Chapter 357

Nina

The door creaked open, and I tensed, expecting to see the stern faces of my parents, armed with a lecture or two.

Instead, it was Enzo. His eyes met mine, and he looked softer than I’d ever seen him. Tyler gave me a knowing smile, touched my hand briefly, and left, closing the door behind him.

Enzo hesitated, his eyes shifting from me to the ground. The room seemed to swallow us both, making his silence fill the space like thick fog.

“Do you think I”m crazy?” I finally blurted out, unable to stand the tension any longer.

He looked up, his eyes locking onto mine. “Put on something suitable for going outside,” he said, his voice gentle but firm. “We’re going for a run.”

I glanced at the window, confused. “Now? A run? Enzo, it’s—”

“Not that kind of run,” he interrupted, his eyes flickering with an inner fire I recognized all too well.

Ah. That kind of run.

Rushing to my closet, I slipped out of my dress and into leggings and a sweatshirt.

We tiptoed through the maze-like corridors of the mansion, dodging family members and avoiding the areas where I knew my parents and their guests would be congregating. Finally, we reached the back door, slipped outside, and it felt like we could finally breathe a sigh of relief.

We barely exchanged a word as we darted into the forest behind the mansion. Once we were far enough from prying eyes, we stopped and looked at each other.

“Ready?” he asked, his eyes full of concern and something else—anticipation, perhaps?

I nodded. In the next moment, we shifted, our human forms melting away as our wolf forms took over. I felt an overwhelming surge of freedom, as though this was the most natural way to live.

With a quick glance at one another we took off, running through the forest like we had been locked up for years. The wind howled in my ears as we darted between trees, leapt over logs, and splashed through streams.

For the first time in weeks, I felt at peace. The oppressive weight of the visions, the dread, the confusion—it all seemed to evaporate, leaving me feeling astonishingly free.

We ran until our legs could carry us no further, and then we stopped. Shifting back to our human forms, I looked around and realized where we were. The place was all too familiar, but I hadn’t visited it in a long time.

It was Selena’s grave.

It felt like she had just been buried, like it was the day of her funeral all over again. And yet, the grass had grown over her grave, the leaves on the trees had returned, and there was the scent of fresh flowers in the air.

Her grave was a small, carefully maintained clearing in the forest, hidden away from the rest of the world. A simple stone marker stood in the middle, Selena’s name and dates etched into it. It was a place of sorrow, but also one of remembrance.

“I thought you might need to be here,” Enzo whispered, as if reading my thoughts.

His words hung heavy in the air, and I felt my eyes brim with tears. But then, something odd happened. A faint stir, a delicate flutter, deep within my belly. I instinctively placed a hand on my abdomen, my eyes widening as I met Enzo’s gaze.

His eyes were soft, searching, almost hopeful. “Are you okay?” he asked, his voice filled with a note of concern.

But the sensation was gone just as quickly as it had come, leaving me to believe that it was just in my imagination.

“Yeah,” I managed to say, my voice a little shaky. “I think I am.”

“Come here,” Enzo said, holding his hand out for me. “Let’s sit.”

I took his hand and followed him to a stone bench that my father had placed nearby her grave, beneath a weeping willow tree. The long fronds of the tree swayed gently in the early summer breeze, rustling soothingly.

Sitting there, beside Selena’s modest yet beautiful grave, with Enz’'s hand gripping mine as if he could shield me from the pain with just his touch, I felt an overwhelming urge to spill everything.

Maybe it was the flicker of something inexplicable I had felt in my belly or the softness in Enzo’s eyes; maybe it was just the weight of all the secrets I had been carrying. Whatever it was, I needed to talk.

“Enzo, I think it’s time I tell you everything,” I said, my voice shaky but determined.

He looked at me, his eyes focused and attentive. “Go ahead. I’m listening.”

I took a deep breath. “I’ve been seeing something—someone, rather. A shadow entity. It’s like a looming figure in the dark, with hollow eyes, and it terrifies me. I don’t know if it’s real or not.”

His grip tightened around my hand. “What are you saying, Nina? This sounds—”

“Dangerous? Insane?” I blurted out.

“No.” Enzo’s eyes softened. “It sounds serious, Nina. Why didn’t you tell me about it sooner?”

I swallowed, shrugging. “I… I don’t know, honestly. Maybe I thought it would go away on its own. Maybe I thought that you would think I was crazy or something.”

He looked genuinely distressed. “Nina, you’re not alone in this. We’ll figure it out. But what if this is some sort of reaction to everything you’ve been through? I wish you had told me sooner, that’s all.”

“I know I should have,” I murmured. “I just… thought I could handle it on my own, I guess.”

“But you don’t really believe that.”

“No, I don’t.”

His face tightened, and I could practically see the gear turning in his head. “Listen, after tonight, I’m not sure if it’s such a good idea if I go to this job after all. Six months away from you when you’re dealing with a pregnancy, medical school, and now this?”

I shook my head, squeezing his hand back. “You can’t put your life on hold for me, Enzo. You have dreams, ambitions. Don’t let me pull you back.”

“But—”

“I’ve decided to get help, okay?” I said, my eyes pleading with him. “I’ll go to therapy. Maybe they can help me sort out whether this shadow is something real or just a projection of my own fears.”

Enzo’s face lightened, and relief seemed to wash over him. “That’s...that’s a big step, Nina. I know it’s hard for you, and I’m proud of you.”

I smiled, my heart feeling a little lighter. “Just promise me, Enzo, that you won’t give up on your dreams. Finish your job and keep moving forward.”

He met my eyes, his gaze intense. “I’ll promise you that if you promise to stick with therapy. And maybe even consider staying here, with your parents, at least throughout the pregnancy.”

I frowned. “I’ll think about it. The idea of being under my parents’ roof, away from my friends here in the werewolf realm, isn’t the most ideal option. But I’ll consider it if it would make you happy.”

“It would,” he said gently, giving my hand another squeeze. “It really would.”

We sat in silence for a few more minutes, our eyes drifting back to Selena’s grave. It was a strange sensation, but for a brief moment, it felt like Selena was there with us. Maybe it was just the twin bond, forever searching for its other half nwo that she was gone, but it was a comfort of sorts.

“Come on,” Enzo finally said, breaking the stillness. “Let’s head back.”

As we walked through the back entrance of the mansion, I noticed it was surprisingly quiet. The laughter and chatter that had filled the air earlier had dissipated, and all of the guests had gone home.

“They’re gone,” I mused. “The guests left.”

Enzo smiled. “Good. We could both use some peace.”

But the quiet was short-lived. My father’s voice echoed from his office down the hall, firm and urgent.

“Enzo, Nina, I need to speak with both of you.”