"Caught you."
Winded and bleeding in the dark cavern, I'm caged in my captor's arms. Yeosang found me. My stomach twists as the Alpha pulls me closer, the power in him as intense and turbulent as ever. With the last of my strength, I lash out at him, clawing at his shadowed face.
"Get off! I won't be claimed by you, you arrogant, psychotic piece of–"
The man dodges my attack and catches my wrist.
"It's me, (Y/N)."
I recognize San's voice before he steps into the light, the cool depths of his silver eyes is the last thing I was expecting to see.
"San? What are you–? I thought you were Yeosang."
"Sorry. There was no time to explain."
I remember the words he used: Caught you.
So. He really does want me for himself.
"San, I'm not your prize." I furrow my brows.
"What?"
"Telling me I could trust you when you wanted this all along?"
I try to rip my arm away from San but he holds it firmly.
"(Y/N)–"
"Let me go!"
That same unbelievable strength returns to me, rising from somewhere deep within…until it reaches my eyes. It pulses with a life force, whispering to me…with two distinctly different voices. Voices I've heard somewhere before… The first voice is that of a man. It radiates golden light that rivals the sun itself. The second is the voice of a woman. It dances like a violet shadow, elegant and dark. All at once, my eyes flare a brilliant shade of gold. San's jaw drops.
"(Y/N), your…"
"I won't say it again. Let. Go."
My words are punctuated with a shock of radiant light. It blinds San and he releases me, staggering back.
"How do you have your wolf eyes? Are you old enough to shift?"
"No, I…I don't turn 21 for another few weeks."
"That color…and that power…"
San moves toward me but I put up my hand, halting him.
"Don't come any closer. You told me you caught me, like you'd won this sick game."
"I didn't mean it like that. You were about to lose consciousness. I literally caught you."
"You actually saved me out there?"
"Yes. Does that really surprise you?"
Suddenly, footsteps boom above us, sending an ice-cold chill through the cavern. Yeosang's hulking shadow eclipses the rocky entrance above. He sniffs the air.
"Where are you?"
He growls, sniffing longer and harder. I clap my hand over my mouth, my heart pounding hard. I am out in the open. Right beneath his feet. Yeosang starts to look down. A swift, silent storm of muscle sweeps me out of the way. San pulls me tight against his chest, pressing me to the cave wall.
"Don't move."
His broad body shields me, the heat and scent of him falling over me like a cloak, masking my presence. Yeosang bends down, his claws crushing the rocks right over my head. I lean into San, doing as he commands, letting him encompass my body with his. His chest muffles the sound of my breath, and his scent washes over mine.
Why does he smell…so good?
I inhale the sweet heady scent of him. It is smokey and a little sweet, like a strong bottle of scotch. Yeosang bends low over the cave. San slips his hand down my back, pressing me even closer to him. My cheek makes contact with his chest. His heart beats against my ear as Yeosang searches my hiding spot.
"You must be around here…somewhere…"
After what feels like forever, Yeosang swears and launches himself deeper into the woods in search of me. San and I sigh in unison. Then, I realize my position.
"Uh, thank you."
"No problem."
I pull myself away from San, untangling my limbs from his with my eyes averted.
"What now? Do we stay here until sunrise?"
"No, we should move. Yeosang is thorough. And he has an army of guards at his command."
San motions for me to follow him. I head deeper into the cave, careful to stay a safe distance from him.
"Are these…tunnels? Where are we?"
The organic stone is replaced by well-laid brick, stretching endlessly in every direction.
"We're underneath the castle. In its catacombs."
"I didn't realize there were–"
My words are cut short when the brick walls suddenly begin to swim in my vision. I stumble.
"(Y/N)!"
San catches me before I fall. My head pounds as the searing pain in my arm returns. The cut Yeosang gave me is deep, still bleeding profusely. San reaches for it.
"I'm all right. Really."
"The hell you are."
Without asking, San sweeps me up into his arms, holding me close.
"What are you–? It's not that bad, I–"
"Don't start with me, seongjil-i nappeuda girl."
The cryptic work is sharp on San's tongue.
"What did you call me?"
But San doesn't answer. He carries me to a corner of the tunnel, clean of debris and eases me down. Then he pulls my arm close, examining the deep claw marks Yeosang gave me.
"That fucking prick."
"Your brother is a monster."
"I wish I could say you're wrong but–"
San stops short as another tremendous wave of pain threatens to knock me unconscious.
"Damn it. You've lost way too much blood."
His voice changes, hardening with a panicked cadence I've never heard before. I suddenly feel the full effects of my wound. My clothes are soaked through with my blood and I shiver uncontrollably.
