CAIN'S POV
The silver wolf was dying.
I jerked awake, gasping for air. Sweat soaked my sheets. My heart pounded like I'd been running for miles.
It was just a dream. Just another stupid dream.
Except my wrists were on fire.
I threw off the blankets and stared at my arms. No wounds. No marks. Nothing.
But the pain was real. Burning. Like someone wrapped silver chains around my wrists and wouldn't let go.
"What the hell?" I whispered.
This was the third night in a row. Three nights of dreaming about that silver wolf. But tonight was different.
Tonight, the wolf wasn't running free in the forest. She was trapped. Chained. Crying.
And I felt every second of her pain.
I stumbled to the bathroom and ran cold water over my wrists. The burning didn't stop. It never stopped anymore.
Something was wrong with me. Really wrong.
Maybe I was going crazy like Uncle James. He lost his mind after his mate died. Started seeing things that weren't there. Talking to ghosts.
Father had to lock him up.
I stared at myself in the mirror. My amber eyes looked wild. Scared.
I wasn't scared of anything. I was the pack enforcer. The strong one. The one who never showed weakness.
But right now, I was terrified.
Because the silver wolf in my dreams felt real. And tonight, when she cried, I heard a voice.
Help me.
I splashed more water on my face and went back to bed. I had training in three hours. Darius would kill me if I showed up tired again.
But when I closed my eyes, I saw her. The silver wolf. Her violet eyes staring at me through the darkness.
She was somewhere close. I could feel it.
No. That was impossible. She was just a dream.
I forced myself to sleep.
—
"Cain! Pay attention!"
Darius's fist slammed into my face before I could block it. I hit the training mat hard, tasting blood.
"Sorry," I muttered, getting up.
"Sorry?" Darius glared at me. "We're training for the challenge matches next month. If you can't focus, you're going to get yourself killed."
"I said I'm sorry."
"What's wrong with you?" Ryker asked from the side of the mat. "You've been weird all week."
"I'm fine."
"You're not fine." Darius stepped closer. "You look like you haven't slept in days. Are you sick?"
Yes. No. I didn't know.
"Just bad dreams," I said.
"Dreams?" Ryker laughed. "Since when do dreams bother you? You once slept through a rogue attack."
Darius studied my face. His ice-blue eyes missed nothing. "What kind of dreams?"
I couldn't tell them. They'd think I was losing it.
"Nothing important. Can we just finish training?"
Darius looked like he wanted to push harder, but Father walked into the training room. We all straightened immediately.
"Boys," Father said. "I need you to increase patrols tonight. We have a security concern."
"What kind of concern?" Darius asked.
"The omega tried to escape last night." Father's voice was cold. "She failed, obviously. But I want to make sure no one helps her try again."
The omega. Mira.
Why did my chest hurt when Father said her name?
"Where is she now?" The question came out before I could stop it.
Father's eyes narrowed. "Why do you care?"
"I don't. Just wondering if she's still a threat."
"She's locked in the basement. Silver chains. She's not going anywhere." Father smiled, but it wasn't nice. "In fact, I need one of you to check on her later. Make sure she understands her place."
"I'll do it," Darius said quickly.
"No." Father shook his head. "You're too important. Cain, you go. You're good at intimidation."
My stomach dropped. "Yes, sir."
Father left. Darius went back to the punching bag. Ryker started stretching for his run.
But I stood frozen.
The basement. That's where the pull was coming from. That's why I kept feeling drawn to the lower levels of the packhouse.
The silver wolf was in the basement.
No. The omega was in the basement. They weren't the same thing.
Were they?
My wrists started burning again. Worse this time. I gritted my teeth and tried to ignore it.
"Cain?" Ryker was staring at me. "You okay? You look pale."
"I'm fine. Just... need some air."
I walked out before they could ask more questions. But instead of going outside, my feet carried me toward the basement stairs.
I didn't want to go down there. Every instinct screamed at me to turn around.
But the pull was too strong.
Step by step, I went down. The air got colder. Damper. I could smell blood and silver and something else. Something that made my wolf pace inside me.
The basement door was locked. I had the key—all the heirs did.
My hand shook as I unlocked it.
What was I doing? Father said to check on her later, not now.
But I couldn't stop. I had to see. Had to know.
I pushed open the door.
The basement was dark except for one dim light. And there, chained to the wall with silver, was the omega.
Mira.
She looked so small. So broken. Blood dried on her neck. Her wrists were raw and bleeding where the silver burned her skin.
And her eyes—
Violet. Just like the wolf in my dreams.
Our eyes met.
Everything stopped. The world. Time. My heartbeat.
For one impossible second, I felt it. A golden thread stretching from my chest to hers. Warm. Right. Perfect.
Then it was gone.
"What do you want?" Her voice was rough. Tired. "Come to hurt me more?"
"I—" I didn't know what to say. "I came to check on you. Father's orders."
"Well, I'm still alive. Barely. You can report back now."
She turned her face away, but not before I saw tears on her cheeks.
My wrists burned worse. And suddenly, I knew.
The pain I was feeling—it was hers. Somehow, I was feeling her pain.
That was impossible. Unless—
No. It couldn't be.
"Why are you really here?" Mira whispered. "Did Magnus send you to scare me? Or did you just want to watch me suffer?"
"Neither. I don't know why I'm here."
She laughed bitterly. "Honest, at least. Most of you just lie."
I should leave. Turn around and walk away. Forget I ever came down here.
But when I looked at her violet eyes, all I could see was the silver wolf from my dreams.
"How old are you?" I asked suddenly.
"What?"
"How old are you?"
"Seventeen. I turn eighteen in—" She stopped. "Why does it matter?"
Eighteen. The age when wolves first shift.
Two weeks. That's when she said it. Two weeks until her birthday.
Two weeks until the silver wolf in my dreams becomes real.
My hands started shaking. This couldn't be happening.
"You need to tell me the truth," I said, stepping closer. "Are you—"
The basement door slammed open.
Darius stood at the top of the stairs, his face dark with anger.
"Cain. What are you doing down here?"
I turned, blocking his view of Mira. "Father told me to check on the prisoner."
"He said later. Not now." Darius came down the stairs slowly. "Why are you really here?"
Behind me, I heard Mira's breathing speed up. She was scared.
And I had no idea why that made me angry.
"I already told you—"
"You're lying." Darius's eyes flashed alpha gold. "I can tell when you're lying, brother. You've been acting strange all week. Distracted. Tired. And now I find you down here with her?"
"It's not what you think."
"Then what is it?" Darius looked past me at Mira. His jaw tightened. "Did she do something to you? Use some kind of trick?"
"No, she—"
"Move aside, Cain."
It wasn't a request. It was an alpha command.
But for the first time in my life, I didn't want to obey.
I wanted to protect the girl chained to the wall. The omega who everyone hated. The silver wolf from my dreams.
And I had no idea why.