Secrets and Silence
The academy bustled with its usual energy, but for Lyra and Eryon, every interaction felt heavier, every glance from a peer carried the weight of suspicion. Seraphine’s instructions echoed in their minds, her voice a haunting reminder of the stakes.
“There are allies here,” she had said, her tone cryptic. “But their loyalty depends on discretion. If the King suspects you’re working against him, you won’t live to see the blood moon.”
Lyra struggled under the weight of the secret, her wolf restless and clawing at the edges of her control. Adrian’s growing attention didn’t help matters. He seemed to appear wherever she went, his sharp gaze and unspoken questions pressing against her resolve.
After a grueling training session, Adrian cornered her in the corridor. His expression was unreadable, but his frustration was evident in the way he carried himself, his shoulders tense and his voice low. “You’ve been avoiding me, Lyra,” he said, his tone soft but edged with steel. “What are you hiding?”
Lyra’s pulse quickened, her wolf growling faintly beneath her skin. “I’m not hiding anything,” she replied, her voice barely steady.
Adrian stepped closer, his crimson eyes searching hers. “Don’t lie to me. I can feel it—something’s different about you. You’re not like the others.”
Lyra held her ground, refusing to let her fear show. “Maybe you’re just imagining things,” she said coolly, turning away before he could press further.
Meanwhile, Eryon found himself increasingly distant from Misery. Her sharp intuition made her dangerous, and he couldn’t risk her uncovering their alliance with Seraphine. But Misery wasn’t one to let things go unnoticed.
She confronted him after class, her crimson eyes gleaming with suspicion. “What’s going on with you?” she demanded, stepping into his path. “Don’t think I haven’t noticed the way you’ve been avoiding me.”
Eryon forced a strained smile, his mind racing for a way to deflect her questions. “Nothing’s going on, Misery,” he said, his tone light.
Before she could respond, Eryon acted on impulse. He stepped closer, cupping her face and kissing her with a passion that took her by surprise. Misery stiffened for a moment, then melted into the kiss, her sharp edges softening.
As they pulled apart, Misery smirked faintly, though her expression held a hint of confusion. “Nice distraction,” she murmured. “But this isn’t over.”
Eryon forced himself to laugh, but inside, his wolf paced uneasily.