"If you had your full wolf, you could heal faster. At this rate…"
"At this rate, I'll die. Is that it?"
"…Yes. But I won't let that happen."
Making a decision, San vaults on top of me.
"What are you doing?"
"Listen. I know you don't trust me. I'm used to that feeling. I've known it my whole life."
His eyes flash silver as he lowers himself down toward my body.
"But right now, you need to trust me. Just this once."
He starts to whisper in another language, his eyes growing brighter.
"Jguwa hang-gong-eulo. Bulgwa mullo. Geuleoni dangsin-eun nae buleum-eul deudge doel geos-ibnida."
The ancient, cryptic words gather like storm clouds, growing more potent with each syllable. His mouth is so close now, his hot words feathering over my torn flesh. Then…the wound starts to stitch itself back together.
"Oh my God. How–?"
"Don't move, (Y/N) Let it work."
"Okay. I'll trust you."
I stay perfectly still, awestruck by what I'm witnessing.
"Tasaeng-gwa jaesaeng-ui him. Chimmuggwa pyeonghwaui him. I mom-eul chilyohaejuseyo."
The words spill from his mouth with ease, like it's a language he was born speaking. With each whispering command, my arm heals itself. The torn flesh rejoins with no scarring and no pain.
I've never seen a wolf do this before.
I look up at his silver eyes, shining like twin pools of starlight.
Come to think of it, I've never seen a wolf who looks like him either.
"Sangcheobad-eun ideul-eul chiyuhae jusibsio."
San brushes his thumb over my healed flesh…then, he looks up at me.
"It should be better now."
"It…it is. Thank you."
"Thank you for trusting me to do that. It wouldn't have worked otherwise."
"What…was that?"
San tears off a piece of his shirt to clean me off with.
"It's an old language. I just used it to ask for…help.
"Just? That was incredible. It was like nothing I've ever seen. It was like magic.
San flinches at my last word. Everything goes still.
"San, was that…actually magic?"
"…I don't like to use that word."
"So, that's a yes."
"It's more of a parlor trick than anything. Just something my mother taught me."
"I'd hardly call healing a wound in seconds a parlor trick. How come I've never heard–"
"No one can know."
San's words cut through the echoing chamber, punctuated with anxiety.
"What?"
"No one can know I did that. It's…forbidden."
He meets my eyes, a look like black fire flickering there. I've never seen him more serious.
"Promise me, (Y/N). Promise me you'll never tell anyone about this. Please. It's important."
"I promise, San. Your secret is safe."
I put my hand over my heart.
"I swear. I would never betray your trust with something this important."
San's shoulders dip as he relaxes, the hard lines of his brow smoothing once again.
"Thank you."
"It's the least I can do. After all, you just saved my life."
He looks down at my arm. At my smooth, unscarred skin.
"I never thought I'd show that to anyone. Let alone use it to save a life. I wonder what my mouth would think of all this."
I think back on the Queen. On her rigid demeanor.
"The Queen taught you magic? Really?"
"The Queen? No. Not at all."
"But you just said–"
"The Queen is not my mother, (Y/N)."
I'm stunned into silence. San gets up and paces the chamber, his back to me.
"My mother…she was a servant girl here in the castle. A slave, really. Kidnapped from her homeland."
His hands curl into fists as he speaks.
"That's how I know that language. And why my eyes are the way they are."
He reaches up to his neck, touching the violent mark that's seared into his flesh.
"And that's why I have this."
I stare at the painful symbol near his throat.
"That name people call you…Saekki…is it an insult?"
"You could say that. It's a word for exactly what I am. A bastard."
Everything falls into place.
"That's why you're eldest but not Alpha King. And why everyone treats you like–"
"Like a weak stain on my father's legacy. And they're right."
San digs his nails into the mark on his neck, drawing a bead of blood.
"If I were stronger, you wouldn't be in this mess. I would have taken my brother's throne long ago. But I am what they've branded me. A bastard with weak blood in his veins."
The words leave San's mouth with venom. The same venom he's grown up hearing everyday of his life. My heart aches as I stare up at him. His whole body shakes and he can't meet my eyes.
"San, I think being a bastard has made you stronger. Not weaker."
"What?"
"You heard me."
I rise to my feet, taking a slow, careful step toward San.
"Being a bastard has not made you weak. It's made you incredibly resilient."
He looks at me then, watching me cross the room with renewed strength.
"You've grown up in a prison. Surrounded by people who look down on you… And yet you're still standing. You're still fighting."
When I reach him, I pull his hand away from his neck, wiping the blood from his fingertips.
"You have more willpower than anyone I've ever met. You're strong, San."
