The attack didn't come at night.
That was the first mistake the hunters made.
Alex was walking home with Marcus after basketball practice, the sky still bruised purple with fading daylight. The streets were busy—cars passing, people heading home, life happening like it always did.
Too normal.
Alex's instincts flared so hard he nearly stopped walking.
"Marcus," he said quickly, "I forgot something at school. Go ahead."
Marcus frowned. "You sure? You've been acting—"
"Please," Alex cut in, sharper than he meant to.
Marcus hesitated, then nodded. "Yeah. See you tomorrow."
The moment Marcus turned the corner, the pressure hit.
Three heartbeats. Calm. Trained.
Hunters.
A van slowed behind him.
Alex didn't run. Not yet.
"Alex Carter," a man's voice called from behind. "Don't make this difficult."
Alex turned.
They looked ordinary—jeans, jackets, nothing that screamed danger. But he could smell the weapons, the metal, the old blood soaked into their clothes.
"You shouldn't be near my friends," Alex said.
One of the men smiled. "You shouldn't exist."
The world snapped into focus.
Alex moved.
He shoved the nearest hunter into a parked car hard enough to dent the door, spinning away as another lunged. His claws slid out, slicing the air—but he pulled the blow at the last second, slashing fabric instead of flesh.
"Non-lethal!" he shouted to himself.
A sharp pain exploded in his side as something struck him—a dart. His muscles screamed, threatening to lock up.
Poison.
Alex growled, low and dangerous.
Enough.
He let the power rise—not fully, not lost—but enough.
He disarmed one hunter, crushed another's weapon against the pavement, and sent the third stumbling back in fear. Sirens wailed in the distance.
The hunters retreated, dragging their wounded into the van.
"You can't protect everyone," one of them shouted as they sped away. "We'll prove it."
Alex stood shaking in the street, claws retracting, heart pounding.
They had followed him.
They had learned his name.
And they had come for his life—in daylight.
Mara appeared beside him moments later, eyes sharp.
"They crossed a boundary," she said.
Alex nodded slowly, anger burning beneath his fear.
"Then so will I."
Above them, the city lights flickered.
The hunt was no longer hidden.