That night, Vixen made sure Kin slept in his arms.
Every time Kin shifted, Vixen's embrace tightened, as if his body alone could shield the Omega from whatever had been stalking them.
For a while, it seemed to work. Kin's breathing slowed. His trembling faded. His eyes finally closed.
But the moment Kin's consciousness slipped into sleep… the world changed.
He stood in the middle of a narrow hallway he didn't recognize. The walls were damp, the ceiling too low. Every step he took echoed unnaturally, as though the sound came from somewhere far away.
There was only one thing ahead of him—a wooden door.
Old. Heavy. Its surface scratched, as if someone had clawed at it from the other side.
Kin… open the door.
Shen Seizan's voice again. Calm. Familiar.
Only this time, it was laced with something… hungry.
Kin took a step back. "No…"
The voice turned urgent. "Please… I'm trapped. You promised you'd help me…"
Kin's heart pounded in his ears. The hallway felt colder. The shadows at the edges of his vision began to move, writhing like snakes.
Something brushed his ankle. Cold. Wet. Fingers.
Kin stumbled backward—only to find the wall behind him gone. There was nothing but blackness stretching into forever. The door now seemed closer, even though he hadn't moved toward it.
The voice became a whisper, right at his ear.
"Open it… or I'll come through myself."
The wooden surface groaned as if something inside was pressing against it. The scratch marks deepened before his eyes, fresh splinters falling to the floor.
Kin screamed—
And woke up.
Vixen was shaking him gently, his expression tense.
"You were thrashing," Vixen murmured. "Sweating. I could smell your fear even in your sleep."
Kin clutched at Vixen's shirt. "There was… a door. Someone was behind it. They wanted me to open it…"
Vixen's jaw tightened. "It's trying to reach you in places I can't follow," he said, voice low and dangerous. "Even my pheromones can't guard you in your dreams."
Before Kin could reply, a loud creaaak came from the corner of the room.
Both of them turned.
There, against the wall where nothing had been before—
stood an old, heavy wooden door.
The same one from Kin's dream.
Continue....