He stares at me, as though he's never known kindness like this in his life. Then, haunting footsteps rumble out of the depths of the catacombs. We both turn in the direction of the sound.
"That must be Yeosang. We should hide somewhere."
"No. Even though I know these tunnels better than he does, I'm sure he's capable of finding us."
"That what should we–"
"Come."
San takes my hand pulls me down one tunnel, then another, turning expertly through them.
"How do you know where you're going?"
"I spent a lot of time down here when I was a kind. It was the only place where my mother and I could see each other.
I fall silent, staring at San's broad back.
The weight he carries on his shoulders…
Suddenly, we emerge in the crumbling ruins of the castle.
"Wait. We're back in here? I thought you were helping me escape."
"I am."
"You have a plan I'm not aware of?"
"Now you're catching on. This is the farthest reach of the castle. The easiest path to freedom is through here. Maybe you'll understand this better now, knowing my secret."
San hikes over the fallen bricks, the outline of his athletic body silhouetted by the rising sun.
"My mother…she was kidnapped and made my father's concubine. She had no say. And you saw those servants from the kitchen…I want to take the throne to change all that."
"But you can't do that without me."
His eyes darken.
"I won't replace one wrong with another. I'll find another way. Now, go."
With one last nod of thanks, I start to climb up a fallen column to freedom. But a dark shadow blocks my path.
"There you are." Yeosang grins.
"Run, (Y/N)!" San shouts.
Yeosang throws a powerful arm out to grab me, but I am too fast. I duck underneath it and run. I'm almost to the window. But Yeosang grabs my hair, pulling me back against him.
"I have to hand it to you. You're quick. I almost didn't catch you."
"Look around you. The sun is up. You lost this hunt."
"I don't see anyone around to support that argument. And last I checked…you're in my arms."
"She doesn't belong to you."
San launches himself at Yeosang, and the two of them fight bitterly with me in the middle. I dodge hefty blows.
"ENOUGH."
Roslyn's voice brings both San and Yeosang to heel. She pins them with her icy stare as she walks into the crumbling hall.
"What is this nonsense about a hunt and winning? Do you think the line of succession is a joke?"
"I think it's a joke. A pathetic one." I answer.
"I didn't ask you. You're as much something I own as this dress on my back."
"Don't talk to her that way." San growls.
San shoves me behind him, stepping in front of Roslyn. SMACK! Roslyn strikes San hard across the mouth. My heart practically stops with the force of it.
"I told you. The Eastern Packs are rising. They don't recognize the legitimacy of Yeosang's rule because your whore mother birthed you a mere month before him."
I expect San to fight back, to say something in return. But Roslyn's words have cut too deep. He wipes blood from his lips, his eyes lowered. She runs a thumb over the mark on his neck.
"I have to admit. I regret having this hammered into your skin when you were five years old. I should have just sliced your fucking throat instead."
Her words ring in my ears like the aftershock of a bomb. San is paralyzed. She raises her hand at him again.
"Touch him again and I'll cut that hand from your wrist, you hideous cunt."
Roslyn's hand stops mid-air. I shirk Yeosang off and step in front of San.
"What in God's name do you think you're–"
"San and his mother have nothing to do with pack tensions and you know it. The way you and your filthy Alpha son rule over us, treating us like actual animals, is the problem."
"(Y/N)."
San whispers my anime on the softest, stunned breath, watching me with a mixture of wonder and terror.
"I'll have your tongue removed for such fucking insolence!"
The Queen dives on me, but I elbow her hard and take off running. I make it up the column, and out into the open air. I sprint out into a decrepit courtyard, running for my life. But I come to an abrupt halt when a sword flies out from behind a stone wall, nearly beheading me.
"What do we have here?"
The man's rumbling, thick eastern dialect is followed by the heavy footfall of his leather boots. He emerges, an oily smile plastered on his face.
"Ah, are you what our Alpha King is doing for fun these days? How lucky for him."
"What he's doing is of no concern to me."
"Now, that is where you're wrong. See, he and I are having a bit of an argument. And I've come to tell him that what's his is mine. And well, you…"
The man licks his teeth as his sharp blade travels down my clavicle, slicing into the top of my shirt.
"(Y/N)."
San growls, dropping down from the window to land beside me with a murderous glare. Then, Yeosang drops down on my other side.
"Dimitri. What are you doing here?" Yeosang asks with a stern look.
"Ah, if it isn't the false King and the bastard Prince. You didn't respond to my letter, Your Highness. I was deeply hurt. So I thought I'd come and show you just how painful that rejection felt."
The man presses the blade into my cleavage, threatening to puncture my chest.
"Shall we make this girl the first spoil of our war?"