The morning sun should have been comforting, but Lianna felt no warmth as it spilled across her room.
She sat on her bed, the covers tangled around her legs, her hair damp with sweat from the nightmares that had chased her until dawn. No matter how many times she closed her eyes, she saw them—shadows clawing from the lake, eyes gleaming with hunger, reaching for her.
Her wrist still tingled faintly, the mark glowing when she thought too hard about it. She had hidden it beneath a bandage, as if covering it could erase everything.
"Maybe I imagined it," she whispered to herself. "Maybe it was just a dream."
But the faint ache in her wrist laughed at her denial.
Her phone buzzed.
Lianna flinched violently, snatching it off the table with shaking hands. Relief washed over her when she saw Elena's name.
Elena: You alive? Or do I need to bust down your door?
Lianna exhaled shakily and typed back.
Me: I'm fine. Didn't sleep much.
The reply came instantly.
Elena: Lies. I'm coming over. Don't fight me.
A groan escaped Lianna as she buried her face in her hands. Elena was relentless, and today of all days, Lianna wasn't sure she could handle her best friend's sharp eyes.
Still, a part of her craved Elena's presence—her normalcy, her grounding energy.
---
Fifteen minutes later, Elena burst through the door, a bag of takeout in one hand and her usual dramatic flair in full swing.
"You look like a ghost," Elena declared, plopping the bag on the table. "Coffee, breakfast sandwiches, and my sparkling personality to save the day."
Lianna tried to smile, but it faltered.
Elena narrowed her eyes immediately. "Okay, what happened? Don't tell me nothing—I know your 'I'm fine' face, and that is not it."
Lianna hesitated. She couldn't tell Elena everything, not after what happened at the lake. If Elena knew about the shadows, she'd never let Lianna out of her sight again.
"I… had a bad night," Lianna admitted. "Nightmares. Couldn't shake them."
Elena studied her for a long moment before sighing. "Fine. But I'm keeping an eye on you."
As they ate, Elena chattered about her latest crush, her college classes, anything and everything normal. Lianna tried to follow along, nodding and smiling in the right places, but her mind kept drifting back to Kael.
His name alone made her chest tighten. His words echoed in her head: You must stay with me.
No. She couldn't. She wouldn't.
---
By late afternoon, Elena had left, promising to check in later. Lianna stood by the window, staring at the street below. Life went on as usual—neighbors walking dogs, cars rushing past, children laughing as they chased each other.
She envied them.
A knock at the door startled her.
Her stomach dropped.
Slowly, she crossed the room and pressed her ear to the door. "Who is it?"
Silence.
Her pulse quickened. She backed away, heart hammering.
Then the lock clicked open.
Lianna gasped, stumbling backward as the door swung inward.
And there he was.
Kael.
He stepped inside as though he belonged there, his dark presence filling the small apartment.
"You—" Her voice broke. "How did you—"
"I told you," he said calmly, closing the door behind him. "The bond won't let me stay away."
Lianna's chest heaved. Anger flared, mixing with fear. "You can't just break into my home!"
"I didn't break in," Kael replied evenly. "The door opened because you wanted it to."
"That's a lie!"
He met her gaze, his storm-colored eyes steady. "Your heart knows the truth, even if your mind denies it."
Lianna's throat tightened. "Why are you here?"
Kael's expression softened slightly, though his presence remained commanding. "Because you are in danger. The Shadows won't stop until you accept the bond. And if you refuse, they will consume you."
Her knees weakened. "No… no, this isn't real. It can't be."
Kael stepped closer, his voice low, almost gentle. "It is. And whether you like it or not, your life as you knew it is over."
The words struck like a blow. Lianna backed against the wall, shaking her head furiously. "No. I don't want this. I just want to be normal."
Kael's gaze darkened. "Normal is no longer an option."
Lianna's breaths came fast and uneven. The room felt too small, every corner filled with Kael's overwhelming presence.
She pressed her hands against the wall behind her as if she could sink through it, escape this impossible reality.
"I don't believe you," she whispered, though her trembling voice betrayed her. "This is all some kind of… trick."
Kael tilted his head, studying her. "Do you think you could dream pain? The shadows marked you. The bond branded you. Look at your wrist."
She clenched her fist tightly, refusing to glance down. If she didn't see it, maybe it wasn't there.
But the skin beneath the bandage burned.
Kael's voice softened, though his eyes remained sharp. "I don't wish to frighten you, Lianna. But you need to understand: the more you deny this, the more vulnerable you become. Already the shadows are restless. They sense your fear. They hunger for it."
Her stomach twisted. "Stop. Just—stop talking like that."
"Then listen," he urged, stepping closer. "I am the only one who can protect you now."
She snapped her gaze to him, fury breaking through her fear. "I don't need your protection! I don't even know you!"
Kael's jaw tensed. For a fleeting moment, something flickered across his face—pain, regret, longing. Then it vanished, replaced by the steady calm that made her want to scream.
"You will," he said simply.
The certainty in his tone rattled her.
Lianna shoved past him, her legs shaking as she stumbled toward the kitchen. She gripped the counter like an anchor, her heart pounding. "You can't just… show up in my life and decide everything for me."
Kael turned, his dark cloak brushing the floor as he moved. "It isn't my decision. Fate bound us. Even I cannot undo it."
She spun to face him, her voice raw. "Then maybe I don't care about fate!"
For the first time, Kael's calm cracked. His eyes flashed, storm clouds swirling in their depths. The room seemed to darken, shadows stretching toward him.
"You should," he said, his voice low, dangerous. "Because fate always collects its debt."
The air between them pulsed with tension. Lianna's hands trembled against the counter, her nails digging into the wood. She wanted to scream, to cry, to demand answers—but before she could, a noise shattered the silence.
A creak.
From her bedroom.
Both of them froze.