Chapter Two: A Captive’s Dilemma
Evanora’s POV
Two days in this cell, and I’d already memorized every crack in the stone walls. The creaky cot. The rusted window latch. The wolf sigils carved into the drinking cup they’d handed me. Thoughtful, really—if you’re the kind of person who appreciates decorative captivity.
The guards offered food. I declined. Not out of defiance, but biology. Meat did nothing for me. What I needed was blood.
The door creaked open again. I stayed where I was—curled on my side, staring at nothing.
Kaden stepped in.
The Beta.
Too composed for his own good. And annoyingly observant.
“The guards say you haven’t eaten,” he said, tone almost gentle. “You planning to starve your way out of here?”
I didn’t look at him. “I don’t eat wolf food.”
He stepped closer. “What do you eat then?”
“Not your concern,” I muttered, pushing upright. “But if you must know—blood.”
That gave him pause.
“I’m supposed to believe you’re a vampire now?”
I shrugged. “Belief is optional. I’m just stating facts.”
He studied me a moment longer, then turned to the door. “I’ll see what I can do.”
Before I could reply, he was gone again. No guards posted this time—just the heavy click of the lock sliding into place.
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I leaned against the wall, tired down to my bones. If they knew what I really was… if anyone here had sense enough to test my bloodline properly, I’d be ash in a heartbeat. Or bound in chains made of old silver and worse spells.
Instead, they thought I was someone else. A lost wolf girl.
Let them.
I’d wear that lie as long as I had to.
The blood came an hour later—lukewarm and served in a wolf-stamped cup. I drank it all fast, and let the energy settle through me like thawing ice.
Relief bloomed in my limbs. It wasn’t human. It wasn’t vampire-grade. But it would do.
The moment passed. Boredom settled back in.
I studied the cup. Two wolves howling at a crescent moon, trees curling around them like watchful sentinels. The craftsmanship was impressive—if unnecessarily poetic.
I set it gently on the floor and wandered back to the window. Pushed it open just enough to let a gust of red-sand wind strike my face.
Below me: dunes. Endless, sun-seared, hostile. Not a soul in sight. No guards. No towers. No buildings. Just desert and heat.
Even if I escaped, I’d burn before I made it to shade.
Still... it was tempting.
I sighed, rubbing the side of my temple. I wasn’t ready. Not yet. The vampire court thought I was dead. The werewolf realm believed I was a misplaced alpha’s daughter. Everyone was wrong.
And I was still alive.
That had to mean something.
At least… it should.
I lay back down, letting the exhaustion pull me toward sleep.
But this time, it wasn’t silence that greeted me.
It was smoke.
White. Subtle at first. Threading through cracks in the stone. I felt it before I saw it—cool on my skin, then burning in my lungs.
Wolf’s bane.
I sat up fast, blinking as a sharp sting sliced through my eyes. My throat burned. My head began to pound.
Not enough to kill me.
Just enough to disorient.
I stumbled toward the window, dragging in a shallow breath. The smoke thickened around me like mist—beautiful, poisonous mist.
This wasn’t an accident.
They were testing me.
Seeing how I reacted. How long I’d stay conscious. If I’d shift. If I’d snap.
I gritted my teeth and dropped to my knees beside the cot, hands pressed over my ears, trying to ride it out.
It would pass. I would outlast it.
I always did.
Eventually, the smoke began to fade—fainter now, curling back toward the corners like it had finished its job.
My lungs burned, but my mind stayed clear.
And that, I realized, might have been the point.
They wanted to see what I was. And now they had one more clue.
I wasn’t like them.
I wasn’t broken by it.
But I wasn’t immune either.
A test.
A warning.
A promise of what might come next.
And I wasn’t sure if that should scare me...
...or them.
