Kira's POV
The plate slipped from my wet hands and crashed onto the floor.
"Kira! That's the third one tonight!" Mr. Wu's angry voice boomed from the kitchen. "Those come out of your paycheck!"
I bent down to pick up the broken pieces, my knees aching from standing for six hours straight. My fingers were wrinkled like raisins from all the dishwater. Outside the restaurant windows, I could see families laughing together. They were eating dumplings and watching the red lanterns swing in the cold wind.
It was Lunar New Year. Everyone in Oakhaven was celebrating. Everyone except me.
"Sorry, Mr. Wu," I called back, dumping the broken plate into the trash. I was so tired I could barely see straight. This was my third job today. I'd cleaned offices this morning and delivered newspapers this afternoon. Now I was washing dishes until midnight.
I was twenty-three years old, and this was my life. Wake up. Work. Sleep. Repeat.
No family. No friends. No one who cared if I lived or died.
I grabbed another greasy plate and scrubbed it hard. Through the window, I watched a little girl run to her father. He picked her up and spun her around. She was giggling so loud I could almost hear it through the glass.
My chest felt tight. I looked away.
I didn't remember my parents. The orphanage told me they left me on the steps when I was a baby. No note. No explanation. Just a blanket with my name written on it: Kira Chen.
Even the other orphans had someone visit them sometimes. Aunts. Uncles. Cousins. But not me. I had nobody.
"Kira! Stop daydreaming!" Mr. Wu yelled. "Table seven needs clearing!"
I dried my hands and hurried into the dining room. Table seven was covered with empty bowls and used chopsticks. The family who'd been sitting there was gone. They'd left a small tip just a few coins.
I pocketed the money and started stacking the dirty dishes. My stomach growled. I hadn't eaten since this morning. Mr. Wu said employees got free food, but only after the customers were fed. And on holidays, the customers never stopped coming.
By the time I finished my shift, it was almost one in the morning. The streets were finally quiet. The festival was over for tonight. Tomorrow, people would start celebrating again, but I'd be working.
I pulled my thin jacket tight and started walking home. My apartment was on the other side of town, in the cheap part where the streetlights were always broken. I usually took the bus, but I'd spent my last dollar on medicine yesterday. My throat had been sore all week.
So I walked. And walked. And walked.
The temperature dropped fast. I could see my breath in the air like little white clouds. My fingers were going numb. I should have brought gloves, but I only owned one pair, and they had holes in them.
I decided to take a shortcut through the old industrial district. It was creepy at night, but it would save me twenty minutes. Right now, that sounded worth it.
The alley was dark and narrow. Broken bottles crunched under my feet. Somewhere in the distance, I heard a dog barking. Or maybe it was a wolf. People said there were wild wolves in the mountains around Oakhaven, but I'd never seen one.
I was halfway through the alley when I heard it.
A heavy, metallic clinking sound. Like chains dragging on concrete.
I froze.
"Hello?" My voice came out shaky. "Is someone there?"
Silence.
Then I heard it again. Clink. Clink. Clink.
My heart started pounding. Every smart part of my brain screamed at me to run. But there was another part a curious part that made me take a step forward.
And another.
And another.
That's when I saw him.
A man was pinned against the brick wall. Huge metal chains wrapped around his wrists and chest. They looked heavy so heavy that I didn't understand how the wall was holding them. But what made my blood run cold was the color of the chains.
Silver.
And they were glowing. Actually glowing, like they were burning from the inside. Where the silver touched the man's skin, smoke rose up. The smell of burning flesh filled the air.
"Oh my God," I whispered.
The man's head lifted slowly. His eyes met mine. They were the most beautiful eyes I'd ever seen bright gold, like coins in sunlight. But they were also filled with pain.
"Run," he said. His voice was deep and rough. "Run away. Now."
I should have listened. I really should have. But instead, I moved closer.
"You're hurt," I said stupidly. "Those chains are burning you."
"I said RUN!" he roared.
The sound wasn't human. It was too loud, too wild. It echoed off the alley walls and made the windows rattle.
I stumbled backward, my heart in my throat.
But then I saw his face properly. He wasn't just in pain. He was terrified. Not of me. Of something else. Something I couldn't see.
"Please," he said, quieter now. "You have to go. They're coming back. If they find you here"
"Who's coming back?" I asked.
"Hunters," he gasped. "Human hunters. They'll kill you just for seeing me."
My hands were shaking. This was insane. I should run. I should call the police. I should do anything except stand here talking to a chained-up stranger in a dark alley.
But something inside me wouldn't let me leave.
Maybe it was because I knew what it felt like to be alone and hurting. Maybe it was because those gold eyes looked at me like I was the only person in the world who could help.
Or maybe it was because, when I looked at the silver chains, my hands started to feel warm. Hot, even. Like someone had lit a fire under my skin.
"What are you?" I whispered.
"Something you don't want to know about," he said. His voice was getting weaker. "Please. Just go. Forget you saw me."
But I couldn't forget. Not when he looked so broken. Not when every part of me was screaming that this was important somehow.
I took another step closer. The heat in my hands was growing stronger. It didn't hurt. It felt good. Like coming home after being lost for a long time.
"Don't touch the silver," the man warned. "It will burn you. It burns everyone."
Without thinking, I reached out and grabbed the lock.
The world exploded in green light.
My hands burned but not with pain. With power. Pure, electric power that rushed through my veins like lightning. The silver lock shattered in my grip like it was made of glass, not metal.
The chains fell away from the man's body and crashed to the ground.
He stared at me. I stared at him.
"What..." I breathed. "What just happened?"
"You broke it," he whispered. His eyes were wide with shock. "You actually broke it. That's impossible."
"What do you mean impossible? I just"
I didn't get to finish my sentence.
The man's eyes went even wider. But this time, it wasn't shock on his face. It was fear.
"They're here," he said.
I heard footsteps. Heavy boots hitting the pavement. Lots of them. Coming from both ends of the alley.
"Hide," the man said urgently. "Hide now!"
"But"
"NOW!"
I dove behind a dumpster just as bright lights flooded the alley. I pressed myself against the cold metal and tried not to breathe.
Through a crack, I could see men in black uniforms marching toward the chained man. No, wait. He wasn't chained anymore. The silver was on the ground.
One of the men stopped. He was tall and had a scar across his face.
"Where are your chains, wolf?" he asked.
Wolf?
The man on the wall didn't answer.
The scarred man looked around. His eyes swept over my hiding spot. I held my breath.
"Someone was here," Scarface said. "I can smell human fear. Fresh."
My heart was beating so hard I thought they might hear it.
Then something crazy happened.
The chained man the one they called a wolf started to laugh. It was a dark, dangerous sound.
"You want to know who was here?" he said. "You want to know who broke your precious silver chains?"
"Tell me," Scarface demanded.
The man's eyes found mine through the crack. Those beautiful gold eyes locked onto me.
And then, right before my eyes, his body started to change. His bones cracked. His skin rippled. Dark fur sprouted from his arms and face.
In three seconds flat, a massive wolf stood where the man had been. A wolf as big as a horse, with golden eyes that still looked human.
I wanted to scream. I wanted to run. But I couldn't move. I was frozen in shock.
The wolf's mouth opened, and it spoke. Actually spoke in a deep, growling voice.
"She's mine," it said, looking right at me. "My Kindred. And if you touch her, I'll rip out your throats."
The men raised their weapons. Silver bullets gleamed in the light.
And the wolf jumped.
Not at the men.
At me.
Everything went black.