
through the door into the rain, our breaths ragged, our bodies bruised but
alive. The street was empty, the city oblivious to the darkness we'd just
escaped, and I leaned against the wall, my hands trembling as I clutched the
pendant. Kael stood beside me, his chest heaving, his eyes glowing with a mix
of fear and determination.
"He
knows I'm here," I said, my voice shaking. "He knows about the pendant."
Kael
nodded, wiping the blood from his cheek. "We need to get back to Darius," he
said, his voice grim. "We can't do this alone."
I
agreed, but as we disappeared into the rain-soaked streets of Brooklyn, the
Mafia Leader's words echoed in my mind, a chilling promise I couldn't escape.
The full moon was two days away, and whatever he had planned, I knew one thing
for certain: I was running out of time.