Chapter 11
The Choice That Will Break Me.
Ava's POV
I woke up slowly, the soft morning light filtering through the cracks in the cabin walls, warm against my skin. For a moment, I didn't move. I just lay there, my body still lingering with the memory of his touch.
The way his lips moved over my skin, burned away the loneliness I had carried for far too long. His hands held me like I was something precious and forbidden.
Last night felt like a dream…wild, impossible. But it was real. I could still feel the gear radiating from the sheets, his scent still clinging faintly to my skin. A for a second..just a single, foolish second—I let myself believe we meant something more now.
Maybe the walls between us had finally broken enough for something real to slip through. But then I turned, and the other side of the bed was cold. Empty.
Caden was gone. And at that moment, everything shattered. I sat up slowly, the sheet slipping from my shoulders, exposing skin that suddenly felt far too bare. No note, not a sign he had even been here at all….except for the way my heart still ached
What had I expected? That he would stay? We would wake up tangled in the morning light, and somehow everything would be different. God, how stupid could I be?
I pressed my hands to my face, squeezing my eyes shut against the sting rising in my chest. I have myself to him, completely. Maybe it was just a momentary escape for him. Nothing but a one-night mistake.
Was that all I was to him?
A mistake to be left behind in the dark?
But all I could still hear was the echo of his voice…or rather, his wolf's voice, still haunting my thoughts. "Help me." Last night should have broken the hatred between us. But it only made the cracks deeper.
I stood, dressed quickly, and walked out into the morning chill. The forest stretched before me, quiet but tense, as if holding its breath. I knew where I had to go, if anyone had answers, it would be the healer.
Maybe she could tell me how to save the man whose heart was split into two. I followed the narrow forest path, leaves crunching under my boots. My thoughts tangled like vines along the trail. Did Caden regret what happened between us last night?
Did he leave to protect me if Seraphina were to ever find out? Or was he running from what he felt? But underneath all of it ... what did Seraphina do to him? I pressed my palm on my chest, remembering the sound of his wolf crying out to me.
Breaking ... dying. A sharp breeze cut through the forest ahead, and I stepped into it without hesitation. But then— the world shifted. The path under my feet began to fade into mist. The trees grew taller, their branches twisting like arms reaching for something unseen.
And in the middle. He stood there, with skin the color of worn bark and his eyes glowing like ambers buried deep in the soil. I froze, every instinct in me yelling at me to run, but my feet stayed rooted in place.
He moved his head, watching me as if he had been expecting this moment for centuries. "So it begins," he spoke, his voice deep and rough. "The cursed child stands at the crossroads."
I swallowed the lump in my throat, my pulse pounding. "You know who I am?" He gave a small nod. "Daughter of the shadow. Mate of the cursed." Every word he said struck me like blows, each one heavier than the last.
"What do you want from me?" My voice was barely above a whisper.
"It is not what I want, child. It is what fate demands." He stepped closer, the earth shaking softly under his bare feet. My stomach twisted.
"What prophecy?"
He extended his hand, and images flickered in the air between us—visions of darkness spreading through the forest, wolves with glowing red eyes, their bodies twisted by shadows.
An ancient evil wears your sister's face," he said. "And soon you will have to make a choice that will tear your soul apart."
I staggered back, the images burning through my mind. "What choice?" His gaze burned into mine, fierce and unyielding. "You must destroy the one wearing your sister's face…"
"Or…sacrifice your mate's bond to free Caden's wolf from the chains that bind him." My breath left me in a broken gasp.
No.." I whispered, "I can't…I can't lose him."
"If you do not make a choice," he continued, his voice low." the darkness will consume the pack. The wolves will become shadow-bound, servants of the dark one."
"Blackvale will fall silent for eternity."
Tears rolled down my cheeks, but I clenched my fists, holding them back. "How do I free him without losing our bond?" I asked, desperate.
There has to be another way please." His face softened, sadness flickering in his ancient eyes. "Every power comes with a price, child. Love…or life."
The wind howled through the trees, scattering leaves like broken pieces of a forgotten promise. "Time is running out, Ava, " he added. "The darkness which Seraphina brought is growing darker every time your heart hesitates."
I stared at the ground, chest aching, war waging in my soul. Kill my sister—if that's even what she is. Or lose the only man who ever truly saw me.
How was that a choice?
"Will you show me how to save him?" I whispered. But in an instant his gaze shifted away from me, turning to something behind me. The expression on his face was suddenly sharp.
"I am not the only one watching you."